Review: Coming Up Trumps: A Memoir

Coming Up Trumps: A Memoir by Jean Trumpington
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

On the surface, you'd think there wasn't much to enjoy about a posh die-hard Tory (Thatcher was a hero of hers) looking back at very privileged life. But, there's actually an awful lot to enjoy. It provides an insight into a different world. One where you hop from job to job, party to party, where you can always find a gaggle of friends no mater where you end up - basically because you're rich and have the right connections. In fairness to Trumpington, she never denies she was privileged; she just embraced the opportunities that came her way. Still, it is an eye-opener to how the "other half" live.

Interestingly while she shameless name drops throughout the book, she downplays her own achievements. She implies she was at Bletchley because she had the right accent (which may well be true) but you suspect it's also because she was a very bright woman.

Overall, you get the impression that while she probably wasn't the most empathetic of people, she was honest. You might not like what she had to say but at least you could guarantee she'd say it to you rather than behind your back.

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Review: The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 3/4

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 3/4 by Sue Townsend
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this years and years ago when I was about 10 or 11 (I might have been even younger), so I decided to re-read it on the suspicion that I hadn't got most of the jokes the first time round. Needless to say, I was right - there are many, many jokes you don't pick up until you're adult (and have gone through being 13 3/4 yourself...).

The biggest surprise is that Adrian isn't as big of a pillock as I thought. Obviously, he's an idiot but no more so that your average socially inept teenager. Plus, most of the characters are pillocks - even the beloved Pandora says some cringeworthy things.

There are some digs about Thatcher and other events of the time that I just about get the reference to (I was one at the time that the book is set to be fair). But, it's surprising (and disturbing) how many parallels we can draw with our current political climate.

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Review: Little

Little by Edward Carey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Although this fictional biography of Marie Tussaud (the Madame of Madame Tussauds) is well written and compelling, it's frustrating. Tussaud is often portrayed as a victim. If she's not being downtrodden by a harridan of a stepmother (though, technically, her landlady), she's being neglected by her boss/pseudo father. Tussaud went through some turbulent times to become the founder of a now world-famous museum. If there was one thing she wasn't, it was a victim. She was a survivor. Therefore, I would have preferred Carey to focus less on how awful things were for Tussaud and instead look at how gritty and determined she must have been. Plus, there's countless references to how ugly she was (sigh). Why do male authors get so fixated by the appearance of their female characters. Could they not write a female character who was plain but so charismatic that it didn't matter? Oh I forgot, my bad, it's only men who get to be plain but charismatic isn't it?


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