Talking About My Shelf

On Caitlyn Jenner

Missy Laneous June 02, 2015

It's about to get a bit deep.

I don't normally write things like this but transgender issues have been in the news a lot recently and I am passionate about equality for all. I'm so pleased that the general vibe seems to be of acceptance towards Bruce Jenner as he became Caitlyn.

Growing up my parents taught me that our bodies are just coats, precious coats to be looked after, but coats all the same. Our soul is what is inside us that makes us special and it's our souls that we take with us when the day comes for us to take our coats off.

I think everyone has the right to wear a coat that fits, even if it means adjusting it. Seeing Caitlyn Jenner make such a brave step for the transgender community and so publicly express her desire to be acknowledged as Caitlyn and to drop the male pronouns, adopting female she/her pronouns is admirable and to be applauded. I'm fortunate that the body I was born into fits and I fully acknowledge that those less fortunate, either through disabilities or abnormalities may feel frustrated at this metaphor. But for what it's worth I do believe that we should all have the chance at a happy life and hopefully medical technologies can continue to make progress to enable those with disabilities to also make alterations.

Having someone in the public eye make such a statement whilst being backed by one of the most recognisable media brands in the world is a testament to how our society has come leaps and bounds from past prejudices. Programmes like Transparent making waves at the Golden Globe Awards and Louis Theroux's Transgender Kids have brought the once taboo topic of gender identity out into the open. Obviously there are still obstacles and hurdles for people to navigate as transphobia, homophobia, Islamophobia and many other phobias continue to exist but it does stand to reason that this display of courage is a solid reflection of the growing trend of tolerance and a celebration of diversity.

I hope that makes sense? It's my two cents and it's completely fine if it's not yours.
Thanks for reading x

Louis Theroux: Transgender Kids

Golden Globe winning Transparent

Caitlyn Jenner

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The Bees by Laline Paull

Review June 02, 2015

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The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer

May 20, 2015

I have said for quite a while now that I am growing tired of unreliable narrators. But Nathan Filer’s The Shock of the Fall was originally published in 2013 so I’m just going to sweep on past my initial judgement and crack on with the show.

I do tend to spend most of my time reading manuscripts that are not yet books, they are mostly formed and have been plopped into my inbox by either a colleague or a literary agent like a stork delivering a tiny human. For this reason I sometimes unwittingly fail to read books that are in the charts or published by other houses (unless it’s YA in which case I will always find time to stave my hunger for YA goodness). Every so often I have a mini marathon and race through books to catch up on titles that I have missed. The Shock of the Fall is definitely one of those titles, although it was the Costa Book of the Year 2013, I hadn't had time to wedge it into my reading pile until now.

It took me all of a day and a half to read, I whizzed through it like a Grand National champ.

Matt, the protagonist is in therapy, for what, or for how long, you don’t know. As the words tumble on to the page, more layers of the complex nature of Matt’s psyche begin to form and the vulnerable and chaotic world of a patient living with diagnosed schizophrenia develops into a clearer image of a young man broken by grief.

Matt was a bright young boy who looked up to his big brother Simon. Inseparable and co-dependent, the boys were separated by only a couple of years and an extra chromosome. Simon had Down’s Syndrome and had a fatal accident on a family holiday. A child shaken by guilt and struggling to wrap his mind around the concept of loss, Matt develops behavioral problems that hint at an undercurrent of mental health issues which in turn leads to a life punctuated by therapy and involuntary hospital admissions.

The Shock of the Fall is by no means a light read, yet surprisingly it is hard to slow the pace. The disjointed narrative is admirable, brave, rhythmic, cyclical and repetitive. An insight into the struggles for both families and patients living with mental health issues, with a broader look at how cuts to mental health units and the NHS has a direct impact on patients that would otherwise slip through the net without a diagnosis. Nathan Filer's examination of the redefinition of a family clinging to each other through the storm of the death of a child is both sensitive and delicately placed.

If I could give this book six stars on Goodreads, I would.

