In an ideal world I would give this just under 4 stars. I t's a brilliant book and Jeanette is so interesting, I would love to go for a coffee with her. I hadn't read Oranges so this was my first intro to her world and work..it's an evocative book which vividly portrays the world of Northen England in the Sixties..This world was new and almost exotic to me! Mrs Winterson is one of the most perplexing characters I've ever read about. I would love to see a film adaptation by someone such as Mike Leigh. I knocked off stars for the fragmented narrative..there's so much revealed and there's so much missing. I know this is the nature of memoir and some of Jeanette's life is probably too painful for her to publsih/reveal but unless I skipped a few pages she didn't properly cover Mrs Winterson's death and how this affected her! It's more like a ripple effect..But I loved the book and it was a pleasure to read. This was the nicest thing I've read in a long time. Jeanette Winterson is so hopeful. You really start to understand how one's life is both reality and fiction, and how emotional time (or real time, as she calls it) doesn't follow linear time but jumps around in unexpected places. I really agreed with all that she said about love: how we need to learn how to love, and how to be loved, and that that is both the meaning and the measure of a life. There was just so much in this book that really stood out and made sense to me: I really, really recommend it to everyone and plan to read her other books this christmas.I've always chosen happy over normal.
Janette Winterson is superb and this is an honest and raw opening of her early life to readers
—christa389
I had a to read this after reading Oranges... Inspiring read for any lgbt audience.
—rianpeji
I think she is a brutally honest writer. Definitely want to read more of her books.
—Babygurl123
I MUST READ Oranges are Not the Only Fruit!
—Claire
thought provoking. hopefully inspiring
—Zemo
