Enemy is a strong memoir which deserves its place in the wider reading world, it needs to be more than a hidden gem. Ruth’s father went to war, birth Enemy is a strong memoir which deserves its place in the wider reading world, it needs to be more than a hidden gem. Ruth’s father went to war, birth date mandating his attendance, returning a changed man, affecting his family unit of five in unimaginable and far-reaching ways. This is Ruth’s story.
Told with candid honesty from the earliest memories at age three to becoming a mother herself, to the arrival at the realisation the effects of a chaotic and rigid upbringing have had on her entire being. Her own maternal experience and the reactions she has with her children which she holds so dear have obvious implications which led her to introspection and closer thought. The correlation here to me personally, is extremely interesting and valid. The study of her life and that of her family which she needs to reach internally is heartbreaking, as she makes confronting connections from her childhood trauma lasting till the present day.
Through the exploration of what this entails, the extremeness, the regimented violence, the addiction, and the daily emotional battlefield, the author further researches the effects of war on the young men sent away, returning as pariahs from an unwelcome war, mostly unable to interact with life in the way they had previously on their return. Speaking directly with other veterans to gain vital knowledge in the ways their personal and emotional beings are changed forever, most are unable to cope with life afterwards appropriately.
In her own family, all implications were negative. Feeling unloved, traumatised, always on the ready to deliver to their father what he wanted and when, a constant state of preparedness all times of the day depending on the scale of ever-changing moods. A ceaseless list of what to deliver to this unpredictable and violent man, a continual messy flowchart that is never-ending dependent on mood, time of day, alcohol intake, and so on.
An entire childhood spent on eggshells, the children faced the impossible task of no noise, mess, proof of living. The effects not only physical, emotional abuse, all levels of control toward his wife and children. The direct effect of alcohol on this family saddened me as well, but my personal experience proves this is not an exception to the rule. This is not uncommon.
With a father serving in the same war and growing up in a nuclear family like Ruth’s, I found this book to be full of new information, kind of like ‘how did I not know this’. Research highlighting many important themes which would be helpful to many families. The emotional impact is acute.
What must not be forgotten is these men returned to their country feeling as having done the wrong thing, the war which their country folk mostly disagreed with, even older generations dismissing their efforts entirely.
I enjoyed Ruth’s author notes at the end, also including solid information for resources and where to seek help. Enemy: A True Story of Courage, Childhood Trauma and the Cost of War is important, compelling and relevant in Australia given the many families touched by this war and the myriad of ways the trauma has manifested sadly in silence, I’d not hesitate to say even at times unaware by a part of this population. This need not be the case. This story is testament for others to seek help. These problems spread into the many tributaries that make up a family.
I listened to this via the BorrowBox app and my public library, narrated by the author which provided an extra benefit for emotion and storytelling purposes....more
What a knockout! This is the kind of book I would not pick up off the shelf, but I would happily say to the author ‘yes please’. Why so? I like to broWhat a knockout! This is the kind of book I would not pick up off the shelf, but I would happily say to the author ‘yes please’. Why so? I like to broaden my horizons, that is why. I like to avoid being stuck. So, thank you, for sending me a copy my way. I am very much a creature of comfort, this sometimes impedes my experience, in reading and in life.
This was so bizarre, in a good way. Ghost Cities dwells in a league of its own. As I never read books in this genre (I don’t know what genre to apply) I probably have missed a lot of it. It was hilarious, both in the telling, and in the fact that it made me feel lost and funny all at once. Laughing more at myself here. Siang Lu is clever, this is brilliant writing, funny, outrageous and charming.
Precocious in the usage of over-the-top words, and a dual narrative that adds even more to the quirk of this unique book. Xiang is fired from his role as a translator, it turns out Google translate is his MO, he’s banished to a Ghost City and has become a #badchinese. I loved how frowned upon he was by those in power, but I liked him a lot. I felt the pretentious vibe all the way.
My attempt to synopsize this book is absolutely no good as I can’t do it justice, but I do recommend this as a witty and well written novel. On completion of this read I was in awe and sat quietly thinking. So many ways our interpretation can take us on a journey.
3.5-4 stars.
With my thanks to the author for sending me a copy to read and review....more
I am always excited to read the adventures of protagonists to women who are closer to my age. These are real life gritty stories, and as we grow olderI am always excited to read the adventures of protagonists to women who are closer to my age. These are real life gritty stories, and as we grow older and wiser, they seem to be told with a rare and complete up your bum, this is how it is vibe. I find this to be so refreshing, relatable and solid. A ‘real’ story, yes a memoir but it is more. Jo seems to be able to cut through the bulls!$t and just says it. My observation is we understand ourselves more, what we witness from others to be unacceptable is more astute, and our treatment of these people even more so.
