book nineteen: The Slap

3pm, Sunday 25 October 2009

The Slap, a new (2008) book by award-winning Australian author by Christos Tsiolkas.

To mix it up a little, we discussed this book under a tree at New Farm Park (meet at the bar/cafe part of Watt at the Brisbane Powerhouse with takeaway .

Ratings (out of 17):
Steve: 11 (did not finish) easy to read, disappointed he didn't finish, content polarising.
Maree: 13 enjoyed it
Wendy: 13 characters not pleasant but well characterised
Tim: 12 liked the book, disliked the characters
Leigha: 10 Didn't like it very much, also felt that after the court case the last third of the book lost its way.
Cherie: present but abstained.

Emma (postal vote): 14 Found this very compelling & read it in two sittings. Would have been interested to hear what the parents in the group thought of the issue itself. Also interested in whether people’s viewpoint of the ‘crime’ changed depending on their (changing) attitude towards the characters involved (I found the main ones not at all likable).

Average: 12.2