Tower and Town, April 2022

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A Good Read

I'm sure readers of Tower and Town know the work of Charles Causley (Ballad of the Breadman, and Timothy Winters, to name a couple of his best known poems) but it seems a lot of people have never heard of him, which seems a shame. Patrick Gale's latest novel Mother's Boy, is in his own words a 'very loose retelling of the early life of the Cornish poet'. Gale is one of my favourite writers; I've been looking forward to this book and it hasn't disappointed. The novel describes an awkward, fatherless young man, resenting, transcending and finally accepting his gossipy small town background. It's also the story of Causley's mother, widowed early, hard-working, clear-eyed, loving and protective. The author has a lovely elegant, supple writing style and a knack for compelling and psychologically convincing storytelling, never overdoing the detail but managing to draw the reader into a fully realised world. One of Patrick Gale's best.

A couple of months ago I was sent a copy of Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, with a promise that I'd absolutely love it. And indeed I do. There are only so many plots to work with, and this is the ever-popular 'woman asserts her autonomy against the patriarchy' theme. It's not simply a tired old re-telling of that old, old story though, it's a debut novel with an strikingly assured individual voice. It made me laugh from the first page, as the uncompromising heroine assures her daughter 'It is not your imagination. Most people are awful'. It's a generous, not entirely predictable book, a real page-turner, funny, warm and featuring a highly intelligent dog.

Breadsong by Kitty and Al Tait is a combination of cookbook and memoir, telling how the father and daughter business, The Orange Bakery in Watlington, came about. Kitty was a chirpy 14-year-old, funny and friendly, doing averagely well at school, who gradually and for no apparent reason sank into depression and anxiety, becoming ever more withdrawn and unhappy. Baking bread with her Dad gradually helped her regain her equilibrium and enthusiasm for life. Reading between the lines we get some sense of how hard it must have been for Kitty's parents, as it became obvious that her recovery was dependent on permanent change to the family. Al gave up his work as a teacher to open a bakery business, shouldering the adult worries while Kitty experimented with creative bakes. It's a lesson in flexibility, and the power of community (and dough).

Debby Guest