Yvonne Roberts' third novel, A History of Insects, is a compelling, and painful, vision of childhood. It's 1956, in Peshawar, Pakistan, a city torn between Muslim and Sikh, Christian and the British Raj. Ella Jackson, child of the colonial administration, lives out a lonely life on the fringes of an adult world riven with political, racial and sexual conflict: "Eye to the crack in the door, she could see most of the brightly lit room. A grown-up, blindfolded and wearing a party dress, was crawling around on her hands and knees, one arm outstretched, squeaking." From its opening pages, the strangeness of grown-up behaviour, the young girl's struggle to make sense of what she sees around her, drives Roberts' novel. This is a story with a secret, one that belongs to a child but also to a community desperate not to acknowledge that it is built on something rotten, something that perverts the relations between ruler and ruled, husband and wife, adult and child.

Central to Roberts' exploration of what is wrong in Peshawar is the (often vicious) relation between Ella and her mother, Alice. "I hate Mummy. I wish she were dead": a child's loneliness, her bitterness at a world full of broken promises, finds expression on the opening page of her exercise book. Discovered by a servant, handed over to Alice, those lines represent one of the moments of anger and danger between mother and daughter that begins to teach Ella the value of concealment. It's a secrecy symbolised by the title she gives to her new journal--"A History of Insects by Ella Jackson, aged nine and five months"--and one that compels this novel towards its disturbing, and ambiguous, conclusion. --Vicky Lebeau

Great to read a book based in Pakistan rather than India., 24 Apr 2006
So many books have come out of India in recent years, but this is the first I've read based in Pakistan.
I found it an interesting reflection of history at the time of the partition and an eye-opener into the claustrophobic society of the British High Commission.
Ella, a lonely child, with no other playmates on the compound, is an adorable characterisation and carries the story as the central character.
I didn't so much enjoy the era when she was away at school, but it worked with the story and illustrated some of the problems of race relations.
I really felt for Ella in her difficult decision as to what to do with the information she had, adults must have seemed very confusing and unpredictable.
Altogether well worth while read and a long way from her previous , rather fickle "The Trouble with Single Women".

Pace and style, a fine read, an equal to Atonement, 08 Jul 2004
Another book which is so good I read it in no time at all - 340 pages in two days to be precise. Set in Pakistan in the 1950s, among a group of British diplomats and their families, the books centres on 9 year old Ella, who witnesses a dreadful event, but finds that the adults are so locked up in their stultifying class rituals that they are unable to hear her story. Seen as a "difficult", i.e. normal child, she is packed off to boarding school, but thanks to the intervention of an American woman returns home and finds that the truth will out. Ms Roberts is an excellent story teller, but this book is full of history and insightful character studies. The book has wonderful pace which draws you on through its pages. A fine novel reminiscent of and equal to McEwan's Atonement, or even Hartley's The Go Between, making me want to read more by this highly competent author.

A good read, but a bit disappointing, 14 Apr 2002
I found the book moving but not totally convincing. There is a very dark part in the middle (without spoiling the story too much) which lacked credibility altogether, and some loose ends are not tied up, something I find frustrating. However it is also witty and ironic, apart from the cruellest parts, and presents an interesting view of ex-patriate life in Pakistan at that time.

Should strike a chord with every 'only'child., 06 Apr 2001
I bought this while I was in Singapore and much to my friends disgust, couldn't put it down. As an only child bought up by immature parents and conqsequently varying in importance in their lives I related completely to Ella, the child in this novel. Set in Pakistan it gives an insight into what life must have been like living there as well as opening my eyes to how the Pakistan people felt about the British. The characters are very well drawn (I only wish there had been a Betty in my childhood) and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Read it.

Instantly engaging child's eye view of crumbling empire, 26 Feb 2001
Ella Jackson is a nine year old growing up within the confines of the British High Commission in 1950's Pakistan. Ignored or feted depending on convenience, her diary becomes the only safe place she can document the confusing and hypocricical adult behaviour ingrained in those around her but denied by all.

