Mark W introduced the book by saying that he had recently
seen the film and was left with a ‘what on earth was that all about’ feeling,
and therefore hoped that the book would
fill in the gaps. He also did not expect that this book would have been the one
of the four proposed that was the majority choice, being the first novel of a
relatively unknown Scottish writer. Although not wanting to reveal his view of
the book at this stage one point he wanted to make was that the book and film
were significantly different in narrative and emphasis.
Steve opened the discussion by saying that he enjoyed the
book from the beginning, that it was an easy read and well paced without being
particularly challenging. It raised questions from the word go, and the gradual
build up to the revelation was well handled. In the end he wasn't really sure
what the book was actually about and wasn't sure that it actually reached a
conclusion but was happy to be drawn wherever it took him. One minor
frustration was the lack of background as to how and why the aliens got to
Earth in the first place (a theme taken up by others to a greater or lesser extent).
Rob followed by saying that he wasn't sure what he though
about the book. The elements were quite clear, the images were good and there
was originality in the concept of the aliens being the humans. However he had
two big problems. Firstly the credibility of the story: he felt that the continued
disappearance of the hitch-hikers would have been followed up more and this
caused him some irritation. Secondly, although the book introduced a lot of
interesting ideas he felt the that lack of background on how the aliens got to
Earth in the first place was a major negative and he was left wanting to know
more about where they came from. Overall he just felt that there were too many
gaps. Unlike Steve however, Rob liked the ending.
Chris B did enjoy reading the book. He suggested that there
was a flavour of ‘Never Let me Go’ in the sense of the gradual build up to a realisation
of what's actually going on. He did like the way in which the human and animal
concept was turned on its head, and was happy to go along with the book’s own
internal logic. However there were also some unsatisfactory loose ends. In
particular, the whole issue of where she came from and why she had to go through
this experience. He felt that he wanted to know more about her but he also
though that the relationship with Amlis was handled well. It was also an
interesting observation on the sexist nature of men.
Mark T was also frustrated by the lack of background, and
had problems with particular detailed elements of the book, including why she
had to live alone in the house and the over emphasis on her physical attributes
during the meetings with the hitch-hikers.
Richard thought that the book was excellent. He thought it
imaginative, coherent and, unlike some of the others didn't feel that there
were any gaps. He was happy with the fact that the book did not go into too
much detail about where the aliens came from and he felt that the information
given was sufficient. The style was distinctive, original, lyrical and
brilliant. He finished the book two weeks before the meeting but remembered
every detail. He identified with and was able to understand Isserley and was impressed with the depth of
characterisation. He cared about her and understood why she was embittered. He was amused at the
shock that she felt at the idea of eating sheep. An assured piece of work.
Neil, although he was prepared to accept the concept of the
aliens, was less prepared to accept that no one missed the disappearing
hitch-hikers. He thought that the aliens, with all of their technology, would
have figured out a more efficient way of resolving their nutrition problem. He
found Isserley dull as a central character, but found some of the interactions
interesting. The concept of us being the animals was not very subtle. Like others
he found the background story a bit unsatisfactory, and the character of Amlis
a bit of a cliché. He felt that the ending was a cop out so overall, although
he wanted to like it, he was left feeling disappointed.
Chris W was not disappointed. He felt that there were so
many different ideas and enjoyed the whole concept and the frequent events that
occurred. He thought that the underground imagery was powerful but was
disappointed that the relationship with Amlis didn't go anywhere. Like Neil he
felt that the ending was a cop out. Overall, although the book had its faults,
he felt that his mind had been stimulated.
Mark W concluded the reviews by saying that he enjoyed the
book, finding the concept original, and the characterisation of Isserley, upon
which the book really depended, was convincing. He did not have a problem with
the lack of detail of the alien world, and indeed, felt that the bits of
information given were sufficient and appropriate, as more focus here would have
detracted from the actual focus of the book. He found that the descriptions of
Scotland were evocative and powerful.
The horror of some of the underground descriptions was not too explicit, i.e.
it left much to the imagination although the some of the images remained in the
mind. Yes, there were flaws, but overall he was drawn into the world created by
the book. Finally, although very different from the film, some of the gaps and
questions in the latter were explained by the book.
