The Children Act by Ian McEwan is a peep into the way the justice system works. It deals with England’s 1989 Children Act, which placed the welfare of children as the court’s primary consideration.
I’m liking
The structure of the book is well written and easily read. It is short, powerful and heartbreaking.
The story follows High Court Judge Fiona Maye as she works through the cases before her. Fiona’s personal life starts to spiral downwards when her husband begins to make her tidy and organised life difficult by asking her permission to have an affair.
One urgent case comes along that she becomes personally involved with – this is the story of a teenage boy dying and refusing treatment because he is a Jehovah’s Witness. Readers are given a lot to think about – Family Court judges have power over the lives of young children, many of whose families are in difficult situations. Even if their decisions seems right, what happens to these children afterwards?
Things that made me go hmmmm
Occasionally the amount of information about the details of the legal profession distracts from the storyline.
The conclusion
The reader really feels part of the story and you wonder how you would deal with the situation if you were in Fiona’s shoes. There is real energy in this little book and it is captivating – recommended for a relatively short, thought-provoking summer holiday read.
