The Free-Range Bookclub
Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
Category: Historical Fiction
Sophie’s Choice – William Styron
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Rachel An aspiring novelist is captivated by a Holocaust survivor and her unpredictable boyfriend ❝ Stingo is a Southern young man aspiring to be a novelist and living off the income from his grandmother’s controversial sale of slaves many… Continue Reading “Sophie’s Choice – William Styron”
The Blue Flower – Penelope Fitzgerald
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jodie A fictional treatment of the early life of Friedrich von Hardenberg who, under the pseudonym Novalis, later became a practitioner of German Romanticism ⫸ “Penelope’s Fitzgerald’s last novel, written in 1997, details the early life of the German… Continue Reading “The Blue Flower – Penelope Fitzgerald”
All This By Chance – Vincent O’Sullivan
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS A moving multigenerational family saga about the legacy of the Holocaust and the burden of secrets never shared ⚑ “I was all in for I would say three-quarters of this novel but then as the characters we focused on… Continue Reading “All This By Chance – Vincent O’Sullivan”
This Mortal Boy – Fiona Kidman
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS The re-creation of one of the last executions in New Zealand leading to the abolition of capital punishment. ⚑ “Poor Albert Black. I appreciated the way this novel explored the impact on everyone involved in his trial and sentencing… Continue Reading “This Mortal Boy – Fiona Kidman”
Washington Black – Esi Edugyan
READ FOR BOOKERTHON An 11yo plantation slave becomes a personal servant to his master’s brother. ➽ “George Washington Black is the name of an 11yo plantation slave who is whisked out of his doomed life and given a fresh start as a personal servant… Continue Reading “Washington Black – Esi Edugyan”
I Capture The Castle – Dodie Smith
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Recommended by Sophia A coming-of-age novel written as diary entries by a 1930s teenage girl living in poverty in an English castle. ➽ “What at first appears as a simple coming-of-age story is actually a cross-genre mediation on the history of… Continue Reading “I Capture The Castle – Dodie Smith”
The Wish Child – Catherine Chidgey
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Two children watch as their parents become immersed in the puzzling mechanisms of power in 1939 Germany. ◉ “Personally, I love human stories set during the war. But sometimes you feel like you’re reading the same stuff over and… Continue Reading “The Wish Child – Catherine Chidgey”
As The Earth Turns Silver – Alison Wong
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jo The story and struggles of two entwined settler families in early 20th-Century NZ, one English, the other Chinese. ◉ “Chinese immigrant brothers Yung and Shun are greengrocers in Wellington in the early 1900s. They support their families back… Continue Reading “As The Earth Turns Silver – Alison Wong”
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