Ghost MacIndoe

by Jonathan Buckley

Book Overview

Jonathan Buckley's third novel opens with Alexander MacIndoe's earliest memory: a February morning in 1944, in the aftermath of the second wave of German air-raids. Set mainly in London and Brighton,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 000724004X
• ISBN13: 9780007240043
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: HarperPerennial
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A beautiful, memorable and moving story

Ghost MacIndoe recounts Alexander MacIndoe's life, covering almost sixty years from his earliest memories dating back to 1944, it tells of the events that mark out his life, what he remembers, along with some of what he does not remember. Its is not a remarkable life, but then in many ways Alex is not a remarkable person; affable and easy going, unambitious and content to accept what comes; yet it is a remarkable story. Over the course of his life Alex makes some good friends, but his oldest friend is Megan. They meet as children when the orphaned Megan came to live with her aunt and uncle, neighbours of the MacIndoes, after the War. Over the years we meet others who enter Alex's life, some fleetingly, some to stay. We see often in great detail many of the memories that amount to his life. For anyone who has lived through those years it will be a nostalgic journey, there will be dates and events that are familiar, from The Dome of Discovery of '51 to the Great Storm of '87, and much more, the telling of the story is such that one is almost thinking 'I was there then'. I said that Alex is not a remarkable person, and yet on reflection perhaps he is, and not just because he is good looking, which he is, but in the same way each one of us is remarkable, an individual unlike any other. For that is what is special about this story, it could be the story of anyone of us, an ordinary life story, but a real story. It is thoroughly believable, convincing; there are no great dramas, no real puzzles or mysterious other than those that one might expect to encounter from day to day. It is a gentle story, pervaded by a calmness and at times melancholy air that makes one feel content to follow at the given pace, to accept it as it comes and not want to rush ahead to find out what happens next, such that the reading experience itself is so thoroughly enjoyable. Ghost MacIndoe is a story of an ordinary boy, a boy who is average at school, yet in his own way very bright, a boy who grows into a very likeable man who is content with life and himself. It is a story that is very easy to relate to, and is bound to make one consider one's own life. It is a beautiful story, one of the most memorable and one of the most moving books I have read in recent years.