Nigeria and England

Helen said, "Here's a link to my review of Little Bee, which would fit under England and Nigeria."

Little Bee by Chris Cleave is "a haunting novel about the tenuous friendship that blooms between two disparate strangers—one an illegal Nigerian refugee, the other a recent widow from suburban London."  The back cover says:

"This is the story of two women.  Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face.  Two years later, they meet again -- the story starts there.  Once you have read it, you'll want to tell your frienmds about it.  When you do, please don't tell them what happens.  The magic is in how the story unfolds."

Bonnie says, "Much of the book takes place in England, but some really important events take place in Nigeria.  I also recommend this book for both countries."

England

Teddy Rose said, "I read another good book for England I would like to suggest: The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue. Here's the link to my review."

The Sealed Letter is based on a divorce scandal that shook Great Britain in 1864. Miss Emily "Fido" Faithful, a unmarried businesswoman active in the feminist movement, runs into her friend, Helen Codrington. Fido used to live with Helen and her husband Harry and, so, gets caught up in the details of Helen’s failing marriage. When she tries to help Helen, there's mud slinging from both sides in court and the tabloids. What will happen to Fido's reputation? The Sealed Letter is Donoghue's third book exploring Victorian society and life as seen through the eyes of the poor (Slammerkin), the very rich (Life Mask), and the middle class (The Sealed Letter). This book won't be published until April 30, 2008, the middle of next week.

England

Amy said, "The book I read for England was White Teeth by Zadie Smith. Here is the link to my review. It is a fascinating epic novel about life in North London from the early 70's to the millenium."

This novel gets high praise from all over, like this from Barnes & Noble: "Smith's debut novel is touted as a remarkable look at the immigrant's experience in a post colonial world." It's set in postwar London, featuring an unlikely friendship between Archie Jones, a simple working-class Brit, and Samad Iqbal, a Muslim Bengali waiter in an Indian restaurant. They had met in the English army in WW2. After the war, the two commiserate over their lives and those of their children; their dreams, disappointments and expectations unfolding with riotous humor as the characters in both generations struggle to carve out their own cultural identities. The book is filled with all the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of London and has themes of history, religion, faith, and science. Amy's description says it best: "The novel is a rollercoaster ride from one theme to another, from one character to another, touching on things like race, immigrants, religion, genetic engineering, sibling rivalry, parenting, fundamentalism, class and cultural differences, feminism, love, and history."

England

Jill said, "Hi, Bonnie: My England choice for this challenge is the very light-hearted The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella. Here is my review. Kinsella transports you to the English countryside, which seems so peaceful, and the hub bub of England. Lots of fun!"

Workaholic attorney Samantha Sweeting has just done the unthinkable. She’s made a mistake so huge, it’ll wreck any chance of a partnership. Going into utter meltdown, she walks out of her London office, gets on a train, and ends up in the middle of nowhere. Asking for directions at a big, beautiful house, she’s mistaken for an interviewee and finds herself being offered a job as housekeeper. Her employers have no idea they’ve hired a lawyer–and Samantha has no idea how to work the oven. She can’t sew on a button, bake a potato, or get the #@%# ironing board to open. How she takes a deep breath and begins to cope–and finds love–is a story as delicious as the bread she learns to bake. But will her old life ever catch up with her? And if it does … will she want it back?

England

Wendy said, "My last one for today (promise!). Black Swan Green captures one year in the life of a British 13 year old boy. Mitchell's prose is brilliant. I can highly recommend this one for a Great Britain read. Here is my review."

Black Swan Green by David Mitchell re-creates the parallel universe inhabited by a 13-year-old English boy in 1982. It's a world of superstition, misinformation, obsession with social status, the mystery of girls, popular songs, school, his family's increasing dysfunction, and dimly understood political upheaval. Mostly though, Jason Taylor struggles with his stammer, and bullies.

England

Gracie said, "ENGLAND: Waterland, by Graham Swift (about the Fens)."

Graham Swift's Waterland relates Tom Crick's attempt to reclaim his life, or, in his words, "to make things not seem meaningless" (p. 241). Tom, a history teacher, believes that "History begins only at the point where things go wrong" (p. 106). The novel begins when Tom is fired and his life falls apart. Not only is he being fired, but his entire department is being cut. The novel tackles the question, Why study history if it is all coming to an end? History is necessary because of our curiosity and the need to know. Our desire to know means that we must look at history, and all of its mistakes, and take heed.

Set in the bleak Fen Country of East Anglia, and spanning some 240 years in the lives of its haunted narrator and his ancestors, Waterland is a book that takes in eels and incest, ale-making and madness, the heartless sweep of history and a family romance as tormented as any in Greek tragedy.