The Uncommon Reader

* * * * (4 stars)
Alan Bennett
Faber and Faber Limited, Great Britain,
and Farrar, Straus and Giroux, U.S., 2007
Hardback
ISBN 0374280967

First, I have to admit that I do not read much fiction because the blend of reality confuses me. I cannot always tell fact from fiction. The Uncommon Reader is a case in point because it seems to use real people in a fictional plot. Or, is the plot fictional? I’m pretty sure the queen of England is real as are some of the other prominent figures mentioned throughout the novella.

I suppose one brings to any book one’s own projections. While another person might have found this story about the joy of reading, I saw a more subversiive story. The Uncommon Reader is about addiction. The queen’s new found discovery seems insatiable as she progresses to more and more stimulating material. Her duties become a nuisance and her staff resentful of the substance that has changed her predictable scripts. The queen’s staff is so angry, they begin to hide her stash and do away with her supplier. However, those measures do not stop the queen from obtaining her next fix because she is the queen afterall. When the staff cannot beat the queen’s addiction for her, even after an intervetion or two, they resort to the only behavior a codependent can. They enable her.

I find myself wondering if the authori’s purpose was to promote literacy and if he received permission from the queen to utilize her for his purpose. Does he hit the mark? I am inclined to read the books mentioned in the story, but I am afraid of addiction myself. My understanding is that fiction does instill compassion in its readers. Who can’t use a little, or lot, of compassion? If you are not a reader of fiction, I D.A.R.E. you to read this book.

Reviewed by Kelli Frankenberg