I liked it, but less than I thought I would
I absolutely adore the cover of this book and thought the synopsis sounded really interesting - a tale of family, ambition and struggle.
Somehow it fell slightly short of my expectations. The author certainly paints a bleak and honest account of the struggle faced by the Peacock family. Mr Peacock's grand ambition to make Monday Island his own is an understandable goal but he is focussed to the exclusion of sense and care for his family.
The arrival of a group of Island men, to help the Peacocks tame the island, coincides with the disappearance of the Peacocks' eldest son, Albert and the book follows the unfolding tale of trying to find him.
We spend a lot of time looking back into the past but these snapshots didn't really help me build a history of the characters, you learn far more about them from the "current" story. However it does give a clear insight to the lack of enthusiasm that most of the family have about island living and the fractured relationship the father has with, most of, his children.
There is also a murky past to Monday Island that is touched upon as we lead to the equally murky end for the Peacock family.
I ultimately felt though that the book was just a bit "ploddy" - the subject matter is fantastic but the constant back and forth between different times and the alternating narratives between the Peacock family and islander Kalala meant it lacked a certain flow for me. It certainly gives you a whole new respect for pioneers of the past though - what a tough existence!
Somehow it fell slightly short of my expectations. The author certainly paints a bleak and honest account of the struggle faced by the Peacock family. Mr Peacock's grand ambition to make Monday Island his own is an understandable goal but he is focussed to the exclusion of sense and care for his family.
The arrival of a group of Island men, to help the Peacocks tame the island, coincides with the disappearance of the Peacocks' eldest son, Albert and the book follows the unfolding tale of trying to find him.
We spend a lot of time looking back into the past but these snapshots didn't really help me build a history of the characters, you learn far more about them from the "current" story. However it does give a clear insight to the lack of enthusiasm that most of the family have about island living and the fractured relationship the father has with, most of, his children.
There is also a murky past to Monday Island that is touched upon as we lead to the equally murky end for the Peacock family.
I ultimately felt though that the book was just a bit "ploddy" - the subject matter is fantastic but the constant back and forth between different times and the alternating narratives between the Peacock family and islander Kalala meant it lacked a certain flow for me. It certainly gives you a whole new respect for pioneers of the past though - what a tough existence!