Oystercatchers

Not the most "enjoyable" read but very thought provoking, and I finished it with interest. Was glad to have read it. Not every read has to be for light entertainment and I like a book that makes me think about people, characters, and why we like/don't like people, why people are as they are.

Superby book, especially if you like descriptive writing

Its a while since I read this beautiful book, it is one of those that stays with you a long time. Its gorgeously written. I loved it.

Fletcher either catches at your heart, or misses you completely in the world she creates. Personally, I love her writing

Received in excellent condition

I found it quite slow going.

I had eagerly awaited this book because I so enjoyed `Eve Green' - as much for the poetry of Susan Fletcher's language as for the story itself. In `Oystercatchers' there are no superfluous words or dialogue. At first, the style seemed jumpy, interspersed with sentences without a verb and commas where I would not expect them. After a while, though, the stark minimalism became mesmerising and `normal' writing dull in comparison.`Oystercatchers' is much darker than `Eve Green'. Its central character, Moira, is hard to like. She is not someone a reader would wish to identify with. But such is the author's skill that as the story unfolded I became engrossed in Moira's life and began to understand in part why she is like she is.Sitting at her sister's bedside in an intensive care unit, Moira tells the story in retrospect, alternating between first and third person. Full of remorse, she blames herself for Amy's accident, for not loving her and not spending time with her. But at the age of eleven she saw Amy's birth as an intrusion that shattered her cosy childhood with her parents. This is the focus around which the story revolves.Having exiled herself to a school in faraway Norfolk, where the other girls make fun of her, she is lonely, immersing herself in her studies and her fascination with science. Distanced from her Pembrokeshire home, her only constant is her Aunt Til who visits from London and takes her out.The progress of an unattractive school career into adulthood could have been so dull, but Susan Fletcher makes it an engrossing read. It is her insight into her characters as much as her poetic prose that makes this seemingly unappealing novel so attractive. And throughout is the pervasive presence of the sea, spray sparkling against the rocks, the tang of seaweed, the taste of salt on lips.Try it and see what you think. I loved it, but it might not appeal to everyone.

I just wanted to say that I agree with all the positive things written about this bookIt took a little time to get into, but was well worth the effort.Beautifully written and although I agree that Moira was difficult to like, I sympathised with her and she didn't like hereself a whole lot.I now look forward to reading Eve Green with happy anticipation