The January, 2020 selection for the Contemporary Book Club
NOTES:
The elder daughter of an upper class British family had been exposed to Haag Virus in Liberia. She comes back to the family's Norfolk home, Weyfield Hall and the entire Birch family must spend a week in quarantine over Christmas and New Years.
Olivia- The medical doctor who was stationed in Liberia. She fell in love with Irish coworker, Sean. He contracted the illness, and after the disease seems to go into remission, he dies. During the quarantine Olivia begins to exhibit symptoms of the Haag Virus, but she is actually pregnant. Olivia is tall and thin and is like her father although they do not have a close relationship.
Phoebe- She is Olivia's younger sister. She is the 'baby of the family' in all respects- Coddled and spoiled. She is engaged to another upper class boy, George. He is not committed to the relationship because he's dealing with repressed gay feelings.
Jesse- He has learned that Andrew Birch is his father. Both of them have never met and Andrew has only recently learned of the boy's existence. Andrew had received the emails, but decided to not answer. But Jesse shows up to the house and gains entry. He is also forced to be quarantined for a week. Jesse is polite, handsome, well spoken, and gay.
Andrew- A writer for a magazine and reviewer of new restaurants. He was a foreign correspondent stationed at various 'hot spots' (Lebanon, Afghanistan) and learns that this was when he was the happiest. Andrew tries to keep Jesse's existence a secret from the family 'until after the holidays'.
Emma- The glue that keeps the family together. She upholds all of the family traditions, but is not happy. She learns that she has cancer and conceals this fact from everyone 'until after the holidays'.
Famous people of Camden London:
Amy Winehouse
Charles Dickens
Dylan Thomas
George Orwell
"ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Francesca Hornak is a journalist and writer, whose work has appeared in newspapers and magazines including The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Elle, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan and Red. Seven Days of Us is her debut novel. Visit her online at twitter.com/FrancescaHornak."
"Francesca's work has appeared in newspapers and magazines including The Sunday Times, The Economist, The Financial Times, The Guardian, Metro, Elle, Grazia, Stylist, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan and Red. She is the author of two nonfiction books, History of the World in 100 Modern Objects: Middle Class Stuff (and Nonsense) and Worry with Mother: 101 Neuroses for the Modern Mama."
From Goodreads:
"It’s Christmas, and for the first time in years the entire Birch family will be under one roof. Even Emma and Andrew’s elder daughter—who is usually off saving the world—will be joining them at Weyfield Hall, their aging country estate. But Olivia, a doctor, is only coming home because she has to. Having just returned from treating an epidemic abroad, she’s been told she must stay in quarantine for a week…and so too should her family.
For the next seven days, the Birches are locked down, cut off from the rest of humanity—and even decent Wi-Fi—and forced into each other’s orbits. Younger, unabashedly frivolous daughter Phoebe is fixated on her upcoming wedding, while Olivia deals with the culture shock of being immersed in first-world problems.
As Andrew sequesters himself in his study writing scathing restaurant reviews and remembering his glory days as a war correspondent, Emma hides a secret that will turn the whole family upside down.
In close proximity, not much can stay hidden for long, and as revelations and long-held tensions come to light, nothing is more shocking than the unexpected guest who’s about to arrive…"
A comment that I left at Goodreads:
"I agree that this was a weakest point of the novel and I don't think that it is resolved or even addressed.
It seems that Olivia could have exposed the entire British Isles to a pandemic and the government does nothing?"
The link to Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/questions/1716505-i-am-half-way-through-the-book-and-i-m
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