What do I mean by an undemanding read? via @Annecdotist

What do I mean by an undemanding read?

29/3/2019

In a recent review post, I described a novel as an undemanding read, and when, I did so a second time, I was challenged to define what I meant. Pondering this on a morning walk, it struck me that it’s easier to identify what such a book isn’t than what it is, which feels rather negative or damning with faint praise. Which wasn’t my intention, at least consciously. But don’t you also find that some books – and particularly novels – are just okay, without there being anything special about them? And is that in itself okay?

2019 Reading Challenge

Anne has read 19 books toward their goal of 100 books.

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19 of 100 (19%)

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We all want readers to rave about our books, but sometimes good-enough is a pretty good place to be. Good enough isn’t boring or irritating, as some books can be. My undemanding reads don’t challenge me emotionally or intellectually, but life would be exhausting if every book did that. They don’t make me stop and admire the writing (much as I appreciate that when it occurs) or confuse me with tricksy post-modern structures; indeed, they don’t demand much of me at all. But nor do they present an airbrushed view of the human condition, with happy-ever-afters that make me want to scream.

Perhaps my undemanding read is what I was looking for at the end of last month: the type of book to read when unwell. Something that doesn’t stretch already limited resources but nor does it pretend everything’s rosy when all I can feel are thorns.

I’m not sure if I’ve nailed it or simply said that reading preferences vary, as I might have mentioned before. You can see my other posts on reading here.

You can check the reviews of the 15 novels I posted this month by clicking on the image above. My overall favourite was The Narrow Land, by Irish writer Christine Dwyer Hickey, set in 1950 in Cape Cod, published by Atlantic Books, is a beautifully written story of war orphans, bickering spouses, loneliness and our struggles to connect.

In my dreams, I’m a literary eminence, advising – no, dictating – what everyone should read. Should I make this the subject of this week’s 99-word story, or is there a more pertinent kind of eminence I ought to mark on the day Britain was due to leave the EU? It’s a bittersweet moment for we Remainers: happy to be citizens of Europe a little longer; angry and embarrassed at the shambles our parliament has been shown to be. So I’ll hand over to the Leavers to explain:

Oh to be in England on non-Brexit day!

We voted to abolish experts. Let the people have their say! Don’t bore us with details, wave your magic wand and make it happen. Would a surgeon go through such a back-and-forth to amputate a limb?

Yes, the Leave campaign deceived us. Yes, the rich will win whichever way we go. We’ll wave our flags as pigs fly in eminence above us. We’ll plug our ears when boffins threaten to explain.

We are the mother of parliaments. We are the brave who take back control. We are the laughing stock of Europe. We are the fools of the world.

18 Comments

Geoff Le Pard link

29/3/2019 10:24:00 pm

you might say that; I couldn't possibly comment...

Anne Goodwin

30/3/2019 06:52:30 am

But I've an idea what you're thinking!

Susan Zutautas link

31/3/2019 11:08:50 pm

Anne, good one but just one thing I don't think you're the fools of the world at all.

Anne Goodwin

1/4/2019 01:07:05 pm

Thanks, Susan … but you don’t think we’re chumps to have elected a government that has sidelined the real issues for two years in order to concentrate on failing to deliver on an impossible election promise? And blames everyone and everything but their own incompetence!

Norah Colvin link

1/4/2019 11:06:26 am

Hi Anne,
I think I agree with you about an easy read. It's not a criticism. In fact it's a positive. If it's easy, it flows and the writing doesn't get in the way of the story. It's not overdone with description and the action progresses at just the right pace to be comfortable. Challenging is good when in the mood, but comfort is a friend when that's what's needed. I think you are right when you say it depends on our mood (my interpretation, I hope it's accurate).
I've been watching the Brexit antics with a mixture of amusement and horror. I know I don't fully understand it, and that's my choice, but it seems they gave the people the choice but now the parliament (voted in by the people) refuse to push it through and they want to ask the people again. Methinks there's no good either way. Two wrongs don't make a right, as the story goes. And when the vote was by such a minor majority .... I feel the sting in your flash. I especially like the eminent pigs. :)