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The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

May 18, 2015

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The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

May 18, 2015

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May 13, 2015

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April 20, 2015

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In which I watch a documentary and kick-off

March 31, 2015

When I was a kid I wanted to be a dolphin trainer (this was right after I wanted to be a dog and before I learnt the word paleontologist). I had dreams of being best buds with a dolphin and teaching it cool tricks and generally hanging out in a pool. I wanted to go to Florida so badly and luckily my parents didn't give in "you really won't like it" they'd volley back at me each time I made my case. I felt duped but looking back I realise how well they knew me, that flying 4300 miles to see a seven year old lose her cool would not be worth their time. I would have hated it. I would have hated seeing an animal forced into performances, surrounded by glass and so far from home. It would have upset me and they knew that well ahead of my seven year old brain wrapping itself around the idea of a bigger picture.

A few years ago a whale washed up at home. I'd been out on the boat and the shipping news was warning us all to keep a look out. The carcass had floated into the channel and could do serious damage to a vessel. I looked out for it all day but didn't see it. It wasn't until early evening that my uncle tooted his horn outside our house and gave me a lift down to the beach to see it. It was an 80 foot fin whale and by the time we got down to the shore a big crowd had gathered. There was a sense of sadness that this whale had separated from its pod (apparently that's how whales choose to go, pretty poetic I think) but at least it was still in the water. It died out at sea not in a tank or being transported somewhere strange.

As a whole I think we instinctively feel the need to involve ourselves in the natural world. We assume that because we have evolved we should alter the paths of other creatures, regardless of their own evolutionary journey. We feel the urge to meddle. We feel the need to be entertained and flirt with the idea that we have nature's best intentions at heart when really all we want to see is an animal perform.We feel compelled to do something. step in, save it, interfere and disrupt. But what if we took a step back, foot off the pedal, big breath in and just let it go? The world would still spin. The ecosystems would balance out as they always have done and this pantomime of wild souls cooped up in pools barely big enough to dive in would be over. As humans we assume an entitlement and dress it up as conservation. Conservation would be justly displayed in the wild, if nature was given a respectful distance, responsible fishing was enforced more heavily, conscious waste disposal was monitored and ethical offshore drilling was restricted. There are some brilliant people out there championing good conservation projects, giving nature the space it deserves and mindfully helping to restore habitats. I'm not looking at them, I'm looking at the parks and attractions that will swear to you it's all in the name of conservation and research, while a whale soaks the front row.

Yes, it's possible some creatures would become extinct, but don't we all? Evolution is based on extinction, the founding block of life's cycle is the death of a predecessor. I refuse to accept that killer whales and other animals are surviving purely because they are in captivity. They would survive without our intervention.

We're the problem, we are not the solution.

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Goya

March 25, 2015

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The approachable revolution

March 24, 2015

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Review: Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry

Review March 24, 2015

This novel lives up to its name in every possible way. I know it's only March but this is already a firm favourite of books being published this year. Leslie Parry brings to life the dark underworld of New York city, from boxing fights in the dockyards, the opium dens of the bored and addicted to the state asylums.

Four main characters push the plot forward, twins Odile and Isabelle Church, heartbroken heroine Alphie and our underestimated hero Sylvan.

Odile and Isabelle have been brought up as performers in their mother's sideshow on Coney Island, The Church of Marvels, drawing tourists in from all over New York to be entertained and impressed by their contortionist, tiger taming and sword swallowing skills. But when a tragedy hits the cast of the spectaculor show, their lives are ripped apart. Isabelle leaves home and only months later does Odile receive a cryptic letter that leads her to believe that her beloved twin is in danger...

Sylvan Threadgill makes his money cleaning up New York's stinking filth, working night shifts and bare knuckle fighting to earn extra cash. One night he hears a newborn baby crying for help and he just can't ignore it...

Alphie found love in the least likely place. She makes a living down in the dockyards fixing the faces of drunks and dragon chasers. She meets Anthony and all her dreams come true as he takes her away from the docks and makes a respectable woman out of her. At least, until her secret is revealed and she is thrown into the lunatic asylum across the river...

I absolutely adored this novel. Beyond the world building of New York in 1895, circus entertainers, seedy establishments and underhand dealings, imprisonment and adventure, Leslie also makes the brave move of tackling some very tricky issues regarding gender identity, homophobia, hysteria, social hierarchies, drug addiction, abandonment and abuse. All of the characters are expertly developed, their voices are believable and above all else, dignified.

Church of Marvels had me enraptured in its smoky haze and I would definitely recommend a visit.