Modern Fiction Books > H Modern Fiction Books > by Author Name (First Letter)

Advantages: Descriptive, evocative, atmospheric.
Disadvantages: Languorous, overwritten, saaaaaad.

Shirley Hazzard's first novel The Transit of Venus won the National Book Critics' Circle Award in 1981, but like transits of Venus, there was a long wait before her next. More than two decades in fact, because this is it. "Twenty years in the writing," the blurb says, "The Great Fire is a triumphant novel of lives shadowed by war and redeemed by love." Hmmm. I first became interested in this book when I saw it on the shortlist for the Orange Prize, ...
...the title was the Second World War rather than the Great Fire of London, I wasn't in too much of a hurry to read it - being all warred out long ago. Then I thought, well, if Shirley Hazzard has spent twenty years writing it, surely I can spare a few hours to read it. I should have stuck with my first instinct. The central character, Aldred Leith, is uncomfortable with his status as a decorated war hero, and has nothing but a failed marriage to go ... Read review

Advantages: It makes you think and laugh and then think again
Disadvantages: Its only 220 pages long (does anyone know if Hooker wrote a sequel?)

...up the book perfectly. MASH was written in the late 60's and can be easily compared to the other great American war novel Catch-22.(yes, i know they are about different wars, but the comparison stills stands) Both books have a less than serious style, were based on the authors experiences or knowledge and both were filmed. Unfortunately the film of Catch-22 failed to do justice to the scope of the book, while the film of MASH out-shone the book ...
...and Dukes arrival at 4077th MASH and ends when they go home. As well as Hawkeye and Duke the other major character is Trapper John. These three doctors drive the action in the book, but, like Catch -22, the book relies on a much larger cast to make it work. Part of the joy of reading MASH is the detail that Hooker puts into describing his minor characters. Even the nurses are given distinct personalities and these minor characters give the book some ... Read review

Advantages: Everything, a different perspective
Disadvantages: None.

...at its classy humour and the whimsical behavior of the autistic child, Christopher really brings the reality of life back to me again. It has an unusual mix of arcane characters, introduce the ideology of a down syndrome kid and how he is often left behind in the far corners of society. I purposely left space on the shelf exclusively for this book. It's amazing content and how Mark Haddon shows us the world in the eyes of Christopher is just mind-blowing ... Read review

Advantages: Nice character development
Disadvantages: Bit slow for some people

...with all things Arsenal and how that obsession impacts upon basic human relationships. In How to be Good he is once again on the subject of relationships however this time the story is told from the female point of view. I always imagine it must be a bit harder for a writer when they write from the perspective of the opposite gender however in this book Hornby makes a pretty good job of it, having said that as I'm male maybe he is just confirming ...
...book is about relationships and how people sometimes just accept the life they lead without really questioning it. It is not meant to be a feel good book, there is a lot of friction within the book however there are also some very funny lines as well which is one of the strengths of Hornby writing, the ability to capture the self defacing humour of the British. The main character Katie goes through a huge amount of soul searching in the book and ... Read review

Advantages: fascinating story, good characters
Disadvantages: loads of descriptions

The young English woman Alexis plans a trip to Greece with her fiancé which will also include Crete, she asks her mother whether she'd mind her paying a visit to the village where she's from. Her mother Sofia is from Crete, but strangely and incomprehensibly, she's always been reticent about her past, an old photo of a Greek couple on her night table is the only reminder of her Greek past. To Alexis' surprise her mother doesn't evade her as usual ...
...about her family. This is the frame of the novel, Alexis finds Fotini in the village of Plaka in the east of Crete, what the old woman tells is the novel proper. I ordered the book because some years ago my husband and I spent a week on Crete and on a day out visited Agios Nikolaos, the town near Plaka, from where we could see the outline of the small island Spinalonga. I learnt from my guidebook that lepers were sent there up to the year 1957, ... Read review