Anne Goodwin

1/4/2019 01:27:24 pm

Thanks, Norah. You’re not alone in not understanding the Brexit nonsense: half of the British population doesn’t either!
The problem in a nutshell is that, at the time of the referendum, only the Loony Right expected Leave to win. The motivation behind it wasn’t to give the people a choice, but to silence the anti-EU faction of the Conservative party, which drastically backfired. The party is split now more than ever, and the country with it. They how of the EU withdrawal was never properly considered because even those campaigning for Leave didn’t think they’d have to.
So, what went wrong:
• there should never have been a referendum in the first place, instead a more concerted attempt should have been made to fix concerns about the EU
• if there was a referendum there should have been clearer information (facts, not lies) on which the electorate could make their choice; sixteen-year-olds should have had the vote given they are more adversely affected; a decision should have been taken in advance on the size of the majority required to action the result (52% of those who voted is not exactly the voice of the people as our PM maintains)
• if there was a referendum and the result was so close there should have been a cross-party group (like a war cabinet) to decide what to do next – we expected chaos but nothing as bad as what we’ve got – although looking at their behaviour now I’m not sure any of them are capable of putting the country before party
• if we were stuck with Theresa May and she’d made it her personal ambition to secure Brexit she shouldn’t have left it until the last minute and should have reached out to the reasonable people outside her own party etc etc etc
• finally, if none of that could have happened, for us all to wake up tomorrow and find it’s been a dream – or a nightmare

Norah Colvin link

7/4/2019 12:27:16 pm

Thanks for the clarification, Anne. I agree with many of the points you've made. Those I haven't is simply because I don't have your degree of knowledge. To have another referendum seems totally ridiculous. And I totally agree with the need for a bipartisan approach to governing for the good of the country rather than to keep a party (or person) in power. We have similar problem here.

Anne Goodwin

8/4/2019 12:02:12 pm

Actually, a second referendum is not so ridiculous when the first was marred by misinformation and lies. And it would be one fewer than the number of times the PM has put her divorce deal to parliament and had it rejected. At the end of last week she finally reached out to the leader of the opposition and is being gravely criticised for it by members of her own party.
Even the layout of parliament seems crazy, members facing each other like opposing football teams and, when and if they all turn up, squashed onto benches with no desks to keep their papers. Bonkers!

Roberta EAton

2/4/2019 11:59:45 am

I agree with you about an easy read, Anne. Those kinds of books are the best for me most of the time. I can't read classics when I am stressed. An interesting post and flash.

Anne Goodwin

4/4/2019 07:17:47 am

Thanks, Robbie, glad you agree.

Clare Stevens link

2/4/2019 02:25:07 pm

There are times when an easy (undemanding) read is what you need though.

Anne Goodwin

4/4/2019 07:19:32 am

Absolutely! Undemanding doesn't have to mean trashy at all.

sarah brentyn

2/4/2019 04:59:16 pm

My kids call this type of book a 'brain break'. :-) Easy (undemanding--love that) reads are a necessity for me. Great post, Anne.

Anne Goodwin

4/4/2019 07:20:52 am

Nice one, Sarah, might borrow 'brain break'. I certainly need that at times.

Charli Mills

3/4/2019 04:03:31 am

It's also interesting to consider, as an author, where to place one's book on the spectrum between undemanding and demanding. I suppose genre dictates some of that.

"We’ll wave our flags as pigs fly in eminence above us." That sounds an awful lot like a Trump rally. I don't think either nation thought Leave or Trump would win. Now what? We have our own nightmare across the pond and you might have to wait in line behind America for the title of World Fools. It's as if America voted Trump and then England said, "Here, hold my beer." (That's a phrase we use when someone is about to do something extraordinarily stupid.)

Anne Goodwin

4/4/2019 07:27:07 am

Good point, Charli. Genre helps, also the cover, but it can still be tricky knowing how others will perceive one's writing.
As for the flying pigs, although Trump looks more of a menace, at least you have the opportunity to vote for a change. If we crash out of the EU it's going to take decades to recover. Which of us will be first to civil war (or uncivil war).
'Hold my beer' is apt for us too as the figurehead of the UK Independence Party (which of course no-one took seriously in the beginning) likes to be photographed with a pint in his hand, so he looks like a man of the people.

Molly Stevens link

4/4/2019 12:27:03 pm

What a mess the politics of the world are in, Anne! I don't understand Brexit but it seems like a no-win situation. My favorite line: "We’ll wave our flags as pigs fly in eminence above us." An easy read is just what I need at times, but if it isn't written well, it can't be an easy read because I'm working overtime criticizing it.

Anne Goodwin

5/4/2019 03:14:11 pm

Yes, Brexit is certainly a can of worms from which everyone loses. And, yes, I’m exactly the same with easy reads that turn difficult because they’re badly written or, for me, are emotionally shallow.

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