Judgement Day
by Penelope Lively
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Judgment Day takes us into the life of Clare Paling, who has just moved with her family to Laddenham, a sleepy village enlivened only by sideshows of adultery and gossip. An avowed agnostic, Clare is nonetheless caught up in the restoration of the church, even inciting the villagers to put on a pageant that recreates the church's dark history. With flawless precision, Penelope Lively brings the village and its inhabitants to life as an unpardonable death reminds them all that the world is a show more very uncertain place. show lessTags
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Author Penelope Lively has a great talent in taking an unremarkable town as the setting, populated by assorted, commonplace families, turning this background into an interesting story that holds reader engagement. As the chronicle of several families, their involvement with an ancient church and the clergyman unwinds, secret lives and histories emerge.
It's oddly fascinating to discover all the personalities. Where Lively ultimately led the narrative was unexpected but I suppose one can interpret it as "life happens". There was certainly a realistic undertone to the characters emotions, the random vandalism, and the implied ineffectiveness to how the police handled various situations. Not exactly a joyful story, but certainly insightful show more regarding human frailties. show less
It's oddly fascinating to discover all the personalities. Where Lively ultimately led the narrative was unexpected but I suppose one can interpret it as "life happens". There was certainly a realistic undertone to the characters emotions, the random vandalism, and the implied ineffectiveness to how the police handled various situations. Not exactly a joyful story, but certainly insightful show more regarding human frailties. show less
This is a story about a small town; like all stories about small towns, the secret lives of the inhabitants are more sordid than anyone would care to admit. Lively's strength comes from her exploration of these secrets, the deft way she comments on class, gender, and education. Clare Paling, the newest resident of Laddenham, is an avowed atheist who loves the language of the King James Bible; her passion for art spurs her to be part of a committee focused on restoring the squat local church. The challenge of the committee--to find a part of the church's history that would be cheerful enough to reenact--reflects the struggles of each character. The novel ends with a sting, and I was surprised to find myself in tears.
This is a low-key story about a rural English community getting ready to put on a fundraiser for their local church. Key characters are the vicar, a newly arrived agnostic and her family, a couple having marital issues and their confused teenage son, and a lonely man who takes in the teenager when his parents leave town. It is about life, faith (or lack thereof) and community.
Up to about the three-fourths point, I was enjoying it very much. Unfortunately, it then takes an unexpected turn and becomes extremely dark and sad. The ending did not work for me. I have previously read and enjoyed books by Penelope Lively and will continue to read her back catalogue. I can highly recommend Moon Tiger, How It All Began, and The Road to Lichfield.
2.5
Up to about the three-fourths point, I was enjoying it very much. Unfortunately, it then takes an unexpected turn and becomes extremely dark and sad. The ending did not work for me. I have previously read and enjoyed books by Penelope Lively and will continue to read her back catalogue. I can highly recommend Moon Tiger, How It All Began, and The Road to Lichfield.
2.5
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73+ Works 14,500 Members
Penelope Lively has written over 18 books for children, and over 15 titles for adults, distinguishing herself on both levels. Among the awards she has received are the coveted Booker Prize for the adult novel "Moon Tiger" (1987) and the Carnegie Medal for the highly acclaimed juvenile work, "The Ghost of Thomas Kempe" (1973). In Lively's writing, show more for both adults and children, the recurrent theme is interpreting the past through exploring the function of memory. "My particular preoccupation as a writer is with memory. Both with memory in the historical sense and memory in the personal sense." Beginning her writing career in the early 1970's, Lively wrote exclusively for children for over a decade. Because children have limited memories, devices were used to explore their perceptions of the past, such as ghosts in "Uninvited Ghosts and Other Stories" (1985), and a sampler in "A Stitch in Time' (1976). Lively's first adult novel, "The Road to Lichfield" (1977) was the result of turning to an older audience when she felt inspiration running out. Her adult novels include "Passing On" (1995), the story of a mother's legacy to her children and 'Oleander, Jacarandi: A Childhood Perceived' (1994) which is a memoir of Lively's childhood. Penelope (Low) Lively, born March 17, 1933 in Cairo, Egypt, had a most unusual childhood. She grew up in Cairo with no formal education until age 12, when her family put her in boarding school in England. After earning a B.A. in history at Oxford in 1955, she married Jack Lively, a university professor, whom she calls her most useful critic. They have a son and a daughter, Adam and Josephine. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Judgement Day
- Original publication date
- 1980
- People/Characters
- Clare Paling
- Important places
- Laddenham, England, UK (fictional)
- Dedication
- To Jill
- First words
- First of all, the place.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)George picked up the report of the church restoration expert and began to read his proposal to include cleaning of the Doom painting in the general reparations, an expensive and tricky job, evidently, but one which, the expert felt, would bring out the colours and greatly enhance the effect.
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Statistics
- Members
- 221
- Popularity
- 146,849
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.91)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 11
- ASINs
- 4
