Fingers in the Sparkle Jar: A Memoir

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I don’t want to tell you too much about the book, as you should read it yourself. I’ll just say again – brave and powerful. And very well written. Unlike any memoir I've read; written as if it were at the same time a novel and a journal, it clearly was a deep source of catharsis. A profoundly exposing and emotional journey into Chris's childhood, detailing his obsession with wildlife and the growing distance he felt to other people, but concentrating on one summer that he shared with a beautiful Kestrel, a summer that would have a deep impact on his life. It is telling of his character that this book is so meticulously and beautifully honed, the language carefully considered and precisely arranged, as though it were a rare eggshell cosseted in cotton wool in a display cabinet. This is not a misery memoir full of self-pity: his descriptions and adventures into the world of nature soar as high as his love for his kestrel. His emotional pain is tangible, he is unable to cope, and so he begins to ‘separate’ from a world he perceives as confusing, unintelligible, and untrustworthy: A fascinating insight into living within society whilst coping with a problem that causes a feeling of alienation, alongside a wonderful description of a childhood absorbed in the study of wildlife. A fascinating insight into living within society whilst coping with a problem that causes a feeling of alienation, alongside a wonderful description of a childhood absorbed in the study of wildlife. This is an autobiography. An alleged autobiography. It is written almost entirely in the third person. Think for a moment, if you will; have you ever read an autobiography written in the third person? No, you haven't, because it's an outrageously obnoxious way to write an autobiography. I have no doubt it's some sort of commentary on his autism and maybe it's even explained, I didn't get far enough to find that out, but it's still obnoxious. Just because there's a reason for you making your book annoying to read doesn't mean it's not annoying to read.

Fingers in the Sparkle Jar by Chris Packham - Mark Avery Fingers in the Sparkle Jar by Chris Packham - Mark Avery

Who edited this book? Do they speak English and read other books? It's a stupid and facetious question, clearly nobody edited this book, it's a rank and steamy mess of adjectives and adverbs with no substance. Well, that's not true, there's some small substance there in the story of how the author (I think it was the author, I'm not certain) stole a baby kestrel from its nest and took it home to keep. That wasn't really the substance I was looking for though, on the face of it that's pretty horrific and the airy fairy waffle surrounding it doesn't exactly put it in any kind of context to alleviate the sense of a dirty sort of PETA-baiting larceny. There’s lots of Chris’s unhappy school times, unhappy home times, and happier times out with nature. There’s the discovery of punk. There’s the relationship with a Kestrel. A beautifully told, deeply personal growing-up memoir from the BBC presenter about life, death, love and nature. I'm sad to say that I was bored and found the book tough to get through. I wish there was more about the wildlife rather than random perspectives of other people on Chris and his actions.

Preview Book

Immediately nothing of this instant is tangible, there’s so little to recall that he imagines that he imagined it. It’s more of a feeling than anything real- just a fleeting sense that some pulse of life has singed the air. He felt for some fraction of a second a bird fly through him and in that moment he learns more of that bird than he’ll ever learn in a lifetime of loving it.” Excellent and descriptive book..shoild be on school syllabus both for descriptive lanhuahe and for compelling and interesting content.. Chris' descriptions of his childhood and growing up, with unrecognised , at that time, Asperger's syndrome, and the way he has coped with it all, is a compelling read. Excellent and descriptive book..shoild be on school syllabus both for descriptive lanhuahe and for compelling and interesting content.. Chris' descriptions of his childhood and growing up, with unrecognised , at that time, Asperger's syndrome, and the way he has coped with it all, is a compelling read. It’s brave because it is a self-portrait of a rather weird kid – not good with people and not a bundle of laughs, it seems. A kid who was fascinated by wildlife. This slightly weird kid grew up to be a slightly weird, and troubled, adult, and the honesty of the book is what makes it very powerful.

Fingers in the Sparkle Jar by Chris Packham | Waterstones

In his rich, lyrical and emotionally exposing memoir, Chris brings to life his childhood in the 70s, from his bedroom bursting with fox skulls, birds’ eggs and sweaty jam jars, to his feral adventures. But pervading his story is the search for freedom, meaning and acceptance in a world that didn’t understand him.

Summary: A young boy is viewed as an outsider by his neighbours, but finds solace in his love of the natural world. Fingers in the Sparkle Jar is an absorbing read that completely draws the reader in. Sadly, some of the material is unsuitable for younger readers (sexual content and strong language), which is a shame, as an edited version of this book would be perfect for studying in schools to help encourage tolerance and understanding toward those on the autistic spectrum. Many thanks to the publishers for my review copy. British Trust for Ornithology, BTO, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, Tel: +44 (0)1842 750050 Fax: +44 (0)1842 750030 It is 1966 and a young boy is standing at an ice-cream van, to buy the cheapest lolly and show the ice-cream man his wildlife jars. “What do you say to a weird kid with dinosaurs in jam jars who never speaks, who only ever points, who buys your cheapest ice-lollies and seems to think that bartering with various bugs is a viable currency for exchange?” This is the very beginning of a book that I found completely absorbing and very difficult to put down.