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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
informative
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
One ordinary family at key events in modern British history.
This was fascinating. I loved revisiting the Lambs over a 60year span as they aged, their family changed and grew, they argued and discussed the events going on around them. We see events we've all either lived through or know about, almost by osmosis in some cases - the Coronation of Elizabeth II, the World Cup win, Diana's death, VE Day anniversary in the midst of COVID lockdowns.
But now we see it, almost Gogglebox-like, from the perspective of one multi-generational family. As some of them age and a new generation take over, we get new views and insights and reminders of our own shared pasts and how we are all connected through them.
Mary Lamb is key to the family, the matriarch, and it begins with her making decisions that will affect her whole life thereafter. Though I was not there (by many decades), I could picture the events of her youth, the coronation felt very well visually described, it felt well-researched with small details that made it realistic and easy to imagine.
Her family grows to include key figures that exemplify issues regarding race and sexuality, we see snatches of love stories and marriages over time, aging, death, families and various occupations. The Lambs from the middle of England could well be that typical British family of the era.
Only a few of the family become our focus, our voices on the past. A few times I got a little confused with names and had to work to remember the relationships and who people were to whom, but this usually became clear quite quickly, even when moving forward in time.
The story comes full swing with references at the end to events at the start of the story, and I found the whole thing nostalgic, moving and engrossing.
Loved Middle England, and this is in a similar vein, will stir memories.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.
This was fascinating. I loved revisiting the Lambs over a 60year span as they aged, their family changed and grew, they argued and discussed the events going on around them. We see events we've all either lived through or know about, almost by osmosis in some cases - the Coronation of Elizabeth II, the World Cup win, Diana's death, VE Day anniversary in the midst of COVID lockdowns.
But now we see it, almost Gogglebox-like, from the perspective of one multi-generational family. As some of them age and a new generation take over, we get new views and insights and reminders of our own shared pasts and how we are all connected through them.
Mary Lamb is key to the family, the matriarch, and it begins with her making decisions that will affect her whole life thereafter. Though I was not there (by many decades), I could picture the events of her youth, the coronation felt very well visually described, it felt well-researched with small details that made it realistic and easy to imagine.
Her family grows to include key figures that exemplify issues regarding race and sexuality, we see snatches of love stories and marriages over time, aging, death, families and various occupations. The Lambs from the middle of England could well be that typical British family of the era.
Only a few of the family become our focus, our voices on the past. A few times I got a little confused with names and had to work to remember the relationships and who people were to whom, but this usually became clear quite quickly, even when moving forward in time.
The story comes full swing with references at the end to events at the start of the story, and I found the whole thing nostalgic, moving and engrossing.
Loved Middle England, and this is in a similar vein, will stir memories.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes