Whereas I’d read all the first batch of March paperbacks, I’ve read none of these – something I hope to remedy shortly. I’m particularly looking forward to Ayòbámi Adébáyò‘s Stay with Me which takes us to Nigeria in the turbulent 1980s where Yejide is desperate for a child. She’s tried everything she knows, from medical consultations to pilgrimage, with no success until finally her in-laws insist on a new wife for their son. ‘Stay with Me sings with the voices, colours, joys and fears of its surroundings. Ayòbámi Adébáyò weaves a devastating story of the fragility of married love, the undoing of family, the wretchedness of grief, and the all-consuming bonds of motherhood’ says the publisher which sounds almost too heartrending to bear.
Edward Docx’ Let Go My Hand explores secrets and lies through the lens of three sons and their father who has asked them to join him on a last journey through Europe. While Louis has his doubts about the idea, his two half-brothers are much more reluctant, unwilling to forgive their dying father his past transgressions. ‘Let Go My Hand is a darkly comic and deeply moving twenty-first-century love story between a son, his brothers and their father. Through these vividly realized characters, it asks elemental questions about how we love, how we live, and what really matters in the end’ according to the publisher. I’ve not had much luck with Docx’ fiction in the past but the idea of exploring the dark family secrets theme from a male point of view is an unusual one.
Given all that’s been happening in the US over the past few years, it’s a brave author who 
decides to write a piece of fiction about contemporary America but perhaps Hari Zunzru’s White Tears isn’t the state of the nation novel it first appears, more a comment on race relations. Two very different New Yorkers, friends since college, share a passion for music and are now the rising stars of the city’s music scene. A chance discovery of an old blues song sets in train a chain of events which leaves them in grave danger. ‘Electrifying, subversive and wildly original, White Tears is a ghost story and a love story, a story about lost innocence and historical guilt. This unmissable novel penetrates the heart of a nation’s darkness, encountering a suppressed history of greed, envy, revenge and exploitation, and holding a mirror up to the true nature of America today’ say the publishers.
Daniel Magariel’s One of the Boys is about two brothers who move from Kansas to Albuquerque with their father after their parents’ acrimonious divorce. He works from home while they settle into their new school but his behavior becomes increasingly disturbing. ‘Brutal and urgent, this masterful debut is a story of survival: two brothers driven to protect each other from the father they once trusted’ say the publishers. I’ve seen several good reports of this one from people whose opinion I trust.
Wolfgang Herrndorf’s Sand is also here thanks to a trusted blogger’s opinion. It’s set in the North African desert where an amnesiac man is fleeing armed pursuers. Four Westerners are murdered in a commune and a suitcase of worthless currency disappears. ‘Enter a pair of very unenthusiastic detectives, a paranoid spy whose sanity has baked away in the sun, and a beautiful blonde American with a talent for being underestimated. Sand is a gripping thriller – part Pynchon, part Le Carre, part Coen brothers – an unsettling, caustically funny tale of pursuit and madness’ say the publishers which doesn’t sound very far up my alley but this review over at Elle Thinks is very convincing.
That’s it for March’s paperbacks. A click on a title will take you to a more detailed synopsis and if you’d like to catch up with the first part it’s here. New titles are here.
Enjoyed Stay With Me and look at that cover!
It looks so fresh, doesn’t it? It was your review that first alerted me to this one.
Stay with Me has been on my tbr list for a while so I must read it soon,
I’d say that and the Kunzru are the ones I’m most eagerly anticipating, Helen.
I was less enthusiastic about Sand than Eleanor, but it’s an interesting novel (very long though). I am quite tempted by One of the Boys.
Hmm… Bit worried about the ‘very long’ although One of the Boys is very short which would balance it.
Yessss! Thanks for including Sand (it’s bonkers but it really is wonderful) and One of the Boys (such a hard sell but very good).
Your Sand review is very convincing! I have to admit it’s partly the location that attracts me to One of the Boys. I imagine it’s somewhat harrowing, though.
It certainly is, but it’s worth it, ultimately.
I very much enjoyed White Tears – quite thought-provoking! I now own a copy of Sand as Eleanor loved it so much. Stay with me is longlisted for the Wellcome Prize and I’ve heard a lot of good things about it.
That’s encouraging, Annabel. Very keen to read both Stay with me and White Tears. I’ve enjoyed the Kunzrus Ive read.
I meant to read Ayòbámi Adébáyò when it first came out but I am afraid it disappeared into the land of good intentions
As do so many things, for me anyway!
Another fan of Stay With Me here, although it’s a while since I read it as I recall it was one of the first ARCs I got from NetGalley when I started blogging and I didn’t have such a huge backlog then! I thought it an impressive debut. Hope you enjoy it too.
Thanks, Cathy. I’m looking forward to it.
We’re going to be reading Stay With Me for Literay Wives, and discussing it May 7th, if you want to join in with us! 🙂
Thank you! I’ll probably still be struggling with my horrible backlog but if not I most certainly will.
I thought Stay With Me was excellent, not just a brilliant novel, but it reawakened a number of experiences and perceptions I gained in my own short visit to Nigeria. I like that these issues are being explored and shared with a wider audience, and it’s also good to see authors like Ayòbámi Adébáyò being encouraged and inspired by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, I recall that she attended a workshop with her compatriot, her success will no doubt be inspiring a new generation of authors.
That’s an interesting observation, Claire. I’d love to think that Adiche is blazing a trail for young authors. Together she and Adébáyò make a potent couple of role models for women writers.
Stay With Me really appeals. The cover is beautiful too!
It, is, isn’t it. So fresh looking.