Book Club : Austerlitz

Tom, whose choice this was, did not attend the book club, and our numbers were depleted. The Very Annoying Man was at last away on his cruise, which he had been talking about for the previous three meetings. Some of the book club could not understand the book at all, and everybody found it gloomy. But one - new - lady had read an introduction by James Wood, and this had moved her to consider the book more carefully. She asked, in a roundabout way, if Sebald was actually writing for other academics, and whether this is an example of high art, as opposed to commercial art, to which I was able to reply, Yes. The book is a challenge; it makes you work; you don't have to agree with it all; the whole purpose of it is to put the Nazi operation at Theresienstadt into some kind of context and to present those events to an audience, to deny the desire to forget.

I thought of my friend Debbie's Dad, George. He came over from Prague on the kindertransport. He was not in the least like Austerlitz - he seized the day. Right up until his final illness he shopped, cooked, played classical pieces on the piano, listened to cool jazz and played bridge. His great enjoyment was seeing his family tucking into some great casserole he had cooked up. I believe in his professional life he had been a very successful engineer. He had married and had four children, who had travelled far and wide and also been successful in creating good lives for their own children. Georg didn't spend any time being bitter about things in spite of the fact that he had no family left, apart from one cousin in America. The rest  - their names are written on the wall of the memorial synagogue in Prague.

We should really think about this in view of the fact that the UK has been asked to find places for  3,000 unaccompanied child refugees from Syria - and the government has said No!!! I can't believe it. I would take two. I wonder if there is a petition I can sign.

Oh I forgot to say: we voted on the book and gave it 5 out of 10; so much for high art! I gave it a higher score as it was, at least, interesting.