A review by jackdwrighton
Dreams of Leaving and Remaining by James Meek
4.0
It feels like almost every week since the referendum a book about Brexit has been published. So far I have wanted to avoid reading about it; why waste precious book time when the news is spewing out op-eds at breakneck speed?
For some reason a proof copy of James Meek’s Dreams of Leaving and Remaining (due March 5th) stood out to me. Now I have finished it I can see why. Meek looks at the underlying issues that have led to Brexit as opposed to celebrating or bemoaning the referendum result.
Over the course of the book, which takes him from Grimsby to Norwich to Poland, he explores how narratives have shaped the debate in a prose which is striking in its elegance. Particular importance is given to institutions or places that evoke deep cultural meaning such as the sea, the NHS and Cadbury. Ultimately this is a book that looks, not at the consequences of Brexit, but at Brexit as the consequence of rising inequality and communities alienated from the powers that affect their day to day lives.
For some reason a proof copy of James Meek’s Dreams of Leaving and Remaining (due March 5th) stood out to me. Now I have finished it I can see why. Meek looks at the underlying issues that have led to Brexit as opposed to celebrating or bemoaning the referendum result.
Over the course of the book, which takes him from Grimsby to Norwich to Poland, he explores how narratives have shaped the debate in a prose which is striking in its elegance. Particular importance is given to institutions or places that evoke deep cultural meaning such as the sea, the NHS and Cadbury. Ultimately this is a book that looks, not at the consequences of Brexit, but at Brexit as the consequence of rising inequality and communities alienated from the powers that affect their day to day lives.