LITERATURE
June Book Club This month, Charlotte Griffiths discovers a trio of new books from local authors
Who’s the Favourite? CATHERINE CARR
There’s no avoiding siblings: you either have them, parent them, work with them or befriend them, and this unique relationship is finally getting its turn in the spotlight. The story behind Who’s the Favourite? goes that local author and broadcaster Catherine Carr was musing on her own set of sisters when radio legend Jane Garvey pointed out that siblings are likely to be the longest relationship any of us will ever have. Two ideas were born: a podcast called Relatively , on which Carr interviews famous people and their siblings both together and separately; and this charming, life- affirming, fascinating and perspective-shifting read. Carr’s carefully researched chapters lead us through a series of sibling-connected subjects, interwoven with observations from experts in the field. We find hilarious family languages and unique words; the eye-opening ‘glass’ sibling scenario, where a child’s brother or sister has extreme needs; how steps and halves merge into a new family model and what happens in the saddest of circumstances when a sibling passes away, and all those memories and shared experiences disappear forever. Carr subtly intersperses accounts of her own life experiences throughout, which only serve to highlight the importance of these relationships, and might encourage you to revisit your own sibling connections with more attention. The book’s sister podcast is due to launch a new season right about now. So, once you’ve had your fill of the printed version, you can also enjoy the audio accompaniment – ideal listening for the warmer months ahead.
This charming, life-affirming, perspective-shifting read
Glyph ALI SMITH
A second book with siblings at its heart – which even has another book, Gliff , as its ‘family’ – is this multi-layered, shimmering novel from Cambridge resident Ali Smith. It tells stories on stories on stories, as sisters Petra and Patch deal with the metaphorical and literal ghosts that haunt their family. Glyph opens with the sisters’ recollection of their great grandfather’s stark tale concerning a horse’s death on a World War I battlefield, before slipping into another story of unforgettable horror from the front lines they were told at a very young age, terrifying in its blunt delivery. Then, gently swinging back in that artfully melodious style Smith is so good at, the story moves to an almost comedic set of events in which a young Petra pretends to talk to the dead to help soothe her sister’s nightmares. News gets out and
before long she’s known as ‘the medium’, with neighbours turning up at their house to speak with their late loved ones. The visitors are turned away by their parents, but the ghosts stay – in the form of an imaginary figure the sisters christen Glyph – and it becomes harder and harder to make out what’s truth and what’s fiction, or if it’s all just a matter of perspective. In the present day, in an attempt to put the ghosts to rest, Petra researches them to see if they ever really existed. Meanwhile, Patch’s daughter Billie is more concerned with lecturing the sisters about society’s impending collapse. As with all of Smith’s work, it’s deeply thought-provoking, reading like a meditation on war, highlighting individuals who slip between stories and go forgotten in history, yet deserve to be remembered.
22 JUNE 2026 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
Powered by FlippingBook