July - A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks
Chosen by Jackie. Average Score - 3.8
Meeting on July 20th at Johns
![Picture](/uploads/7/7/7/4/7774990/8721873.jpg?90)
London, the week before Christmas, 2007. Over seven days we follow the lives of seven major characters, who will go to the same party at the end of the week: a hedge fund manager trying to bring off the biggest trade of his career; a professional footballer recently arrived from Poland; a young lawyer with little work and too much time to speculate; a student who has been led astray by Islamist theory; a hack book-reviewer; a schoolboy hooked on skunk and reality TV; and a Tube train driver whose Circle Line train joins these and countless other lives together in a daily loop. The novel pieces together the complex patterns and crossings of modern urban life. Greed, the dehumanising effects of the electronic age and the fragmentation of society are some of the themes dealt with. The writing on the wall appears in letters ten feet high, but the characters refuse to see it — and party on as though tomorrow is a dream.
Sebastian Faulks' own comments on his novel here
Sebastian Faulks' own comments on his novel here
Bookworms' Verdicts
General Comments
|
No notes taken as we discussed the book out in the garden, enjoying a BBQ and a first taste of summer.
Most were disappointed by the book. Jackie is a Sebastian Faulk's fan and so chose this his latest book. Apparently he was writing it about the time of the world-wide financial collapse and rushed to finish it. We liked some of the characters, particularly "Knocker" the business man who received the OBE, but others made little impression or were thought to be irrelevant to the plot. Many felt the book didn't gel. The interconnections between the characters seemed forced. The novel explored important themes of 21st century Britain but there were so many threads involving so many characters that it seemed disjointed and even irritating to some. Not a patch on "Birdsong" was a general opinion. The one dissenting voice was Justin (Angela's other half) who had read the book a while ago but had thought it excellent and very well written. Lisa - 3 Ceri - 5 Nick - 2 Tony - 5 Sarah - 2 Matt - 5 John - 4 Angela - 3 Jackie - 5 |
|