This month we begin with the 2019 Wellcome Prize winner, Murmur by Will Eaves. Also on the Wellcome Prize shortlist was My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh.
The Moshfegh has been in my TBR stack for ages but I haven’t picked it up since a friend, whose reading preferences closely align to mine, read it and loathed it. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll loathe it because this particular friend gave the thumbs down to Markus Zusak’s Bridge of Clay, which I loved.
Despite the title, the bridge in Bridge of Clay is only a small part of the story. Likewise, a bridge plays a role in Claire Fuller’s Bitter Orange.
Bitter Orange has a wonderful gothic feel, largely due to Fuller’s excellent descriptions of the crumbling English estate where the story is set. The tone reminded me of Chloe Hooper’s The Engagement – it’s Australian gothic, set at a farm homestead.
The main character in The Engagement is an architect. I have an architect’s memoir in my TBR stack – The Battle for Home by Marwa Al-Sabouni.
I was supposed to see Al-Sabouni at last year’s Melbourne Writers Festival but drat, I was unwell that day. I also missed Jessie Cole talking about her memoir, Staying.
I didn’t expect to end on such a glum note… Hopefully other chains will be a little more upbeat! Link up below or post your link in the comments section.
Next month (July 6, 2019), we’ll begin with the children’s classic, Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (thanks to Sue at Whispering Gums for this suggestion).