The Island of Missing Trees

Bookclub read [UoG]: I found this well written but not always enjoyably so. Sometimes the phrases seemed too formulaic, causing the reader to focus on the creation of the text rather than generate emotion. I do seem to like a multi-generational tale and learning some of the history of a land I visited as a child tourist was interesting. I really felt I should have liked this book more but I struggled to give it the 3 stars. I just really didn't like the tree! I'm with Ada “your fig gives me the creeps”. Yes, I get it was a useful narrative structure (and, as we discover in the end, much more than that) bringing together tales, weaving history and situations that no one else could possibly know. But I didn't like it, I found it creepy and unpleasant and, although I had warmed slightly towards it by halfway through the book, I never really enjoyed it's voice. I also really didn't like the end... Wow, I'd better stop now – the more I write the more I'm tempted to knock stars off!!