Mr Pip - Lloyd Jones
(John Murray Publishers 2007)
I loved this book, the story of which was set on a tropical island in the South Pacific during a civil war.
It is written through the eyes of Matilda, a child, who hasn't been to school for some time due to the conflict on the island. The only white inhabitant is Mr Watts, whom is nicknamed Popeye. Mr Watts decides that the children need schooling but only has Great Expectations with which to teach them. From this they learn so much about life. He encourages the childrens' uneducated parents to come into the class to teach the children what they know about life and encourages the children to find their own voice (p107). He teaches the children that no matter what happens, nobody can remove their imagination.
Matilda witnesses the murder of her mother and there is a wonderful description of her fear being "preternaturally calm" which is "what deep, deep fear does for you", P173.
The children seem mesmerised by Great Expectations and when the book disappears they try to reassemble it using their memory and imagination. There are echoes of the story of Great Expectation that run through the lives of the inhabitants on the Island, for example, Matilda's father has gone to work in Australia, so she imagines that he was rescued by a Jaggers type character.
It is colourful and evocative and the story is shown rather than told through the use of descriptive language and the characters of Matilda's mother and Mr Watts, two very important characters in the life of Matilda.
(John Murray Publishers 2007)
I loved this book, the story of which was set on a tropical island in the South Pacific during a civil war.
It is written through the eyes of Matilda, a child, who hasn't been to school for some time due to the conflict on the island. The only white inhabitant is Mr Watts, whom is nicknamed Popeye. Mr Watts decides that the children need schooling but only has Great Expectations with which to teach them. From this they learn so much about life. He encourages the childrens' uneducated parents to come into the class to teach the children what they know about life and encourages the children to find their own voice (p107). He teaches the children that no matter what happens, nobody can remove their imagination.
Matilda witnesses the murder of her mother and there is a wonderful description of her fear being "preternaturally calm" which is "what deep, deep fear does for you", P173.
The children seem mesmerised by Great Expectations and when the book disappears they try to reassemble it using their memory and imagination. There are echoes of the story of Great Expectation that run through the lives of the inhabitants on the Island, for example, Matilda's father has gone to work in Australia, so she imagines that he was rescued by a Jaggers type character.
It is colourful and evocative and the story is shown rather than told through the use of descriptive language and the characters of Matilda's mother and Mr Watts, two very important characters in the life of Matilda.
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