Review: 'Middle England' by Jonathan Coe

Middle England by Jonathan Coe

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


In this novel Jonathan Coe looks at Brexit – the circumstances, the run-up and the aftermath – through the eyes of a group of family and friends based in London and Birmingham. It's by turns humorous, poignant, tragic and philosophical – the characters are vivid, flawed and (mostly) loveable, and the differing points of view, both political and personal, are well presented. It's recognised that Brexit was and is a complex issue, that people's personal experiences informed their vote, and that there is such a thing as political correctness gone mad (one liberal, well-meaning University lecturer is suspended from her job following an innocent exchange with a trans student).

But, but, but ... I don't why I'm complaining, because it is called 'Middle England' and it does what it says on the tin, but I found it so annoying ... the whole thing is viewed form an exclusively middle-class perspective, and it give the impression that the whole debate was about economics and nostalgia, with the working class having no say in it at all. Which is manifestly unfair because it was the vote of the poor - whose experience of the EU is very different to that of those enjoying the freedom to work anywhere in Europe, own second homes abroad and employ Polish cleaners - that swung the referendum.

I mean, surely a couple of peripheral characters could have been introduced, and given a chance to express an opinion? The only cleaner featured in the cast is, predictably, Eastern European (Lithuanian in fact) - but how about adding a British cleaner whose hopes of improved working conditions (holiday pay, sick pay etc) had been dashed by Blair's opening of the borders in 2004? (A friend of mine was actually told by her employer 'if you don't like the pay and conditions, off you go – there's plenty of migrants now to take your place!') Similarly, the only Black character is a former public schoolboy – would it have been too much trouble to give him an opinion? Say he was of Caribbean origin, and worried, as I know many were, about the effect the big white man's club that is the EU was having on Caribbean trade?

But as I say, it does what it says on the tin, and gives a good all-round presentation of white middle-class angst, soul-searching and privilege. And of course, with a couple of exceptions they all end up moving to France or Ireland to escape the 'fiasco' that is British politics, having long boozy suppers that start at 9pm, and raising a rousing toast to 'F*ck Brexit!'





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