Characters built on experience

AT first glance there wouldn’t seem to be much in common between the latest books from authors Sarah Winman and Patrick Gale, who appeared together before a full house.

The inspiration for Winman’s bestselling Still Life was a visit to Florence where she noticed wall markings which denoted the level reached by the river flood of 1966.

She was also drawn by memories of her grandfather who had fought in the Eighth Army campaign to liberate Italy during the Second World War.

By contrast, the world of Gale’s Mother’s Boy is less expansive.

The novel springs from the author’s admiration for the Cornish poet Charles Causley, a “respectable” man who taught in a primary school and whose closest relationship was with his mother.

Causley was once a staple of the school curriculum but seems to be slipping from view and, as Gale explained, one of his hopes for the novel is that it finds the poet a new audience.

Under the skilful questioning of panel chairman Daniel Hahn, both writers described how the war and the “travel” which came with it broadened the lives of their characters.

Causley found a kind of release from home life during naval service in Gibraltar. Terrible as it was, the war might also have been an enriching experience. If nothing else, the weather was better in the Mediterranean.

Another link between the writers is the broad historical sweep of their novels, covering decades of the 20th century.

Both Winman and Gale underlined the healing power of art, whether poetry or painting.

They also offered plenty of asides on the writing process, including Winman’s exuberant account of how a parrot somehow became a fully-fledged character in Still Life.

Altogether, this was an illuminating and entertaining session from two accomplished novelists.

Philip Gooden