Thanks to everyone who join the lively and enjoyable discussion at our April meeting, especially the new members. We continue to build an exciting and inclusive book community in which a warm welcome awaits anyone looking to join us and share your views on books.

This time we discussed another 3 popular titles – the FT, Times and Irish Times’ Best Book of last year ‘Old God’s Time’ by Sebastian Barry, the harrowing ecological thriller Burnham Wood by Booker prize winner Eleanor Caton and the taut, psychological novel (and recent film) by Tik Tok sensation Ottessa Moshfegh.

Heft – Liz Moore (353 pages) – Soon to be a major film with Rene Zalwegger. Full of surprises and love and healing, Heft is the most unsentimental sentimental journey you will read this year. ― The Times

Former academic Arthur Opp weighs 550 pounds and hasn’t left his rambling Brooklyn home in a decade. Twenty miles away, in Yonkers, seventeen-year-old Kel Keller navigates life as the poor kid in a rich school and pins his hopes on what seems like a promising sporting career. The link between this unlikely pair is Kel’s mother, Charlene, a former student of Arthur’s, who jostles them into action. Through Arthur and Kel’s quirky and lovable voices, Heft tells a winning story of two improbable heroes whose sudden connection transforms both their lives. HEFT is a novel about love and family found in the most unexpected places.

The Trap – Catherine Ryan Howard (372pages) – Dark, creepy and very clever thriller ‘A white knuckle ride’ Observer

You will be blown sideways by the twist in The Trap, a white-knuckle ride of a serial killer thriller. It follows the story of Lucy, whose sibling Nicki disappeared months earlier, her phone abandoned near the pub that she left alone. She is one of at least three Irish women who have gone missing but the police investigation is making little headway. Frustrated and desperate, Lucy decides to take matters into her own hands. Throw in a brilliant detective, Denise, and occasional chilling insights from the killer himself and you have a real thriller. The Guardian described it as a real ‘corker of a read’.

Nothing Special – Nicole Flattery (235 pages) – Inside Andy Warhol’s Factory in New York ‘Blade sharp coming of age novel’ – Spectator

In 1966, Wahol’s Factory is establishing itself as a cultural force in New York when 17-year old school drop-out Mae and her friend Shelley join as secretaries. While Warhol’s superstars loll on sofas, drift from party to party and occasionally smile or frown for the camera, Mae and Shelley sit at their desks type. Warhol made round-the-clock recordings of every conversation in the Factory over the course of a single day and Mae and Shelley transcribe the lot. The resulting manuscript was published as A: A Novel in 1968, with Warhol’s name on the cover. The typists were never credited. Flattery gives us a chance to hear their story.

Bournville – Jonathan Coe (368 pages) ‘A hugely impressive state-of-the-nation tale’ Observer

In Bournville, Birmingham, there was a famous chocolate factory. For 11-year-old Mary in 1945, it is the centre of the world. She will go on to live through the Coronation and World Cup final, royal weddings and funerals, Brexit and Covid-19. She’ll have children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. As we travel through 75 years of social change, from James Bond to Princess Diana, and from wartime nostalgia to the World-Wide Web, one pressing question starts to emerge: will these changing times bring Mary’s family – and their country – closer together, or leave them more adrift and divided than ever before?