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joshuaperry's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
piedwarbler's review
4.0
I found this book a challenging read, no doubt about it, but a worthwhile one. It’s the story of Cwen, an island off the north coast of England, and it contemplates how patriarchal society is, and how a matriarchal society might look. Eva leads a movement to give women fair representation on the island, and she challenges all kinds of accepted norms on the island. Of course, this doesn’t go down well with the male population, which leads to a public inquiry to examine whether the women have been unfairly advantaged.
The book is meticulously researched and when you consider, as a reader, all the ways in which historically, women’s roles have been marginalised over the centuries, going right back to Celtic society, and also across the breadth of Europe and beyond, from Tacitus to Robert Graves, you feel more and more how far the patriarchy reaches into every corner of society. This is the strength of the book.
For me, the book wasn’t perfect. The chapters from the island’s perspective were the best, for me; poetic and timeless, it was nature writing and feminist writing at its best. Where the book worked slightly less well, for me, was in the large cast of characters, some of whom came alive on the page, but others of whom appeared more like plot devices. The plot felt a bit messy to me, and there wasn’t a clear enough thread in the second half particularly to provide narrative drive, but I persevered and the outcome of the inquiry and the judge’s summing up at the end felt as though it was worth the journey.
This book feels like one that needs more than one reading to be fully appreciated, and I may well revisit it in future. I feel for me it works a lot better than some other recent feminist big hitting books like Girl, Woman, Other, because for me, it reaches further. There is a set of notes at the back that I wish I’d spotted earlier on in my reading. There is also a non fiction book by the same author that I should like to read, called The Britannias. I feel this would flesh out some of the stories that are touched upon in Cwen.
Thanks to Shrew Books in Fowey for the handsell.
The book is meticulously researched and when you consider, as a reader, all the ways in which historically, women’s roles have been marginalised over the centuries, going right back to Celtic society, and also across the breadth of Europe and beyond, from Tacitus to Robert Graves, you feel more and more how far the patriarchy reaches into every corner of society. This is the strength of the book.
For me, the book wasn’t perfect. The chapters from the island’s perspective were the best, for me; poetic and timeless, it was nature writing and feminist writing at its best. Where the book worked slightly less well, for me, was in the large cast of characters, some of whom came alive on the page, but others of whom appeared more like plot devices. The plot felt a bit messy to me, and there wasn’t a clear enough thread in the second half particularly to provide narrative drive, but I persevered and the outcome of the inquiry and the judge’s summing up at the end felt as though it was worth the journey.
This book feels like one that needs more than one reading to be fully appreciated, and I may well revisit it in future. I feel for me it works a lot better than some other recent feminist big hitting books like Girl, Woman, Other, because for me, it reaches further. There is a set of notes at the back that I wish I’d spotted earlier on in my reading. There is also a non fiction book by the same author that I should like to read, called The Britannias. I feel this would flesh out some of the stories that are touched upon in Cwen.
Thanks to Shrew Books in Fowey for the handsell.
boosmummy's review
1.0
Had to plod through this and by the end I wondered why I bothered as it was so boring.
kjteehan's review
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
When reading the book it was enjoyable, however I did put the book down for almost a year before completing.
thehannahwilkinson's review
4.5
Cwen tells the story of a female revolution, conceived by Eva, nurtured by a few female allies and brought to life by women all over the world.
The story takes place on a remote archipelago in the North Sea, off the coast of the borders of Scotland and Northern England, its a landscape which immediately grabbed me. Having visited Lindisfarne (an island off the very same coast, with an interesting history of religious pilgrimages and viking invasions) many times, looking out into the harsh North Sea and thinking about how there is nothing else between this tiny island and Norway, I immediately had a picture in my minds eye of the location where this story unfolds.
When Eva disappears her life’s work is suddenly under threat, as an inquiry is called into whether there is (or should have been) cause for public concern surrounding the events leading up to her disappearance. The novel unfolds through the testimony of the women closest to Eva, each chapter named after one woman, voicing her personal connections to Eva and her cause, as the tapestry of this story is woven before the reader’s eyes.
Peppered throughout are excerpts from ancient, medieval and modern tales telling of islands ruled by women and there are moments where we hear from the female spirit who inhabits the islands, who has witnessed the strength of women for countless years and who will do anything she can to protect them.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I would add the caveat that it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s very information heavy and not very emotion heavy. It holds nothing back when commenting on the patriarchy, political corruption and environmental issues and the author is definitely out to prove a point. I happened to love the point being proven... punch me in the face with hardcore feminism any day of the week!
The story takes place on a remote archipelago in the North Sea, off the coast of the borders of Scotland and Northern England, its a landscape which immediately grabbed me. Having visited Lindisfarne (an island off the very same coast, with an interesting history of religious pilgrimages and viking invasions) many times, looking out into the harsh North Sea and thinking about how there is nothing else between this tiny island and Norway, I immediately had a picture in my minds eye of the location where this story unfolds.
When Eva disappears her life’s work is suddenly under threat, as an inquiry is called into whether there is (or should have been) cause for public concern surrounding the events leading up to her disappearance. The novel unfolds through the testimony of the women closest to Eva, each chapter named after one woman, voicing her personal connections to Eva and her cause, as the tapestry of this story is woven before the reader’s eyes.
Peppered throughout are excerpts from ancient, medieval and modern tales telling of islands ruled by women and there are moments where we hear from the female spirit who inhabits the islands, who has witnessed the strength of women for countless years and who will do anything she can to protect them.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but I would add the caveat that it may not be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s very information heavy and not very emotion heavy. It holds nothing back when commenting on the patriarchy, political corruption and environmental issues and the author is definitely out to prove a point. I happened to love the point being proven... punch me in the face with hardcore feminism any day of the week!
labeanorita's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
ambermariebee's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
maebhhowell's review
2.0
I found this one just a bit ... cringeworthy for lack of a better word. I didn't connect with any of the characters and found the court case sections annoying more than adding to the narrative. The character of Eva also just didn't work for me - I really hated the semi-religious reverence she was accorded in this book by nearly every female character which seemed just totally undeserved. The sections from the perspective of 'Cwen' also just fell flat for me. The writing often felt overly descriptive and certain metaphors and linguistic choices just seemed out of place or odd.
georgina_bawden's review
5.0
This was interesting and sort of hard to describe. Not what I expected. Kind of a reverse Handmaid's Tale, about an island archipelago where a woman dies leaving her wealth to a local women's charity and her granddaughter. Her bypassed (and entitled) sons force an inquiry into Unfair Female Advantage in the Islands and it unfolds that their mother was running a kind of feminist social experiment. Well written, thoughtful and of an inclusive kind of feminism, writing towards a "gynotopia". Definitely different!
drannieg's review
challenging
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I wasn't expecting to enjoy this, necessarily. But it is brilliant. The tight use of language, the weaving of myth and truth and modern perspective - just outstanding.
(I mean, I did make a small squeak of outrage at the idea of potatoes about 1500 years too early but hey).
(I mean, I did make a small squeak of outrage at the idea of potatoes about 1500 years too early but hey).