October 2007 - The Secret River

London, 1806 - William Thornhill, happily wedded to his childhood sweetheart Sal, is a waterman on the River Thames. Life is tough but bearable until William makes a mistake, a bad mistake for which he and his family are made to pay dearly. His sentence: to be transported to New South Wales for the term of his natural life. Sooon Thornhill, a man no better or worse than most, has to make the most difficult decision of his life...

The compelling new novel from the internationally acclaimed Kate Grenville is a universal and timeless story of love, identity and belonging.

Kate Grenville's homepage
bookgroup.info

Reviews:

'Bush Ballad' Geraldine Bedell. The Observer 22 January 2006
'Rivers of violence' Salley Vickers. Times Online 28 January 2006
'Cultures in Collision' Jem Poster. The Guardian 28 January 2006
'When God was as foreign as a fish' The Telegraph 5 February 2006
'The wind tells a different story' David Isaacson The Independent on Sunday 5 March 2006
'Hidden memories and a secret river' Times Online 7 July 2007

September 2007 The Busconductor Hines

Okay, okay. So I'm posting this a little after the event. The book has been read (by some!) and discussed. But I wouldn't want there to be a gap in the list.

Robert works on the buses and lives in a no-bedroomed Glasgow flat with his wife and child. His job is boring, the weather is lousy, and he's becoming increasingly aware that his plans to emigrate won't come to anything. Life, as he sees it, is a 'very perplexing kettle of coconuts'.

James Kelman's first novel is a humane, uncompromising and extremely funny portrait of a man's life.


About James Kelman:

Biography from the British Council
Writing Scotland
Interview in The Barcelona Review (February 2002)
Interview in The Guardian (August 2007)