Disputed Land
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Review
`Packs a real emotional punch ... Pears, who could not write an ugly sentence if he tried, has done more than paint a gallery of eccentrics. His portrait of a family at a time of change is also a lament for a country which is losing its environmental way.' --Mail on Sunday
`Delightful ... Pears has terrific fun with his cast and is highly skilled at drawing out foibles and grudges ... Solid, rooted heritage and the manner in which we engage with those around us is something of a stock-in-trade for him. This seventh novel marks a return to the more political canvasses of his earlier work, such as IN THE PLACE OF FALLEN LEAVES and IN A LAND OF PLENTY. Pears called these novels social chronicles; strong (and in places satirical) narratives underpinned by explicit ethical concerns ... Ultimately, it is the myopia of this profligate existence, recalled with Theo's voice of youthful naivety, that gives this novel heft and weight, and a curiously nostalgic tone.' --Independent
A family novel, and a very sympathetic, intelligent and moving one ... effected with uncommon skill ... The grandfather is a wonderfully sympathetic character, steeped in local folklore and country ways, and Pears's depiction of enduring married love is beautifully done ... All the characters are sufficiently imagined to come convincingly to life, and shy, sensitive, intelligent Theo is an engaging narrator, edging towards an understanding of the complexities of adult life. What gives the novel its unusual distinction is the author's awareness of the inter-connectedness of things, of the significance of seemingly unimportant moments, of the way in which the past persists in the present ... Pears is so adept at the illuminating detail, writes so beautifully of the pleasures of life - the enjoyment of landscape, the feel of the house, the meals, the walks with Leonard's two English setters, an awareness of history - that it is a warm and affirmative novel, one which offers incidental joys on every page. It is perhaps the finest book he has written yet.' --The Scotsman
`Delightful ... Pears has terrific fun with his cast and is highly skilled at drawing out foibles and grudges ... Solid, rooted heritage and the manner in which we engage with those around us is something of a stock-in-trade for him. This seventh novel marks a return to the more political canvasses of his earlier work, such as IN THE PLACE OF FALLEN LEAVES and IN A LAND OF PLENTY. Pears called these novels social chronicles; strong (and in places satirical) narratives underpinned by explicit ethical concerns ... Ultimately, it is the myopia of this profligate existence, recalled with Theo's voice of youthful naivety, that gives this novel heft and weight, and a curiously nostalgic tone.' --Independent
A family novel, and a very sympathetic, intelligent and moving one ... effected with uncommon skill ... The grandfather is a wonderfully sympathetic character, steeped in local folklore and country ways, and Pears's depiction of enduring married love is beautifully done ... All the characters are sufficiently imagined to come convincingly to life, and shy, sensitive, intelligent Theo is an engaging narrator, edging towards an understanding of the complexities of adult life. What gives the novel its unusual distinction is the author's awareness of the inter-connectedness of things, of the significance of seemingly unimportant moments, of the way in which the past persists in the present ... Pears is so adept at the illuminating detail, writes so beautifully of the pleasures of life - the enjoyment of landscape, the feel of the house, the meals, the walks with Leonard's two English setters, an awareness of history - that it is a warm and affirmative novel, one which offers incidental joys on every page. It is perhaps the finest book he has written yet.' --The Scotsman
Book Description
The breathtaking new novel from Tim Pears, author of Landed
Inside This Book
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I must admit to being totally biased when it comes to Tim Pears. I love his meditations on science and nature. Life's sensuality and our relationship with the Earth are always to the fore. You "feel" a Pears book as much as read it and this is no exception. Strained family relationships, grotesquely knowing kids, economy-destroying businessmen, emergent sexuality and planning for death. All this and more can be found within...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I felt touched and inspired by this book, which makes the point of our common responsibility for humanity's future in a very subtle way, like a gentle stroke of breeze on your cheek.
Grandmother Rosemary, whose behaviour is affected by an illness, hectors her family about the excesses of our unsustainable civilisation, effectively shutting out any meaningful discussion. She presents her arguments intellectually, with a great dose of bitterness about our failures. Despite the clarity of her analysis and proposed solutions, ultimately, however, hers is not the voice we hear or are likely to learn from.
The author juxtaposes Rosemary's angry rants against her 13-year old grandson's subtle observations of life in the countryside and love in a family, which allow us to make up our own minds on the same issues. Through Rosemary the author tells us where we went wrong, but we are unable to take this in because of the way in which the points are made. Through the 13-year old Theo's love for his grandmother and empathy for all that surrounds him, however, we see the same lessons clearly, and are allowed to draw the conclusions by ourselves.
The book is very deep and multi-dimensional, the above being only one of its many aspects.
Although this may not have been the author's original intention, Disputed Land is for me one of the strongest and clearest contemporary statements about ecology and the need for transition from exploitative, extraction-based and untrammeled growth-obsessed civilisation, to an ethically-oriented, sustainable and resilient human development. A work of true art. Thank you Tim Pears.
Grandmother Rosemary, whose behaviour is affected by an illness, hectors her family about the excesses of our unsustainable civilisation, effectively shutting out any meaningful discussion. She presents her arguments intellectually, with a great dose of bitterness about our failures. Despite the clarity of her analysis and proposed solutions, ultimately, however, hers is not the voice we hear or are likely to learn from.
The author juxtaposes Rosemary's angry rants against her 13-year old grandson's subtle observations of life in the countryside and love in a family, which allow us to make up our own minds on the same issues. Through Rosemary the author tells us where we went wrong, but we are unable to take this in because of the way in which the points are made. Through the 13-year old Theo's love for his grandmother and empathy for all that surrounds him, however, we see the same lessons clearly, and are allowed to draw the conclusions by ourselves.
The book is very deep and multi-dimensional, the above being only one of its many aspects.
Although this may not have been the author's original intention, Disputed Land is for me one of the strongest and clearest contemporary statements about ecology and the need for transition from exploitative, extraction-based and untrammeled growth-obsessed civilisation, to an ethically-oriented, sustainable and resilient human development. A work of true art. Thank you Tim Pears.
Format:Kindle Edition
What a great illustration on the cover!
Without that I would never have noticed the book on the library shelves.
It was an easy read and a convincing voice, never sentimental and
always believable. I liked the family and enjoyed my time in their
company.
I know what the other reviewer means that there seemed no
"point" to the book with no great plot but isn,t that like life.
Ulysses by Joyce has no plot and that is acknowledged as a classic.
A good piece of writing. I will definitely read his others.
Without that I would never have noticed the book on the library shelves.
It was an easy read and a convincing voice, never sentimental and
always believable. I liked the family and enjoyed my time in their
company.
I know what the other reviewer means that there seemed no
"point" to the book with no great plot but isn,t that like life.
Ulysses by Joyce has no plot and that is acknowledged as a classic.
A good piece of writing. I will definitely read his others.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Didn't get it.
Disputed Land by Tim Pears is frankly, to me, a bit of an oddity of a novel. It begins with a man intent upon recording some aspect of his family's history for his children, who... Read more
Published 3 months ago by R. A. Davison
Beautifully written and evocative
Tim Pears is new author for me and a welcome change of pace compared with the frenetic crime novels I've been reading recently. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Bluebell
Too knowing Theo
I had not come across Tim Pears before but was interested in the idea of relatives being summoned to put stickers on what items they wished to inherit. Read more
Published 11 months ago by S. Tippins
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