It’s time for #6Degrees and it’s a cinch to play – please join in!
This month’s chain begins with Emma Donoghue’s bestseller, Room. Room was a departure for Donoghue, whose work is predominantly historical fiction. I’ve just finished reading her most recent novel, The Wonder.
The Wonder is set in 1850, in rural Ireland, when the people had deep religious beliefs and many superstitions about faeries, luck, the weather and so on. The Good People by Hannah Kent follows similar themes.
You know when an author’s second book doesn’t even come close to the brilliance of their first? I’m afraid that was my experience with The Good People, as it was with Maggie Shipstead’s Astonish Me.
Astonish Me is about ballet. Dance is also used to drive the plot in Zadie Smith’s Swing Time.
I reckon one of the characters in Swing Time references Kylie Minogue. Likewise, in Teddy Wayne’s novel, The Love Song of Jonny Valentine there are lots of Justin Bieber hints.
The life of a child star is the main theme in Wayne’s book. The real-life child star that most intrigues me is Drew Barrymore, which is why I bought her autobiography, Wildflower (haven’t read it yet…!).
From hostages and Irish folklore to ballet, pop princesses and child stars – where will other chains lead?
Next month (May 6, 2017), the chain will begin with the book that rocketed Christos Tsiolkas to fame – The Slap.
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