Rating: 
Summary: Darkly comic and tragic
Review: This was a really interesting book, discovered years ago. My only complaint is a problem I commonly find in stories with delightful child narrators...once that child grows up, I am no longer as fond of them. Still, there are some crazy-good bits, and the fact that Ruby Lennox begins narrating from her conception is terribly amusing. A very interestingly told story, dark comedy and tragedy mix well. Ruby is a wonderful narrator.
Rating: 
Summary: Exhibit A: Family Secrets
Review: When you see the title of this book, you immediately come to the conclusion that this book must be about a little girl who's family owns a museum. This museum turns out to be just like the museum that YOUR OWN family owns. Exhibits at the "Lennox family museum" include:
A. A pink, daisy-shaped, glass button
B. A lucky rabbit's foot
C. A George VI coronation teaspoon
D. A bright, artificial smile
E. Bunty's unbearably sad childhood
F. Rabbit-shaped clouds hanging in the sky like zepplins
G. "Mind your boots, Lily"
H. A plane in a death spin
I. Your sister says not to worry
J. The silver locket
K. Thinking about home Strange exhibits for a museum, don't you think? These "exhibits" are simply items and memories belonging to several generations of the Lennox family. Each "exhibit" carries with it a history and a memory that the casual onlooker cannot fathom. Some people, like Ruby Lennox, feel that "the past is what you leave behind in life". However, others, like Patricia Lennox, feel that "the past is what you take with you". You decide. Can you really understand the past by simply viewing an object or are most museums (the real type and the kind you might have in your home) full of objects that are unable to tell their stories without an all-knowing narrator? This book follows the life of Ruby Lennox from conception onward: "I exist! I am conceived to the chimes of midnight on the mantelpiece in the room across the hall." From this intriguing beginning, the book draws you in. You immediately fall in love with Ruby, her flustered mother Bunty, and her quirky English family. Each chapter that takes place in the present generation of the Lennox family mentions an "exhibit" item from the "Lennox family museum." These are listed as footnotes. However, the footnote takes you to the next chapter where you learn a bit of Lennox family history surrounding the exhibit item. For example, the pink daisy-shaped button (the above Exhibit A) popped off of Alice Barker's dress only a few days before she "died giving birth" to Ruby's grandmother. It was later found and kept in a button box for years before Ruby's sister found it. A lot of family secrets are bound up in the exhibits of the "Lennox family museum". One in particular deals with the death of Ruby's mysteriously unmentioned sister. Another deals with the father of an unmarried family member's child. Still another deals with the identity of the mysterious late-night phone caller that never says a word. Every family has its secrets and the author is careful not to give enough hints to give away the family secrets until the end of the book. I simply loved this book. A fellow book-lover suggested that I read it. I was not disappointed. The characters were colorful and the author keeps up a certain level of suspense throughout the novel. I was surprised to learn that this is the author's first novel since it is written in such an original format. And it makes me wonder what "exhibits" belong to my own family's "museum".
Rating:
Summary: Curious
Review: Yes, our Book Discussion Group all loved and were amazed by this fascinating and clever novel.
However, there was debate about who was the Father of Lil's son, Edmond?
"For a while Nel feared the baby would be born with thick black hair". This would have indicated that Jack was the Father.
"but it seemed so much worse somehow when he turned out to have golden curls like an angel and eyes the colour of forget-me -nots" Did this mean that Albert, Lil's brother was the Father?
It was not until near the end that Lil suggested to her granddaughter-in-law that she name the child after Edmond's Father. The Baby was subsequently called Jack.
Some of our group are convinced that Jack was Edmond's Father.
Others are convinced that Albert was the Father because of Edmond's golden girls, not black hair.
We would all be grateful if someone could reply to this query with a definitive answer.
Looking forward to some more Kate Atkinson intrigue and literary pleasures
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