Owen Sheers

This is a compelling read, and one which is hard to discuss without revealing too much of the plot. Michael, an author, is newly arrived in London, having left his home in Wales following the death of his Journalist wife in Pakistan. Next door live Josh and Samantha with their two daughters, and this unlikely fivesome become close friends. The story begins as Michael discovers his neighbours have gone out leaving their door unlocked. The events of that afternoon reverberate through the book and beyond.

First Michael, then other characters are introduced and described. We're having back stories and introductions until at least half way through the book. This is done in a way which invites curiosity, and drew me into the story.

This is book about grief, about guilty secrets, about relationships. It's also a poetic book. There's this: 'tiny women lost in monstrous SUVs, their painted nails clutching the steering wheels like the feet of caged birds', and subtle observations describing rooms, scenes on Hampstead Heath.

This is a clever, reflective novel. To call it a thriller is a mis-description. The action is all in the minds of the protagonists and is pyschologically astute. I'm glad to have read it.

… (mehr)

An acceptable re-imagining of a medieval Welsh myth, the Second Branch of the Mabinogion, in which the Welsh princess Branwen is given to the Irish king Matholwch, whose mistreatment of her results in a war leaving only seven men alive to repopulate Ireland. This version, in which an old man in the present day tells a story from WWII to a young woman, putting me in mind of The Princess Bride, leaves out the genocide and royalty but translates the rest pretty effectively. Unfortunately the first 50ish pages are used to set up the young woman's part in the "reveal" at the end which dumbs down the myth's story by trying to too literally neatly present the reader with an Important Moral Lesson. However the main purpose of this series seems to be to spread knowledge of the stories of the Mabinogion outside of Wales, and that this book did, for which I'm glad. Probably better just to read the original though.… (mehr)

Michael, the main character in I Saw a Man is working through his grief after tragically losing his wife. Starting afresh in London, he quickly becomes close friends with the young family next door, but when Michael finds their back door unexpectedly open one day it sets off a chain of events that will change their lives forever.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Sheers keeps the tension going throughout, and with well thought out characters it had me turning the pages from the get-go. It reminded me of some of McEwan's better books, with its flawed characters, London setting and unexpected plot.

I'd not heard of Sheers as an author before (I believe he's a poet and playwright also), but I'll certainly be keeping an eye out for his other titles.

4 stars - recommended: a great holiday page-turner.… (mehr)

Wonderful, poetic, and sensitive biography of Owen’s great uncle Arthur Shearly Cripps, the radical missionary, who was hated by the Rhodesians for his ‘kaffir’ loving attitude towards land and development.

I was going to give 4 and a half stars, but then… I do not know how to improve this book – it is beauty in words. It made me cry. It is superb in describing the sounds and the fall of light of present day Zimbabwe. It is full of crisp, flawed, emotionally charged characters whose conflicted inner life is reflected so well in brief, imagined snap shots.… (mehr)