Behaviour of Moths, The
Adams, PoppyDorset, a sprawling Victorian folly, and a family peppered with eccentric characters; this is the story of sisters Ginny and Vivian reunited after more than 40 years. Against the backdrop of the family obsession with lepidopterology (the study of moths and butterflies), their past and present behaviour is under the microscope. Revealed in this gripping story are the tangled truths and distortions of a dysfunctional and unconventional family.
Comments from Groups
An intriguing read. The writer kept us in the dark in a similar way that Ginny was kept in the dark by the family. We admired the research that had gone into lepidoptery and how this was woven into the story. Doubt 001A very successful book. The group all enjoyed it thoroughly. Good discussion on a lot of topics, eg: Aspergers, Nature vs Nuture. Nelson 023Most marked 8/10. Enjoyed the dark quirky humour. Couldn't agree to the extent of Ginny's `specialness`. None of us realised until the end the extent of her delusion. Nelson 020A fascinating book-many layered. Lively discussion with many points of views and observations shared. Well worth reading. Akaroa 005The writing was descriptive, the tension built throughout the book & even after reading and discussing, there are still unanswered questions which linger. One of the best we have had. Auckland 230This book is an example of what is wonderful about Book Club. You read a book that you would never look twice at on the library shelf and you are surprised and delighted and in this case intrigued with the subject. Excellent read and provoking. Auckland 065
Pages
305
305
Year
2008
2008
Reviews
22-06-2023
None of us enjoyed or would recommend this book though we recognized some of it was well-written. The plot was unconvincing,the characters unlikable, and most of us thought there was far too much about moths! We did not find any humour in it.
17-11-2022
This was a bit of a weird book! We struggled to see the 'funny' bits in it, as alluded to on the cover. There were some interesting facts about moths, and the main character certainly had some quirky autistic traits. Some of the storylines didn't clearly resolve which was frustrating.
30-09-2021
Those that finished the book enjoyed it. Not to everyones taste. Big question about the death at the end.....
11-06-2021
Not a favourite and many did not finish. Ginny, Vivian and the parents are not likeable people and the tale odd and very dark. The moths were not interesting! Odd and rushed ending.
21-04-2020
Engendered a lot of discussion about mental instability ( as surely the main character is unstable). Such a surprise ending - we all enjoyed that even if some of us skipped over some of the science of moths. A 'good' read.
21-04-2020
Fascinating and slightly disturbing story that kept the reader turning pages until the end, even when you wanted to stop reading!
21-04-2020
An unexpected ending, and the group felt it was quite an odd book although very well-written. Provoked a very good discussion, people really enjoyed some of the descriptions around moths and their habits.
21-04-2020
This book was certainly a good read with a surprise ending, which caught you totally unaware. A number of interesting characters and dynamics, and a very dysfunctional family. Did the main character Ginny have Aspberger's or was she just eccentric Poppy Adams has left this open for a sequel
21-04-2020
The book was enjoyed by the majority but with some reservations. We all agreed it was sad, but despite it not necessarily being their first choice, all wanted to read it to the end.
21-04-2020
We all enjoyed this book. We liked the ambiguity of the characters and had a lively discussion about them.
21-04-2020
Gripping compelling and fascinating - in fact the only adjective that doesn't apply was 'funny'. We really appreciated the book, though some were less engaged by the 'behaviour of the moths'...
21-04-2020
Divided opinion: some found the writing style/subject matter interesting, others were bored by the moth information, and did not like the characters.
05-05-2018
Not a favourite for our group, but generated interesting discussion particularly in how we all interpreted Ginny's condition differently. This increased the appeal of the book and some of the group mentioned they would like to read it again with these different perspectives.