Alan M. Turing

Both interesting and annoying. This was the over sweet, incredibly censured, highly pompous, rose tinted spectacles biography of Alan Turing as written by his grief stricken mother in the 1950s.  Turing was the mathematical and computer genius at Bletchley Park who broke the Enigma Code which meant  German code  could be intercepted at the end of the World War Two. This meant the UK government could now work out where German submarines were under the Atlantic Ocean and the UK was able to safely get supplies across from the States. Turing basically stopped the Brits starving at their weakest and poorest point during the War. ( not that Sara Turing wrote about any of this stuff because like everyone she didn't really know what Turing had done during the war. It was all top secret then.) 

Anyway Sara goes on about leaving little cute Alan behind at pre-prep school and how he changed during puberty from a cute little genius to a dishevelled, eccentric mathematician at Cambridge. She keeps on about his floppy, messy hair and lack of girl friends and his 'disorganised' life. But she was also a bit of a maths wiz herself so was also able to talk about his first love of solving mathematical problems. I loved this part...getting inside his brain was amazing. Alan could read numbers at two and because he mixed up left from right he organised his own solution by putting a black dot on his left hand to remind him to start counting from that end! What a geek! 

She also talks about how he didn't need glasses because all of his thinking was done in his head not on paper. He never seemed to be holding a pen but was always dreamy, with his head in the clouds. Yes, he was a complete eccentric who could have moments of great kindness but mostly spent his time on unfathomable computational mathematics. Yes, he was truely the godfather of computer science.

The tragedy is that his genius went unrecognised. He loved travelling to the States and around Europe but by the early 50s the UK government had banned him from this pursuit due to the highly sensitive knowledge he carried around in his head. I don't think the establishment liked him, nor  approved of him but they sure needed him alive.

In 1952 Turing killed himself with an arsenic injected Apple bite. A clever way to die. His mother in the biography thinks it's an accident due to his slovenly behaviour but all of his close friends knew this was suicide. A tragic way for a British legend to die.

The introduction is the best part to this book it talks about Turing's homosexuality and how he really was absolutely OK and happy with his own private life and how it was all the other establishment figures around him and his family who had the problem. In 1949 Turing reported a burglary in his house but the policemen who came seemed more concerned about his personal arrangements with the guy he was with. He wasn't sent to jail but was forced for two years to have estrogen injections. This did nothing to change Turing's sexuality the injections just made him depressed and made him grow breasts.  Poor bloke. I found this part of the book really difficult to read.

I also found the end section written by Turing's brother interesting. It's of its time with 1950s stiff upper lip sentiment but is a more honest and open reflection of Alan's life. It was thankfully added after the mother had died.

The brother talks lovingly about Turing's brain power and his great sense of fun but also far too much about his 'base sexuality' and how nobody in the family ever accepted Alan's private world. The mother was always trying to change him and had basically written this memoir because this was how she wanted to remember her son as a super saccharine, snobby ,  uber-genius. Urghhhh!

But the revelation from the brother that Turing went to many psychiatrists not for his homosexuality but to remove the demons of his complete hatred for his mother, now that was an interesting revelation!!

Alan Turing absolutely hated her.  He hated that she abandoned him and that she seemed more interested in what other people thought than the truth and that she was always trying to change him.

What I get from this book is how Alan Turing was born before his time. A genius who was totally comfortable in his own skin who just wanted to be left alone to puzzle out mind blowing problems. If he decided to wear pyjamas all day, eat nothing but lollipops and have a boyfriend over then he was completly at ease with this. In the end though  the pressures all got too much.  A great British life was tragically taken away at only 41years of age. RIP. 

 

An Equal Music

I have read this book so quickly. It was a mad passion which took over my week. I haven't really wanted to watch TV or movies in the evening. I just needed to know what the hell was going to happen in this novel.

This book was not my normal choice but I have had it on my shelf for  about 2 years. I also got a copy for Catherine Blay and this is the first book I have ever read in tandem with another person.  Almost like a book club. (Sorry Catherine I'm writing this without talking to you first.) 

