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a b Pohl, Nicole (2001). "Review of Circles otf Power: Shifting Dynamics in a Lesbian-centered Community". Utopian Studies. 12 (2): 301–303. ISSN 1045-991X.
I wont tell you why and how long Margaret ended up in the children’s institution but the way this aspect is incorporated into the plot is marvellous. It isn’t a case of writing a character with a disability just to fit in with the current trend in fiction but forgetting to use it after some casual mentions. On the contrary, the author thoughtfully makes use of this aspect of Margaret’s personality in almost every chapter. Shugar, Dana R. (1995). Separatism and Women's Community. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. p.27. ISBN 978-0-8032-4244-9. Marga’s love for her family shone from her and the joy she derived from her children and husband was palpable. Their loss is immeasurable and I continue to hold Joel, Clara, Douglas and the rest of Marga’s family in my thoughts at this most difficult of times. This was a lovely book, I thoroughly enjoyed it, although it was quite sad, but ultimately uplifting. You may need tissues, especially towards the end. I know I did.
LoveReading Says
I have known Marga since 2009 when I came to be interviewed for the job I have now. Marga and Alex took the group of interviewees out to lunch at Staff House. I remember us all sitting down in a slightly awkward silence and then Marga arrived at the table and promptly dropped her wallet into tomato sauce. There was some laughter (Marga was the first one to break out in laughter) and we had a pretty companionable lunch afterward. It probably helped more than I realised at the time tobreak the ice and took away some of the stress of the day.
Marga is one of the most brimming-with-life people I have ever known. Sometimes it felt as though she was constantly in motion, rushing off somewhere with her folding bicycle, bemoaning the complexities of childcare and commuting arrangements, but at the same time she managed to make time for everybody, and was a meticulous and demanding perfectionist. She was always the first to volunteer to help out if she could: for example when I moved house during term time, she was ready to step in and take on teaching and marking for me. She had strong views on subjects like the importance of timed examinations as a form of assessment, and on the availability of opportunities for students to learn languages. She was certainly not infallible, frequently losing or misplacing her keys, her phone, her train pass, and technology was one of her most significant bêtes noires– when the university introduced a new online system for marking student work, in the early stages Marga’s computer managed to lose her painstakingly-typed comments with alarming regularity. The frequency of her Facebook updates was only matched by their poor spelling and grammar – as she told me once, this was one concession to her busy schedule: proof-reading was for her professional life, but Facebook was for fun. Far from being exhausted by all of the commuting, running, cycling, research, writing, teaching, administration, coffees, lunches, world book day costumes, music, reading, and travel, though, she seemed to thrive on it. And it was clear that at the centre of her world was her family – Joel, Clara, Douglas, her parents, her siblings – and her faith. It’s not a faith I share, but it’s certainly one I admire, and it drove her to live the kind of life that anybody would be immensely proud to live. Everybody who knew Marga was enriched by the experience, and in losing her in her prime, so suddenly and unexpectedly, we are all diminished: but we are better people for having known her, and her memory and example will live on undimmed. I gave in under this heavy interrogation. Who wouldn’t? And Marga, in turn, offered an empathetic ear, listened, shared stories, and reassured me that what I was going through, well, it happens and I’ll get through it. I had been going through weeks of feeling like every conversation was so stilted and fake because I was talking with my colleagues – my friends – about everything other than the most important thing going on for me. Somehow, by the end of this relatively brief conversation with Marga, it just felt … normal. Like maybe I could talk with people about my crisis, mention it, even if just in passing, after all. I have reflected a lot on what a kind thing it was that she did for me and how courageous it is to press someone like that – I don’t think I’d have it in me to do it, to be honest.
Overall this was a quirky kind of read with lovable characters and a gut wrenching story. If I could hug Margaret I would. Thatcher led the Conservatives to a decisive electoral victory in 1979 following a series of major strikes during the previous winter (the so-called “Winter of Discontent”) under the Labour Party government of James Callaghan. As a prime minister representing the newly energetic right wing of the Conservative Party (the “Dries,” as they later called themselves, as opposed to the old-style moderate Tories, or “Wets”), Thatcher advocated greater independence of the individual from the state; an end to allegedly excessive government interference in the economy, including privatization of state-owned enterprises and the sale of public housing to tenants; reductions in expenditures on social services such as health care, education, and housing; limitations on the printing of money in accord with the economic doctrine of monetarism; and legal restrictions on trade unions. The term Thatcherism came to refer not just to these policies but also to certain aspects of her ethical outlook and personal style, including moral absolutism, fierce nationalism, a zealous regard for the interests of the individual, and a combative, uncompromising approach to achieving political goals. In recent years, especially since the pandemic, our paths crossed less frequently. When we did meet, she was invariably the most rewarding of companions: always interesting and interested, perceptive, generous and kind. I regret not seeing her more often, and deeply regret all those future conversations we’ll never have. I cannot imagine what her family must be going through, and I send them all my most heartfelt sympathies. Colleagues from the time particularly remember Marga’s keen intellect, her warmth, her enthusiasm and, as one former colleague expressed it ‘her ability to talk plainly about very complicated things’. She was at the same time incredibly erudite and great fun! Those of us who remember her were deeply saddened to hear of her loss and extend our sympathy and condolences to all her family, friends and colleagues at University of Birmingham. There’s only one problem if you opt for the audio version, which is brilliant in every other way. Through the narrator's voice, you will discover at least the gender of the mysterious ‘C’, which eliminates half of the potential suspects from the list. Reading the book would have helped retain the mystery better.