The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

Genre: Classic/Children’s Literature

The people I worked with, at a bookshop, and I decided that we were going to start a book club.  It was named ‘Between the Sheets’.  We had a venue and catering planned and we recruited those who weren’t involved in the decision, and we all nominated a book to read.  We then made little slips of paper with the titles on and decided that the title which was withdrawn the most would be the first book club book.  The Secret Garden won.  We all read the book and we all made notes…  But book club never happened and so, I bring you this review which would never have existed if we hadn’t decided to create a book club.

Mary Lennox is 10 years old and was born in India to wealthy British parents who never wanted her.  She is mostly taken care of by the servants who do their best to pacify her and keep her out of her parent’s way.  After the servants and her parents die from a cholera epidemic she moves to England to live with her uncle.  She is describe as being miserable to the bone, not only in her feelings but also in her disposition.  Once she discovers the secret garden and makes some friends we see a marked improvement in her mood and disposition.

This is a lovely story, and although I’ve watched the film, I cannot believe that I have waited this long to read the book.  The novel contains wonderful imagery and themes of regeneration and growth as well as healing and the power of friends, family and positive thinking.  It is probably a bit outdated for today’s youth but it remains a beautifully written novel which can be enjoyed by young and old alike.

Blood Sisters - Roelie Schutte and Eileen de Jager (narrated by Ilse Salzwedel)

Genre: Crime Biography

One of the only 'legal'* crime scene clean-up crews in South Africa is run by these two sisters and they share their story in this gripping book.  Both sisters received their training in the United Kingdom and have adapted the various products and methods to suit the South African climate.  They share stories ranging from murder to suicide to the death of a cat trapped inside a car for two weeks, from cleaning hotel rooms and houses.

This book is insanely interesting and gruesome and dispels the glamorous ideas given to us by shows like CSI.  I could not put this book down and had to keep reading, even after I had lost my appetite.  This is a must read for people who enjoy crime related books as it focuses on the aftermath.

*In South Africa, unlike in the US and the UK, it is not a legal requirement to have crime scenes cleaned professionally.
“People do not know how important it is to clean every centimetre of a scene. If it is not done properly, they can get very sick,” ~ Roelie Schutte

[This book is also available in Afrikaans as Bloedsusters.]

Rutka's Notebook: A Voice from the Holocaust - Rutka Laskier

Genre: Biography (Holocaust memoir/diary)

"Despite all these atrocities, I want to live and wait for the following day"

Fourteen year old Rutka, described as Poland's Anne Frank, kept a diary in 1943.  Although it was only for a brief period, January - April, she shows understanding far beyond her years.  Her entries range from the typical everyday teen-aged things one would expect to the horrors and frightfulness of Bedzin (Today there are no Jews left in Bedzin.  Those who did not escape were exterminated or deported to labour (death) camps.) and the plight of the Jewish community.

Anyone who has read The Diary of Anne Frank, should make the effort to read this memoir too.  Apart from the diary, it also contains other information relating to Rutka and her family as well as the Holocaust.  The particular copy that I own also contains a list and summaries of other Holocaust diaries written by Jewish Youths.

Published by: Time Books and Yad Vashem
Published in: 2008
ISBN: 978 160 320 0196

Thyme Out - Katie Fforde

(also published as Second Thyme Round)

Genre: Romance/Chic Lit

Will Perdita face up to the fact that she can’t cuddle a lettuce?

Perdita Dylan runs a fresh produce market, and supplies her baby vegetables to a local hotel.  On one of her deliveries she finds that the kitchen has been taken over by Lucas.  A total prat.  He is also her ex-husband and they haven’t seen each other in 10 years.  Lucas is being groomed as the next celebrity chef and would like to use her picturesque (and slightly primitive) cottage for filming his cooking show, and her in a supporting role.  When her 87-year-old friend, Kitty, falls ill, Lucas is there to help and offer Perdita some support she starts to question whether he really is the villain she made him out to be.

We follow the misadventures of Perdita and Lucas (alone and together) as well as with Kitty.  Although the novel ends exactly the way I expected it to, it remains a lovely story that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I also quite enjoyed the play on words used in the title as it reflects well on the characters, their careers and the gardening metaphors and symbolisms used in the novel.