Monday, December 30, 2013

Bridget Jones Revisited and At Sea

Mad about The Boy by Helen Fielding: It was a delight to catch up with Bridget in (supposedly) her early fifties, a single mother with two small children to bring up, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book - as I knew I would. Fielding has a light touch with the prose, a good sense of comedy and also knows how to make a serious point with grace.

That said, the heroine doesn't strike me as any woman I know in her early fifties, as she is still as scatty and manic as she was in her twenties - so she's not moved on much. Still if you can put that particular reality to one side, you have a very enjoyable read, with a suitably romantic ending (Four Stars).



At Sea by Laurie Graham: This is simply a scintillatingly good book. The prose is fresh, ironic and delightful, and the main character Lady Enid is a delight. I loved the story of how she discovers who her husband Bernard really is and where he came from, and the other people Enid gets to know on the cruise are also very well depicted.

There are some great comic moments on the way, as well as some glorious discoveries, and the manner in which Enid orchestrates her secret revenge on the very tricksy Bernard is very satisfying indeed. I loved it. (5 Stars)


No comments: