Zed

Read years back. As usual man's inhumanity to man never ceases to amaze.

Life and Fate. The perfect title for an astonishingly good book.

I am going to call Life and Fate a masterpiece. Yes it is as good as the reviews I have just read say it is. On a personal level it is a long time since I have had an emotional involvement with the characters of a novel. Les Misérables maybe? Though a large cast the life and fate of the protagonists at the time of the battle for Stalingrad made powerful and compelling reading.

My copy is the Vintage edition 2006. It has an introduction by Linda Carter who writes she read the book in 3 weeks and took 3 weeks to “recover from the experience.” She had also “urged all my friends to read it.” She is of the opinion that the novel should be as famous as Doctor Zhivago and The Gulag Archipelago. I have never read these books but based on what I think of Life and Fate these must be truly remarkable books with such high praise. She also includes a historical background that is followed by a one page explanation of the translation by Robert Chandler. We also have a page that lists a few books on Stalin's Russia and Grossman himself. There is also a List of Chief Characters at the back of the book to aid the reader who may not be used to the complicated Russian names. I found this a great resource and referred to it constantly. As time went on the names became familiar.

The story itself revolves around the Shaposhnikova family and those that come into contact with them in one way or another. Dare I say it without seeming trite but almost a six degrees of separation story? This lead to the reader following the lives of everyone within that circle from those that fought and died to those that had issues with the state politics of the time. With that we became involved in an emotional rollercoaster be that the death of a son through to the agony of being untrue to one's self belief. All this told with emotionally charged prose by Grossman that left me as the reader spellbound. Some chapters were so astonishingly emotionally charged I was putting the book down to take stock. The mother whose son had been killed was sad beyond belief but the final thoughts of those going to their deaths in the gas chamber in chapter 48 part two will live with me forever.

A truly stunning book.

The 2nd Volume of Peter Pinney's WW2 trilogy follows Johnno to Bougainville Island.

Pinney has shown what a fine writer he is with this 2nd novel. Johnno's observations are sharper, he has honed his skills from the days of his secret diary in the New Guinea campaign. While others come back from the line and play up, getting drunk, raiding and trading for contraband, Johnno is “..... always bloody writing“ a young comrade states, annoyed that he will not go on a raid to steal an officers liquor with his mates. Johnno though is also sensible enough not to seem too big for his boots by occasionally joining in the fun. He is changing. The racist language of the New Guinea campaign is still heavy in his speech but his observations of the peoples of Bougainville Island are now of a more curious nature.
He even contemplates the human nature of the Japanese enemy. At one point a fellow digger, Silver, confides in Johnno his love of art and his own talent. Silver states of the Japanese that they are “....extraordinary artists” with the “...discovery of real beauty a goal in itself”. Johnno writes that it was “...strangely disturbing, the compassion in his voice; as if he was inviting us to consider something which, we instinctively knew, was best ignored”

Though there are lots of patrols the enemy is rarely met and this leaves the troops frustrated. Discipline is poor. Rumours run rife; Western Australia is going to be invaded! They are fighting in a “second rate show” one of their officers confides at one point. Philosophical discussions on killing become part of the banter. For some it is the best time of their lives but for others? It hits the men hard when a newspaper from home is received and the public know that Bougainville Island campaign is but a sideshow.

The Barbarians was always going to be a hard act to follow but Pinney has done more than enough to make this a must read for anyone wishing to read his prose. Again rich in Strine and observation of the Australian soldier at war but this time on Bougainville Island, an even less known theatre of war than was the previous novels settings in Papua New Guinea. This is Johnno's (Pinney's) observations of his own “limited experience” but as he states in the preface “An attempt has been made to eliminate factual error, but bias and prejudice remain,....” “This book is in no sense a unit history, nor is it meant to be. If it gives even a marginal notion of men on Bougainville, it will have served its purpose” It's purpose has been served with this reader. Superb!

28 books. The same as last year.

A link to the year's reading. https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/31898781

My favourites for the year were from Australian authors.

From the past, George Johnston and his magnificent novels My Brother Jack and its equally superb Clean Straw For Nothing.

Contemporary author Richard Flanagan was a read three times, with each book a pleasure beyond expectations. All three novels read had a differing theme other than the fact they were set in Tasmania.

Nature writing has never been something I had really thought I would enjoy, but Rogue Intensities by Angela Rockel was a joy.

I came into the possession of Misty Moderns: Australian Tonalists 1915 – 1950 that was produced on behalf of The Art Gallery of South Australia for an exhibition of Tonalist artists held in 2008 with this book produced by exhibition curator Tracey Lock-Weir. Love this coffee table style publication. A pleasure to look at the wonderful art from that period when the mood takes, and a book I will dip in and out of for many years to come.

26 books. 10 less than last year. After covid dissipated as a major disruption to my working life time was very much of the essence. Work became hectic and long. I began to take later in life exercise as important to my wellbeing and spent at least a couple of hours a day walking. This all changed my reading habits. I am not sure it was that good a reading year other than a couple that stood out.

I will aim for 20 books this year.

https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2020/6852430

Non Fiction

Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis by Jared Diamond
Abysmal.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3099895125?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Vietnam: The Australian War- The Illustrated Edition by Paul Ham
Poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14776016-vietnam

Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain by Oliver Sacks
It was interesting to read my review back. I have since discovered Spotify and it has changed my music listening. It has allowed my need to discover and listen to new music to be reignited.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/232295289?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Brave Japanese by Kenneth Harrison
Very good.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2645236761?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Conquest: The English Kingdom of France in the Hundred Years War by Juliet Barker
Interesting.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/696199407?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Introducing Literary Criticism: A Graphic Guide.
Disposable.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3496198403?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Toussaint Louverture by Madison Smarrtt Bell
Informative.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/233733252?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1mative.

The Last Battle: The Classic History of the Battle for Berlin by Cornelius Ryan
A must read Classic in its field.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2096221906?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

A Brief History of the Middle East by Christopher Calderwood
Poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1634978731?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Fiction

Jimmy Brockett by Dal Stivens
One for those with an interest in Australian literature from another time.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2894006396?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Drums of Mer by Ion L Idriess
An enjoyable though bloodthirsty tale from the Torres Straits. I actually learnt a lot.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2680086209?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The City & the City by China Miéville
Very good and for me at least an amazing concept.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2893978454?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Invention of Morel by Adolfo Bioy Casares
Another concept that caught my imagination.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3192109796?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Shultz
All very weird and metaphorical but at times exhilarating.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3227966098?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Le Grand Meaulnes by Alain-Fournier
With apologies to David Mitchell.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2718006098?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Bloodfather by David Ireland
Grabbed me and spat out the ideas. My hidden gem and my best read this year.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1883873440?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell.
Far from a bad book but by the authors high standards all a bit forced.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3285560113?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Plains by Gerald Murnane
Bizarre.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2151816150?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Roving Party by Rohan Wilson
Van Diemen's Land gothic literature at its best.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2132887804?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

To Name Those Lost by Rohan Wilson
More Van Diemen's Land gothic literature and still very good.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2245703331?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Seriously poor.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3438584508?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Lost Illusions by Honoré de Balzc
At times very laborious.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/515558074?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Well-dressed Explorer by Thea Astley
Anyone that likes the works of Thea Astley will not be disappointed.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2004923938?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Book of Night Women by Marlon James
Challenging but superb.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2571899660?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The Mango Tree by Ronald McKie
Very good bildungsroman.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2004924316?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Epitaph of a Small Winner by Machado de Assis
I missed something I think.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2256968748?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1