At 784 pages in a 2 ½ inch thick book our latest ‘read’ was certainly a tome. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt centres around Theo Decker who is on a trip to the Museum of Art in New York with his mother. She had been showing him a favourite painting of hers, ‘The Goldfinch’ by Carel Fabritius. The 13 year old’s world is turned upside down when a terrorist bomb goes off, killing his mother. Theo stumbles from the wreckage clutching the painting. For the next 14 years it becomes both a burden and his only connection to his mother. The story takes Theo from New York to Las Vegas to Amsterdam and back to New York. Along the way he encounters some very interesting and dubious characters.

It is certainly not a book that can be easily summarised, and we would have liked more of a definite ending. This book is certainly one of the longest we have had. If would be interesting to hear what the other book groups think of it if they read it.