The Tailor King: The Rise and Fall of the Anabaptist Kingdom of Munster by Anthony Arthur

This book has certainly been a different sort of read from usual! I seem to read a lot of memoirs and a variety of types of fiction, and I suppose this could fall under autobiography, but it is certainly more historical non-fiction, a bit more academic, with references etc. However, despite being a more factual book, it has been a very easy read, and it has been very interesting to learn more about Jan Van Leiden, the Tailor-King of Munster. He was involved in trying to being about a kind of New Jerusalem on earth, but had such rules as polygamy; many people were also executed during this time. Some fascinating stories, such as the soldier who was on siege duty outside the city who used to bare his bottom towards the city at the same time every day. One day, he discovered the folly of such a practice, as the cannons in the city were all aimed at him and set off at the same time. Ouch!

Two Caravans by Marina Lewycka

I have to confess that I put off reading this for ages. I had quite enjoyed A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian, although I had felt that it had not lived up to its expectations, and had been overhyped. This book also had the twin enticement/put off of a Malawian character. I had picked up the book a long, long time ago, and had been both entranced by references to Zomba, but also concerned that this character would be some sort of patronised cliche.

I needn't have worried. The character is a very warm one, and since the other characters are also immigrants, is not picked out for special patronisation. All the characters are funny, curious, independent and individual. The settings are poignant with many causes for black humour. Lewycka deals as much with chicken farming as she does with developing love stories, and the book is all the better for it.

I would highly recommend this book - it is much better than Tractors.

When a Crocodile Eats the Sun by Peter Godwin

I have to begin by pointing out that I finished this book in the summer. However, it has been so busy since then that I have become quite far behind with updating my blogs.

I read this book at a particularly poignant time, as the Zimbabwe elections were still being contested and there was violence being reported from that country. I finished it before the joint power sharing agreement between Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangarai was worked out.

Peter Godwin sets this book after the Zimbabwean war of independence, and is as much a discovery of his family's secrets as it is an exploration into the struggle for Zimbabweans, black and white, to survive and farm. It is a very vivid and moving book. I'm sorry I didn't write the review when it was still uppermost in my mind! However, once again it is highly recommended.

Fearless Fighter by Vera Chirwa

Reading Vera Chirwa's autobiography brought to life some of the events surrounding the transition from Nyasaland to Malawi. She describes the beginnings of self rule, the hopes and the struggles of the people, and the jealousies and intrigues surrounding the key players, particularly Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda, her husband, Orton Chirwa, other Malawian politicians such as Aleke Banda, Masauko Chipembere, John Tembo, Gwanda Chakuamba and so on. The main focus of her book is on the kidnapping, imprisonment, trial and death sentence of her and Orton, and the abuse and suffering they faced in prison. It describes the death in suspicious circumstances of her much loved lawyer husband, and her life as a free woman who sees her role as being one to criticise the government in order to keep them on track.

The book is simply written in a generally chronological, descriptive and matter-of-fact way, and Vera comes across as being very active - appropriate, since she is an activist. Some random quotes:

"'How can I forget you, when we suffered together?' I asked, and went out to form the League of Malawi Women."

"He thought that he was going to make fun of me, but the stupid man did not know that I was a woman activist. As a barrister you are trained to carry yourself in a very proper manner and I continued unmoved by his rudeness."

"When I came out of prison, I was encouraged more or less immediately to stand for President ... But I was weak and felt it was madness to run for President so soon after 12 years in prison. When nominations were up I deliberately left the country. ... In 2004, I thought the time was ripe."

Vera describes studying for her law exams while pregnant, and giving birth on one of the days in between her exams. The examiner has to chase her driver away from the exam hall when her newborn's crying disturbs Vera in one exam. You do get a sense of a woman who does not let things like pregnancy, birth, child rearing get in the way of fighting for the human rights of all Malawians, and women in particular. She is obviously a determined woman, a fighter, as she describes herself. Occasionally, she seems a bit too good to be true! But, overall, it was very interesting hearing about this time in Malawian history from another point of view, and from the perspective of someone who was intimately involved at the time.

The Freedom Writers Diary by the Freedom Writers with Erin Gruwell

I really enjoyed this selection of diary entries written by teens from the Bronx and other such places. Their teacher, Erin Gruwell, discovered in her first year of teaching that many of her difficult students had never heard of Anne Frank and her diary. When she shared it with them, they found similarities with their own lives: and the idea of writing a journal to share their hopes and fears with was born. In her second year of teaching, Erin shared the journal of a young girl from Bosnia, Zlata, and the students were so encouraged by this that they decided they wanted to meet her. And so began an inspiring journey that lead the majority of Erin's students to being the first in their families to go to college. On the way, they met Zlata, Miep Gies, other Holocaust survivors, and many others who would encourage and inspire them. The diary entries in this book are all anonymous, and through them we learn not only about the life-changing meetings with the people mentioned above, but also about the daily trials and tribulations the teenagers face in their daily lives. All have experience of friends, family or acquaintances being shot, they experience racism or the effects of the schisms between different races in their communities, they write about the poverty or the violence they have to content with in their homes and they reflect on their relationships with boyfriends/girlfriends, families, and other students.

