Tag: 1970s

Sudden Rain by Maritta Wolff

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About the book

Now that “Sudden Rain” has come out of its hiding place — in Wolff’s refrigerator, found after her death — it remains gloriously frozen in time. Set in the fall of 1972, the novel perfectly captures, with expansive emotion and cinematic detail, the domestic trends of three generations of middle-class couples living in suburban Los Angeles. A brilliant portrait of its burgeoning era, “Sudden Rain “also offers striking cultural commentary on our everyday notions of love and marriage; individuality, equality, and community; and the promise and pursuit of the American Dream.”

Reviewed by Monks Brook U3A

The group as a whole disliked this book, finding the characters shallow, self centred and two-dimensional. The ending does not fit with the rest of the plot and leaves many loose ends, so much so that we wonder if it was written by someone else!”

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Disordered Minds by Minette Walters

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About the book

In 1970, Harold Stamp, a retarded twenty-year-old was convicted on disputed evidence and a retracted confession of brutally murdering his grandmother – the one person who understood and protected him. Less than three years later he is dead, driven to suicide by isolation and despair. A fate befitting a murderer, perhaps, but what if he were innocent?

Thirty years on, Jonathan Hughes, an anthropologist specialising in social stereotyping, comes across the case by accident. He finds alarming disparities in the evidence and has little doubt that Stamp’s conviction was a terrible miscarriage of justice. But how far is Hughes prepared to go in the search for justice? Is the forgotten story of one friendless young man compelling enough to make him leave his books and face his own demons?

And with what result? If Stamp didn’t murder Grace Jeffries then somebody else did . . . and sleeping dogs are best left alone . . .

Reviewed by Totton 1

We didn’t enjoy this book. Hard to engage with and a bit messy”

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Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell

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About the book

It’s July 1976. In London, it hasn’t rained for months, gardens are filled with aphids, water comes from a standpipe, and Robert Riordan tells his wife Gretta that he’s going round the corner to buy a newspaper. He doesn’t come back. The search for Robert brings Gretta’s children – two estranged sisters and a brother on the brink of divorce – back home, each with different ideas as to where their father might have gone. None of them suspects that their mother might have an explanation that even now she cannot share.

Reviewed by Enjoying Books

“This is a book about relationships within a family. Vividly portrayed, intense, Irish family lives brought to life. Some thought it short on plot, but most enjoyed it”

star rating ***

 

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Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan

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About the book

The year is 1972. The Cold War is far from over. Britain is being torn apart by industrial unrest and terrorism. Serena Frome, in her final year at Cambridge, is being groomed for MI5. Serena is sent on a secret mission – Operation Sweet Tooth – which brings her into the world of Tom Haley, a promising young writer. First she loves his stories, then she begins to love the man. Can she maintain the fiction of her undercover life? And who is inventing whom? To answer these questions, Serena must abandon the first rule of espionage – trust no one.

 

Reviewed by Enjoying Books

Many of us are Ian McEwan fans and enjoyed his superb writing in this novel set in the seventies. Some found it self indulgent, others were hooked. Recommended.”

star rating *** ½

 

 

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Teacher, teacher by Jack Sheffield

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About the book

It’s 1977 and Jack Sheffield is appointed headmaster of a small village primary school in North Yorkshire. So begins Jack‘s eventful journey through the school year and his attempts to overcome the many problems that face him as a young and inexperienced headmaster.

Reviewed by Biscuits, Books and Banter

Most agreed it was an OK read but nothing very remarkable. Many thought it was all too twee with all the problems getting sorted out and village life portrayed as idyllic in the 1970s. We thought it may make a good Sunday night drama as each chapter was like an episode with problems solved by the end.

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Lazy Eye by Donna Daley-Clarke

Karin, Hampshire Libraries2 Comments

About the book

At nineteen, Geoffhurst is getting along just fine – he’s got his own flat away from his family, his eight jars to divide his dole cheque (one for each day; one for saving), his standing order at Madame Wong’s Chinese Restaurant. Then a reporter from the local newspaper offers to pay him to tell his story – the story of what happened eight years ago, when something happened that even with his lazy eye he couldn’t help but stare right in the face. In the long, hot, legendary summer of ’76, Geoffhurst’s life was full of superheroes. His father was one of the first black professional footballers, his six-foot mother was the most glamorous woman in the neighbourhood and his aunt was a witch. His alter-ego was the Hulk, and his gang was the Four Aces. If he could get through the heat, he could get through anything. But sometimes even superheroes meet their match, and that year the storms that cracked the skies spelt more than just the end of summer; they spelt the end of Geoffhurst’s childhood.

Reviewed by October Books Reading Group:

Much to praise in this first novel – excellent child’s eye view of the world, and description of rain in 1976. Some found the language off-putting and the writer perhaps tried to pack too many themes into her initial book.

Star rating: **

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