The ordeals of immigrant casual workers - Rated 
Marina Lewycka continues to mine the seam she opened up in A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian, of immigrants (mainly from Eastern Europe, but also some from China and Africa) coming to Britain - this time to earn money picking strawberries, working on a chicken farm, in a restaurant etc. The book shows how these immigrant workers are exploited: passports confiscated by the crooked and violent agents (Eastern European themselves), miserable wages, diminished by extortionate deductions for all sorts of things, including for the rent of the most awful accommodation. Very often migrant workers also cheat compatriots who trust them, and the prejudices that citizens of one East European country have for those of a neighbouring country are also well brought out. Illegal migrants from outside the EU who pretend to be legal immigrants from EU countries (e.g. Brazilians claiming to be Portuguese) are particularly vulnerable, as the gang masters well know. There is a horrific description of the way chickens are treated in battery farms.
As in Tractors, the sombre nature of their ordeals is `lightened' by humour, though I didn't think the book was nearly as funny as the earlier book. There is again the hilariously fractured English spoken by some of the immigrants, though one of the girls, Irina, speaks remarkably good English. (She is the only character whose story is told in the first person.) The book focuses in turn on eight particular workers (and, very tediously, on the thoughts of a dog who follows them around), but the characterization is fairly shallow, certainly compared with the richness of the four central characters in Tractors. Being young, a lot of their thoughts are about sex (the naive Malawian, who had been educated by Catholic nuns, is eager to acquire canal - sic - knowledge; the letters he writes home to his sister are a lovely blend of high-flown language and delicious errors); and there is a stop-go love-story about bourgeois Irina from the anti-Russian Western Ukraine and working-class Andriy from the Donbas mining region in the pro-Russian Eastern Ukraine.
The novel also has some of the characteristics of a road movie, as the characters travel up and down England in vans or caravans and meet up with various English `characters'. Towards the end, in a rather attractive section, they fall in with a group of tree-hut-dwelling eco-warriors. Less credible are the number of occasions when, in different parts of England, they run into the same sinister exploiters.
Darkly humorous. - Rated 
This is a darkly humorous book, at times extremely poignant, at others almost slapstick, about some immigrants arriving in England to create a better life for themselves. Instead, they find themselves working for some very dodgy employers, and living in a caravan picking strawberries for a low wage. The women live in the smallest caravan, the men in the other, and together they form a small community. In this tale Lewycka has created some wonderful characters - and I was delighted to bump into Mr Mayevskyj again, from her Short History of Tractors book. There are a lot of issues covered in this story, from immigrants, to prostitution to battery farming, yet they all link together wonderfully well and form a page turning novel. The character of Dog is pure genius and I loved hearing his `voice'. I also loved the way that Irena, one of the main characters, kept comparing her romance to the storyline in War & Peace. Apparently, Lewycka got some of her inspiration for this book from The Canterbury Tales. I can see the link quite clearly because Two Tractors is also a group of people travelling and telling their own tales. I thoroughly enjoyed every word of this novel and highly recommend it.
Enjoyable take on the modern world - Rated
A witty and entertaining take on a changing world, as Marina Lewycka charts the picaresque adventures of a motley crew of migrant workers.
The entire scenario is a little unlikely and I felt there were times when the conflict between fact and fiction became a little too self-conscious, as the book drops its guard and descends into well-intentioned preaching. For the most part, however, the helter-skelter style alleviates the earnestness and keeps the book readable.
Ultimately, Lewycka offers hope for the exploited, as they end up with some sort of happiness, helped by others on the outside of society, looking in on a privileged world.
Fabulous .... and disappointing. - Rated 
This book is worth buying for the first half, with its wonderful characters, insights into the world of immigrant labourers in the UK, revelations about modern farming practices and wonderful humour. Lots of fun and well worth the price of the book. So ... the first half, I liked.
The last third or so of the book, however, focuses on a tedious love story between the two least interesting characters. I found myself skipping pages and not caring what happened to them. Narrative drive? Zero. And Ms Lewycka's editor should be shot for not telling her to rework this last part of the book.
Still, I would buy it again and I feel able to recommend it, because while it is going well, it hums along beautifully. Very original, very fresh. Give it a go.
Written on the back of her first success . . . . - Rated 
Unfortunately many people, me included, have bought this book on the back of the enjoyment of Marina's first book - a Short History of Tractors . . . . . . which was an original and very funny book.
Her new book seems to me to be based on a variety of situations conjured from news items in the press and television. I found it quite sad and definitely not funny. How can a book which features at least 3 deaths, victimisation of people, the brutality of chicken farming and the death of a dog be found FUNNY or even amusing.
Sorry people, this is not what it's cracked up to be . . . . . don't be fooled.
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