BOOK CLUB
CATHY MOORE , DIRECTOR OF CAMBRIDGE LITERARY FESTIVAL , ON THE LANGUAGE OF BIRDS Jill Dawson has the knack of making absorbing literature from real life events. Her latest book was inspired by the shocking murder of Lord Lucan’s nanny; the violent assault on his wife at their London home in 1974, and his subsequent disappearance. He was legally declared dead in 1999 and his wife Veronica died in 2017 still claiming his guilt of both crimes. The Language of Birds tells the story of two young women from the Fens, Mandy and Rosemary, who travel to London seeking a fresh start to work as nannies for wealthy families. Telling the story from the viewpoint of the nannies, Dawson paints a vivid portrait of 1970s society and shows that then as now, women’s voices all too often went unheard. The joy of Dawson’s writing lies not only in her ability to ventriloquise but also in her brilliant character development which leaves you bereft when the worst does indeed happen. Jill Dawson will be discussing The Language of Birds with novelist Louise Doughty at Cambridge Literary Festival on 7 April at 4pm cambridgeliteraryfestival.com
NEW ON THE BOOKSHELF:
THE WAY WE EAT NOW BY BEE WILSON The latest book by Cambridge resident and internationally renowned writer Bee Wilson landed on shelves at the end of March. This new book sees Bee take a closer look at what, how and why we eat what we do in today’s modern world, and the potential costs of this convenience. A must read for any foodie.
SPRING BY ALI SMITH
INVISIBLE WOMEN BY CAROLINE CRIADO PEREZ
Also published at the end of March is the third book in Ali Smith’s ‘Seasonal Quartet’, which promises to be as transcendentally spectacular as her previous works. Ali will be speaking at this year’s Cambridge Literary Festival in a special event at the Festival’s finale: if you’re a fan, don’t miss out on a ticket…
A data-driven look at how the world around us is set to biological standards based on the bodies and reactions of men – Criado Perez’s book exposes the hidden biases of such data sets, which have potentially deadly consequences for women, and will change how you look at the world.
UP NEXT MONTH THE MATHEMATICAL BRIDGE BY JIM KELLY Cambridge, with its winding streets and ancient buildings, is a city ripe for its own series of detective novels. Oxford has Inspector Morse and his spin-off, Lewis, but so far Cambridge has only had James Runcie’s Grantchester mysteries, and Sidney Chambers is a vicar, not a real detective! Now, though, we have Detective Inspector Eden Brooke in Jim Kelly’s ‘Nighthawk’ series. The Mathematical Bridge is the second in the series, the follow-up to The Great Darkness , and is set in 1940, during the first winter of the second world war. A college porter on his nightly rounds is startled to hear a child’s cries from the waters below the Mathematical Bridge. Brooke is summoned by police whistle and commandeers a punt in a desperate attempt at a rescue.
THE MATHEMATICAL BRIDGE CAN BE PURCHASED FOR £19.99 IN HARDBACK. READ ALONG AND TWEET US YOUR THOUGHTS @CAMBSEDITION, WITH THE HASHTAG #EDITIONBOOKCLUB FOR A CHANCE TO FEATURE IN THE NEXT ISSUE.
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