(G)rumblings and Ramblings

Title: Milkman Author: Anna Burns Milkman: Never Dare to Hope, Only Hope to Live Do not let the diminutive size of this novel mislead you because each page pulsates with vigour and intensity. Milkman pivots on the premise of a shady paratrooper/double agent's advances on the narrator who is pragmatically identified as "middle sister" (because she is the middle female sibling in her family).This novel is a caricatured reflection of society in times of duress where some social codes are tightened, others are loosened and almost everyone functions with the motto of "Dont-Ask-Wont-Tell-And-If-I-Tell-It-Will-Be-Exaggerated-Drivel". It exhibits the suspension of rational thinking, liberty and progressiveness as people seek sanctuary within the confines of prejudice and persecution.  Pretty bleak stuff. Remarkably, the author manages to maintain a wry tone in even some of the darkest moments. One such moment is when the boy who assaulted the narrator i...

Titles: Wolfhall, Bring Up the Bodies, The Mirror and The Light Author: Hilary Mantel                                             The Wolfhall Trilogy: As Girths Thicken and Sins Multiply* Outset: A version of this review was published by Think Publication : a book lovers collective. I left all stylistic freedom with the editor and her team and the review was published in a lovely verse-form reminiscent of Bernadine Evaristo's style in her novel Girl, Woman, Other. Interested readers may view it here This is a fine trilogy. In all three books Mantel describes events with an impeccable turn of phrase littered with a piquant wit that is, in the best -and the worst-of occasions, deliciously tongue-in-cheek. What held my interest throughout each book - in the respective year when it was published - was that the author managed to avoid excessive backgr...