Clever Girl
by Tessa Hadley
There was no denying the woman can write nevertheless there was universal agreement that these short stories may have been better left alone to speak for themselves.
Instead we had a series of well written vignettes, each enjoyable in its own right carelessly strung together to produce this unsatisfactory patchwork of a novel.
Although the evocative descriptions of life in the 50's resonated with this middle-aged group of readers and made certain sections enjoyable,
other patches in this (frankly) overpriced hard back had some glaring mistakes – seating in Lotus Elans, vacuum cleaners in student houses
and such like got short shrift in our debates as did the unbelievable coincidences scattered through the story both of which stretched the generosity of even the most tolerant of us in the group.
No one really liked what seemed to be a clumsy, and again, often incorrect 'tick box' reference list of issues from the 50's; ranging through single parents and homosexuality - through to television programmes, music and fashion.
There was a concern that this book may in future years be seen as an accurate picture of 50's Britain - a concern appeased when we considered other books (such as Diary of an Ordinary Woman) which will have more staying power!
Nevertheless it has to be admitted that the debates around these references including the errors provided an opportunity for some interesting shared reminiscence therapy for all!
The book on the whole was disappointing - not least for Margaret, who had chosen this having enjoyed (and would recommend) Tessa Hadley's previous book ''The London Train''.
So was this a book about secrets? .... a deliberate device by the author with its inconclusive threads of information laid before Stella ?....
was it about her reckless drifting and irresponsibility? or indeed is this actually our description of the author herself?
JC
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