The Book of the month for April was The Satsuma Complex by Bob Mortimer. The Big Review is below.
***Big Reviews are written from the point of view that you have read the book. If this is not yet you, bookmark the page and come back once you have***
Satsuma – the blurb
My name is Gary. I’m a thirty-year-old legal assistant with a firm of solicitors in London. To describe me as anonymous would be unfair but to notice me other than in passing would be a rarity. I did make a good connection with a girl, but that blew up in my face and smacked my arse with a fish slice.
Gary Thorn goes for a pint with a work acquaintance called Brendan. When Brendan leaves early, Gary meets a girl in the pub. He doesn’t catch her name, but falls for her anyway. When she suddenly disappears without saying goodbye, all Gary has to remember her by is the book she was reading: The Satsuma Complex. But when Brendan goes missing, Gary needs to track down the girl he now calls Satsuma to get some answers.
And so begins Gary’s quest, through the estates and pie shops of South London, to finally bring some love and excitement into his unremarkable life…
A Squirrel, a Lassoo and a slice of Battenberg
I was really excited to read this book. I like Bob Mortimer and found the cover and title really arresting. It was nabbed, very rudely, by my husband however so I had to wait for him to finish it and declare it ‘very Bob’ before I got my turn. Was that a compliment? Well it certainly rang in my head as I began reading and yes, I could totally imagine Bob taking a 40 minute bath whilst trying to drown the shampoo lid and listen to the sound a splash makes from underneath the water. Whereas I like Bob though I didn’t really like Gary. I found him a touch too stupid to be totally likeable. He was harmless but you never really felt enough emotion to really root for him. I’m not long off reading Lessons in Chemistry and whereas the two books are TOTALLY different. Bonnie Garmus really nailed the strange but likeable leading character. Mortimer unfortunately did not.
Emily was a different matter, I liked her back story. Grace was the shining light of the book who could have had a story all to herself. I have also never wanted to eat Battenberg quite so much as I have whilst reading the book! But overall I was lukewarm to it and nobody loves a lukewarm satsuma.
Get Involved
If you would like to get involved with the Book Of The Month choices try answering the Book Club questions published every month. Just search in the footnotes section for the ‘Get Involved’ articles. A new book is chosen every month so keep your eyes peeled for the Lowdown on May’ book of the month soon.
