BOOKS OF THE WEEK
Day by Michael Cunningham Fourth Estate, £16.99 (ebook £9.99) Review by Bridie Pritchard
Day is the first novel in nearly a decade from Michael Cunningham, winner of the Pulitzer Prize. Set on April 5 in three successive years – 2019, 2020 and 2021 – it delicately details the relationships of an extended family based in Brooklyn from each person’s point of view. Fractures are starting to show, particularly between husband and wife Dan and Isabel. Robbie, Isabel’s brother, has to move out to give their children more space. A year on, the world has gone into lockdown – and fissures are beginning to be more exposed. Finally, a year later, we see the impact the pandemic has had. Cunningham’s writing is compassionate and elegant with each person’s dreams, fears and desires tenderly described.
Hard By A Great Forest by Leo Vardiashvili Bloomsbury Publishing, £16.99 (ebook £11.89) Review by Pol Allingham
Leo Vardiashvili’s debut novel sees a family separated over time between Tottenham and war-torn Georgia. A father and his two young sons flee their homeland and become refugees in north London, leaving behind the mother. Years later, the father, Irakli, leaves for Georgia, followed by one of the boys, both now fully grown. Protagonist Saba, the last remaining brother in London, travels to Tbilisi to find his family in what turns out to be a kaleidoscopic game of cat and mouse. The book is hampered by frequent cliches but overall is a heartfelt and lively story that is engaging and easy to read.
The Beholders by Hester Musson Fourth Estate, £16.99 (ebook £7.99) Review by Jackie Kingsley
Packed with period detail and engaging characters, The Beholders is a thoroughly engrossing Gothic thriller. Feisty, independent-minded housemaid Harriet has come to Finton Hall to wait on the enigmatic Clara Gethin. The house, which is the property of Clara’s husband, the much-admired, unimpeachably respectable Liberal MP Ralph Gethin, is as mysterious as its mistress, full of strange objects and ruled by a vicious housekeeper. There are other puzzles too. Why is Clara so cold towards her baby son? What happened to Harriet’s predecessor? And why does Clara keep firing housemaids? As the shocking truth emerges, Harriet finds herself in a race against time to help save Clara and her son.
The Showman by Simon Shuster William Collins, £22 (ebook £12.99) Review by James Cann
For decades as a superstar comedian in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky would lampoon the politicians who lived in luxurious mansions while their compatriots, like his own family, struggled to make ends meet. The standup launched his surprise presidential campaign by promising to be a servant of the people – and in 2019 they took him at his word and elected him. The Showman, crafted by Russia-Ukraine expert Simon Shuster throughout a year in close proximity to Zelensky and his government, skilfully charts his transformation into a war commander. We see how his charisma inspires both hope at home and vital international support as Ukraine strives to turn the tide in the ongoing conflict.