Was nevil shute, author of a town like alice a racist, or was he just recording the attitudes of the time. I think i will be less apprehensive of war time novels, going forward. The book portrays a community and how it deals with the changes due to. People who spent the war in prison camps have written a lot of books. I wanted to know where the movie had come from, as books are usually better than movies, and i had forgotten much of the plot. Nevil shutes a town like alice is complex and intriguing novel. A town like alice a 1950s exciting story, of a woman who has such success, vision, courage and determination. A town like alice is a bonza book as one of its main characters, joe hardman of australia, would say about two love stories, two adventures and two remarkable characters inspired by a reallife man and woman who displayed remarkable bravery during wwii. They say that it can take three times for you to hear about a book before you read it.
Study questions, project ideas and discussion topics based on important themes running throughout a town like alice by nevil shute. Jul 21, 2012 a town like alice written by nevil shute ballentine books 1950 carrie chose julys selection and the night was cohosted at megans place all. The building of the new town in australia is only a minor part of a town like alice, just the climax really of a very long story arc. The legacy is a romance novel by nevil shute, published in 1950 when shute had newly settled in australia. Jean paget, a young englishwoman, becomes romantically interested in a fellow prisoner of world war ii in malaya, and after liberation emigrates to. A town like alice the greatest literature of all time. Our thanks to nancy pearl from the washington center for the. It takes nevil shute a long time in this novel to get around to the town of alice alice springs actually, and even longer to get around to the town like alice.
A town like alice by nevil shute, first edition abebooks. My book club has read many of these same books, including pride and prejudice and zombies and given our similar interests, id like to make a recommendation to your club. A town like alice study guide ch 610 a town like alice most appropriately conforms to the genre of the sociological novel. Jean paget, an adolescent englishwoman, becomes romantically involved with a fellow wwii prisoner, joe harmon, in malaya now the western portion of malaysia.
Sep 05, 2016 even if you do have a reading guide, these questions will still help engage your book club members and provide great conversation starters. A town like alice tells the story of a plucky young englishwoman who becomes a legend in malaya during world war ii, inherits a fortune, marries her true love, and wisely uses her money to transform an australian ghost town. Like black rain, from last year, a town like alice took me by surprise. Female friendship is a constant theme throughout the alice network. After you read the book together, take some time to get creative and turn it into a lesson. A town like alice questions temp galesburg public library. About the book a town like alice, a novel written in 1950, is intertwined with romance and economic development. Ive found that the best book club discussion questions are ones that are openended and that get people to share their personal opinions. This is a statement that depends a lot on what you mean with basically. A town like alice pied piper the far country the chequer board no highway. The level and depth of his writing in alice shows that he was indeed learning to draw upon his own experiences to create critically acclaimed works. A town like alice has been such an intriguing read. A town like alice by nevil shute summary this study guide includes the following sections. The perfect book club is made up of three key things.
Written more than a century ago, this story continues to be a favorite of readers around the world. They dont help move discussions forward and can put others on the defensive. As hinted earlier, there is some discussion of gender relations and inequality. Aug 21, 2017 ive been in a lot of book clubs, and i know its not always easy to get a conversation going on a book. Shortly after his first visit, shute decided to move there. Instead, talk about your experiencehow you felt as you read the book. Discussion questions for a town like alice by nevil shute galesburg public library tuesday book club november 2006 1. Ive probably seen the movie version of a town like alice at least ten times. A town like alice is a 1956 british drama film produced by joseph janni and starring virginia mckenna and peter finch that is based on the 1950 novel by nevil shute. Nevil shute writes every character with quiet kindness and intelligence.
