Solar - Ian McEwan

I would rate Ian McEwan as one of my favourite authors - but like many others Solar would not be one of my favourite of his books. That's not to say I didn't enjoy the read - it is classic McEwan in so many ways - great characterisation and gloriously detailed and descriptive writing are two of the traits that I love so much in his writing. But overall it just wasn't a story that grabbed me.

Solar is the story of British physicist Michael Beard - truly one of the most unlikeable and disgusting characters I have ever read! When the story opens Michael is in turmoil as his beloved fifth wife is having an affair - and as it is Michael that usually engages in affairs in his marriages the whole situation has thrown him out a bit. Michael is also having some trouble at his workplace - a newly developed research centre exploring different energy sources for human consumption. Michael's personal and professional lives come together in a totally unexpected way and the event sets Michael on a new career path (not entirely of his making) to look at the utilisation of solar energy.

As is the norm in McEwan's books he goes into extreme detail about the science involved in his story line - this would normally bore me completely if any other author tried it but McEwan always makes this work for me. Even though I was not a fan of Michael Beard as a person I did enjoy reading about his as a character - I think part of me was just reading to see if he got what was coming to him at the end!

Saturday - Ian McEwan

I have continued my Ian McEwan fest this week by reading Saturday, his novel that focuses on one Saturday in the life of London based neurosurgeon, Henry Perowne.

The personal and the political collide in this novel as it is set after the tense period of 9/11 and on the day that millions took to the streets to protest the predicted invasion of Iraq by the allied forces. In amongst this political activity is the "normal" Saturday routine of Henry as he looks forward to playing squash with a colleague, check in on the condition of his patients, attend to his roles as parent and husband and prepare a meal for a family reunion that will take place at his house later that night.

Except it is evident from the beginning that this Saturday is possibly not going to follow the regular path when Henry is, for some unknown reason, woken very early to witness a burning plane from his bedroom window.

The narrative of the novel weaves between the action taking place on the Saturday in question to Henry's memories and recollections of his recent and not so recent past. It is in this way that we learn about Henry's wife, Rosalind and his two adult children, Daisy and Theo and the significant parts they play in Henry's life. We also learn about Henry's job as a neurosurgeon and the passion and commitment he has for this role. Apparently McEwan spent two years following an actual neurosurgeon around watching him at his job and this clearly shows in the detail and precision McEwan conveys about neurosurgery in the book.

I quite enjoyed this particular detail (I have worked in a neurosurgery ward of a major hospital and it was a joy to see the area detailed so accurately) however some of the other intense details portrayed in the book (such as learning step by step how to make a fish stew!) I could have done without.

McEwan built the tension in this story wonderfully - the balance between what was happening in Henry's day corresponded nicely with what was happening in greater London at the time and it was clear that something was building to crisis point which kept me hooked into the story. I was left wondering if it was all just a little too dramatic though??

I'm still a huge McEwan fan - he builds and tells fantastic stories and characters - I might just take a break for a little while and read something a little less threatening to the heart!

Amsterdam - Ian McEwan

I didn't have a lot of time to devote to reading over the past weekend so I was on the look out for a sharp, quick read that would hold my interest and satisfy my lust for a good story.

Amsterdam was the perfect choice! The only other book by McEwan I have read is Atonement - which I think is a wonderful book in so many ways but for some reason I have never read another novel of his up until now (maybe I was afraid another book would ruin the image of almost perfection I had for his writing??).

Amsterdam starts off with two old friends, Clive and Vernon, attending the funeral of another one of their long time friends - and lover to both of the men at various stages in their lives - Molly.

The funeral scene enables McEwan to set up the history of the friendships and the relationships between these three characters and others who have been a part of their history and present.

Clive is a composer about to finalise a symphony he is writing to celebrate the upcoming millennium and Vernon is a newspaper editor - both men are successful in their careers and clearly see their professional roles as a defining part of who they are.

Throughout the novel both Clive and Vernon's careers - and their dedication to them - will come into question as they are both placed in the position of making two very different moral decisions that will impact on their careers, and subsequently, their lives.

I found this book gripping - I think McEwan has a fantastic ability to write the inner minds of characters in such a way as to make you feel you are in their space with them. Reading other reviews of this book it seems that many readers were not happy or convinced by the ending of this book - and if I was being completely honest I would probably have to agree with most of them but the way that McEwan draws you in to this story made it virtually impossible for me not to stay with him right until the very end. That's the sign of a brilliant story teller for me.

I'm definitely on the look out for more McEwan reading now - can you tell me where you think I should look next?

Atonement - Movie

I have finally watched Atonement. After reading, and absolutely loving, the book last year for lots of reasons I have been putting off and putting off watching the movie version. My best friend saw it as soon as it came out in Australia and she has been pestering me ever since to watch it myself - I even bought the DVD as soon as it was released and have had it sitting on my shelves since then, waiting and waiting...

I'm not really sure what was stopping me from watching it except for the fact that I loved the book so much I didn't want anything to spoil it. I'm glad to report that I loved the movie. I'm still glad that I left so much time between the reading and the watching but I am ultimately glad that I finally gave in. The movie is gorgeous in so many ways - not least of all the magnificent English country home and estate that plays the part of the Tallis home so well. And that green dress worn by Cecilia - if only I had one myself! I thought the roles were cast beautifully - who could go wrong with James McAvoy really??!

I often find I am so disappointed by movie productions of my favourite books but this one really hit the mark for me.

Photo taken from http://www.workingtitlefilms.com/