Good afternoon world. Recently I have been rather silent on the blog. This was followed by a, comparative, glut of posting. There was one reason for this and one reason only; I became an addict. What started out as a means to pass the time when I had little else to do became a compelling habit.
What is the source of my addiction; alcohol, heroin, exercise? No, it's the novels of Jack Sheffield. I slipped into it so easily. The first novel had been recommended by my girlfriend months before however it went to the bottom of the 'to read' list for no other reason than it didn't seem that exciting. Fast forward to a few weeks ago: my kindle battery was dead, my paper books were all at my flat and I had a long tube journey ahead of me. I picked up a dusty copy of the aforementioned book that had been languishing on my bedside table with the intention of reading it on the outward journey then picking up another book for my return. Like most plans in life, it didn't survive contact with reality. I couldn't put it down. Forty-eight hours later it was finished (it would have been quicker had I not had plans).
Then the craziness started. Normally I can't read books by the same author back to back. I get bored, I get irritated by their little writing ticks and I end up not enjoying perfectly good books. Not so this time. Within two weeks I had read every book ever written by Jack Sheffield (five in total) and put his next one on pre-order. My record was charging through one in twenty four hours. More than once, I was sitting up at 3 a.m. on a work night reading the first few pages of the next novel unable to bear a cliff-hanger until the next morning.
Why was this? What made the books so compelling?
In all honesty; I'm not completely sure.
Let me give you a bit of background: Jack Sheffield is a retired primary school head teacher and primary teaching lecturer who writes about a character called (surprisingly) Jack Sheffield who is also a primary school head-teacher in a rural Yorkshire primary school. Each book is set over one academic year and take the form of Sheffield's personal diary, detailing both school and community events and events in his own life. So far so good. I once described it as like the Archers but with fewer animals and more kids. My mind's ipod always played the first few bars of barwick green at the start and end of each chapter! (and if you followed the link the tune will now be stuck in your head. Sorry!)
The pages describe life in a rural village. The kind of place where everybody knows everyone else and has done for several generations. Where the cricket team is also the football team which is also the rugby team. It's the sort of place where the barman in the local has your pint waiting for you in anticipation of you coming in and you can have it on tick if you've forgotten your wallet. In short, a place of real community spirit. Fortunately the books aren't written in such romantic and nostalgic terms otherwise I'm sure they would be unbearable. Instead, the dramas of the village are played out through some well written and utterly charming characters (and some deeply irritating ones too). The books are also filled with stories of teaching that could only come from a seasoned teacher: they are far too surreal to have been invented. These add a pleasing light-hearted edge to the whole thing.
Where I think Sheffield really wins is his writing style. I started reading the books and was at once absorbed in a new place. It stopped feeling like I was reading the books and more like I was there; watching the vital cricket match, overhearing conversations in the pub or passing through the staff room at break time. This all sounds a bit dramatic I know but I can't think of a better way to put it.
Books that have this effect on me are rare. The only others I can remember being quite so spellbinding are the Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman (again a genre I wouldn't usually choose to read). I thoroughly enjoyed the process, not least because there were various other bits of stress happening in the real world so it was nice to have a bit of a mental bolt-hole.
I would strongly recommend anyone and everyone should read them. Even if you aren't as captivated as me, they are still undoubtedly fun and easy-going books (as evidenced by my girlfriend reading an entire one on a train journey up to Edinburgh). If you do pick one up, I hope you enjoy it.
JR
What is the source of my addiction; alcohol, heroin, exercise? No, it's the novels of Jack Sheffield. I slipped into it so easily. The first novel had been recommended by my girlfriend months before however it went to the bottom of the 'to read' list for no other reason than it didn't seem that exciting. Fast forward to a few weeks ago: my kindle battery was dead, my paper books were all at my flat and I had a long tube journey ahead of me. I picked up a dusty copy of the aforementioned book that had been languishing on my bedside table with the intention of reading it on the outward journey then picking up another book for my return. Like most plans in life, it didn't survive contact with reality. I couldn't put it down. Forty-eight hours later it was finished (it would have been quicker had I not had plans).
Then the craziness started. Normally I can't read books by the same author back to back. I get bored, I get irritated by their little writing ticks and I end up not enjoying perfectly good books. Not so this time. Within two weeks I had read every book ever written by Jack Sheffield (five in total) and put his next one on pre-order. My record was charging through one in twenty four hours. More than once, I was sitting up at 3 a.m. on a work night reading the first few pages of the next novel unable to bear a cliff-hanger until the next morning.
Why was this? What made the books so compelling?
In all honesty; I'm not completely sure.
Let me give you a bit of background: Jack Sheffield is a retired primary school head teacher and primary teaching lecturer who writes about a character called (surprisingly) Jack Sheffield who is also a primary school head-teacher in a rural Yorkshire primary school. Each book is set over one academic year and take the form of Sheffield's personal diary, detailing both school and community events and events in his own life. So far so good. I once described it as like the Archers but with fewer animals and more kids. My mind's ipod always played the first few bars of barwick green at the start and end of each chapter! (and if you followed the link the tune will now be stuck in your head. Sorry!)
The pages describe life in a rural village. The kind of place where everybody knows everyone else and has done for several generations. Where the cricket team is also the football team which is also the rugby team. It's the sort of place where the barman in the local has your pint waiting for you in anticipation of you coming in and you can have it on tick if you've forgotten your wallet. In short, a place of real community spirit. Fortunately the books aren't written in such romantic and nostalgic terms otherwise I'm sure they would be unbearable. Instead, the dramas of the village are played out through some well written and utterly charming characters (and some deeply irritating ones too). The books are also filled with stories of teaching that could only come from a seasoned teacher: they are far too surreal to have been invented. These add a pleasing light-hearted edge to the whole thing.
Where I think Sheffield really wins is his writing style. I started reading the books and was at once absorbed in a new place. It stopped feeling like I was reading the books and more like I was there; watching the vital cricket match, overhearing conversations in the pub or passing through the staff room at break time. This all sounds a bit dramatic I know but I can't think of a better way to put it.
Books that have this effect on me are rare. The only others I can remember being quite so spellbinding are the Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman (again a genre I wouldn't usually choose to read). I thoroughly enjoyed the process, not least because there were various other bits of stress happening in the real world so it was nice to have a bit of a mental bolt-hole.
I would strongly recommend anyone and everyone should read them. Even if you aren't as captivated as me, they are still undoubtedly fun and easy-going books (as evidenced by my girlfriend reading an entire one on a train journey up to Edinburgh). If you do pick one up, I hope you enjoy it.
JR
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