A History of Insects is engaging in its narrative, rich in its atmosphere and sinister in its events.

Great to read a book based in Pakistan rather than India., 24 Apr 2006
So many books have come out of India in recent years, but this is the first I've read based in Pakistan.
I found it an interesting reflection of history at the time of the partition and an eye-opener into the claustrophobic society of the British High Commission.
Ella, a lonely child, with no other playmates on the compound, is an adorable characterisation and carries the story as the central character.
I didn't so much enjoy the era when she was away at school, but it worked with the story and illustrated some of the problems of race relations.
I really felt for Ella in her difficult decision as to what to do with the information she had, adults must have seemed very confusing and unpredictable.
Altogether well worth while read and a long way from her previous , rather fickle "The Trouble with Single Women".

Pace and style, a fine read, an equal to Atonement, 08 Jul 2004
Another book which is so good I read it in no time at all - 340 pages in two days to be precise. Set in Pakistan in the 1950s, among a group of British diplomats and their families, the books centres on 9 year old Ella, who witnesses a dreadful event, but finds that the adults are so locked up in their stultifying class rituals that they are unable to hear her story. Seen as a "difficult", i.e. normal child, she is packed off to boarding school, but thanks to the intervention of an American woman returns home and finds that the truth will out. Ms Roberts is an excellent story teller, but this book is full of history and insightful character studies. The book has wonderful pace which draws you on through its pages. A fine novel reminiscent of and equal to McEwan's Atonement, or even Hartley's The Go Between, making me want to read more by this highly competent author.

A good read, but a bit disappointing, 14 Apr 2002
I found the book moving but not totally convincing. There is a very dark part in the middle (without spoiling the story too much) which lacked credibility altogether, and some loose ends are not tied up, something I find frustrating. However it is also witty and ironic, apart from the cruellest parts, and presents an interesting view of ex-patriate life in Pakistan at that time.

Should strike a chord with every 'only'child., 06 Apr 2001
I bought this while I was in Singapore and much to my friends disgust, couldn't put it down. As an only child bought up by immature parents and conqsequently varying in importance in their lives I related completely to Ella, the child in this novel. Set in Pakistan it gives an insight into what life must have been like living there as well as opening my eyes to how the Pakistan people felt about the British. The characters are very well drawn (I only wish there had been a Betty in my childhood) and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Read it.

Instantly engaging child's eye view of crumbling empire, 26 Feb 2001
Ella Jackson is a nine year old growing up within the confines of the British High Commission in 1950's Pakistan. Ignored or feted depending on convenience, her diary becomes the only safe place she can document the confusing and hypocricical adult behaviour ingrained in those around her but denied by all.

A History of Insects is engaging in its narrative, rich in its atmosphere and sinister in its events.

Like Marian Keyes? You'll Love This!!, 21 Sep 2007
Set in the 60's, Shake! tells the story of 4 sisters and their parents living in Wales at a time of great social change. Written with real wit and warmth, we follow Rose, Daisy, Iris and Lily as they seek their way in the world, watched by their spendaholic Mum Melody and Dean Martin impersonator Dad, Doug.

Marriage is the aim of prim Iris - who has an "understanding" with Norman, although it might not be the understanding she wants - Rose is married with a 6 year old son, but she dreams of leaving her husband and son to begin a new life, Daisy is a would be beauty Queen who hopes to settle down with Carl, and Lily - often the narrator - is determined to break the mould and go on to further education.

Next door are Aunties Kath and Dulcie - Kath a bitter, bossy woman and Dulcie her sweet but simple sister. Kath dreams of fame on the emerging world of TV game shows whilst Dulcie has set her heart of a life with equally sweet but simple Robert.

But there are dark secrets in the lives of the Tempest family and they are about to break free.....

