Friday, September 02, 2011

what I'm reading now

I've read Alexandra Fuller's previous memoirs about her and her family's lives in Africa, Don't Let's Go To the Dogs Tonight, and Scribbling the Cat and was delighted to see that she had published another one. Coctail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness is the story of Alexadra's mother, Nicola Fuller, born on the Isle of Sky but growing up in East Africa. It's the saga of a family struggling to exist in the land that they love in spite of the weather, climate, snakes, and war. The Fullers move from Kenya to Rhodesia and then to Zambia in their effort to make a place for themselves. The story is  heart breaking, funny;  a portrait of a woman who endures tragedy and hardship and yet finally flourishes in the beautiful, yet hostile land that she loves.

3 comments:

Kay Dennison said...

Sounds great!!! Adding to my list -- which means I'll read it sometime before I die.

Nance said...

I'd forgotten that I'd read Don't Let's Go a few years ago. Very lovely. Right now, I'm reading all the Beryl Markham stuff I can find--her memoirs, biographies, articles--to gorge myself on Africa as it once was.

Lorna said...

I have never been able to understand the call of East Africa. So much is hard there.