Still trying to catch up, today's reviews concern a trilogy from Melvyn Bragg. I'm not certain, but there is a fair hint of autobiographical detail within.
Melvyn Bragg, The Soldier's Return
The story for the most part concerns that of a man returning to his wife and son after serving in Burma during WWII. No doubt like many of his generation, the central character feels suffocated by life in small town Wigton (in Cumbria, just out of Carlisle). For mine, Bragg effectively captures the inner turmoil and unrest that must have troubled men like Sam Richardson. Those who didn't serve have a tendency to ask too many painful questions (and would not doubt not really want to hear the answers), and the vivid memories rob Sam of sleep. The shift back to the daily grind of work and home is mundane and demeaning, and the difficulties of rebuilding life with his wife and young son (who he barely knows), is fraught with unease, misapprehension, and an inevitable (but silent) frustration.
Without giving too much away, the book is a thoughtful, sensitive, and sympathetic to the ache and difficulties of relationships under repair. In the creation of the central character, Bragg writes with tremendous delicacy yet significant force about the desire and futile effort to return to a past that time and the war has ensured can never happen. Surprisingly unsentimental (almost gloomy in parts), it is however a magnificent mediation on the key themes of love, responsibility, obligation, pain and healing. The book offers a tremendous insight to those of us who had grandparents who must have experienced similar trials and experiences, and a great work of fiction. Recommended most highly.
The second of the trilogy, it continues the tale of seemingly insignificant lives that encompasses the broader issues of faith, courage, endurance and aspiration. There is a shift in focus from the first book, away from Sam to his wife and son, with Bragg entering into the hearts and minds of his characters, exploring their milieu. For mine, it lacks the poignancy of the first book, perhaps as the pacing of the narrative is far more irregular than The Soldier's Return, this is perhaps understandable as the central focus becomes Joe (Sam's son) and his reflections upon his parents and their relationship. Yet it remains a warm and engaging book, telling a familiar take in a sympathetic, leisurely and believable manner. Very much recommended, essential if you have read the first.
Melvyn Bragg, Crossing the Lines
The third in the series, and for mine the weakest. For the main, this is due to the narrative shifting to the adolescent struggles of young Joe, which (understandably) lack the complexity or depth to those of his father's post-war readjustment. However, it does explore the difficult choices faced by the immediate post-war generation's adjustment to a brave new world of opportunities and challenges, which differ markedly from their parents. In this, Crossing the Lines offers a measured examination of post-war English life, but it does have the tendency to feel a little uneven, and perhaps lacks the complexity in characterisation that so marked the first two novels. Recommended, even more so if you have read the first two.
Despite my preference for the first text, I very much hope that Bragg continues the series. They are all very good reads, and would recommend anyone even slightly interested to check them out. As Molly would say, do yourself a favour...
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