I am continually surprised at the calibre of writing that I am encountering when reading about relationships ending at this stage of life. Having just read Loving My Lying, Dying, Cheating Husband which shows similarities, the ability to not only pick oneself up from a hard event, but to then translate this to the page with quality and readability is commendable.
The author tells her story of a tumultuous relationship, your typical push pull angsty and twisty from the get-go. This was his second marriage, and the way we see him smash it to bits after 25 years was awful. Clearly seeing this man as some kind of sociopath (perhaps I’m judging too harshly) but as the story unfurls, we see his actions from day dot, and the way Jo begins to realise this circumspectly, we rejoice with her as she accepts this man is a complete dud.
Her friends knew this was the case, controlling her in a quiet way which I think was not always obvious, uninterested in the deeper parts of Jo the person, the stories she told about his complete disinterest were very sad. Jo was the main bread winner, he had not surprisingly retired early while she kept working in a wonderful business she built from the ground up. What did he do here? He went for all he could get their final scene together as galling as always.
Jo is upfront, funny, and quite self-effacing, the dating stories humorous and realistic, and her quest to find a new partner equally as candid and real. This book is extremely relatable as I age; this relatability need not be for women who are cast aside by uncaring spouses, it relates to all parts of women’s self-esteem, relationship issues, ageing, and finding your feet. This was a refreshing read.
With many thanks to Text Publishing for my physical copy to read and review....more
Sometimes a book comes along and the reader thinks 'how'. I always appreciate the craft of collating a fictional story, but right now I am quite in awSometimes a book comes along and the reader thinks 'how'. I always appreciate the craft of collating a fictional story, but right now I am quite in awe of what I have just read. My reviews are often long, I don't know why, I tend to just talk a lot. This doesn't need to be the case this time around, in keeping with themes of scarcity.
This book developed the opposite feelings of saying too much. A beautifully crafted book, gently told without fanfare. Lyrical prose that seemed to skim along the surface, lots of content weighing heavily, yet not heaped in a way that is too much to bear, an immeasurable suffering in a man involved in something so sad that he would put himself through much torment.
The serious story unfurls without pace, this man who is punishing himself for living while he encounters all kinds of kindness as he runs.
A split second incident to change the lives of two remaining people, with other encounters telling more stories of the human psyche and the way this man interacts with these folk. I loved this man, the humans he collided with on his journey, and the haunting feel which has definitely captured my heart.
When a writer produces a debut that reads as a seasoned piece of literature. That's all I've got to say.
I listened to this via the Libby app and my public library, excellent narration by Cameron Goodall....more
The Dinner Party was a well written thriller with an interesting and intricate plot, though being quite full of characters with many to keep track of,The Dinner Party was a well written thriller with an interesting and intricate plot, though being quite full of characters with many to keep track of, I found this to be an average read. I lost interest the further I proceeded, added to this was the terrible narration in trying to distinguish between all the elderly characters which was attempted by cliche voices. Another female was characterised by an almost whisper, so unfortunately my narration decreased my enjoyment.
I did enjoy the occasional glimpse into the 1970’s which is always fun, but again, the small issues I always tend to notice make the experience not so enjoyable. The main character was a new mum, who seemed to have time for chasing a dangerous interloper while looking after her baby, and I feel this has been done so much in a lot of my reads lately.
An unsupervised baby goes missing during a dinner party, what ever happened to this child? The couples of the dinner party are sticking to their story, that’s for sure. The narrative unfolds via a podcast and mostly by a solid character, and her recognition of evil which no one else notices. This is always palpable when snarls, false smiles and an evil comment here and there are bubbling, just below the surface.
This is a well written domestic drama which will hold the interest of most readers, I would have liked to have grasped it with a little more enthusiasm.
I listened to this via the Libby app and my public library. ...more
This was a definite slow burn mystery, which I felt to be less thriller, more mystery. The Sunshine Coast of Australia is beautiful, the story is all This was a definite slow burn mystery, which I felt to be less thriller, more mystery. The Sunshine Coast of Australia is beautiful, the story is all the more interesting due to this location. There's a crime, some shady entitled locals, some druggies and a girl who ends up dead.
I felt not overly invested into this one, nothing much new was invested and I was just left feeling it was an ok read.
I enjoyed one of the two narrators most of all, a character names Lars who needed to prove himself after a fall from grace his old journalistic days. Apart from this man with integrity, failed to establish any connection or joy with the other cast of characters.
2.5-3 stars.
Thanks to @betterreadingau and Ultimo Publishing for my copy to #brpreview....more
Loading...
