Ordinary people
Marina Lewycka’s latest novel critiques the plight of the working poor in London. The Women’s Bookshop’s Tanya Gribben ,is won over.
Achance visit to the Finsbury Health Centre introduced Marina Lewycka to the modernist architect Berthold Lubetkin, who believed ‘nothing was too good for ordinary people’.
Madeley Court, a block of council flats designed by Lubetkin, is the the setting for Lewycka’s new novel.
Here we meet Berthold Sidebottom and his new neighbour Violet.
Bertie is a cantankerous, selfcentred, out-of-work Shakespearean actor. ‘‘Oh horror, horror, horror’’ – at one point he has to don a coffee bean suit to give away coffee beans.
The novel is really very funny but it does not shirk from serious issues.
Violet, young and idealistic, is its moral compass. She rallies her neighbours against a plan to sell off the cherry grove next to their building, and uncovers corporate corruption in Nairobi.
Scams abound. There’s also Bertie’s audacious scam to hold onto his flat; meanwhile the Wrest ’n’ Piece funeral parlour mixes up bodies.
Lewycka manages all this with a deft and humorous touch, keeping the narrative lively and engaging.
She is also adept at creating believable characters. Violet is not faultless, falling for the charms of her sleazy boss ‘‘with a chin dimple, and a twinkling smile that reminds her of Jude Law’’.
Bertie compares himself to George Clooney. They share a birthday and they are both actors, but the similarities pretty much end there, although fun is had with ‘What would George do now?’ asides peppered through the book.
When Inna, a friend of Bertie’s mother, moves into his flat, she mistakes him for ‘‘homosexy’’.
He self-importantly chooses not to correct her, as Clooney also refuses ‘‘to confirm or to deny out of respect for his gay friends’’.
Another delight is the depiction of London’s multicultural mix, with characters hailing from the Ukraine, Malawi, Zambia, Lithuania, and India joining forces to protest the proposed property development. A group of Romanian gypsies camp among the cherry trees.
The novel highlights how a common fight can bring the community together, and also pinpoints how it can fail to support its vulnerable members.
The government’s inhumanity is portrayed with humanity, humour and indignation. Legless Len’s benefit is cut when he fails to fulfil his zero-hour contract. A diabetic, he is unable to keep his insulin refrigerated when his electricity is cut off.
Bertie’s sympathetic caseworker the ‘‘gorgeous’’ Justin is fired for failing to meet his targets. Mrs Penny, the housing officer torn between doing her job and helping her clients, retreats to find her Inner Goddess. Violet is outraged at her company’s involvement with obscene and immoral profit.
Like Lubetkin, Lewycka reveals a deep love for the ordinary folk. The novel rails against Britain’s social welfare policies and uncaring bureaucracy. It is wonderful to read such a warm, humorous, indignant novel.