Jane Austen ruined my life by Beth Pattillo

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Genre - Fiction


I’m not a fan of the many Austen sequels, prequels & other novels cashing in on the popularity of one of my favourite authors. This novel is an exception as it uses Austen’s life & work in an intriguing way. Emma Grant is an American academic. Her life is falling apart. Her husband has been unfaithful & she’s lost her job due to an unfounded allegation of plagiarism. Emma has been contacted by Mrs Parrot, a mysterious woman who hints that she has access to over a thousand unpublished letters by Jane Austen. Emma sees publishing the letters as a way of regaining her academic reputation. So, she goes to England to meet Mrs Parrot. Emma is sent on a series of journeys to places associated with Jane – Bath, Lyme, Winchester - & must pass tests at each place to be allowed to read more of the letters & discover more about the secret at the heart of Austen’s life. Emma also meets up with Adam, an old friend who is also in London doing research. Is his interest in Emma altruistic or is he chasing the same prize? The plot has a few holes in it, but Emma is an engaging character & a tour of Jane Austen’s England is always a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

---- Reviewed by Lyn, Headquarters

Deaf sentence by David Lodge

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Desmond Bates has been going deaf for the last 20 years. He took early retirement from his position as Professor of Linguistics because he couldn’t hear what his students were saying. Now, he faces the frustrations & indignities of deafness every day. His wife, Winifred (Fred), is sympathetic but sometimes irritated. When Desmond meets post graduate student, Alex Loom, he agrees - without realizing it - to a meeting about her thesis on the linguistics of suicide notes. He hasn’t heard a word she said at a noisy gallery opening & doesn’t realize he’s agreed to anything at all. This leads him into a confusing relationship with the manipulative Alex, who wants Desmond to supervise her thesis. Desmond is also worried about his elderly father (also going deaf), living alone in London. This is the most poignant and humorous part of the book. Harry lives in the family home, in increasing squalor, hiding money under the floorboards, and refusing to spend any money on making his life more comfortable. David Lodge has written a beautifully observed novel which illuminates the world of people with hearing loss. Desmond’s theory that blindness is tragic while deafness is merely comic is illustrated by the facts of his everyday life – struggles with hearing aid batteries, lip reading classes, & the funny yet frustrating misunderstandings in everyday conversation. Lodge shows the reader the isolation of the deaf in this absorbing novel.

---- Reviewed by Lyn, Headquarters

Hearts and minds by Rosy Thornton

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James Rycarte is the first man to be appointed as Head of St Radegund’s, a woman’s college at Cambridge. He not only has to cope with the chintzy furnishings in the Masters Lodging left behind by the retiring Dame Emily, but with the polite hostility of several members of the Senior Common Room. Martha Pearce has been Senior Tutor for 10 years and her term is coming to an end. Martha’s personal and professional life is at a crossroads but her commitment to the College is paramount. When a friend of James offers a substantial donation to the College with the unspoken proviso that his daughter will be admitted as a student, the battle lines between academic integrity and financial necessity (the library is sinking into the fens and needs urgent work) are drawn. This is a fascinating novel about academic politics, student unrest with lots of human interest and a budding romance or two as well.

---- Reviewed by Lyn, Headquarters