The book was a delightful read, and id suggest it as a perfect summer beach read if you are so inclined. Britishaustralian author nevil shutes historical romance novel a town like alice. With virginia mckenna, peter finch, kenji takaki, tran van khe. A town like alice, more than any other work, reveals shutes feelings about australia. A town like alice is a romance novel by nevil shute, published in 1950 when shute had newly. What happens when joey and his sister, mary alice two city slickers from chicago make their annual summer visits to grandma dowdels seemingly sleepy illinois town. And remember to check out our other book resources. I think people are pretty much the same all around the world but and they definitely could end up being almost the same if they was raised in exactly the same way. Welcome to book club babble, the site for busy people who love books.
The film does not follow the whole novel, concluding at the end of part two and truncating or omitting much detail. The discussion will begin on november 1, 2011 where. The book portrays a community and how it deals with the changes due to world conflicts. A town like alice by nevil shute smart bitches, trashy books. Join with other readers over refreshment to discuss a town like alice by nevil shute. Contemporary fiction, womens lives and relationships tone. Read any nevil shute book you can get your hands on. We are grateful to librarians and program directors across the continent who sent us their materials and talked with us about their programs. Watch movies based on alices adventures in wonderland and compare them to the book with our free helper comparing a book to its movie.
The time has come to discuss the fascinating february 20 mobileread book. A town like alice appears to be a war novel on the surface, being published in 1950, but it was written when he was presumably doing some traveling in southeast asia and australia. A town like alice aka the legacy tells of a young woman who miraculously survived a wartime japanese death march, and an australian soldier, also a prisoner of war, who offered to help her even at the cost of his life. She presents some ideas but then she sits back and lets them figure out exactly what will best serve their needs. Its very well cast with helen morse and bryan brown in the major roles and gordon jackson perfect as the sympathetic narrator. This summary of a town like alice includes a complete plot overview spoilers included. Try to avoid words like awful or idioticeven like and dislike. This study guide consists of approximately 63 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of a town like alice. Shop online for our annual print editions, which include book overviews, suggested discussion topics and discussion questions for all our annual books. Here are some of the things we did as a family and with our friends during our book club. While the book presents these backward and oldfashioned ideas. Discussion even though cultures differ, people are basically the same. A town like alice written by nevil shute ballentine books 1950 carrie chose julys selection and the night was cohosted at megans place all. Carrie picked a town like alice because she would often find it on those.
You will read a town like alice and fall in love with shutes writing. Sep 11, 2019 the perfect book club is made up of three key things. A town like alice discussion even though cultures differ, people are basically the same. Jean paget, a young englishwoman living in malaya, is captured by the invading japanese and forced on a brutal. The subject matter can be tough, women and children, prisoners of. A newly wealthy english woman returns to malaya to build a well for the villagers who helped her during war.
A town like alice tells of a young woman who miraculously survived a japanese death march in world war ii, and of an australian soldier, also a prisoner of war, who offered to help hereven at the cost of his life. These book discussion questions are highly detailed and will ruin plot points if you have not read the book. The writing had an easy flow to it and the story was certainly gripping, even though this decidedly is a book of two halves. Book club questions for still alice book club babble. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of a town like alice by nevil shute. After they are liberated she emigrates to australia to be with him. Ive been in a lot of book clubs, and i know its not always easy to get a conversation going on a book. However, i had never read a town like alice 1950 by nevil shute until a few weeks ago.
The first two things are easy to accomplish just read anything by. I did not enjoy reading this book because of the disrespectful attitude towards the aborigines. A town like alice is narrated by a london attorney, noel strachan. What alice forgot for our virtual book club this month, were talking about what alice forgot by liane moriarty, which i introduced here.
Also type spoiler when given away a major plot element. Alices adventures in wonderland alices adventures in wonderland is a wildly entertaining tale for all ages. A town like alice is a classic romance among other things, by nevil shute. The first half deals with the history of jean paget, in which we follow her to malaya under the japanese occupation. Questions may contain spoilers a town like alice topics for discussion what significance arejean pagets ice. With helen morse, bryan brown, gordon jackson, dorothy alison. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion and a free quiz on a town like alice by nevil shute. There was not one positive thing mentioned about them as far as i could see, but so much glorification of the heroine and her man. It is told in a whole different voice and manner and if you are older than 12, you are going to be terribly disappointed. A town like alice join with other readers over refreshment to discuss a town like alice by nevil shute. It was published in 1950, and reflects the bias and prejudices of its time, but its also a powerful book about a smart, tough, resourceful young woman. Set against the brutal chaos of world war ii, a love story begins that will take two lovers through a living nightmare of captivity, across three continents and two decades.
