Suzanne Leal

Look, it was interesting, when we were talking at the book club, there were comments in terms of how people had thought it dated, in terms of that it was a very masculine book.

There were very few female characters and where they were described, they had very minor roles.

Look, I just found it a very sad book, really.

It's the story, for me, of a doctor who separated...

not by choice but by circumstances from his wife who has a chronic illness and he finds himself in this town of Oran having to tend to the sick and I mean look what was fascinating is how badly people behave when crises emerge but also how well people behave so and look Camus is a philosopher as much as he is a novelist so it's a heavy book and so

So whilst I think it's an important book and one that I've been pretending to have read for years, it's difficult.

You know, it's not one that you sort of read by the beach to relax.

I was.

Yeah, I was reading it.

Look, that's one of the reasons.

It's a great book club that I'm in, but one of the reasons I jumped when I was offered a place there was I'm pretty lazy with my French reading.

French speaking is okay, but I need to be forced.

to get to the page, and so having a deadline is good for that.

Yes, yes, he's a very confronting writer, Mr Cummings.

Lovely to be back again, Cassie and Kate.

I found the book a beautifully quiet book and it meant that I needed to be also beautifully quiet when I was reading it.

A little bit like Heather Rose's book.

Museum of Modern Love.

Museum of Modern Love.

And fortunately, I was in that space.