Not many non fiction books have passed by the eyes of Cramlington Book Club (When Breath Becomes Air standing out as the only one) so when Names For The Sea was suggested I jumped at the chance and was thrilled when it was chosen as our March Book of the Month.
Based on Sarah's experiences of living in Iceland for a year during the banking crisis and THE ash cloud I was curious as to how her family would cope with the decantment given it is something I would love to do, albeit in Scotland
My first impressions were what a year to move! Whereas I don't really remember the Icelandic banking crisis, I do remember countless flights being grounded because of the ash cloud. To experience that first hand must have been something else. The book kept you guessing as to whether Sarah and her family would stay or not, the suspense was unexpected yet quite liked.
I have to say I didn't really expect the book to cover issues such as Icelandic poverty and the possibility of elves existing but I enjoyed Sarah's investigations non the less and felt like I had really learned something about Iceland - The stigma of second hand clothes, the lack of availability of secondhand white goods, the love of knitting and yes, the price of fruit.
Food was, surprisingly, such a main theme in this book which I enjoyed (especially the food smuggling) but I did at times find the point to be slightly laboured.
I was surprised by the, seemingly, lack of difficulty faced by the family when leaving England - respective family members were mentioned briefly but there was no real reference to homesickness (other than food). I get that the focus of the book was on Iceland but surely a large part of moving abroad is coping without what we have left behind? Sarah seemed to spend more time talking about the possessions they took/left behind (descriptions of which were interesting and at times poignant) than the relatives they left behind. Didn't their children miss their grandparents/friends?
I was also surprised to read about Sarah's lack of confidence in speaking Icelandic. She ended up in so many people's homes, she was a lecturer in front of many and therefore clearly not a shy woman. So many of her students and colleagues seemed to take her under their wing (and invite her into their homes) that surely one of them could have helped her practice?
This added to the general theme of the family struggling with integration throughout the book. Her son, not wanting to be involved in any sports due to the language barrier was a perfect example. Isn't sport the one thing that is meant to overcome all obstacles? I also didn't get what they did with their children all the time, money issues aside I would have gone demented if all I had to entertain my children was a lift and recycled newspapers. Tobias was the only one who seemed to get a genuine Icelandic immersion and it was a shame that really he is the one who will probably forget it the most.
I don't know if it was just me (it wasn't the group thought so too) but what was with the lack of Sarah's husband in the book? Did he really just stay at home and bake all day? Perhaps he didn't want to be in the story but I found his absence confusing given the extent her children were present. Sarah was the bread earner, she seemed to do the socialising and even did the driving so what was it that Anthony actually did? I have visions of him being really isolated and lonely for the whole time. It would have been interesting to see his point of view on the experience.
One thing I couldn't get away with was their decision not to travel until they returned on holiday. WHY! You live there, go out and explore! Yes there is the weather but that wasn't an issue when the family first moved and the academic year had not yet started. I don't think I fully settled into Cramlington until I had my first child, created the book club and basically had friends and interests outside of my husbands in the town that he had lived his whole life. I think the key to integrating is getting out their, exploring every crevice and joining in with any event that's on. Its just not the way I would approach it and I found it frustrating.
Hats off though to Sarah she uprooted her family and managed to write a book about, it two things I would love to do, so all of my criticism above are perhaps mine at not having done it (yet). I did find the book very readeable but am undecided as to whether it stays on my shelf or not. Having just had a reshuffle there is space until it is, perhaps, bettered.
The book scored an 8 which is quite high however 3 of the group didn't like the book so much that they didn't read enough to feel like they could score it. The main reasons seemed to be they found the book boring or they couldn't warm to Sarah. I get the latter point and think if it had been a fictional book Sarah's lack of emotion would have bothered me more however being non fiction this wasn't an issue for me and the book was so varied that even if you didn't appreciate/found a section boring the book soon moved on to a totally different topic that you found interesting. I enjoyed the non-fiction/travel element and will keep an eye out for similar books in this genre. I'm undecided though if it's going to stay on my shelf, there is space so maybe it will until, perhaps, it is bettered.
