“For all its hilarity The Uncommon Reader has a heartfelt tone. It offers a lament on old age, some thoughts on reticence and a backward glance at a life wasted.”

 

NO MAJOR SPOILERS

I tend to compare books to cakes, because I love both!…there are huge heavy books as rich as thick Christmas pudding, and they give me as much pleasure! Some books are light as air, as light as meringue or what we ( French people) call ” macarons”.These short books are a sweet delight!

Recently I finished ” the uncommon reader” by Alan Bennett, and I recommend it to everyone. Imagine Queen Elisabeth discovering in a most unexpected way, the pleasure of reading, all kind of books.

She gradually spends more and more time reading, and this affects her everyday routine, and her royal tasks as well as her relations with the people around her.. And when she wants to share her interests, her position makes it quite impossible…

This book is full of very kind humour, never sarcastic. It is also a very clever way of asking ourselves: why is reading so important in our lives? how does it affect us? how do we share, and how not to be passive readers…?

I really loved that book, I read it in French ( ” La Reine des lectrices”) in an excellent French version, and will definitely read it again soon!

 

Reviewed by:

Petitchou

Added 29th May 2016