Book news, reviews and recommendations
I was attracted to Marco Missiroli’s Fidelity by its title thinking it might make an interesting companion to Sue Miller’s Monogamy which I so enjoyed last year. That and its jacket with those eyes staring so directly at the camera. Set in Milan, it spans nine years in the lives of a husband and wife, […]
Fidelity by Marco Missiroli (transl. Alex Valente): ‘I am happy right here’ Read More »
Lots of pre-publication brouhaha in my neck of the Twitter woods around Katherine Heiny’s Early Morning Riser which so often leads to disappointment but something about its blurb made me think it might live up to that promise so I put up my hand for a copy. Set in a small American town, always a
Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny: If you like Anne Tyler… Read More »
Some very tempting paperback goodies to look out for this May, most of which I’ve already read beginning with one that made it on to both my books of the year list last year and this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction wishlist. Megan Hunter’s gorgeously written The Harpy sees Lucy’s anger unleashed when she discovers
Paperbacks to Look Out For in May 2021: Part One Read More »
Alexis Schaitkin’s Saint X suffered more than most from the upheavals which struck last year’s schedules, appearing in print nine months or so after it was first due to be published. Truth be told I wasn’t at all sure about it when it arrived. I wondered if it might be a step too far into
Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin: Paradise lost Read More »
It was its setting and structure that attracted me to Claire Thomas’ The Performance, although that brightly coloured jacket played some part. A clever design which fits the novel well. As its title suggests, the backdrop for Thomas’ novel is a Melbourne theatre where three women are watching a performance of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days
The Performance by Claire Thomas: A night at the theatre Read More »
We’ll soon be hurtling into summer reading territory with blockbusters aplenty to read somewhere other than beside a foreign pool again this year, although they may not appear on this blog. I’m more partial to a well turned out novella. I’m kicking off May’s second new fiction preview with an author whose writing often has
Books to Look Out For in May 2021: Part Two Read More »
I couldn’t resist that jacket which I spotted on Twitter earlier in the year accompanied by complimentary comments about the book by people whose opinions I trust. The Inverts is Crystal Jeans’ first novel from a large publisher having had two published by Welsh indie Honno Press. With luck, if this one is as successful
The Inverts by Crystal Jeans: A marriage of convenience Read More »
It was the mention of The Stinging Fly in her biographical notes that made me want to read Louise Kennedy’s The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac. I’ve yet to read a set of stories from one of their contributors that hasn’t hit the spot for me. Someone there has a very
The End of the World is a Cul de Sac by Louise Kennedy: A smartly delivered collection Read More »
I’m going to risk calling May early summer which it’s hoped will usher in a degree of longed-for liberation here in the UK, although not too much for obvious reasons. Lots of books to enjoy in the sunshine if we’re lucky, beginning with one I’ve read already. Four years ago, I was sent Jhumpa Lahiri
Books to Look Out For in May 2021: Part One Read More »
Six Degrees of Separation is a meme hosted by Kate over at Books Are My Favourite and Best. It works like this: each month a book is chosen as a starting point and linked to six others to form a chain. A book doesn’t need to be connected to all the titles on the list,
Six Degrees of Separation – From Shuggie Bain to 1984 Read More »
That vibrant jacket with its singing colours played some part in my considering Peace Adzo Medie’s His Only Wife for review. It was one of those dreary winter days with little good news to be had and I needed cheering up. Then I noticed Medie lectures at a local university but it was its striking
His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie: How to be strong Read More »