This is nothing like A Suitable Boy.( Vikram's Indian based, wrist breaking family saga.)  And looking back on it I can't really understand why I was so sucked in and loved it so much. I think it is because I just had no idea what the hell was going to happen and what on earth this book could be about. Nor how on earth it could end. It was a really different book to anything I have ever read. 

I was totally absorbed and sucked in. Looking back it all seems quite a boring predictable story but it wasn't. It was all so real. People you could touch, emotions you could feel and music you could hear. 

Vikram Seth's writing to me is pure magic. I love his style. I haven't read a book whose author gave so much love and focus to their craft since The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. 

This book is on one level all about trying to rekindle the passion of lost love but more for me it was about the highs and lows of playing classical music. Vikram Seth was able to put into words what it must be like to be a classical violinist. Being a musician on one level makes you incredibly selfish, self obsessed, critical of others and possessed by your desire to make music your way. It also makes you aware of your emotions, the needs of the other players in your group, and the total joy of really living in the moment. 

I also loved that the main character in this book was not of the right 'type' to be a musician. A guy who became qualified through the free instrument he got at school in Rochdale and finally the 'owner ' of a beautiful, old Italian  violin given to him by a rich local woman. An instrument he hasn't been separated from for over 20 years.  In fact when the benefactor's  family start to get angry about their right to the violin when she dies is when i got really sad. Who has the stronger right to this beautiful instrument? 

This book is a love story but to be honest it was always quite doomed and dark. Vikram Seth is never scared of sharing people's emotions clearly; how selfish we are, how we can hurt each other and how in the end we can't ever truely go back to how things were in the past.  

But his style got quite indulgent and over poetic and by the end the book had turned into a weird kind of poetry anthology which got on my nerves a bit.   The best thing about this book for me was the great love of classical music. Now I have a list of pieces from the book which I have listened to on YouTube and they are all great. Thank you Vikram Seth for putting your love of music into words and sharing it. 

The Song of Achilles

S

I think I have turned into a number one fan of  Greek story telling. I loved all the myths as a kid and have happily returned to them.  This book was a retelling of the Iliad by Homer from the perspective of Patroclus, Achilles friend and lover. I have an extremely jumbled and muddled idea of what the Iliad was about and the characters in the Trojan war but now I kind of get it. There is no way I could wade through the poetry of the original so this book was perfect. What a great story!  Even though the original was written nearly 3000 years ago it all seems so relevant with topics on love, lust, pointless wars being fought in the East, honour, pride, families and friendships.

This is a time when Greek gods lived, walked and talked with humans and I loved how the author incorporated gods and goddesses into the story. The boys, Achilles and Patroclus are taken away for three years to live high up on a mountain with a centaur and Achilles water nymph mother is an angry, bitter and jealous goddess who knows Achilles is the strongest man in the war but also knows her son will die whilst fighting. She can't change his destiny. 

This story fleshes out Achilles and Patroclus' life. The joy of their childhood and then the pain of having to partake in such a long and pointless war. I liked the other characters too; the diplomacy of Oddyseus, the kindness and charm of Briseis, and the power crazy madness of Agamemnon. Achilles comes across as selfish and egotistical to be honest, but as soon as he finds out about the death of Patroclus he goes on a crazed , vengeful, killing spree around Troy. What I liked about this version was how the story easily came alive. Even though some of the dialogue seemed a bit unnatural it was still a great read. 

 I've checked characters on Google to see if they really were in the Iliad and it all seems based on the original. A kind of alternative viewpoint.  ( Apart from the fact that Patroclus  should have been older than Achilles and although it was implied that they were lovers, it was never definitely stated. ) I especially liked the ending. I love a good, bloodbath chariot battle and for me Patroclus was the real hero. 

It's all Greek to Me

Y

Wow, I have done something I haven't done for years. Read a book from cover to cover in one night. I loved this. I was wandering around Bicester library on Wednesday and picked this up. It looked fun and an easy idiot's guide to all things ' Ancient Greek' and well to say I have devoured it is an understatement. I loved it. Charlotte Higgins has bought the Greek world alive for me and placed it in an accessible relevant , enjoyable context. 

