Book of the Week (and Booker Prize shortlist!)

The shortlist for this year's Booker Prize has been announced: you can find out more details here. The shortlisted novels are:

The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

Western Lane by Chetna Maroo

Prophet Song by Paul Lynch

This Other Eden by Paul Eden

If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery

Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein

If you'd like to read the books on the shortlist, they're all currently available in the Kayton Library. And a reminder that on Wednesday 22nd November, we're running our annual 'Predict the Booker' event, where six Pauline readers debate the merits of each book on the shortlist, and the audience get a chance to vote for which novel they think is most deserving of the prize.  You can read about previous 'Predict the Booker' events here: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019 and 2018.  Will we get it right this year? Come along and find out ...

Meanwhile, here's our book of the week.

Refugee by Alan Gratz

Recommended by Kai Trench

This book tells the mysterious tale of three young kids who were all forced to leave their homeland, either due to war or rebellion. They all have one common mission: ESCAPE.  Some of their journeys only take days, others take years. They all suffer through their journeys away from homes that they will never see again. Their stories come with momentous highs and lows that form their and their companions' personalities.

Josef is a young Jewish boy who is plagued with troubles as he lives in Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Every day, the threat of death and concentration camps, which his dad has already been to, loom over him and everyone around him. So the family sets off on a boat across the world to Cuba. Whilst on the boat, Josef sees the changes that a concentration camp can make to a previously sane man, and the dark secret hidden under the welcoming blanket about the ship and its workers.

Isabel is a girl from Cuba in 1994, a time when it was riddled with riots and political disagreement. She also mounted a boat, but this it isn't for the multi-day trip to Miami. With only very short notice, she leaves her home: but the only way to get this excuse of a boat is to trade something that she holds very dear to her already punctured heart. She will encounter many more difficulties - including the harsh elements, strong storms, and her mother's pregnancy.

Mahmoud is a boy from Syria who left for Germany in 2015 when his home and life fall to pieces because of the civil war. On his journey, he grows up, and he saves, but also possibly takes, the life of one of his family, who he also sees change: his brother starts as a happy and cheerful young boy, but ends up saddened. his father also changes under the pressures of leadership.

Overall, the book displays the harrowing journey they all endured. The author's descriptive yet not overwhelming writing style keeps the words flowing, with some great tension when plans get changed and conflicts are found, and great joy when something goes the way of the unlucky travellers. It even concludes with an ending that ties two of the three stories together. It was.a great read, that at points could even make you a bit emotional.  The author is able to take you on an adventure through the highs and lows of a journey like this.