Out & About Magazine Autumn 2020

BOOKS GERALDINE GARDNER recommends some of the books she read during lockdown, including a contemporary fictional account of German-occupied France during the Second World War, a searing saga of a Korean family struggling to survive in Japan, an old-fashioned memoir of a retired barrister and a compelling psychological examination of a tragic murder Out&About leisure

S uite Francais by Irène Némirovsky is a bold and ambitious saga chronicling the German occupation of France during the Second World War. What marks this remarkable book out from the many fictional accounts of the same period, is that Némirovsky was living through it – in fact the Russian- Jew paid the ultimate price when she was taken to Pithiviers concentration camp and from there to Auschwitz, where she died in 1942. Her magnum opus remained unfinished, with just two of the five planned movements of the suite completed. The book was only translated and published about 15 years ago, when one of her daughters realised what it was. The first thing to say about it, is how extraordinarily fresh and contemporary it feels. Whether this is down to the skill of the translator Sandra Smith or whether it is precisely because Némirovsky was living through the goings-on in France, I couldn’t say, but for me it gives it an extra poignancy, knowing that the author had witnessed the sort of behaviour, fear, courage and absurdity she chronicles in this epic. The story opens in Paris, as news of the Germans’ imminent arrival spreads and various families and individuals get ready to flee to the south of France. There are the wealthy Péricands, whose preparations for departure are a source of ridicule for the reader as they witness their impractical priorities about what to take. Another character, the author Corte, is most concerned about preserving his manuscripts and the eccentric Charles Langelet thinks everyone is out to get him and also expects to be looked after at every turn – he provides some of the funniest moments in the book, particularly when he returns to Paris, no spoilers. There are the kind-hearted down-to- earth Michauds, whose son is missing, but they have faith he will return to them. The reader discovers more about

Old Filth by Jane Gardam

Filth is an acronym for Fail In London Try Hong Kong, as well as the nickname of Sir Edward

Feathers, an eminent barrister – who made a fortune in Hong Kong. Jane Gardam’s lively and funny book reveals secrets from the retired barrister’s life through a series of flashbacks, interspersed with his ‘adventures’ in old age.

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee A Korean family struggle to make ends meet in Japan, where they are

the injured Jean-Marie Michaud when he makes an appearance in the second ‘movement’ of the suite and hopefully it was intended that he would eventually reunite with his parents. The description of the journey that the various families and groups undertake borders on the absurd in some instances and highlights both the selfishness and goodness of humankind. The next part of the book takes us to Bussy where the locals secretly resent the presence of the Germans who have taken over the town. The ‘heroine’ of this section is Lucile Angellier, who has to deal with her cantankerous mother- in-law, as well as her growing affection for Bruno von Falk, the German who is billeted in their house. Perhaps surprisingly, the Germans are treated with some compassion by Némirovsky, who shows them as humans with flaws and hapless puppets in the bigger drama that is being played out. The tensions surrounding the different characters in the town, the way townsfolk tell on each other to protect themselves and how families unite to protect those in trouble is beautifully and exquisitely told. It is an extraordinary example of fiction that was written in extraordinary times, making it all the more compelling.

considered second-class citizens. This sprawling novel opens in the early 20th-century in an idyllic Korean village, then takes the reader through the experiences of four generations and how they adapt and change to fit in. It is a compelling account of a part of history that is little-known in the western world.

Lullaby by Leila Slimani Not so much of a whodunnit, more of a why... the story opens with the murder of two children by their nanny. The reader is then taken back in time

to see what led to this tragic event – and it’s not straightforward. The book is a social commentary on issues such as mental health, the dilemmas faced by working mothers and prejudice. It may sound bleak, but it is surprisingly absorbing and thought- provoking. Translated from French by Sam Taylor.

You can find book reviews on the Newbury Today website www.newburytoday.co.uk/out&about/books Leave your comments and tell us what you think of the books or email geraldine.gardner@newburynews.co.uk

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O&A AUTUMN 2020