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saveyourtears's review against another edition
4.0
Ik dacht dat ik iets ging lezen over een apocalyps. Dat komt omdat ik Marcia van oogopdetoekomst.nl en boekvinder.be volg. Ze schreef een zeer lovende recensie over het boek en ik pikte niet op dat het een historische roman is. Dit boek had ik zonder de vergissing nooit uitgekozen om te lezen.
Tegen mijn eigen verwachtingen in vond ik dit boek erg mooi! De relaties van en tussen de vrouwen leken realistisch en waren fijn om te lezen. Het leven op het Australische platteland was interessant om te zien. De problemen in het boek waren niet vergezocht en gaven een inkijkje in een hele andere levens dan die van mij.
Na het lezen dacht ik niet snel iets vergelijkbaars voor me zelf uit ga kiezen. Niets is minder waar het boek heeft ervoor gezorgd dat ik meer romans heb gelezen en meer buiten mijn bubbel ben gaan lezen.
Tegen mijn eigen verwachtingen in vond ik dit boek erg mooi! De relaties van en tussen de vrouwen leken realistisch en waren fijn om te lezen. Het leven op het Australische platteland was interessant om te zien. De problemen in het boek waren niet vergezocht en gaven een inkijkje in een hele andere levens dan die van mij.
Na het lezen dacht ik niet snel iets vergelijkbaars voor me zelf uit ga kiezen. Niets is minder waar het boek heeft ervoor gezorgd dat ik meer romans heb gelezen en meer buiten mijn bubbel ben gaan lezen.
kathryn08's review against another edition
4.0
This was an enjoyable read set mostly in the Northern Territory at the end of the 1970’s/early 1980’s.
The descriptions of life in the Northern Territory were wonderful - of how life revolves around “the wet” and “the dry”, and the vibrant colours with new life. Although I’ve never been up that way, it is described just how I imagine it! And such a hard life - especially at that time, since there was no internet and even phones weren’t commonplace!
I really enjoyed getting caught up in the lives of the women of the book club, although there was less book club discussion than I’d been anticipating. There were some very sad or difficult events in the lives of these women at times - there were even a couple of times when I felt a bit emotional - I didn’t cry, and while I wasn’t actually heart-broken, I think I might have chipped a few bits off my heart!
With thanks to Goodreads Giveaways and Hachette for the copy of this that I won.
The descriptions of life in the Northern Territory were wonderful - of how life revolves around “the wet” and “the dry”, and the vibrant colours with new life. Although I’ve never been up that way, it is described just how I imagine it! And such a hard life - especially at that time, since there was no internet and even phones weren’t commonplace!
I really enjoyed getting caught up in the lives of the women of the book club, although there was less book club discussion than I’d been anticipating. There were some very sad or difficult events in the lives of these women at times - there were even a couple of times when I felt a bit emotional - I didn’t cry, and while I wasn’t actually heart-broken, I think I might have chipped a few bits off my heart!
With thanks to Goodreads Giveaways and Hachette for the copy of this that I won.
kater's review against another edition
3.0
Easy read story set in the Northern Territory during the late 70s/early 80s.
Good sense of place, decent characters.
Good sense of place, decent characters.
chalkletters's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Back when I was routinely picking up books from my company's book sales, there was a period where Australian stories seemed to be all the rage. I collected The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club, Salt Creek and Skylarking in quick succession. Not only that, it was through reading The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club that I went on to read The Thorn Birds. So my interest in fiction set in Australia is well established, and I remember enjoying The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club first time around — I gave it three stars.
Like All Together Now, The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club is an ensemble story of how the club, and the friendships formed through it, changes the lives of each of the members. The books chosen and the reading aren't really the point: that's just an excuse to bring the characters together. (Nonetheless, there is enough reading and discussion of books that Sophie Green doesn't run into the problem so many books about libraries do.) The stories tread familiar ground: a woman escaping a bad marriage, another dealing with the lost of a husband, a third struggling to conceive and blaming herself. And each of these stories ends much the way you'd expect.
Nonetheless, the friendship linking the stories together adds something quite special, especially given the setting. Sophie Green effectively conveys just how big and empty this part of Australia was in the 1970s and 80s. For most of her characters, seeing a friend involves a trip that's numbered in the hours, if not the days, and there's little opportunity for forging new relationships until the book club comes along. There's a real theme of women helping other women through the generations, and an acceptance that not every friend is going to follow the same life path.
While Sophie Green's prose isn’t remarkable (either positively or negatively), it is always interesting to see the way characters react to the Australian landscape, and Sophie Green delivers this from many different perspectives. There are characters who've recently moved to Australia from England and America, as well as characters who've lived in the same region of Australia all their lives and others who move between different regions. The discussions between characters coming from different backgrounds make this particularly memorable.
Overall, The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club is an enjoyable ensemble piece, and I will definitely come back to it once I've read more of the books that the characters discuss.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, and Grief
Minor: Alcoholism, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Oof, that book was an experience. All the emotions, all kinds of bad stuff happening, but against the fascinating background of the Australian countryside, and made worth it by the close knit friendships on display through everything. The strength of this story is very much in the characters.
I found some of the emphasis on the need for women to make decisions that are good for 'just themselves' to be a bit annoying--it was fair at times, but other times I think was just advocating selfishness (and I would say that regardless of whether men or women were making similar decisions).
Content issues are technically low, but there is just a lot of bad stuff that happens throughout this story (infertility, miscarriage, drunk and angry husband/father, death, a scene that's clearly leading up to a rape attempt, etc). There are also some brief references to couples kissing, nudity, etc, though anything beyond that stays strictly closed door. I'd be unlikely to recommend this book for anyone but older teens and adults, though I suppose some hardy mid teens might be able to handle it.
I found some of the emphasis on the need for women to make decisions that are good for 'just themselves' to be a bit annoying--it was fair at times, but other times I think was just advocating selfishness (and I would say that regardless of whether men or women were making similar decisions).
Content issues are technically low, but there is just a lot of bad stuff that happens throughout this story (infertility, miscarriage, drunk and angry husband/father, death, a scene that's clearly leading up to a rape attempt, etc). There are also some brief references to couples kissing, nudity, etc, though anything beyond that stays strictly closed door. I'd be unlikely to recommend this book for anyone but older teens and adults, though I suppose some hardy mid teens might be able to handle it.
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