So many books are based on Greek myths and ideas so sublimally I already knew a bit of this stuff. But to access so much in such a handy guide was brilliant.

  I especially loved the descriptions of Homer's classics the Illiad and the Odyssey and the concise outline of the amazing story behind Oedipus. ( I'm reading a book on the background of Achilles at the moment and I thought browsing through  this could help me understand more but it has done far more than that.)

  I loved the Titan and  the Olympian gods feuding and how everyone plays dark tricks on each other.  Tantalus chopping up his son into little bits to feed to the gods was total psychotic comedy. 

  My favourite quote was 

'Don't call a man happy until he's dead' 

Before today I have always misinterpreted this quote to mean that life is so shit that the only good thing to do is die.  (Twisted I admit.)  Im so glad I now know the real meaning which is  that life is so full of twists and turns that our happiness factor can change at any time. We must never  presume that things will stay the same and get too smug or too depressed. Life is an open book until obviously we cease to exist. I much prefer the proper interpretation! 

In fact that is what hit me most about this book. The way the Greeks expressed this randomness of life. Excepting love, pain, loss, war, dying young, unfairness and fairness. Greek gods lived for ever squabbling and watching humans as if from a VIP box in Wembley stadium but humans live a charmed short life full of many ups and downs. 

I have focussed on the myths and plays but this book also covered the beginnings of western democracy, politics, science,  and philosophy. The first history/travel books of Heredotus and the beginning of recorded misogyny, the hatred/ fear of women. Spartans were the only girls to get an education and also join the army, whereas Athenian woman were mostly under house arrest.  

Yes, I loved this book. Funny, uplifting and informative. Filling lots of holes in my non-classical education! 

Clash of Kings and Storm of Swords.

R

For weeks I have been living in the land of Westeros and have slowly plowed through these  3 billion pages.  Of course I have loved them they are like Tolkien on speed. A mixture of medival high drama and politics, Lord of the rings, and Eastenders for over 18s. After reading so many back to back I need a break though, but I am looking forward to reading more.

I haven't watched any of the TV series and from what I hear they have pumped the programmes even more full of steroids and sex but I am glad that I am reading these with no images of characters or places. Occasionally  when I am feeling brave I google a character and see what they look like on the TV series. Often it's kind of OKish apart from the fact that Tyrion the Dwarf still has a nose and half his face intact. I think the actor must have refused to play the part with such facial deformities! 

I love how everyone is not completely good or bad.  as for Jaime Lannister...I WANT HIM here now! I've loved how his personality has developed so well. 

OK the books are a bit confusing with how they jump around from character to character every chapter but my kindle has been invaluable in letting me flick around and recap. I did find Daenarys' and Bran's chapters a bit dull by the end. She just kind of got lost out in the wilderness and now seems to be camping out as Queen in a far flung land. Bran is just waiting about trying to find a crow which will tell him what his powers are. Hurry up and get a plot line!!!! Plus I wanted the dragons to do something hot and dangerous. Hurry up and grow up dragons!

But I love Jon Snow and the Ice chapters and anything with the Lannisters and Tyrells.  As for the Others and the Lord of Light...what will happen? That weird Melisandre gets on my nerves. She reminds me of an evil, satanic, power crazy Kate  Bush.

  In the books the women are a bit cliched and flat and that's a bit disapppointing at times. (I was annoyed that Lysa was so pathetic when she temporarily joined the story at the end of book 3b. That moon door and Tyrion on  the high moving ice prison of hers in Game of Thrones were a highlight for me and I was looking forward to seeing her again.)

 George Martin is much better at writing male characters. (Not that I'm complaining too much! I do love a knight on a horse.)  I've heard that on TV the women have been both symbolically and literally fleshed out more.

Time for a break now...But will I manage it? I want to know what happens next! 

The White Queen

I never watched this on TV but I really feel that Gregory wrote this in the format of a mini-series script. Congratulations, it worked for her! 

