The Other Hand

The Other Hand by Chris Cleave (published as Little Bee in North America) is a book that embodies the Marmite effect: you either love it or hate it. Claire, Simon, and Jackie all loved it; Kim hated it and called it "emotionally manipulative" and last week linked to a reviewer, Anne, who felt the same. I had read the positive reviews before reading it (Simon's review prompting me to ultimately move the book from my wish-list to my shopping basket) but didn't come across the negative ones until afterwards. I was, however, aware of Kim's feelings and I was questioning the novel and its potential emotional manipulation throughout.

Its publication is gimmicky and Sceptre in the UK have not done the book any favours by manipulating and patronising the book consumer. The novel is prefaced by a cringe-worthy letter from the publisher that tells us how special The Other Hand is as if we are incapable of determining that for ourselves, as if our opinion does not count. The publishers should have left the novel to stand on its own merits. Moreover, to liken the book to Schindler's Ark is lazy and grandiose; if you want to draw comparisons to a powerful prize-winner then explain that it is a book that makes you question the lengths you would go to save the life of somebody else, a stranger.

However, this infuriating marketing ploy is not the fault of the novelist nor the novel and I fail to see how it is offensive beyond that - isn't it the purpose of the writer to evoke emotion where appropriate and to provoke a response in the reader? If that response is visceral then it's a job well done, is it not? I didn't find its ability to shock cheap or unrealistic nor did I think its hard-hitting subject matter was entirely undermined by its humour, which served to lighten the mood at times. As I said: the marmite effect.

I do rail against the back cover synopsis that opens with "We don't want to tell you what happen in this book. It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it." It goes on to provide a vague, enigmatic description of the novel and then tells me to tell my friends about it but not to tell them what happens because I am in the habit of spoiling books for my friends/readers and to take orders from a publisher who should be capable of publicising a book and its plot without spoiling it.

That is my rant concluded and it is only against the promotion of the novel, the content of which I loved. I don't think it was a life-changing book but it was a compelling read and one I found that challenged me in parts and amused me in others, which was a welcome dichotomy. The Other Hand concerns Sarah, a magazine editor, mother, and wife from the London suburbs and Little Bee, a sixteen-year-old Nigerian refugee; Sarah and Little Bee met two years previously on a beach in Nigeria where their lives were irreparably altered and fatefully intertwined. I found the basic plot of a Nigerian girl seeking asylum in Britain thought-provoking and challenging of any preconceptions I may have had of our immigration system. Essentially though The Other Hand is a heartrending novel and not social commentary; the novel educates mildly where it can but ultimately it serves to entertain and emote.

I really did enjoy this novel and immediately popped it into an envelope to send to my mother-in-law who loves a gripping read. I recommend this to anybody who likes to be engaged in an addictive, emotional roller-coaster of a story.