Book of the Month - The Cuckoo's Calling - June 2014

The Book

Introducing a new private eye, Cormoran Strike and his sidekick Robin Ellacott this is a thriller about the mysterious death of a young model-actress, Lula Landry. It is a very modern tale set in the world of the paparazzi, the film and entertainment business and featuring London as a brilliant vibrant backdrop.

This book was initially published with little fanfare and only 1,500 copies of the printed book were sold since its release in April 2013 along with a further 7000 copies of the ebook, audiobook and library editions (according to Wikipedia). After the book was revealed on 14 July 2013 to have been written by J K Rowling the book surged from 4,709th to 1st in the bestseller lists on Amazon. What does this tell us about the reading public, publishers and the publishing industry? Will our subsequent knowledge about Rowling's authorship cloud our appreciation for the story regardless of the author? Can author and story always be separated or do they come as a joint package?

The Author
 
As most informed book readers should know, Robert Galbraith is a pseudonym for J K Rowling. She is famously the author of the best selling book series in history, the Harry Potter fantasy series which has sold more than 400 million copies worldwide and which spawned the film franchise that has become the highest grossing film series in history.

Rowling's authorship was revealed in July 2013 and she said that "Being Robert Galbraith has been such a liberating experience… It has been wonderful to publish without hype and expectation and pure pleasure to get feedback under a different name."

The second novel featuring Cormoran Strike, entitled "The Silkwoman" is due to be published in June 2014. Who knows whether after our June meeting we will all be ordering copies of this new book imminently? .

More Information

The author's official website is http://www.robert-galbraith.com/ which includes some questions and answers about the reason for the pseudonym.

Book of the Month - The Lowland - May 2014

The Book

This is a family saga focusing on two brothers - Subhash and Udayan - who take two very different paths in life. While Udayan becomes embroiled with communist politics and terrorism, his older brother, Subhash, moves to America to study. After Udayan's untimely death, the novel explores the consequences for the family and in particular for Udayan's widow Gauri, who agrees to marry Subhash.  

"The Lowland" was short listed for the Booker Prize and the Woman's Prize for Fiction and long listed for the National Book Award for Fiction.

The Author

Jhumpa Lahiri is an Indian American author. She is the author of "The Namesake" and "The Interpreter of Maladies" and won the Pulitzer Prize  for Fiction in 2000. Born in London, Lahiri moved to America with her parents when she was 2 and was brought up in Rhode Island. Her parents were originally from West Bengal, India. She now lives in Italy with her husband, a journalist for TIME America and two children.

Lahiri's writing is autobiographical and draws upon her own experiences and those of other Indian Bengali immigrants. Her stories examine the immigrant experience.

More Information

Jhumpa Lahiri's website is: http://www.randomhouse.com/kvpa/jhumpalahiri/