You can reserve your copy of Graceland to collect from any West Sussex library by visiting our library catalogue. I liked this book very much, and recommend it whether you’re an Elvis fan or not! You couldn’t ask for a more fascinating family to write about, and Bethan Roberts’ story about Elvis and his mother is both insightful and tender, offering us a powerful reminder that money isn’t everything. I am not an Elvis fan, but I also discovered I had rather fallen for the beautiful young Elvis, who began to be troubled by his own fame and fortune and worried about being forgotten while he was away in the US Army. By the end of the novel I felt I knew Gladys she found dealing with Elvis’ fame hard – it took her boy away from her. The story primarily imagines Elvis’ family life and this makes Graceland a truly absorbing read.

The author has made this book very readable.

When Elvis reached the height of his power, he bought his family the ultimate mansion on the hill – Graceland, where he hoped his mother would be happy. It alternates between a chapter told from each of their perspectives. This story is a portrait of a mother’s love and a son’s total devotion to his Mama. “I just don’t understand it,” her sister said, looking around the dining room at Graceland with its gleaming new TV. Not long before her death she told her sister that she felt “low down miserable”. Gladys Presley died in 1958 aged 46 from hepatitis of the liver, brought on by alcoholism. The reading challenge is informal, which means you can pursue the challenges in any order – and Sally has done exactly that by jumping ahead to her December book! December’s challenge is to read a book published in 2019, and Sally chose Bethan Roberts’ Graceland, a novel about the impact of fame on the relationship between Elvis Presley and his mother Gladys. Some of Sally’s previous reads include Six Foot Six (Kit de Waal) and Listening In (Jenny Eclair).

This fantastic review was sent in by Sally from Henfield, who has read some fantastic books for the Horsham District Year of Culture reading challenge so far.

Bethan roberts books