Scan barcode
eshalliday's review
4.0
This novel popped into my mind the other day, and sent me searching for other Stella Duffy novels to read. The fact that it's still on my mind 4 years after reading it is testament to what an enchanting novel this is. It's more of a series of snapshots than a flowing narrative, but 'London Lies Beneath' is wonderfully lyrical. This is an ode to London, the Thames, to boyish dreams, and to bittersweet family life. Stella Duffy (OBE) richly chronicles this cast of complex, interlocked lives.
abbeleas's review
5.0
I can't believe it it took me reading the amazon sample to completely ans instantaneously fall in love with this book and finally buy it! (It was even a lil bit cheaper than usual yay). I can't believe this book is so underrated? The author writes which such grace, it's been a writing style got my attention right from the very start. I hope it doesn't disappoint!
And if it ends up not being all that I hoped for, at least I'll have FINALLY read it!
_____________
EDIT: Oooh, I cried!
And if it ends up not being all that I hoped for, at least I'll have FINALLY read it!
_____________
EDIT: Oooh, I cried!
cathodg's review
5.0
Inspired by real events, this is the story of three friends, and a tragedy that will change them forever. Set in the working class streets of Walworth South London in the early 1900s the book concentrates on Tom, Jimmy, Itzhak and their families.
If you’re familiar with London and in particular the Walworth area this book is so much more than a story of friendship, it is a story of south London, a history of the streets and the families that made it such a complex place. Despite progression over the last 100 years or so this book is an echo of life now, families crammed into small houses, parents working all hours to provide for their families, children with dreams of doing something different, not following the same path as their parents, making more of their life, seeing more, doing more, having adventures beyond the streets of Walworth. Aspirations every child should have and be encouraged to have.
This is the first book I’ve read by Stella Duffy and I’ll certainly be looking up some of her older work. She is a beautiful writer, crafting the world her characters live in and opening each of them up to us so that we connect with their inner soul. This book is nothing without the people, although there is one major tragedy towards the end of the book within the rest of it very little happens and yet Duffy keeps you entranced. The depth and history given to her characters is fantastic and slowly throughout the book she opens up them up to us, sharing their insecurities with us, allowing us to see the last troubling worries before they sleep and the hope and optimism for the future that wakes them each morning.
Life for the families of Walworth was hard, working 6 days a week most of the time, always wondering if they had earned enough to put food on the table, clothe the children, educate them. The struggles of the families contrasting with the dreams of the boys is an important part of this story which is handled very well by Duffy. It would have been easy to over dramatize the poverty but she successfully paints a realistic picture whilst also showing us the wealth held within the families. Close-knit communities where children are cherished and raised by all, where no one goes without in a time of tragedy, where there is always a chair by a warm fire and someone to share the burden.
At the heart of the book are Tom, Jimmy and Itzhak, best friends and partners in crime. When not in school or helping with work and household chores the boys are found exploring south London. From Clapham to Nunhead every street, park and waterside path offers them a new world to explore. Always looking for the next adventure the boys are over the moon when a new Scout troop is established in Walworth and they’re given permission to join. Each boy finds his own strength through the scouts, knot tying, map making, swimming, and leadership and together they prepare to embark on the biggest adventure of their young life a boat trip along the Thames to a summer scout camp in Sheppey. A Thames boat trip might not seem like much of an adventure to a reader today but when you picture the river of the time, a bustling waterway filled with cargo ships and passenger ships taking people to unimaginable lands, a vast stretch of water which the boys would have rarely crossed never mind travelled upon then you can begin to understand the caution and worry of their parents and the sheer excitement of the boys.
The lives of the people of Walworth were forever changed after the boat trip. In today’s age we are touched, more often than we’d like, by tragedies that impact entire communities and Duffy details wonderfully the conflict between a families private grief and a community’s need to mourn and commemorate.
This a slow moving book with wonderful stories within the story and it is an absolute pleasure to spend time amongst the families of Walworth.
If you’re familiar with London and in particular the Walworth area this book is so much more than a story of friendship, it is a story of south London, a history of the streets and the families that made it such a complex place. Despite progression over the last 100 years or so this book is an echo of life now, families crammed into small houses, parents working all hours to provide for their families, children with dreams of doing something different, not following the same path as their parents, making more of their life, seeing more, doing more, having adventures beyond the streets of Walworth. Aspirations every child should have and be encouraged to have.
This is the first book I’ve read by Stella Duffy and I’ll certainly be looking up some of her older work. She is a beautiful writer, crafting the world her characters live in and opening each of them up to us so that we connect with their inner soul. This book is nothing without the people, although there is one major tragedy towards the end of the book within the rest of it very little happens and yet Duffy keeps you entranced. The depth and history given to her characters is fantastic and slowly throughout the book she opens up them up to us, sharing their insecurities with us, allowing us to see the last troubling worries before they sleep and the hope and optimism for the future that wakes them each morning.
Life for the families of Walworth was hard, working 6 days a week most of the time, always wondering if they had earned enough to put food on the table, clothe the children, educate them. The struggles of the families contrasting with the dreams of the boys is an important part of this story which is handled very well by Duffy. It would have been easy to over dramatize the poverty but she successfully paints a realistic picture whilst also showing us the wealth held within the families. Close-knit communities where children are cherished and raised by all, where no one goes without in a time of tragedy, where there is always a chair by a warm fire and someone to share the burden.