Packed with would-be Beatles bands, Mary Quant make up, Biba dresses, the birth of the self service supermarket, Dansette record players and daring trips to London, this is a gorgeous book which takes the reader into a world filled with characters whose lives become addictive.

I bought Shake! to make up postage on an Amazon parcel - I am now seeking other work by Yvonne Roberts.

my best book of the year, 03 Nov 2004
yvonne roberts' description of the sixties is searing. she reveals the distinction of class with humour, and with insight. this is my best book of the year because it combines feminine principle with social history. refreshing, beautifully written... i urge you to read it.

Great to read a book based in Pakistan rather than India., 24 Apr 2006
So many books have come out of India in recent years, but this is the first I've read based in Pakistan.
I found it an interesting reflection of history at the time of the partition and an eye-opener into the claustrophobic society of the British High Commission.
Ella, a lonely child, with no other playmates on the compound, is an adorable characterisation and carries the story as the central character.
I didn't so much enjoy the era when she was away at school, but it worked with the story and illustrated some of the problems of race relations.
I really felt for Ella in her difficult decision as to what to do with the information she had, adults must have seemed very confusing and unpredictable.
Altogether well worth while read and a long way from her previous , rather fickle "The Trouble with Single Women".

Pace and style, a fine read, an equal to Atonement, 08 Jul 2004
Another book which is so good I read it in no time at all - 340 pages in two days to be precise. Set in Pakistan in the 1950s, among a group of British diplomats and their families, the books centres on 9 year old Ella, who witnesses a dreadful event, but finds that the adults are so locked up in their stultifying class rituals that they are unable to hear her story. Seen as a "difficult", i.e. normal child, she is packed off to boarding school, but thanks to the intervention of an American woman returns home and finds that the truth will out. Ms Roberts is an excellent story teller, but this book is full of history and insightful character studies. The book has wonderful pace which draws you on through its pages. A fine novel reminiscent of and equal to McEwan's Atonement, or even Hartley's The Go Between, making me want to read more by this highly competent author.

A good read, but a bit disappointing, 14 Apr 2002
I found the book moving but not totally convincing. There is a very dark part in the middle (without spoiling the story too much) which lacked credibility altogether, and some loose ends are not tied up, something I find frustrating. However it is also witty and ironic, apart from the cruellest parts, and presents an interesting view of ex-patriate life in Pakistan at that time.

Should strike a chord with every 'only'child., 06 Apr 2001
I bought this while I was in Singapore and much to my friends disgust, couldn't put it down. As an only child bought up by immature parents and conqsequently varying in importance in their lives I related completely to Ella, the child in this novel. Set in Pakistan it gives an insight into what life must have been like living there as well as opening my eyes to how the Pakistan people felt about the British. The characters are very well drawn (I only wish there had been a Betty in my childhood) and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Read it.

Instantly engaging child's eye view of crumbling empire, 26 Feb 2001
Ella Jackson is a nine year old growing up within the confines of the British High Commission in 1950's Pakistan. Ignored or feted depending on convenience, her diary becomes the only safe place she can document the confusing and hypocricical adult behaviour ingrained in those around her but denied by all.

A History of Insects is engaging in its narrative, rich in its atmosphere and sinister in its events.

Like Marian Keyes? You'll Love This!!, 21 Sep 2007
Set in the 60's, Shake! tells the story of 4 sisters and their parents living in Wales at a time of great social change. Written with real wit and warmth, we follow Rose, Daisy, Iris and Lily as they seek their way in the world, watched by their spendaholic Mum Melody and Dean Martin impersonator Dad, Doug.

Marriage is the aim of prim Iris - who has an "understanding" with Norman, although it might not be the understanding she wants - Rose is married with a 6 year old son, but she dreams of leaving her husband and son to begin a new life, Daisy is a would be beauty Queen who hopes to settle down with Carl, and Lily - often the narrator - is determined to break the mould and go on to further education.

