Stella
Book Review from 2007
Cover
Alternative cover
Gary spent the day searching his fathers' study and by nightfall he had found approx two thirds of a manuscript. Some pages were nothing more than a few lines or notes.
Encouraged by this Gary asked his mother, Joan, whether it would be a good plan to complete the book. With Joan's support Gary set about completing what would be his fathers' 2nd adult novel.
The result of Garys' hard work is Stella. This is a book that draws heavily on Eric's own background. They say that if you write a book you should write about what you know about. This was evident in Mr Lonely and is again here in Stella.
The book is about the rise of Stella Ravencroft from a struggling entertainer to a national star. Sounds familiar? It gets better. Stella grew up in a northern town in Lancashire in 1924. She also has a sister called Sadie, who works in a cake shop! It is very obvious that Eric has drawn heavily on his childhood for this story.
You get the feeling that many of the stories in this book are either very close to heart or ones Eric had heard of whilst a struggling entertainer. There are stories of bad digs, hard choices, relationships and even death.
It starts at the end, if you will. You are presented with images of Stella at the height or even end of her career, thinking about her life. You are then taken on a trip down memory lane from life as a child through the success and failures of a live entertainment star.
The book is a good read, there is no doubting this. Gary has done a tremendous job in getting this book together. The only niggle is that you can't help but feel that this book could have been so much more if Eric had finished it.
Stella is not hard to find, but is not a common book. In fact our copy is an ex library book from the public libraries of Shelby county, Alabamha. The mind boggles at what they made of it!!
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