Next book is The Dry by Jane Harper
I really liked the colour of the front cover by the way. Random!
Based on Sarah's experiences of living in Iceland for a year during the banking crisis and THE ash cloud I was curious as to how her family would cope with the decantment given it is something I would love to do, albeit in Scotland
My first impressions were what a year to move! Whereas I don't really remember the Icelandic banking crisis, I do remember countless flights being grounded because of the ash cloud. To experience that first hand must have been something else. The book kept you guessing as to whether Sarah and her family would stay or not, the suspense was unexpected yet quite liked.
I have to say I didn't really expect the book to cover issues such as Icelandic poverty and the possibility of elves existing but I enjoyed Sarah's investigations non the less and felt like I had really learned something about Iceland - The stigma of second hand clothes, the lack of availability of secondhand white goods, the love of knitting and yes, the price of fruit.
Food was, surprisingly, such a main theme in this book which I enjoyed (especially the food smuggling) but I did at times find the point to be slightly laboured.
I was surprised by the, seemingly, lack of difficulty faced by the family when leaving England - respective family members were mentioned briefly but there was no real reference to homesickness (other than food). I get that the focus of the book was on Iceland but surely a large part of moving abroad is coping without what we have left behind? Sarah seemed to spend more time talking about the possessions they took/left behind (descriptions of which were interesting and at times poignant) than the relatives they left behind. Didn't their children miss their grandparents/friends?
I was also surprised to read about Sarah's lack of confidence in speaking Icelandic. She ended up in so many people's homes, she was a lecturer in front of many and therefore clearly not a shy woman. So many of her students and colleagues seemed to take her under their wing (and invite her into their homes) that surely one of them could have helped her practice?
This added to the general theme of the family struggling with integration throughout the book. Her son, not wanting to be involved in any sports due to the language barrier was a perfect example. Isn't sport the one thing that is meant to overcome all obstacles? I also didn't get what they did with their children all the time, money issues aside I would have gone demented if all I had to entertain my children was a lift and recycled newspapers. Tobias was the only one who seemed to get a genuine Icelandic immersion and it was a shame that really he is the one who will probably forget it the most.
I don't know if it was just me (it wasn't the group thought so too) but what was with the lack of Sarah's husband in the book? Did he really just stay at home and bake all day? Perhaps he didn't want to be in the story but I found his absence confusing given the extent her children were present. Sarah was the bread earner, she seemed to do the socialising and even did the driving so what was it that Anthony actually did? I have visions of him being really isolated and lonely for the whole time. It would have been interesting to see his point of view on the experience.
One thing I couldn't get away with was their decision not to travel until they returned on holiday. WHY! You live there, go out and explore! Yes there is the weather but that wasn't an issue when the family first moved and the academic year had not yet started. I don't think I fully settled into Cramlington until I had my first child, created the book club and basically had friends and interests outside of my husbands in the town that he had lived his whole life. I think the key to integrating is getting out their, exploring every crevice and joining in with any event that's on. Its just not the way I would approach it and I found it frustrating.
Hats off though to Sarah she uprooted her family and managed to write a book about, it two things I would love to do, so all of my criticism above are perhaps mine at not having done it (yet). I did find the book very readeable but am undecided as to whether it stays on my shelf or not. Having just had a reshuffle there is space until it is, perhaps, bettered.
The book scored an 8 which is quite high however 3 of the group didn't like the book so much that they didn't read enough to feel like they could score it. The main reasons seemed to be they found the book boring or they couldn't warm to Sarah. I get the latter point and think if it had been a fictional book Sarah's lack of emotion would have bothered me more however being non fiction this wasn't an issue for me and the book was so varied that even if you didn't appreciate/found a section boring the book soon moved on to a totally different topic that you found interesting. I enjoyed the non-fiction/travel element and will keep an eye out for similar books in this genre. I'm undecided though if it's going to stay on my shelf, there is space so maybe it will until, perhaps, it is bettered.
Next book is The Dry by Jane Harper
I really liked the colour of the front cover by the way. Random!
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