Mhairi Collie on being inspired by Alexander McCall Smith, not making it through A Little Life by Hanya, Yanagihara and her love of the Outlander series.
The first book I remember reading:
I think it would have to be an Enid Blyton – probably the Famous Five. I still remember all the different characters including Timmy the dog – they were all so real to me. Those series of books definitely wakened an addictive reader in me.
A book I recommend to everyone:
At the Loch of the Green Corrie is a book I have given to people and recommended it many times. I am not sure how to describe this book in terms of genre, but it has a magic to it. It is a beautiful trail to redemption or acceptance or something which can resonate with people for all sorts of reasons.
The best book I have read in this year:
Brotherless Night by VV Ganeshananthan. It tells the tragic story of the Sri Lankan civil war from the perspective of a young medical student caught up with her family. I worked in the Tamil enclave for MSF (Medecins sans Frontieres) back in 2001 and found that this book perfectly described the political mess, the feel of those times, the people who were trampled by the war, and how so much potential in so many special characters was wasted.
The book I am most looking forward to:
I am really looking forward to the tenth and possibly last book in the Outlander series. I have been a fan for a long time, and hope that Diana Gabaldon will finish most or all of the stories which are springing out in many directions from the characters in the series.
A book I didn’t finish:
I have tried to read A Little Life by Hanya, Yanagihara but I haven’t been able to get into it – my fault I’m sure, and I will make another attempt soon.
An author that has inspired me:
John Steinbeck for telling life in all its fully heartwrenching truth, Pablo Neruda for letting out the passion, and Ali Smith for making literature sparkle brilliantly and still be fun. And of course Sir Alexander McCall Smith, who is a master of character, ambience and plot.
The book I am reading now:
The Last Gift of the Master Artists by Ben Okri. I was absolutely slayed by The Famished Road which just overflowed with colour and light around Azaro the spirit-child. It was like seeing Africa and indeed seeing life in a new dimension. It feels as though I am back in that dimension with this latest offering from him.
Mhairi Collie OBE is a consultant colorectal surgeon in Edinburgh, one of the most celebrated and inspirational surgeons of her generation. Since 2001 she has regularly undertaken surgery in her own time in sub-Saharan Africa to treat women with childbirth injuries. The Bright Fabric of Life by Mhairi Collie is out now, published by Polygon, an imprint of Birlinn, and can be bought here.
Read more of The Good Books here.
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