Book news, reviews and recommendations
From Grey Souls, a novel about three murders set in First War France, to Parfums, his scent memoir, each book I’ve read by Philippe Claudel has been different from the others. What they have in common is a strong sense of humanity and all are beautifully expressed. Set on a tiny volcanic island in a […]
I’m rounding off this very strange year with the briefest of brief previews although it’s probably more varied than any I’ve posted in 2020. I’m beginning with a novel that was all over my Twitter feed around its publication, setting off my hype antennae, then the Booker judges included it on their longlist although, truth
Books to Look Out for in December 2020 Read More »
Two years ago, looking for something easy to read after a tree root tripped me up landing me with a nasty headache, I picked up Anne Youngson’s first novel, Meet Me at the Museum, having previously dismissed it thinking it looked too schmaltzy for me. It turned out to be one of the best books
Three Women and a Boat by Anne Youngson: The kindness of strangers Read More »
Hubert Mingarelli’s The Invisible Land comes billed as the final part of a trilogy linked by the theme of war. I’ve read and reviewed both A Meal in Winter and Four Soldiers, struck by Mingarelli’s exquisite writing, not a description I’d expect to spring to mind when reading about the grimmest of subjects. This third,
The Invisible Land by Hubert Mingarelli (transl. Sam Taylor): The devastation of war Read More »
This is the latest in a series of occasional posts featuring books I read years ago about which I was wildly enthusiastic at the time, wanting to press a copy in as many hands as I could. Amongst Women is the first John McGahern novel I managed to get through and only because I’d been
Blasts from the Past: Amongst Women by John McGahern (1990) 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 Howard’s End Is on the Landing to The Eyre Affair Read More »
Edward Carey’s Little was one of those books I tucked away at the back of my shelves when it arrived. The story of Madame Tussaud, accompanied by a good deal of brouhaha and not published for months, it didn’t immediately appeal. Then Twitter fever started to take off so I decided to give it a
The Swallowed Man by Edward Carey: Geppetto’s story Read More »
Nicole Krauss’ The History of Love was one of those novels you couldn’t get away from when it was published here in the UK back in 2006. I loved it. Since then I’ve read several novels by Krauss but none have quite matched it for me, including the smartly clever Forest Dark. That didn’t deter
To Be a Man by Nicole Krauss: Men, women and the tensions in between Read More »
If your only acquaintance with Scandinavian novels is a cursory glance at the British bestseller lists, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the entire region turns out nothing but crime fiction. I’m here to tell you that there’s more to Scandi fiction than murder around every corner beginning with five Norwegian novels free of blood
Five Norwegian Novels I’ve Read Read More »
Recently launched, Fum D’Estampa Press is a small publisher dedicated to introducing Catalonian literature to English-speaking readers. A little niche you might think but if Jordi Llavina’s London Under Snow is anything to go by, worth seeking out. I was attracted to Llavina’s collection partly thanks to enjoying a short story roll after reading Dierdre
London under Snow by Jordi Llavina (transl. Douglas Suttle): Wintery Catalonian tales Read More »
I’ve learned not to expect a cheery read from Peirene Press. The closest I’ve got is Guđmundur Andri Thorsson’s And the Wind Sees All. I know that what I will get is an insight into a country and its culture, often one that I may never visit and even if I did, might see only