At the heart of the book are Tom, Jimmy and Itzhak, best friends and partners in crime. When not in school or helping with work and household chores the boys are found exploring south London. From Clapham to Nunhead every street, park and waterside path offers them a new world to explore. Always looking for the next adventure the boys are over the moon when a new Scout troop is established in Walworth and they’re given permission to join. Each boy finds his own strength through the scouts, knot tying, map making, swimming, and leadership and together they prepare to embark on the biggest adventure of their young life a boat trip along the Thames to a summer scout camp in Sheppey. A Thames boat trip might not seem like much of an adventure to a reader today but when you picture the river of the time, a bustling waterway filled with cargo ships and passenger ships taking people to unimaginable lands, a vast stretch of water which the boys would have rarely crossed never mind travelled upon then you can begin to understand the caution and worry of their parents and the sheer excitement of the boys.
The lives of the people of Walworth were forever changed after the boat trip. In today’s age we are touched, more often than we’d like, by tragedies that impact entire communities and Duffy details wonderfully the conflict between a families private grief and a community’s need to mourn and commemorate.
This a slow moving book with wonderful stories within the story and it is an absolute pleasure to spend time amongst the families of Walworth.
jessicah95's review
3.0
A quick disclaimer – I won an arc of this in a Goodreads giveaway, but that has no influence on my review and all opinions are my own!
Weirdly, I ended up enjoying this book about as much as I expected, although for different reasons than anticipated. I expected this to be quite an adventurous tale set against a gritty historical backdrop. Instead I got a rather simple yet tender story, without much action at all (to the point that it did lose me for a little while about a third of the way through), but full of heart, grief and humanity.
Characters are something Duffy does well and I enjoyed most of them. However, there is a vast array of characters in this and I didn’t feel they all needed to be there. Duffy tries to nuance each of them, and there just isn’t enough room for this, despite the sparse narrative. I would have much preferred less characters, and for her to really shape a few rather than brush over many. The character of Ida specifically called out to me and I feel she could have been explored more to better connect me to her story as a whole. Without giving any spoilers, there is a spiritual quality to her character that was barely touched on, and I would have loved more of that.
Weaving atmosphere into the setting is also another thing that I felt was done well. I really got a feel of a London gone by and the strength and resolve of the working class community. A couple of times crass language was used and it felt unnecessary to me, just added in to make a point and this took me out of the story a bit. However, the tone really did change for the better as the tragedy unfolded, and that pulled me back into the story after the lull I felt a little way in. Knowing this was inspired by real events makes me even more curious about the story, and I’m not sure I got quite enough from what the synopsis promised.
All in all, I really did enjoy this book but I still have mixed feelings about it because I feel that too much was attempted and that hindered my overall connection to it. Maybe more of a 3 and a half star rating, but I definitely want to check out more from Stella Duffy.
Weirdly, I ended up enjoying this book about as much as I expected, although for different reasons than anticipated. I expected this to be quite an adventurous tale set against a gritty historical backdrop. Instead I got a rather simple yet tender story, without much action at all (to the point that it did lose me for a little while about a third of the way through), but full of heart, grief and humanity.
Characters are something Duffy does well and I enjoyed most of them. However, there is a vast array of characters in this and I didn’t feel they all needed to be there. Duffy tries to nuance each of them, and there just isn’t enough room for this, despite the sparse narrative. I would have much preferred less characters, and for her to really shape a few rather than brush over many. The character of Ida specifically called out to me and I feel she could have been explored more to better connect me to her story as a whole. Without giving any spoilers, there is a spiritual quality to her character that was barely touched on, and I would have loved more of that.
Weaving atmosphere into the setting is also another thing that I felt was done well. I really got a feel of a London gone by and the strength and resolve of the working class community. A couple of times crass language was used and it felt unnecessary to me, just added in to make a point and this took me out of the story a bit. However, the tone really did change for the better as the tragedy unfolded, and that pulled me back into the story after the lull I felt a little way in. Knowing this was inspired by real events makes me even more curious about the story, and I’m not sure I got quite enough from what the synopsis promised.
All in all, I really did enjoy this book but I still have mixed feelings about it because I feel that too much was attempted and that hindered my overall connection to it. Maybe more of a 3 and a half star rating, but I definitely want to check out more from Stella Duffy.
rmotti's review
2.0
Not really my style — too descriptive, lots of flashbacks. The main portion of the story is cool, but the author spends lots and lots of times with satellite characters. Oh well.
Loved the descriptions of old London, though.
Loved the descriptions of old London, though.
soupy_twist's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I received a free copy of this book via Goodreads Giveaway.
I really liked the way this is written and also the themes about London and Londoners. The story didn't grip me as much as I initially thought it would, but by the time I read to the last page, I had decided I would give it four stars rather than three. Mostly because the last page is so poetic and beautiful (but tragic) and tied everything together so wonderfully. I hadn't read any descriptions/reviews of the novel before reading it and I had no idea until I read the bit at the back that it was based on a true story! Definitely worth a read to learn a little more about London history, as well as indulging in some great writing.
I really liked the way this is written and also the themes about London and Londoners. The story didn't grip me as much as I initially thought it would, but by the time I read to the last page, I had decided I would give it four stars rather than three. Mostly because the last page is so poetic and beautiful (but tragic) and tied everything together so wonderfully. I hadn't read any descriptions/reviews of the novel before reading it and I had no idea until I read the bit at the back that it was based on a true story! Definitely worth a read to learn a little more about London history, as well as indulging in some great writing.
mollywj's review
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
edeh's review
2.0
wayyyy to many characters
this reminded me that when i dont care abt books i start reading them backwards so that was kinda fun
this reminded me that when i dont care abt books i start reading them backwards so that was kinda fun
booktwitcher23's review
4.0
A good 'faction' read, and also a good choice for a London read, with the London south of the river taking centre stage. This book is also a foreshadowing of the tragedy of the WW1, with the Thames boating/scouring doomed trip of 1912.