You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion
Group Themed Reads: Discussions
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Our July reads - Notes from a Small Island and Pride & Prejudice & Zombies
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Can I suggest that you BORROW P&P&Z rather than buying it. I'm feeling awful at suggesting it as I don't think it is very good so far and don;t want any of you to waste your money. Oops. In future I'll suggest things I've actually read and know to be good! Sorry. (Hangs head in shame).
Ha ha ha. Don't worry Donna! Some people may love it! It has very mixed reviews on goodreads!
I am reading it PDF- While I don't know if I would buy it I am enjoying reading it- I think its silly!
For anyone in England wanting to buy Bill Bryson (or rather, his book), Waterstones currently have it as one of their 3 for 2s, either on its own, or a single volume combining Notes from a Small Island with Notes from the Big Country.
Good to know. Maybe I can get the Bryson and P&P&Z together.
ABOUT THE BOOK
After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move back to the States for a while, to let his kids experience life in another country, to give his wife the chance to shop until 10 p.m. seven nights a week, and, most of all, because he had read that 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another, and it was thus clear to him that his people needed him.
But before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had so long been his home. His aim was to take stock of the nation's public face and private parts (as it were), and to analyse what precisely it was he loved so much about a country that produced Marmite, a military hero whose dying wish was to be kissed by a fellow named Hardy, place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowells, people who said 'Mustn't grumble', and Gardeners' Question Time.
In a national poll, organised by World Book Day in 2003, Notes from a Small Island was chosen as the book that best represents England.
ABOUT THE BOOK
The story follows the plot of Pride and Prejudice, but places the novel in an alternative universe version of 19th century England where zombies roam the countryside. The undead are generally viewed as a troublesome nuisance, albeit a deadly one, and their presence often affects the plot of the story in subtle ways — messages between houses are sometimes lost when the couriers are captured and eaten; characters openly discuss and judge the zombie-fighting abilities of others; women weigh the pros and cons of carrying a musket (it provides safety, but is considered "unladylike").
Elizabeth Bennet and her four sisters live on a countryside estate with their parents. Mr. Bennet trains his daughters in martial arts and weapons, molding them into a fearsome zombie-fighting army. On the other hand, Mrs. Bennet plans to marry the girls off to wealthy suitors. When the wealthy Mr. Bingley purchases a nearby county house, Mrs. Bennet spies an opportunity and sends the girls to the first ball where Bingley is expected to appear. The girls defend the party from a zombie attack, and Mr. Bingley and eldest daughter Jane begin a relationship. Elizabeth, meanwhile, spars with the haughty monster-hunter Fitzwilliam Darcy, a friend of Bingley. Although Elizabeth and Darcy strongly dislike each other at first, their common interest of zombie-killing draws them closer together.