Just discovered this blog while searching for discussion questions for a town like alice. A town like alice by nevil shute spoilers book clubs. Please post the chapter and or page number at the top of your post. A harrowing, exciting, and in the end very satisfying war romance. How does each friendship grow and change over the course of events. From the steamy jungles of malaya to the dusty and desolate outback of australia. Jean paget, a young englishwoman living in malaya, is captured by. Jean paget, a young englishwoman, becomes romantically interested in a fellow prisoner of world war ii in malaya, and after liberation emigrates to australia to be with him, where she attempts, by investing her substantial financial inheritance, to. Set in both malaysia and then the australian outback, its easy to see why a town like alice is so well known and a classic. A town like alice most appropriately conforms to the genre of the sociological novel. Jun 16, 2015 however, i had never read a town like alice 1950 by nevil shute until a few weeks ago.
The cowgill boys terrorize the town, and grandma fights back. If youre ready to start a book club, heres 40 of the best book club questions, for fiction. Thinking back, she recalls the australian man who made a great sacrifice to aid her and her fellow prisoners of war. While the blatant racism mostly in the 3rd act of the book was uncomfortable, the story as a whole was entertaining. An example from the book is the australians, whose culture is rather close to the english, but there are few englishmen who would have liked the loneliness in the big country australia, and even fewer australians, i think, would feel comfortable in the.
The fruit fluff was the hit of the night not to mention the root beer floats. He clearly loved travel and people from all walks of life and cultures. If your library doesnt offer a regular reading group at. A town like alice is a novel by the australian author nevil shute. Nevil shute s most beloved novel, a tale of love and war, follows its enterprising heroine from the malayan jungle during world war ii to the rugged australian outback. A town like alice by nevil shute reading guidebook club.
Most of the rest of it was found at normanton, in the gulf country of north queensland. Fill out our annual survey and win books and prizes for your group. Ill throw out a few topics for discussion, and you can write your responses about these topics or anything else youd like to say in the comment section. A town like alice macmillan collectors library shute, nevil isbn 1509834818 4 copies separate a town like alice by shute, neviloctober 12, 1987 mass market paperback shute, nevil 4 copies separate town like alice shute, nevil isbn 0434699179 4 copies separate finale als voorspel shute, nevil isbn 9022510190 4 copies. Based on nevil shutes international bestselling novel a town like alice. Town like alice, a by nevil shute reading guidebook club. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. I like to mix some of these generic questions in to our discussion along with more book specific ones, to create a nice balance in the conversation. Download nevil shutes a town like alice for your kindle, tablet, ipad, pc or mobile.
Britishaustralian author nevil shutes historical romance novel a town like. Set against the brutal nightmare of world war ii, a love story begins that will take two lovers through a living chaos of captivity, across three continents and two. I found part of a town like alice in kuala selangor, another part of it at kota bharu, and a great hunk of it at palembang in sumatra. Lit lovers book discussion questions author to author interview with liane moriarty real simple interview with liane moriarty what alice forgot book club hosting ideas. The by michael crichton, i take thee, serenity by daisy newman, a town like alice by nevil shute, 4 books in 1 volume read. There is work to be done, but all we want to do is read. The alice network discussion questions girly book club. A long way from chicago discussion guide scholastic. Great supplemental information for school essays and projects. A town like alice is one of my favorite books by nevil shute so i was pleased that masterpiece theater did such a believable job when they filmed it.
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