Subtitled "The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn", this is the story of Cordelia from the time she is 15 until she is 20. She is pregnant and plans to give this account to her daughter on her 16th birthday so that they can share their youth together. She chooses the old and famous Japanese book "The Pillow Book" by Sei Shonagon' as a model in order to include all kinds of things she has already written as well as the episodes and thoughts she has now as she compiles her book. She tells of her mother (who died when Cordelia was 5) of her father and her aunt Doris (who marry when she is 16), of her love for William Blacklin, the boy with whom she chooses to have her first sex - and with whom she falls deeply in love. She writes about Julie Martin her teacher who helps her spiritually, describes her love affair with an older married man and her terrifying sexual experience with an unbalanced young man who is obsessed with her. The book includes thoughts on being a women, on poetry, music, reading and writing, on being pregnant and finally of her marriage to William. "This Is All" is an anthology, written in six 'books' of Cordelia's adolescent life, by turns funny, poignant, sad, exciting, fascinating ironic and truthful about topics that parents often do not tell their children. It is a richly entertaining and challenging read.
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About the Author
Aidan Chambers lives in Gloucestershire with his American wife, Nancy, who is the editor of Signal magazine. He divides his time between his own writing and lecturing which he does extensively in Australia, the USA and Europe. His provocative and challenging novels for teenagers and young adults have won him international acclaim. Postcards from No-man's Land is the fifth novel in what he perceives as a sequence; this starts with Breaktime, continues with Dance on my Grave, and carries on through Now I Know to The Toll Bridge. This Is All is the sixth and final book in the sequence. Each novel stands on its own exploring a different aspect of contemporary adolescence.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not a childs book and doesn't presume to be,
By Krista B. (United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: This Is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn. Aidan Chambers (Dance Sequence 6) (Paperback)
Ok there seem to be readers that presume that this is a "childs book" or even a teens book; this is clearly not the case. On the book jacket it clearly states not suitable for young readers. With that said I would say that this is an accurate portrayal of most teens. It does have that Judy Blume type of narration but it delves much deeper than any Judy Blume book that I have ever read. This was a quick read for me and for a book that is 802 pages that is a feat. This book draws you into Cordelia's world and what she has experienced and what she hopes to experience. She writes this "pillow book" in hopes that when her daughter is 16 y/o she will get an accurate potryal of Cordelia's life. I didn't expect to like this book but I did immensely. I highly recommend it.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent,
This review is from: This Is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn. Aidan Chambers (Dance Sequence 6) (Paperback)
This is an excellent novel. As I read it I discovered on every page something that I could relate to, or laugh about. Every girl/woman who reads this book will learn something about herself, and every boy/man will gain valuable insight into the opposite sex.
Although this book is quite long, it is easy to read because it is written so well. My favorite thing about the novel is that none of the characters are perfect, in fact there were moments when I downright disliked them. To warn readers, in book 2, the green pillow book, the author became a bit experimental and made a and b pages. Every other page is b and is telling a completely different story, which makes it difficult to follow. I simply earmarked the beginning of the book and went back to read the b pages once I finished a. Entertaining, insightful, and written by a master of words, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested.
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