March Book Review
The Uncommon Reader
Alan Bennet
I loved Bennet's play The History Boys when I saw it a few years ago on Broadway--a very pleasing balance of wry wit and big ideas. I loved The Uncommon Reader for much the same reason. The plot, in a nutshell, is this: Queen Elizabeth II, whilst walking her dogs, happens upon a book mobile and discovers the addictive quality of good books for the first time in her life. Enter Norman, who works in the palace kitchens and who Her Majesty leans on for book recommendations (clearly, she has not discovered this blog), even though his reading choices "tended to be determined by whether an author was gay or not." Hilarity ensues as palace keepers adjust to this new royal habit and Her Majesty adjusts to a few bold new ideas. Screwball and charming though the premise is, what makes The Uncommon Reader stand out is the narrative voice: a keenly intelligent woman discovering literature for the first time while being in the fairly unique position of actually having met (and been bored to tears by) many of modern lit's major players. This voice was sharp and fresh and lively--just the cheering thing for this Oregon almost-but-not-quite spring.
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