Homer Hickam's 'somewhat true story of a Man, his Wife, and her Alligator' evoked mixed reactions from our readers. Some really enjoyed its lightness while others found
Carrying Albert Home really frustrating. Some readers enjoyed the way important historical events and characters of the 'between the wars years' were woven into the story while others found this premise 'absolutely ridiculous' and frustrating to such an extent they were not able to finish the book.
Some of our readers relish fiction and they enjoy biography but they do not appreciate a hybrid of the two. This led to chat about the way family history stories do become embellished with the telling over the years and maybe a family autobiography could not really be deemed non-fiction as it is told from a personal perspective which due to its very nature incorporates faulty recall. Maybe Homer's family tales were just taller than most. The author acknowledges that the book evolved from stories told by his parents who were West Virginians and 'knew how to make their tales as tall as the hills that surrounded them on all sides'. Other readers really delighted in the way historical events became focus points for stages of the journey. They thought the way the events and characters were woven into the narrative very clever.Our readers made references to Winston Groom's
Forrest Gump (the movie was much better than the book apparently) and
The Old Man who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson.
Some of our readers really enjoyed the way the family photos were included in the book. The absence of such an important character as Albert in the line-up certainly brought his very existence into question. Did calling the garden pond 'the alligator pond' set off the family's imagination which then created 'Albert'. We talked about Albert's actual size and why was the bath really necessary and other functional aspects of caring for an alligator on the road. What sort of person was Buddy that he would send an alligator in the mail with little concern for its welfare? Further to this, how might the arrival of a potentially dead alligator as a wedding gift be interpreted by the newly married couple?
Some of our readers thought that the rooster was very much like Elsie herself as both appeared to be quite happy flitting in and out as one fancied without any concern or respect for others. Some of our book clubbers found Elsie quite unlikeable. Some thought that she probably never loved Homer as she did not seem to be capable of considering others while others were quite convinced that she grew to love and appreciate him and this was the point of the journey. Homer Jr seems to hint that Elsie remained a challenge to his father for his entire life.
With one exception, the general consensus was that Homer Hickam's somewhat true
Carrying Albert Home was a fun quirky read that drew the audience's attention to various historical events and characters that have generally dropped from society's radar as well as epitomising those family tales
that grow more fictional over the years with their telling.
Our next read is the small, but rather topical
The World According to Anna by Jostein Gaarder whose previous work
Sophie's World received worldwide acclaim. As usual, it'll be interesting to hear of the variety of experiences our readers have of this modern fable.
Happy Reading
