Book news, reviews and recommendations
Obviously, I couldn’t resist Bea Setton’s Berlin despite reading both Frieidrichstrasse 19 and Marzhan, Mon Amour in quick succession earlier in the year, also set in one of my favourite European cities. Setton’s debut is very different from the others which tell the story of two neighbourhoods through the people who live in them. This […]
Berlin by Bea Setton: The art of self-sabotage Read More »
I tend not to be lured by the onslaught of summer reading that hits bookshops around June or so but there’s usually one novel aimed squarely at that market I hope will hit the spot. Last year’s was The Paper Palace which turned out to be much darker than I expected. This year’s is Liza
Although I’ve long since been converted to reading short story collections, I still prefer the linked variety. There’s something appealing about spotting characters from previous pieces, particularly in a small town setting, which is what attracted me to Cathy Thomas’ Islanders set on Guernsey. Comprising twelve stories set over two decades beginning in 2000, it
Islanders by Cathy Thomas: Small world Read More »
It’s some time since I’ve read anything from Fitzcarraldo who divide their list into white covers for non-fiction and a gorgeous cobalt blue for fiction. Mexican author Guadalupe Nettel’s fourth novel, Still Born, caught my eye with its theme of motherhood as a choice. It follows two friends – both in their mid-thirties, both intensely
Still Born by Guadalupe Nettel (transl. Rosalind Harvey): The many forms of mothering Read More »
It was the theme of female friendship that drew me to Canadian author Laurie Petrou’s Stargazer. I was slightly dismayed to discover that it was published under a crime imprint but while there is a crime Petrou’s novel is a world away from the kind of police procedural I’m happy to watch on TV. Set
Stargazer by Laurie Petrou: ’There were so many ways a story could go’ Read More »
I’m sure it’s a statement of the obvious for more seasoned readers of translated fiction but I’ve learned to check the translator’s name when choosing what to read. Out of the five novels below, four are translated by particular favourites of mine – two by Charlotte Collins and two by Jamie Bulloch – although I’m
Five Novels I’ve Read Translated from German Read More »
I’m on a winning streak with Irish women authors this year. I’m sure to hit a dud eventually but Niamh Mulvey’s debut, Hearts and Bones, certainly isn’t it. This slim collection comprising ten stories comes with a subtitle which sets the tone, echoed by that brilliant jacket, as its narrators, mostly women, look back at
Given my complete lack of interest in sport you might think I’d turn down the offer of a novel about a basketball star and a sportswriter but I’d enjoyed several of Benjamin Markovits’ previous novels and had fond memories of Chad Hardbach’s The Art of Fielding. The Sidekick explores the demands made on sports stars
The Sidekick by Benjamin Markovits: This sporting life Read More »
Just one post for July’s paperbacks and a thin one at that. I blame summer reading which tends not to appeal to me. The good news is that four out of the six titles are tried and tested beginning with Amor Towles The Lincoln Highway, a 1950s American odyssey. Released early from Salina, the youth
Paperbacks to Look Out For in July 2022 Read More »
I knew about James Cahill’s Tiepolo Blue back in October, alerted to it by a copy editor friend who’d loved it. A knows her literary onions so I was primed and ready to go when Cahill’s debut started popping up on my Twitter timeline although even without her recommendation, I would’ve been keen. Set in
Tiepolo Blue by James Cahill: Dr Faustus, I presume? Read More »
Given that it features a child narrator, I was a wee bit wary of Miriam Toews’ Fight Night despite having enjoyed her previous novels. It’s such a difficult trick to pull off, painfully clunky if mishandled. Toews’ new novel takes the form of a letter written by nine-year-old Swiv to her father who her grandmother
Fight Night by Miriam Toews: ‘That’s patriarchy, Swiv, make a note’ Read More »