The Free-Range Bookclub
Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
Category: Booker Prize
Jamrach’s Menagerie – Carol Birch
READ FOR BOOKERTHON Eight-year-old Jaffy Brown escapes the Victorian slums and sets sail for a better life. ✔ A 19th Century street urchin named Jaffy Brown is at the heart of his book. In search of a better life, he works for Mr Charles Jamrach,… Continue Reading “Jamrach’s Menagerie – Carol Birch”
Snowdrops – A D Miller
READ FOR BOOKERTHON British lawyer Nick is seduced by the dangerous Masha while working in Moscow and ends up finding himself buried in secrets. ✔ Nicholas is a single, 38-year-old British lawyer working for banks lending money to Russian corporations. His time in Moscow is… Continue Reading “Snowdrops – A D Miller”
Half Blood Blues – Esi Edugyan
READ FOR BOOKERTHON In 1940s France a black cabaret singer disappears. Fifty years on, one of his bandmates, Sid, embarks on a journey to discover Hieronymous’s fate. ✔ “Hiero is African German and a member of a jazz band in pre-war Berlin. The Nazis ban… Continue Reading “Half Blood Blues – Esi Edugyan”
Back Booker 2002
Time for another Back Booker and this time we’ve focused on 2002. A year with a kind of seriousness about it. Though not in a moralistic or melancholy kind of way, rather the authors have demonstrated the impact of significant themes and topics with… Continue Reading “Back Booker 2002”
2010 Bookerthon
We may not have been doing Bookerthon for long enough to comment as such, nor have the relevant degrees or analytical background to offer such thoughts, but … we weren’t blown away by the shortlist this year. Not to say we didn’t enjoy (some… Continue Reading “2010 Bookerthon”
The Long Song – Andrea Levy
READ FOR BOOKERTHON The story of July, a Jamaican slave who witnesses both the atrocities and abolition of slavery You do not know me yet. My son Thomas, who is publishing this book, tells me, it is customary at this place in a novel… Continue Reading “The Long Song – Andrea Levy”
Parrot And Olivier in America – Peter Carey
READ FOR BOOKERTHON Olivier, a French aristocrat, sails for the New World with his servant Parrot ☁ “Olivier-Jean-Baptist de Clarel de Barfleur de Garmont is a young French nobleman who attends democratic lectures in his homeland and is suspected of being a spy. He… Continue Reading “Parrot And Olivier in America – Peter Carey”
In A Strange Room – Damon Galgut
READ FOR BOOKERTHON A South African writer named for the author goes backpacking abroad. ☁ A young man, named for the author, undertakes three journeys to different countries where he meets and enjoys the company of strangers, but seems to attract bad luck. In… Continue Reading “In A Strange Room – Damon Galgut”
The Finkler Question – Howard Jacobson
READ FOR BOOKERTHON A satirical novel where three British men reflect on what it means to be Jewish. ☁ “Julian Treslove is a professional lookalike, despite not looking like anyone in particular. His friend Sam Finkler is a philosopher, writer and television personality. Their… Continue Reading “The Finkler Question – Howard Jacobson”
Room – Emma Donoghue
READ FOR BOOKERTHON A boy and his mother are held captive in a single room which has become their world. ☁ Room is told from the perspective of a five-year-old boy who is being held captive with his mother. The boy was born in… Continue Reading “Room – Emma Donoghue”
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