Just Finished Reading: Motherland by Jo McMillan (FP: 2015) [258pp]
Tamworth, the English Midlands, 1978. Thirteen-year-old Jess knew it was hard enough being a teenager – especially in Tamworth – but being a teenager with a reputation was worse. It wasn’t even her reputation. It was sort of guilt by association, kind of. As the daughter of the only (at least the only publicly outspoken) Communist in town it was hard to be ignored, hard to fade into the background. But standing in front of the butcher’s shop every Saturday trying to sell copies of the Communist Morning Star newspaper wasn’t exactly the best way to go unnoticed. At least with the offer of her mother teaching in East Germany for the summer would give Jess the opportunity to really disappear for a few months every year. Her mother was the excited one though. The chance to see ‘real living Communism’ was almost too much to bear. But Jess had no idea where such opportunities lead – to love, friendship, disappointment and her rise within the ranks of the UK Communist apparatus. The question was – did she want any of that?
This was most definitely an odd one! I picked it up, completely by impulse, in my favourite end-of-run bookstore and thought that for £3 it was worth a punt. It was. Part coming of age story, part mother-daughter tale this was an often poignant and heart-warming look at what happens when you lose faith in the beliefs of a parent. Jess was an interesting character (she must be at least partially based on the author I’m guessing) who initially went along with her mother for emotional support as much as anything else. Communism was, it seemed to me, both a faux act of teenage rebellion and one of solidarity with her widowed mother, Eleanor. I did feel for Eleanor though. She was, to be honest, an emotional wreck only held together with her fervent belief in the Communist cause. This belief was all powerful and overwhelming. Watching Jess deal with this and deal with her mother’s growing realisation that she was on the wrong side of history was funny, sweet and sad in turn. Written with both warmth and wit this was an enchanting and often touching read. Very evocative of the late 80’s vibe in the UK and often laugh out loud funny. Definitely recommended if you’re after a very different historical novel. [Side Note: As the ‘action’ is almost exactly split between England and East Germany I’m going to give ½ to each country in my fictional world tour. More geographically focused reading to come].
2 comments:
Definitely an interesting premise & mix of settings. It brings to mind "Goodbye, Lenin"...a German film about a young German man who tries to keep East Germany "alive" for his mother, for whom Party membership and socialist ideals were the meaning of life itself. She fell sick immediately before the Wall fell, and he thought that learning about the DDR's death would lead to her own. It's funny but also moving.
It was interesting in how the reality of Soviet era East Berlin was reflected in the eyes/minds of the true believers on both sides - British Communists and both East Germans themselves and characters in the DDR embassy in London - A nice Orwell 'feel' in you like... The focus was very much on the relationship between mother/daughter but the side characters (on both sides of the Iron Curtain) were an interesting bunch if more than a little odd at times! I found it to be an interestingly different read.
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