Next door are Aunties Kath and Dulcie - Kath a bitter, bossy woman and Dulcie her sweet but simple sister. Kath dreams of fame on the emerging world of TV game shows whilst Dulcie has set her heart of a life with equally sweet but simple Robert.

But there are dark secrets in the lives of the Tempest family and they are about to break free.....

Packed with would-be Beatles bands, Mary Quant make up, Biba dresses, the birth of the self service supermarket, Dansette record players and daring trips to London, this is a gorgeous book which takes the reader into a world filled with characters whose lives become addictive.

I bought Shake! to make up postage on an Amazon parcel - I am now seeking other work by Yvonne Roberts.

my best book of the year, 03 Nov 2004
yvonne roberts' description of the sixties is searing. she reveals the distinction of class with humour, and with insight. this is my best book of the year because it combines feminine principle with social history. refreshing, beautifully written... i urge you to read it.

Where is a woman's place?, 12 Nov 2001
Ruth Adam's book describes the path of women's lives from before WWI until the mid-70's. Her style is engaging, witty, very dry and almost conspiratorial. I imagine her typing away with a wry smile as she contemplates society's folly in it's changing expectations of what it has wanted women to do and be over the last century. Adam's use of original sources and her interpretation of them is always interesting. She uses everything, fiction, newspaper articles, government reports, to create a fascinating picture of life for British women through war, depression, war again to apparent liberation in the 60's and 70's. This Persephone edition has an Afterword by Yvonne Roberts covering the 25 years since the book's publication.

Great to read a book based in Pakistan rather than India., 24 Apr 2006
So many books have come out of India in recent years, but this is the first I've read based in Pakistan.
I found it an interesting reflection of history at the time of the partition and an eye-opener into the claustrophobic society of the British High Commission.
Ella, a lonely child, with no other playmates on the compound, is an adorable characterisation and carries the story as the central character.
I didn't so much enjoy the era when she was away at school, but it worked with the story and illustrated some of the problems of race relations.
I really felt for Ella in her difficult decision as to what to do with the information she had, adults must have seemed very confusing and unpredictable.
Altogether well worth while read and a long way from her previous , rather fickle "The Trouble with Single Women".

Pace and style, a fine read, an equal to Atonement, 08 Jul 2004
Another book which is so good I read it in no time at all - 340 pages in two days to be precise. Set in Pakistan in the 1950s, among a group of British diplomats and their families, the books centres on 9 year old Ella, who witnesses a dreadful event, but finds that the adults are so locked up in their stultifying class rituals that they are unable to hear her story. Seen as a "difficult", i.e. normal child, she is packed off to boarding school, but thanks to the intervention of an American woman returns home and finds that the truth will out. Ms Roberts is an excellent story teller, but this book is full of history and insightful character studies. The book has wonderful pace which draws you on through its pages. A fine novel reminiscent of and equal to McEwan's Atonement, or even Hartley's The Go Between, making me want to read more by this highly competent author.

A good read, but a bit disappointing, 14 Apr 2002
I found the book moving but not totally convincing. There is a very dark part in the middle (without spoiling the story too much) which lacked credibility altogether, and some loose ends are not tied up, something I find frustrating. However it is also witty and ironic, apart from the cruellest parts, and presents an interesting view of ex-patriate life in Pakistan at that time.

Should strike a chord with every 'only'child., 06 Apr 2001
I bought this while I was in Singapore and much to my friends disgust, couldn't put it down. As an only child bought up by immature parents and conqsequently varying in importance in their lives I related completely to Ella, the child in this novel. Set in Pakistan it gives an insight into what life must have been like living there as well as opening my eyes to how the Pakistan people felt about the British. The characters are very well drawn (I only wish there had been a Betty in my childhood) and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Read it.

Instantly engaging child's eye view of crumbling empire, 26 Feb 2001
Ella Jackson is a nine year old growing up within the confines of the British High Commission in 1950's Pakistan. Ignored or feted depending on convenience, her diary becomes the only safe place she can document the confusing and hypocricical adult behaviour ingrained in those around her but denied by all.

