Orla Mackey’s debut, Mouthing tells the story of Ballygowan over several generations in a vivid vernacular, much of it threaded through with an enjoyably dark humour. Characters are not short of opinions about their fellow villagers, some sharp-tongued and judgemental, others more forgiving. I thoroughly enjoyed this cleverly constructed debut, written with a pleasingly acerbic wit and a sharp eye for human nature balanced with compassion, which reminded me of Robert Seethaler’s The Field.
I loved Kevin Barry’s short story collection, That Old Country Music, but have yet to read one of his novels. His latest, The Heart in Winter, is set in the 1890s American West, opening in the town of Butte, Montana whose inhabitants have grown rich on copper mining and are running rampant on the proceeds. When a debauched balladeer falls hard for the new bride of a devout mine boss and she for him, they head out west with a company of Cornish gunmen hot on their trail. Very much like the sound of that and Cathy’s review has whetted my appetite further.
I’m in two minds about this one not being much of a comic novel fan but Richard Ayoade is so funny I can’t resist it. The Unfinished Harauld Hughes sees Ayoade stumble upon a copy of Hughes’s The Two-Hander Trilogy in a second-hand bookshop, startled to find the author’s photograph looks just like him and transfixed by the writing of this poet, playwright and scriptwriter. ‘Ayoade embarked on a documentary, The Unfinished Harauld Hughes, to understand the unfathomable collapse of Hughes’s final film O Bedlam! O Bedlam!, taking us deep inside the most furious British writer since the Boer War’ says the blurb. Annabel loved this one, including it in her books of last year. Here’s her review.
April’s first short fiction collection is Amor Towles’s Table for Two made up of six stories all set in New York around the year 2000 plus a novella set in Golden Age Hollywood. Described by the publisher as a ‘noirish tale’, Eve in Hollywood follows Evelyn Ross from Towles’s novel Rules of Civility as she sets out on a new life in Los Angeles. ‘Written with his signature wit, humor, and sophistication, Table for Two is another glittering addition to Towles’s canon of stylish and transporting fiction’ says the blurb promisingly. Keen to read this one – I loved Rules of Civility. Annabel has reviewed it very positively here.
That’s it for April’s first batch of paperbacks. A click on a title will take you either to my review or to a more detailed synopsis should you want to know more, and if you’d like to catch up with new fiction it’s here and here. Part two soon…
Discover more from A Life in Books
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
There’s apparently quite a lot to savour here. I loved Moon Road, which I read last year, and Kevin Barry’s always worth a punt, as is Amor Towles. I always worry when well-known figures like Richard Ayoade dash into print, as so often they’re only there because they’ve made a name for themselves already in another field. But this seems more promising. I’ll need some tempting to go hunting for the Kaliane Bradley though. Time travel? Hmmm….
Ayoade is primarily a writer/director – he’s written tons of books already. Acting is a sideline it seems.
Blimey! I had no idea.
Oh really? Interesting – I had no idea. Quite a clever bloke then!
Very pleased you enjoyed thr Leipciger. Not wishing to expand your tbr even more but I’ll just say how much I loved her debut, The Mountain Can Wait. I’ll be approaching the Ayoade with caution, if at all, but will take the plunge with the Bradley
May you be forgiven for adding to the TBR!
I hope so!
I also find Richard Ayoade funny but I’m not sure about the book…maybe!
I’m yet to try Amor Towles but he’s definitely on the list!
I enjoyed Night Boat to Tangier so I’d like to catch up with Kevin Barry, including his short stories.
I know what you mean, and I have no such reservations about Towles, either. Good to hear you enjoyed the Barry – I loved That Old Country Music.
Wow – two links! Thank you. The Towles was super – proves he can do short, novella and chunkster. I just adored the Ayoade – you know me and metafiction – it was very funny, arch and anyone who has any knowledge of kitchen sink dramas and the Carry On films would be ahead of the rest in appreciating his ingenuity.
You’re welcome, Annabel. I do like arch and if I do read it, it’ll be mostly down to your enthusiasm!
Loved Kevin Barry’s The Heart in Winter. Such a madcap, creative mind. I see Bradley is in Women’s Prize longlist, not sure if I am interested in the books topic. Still have to explore Towels. A great selection her.
I mean ‘here’. Fast typing results in typos!
All too familiar with that!
I’m going to give the Bradley a try, I think, but I’m more keen to pick up Table for Two.
Thanks for mentioning my review of The Heart in Winter. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did when you get to it. I liked The Ministry of Time with its strange mash-up of genres more than I expected.
You’re welcome, Cathy. I’m looking forward to reading it.
I will definitely read Moon Road, having spied your previous review of it and thought it sounded very tempting. I’d also like to read the Amos Towles short stories, too. I have the Ayoade on my book stack of titles I’m intending to get to this year (it’s how the TBR has devolved into subsets….).
Lovely to hear that! I’m not convinced about the Ayoade but it’s hard to ignore Annabel’s enthusiasm.
The Ayoade sounds like it could be fun–and I do like the sound of the Ministry of Time too, though I don’t always get on with titles with all the starry endorsements
It’s bloggers who persuaded me with the Bradley although I’m not immune to puffs by favourite authors.
I’ll be reading Mouthing soon — looking forward to it. Do take a punt on The Ministry of Time. It was my most purely fun read of last year.
You’re one of my trusted bloggers so I will! I hope you love Mouthing as much as I did.
I started this one last year on Rebecca’s recommendation and loved the beginning of it (it was unexpectedly recalled for another reader, but I’ll get back to it)! The Towles stories, I’m sure you’ll appreciate and enjoy them. And the cover of Mouthing is really something.
Another vote it’s favour! I’m hoping the Towles will offer some much needed light relief.
I’ve just finished The Heart in Winter and it turned out not to be my sort of book, but I can definitely see why it’s getting such great reviews. I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you, Helen. I’m sorry it didn’t work for you.
Mouthing and The Ministry Of Time caught my eye.
I’m crossing my fingers for The Ministry of Time but can wholeheartedly recommend Mouthing.
A friend has chosen Ministry of Time as a book club pick, so it seems I’ll be finding out about it for myself!
Good luck, Jennifer! I would imagine there will be lots to discuss.
I loved The Heart in Winter, some of Barry’s best writing to date. I have the Ayoade on order from my loval bookshop
Looking forward to the Barry! I’d be interested to know what you think of the Ayoade.
I bought a hard back copy of Mouthing but for some reason still haven’t got to reading it… and Table for Two – have enjoyed his other books but have picked this up twice now and it just hasn’t held my attention.
Interesting about the Towles – I’ve yet to read his short stories. I hope you get to Mouthing soon. I loved it!
I loved Table for Two – Towles at his considerable and whimsical best! I hope you enjoy it too when you get to it.
Thank you!