November book club

Thank you for my copy, which I have just finished reading. It made me laugh and made me cry. It was the sort of book I wanted to finish and at the same time, didn't want to! I have now passed it on to fellow Book Group friends.

I have just finished 'Hello from the Gillespies' - it was a thoroughly enjoyable book and so true to life. Although I would not admit it to anybody I know, I too (like Angela) sometimes wonder what my life would have been like if I had followed my heart when I was in my late teens - but that would have meant going against my parents. I also received a Christmas lettering year and, yes, it did sound to good to be true! All things considered I felt great empathy with this book and I think this is one reason why I enjoyed it so much. More from this author please!

Just finished reading this book - a good read. Loved Angela and all the family.

Was not sure about the character of Celia - she just seemed to be transformed too much into a much kinder relation.

I do love having a letter at Christmas from friends who I rarely see, and do not mind at all if it is a 'round robin'.

Thank you very much for this book GN, I have really enjoyed it. I thought the characters were very well drawn. My favourite was Ig. The twins needed to grow up a bit. They are a bit old to just land back on Mum and Dad when things go wrong - but maybe that is what people from homesteads in the Australian outback do.

I would like to ask Monica what inspired this book. Does she receive these long glossy letters every year, or, in fact, does she send them?

Thank you for a very good read which I have passed on to my DD.

Just finished reading it. I really enjoyed it. I think it is the best book I have read in ages. I will be looking for more books by Monica.
Thanks again Gransnet and thank you Monica McInerney!

Thank you for my copy of 'Hello From the Gillespies', which I am thoroughly enjoying (I am just back from a trip away and am yet to finish the book).

Reading some of the comments here I feel a little guilty as I have sent a 'round robin' letter to ‘friends’ (who live far away and don't regularly see). Thankfully, I have not (yet...!) committed myself to being completely and utterly truthful, warts and all, but do try to give an update of our life and times over the past twelve months. I certainly do not try one-upmanship or outdo the Jones etc., and conversely, I enjoy receiving similar letters from others. It is lovely to see what other families have been up to in the intervening months. We don’t all want a close relationship with all our friends and these letters give the right amount involvement. Life rushes by so quickly that it is not always possible to keep the level of contact that we might wish. Everyone to their own etc!

Back to the book: Angela was portrayed as a slightly dippy figure and at times I wanted to give her a good shake and I feel she made some odd decisions. Yes, I would love to have a 'Joan' in my life, how wonderful that would be! Angela's children seem very childlike although I can envisage adults reverted back to their childhood personas in that type of family dynamic, living so far from urbanisation, as they do on Errigal. I very much enjoyed the character of 'Ig', which Monica McInerney brought to life very well. Oh, and Robbie, too! Nick seems rather dishy and it was interesting how one could see his descent into depression spiralling downwards. It was pretty obvious, however, that the character of Carole was a scam. That screamed out from the first contact with her. At least, I think it is a scam - haven't yet reached that section of the book! The character of Celia, well, I am sure that we have all met a Celia in our lives. I was torn between being cross with her and wanting to give her a hug and tease out the real person underneath the brusque persona. On the other hand…..!

Hello…. gives the reader a vivid sense of outback Australia and made me feel as if I had visited the homestead of Errigal and to that end, Monica McInerney has achieved an outstanding success with her book.

Thanks again Gransnet for my copy.

PS. For Monica: is the homestead Errigal a fictitious name? Does it have a meaning? Thanks.

I absolutely loved this book-the characters are easy to relate to,with their common bond being the love for their family,come what may.I think the idea of "getting it all off your chest" as Angela does in her letter,is one that we could all imagine doing.The consequences for the Gillespies are life changing and each family member deals with it in their own way.For Angela and Nick,the road is a rocky one but it eventually brings them back together,happily planning a new future.
Angela's accident is a great twist,when the reader is thinking maybe she has a brain tumour.
The twins and Lindy have their own dramas and problems to deal with but the family always come first.Even the twins possible pregnancies are put on the back burner.I love the way that the girls include Ig in all the family discussions and indulge his "fantasy" friend.In a way,I think that Ig is the glue that bonds the family together,perhaps because he is the only boy and came along as a late,unplanned bonus.He is clever and mature but still a little boy,as we see in the thunderstorm and his reaction to the snake.
Most people probably to want to "escape" at some point in their lives,when life is humdrum and boring.Also,there are "what-if's" in all our lives,whether or not we dwell on them.
Nick's depression seems to be triggered by losing a large amount of his inheritance,so he throws himself into researching the lives of the ancestors who created it.I know how hard it is to talk about depression with your family,so I empathised strongly with Nick and his need to withdraw into his new obsession.
A great read,holds your interest and ends happily if predictably.Just the kind of book to curl up with on a miserable day.
My only question for Monica McInerney is when's your next book coming?

Thank you so much for this book. I have only just started reading it but am already into it and are taking every opportunity to immerse myself into it. I used to sometimes write 'round robins' but with all the hell that's gone on in my life in the last few years, I decided not to pass it all on!!

Hello from the Gillespies by Monica McInerney came through my letter box without any cover note (or e-mail) – pity, I would have liked to thank the provider for an excellent book which I really enjoyed reading!
I always look at the cover first – a Christmassy, glittery feel, obviously reflecting Christmas news, with a letter coming through the letter box. It was a surprise to realise it was set in the Australian outback in a Christmas heatwave, and the news referred to an e-mailed Christmas letter.

