Anyone read The Children's Book by AS Byatt?

[LadyThompson]

I'm really interested in people's thoughtson this, I've just finished. It was well written but without giving any of the plot away, I thought there were too many characters and she wasn't quite in control of them. Also, some of the historical detail felt indigestible. I don't think it merited a place on the Booker shortlist, but would love to hear other people's opinions.

Am about to start it, have been working my way through the Booker longlist and it's the last one I have to read. The two girls who do the longlist with me both enjoyed it, but thought it could have done with a braver editor to cut bits out! They admitted to skim-reading bits. Both said that, despite that, they would have it on their shortlist from the 13 longlisted titles.

That's interesting - thank you. How long have you been reading the longlist? I used to do the shortlist and felt that that was an achievement - the longlist is something else!

Yes, I read this a couple of weeks ago. I really enjoyed the first 3 parts of it, the the 4th part sounded like an essay on What Happened in The Great War and it all went a bit odd - rushed round ups of characters and their lives. Like when a film finishes and they put little biographies up on screen.

I admit I skim read some of the very detailed stuff like the Paris exhibition and descriptions of the museum exhibits, oh and the puppetry in Germany.

I loved the children's stories, and wished there had been more of those - a bit more parallel reference perhaps between those and what was happening in the book, or just hearing more of what happened in those stories, which appeared in some detail and then disappeared again.

Also adored the descriptions of the pottery and ceramics even if it got a bit technical sometimes. I liked the intertwining of the children's lives as they grew up.

From what I've put it looks as though I didn't like a lot of it - perhaps the sum of the parts was greater than the whole, or something.

SlightlyFoxed - I think it was the exhibition/museum exhibits that my friends admitted to skimming!

LadyT - this is the third year running that I've read the longlist. Usually manage to finish it just before the winner is announced (works out at about a book per week), but was a bit slow this year. I had finished all but the Children's Book by the end of October, but couldn't bring myself to start it until now- it's a bit heavy to carry round in the handbag every day in hardback (as was Wolf Hall, but I wasn't pregnant back in the Summer when I was carrying that one around!).

Will be on maternity leave for this year's list, so hoping that means more time for reading, but somehow suspect not!

Slightly Foxed - It was oddly paced, for me, and only Tom's book really came alive. I felt strongly that with such a large cast of characters, even in a long book like this, many were inevitably spread a bit thin. By the same token, some I felt I knew a bit too well! The sum of the parts greater than the whole - precisely. I found the narrative strangely po-faced. All a bit odd really. I hadn't read a Byatt since Possession - I imagine it will be a similar amount of time before I read one again...but on balance, glad I read it.

Marquise - what have been the stand out ones of this year's lot, then?

I read it when it first came out and was quite disappointed with it. It seemed to me almost like a resume of a much longer story, and was in fact rather thin.

I am a big fan of AS Byatt, and love all her Frederica Potter books; I was quite suprised this made the Booker shortlist TBH.

I figured out that Fludd is based on Eric Gill but didn't realise Olive is based on E. Nesbit until today

That's very interesting LadyThompson! I had also got the Gill/Fludd link, but I never realised E Nesbit had had such a rackety life! I shall view the Railway Children in a new light in future .

I know, it's all a bit of a shame!