Weekend and quasi-book reviewThe view from down here

Saturday was a nice start to the Labor Day long weekend. A lowish tech day, but I was pleased to discover that it wasn’t hard to be low-tech.

I read “The Children” by Australia author Charlotte Wood. I had read The Submerged Cathedral when it first came out a few years ago, and liked it and although the back cover indicated that “The Children” was going to be a sad read, I picked it up in a local bookshop after lamenting my lack of fiction reading and reading in general.Of paper books at any rate!

The premise of the book is roughly thus:adult children who; let’s just say have their differences, gather from the four corners in the small country town of their upbringing round the bedside of ageing father who is suddenly in a coma and try to deal with stuff, including, of course family politics and a local stalker!

I read all 300 ish pages in the space of say 6 hours. I certainly didn’t read it non-stop but in two or three longish stints. It was part of my vaguely successful pre-birthday retreat thing. As it has since emerged I need whatever respite I was given.

It was a good read – insightful without being too profound so that I didn’t feel taught but more “included”. I laughed and sighed as if I was part of the family. The dying man was there but as a facilitator and the use of foreground and shadow settings made it all more ok

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