Book news, reviews and recommendations
Five short thematically linked reviews
I’m not sure where the idea that school days are the best days of your life came from but it’s one that’s commonly bandied around. My school days were just about OK, quite enjoyable in the sixth form, but if I’d thought they were to be my happiest times I’d have been downcast to put …
Given how much of my viewing time has been spent there thanks to Walter Presents, you’d think I’d have read more Scandinavian fiction but perhaps it’s because so much of the translated variety is crime related. Below are five striking Swedish novels I’ve read, all with links to my reviews, beginning with an award-winning piece …
Given I’m limiting my air travel, I suspect my single visit to New York City will be my first and last. Perhaps that’s the reason I’m drawn to travel there through fiction. Below are five novels that transport readers through time as well as distance, all with links to reviews on this blog. Jonathan Lee’s …
All sorts of different things attract me to a novel – mention of spare writing in a blurb, fiction by poets, the book’s setting or a favourite theme to name but a few. Sometimes it’s structure. A dual narrative handled well always hits the spot, as does catching up with a group of friends who …
Long time readers of this blog will have noticed that Berlin is a favourite city of mine. I’ve visited it three times and if you asked me if I’d like to go again tomorrow I’d be eagerly packing my bag, ready to head off. The next best thing, of course, is a virtual visit by …
I often read for the writing as much as for storytelling and although I rarely read poetry, I’ve found that novels by poets are often written with a pleasing attention to language, each word carefully chosen and not one wasted. Below are five favourite novels by poets, all with links to my reviews. Helen Dunmore …
I’ve long found an apartment building setting appealing in fiction. Fertile ground for storytelling, exploring characters’ backstories while reflecting the society they inhabit. Here are five favourites that share that setting, two with links to my reviews the other three read pre-blog. I’m beginning with Georges Perec’s Life a User’s Manual, the first novel that …
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 …
I tend not to read much in the way of comfort books but back in the worst of the pandemic I found myself reaching for something heartening. Assuming others might feel the same, I put together one of these posts which proved very popular. Given that it seems that covid has not done with us …
This is my first non-fiction Five Books I’ve Read post and to no one’s surprise it’s about readers, book collectors and bookshops, although I suppose it could have been about travel or food. Here then are five books I’ve read about the wonderful world of books, each with a link to my review. White Spines …
This is the third post in this series I’ve devoted to novellas. It seemed appropriate to run it today given that it’s Novella November, set up by Cathy at 746Books and now co-hosted by Bookish Beck. The five I’ve chosen are particularly notable for their use of language, sometimes lyrical, sometimes understated. Here then are …