A History of Insects is engaging in its narrative, rich in its atmosphere and sinister in its events.

Like Marian Keyes? You'll Love This!!, 21 Sep 2007
Set in the 60's, Shake! tells the story of 4 sisters and their parents living in Wales at a time of great social change. Written with real wit and warmth, we follow Rose, Daisy, Iris and Lily as they seek their way in the world, watched by their spendaholic Mum Melody and Dean Martin impersonator Dad, Doug.

Marriage is the aim of prim Iris - who has an "understanding" with Norman, although it might not be the understanding she wants - Rose is married with a 6 year old son, but she dreams of leaving her husband and son to begin a new life, Daisy is a would be beauty Queen who hopes to settle down with Carl, and Lily - often the narrator - is determined to break the mould and go on to further education.

Next door are Aunties Kath and Dulcie - Kath a bitter, bossy woman and Dulcie her sweet but simple sister. Kath dreams of fame on the emerging world of TV game shows whilst Dulcie has set her heart of a life with equally sweet but simple Robert.

But there are dark secrets in the lives of the Tempest family and they are about to break free.....

Packed with would-be Beatles bands, Mary Quant make up, Biba dresses, the birth of the self service supermarket, Dansette record players and daring trips to London, this is a gorgeous book which takes the reader into a world filled with characters whose lives become addictive.

I bought Shake! to make up postage on an Amazon parcel - I am now seeking other work by Yvonne Roberts.

my best book of the year, 03 Nov 2004
yvonne roberts' description of the sixties is searing. she reveals the distinction of class with humour, and with insight. this is my best book of the year because it combines feminine principle with social history. refreshing, beautifully written... i urge you to read it.

Where is a woman's place?, 12 Nov 2001
Ruth Adam's book describes the path of women's lives from before WWI until the mid-70's. Her style is engaging, witty, very dry and almost conspiratorial. I imagine her typing away with a wry smile as she contemplates society's folly in it's changing expectations of what it has wanted women to do and be over the last century. Adam's use of original sources and her interpretation of them is always interesting. She uses everything, fiction, newspaper articles, government reports, to create a fascinating picture of life for British women through war, depression, war again to apparent liberation in the 60's and 70's. This Persephone edition has an Afterword by Yvonne Roberts covering the 25 years since the book's publication.

Like Marian Keyes? You'll Love This!!, 21 Sep 2007
Set in the 60's, Shake! tells the story of 4 sisters and their parents living in Wales at a time of great social change. Written with real wit and warmth, we follow Rose, Daisy, Iris and Lily as they seek their way in the world, watched by their spendaholic Mum Melody and Dean Martin impersonator Dad, Doug.

Marriage is the aim of prim Iris - who has an "understanding" with Norman, although it might not be the understanding she wants - Rose is married with a 6 year old son, but she dreams of leaving her husband and son to begin a new life, Daisy is a would be beauty Queen who hopes to settle down with Carl, and Lily - often the narrator - is determined to break the mould and go on to further education.

Next door are Aunties Kath and Dulcie - Kath a bitter, bossy woman and Dulcie her sweet but simple sister. Kath dreams of fame on the emerging world of TV game shows whilst Dulcie has set her heart of a life with equally sweet but simple Robert.

But there are dark secrets in the lives of the Tempest family and they are about to break free.....

Packed with would-be Beatles bands, Mary Quant make up, Biba dresses, the birth of the self service supermarket, Dansette record players and daring trips to London, this is a gorgeous book which takes the reader into a world filled with characters whose lives become addictive.

I bought Shake! to make up postage on an Amazon parcel - I am now seeking other work by Yvonne Roberts.

my best book of the year, 03 Nov 2004
yvonne roberts' description of the sixties is searing. she reveals the distinction of class with humour, and with insight. this is my best book of the year because it combines feminine principle with social history. refreshing, beautifully written... i urge you to read it.