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James Runcie

Canvey Island Hardcover – 1 May 2006

by James Runcie (Author)

29 ratings

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It is 1953 in Canvey Island. Len and Auntie Vi are dancing, he in polished shoes and slicked hair, she in fur stole and long gloves. They move lightly, with an easy sway. Uncle George sits and watches, but his mind is elsewhere, still fighting a war that has been over for almost a decade.

Back at home, Len's wife Lily and their small son Martin are fighting for their lives, waist-deep in a raging black torrent of water. Lily's foot is stuck, but she begs her son to leave her, to try and get help. This sight of his mother, ghostly in her drenched nightdress, is his last glimpse of her alive. In the years after the flood, Len turns to Vi for comfort, and as Martin grows older he feels estranged from them both, shadowed by feelings of guilt and loss. As we follow the family in the aftermath of their bereavement, we follow too the fortunes of England, from Churchill's funeral to Greenham Common, from the austerity of the post-war years to the day the Iron Lady swept into Downing Street, and beyond.

Profoundly moving and eloquently written, Canvey Island tells the story of changing times in post-war Britain through one family's tragedy and loss. It is a novel about past wounds and past passions, about growing up and growing old, about love, hope and reconciliation.

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Product details

Publisher : Bloomsbury; 1st edition (1 May 2006)
Language : English
Hardcover : 384 pages
ISBN-10 : 0747581878
ISBN-13 : 978-0747581871
Dimensions : 17.15 x 2.79 x 24.38 cm

Customer Reviews:
29 ratings

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'Canvey Island, James Runcie's tender, intimate account of post-war England, left me both wistful and elated: wistful because of the inevitably compromised emotional lives of its characters, their furtiveness and timidity, their betrayals and bereavements; elated because the novel is so engaging, so well-shaped and so unsparingly, generously truthful.' Jim Crace 'More books should be like this: elegantly written, unpretentious and unashamed fun.' Joanne Harris on THE DISCOVERY OF CHOCOLATE 'The novel is a triumph of inspired imagination. Full of allusions, exotic and quixotic, artful and crafted.' FINANCIAL TIMES on THE DISCOVERY OF CHOCOLATE 'As in his previous novel, THE DISCOVERY OF CHOCOLATE, Runcie has taken a small nugget of history and polished it to delicious effect, capturing the flavour of everyday life in long-vanished societies.' Sunday Telegraph on THE COLOUR OF HEAVEN

Book Description

A spellbinding story of post-war Britain through the lives of one family

5 star		35%
4 star		43%
3 star		14%
2 star 0% (0%)		0%
1 star		8%

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The Rodent

Worth reading - just about.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 June 2018

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Other commentators have observed how accurately the minute details of the time, just after WWII, have been documented. I spotted several anachronisms and inaccuracies without looking for them. For example Auntie Vi watched an advert for Maidenform Bras on a television which had been bought in order to watch the Coronation; this would be impossible because (a) The BBC has never shown adverts. (b) A television bought in 1953 had no tuner and would be incapable of receiving the ITV signal. The chronology is a bit unclear at times too, for example when was Martin conceived?
Otherwise the story just about makes sense with some interesting pre-echoes of the Grantchester Mysteries. I didn't find it unputdownable but it made an agreeable bedtime read.

One person found this helpful

Anglo-Irishman

Prosaic? Maybe

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 June 2014

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This is a well-observed account of life during the related decades, with sound characterisation. The themes make up for the lack of strength in the plot; but, then, what sort of strong plot would such prosaic lives offer? There's nothing sensational, just ordinary lives lived as best they can with mistakes and successes like anyone else's. I found its verisimilitude uncomfortable, but who wants to be complacent about real life, for that is what the author presents. It's rather sad because it makes one think that perhaps most lives don't make much of a difference. Nevertheless, it is the cumulative effect of all those ordinary lives that make the difference, and perhaps that is the main lesson to be learned from this book. Prepare to be interested, but not to be thrilled or intrigued, and think about your own life and what you do with it.

2 people found this helpful

Rose Thurman

A piece of social history

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 February 2015

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A more serious book than the Grantchester series. It describes a way of life familiar to anyone who is a baby boomer and born just after World War 2. The historical events will jog memories long forgotten. The personal relationships however are contemporary and heartfelt. Descriptions of Canvey Island and coastline whilst setting the scene also remind us of the vulnerability of our coastline and the need to protect our environment. Martin's job is very much of today. I enjoyed the individual thoughts of each character which kept the pace up to the extent I couldn't wait to find out what happened to them all and finished the book at 3am! Recommended.

Maura

recent history brought to life

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 December 2014

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I found this book interesting historically - I remember the east coast floods and I don't recall any other novel set in that period. Today's floods are terrible too but the post-war gloom and bleakness added to the misery then. Plot not totally convincing but good to see Runcie experimenting over so many genres.

RoseMarie

Very well written, interesting history.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2014

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I enjoyed the writing and found it interesting. Some of the characters were not necessary to the story but i did enjoy the story which for the times was unusual.

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Canvey Island Hardcover – 1 May 2006

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