Order! Order!

Currently nearly finished with Life Class by Pat Barker which could be described as the fourth book in an increasingly inaccurately-named trilogy. I have read two thirds of the Regeneration Trilogy starting with the last and going on to the first. The second resides in the bookcase courtesy of Oxfam and this one came through a three-for-two at a well-known high-street bookstore. I'm pretty sure that this order of reading makes no difference but Life Class seems much more rooted in reality. While the books of the true trilogy have a dream-like (nightmare-like) feel because all the characters are soldiers involved in the absolute horror of the trenches - divorced at some point in the novels from normal life - Life Class is about men and women - no-less heroic - who find themselves close to, but not directly involved in the fighting. They are the link between the mud and guts of the front-line and the Honey-Still-For-Tea existence of those left at home. And though they see the results of the horror, they remain detached, affected but in different ways. I thought at first that the breathless career through the minds of soldiers that drew you in to Regeneration was absent and was prepared to jettison it. I'm glad I didn't for this is like a code-book, a key to the cipher of the previous novels. Strangely, it has no focus on a single character, and I'm sorry to say that I cannot remember if this was the case with the other books and though again this slightly annoyed me, it gave the story an allegorical chaotic feel. I don't want this to be true but I'm afraid it is - the book shows that the war is the making of the characters involved - the old life is vague and unfocused while the war gives meaning to people.

Addendum: just read in the Wiki entry for Life Class, that the main female character is based on Dora Carrington with the male artist being Paul Nash which makes a lot of sense. Not sure if they meant John Nash which would make even more sense but I bow to the power of wiki. Which strangely links with this. (Warning contains a link to The Daily Mail - oh and some nudity). So Dora Carrington is remembered not for her art which is glorious but for standing naked on a statue. Office boys hey?

So I broke my promise (was it actually a promise?) to read something scientific next and now I'm not sure if even the next book will be so. I have Steven Poole's Unspeak ready on the pile but is this scientific?