The Uncommon Reader: A Novella by Alan Bennett
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Book Reviews of The Uncommon Reader: A Novella
Book Review: Book Review: The Uncommon Reader
Summary: 4 Stars
The Review
My friend, Lisa, lent me this book after our book club meeting last week. From the looks of her review, I believe she enjoyed it. One of the things that she states in her review is that the reader can see themselves in the Queen, herself. I could totally relate when her reading appetite increases.
Overall, this quick little royal jaunt is about how the Queen of England, quite frankly by accident, starts reading literature. One after another, she devours them up. Her interest in reading becomes such a part of her persona that there are other aspects of her life that she tends to allow to hold less importance for her. As you can imagine, others around her discourage this change and attempt to alter her path.
One thing that the Queen discovers is that there is a writer inside of her that needs to emerge as a result of this reading. Bravo, Queenie!
What made this novella enjoyable for me were some of the terrific quotes in there:
" `... Books are not about passing time. They're about other lives. Other worlds. Far from wanting time to pass, Sir Kevin, one just wishes one had more of it. If one wanted to pass the time one could go to New Zealand.' "
"Books did not defer. All readers were equal, and this took her back to the beginning of her life."
"Authors, she soon decided, were probably best met within the pages of their novels, and as much creatures of the reader's imagination as the character in their books. Nor did they seem to think one had done them a kindness by reading their writings. Rather they had done one the kindness by writing them."
"You don't put your life into your books. You find it there."
I am finding that I am enjoying the "novella." With two being reviewed this week, I enjoy the speed and conciseness of the novella. This was a particularly charming book and because I am an avid reader, I could relate.
On Sher's "Out of Ten Scale:"
As you will see in my review of Disquiet, I have really only read and reviewed two novellas and they both are fiction. I think I preferred Disquiet to The Uncommon Reader, although I did like this book. Consequently, the genre Fiction:Novella, I am going to rate this book an 8 OUT OF 10.
Book Review: An Unlikely Reader
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought a few books in London this week and while packing for the flight back home I put The Uncommon Reader in my bag simply because it is a slim book. I was holding the book while walking down the aisle to my seat, and this man smiled widely at me from his seat, pointed to the book, and said (in Hebrew): "This is the funniest book in the world". I told him I haven't started reading it yet, and he said: "lucky you!". So when I sat down in my spacious EL AL economy-class seat and opened the book, expectations were high.
Alan Bennett is the author of known West End plays, most recently "The History Boys". In this book he weaves an exquisitely lovely and quintessentially British story about Queen Elizabeth II becoming an avid reader in her old age. Chasing her dogs on a walk through the palace grounds, she stumbles upon a travelling library van, where she meets Norman, who works in the royal kitchens. The young boy introduces Her Majesty to the world of books and becomes her confidante in the matter of reading, after the Queen promotes him from the kitchen to become her personal assistant. She struggles through the first book - which she borrowed from the library van only out of her "sense of duty" - but quickly enough she starts devouring books at a brisk rate.
Reading eventually interferes with her duties as Queen and people around her conspire to return things to normal. She embarrasses the Prime Minister and other dignitaries by asking them about their literary preferences, only to discover most of them do not read. The book builds to a crescendo when the Queen decides to dabble in writing herself and takes the necessary (and logical) step to allow her to do so.
This book is a love poem for reading, so any reader will love it. The humour is good and I did laugh out loud a couple of times (to the consternation of my fellow travellers). Even though I wouldn't necessarily label it as "the funniest book in the world", it is a book I recommend with all my heart.
Book Review: Uncommon Reader
Summary: 4 Stars
The Uncommon Reader: A Novella by Alan Bennett is a witty look at how the Queen of England's love of reading impinges on her duties and helps her evolve as a human being. There is a great deal to love about this small volume.
At first, the Queen of England isn't sure what to make of the traveling library that she runs across at the palace. Once she begins reading, she can't stop and takes it upon herself to appoint a kitchen boy as her amanuensis, a writing assistant to conduct research and perform secretarial duties, named Norman. He helps her select books from the traveling library and from the London Library.
"[Norman] came back full of wonder and excitement at how old-fashioned it was, saying it was the sort of library he had only read about in books and had thought confined to the past. He wandered through its labyrinthine stacks marvelling that these were all books that he (or rather She) could borrow at will. So infectious was his enthusiasm that next time, the Queen thought, she might accompany him." (page 19)
She becomes so engrossed in her reading that she begins carrying books with her in the carriages and to official functions and begins to look upon her normal daily activities, like being briefed on the events of the government and world, as the "antithesis of reading" (page 21). Her speeches before Parliament became tedious and "demeaned the very act of reading itself" (page 33).
It's interesting to watch how certain members of the staff react to her reading habit and how they conspire to eliminate it. Despite all of the government's machinations, however, the Queen perseveres. Readers will adore the end of the novel and how it turns the rest of it upside down.
Book Review: A perfect gift for someone who is a compulsive reader!
Summary: 4 Stars
This will be a very short synopsis because at only 128 pages, if I give you any more than a couple of sentences, it will end up longer than the book itself.
Quite by accident, the Queen of England (yes, that Queen) stumbles upon the bookmobile that visits Buckingham Palace each week. To be polite, she checks a book out from the traveling library and what follows is an adorable story in which HRH develops quite an obsession with books and sends the palace into an uproar.
Written from the Queen's perspective, this novella is both charming and witty. Watching the Queen's progress as she begins her literary explorations is, in it's own way, inspiring. She starts out as most of avid readers do, picking and choosing books based on interest. As she becomes more accomplished, she begins taking notes and venturing her own thoughts on reading. Her new hobby becomes a full-time obsession and hilarity ensues as the Queen's reading begins to interfere with her royal duties.
But aside from the quaintness of the story, there is also some serious philosophical musings on why we read, why we chose to read what we do, and the myriad of ways reading can determine one's character. There's a lot more to this novella than first meets the eye. And the ending ... well, suffice it to say that the ending is a puzzle-perfect fit.
This is a wonderful choice for a gift book for the reader in your life. To be honest, the sticker price somewhat baffled me: I thought the MSRP of $12.00 a bit steep for this small novella, but perhaps I'm out of touch. And of course you can get it for less here at Amazon, too. Very sweet book ... I do recommend it.
Book Review: Hilarious and scandalous
Summary: 4 Stars
From the back cover:
When her corgis stray into a mobile library parked near Buckingham Palace, the Queen feels duty-bound to borrow a book. Discovering the joy of reading widely and intelligently, she finds that her view of the world changes dramatically. Abetted in her new found obsession by Norman, a young man from the royal kitchens, the Queen comes to question the prescribed order of the world and loses patience with the routines of her role as monarch. Her new passion for reading initially alarms the palace staff and soon leads to surprising and very funny consequences for the country at large.
Review:
Not since Roald Dahl's The BFG have I so loved a depiction of the Queen of England. This book is so funny and packed full of literary jokes. I am nowhere near as well read as I would like to be, so I could tell that I missed quite a few of the references, but the one's I did get were very clever. There are some parts of the story that are written so well and are utterly hilarious - I couldn't help it and laughed aloud, thank goodness I was reading on the couch and not on the bus or train!
Hilarious though it is, there is a delicious, subversive undercurrent that is scandalous to the conservative sensibilities of monarchists. I thoroughly enjoyed this novella and think book lovers will relate to the Queen's journey through reading and love the literary references.