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A review by aliciagriggs
Family Album by Penelope Lively
4.0
First: this book completed my challenge of 100 books in 2022 and what a nice book to end on. (Not that I'll finish reading now!)
I really enjoyed this story, as it gave me a cosy, familiar feeling. It tells of a large, unusual family, six children, an au pair, and one dog, living in a big Victorian house called Allersmead. Perspective flits between the different characters, and different times in their lives, though the father, an aloof, distant man, has the least perspective in the book- we rarely hear from him, and this seems deliberate. The mother reminds me of Leah from the Bible. A woman who keeps bearing children in the hope, in my opinion, of achieving recognition, love, and acceptance. They are her prizes and her joy, and as out-of-fashion as her lifestyle may seem to us now, she was proud to be a homemaker. She lives in her own world, or at least tries to, with the mantra that family is everything, no matter what. Her world is one where there are no secrets, no bad memories, and no discontentment- telling herself that her life and that of her children is one of family bliss. But is this the case? And does she really believe it?
In some ways, I found it refreshing to read about a woman satisfied with domesticity. It's often a lifestyle, and this is perhaps a theme in the book, that people look down on, as though a woman shouldn't do that and it's an affront to womankind when one chooses a domestic lifestyle, when really, if that's what she wants, how can it be a bad thing? And why should it be looked down upon?
The children in the story have widely different personalities, all of which are trying to carve a name and personality for themselves apart from their life in Allersmead. But can you ever escape your childhood? Do you ever really want to cut the cord that ties you back to family and the family home? And is any family "normal"?
An enjoyable, pleasant read that makes you feel a range of emotions. It invites you into the family fold, and asks you to participate.
I really enjoyed this story, as it gave me a cosy, familiar feeling. It tells of a large, unusual family, six children, an au pair, and one dog, living in a big Victorian house called Allersmead. Perspective flits between the different characters, and different times in their lives, though the father, an aloof, distant man, has the least perspective in the book- we rarely hear from him, and this seems deliberate. The mother reminds me of Leah from the Bible. A woman who keeps bearing children in the hope, in my opinion, of achieving recognition, love, and acceptance. They are her prizes and her joy, and as out-of-fashion as her lifestyle may seem to us now, she was proud to be a homemaker. She lives in her own world, or at least tries to, with the mantra that family is everything, no matter what. Her world is one where there are no secrets, no bad memories, and no discontentment- telling herself that her life and that of her children is one of family bliss. But is this the case? And does she really believe it?
In some ways, I found it refreshing to read about a woman satisfied with domesticity. It's often a lifestyle, and this is perhaps a theme in the book, that people look down on, as though a woman shouldn't do that and it's an affront to womankind when one chooses a domestic lifestyle, when really, if that's what she wants, how can it be a bad thing? And why should it be looked down upon?
The children in the story have widely different personalities, all of which are trying to carve a name and personality for themselves apart from their life in Allersmead. But can you ever escape your childhood? Do you ever really want to cut the cord that ties you back to family and the family home? And is any family "normal"?
An enjoyable, pleasant read that makes you feel a range of emotions. It invites you into the family fold, and asks you to participate.