 I enjoyed the story and the history. I have always loved the mystery of the Princes in the tower. So I feel like I have been reminded about what happened during the the dying days of the War of the Roses. Yes, a great story, good on facts but the characters were not real enough for me. Everyone was a cardboard cut out. As there were lots of women in this book  I thought I might get some insight into a  women's life in the 15th century but no, nothing but bitching and scheming with bits of witchcraft thrown in for good measure.  (Women hid away in a dark room for 6weeks before their babies were born, isolated from everyone but one maid. it would have been interesting if Gregory had told us what the hell this was like.) 

This is my first Philippa G book and to be honest I didn't really like her style. My GOD she sledgehammers the plot out, constantly repeating things!    Every character is introduced as 'Richard my son' or 'Edward, the King'. Every time someone speaks they clunkily refer back to past events to 'help the reader.'  OK, I'm taking this way too seriously but hey, I'm allowed to!

This book reminded me of a version of those TV shows on a Sunday evening on BBC 1 like Merlin and Atlantis. A kind of melding of modern day soap opera with folklore and history.   On TV it works because they play about and have a laugh but in this book it didn't because Gregory tries to keep within the true historical facts and it's just annoying.   This would have worked far better for me if there were dragons or wizards. Sorry Mel, I'm a harsh critic. 

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Y

Wow, I really enjoyed this book and have raced through it. Something really different, well written and highly interesting. it's a mix of social history, poverty, race, ethics, biology and an amazing history of cell research. The cancerous cells of this woman,who died in Maryland in 1951, have become the standard for so much research over the world.  Without Henrietta's cells there would be no modern vaccines. (polio would still be killing people)  no modern chemotherapy drugs, and no world standard for human cell research. Her cells replicated perfectly and never died. They were like a magic porridge pot for cell researchers in the 1950s. her cells were called Hela and are still used prolifically all over the world.  

So far so good, but Henrietta's family never found about their Mother's cells until 20 years later when a variety of scientists, con-men and TV reporters turned up at their door.  The scientists wanted more cells from close relatives to do more research into genomes and the reporters of course wanted a story.

Anyway things went badly for the extended Lacks family.  They were angry that drug companies had made money from their mother without their knowledge and they were highly ignorant about what cells were. Nobody sat down with the family and explained what their mother had done for science and that there were no clones of Henrietta wandering around. 

The Lacks family are extremely poor and ill educated. A family with their roots in tobacco farming.The kids all left school before 14 and were never good in school anyway because of their congenital deafness never being diagnosed. ( a symptom of Henrietta marrying her cousin.) The grinding poverty of their lives is extreme and in complete contrast to the other strand of the story about cell research in labs all over the world by scientists.

Anyway, in the late 90s the author of this book managed to get the trust of the family and through years of research and persistence this book was written.  In the end it's a tribute to Henrietta and how out of her hard life something good appeared. ( her cervical cancer cells were so aggressive due to HPV and constant syphillis infections from her playboy husband.) Infact the HPV vaccine is only here because of Henrietta's cells.

As for the ethics of this book this has been complicated for me.  The story is a product of the American health system,the American education system, grinding poverty and race. The Lacks family are rightly angry that they are too poor to have health care and benefit from the the products which their mother 's cells helped to create but also they were all so badly educated they were living withsome strange godly fear that Henrietta still felt pain when her cells were tested on. Scientists are not the evil group in my opinion.  Johns Hopkins hospital/ University never sold Hela cells and shared their research with other scientists freely.  It was only when the cells had to be made on mass that drugs companies started to turn a profit on them. The problem is the health system in which the Lacks were embedded  A system which demonises the poorest and weakest in the community. 

The idea of informed consent did not exist in the 50s and doctors took samples from all cancerous biopsies from this hospital at the time. Henrietta just happened to be the perfect case. No cells ever reproduced in culture as well as hers. 

Anyway, if any of the above topics are interesting for you and you have a strong stomach then read this book.  It really made me think, the science was fairly easy to understand and the Lacks family story was interesting, irritating, annoying and heartbreaking all at the same time.  All I can say is thank god I don't have to deal with the American health system!  As for the history of black only wards and black only toilets and secret syphillis testing on the black wards in Tuskegee...it's a history that has to be read to be believed.