Tag: fiction

Book Review – Tin Man by Sarah Winman

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About the Book

It begins with a painting won in a raffle: fifteen sunflowers, hung on the wall by a woman who believes that men and boys are capable of beautiful things.

And then there are two boys, Ellis and Michael,
who are inseparable.
And the boys become men,
and then Annie walks into their lives,
and it changes nothing and everything.

Format: ebook (214 pages) Publisher: Tinder Press
Publication date: 27th July 2017 Genre: Fiction

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My Review

Tin Man is described by the publishers as ‘a love letter to human kindness and friendship, loss and living’ and I think that’s an apt summary of this gentle, very moving novel.

The book opens in 1950 when Dora Judd, pregnant with her first child, becomes mesmerized by a reproduction of Van Gogh’s painting ‘Sunflowers’, one of several prizes in a raffle in the local Community Centre. The painting stirs happy memories of seeing the original on a school trip. When she draws a winning ticket she chooses the painting, much to the disgust of her overbearing husband Len who is more interested in a bottle of whisky. She hangs the painting in their lounge in an act of defiance, provoking her husband’s anger.

Move forward forty years and Dora’s son Ellis is living a lonely life of quiet despair following the death of his wife, Annie. His days are filled with the mundane routine of work in the local car factory, banging out dents as his father did before him. It’s a far cry from his early ambition to become an artist. A photograph of himself and Annie alongside his childhood friend Michael is a reminder of happier times.

Ellis and Michael meet as twelve-year-olds and immediately become close friends spending most of their time together. Gradually their relationship evolves into something more than friendship, one that requires secrecy. When Ellis meets Annie, two become three but in an entirely harmonious way. Then one day Michael leaves. It’s only in the second half of the book, told from Michael’s perspective, that we – and Ellis – learn the full story. I won’t say more other than Michael, like Ellis, finds what he was looking for but also experiences the pain of loss.

Tin Man is an exquisitely told story about the complexity of human relationships. Although unbearably sad at times, the author balances this by ending it on a note of hope.

In three words: Moving, tender, insightful

About the Author

Sarah Winman grew up in Essex and now lives in London. She attended the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, and went on to act in theatre, film and television. She is the author of the novels When God was a Rabbit (2011), A Year of Marvellous Ways (2015) and Still Life (2021).

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Book Review – All Day at the Movies by Fiona Kidman

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About the Book

Book cover of All Day at the Movies by Fiona Kidman

When war widow Irene Sandle goes to work in New Zealand’s tobacco fields in 1952, she hopes to start a new, independent life for herself and her daughter – but the tragic repercussions of her decision will resonate long after Irene has gone.

Each of Irene’s children carries the events of their childhood throughout their lives, played out against a backdrop of great change – new opportunities emerge for women, but social problems continue to hold many back. Headstrong Belinda becomes a successful filmmaker, but struggles to deal with her own family drama as her younger siblings are haunted by the past.

Format: Paperback (302 pages) Publisher: Gallic Books
Publication date: 8th March 2018 Genre: Fiction

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My Review

I commenced my Backlist Burrow reading challenge in 2023 with the aim of reading two books from the backlists of six authors whose other books I’d enjoyed. Unfortunately, I only managed to read six of the books I chose so I’ve carried it forward to this year. Having loved Fiona Kidman’s novel, This Mortal Boy, the two books I picked were The Infinite Air and this one, All Day at the Movies.

Starting in 1952, All Day at the Movies charts the fortunes of one family over the following five decades, set against the background of events in the history of New Zealand and social change. It’s a story of trauma, separation and troubled relationships. When faced with misfortune or tragedy the instinct for many of the characters is to take flight, to disappear and sever connections with other members of the family. Jessie, Irene’s eldest daughter does this early on and later Grant, Irene’s son, will make an even more purposeful attempt to leave his former life – and some traumatic experiences – behind. In the case of Janice, the youngest daughter, her life becomes a flight from one difficult situation to another.

The story involves some challenging issues such as teenage pregnancy, child abuse, racism, mental illness, domestic violence and drug addiction. There’s a lot that happens to the characters, especially Grant and Janice, and if, at times, it makes for uncomfortable reading it always feels true to life. And the book has its fair share of monsters in human form.

The book’s title is reflected in subtle ways. For Grant, who was my favourite character, the cinema is a sanctuary, a place of respite. ‘In the evenings, on week nights, he got out of the house and went to the pictures. He liked that. He could lose himself for a bit.’ And later he uses a ploy from his favourite film, The Day of the Jackal. Jessie becomes a famous foreign correspondent, reporting from all over the world. Belinda is a documentary film maker whose gaze, for much of the book, is directed elsewhere and not on the drama unfolding in her own family, or its secrets.

I learned a lot about events in New Zealand’s history through reading All Day at the Movies and I suspect this aspect would really resonate with readers from that country. It’s a well-crafted family saga that explores some important social issues through the experiences of its characters. However, it didn’t quite move me to the extent that Kidman’s novel This Mortal Boy did. Her 2013 novel, The Infinite Air, awaits.

In three words: Insightful, dramatic, assured

About the Author

Author Fiona Kidman

Dame Fiona Kidman OBE is one of New Zealand’s most highly acclaimed novelists. New Zealand Books said of Kidman, ‘We cannot talk about writing in New Zealand wihout acknowledging her.’ Born in Hawera, she has worked as a librarian, radio producer, critic and scriptwriter. Her first novel, A Breed of Women, was published in 1979 and became a bestseller. She has written more than 25 books including novels, poetry, non-fiction and a play. 

Fiona Kidman lives in Wellington, New Zealand.