The Girl from the Chartreuse by Pierre Peju

DATE FINISHED: March 28th, 2012

RATED: *** (3.5)

SYNOPSIS:  A bookseller driving his van through the crowded streets of a small French town knocks down a young girl whose mother has failed to collect her from school.  While the girl is in a coma, Vollard tells her stories from his immense memory; and Eva’s mother drifts in and out of the hospital, more trapped than ever.  Both must live with their guilt over the child’s situation, and what will happen if & when the child wakes up?

THOUGHTS:  Despite the appealing jacket and the emotionally drama-wrought potential of the synopsis above, this is a very quiet novel, about two adults who are lost in different ways, for different reasons.  

No and Me by Delphine de Vigan

DATE FINISHED: August 19th, 2011

RATED: ***

SYNOPSIS:  A schoolgirl with a high IQ and a mother in deep depression, befriends a homeless girl for a school project, but soon finds she is out of her depth.

THOUGHTS:  I think if I had read this book as a teenager I would have loved it.  

Our Precious Lulu by Anne Fine

DATE FINISHED: April 26th, 2011

RATED: ****

SYNOPSIS: Lulu – ex-stepdaughter/stepsister – is the archetypal cuckoo in the nest. Since their shared childhood, Geraldine has always felt eclipsed by Lulu’s dramatic moods, demands and sneaky tricks, and her mother’s determination to sweep the drama under the carpet at Geraldine’s expense. Luckily, the unflappable and relentlessly supportive Robert is on Geraldine’s side, but as parenthood looms for one of the ‘sisters’, Geraldine’s frustration builds to breaking point. Something has to give – but who or what will it be?

THOUGHTS:

Sulphuric Acid by Amelie Nothomb

DATE FINISHED: April 18th, 2011

RATED: *** (3.5)

SYNOPSIS: A large number of people are randomly incarcerated and their lives in a specially created death camp are televised for the viewing public in the latest reality TV project: working all day long, surviving on gruel and stale bread, prisoners are daily condemned to death. Inmate Pannonique captures the imagination of the public and camp alike but does she have the power to put an end to the insane project?

THOUGHTS:

The Second Coming by John Niven

DATE FINISHED: April 7th, 2011

RATED: **

SYNOPSIS: God has been on a fishing trip, and when he gets back he’s more than a little pissed off to see the horrors that have been inflicted on the world & humanity in his absence.  Jesus is therefore sent back to earth to rectify some of the damage, and decides that the best way to reach the most people is to compete in America’s most popular TV talent show.

THOUGHTS:  Firstly, I should say that I know I am not this book’s intended target market so I do feel I am being slightly unfair in commenting at all.  However,