This was a really eye opening and inspiring read, especially for a teacher teaching in an inner city school. I'm glad I encountered it in an independent bookshop - it caught my eye as I stood in the doorway, the first book I was drawn to, and I'm glad I picked it up and bought it!

Don't Let's Go To The Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller

... Also known as Bobo.

Quite a bizarre book, really. I actually read and finished it a while ago, about the middle of July. This is the memoir of a girl growing up in Rhodesia, Malawi and Zambia, with a family who want to live in a white-run African country, and who are seeing that desire falling around them. The palpably racist views of Bobo's parents are presented without reflective comment or discussion; however, the book does not become unreadable or unbearable. Bobo's parents obviously suffered personal tragedies, losing two children and descending into, at least in her mother's case, apparent alcoholism and depression. The stories told are presented in a vaguely chronological order, but they are presented as titbits rather than as a coherent whole. I should point out that I have enjoyed the book, and have found many of the stories very interesting. It is just told in a rather unconventional way. Which makes a nice change, of course ... Just a bit bizarre at times! I would like to read more from her at some point.

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne

We will be reading this in school next year so I was doing a bit of research. A boy moves to a lonely old house in a bleak place, far from his friends. But he enjoys exploring, and eventually follows the fence that goes for miles until he finds another boy. The strength of this book lies in what is not said. I'm not sure how I'll manage this with my class; I surely have read this as an adult, and fear talking about it before we get to the end may spoil it!

Apache: Girl Warrior by Tanya Landman

I borrowed this from the school library on the recommendation of the librarian. To be honest, I didn't really fancy it too much, and as I was reading it, the "tell" rather than "show" writing sometimes niggled me a bit. However, it was a very haunting and insightful tale of the life of the Apaches in North America, facing conflict from the Mexicans and then the white settlers. Some of the twists could be seen from over the hill, unlike a good Apache warrior, but all in all this was an enjoyable if sad story.

Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa by Peter Godwin

Peter Godwin grew up in Zimbabwe (well, Rhodesia) and was in the police during the 1974-79 civil war. Very interesting to finish reading this book on the day that Zimbabwe "voted" again; I hadn't known much about how Mugabe came to 'be', so I know feel somewhat more informed. A well written and informative memoir. Very moving in places. And shocking, when he almost shoots a youth in anger, but in cold blood. And there are moments when it seems as if he has met a guardian angel. How did he manage to survive?

I look forward to reading the follow up, When a Crocodile Eats the Sun.

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

I have been meaning to read this for some time. Was glad to find it in the school library. Ishmael enjoyed rapping, and he had gone to rap and dance with some friends on the day that the rebels reached his village. So he had to run, and he ran, with friends, then by himself, then with other boys he met on his journey, until he finally reached a village where he could stop for a while and feel safer. A village protected by the army.

At first, I felt relieved that he was with the army, and had not been captured and 'brainwashed' by the rebels. But then I realised that the army was going to be just as bad; it doesn't matter what side you are on if you are being filled with hate for the others and taught how to use the serrated side of your bayonet to cut someone's throat to inflict the most pain as they die. Beah recounts a few incidents from the time that he had to fight with the army in order to not be caught be the rebels, and to kill those who had invaded his village and dispersed and destroyed his family.

However, although these passages are amongst the most graphic, they make way for the story of Beah's rehabilitation. He is sold by the army to some aid workers who are trying to rescue child soldiers. It is not an easy journey, but the final third of the book describes the path from soldier to international speaker on child soldiers and rehabilitation.

The book was not an easy one to read. Reading at night, I was glad to finish a chapter and put it away knowing that Beah was not yet a soldier, and that I had not had to read about the atrocities he had committed. I read about some of his acts on the tube, where my faced curled up and my feet folded under each other at some of the painfulness of the actions described. It was not necessarily 'unputdownable' because of the writing, although the writing was good, but I did feel that it was a book I had a 'duty' to read. However, in the end, it was a book that I was glad I had read, and it is a good book for someone to read to know about the horrors of the child soldiers - in fact, of anyone called to be a soldier in such a civil war, full of atrocities. And with Refugee Week upon us, the book should be read so that we can understand why some people leave a country and are scared to go back.

The Raphael Affair by Iain Pears

Another fun and gripping art based Jonathan Argyll mystery! A quick, light and entertaining read - I managed to get the first in the series this time round! Even though I know how some of the characters end up, the enjoyment wasn't diminished. I liked the twist as well ... didn't see it coming.

Boy by Roald Dahl

I really enjoyed this autobiographical novella by Dahl. Some funny incidents involving mice and sweets and schools ... No wonder he came up with the stories he wrote! Highly recommended.