BOOK: Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, 548 pages

Man Booker short list 2002; Orange Prize Project; Orange July

setting: Victorian England, 1862, the hard-scrabble life in inner London and the gentle life on an estate

characters: Sue Trindle, Maud Lilly, Mrs Sucksby, and Gentleman (I can't give a description because no one is exactly who they say they are, maybe)

plot: no one likes spoilers and this book is so well plotted I am afraid to say anything for fear I'll say too much.

fingersmith: petty thief, or may also refer to someone who has mastered a skill involving the use of his or her fingers. (ooh, excellent title!)

themes: nature v nurture, sacrifices, betrayals.

what I liked: Victorian times, the plot and the twists, the cover, the overall tone of suspense in the book and the relationships amongst the characters.

what I didn't like: it was a little long, but I still couldn't put it down.

who else liked it: it was shortlisted for both the Orange Prize and the Man Booker in 2002

BOOK: Amsterdam by Ian McEwan

Amsterdam by Ian McEwan, 194 pages

book awards: Booker 1998; 1% well read



With friends like these guys, who needs enemies? A composer and a newspaper editor, both former lovers of a recently deceased woman, are neither very likable characters. They are both a little thrown by her death, and both face some professional challenges, but try to rely on each other.

I read the book with interest but with a very detached view. I wanted to see what happened, and there were some good plot twists but if it had been a longer book, I don't know how invested I would have remained. The writing is lovely, with impassioned descriptions of the music of the symphony and some philosophical discussions of the role of newspapers in scandals but these guys were so self-centered and lonely that it was hard to care what happened to them. I'm not sure why this would be a Booker winner; it was well written and makes some comments (not completely sure what they would be, - tempermental artists? office politics? the role of art in society? but I'm sure they are there) but it's not a book I'd rave about. I much preferred his Atonement book as I cared about the characters and could identify with the dilemmas. The more I think about it, the more I think these guys were just asses.

ETC: Man Booker Award Lists

The long list has been announced for the Man Booker Prize, and I'm so surprised to see I've already read two of them - A Fraction of the Whole, and A Case of Exploding Mangoes. Other than the Rushdie, I haven't heard of any other ones. The two books I read I would rate about the same: humorous, longish, well written, but didn't make me rave. Both have good parts but I didn't inhale them. I see my libray has a couple others I can look into: The White Tiger, Child 44, and The Enchantress of Florence. It would be great if those made the shortlist, then I would be guaranteed to have read the winner.

Do you read the Booker long/short list books? Do you pay attention, or even care? The Complete Booker is a long term project where readers try to read all the winners, eventually. I've read nine winners so far, so I have quite a ways to go.

Aravind Adiga The White Tiger August 15/08
Gaynor Arnold Girl in a Blue Dress
Sebastian Barry The Secret Scripture
John Berger From A to X
Michelle de Kretser The Lost Dog
Amitav Ghosh Sea of Poppies
Linda Grant The Clothes on Their Backs
Mohammed Hanif A Case of Exploding Mangoes June 23/08
Philip Hensher The Northern Clemency
Joseph O'Neill Netherland
Salman Rushdie The Enchantress of Florence
Tom Rob Smith Child 44 Sept 28/08
Steve Toltz A Fraction of the Whole July 23/08

Have you read any? What do you recommend?