The Persuader, Lee Child

'1 Book, 2 Courses, 0 Customers - It's Christmas 2012'

.... Light relief at the Robin Hood Inn, East Wallhouses, Northumberland.

A lonely Christmas celebration for the book group!

....  A lovely Chrstmas tree was the most significant presence in this sadly empty restaurant  - the venue for our Christmas get together, 18th December 2012.   Surrounded by streamers and treated to friendly, personal service, we enjoyed simple pub fayre - large portions which were value for money.  The sad silence at the Robin Hood was quite deafening and maybe the result of this pub's relative isolation combined with the seasonal clamp down on drink driving and ongoing no smoking policies. 

....  Spurred on by the forthcoming Jack Reacher movie, we felt that Jack would be poorly protrayed by Tom Cruise.  Jack Reacher is sexy, blonde, 6'5'', tough and can take what people throw at him.  Tom Cruise is not.  

Our discussions  moved naturally onto scientology, pre-nuptial agreements and fantasies of Ewan McGregor as Jack Reacher. 

 

Fast moving light relief
 

....  And!  Eventually to The Persuader!  We appreciated its focus on plot - a refreshing change from previous books crafted to convey a profound social message.  This was light hearted,  fast paced, a page turner, with fiendish violence, a frisson....and a satisfying victory.    Jack Reacher can survive impossible scrapes, only kills baddies, has a well described armoury (? too well described),  and always ends up on top. 

....  As we exchanged seasonal wishes and bid farewell to 2012,  we planned our film review at The Forum Cinema seeing Life of Pi which was our first ever book group book.
 

We read it, we watched it, we loved it!

....  The movie was amazing- captivating opening scenes - and we all felt it complemented the book. 

Please comment and share your views


THE ACCIDENTAL by ALI SMITH

So to our first book of 2013 - The Accidental by Ali Smith - we will be reviewing this at the start of February.  Please comment and share your views. 

                                                                                                                                    December 2012

Why be Happy When you Could be Normal by Jeanette Winterson

'Very Well Written'

....  Although on the whole the group did not understand this book, they all agreed it was very well written.  Some interesting insights, but disappointing and on occasion frustrating as we wanted to know more about the authors upbringing. We would recommend reading the  novel 'Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit' by Jeanette Winterson, this was made into a television drama some years ago and was very popular.

....  Back to the Black Bull in Corbridge. This turning into quite a favourite.  You have to choose wisely, but the ambiance and service are good.

....  Back to a wartime book.  Share our views on ...

MY DEAR I WANTED TO TELL YOU by LOUISA YOUNG

8 July 2012

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach

'New and Interesting'

....  This was a very easy read, and dealt with an interesting subject, questioning ideas of retirement. The book tackled the issue of growing old in away that was both humorous and sad.  The casting of the film made it very watchable and very funny at times, with a touch of melancholy.

....  Previous visits to the Queen's Head Great Whittington have been very good.  However, this time it was a complete let down.  The Queen's Head had been closed for some time and has now been reopened under new management.  There was one very good starter and we all wished we'd ordered that!. Lets hope next time will be more of a success.

....  A controversial book for next month.  Let us know what you think of ...

WHY BE HAPPY WHEN YOU COULD BE NORMAL by JEANETTE WINTERSON

March 2012