ARTS & CULTURE
Events for bookworms Waterstones’ autumn season of author events continues with a visit from acclaimed essayist and Oxford don, Merve Emre. Join her on 15 October for a discussion on The Annotated Mrs. Dalloway , which gives an illuminating commentary on Virginia Woolf’s masterpiece. In conversation with Clare College fellow and director of Literature Cambridge Trudi Tate, this event will offer an engaging examination of Woolf’s artistry and originality. Tickets from £3, or £30 with a copy of the book. On Thursday 28 October, the spotlight is on Talya Miron- Shatz, founding director of the Center for Medical Decision Making and visiting researcher at the University of Cambridge. With humour and vast knowledge, her book Your Life Depends On It looks at the preventable ways we make bad choices about everything from nutrition to medication. Tickets from £3, or £22 with a copy of the book.
The Book of Form & Emptiness BY RUTH OZEKI
A heart-warming tale within a story of struggle within a book which makes you reassess the function of literature, this affecting story is a perfect autumnal read for all ages. After the unexpected death of his jazz-musician father, grief-stricken Benny Oh is surprised when objects around him start sharing their thoughts and observations. He is slowly overwhelmed by the voices and their constant chatter, eventually skiving school to seek solace in the tranquillity of the local library, where the polite books know how to behave. The novel takes the form of a back-and-forth conversation between Benny and ‘The Book’, where each share their take on events – this creates a structure that can be dizzying, but maintains a constant forward motion toward resolution. Many sections reminded me of the philosophical conversations in Sophie’s World , the 1991 novel where young Sophie explores belief systems. Benny’s similar quest for meaning sees him encounter numerous unforgettable characters, including a homeless poet-philosopher and an enigmatic artist, who uses the library’s books as a canvas and carries a ferret in their pocket. At home, his mother battles her own grief, physically manifested as clutter from her information-recording job – while a small book on tidying tries valiantly to help her see the solution to her deep sadness. If you’re feeling bogged down by clutter – emotional or physical – or struggling with life’s challenges, this book will leave you holding your loved ones tightly, eyeing the objects around you with intrigue, and perhaps even lead you to the library to reconnect with reading.
CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK OCTOBER 2021 25
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