Book Reviews

The Secrets We Kept Lara Prescott

The debut novel from US author Lara Prescott delves into the secretive Cold War world of CIA involvement in distributing Russian literary heavyweight Boris Pasternak’s Dr Zhivago, banned in the Soviet Union – seen as “not just a book, but a weapon”. From 1949, The Secrets We Kept covers the next decade by alternating from East to West, following both Pasternak and his muse as well as the women in the CIA typing pool, particularly spy-in-training Irina and part-time receptionist and agent provocateur Sally. Slightly slow to start, the novel then draws the reader into the emotional lives of the characters and their ever-changing roles and personas, questioning not only what is banned in the East, but also in the West. No mere spy thriller, it is, as the typists say of Dr Zhivago, both “a war story and a love story... but it was the love story we remembered most”. 7/10

Serotonin Michel Houellebecq

Dying of sorrow, in a job going nowhere and a relationship that has stalled, Florent-claude Labrouste decides to turn his back on his life by going “voluntarily missing”. Devoid of purpose, meandering from hotel to holiday cottage across France, the 46-year-old finds himself increasingly confronted by elements from the past he has tried to shed. Bouts of nothingness are punctured by observations of brutal, abusive sex and agricultural angst, while a newly released anti-depressant renders him impotent. It’s hard to get on with a narrator who contemplates murdering his ex-lover’s young son. His is a world of exhausting bleakness, where effort does not equal reward, where violence skulks behind every activity, where people try to insulate themselves through sex, drugs, or take refuge in nostalgia. An uncomfortable, if interesting, read. 7/10

The Institute Stephen King 6/10 March Of The Moderates: Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, and the Rebirth of Progressive Politics Richard Carr

The polarisation of the main political parties is a transatlantic lament today. In this book, the academic Richard Carr traces how New Labour and the US Democratic Party found their way out of such political wildernesses in the 1980s. His self-confessedly “top-down” account focuses on individuals and their intellectual development: only politicos will follow every name-drop, but the narrative remains readable. Carr aims to distil the benefits of “Third Way” politics, awkwardly shrinking the financial crash and Iraq into wider context. A convincing case is made for Clinton and Blair’s progressive pragmatism. The line between chasing and shaping public opinion sometimes blurs. Carr’s story makes engaging history, but it remains to be seen whether his centrist lessons hold in an age when not just politics but also public opinion is polarised.

7/10

Explorers Nellie Huang and illustrator Jessamy Hawke

Little explorers will be amazed and inspired by the adventurers featured in this book and how they have shaped the world today. From the explorers of Ancient Greece and the era of Christopher Columbus to astronauts and modern-day travel bloggers, author Nellie Huang tells the stories of more than 50 adventurers. Alongside the likes of Sir Francis Drake and James Cook, it also features less well-known intrepid explorers from around the world, all of whom have pushed boundaries. They all have one thing in common – enormous courage. French botanist Jeanne Baret was the first woman to sail around the world, but had to go undercover as a man to be allowed on naval ships. It may be a bit detailed for the younger readers, but illustrator Jessamy Hawke helps bring these incredible human feats to life.

8/10