The story is told with such warmth and humour, it had me snorting out loud at times as I listened. And of course that makes the moments of sadness and fear all the more poignant. When God Was a Rabbit follows the life of a young girl – Eleanor Maud (Elly for short) – as she grows up first in Essex, then Cornwall and the various characters she meets and befriends along the way. The book is named after God, a pet rabbit given to Elly by her brother who is a constant companion during her childhood. Overall it is a story about love in all its forms, surrounding the central characters, Elly, her brother and their extended circle of family and friends.

It with this then that I personally feel that Winman has gone too far with her work. At first, I found her characters, lovely, warm quaint and feasibly British with all their little quirks of decades gone by. In hyper adulthood, Winman stretches her characterisation like it’s on elastic and the themes, storylines and people are stretched far too much, in my humble opinion, to be believed and recognisable.

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But there’s a continuation of huge and dramatic events, (some of which really feel quite contrived) I love Sarah Winman's writing. The way she just puts in these unexpected hilarious little statements kept me laughing out loud. I wear reading glasses, and they kept fogging up at times. It made my mascara run, leaving my husband worried that I was upset about something!!!! Nothing stays forgotten for long, Elly. Sometimes we simply have to remind the world that we’re special and that we’re still here.” Without a reason, why bother? Existence needs purpose: to be able to endure the pain of life with dignity; to give us a reason to continue. The meaning must enter our hearts, not out heads. We must understand the meaning of our suffering.” Having read this for my local bookclub meeting this evening I am not quite sure what I would want to say. It seems to me that Sarah Winman is not quite sure what she is writing. Is it the story of family relationship both 'nuclear ' and extended, is it a treatise on gay relationships, is it an account of a brother and sister growing to adulthood across the latter part of the 20th Century and of course all of these can be totally harmoniously co-joined and indeed they are but the story comes off its rails because of the bizarre and unreasonable loading up of accidents of chance and fantasy as it goes on.

It is a story about childhood and growing up, loss of innocence, eccentricity, familial ties and friendships, love and life. I-am privit ochii: albaștri, nespus de albaștri; la fel ca ai mei. Am fredonat în minte numele culorii, până când mi-a inundat întreaga ființă ca apa mării.” Reading Paulette Jiles' revenge western Chenneville, it's easy to remember she's a poet. She plays ... From the fabulous Ginger, the ageing Shirley Bassey impersonator, to Jenny Penny, Elly’s eccentric and tragic best friend, each character is created with a sense of depth and feeling that draws you in wholeheartedly. A cliché, but this book will have you howling with laughter one minute and reaching for the tissues the next as Winman takes you on a journey through childhood and beyond, all told in Elly’s unique voice. A great debut that cements Winman as an exciting new writer.

When God Was a Rabbit

Told through the narrative voice of the main character, Elly (from infancy through to adulthood), Winman reminds us that life's journey isn't always as smooth as envisaged. When the family wins the football pools (the pre-Lotto way to be a millionaire in the UK), they move to a big house in Cornwall where they start to collect oddball hanger-ons that help make up for Elly's loneliness and the untimely death of God the rabbit. I read these book descriptions. They sound on the far side of boring. They almost scream: "I am literature. LIT-er-a-ture. Pronounced the douchey way, dear. I only bore you because you are dumb. If you were actually an intellectual, you would bow before my literary prowess. Read the New Yorker more, darling." Not my usual type of book and had been very reluctant to read this one, several friends recommended it to me but I had put it off for a long time.

Elly and her family live through the events of the 1970s, 1990s and the early years of the new millennium - a shared experience for many readers, and one that rings true even at those points where are own memories are different. Winman has the particular gift for being able to spring a momentous event on the reader, whether historical or fictional, with all the unexpected impact of real life. The offbeat coming-of-age story of Elly, an English girl with an overactive imagination, an intense bond with her older brother, a Belgian hare named god and multiple dates with destiny in post-9/11 New York.When young Elly Portman suddenly loses her elderly Jewish friend, Mr Golan, in circumstances she doesn't fully understand, her older brother Joe promises to get her a proper friend. And he does. Before long Joe surprises Elly with a Belgian hare, that comes to be known by the name, God. She loves God deeply and he is immediately the friend to her that Joe promised. But Elly is soon to be spoiled for friendship when the mysterious Jenny Penny comes into her life as the new girl at school. With the loss of her best friend due to circumstance, Elly comes to rely on "god" for comfort and companionship and believes that the animal talks to her. Even though the rabbit frequently disappears, he reappears when she needs him the most, and Elly believes this is somehow magical. When a guest at the bed and breakfast runs over "god," killing him, Elly is devastated and forced to confront the chaotic events of her life seemingly alone.

There is a lot going on in this book issue-wise - from faith and sexuality, to coming to terms with being an outsider, to loss, abuse and the general unfairness of life.When God was a Rabbit is the debut young adult novel by Sarah Winman. Published in 2011 by Headline, it tells the story of a single family across four decades and the strange and wonderful events which shape them. This coming-of-age novel is praised for its comments on familial ties and the loss of childhood innocence. Winman is an international bestselling author, and When God was a Rabbit received numerous awards including the 2011 Edinburgh International Book Festival First Book Award and the 2011 Galaxy National Book Award for Galaxy New Writer of the Year. The book kind-of loses its breezy mojo around the halfway point, when the grind of imperishable relationships and the promise of resurrection becomes its focus.