Story of the times. Each character is well developed. There is no doubt in my mind that it will stir you. You'll be routing for or against these characters, believe me! Author who is so comparatively young should be commended for breathing life into each "person". Well done, girl!

Small Island is a treasure. In a funny and natural way it brings to the fore a point of view seldom exposed in historical accounts, movies, other novels etc. I think it is gives a kind of dignity to the journey of the West Indians who lived through this period. This Author is all the way up there with Dickens and Naipaul in my opinion!
I loved it!!!

There have been many novels written about World War Two. Most I've read have focused on the Holocaust and its victims, so it was interesting to pick one up that was about the life of a soldier during and after the war. I liked the exploration of what it meant to be a black soldier fighting for the British while not being welcomed into their society. That plotline gave me a great deal to think about.

However, the story moved slowly, and I found myself skimming large parts of it. Another problem was that I didn't particularly like the characters. Gilbert was a clown much of the time, Hortense was a horrible person who stole her best friend's boyfriend and couldn't stop complaining about everything, Queenie was smug and Bernard was insufferably boring.

I couldn't get attached to the characters and I found myself rolling my eyes at the end of the book, rather than feeling any sort of emotion for the events that should have tugged at my heartstrings. In order to really grab me, the writing would have needed a snappier pace and characters who were considerably more pleasant. As written, it was a good concept that simply fell flat.

This was another book club book that I probably wouldn't have read otherwise. This one's about a West Indian couple who move to London after the First World War. Will they settle in? Will they experience racial hatred?

Small Island has quickly become my girlfriend's favourite book, and I think she's been on the phone to the rest of her book club mates discussing it for the past week days non-stop because I can hardly get through to her now - either that or she's avoiding my calls!!

I obviously didn't enjoy Nathasha's new favourite book as much as she did. But there were some interesting themes and a lot to think about the way our country has become racially divided.

I hope the next book club book's a bit better...

Probably one of the best books I have ever read. I was a small child in London at the time this novel is set; reading it brought the memories flooding back. It is a very good account of how the immigrants from the Windward were treated but written with wry humour rather than bitterness. This makes it all the more shocking.
Beautifully crafted - it just pulls you in and along with each different 'voice'. A very easy read it has great pathos and doesn't avoid any intimate aspect of these intertwining lives.
I have given this book as a gift to several friends and family.
It is deserving of the prizes it has won and I would also highly recommend another of her books: Never Far from Nowhere.