I’m sure we are all familiar with Christmas letters. The best are the witty, amusing rambles, where you have to read twice to unearth the news. The worst are the catalogue of achievements of precocious offspring, their parents pride verging on boastful. The golden rule is be positive and upbeat, and if possible light and amusing.

In the outback farmstead, Angela has a problem. Throughout her 30 year marriage to Nick and the arrival of four children (twins Genevieve and Victoria, Lindy and Ig), she has always written a Christmas letter. This year is different, there is so much tension in the family she really cannot think what to put which is positive. She has writer’s block, so decides to put down all her unhappiness into word, get it out of her system, before writing the letter. Unfortunately, it gets e-mailed out to all her friends and family instead!

The book is about the repercussions of this disaster. Friends are shocked, but also amused to receive such an unusual letter, and some in fact offer advice and support.

The family members are appalled by Angela’s assessment of their lives.
All of the family members are reacting to the stress within the family in different ways, all showing classic displacement behaviour. Angela feels neglected and day dreams what life would have been like if she had stayed in London and married a previous boyfriend. She has very bad headaches, with no physical cause. Her husband Nick can’t face talking about his problems, so ends up being depressed. To try to cope with this he tries to develop an interest, in family history, not realising that there is a fine line between enthusiasm and obsession. Lindy regresses into childlike behaviour, becoming insecure and demands constant attention. Ig has run away from boarding school and has an imaginary friend. Genevieve and Victoria spread their wings and left home, but have had to return when both lost their jobs. They are both trying to rebuild their lives, but Genevieve’s indiscreet nature, and Victoria’s comfort eating aren’t helping.

You know the book will have a happy ending, but how on earth will all the problems be resolved? The plot runs smoothly and is well structured, with enough twists and turns to keep interest up. In fact, it is the kind of book you feel you must read another chapter to see what happens next. The characters are well described, you can imagine them, and the descriptions of the countryside are vivid. I have never been to Australia, but could imagine the wide vistas, the dust and the heat.

Unfortunatley my Celia figure was my own mother, so we won't discuss that any further.....I have never sent a round robin but received a few and have never took much notice of them as they are known to be glossed-over versions of people's life and just tend to ignite jealousy or boredom! I was interested to read of the secret life fantasy she slipped into to get through stress times as I have one of these but was not aware it was a common practice as I have NEVER EVER admitted it to anyone.
My Question is do you have a parallell universe escape world of your own that you drew upon for the story?
A brilliant read, thank you.

Enjoyed this book, thanks and very good timing as the first Christmas card arrived today - it's not even December yet!
I found it a bit predictable but a good light hearted read all the same.
My question is do you have a Joan in your life or are you the 'Joan' figure?

I too thought I would love to have a Joan in my life - could really do with the support and advice.

Thanks for my copy of this book. I enjoyed reading it, though it is not my usual style. It is pleasantly upbeat. I am curious about Joan: is she modelled on someone in Monica's life, or is she someone she wishes she had had in her life? I think everyone needs a Joan.

Thank you for the book, this was my type of book I really enjoyed it. I'm sure there is or has been a Celia in most families!

I did find the sisters very immature for their age but I imagine that was how they were meant to be seen. I look forward to your next book.

Thanks so much Monica for such a good read,we all know of families like The Gillespies don't we ? I can relate to the relationship between the sisters as I am one of 4 sisters and the comment such as "Ig get down" Lindy called "Dont embarrass me" whilst Lindy was waiting for Richard, my younger sisters used to do the same to me when waiting for a boy to turn up,so things never change.
Do you think families who live so far away from other families and friends tend to be more vocal with each other ?
I am 3/4 way through and just can't put it down so very well done and I will certainly tell others about it.

Thank you Gransnet for this gripping book. It had everything, Love, family disputes, memory loss, which kept us on the edge of our seats waiting to see if she would "come back".
I felt sorry for Lindy, the middle one and the one left out, but I suppose that sometimes happens to the middle ones. I wouldn't know being an only child. Dear little Iggy, who had a strong character when things were going wrong round him, and so good with Angela.
My slight criticism would be that I felt it should have ended on page 508
The rest of the book felt like a "catch up" where the author had thought I suppose my readers will want to know what happens and squashed it all in. A bit like the ends of Long Lost Family on the TV!!
But it would make a marvellous film, lets hope some Producer reads it.
Thank you Monica McInerney I shall look out for more of your books.

Finished the book- looked forward to my bedtime read every night. It had quite a few twists and turns and kept me guessing. My eldest granddaughter wants to borrow it, but I want to read it again first. Shall look forward to the author's next book

I too have received a copy and will be starting to read it shortly. Thankyou

Thank you for my copy of this months book. Really loved this and couldn't bear to put it down. I think we all would like to be honest with our family but I for one say what I think they want to hear not how how I really feel. The characters were all lovely but I could definitely identify with the main character.

My copy arrived and i got started like others found it easy to read
i could identify with many of the characters and must admit i do recieve
round robins from my friends about twice a year looking forward to the
next one

Just settling down for a good read. Thank you.

Really enjoyed this. Quite light but with real character depth. The girls really needed to grow up and Ig, at times, seemed more mature than them. Haven't we all had a relative a bit like Celia? Mine was my MIL but unfortunately she never changed! No question but wanted to say how much I enjoyed it.

I received my copy a few days ago and am now halfway through it. I absolutely love this book. I love to "discover" a new author and will be reading all Monica McInerney's other work. Thank you!

Have just managed a little 'me time’ to start reading..looking good

My copy arrived today! I must admit I'd forgotten about it and was pleasantly surprised when the postman delivered it this morning. I'll probably start reading it tonight!