When it came to discussing Air by Christian Kracht, my book group didn’t do much discussing. Rather, it was an hour of questions and speculation –
I went to the launch of Victoria Hannan’s new novel, I Love the Whole World!, last week. Hannan was in convo with fellow author, Kate Mildenhall, who described this book as a ‘joy bomb’. And I absolutely agree.
In summary, it’s about a woman named Leslie. Leslie’s husband, Dennis, a physiotherapist, divorced her (and quickly re-partnered with Kimberley, his Alexander Technique teacher). Leslie, having drifted along in the marriage for decades, is indifferent to what happens next…
Dennis had been the only man she had ever loved, and was now a person she felt a numbing ambivalence towards. Thinking about Dennis was like going to the dentist to get a filling: a slight pinch, and then nothing. Continue reading
The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon Continue reading
I read two five-star books in a row (this and this). It set the bar high – what to read next? To avoid a crash, I switched to genres that I don’t ordinarily go for. Firstly, a mystery – The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke – and secondly, Bossypants, a memoir by comedian Tina Fey (and yes, I read lots of memoir but I know very little about Fey and certainly have not watched her television shows). Continue reading
Want something ABSOLUTELY GRIPPING? Read Patrick Radden Keefe’s latest work of narrative nonfiction, London Falling. Continue reading
This beautiful, devastating, wonderful book… John of John by Douglas Stuart is my first, hands-down five-star read this year.
The story begins simply – Cal, out of money and with little to show for his art school education in Edinburgh, takes the ferry home to the island of Harris –
…the closer he got to home, the more lost he felt. Continue reading
Most of the grief-lit that I read is nonfiction (either memoir or academic texts about grief). Lots of fiction that I read has elements of grief but rarely is it the main theme – I tend to avoid these because I fear there will be something that doesn’t ring true, which then colours my opinion of the entire book (probably unfairly).
So with that said, why did I pick up Some Bright Nowhere by Ann Packer? I was intrigued by the blurb that alluded to a ‘surprising’ end-of-life request. Continue reading
I’m always drawn to campus-lit, so I didn’t need much convincing for Grace Murray’s debut, Blank Canvas. And then I read the blurb –
…Charlotte begins her final year with a lie. Her father died over the summer, she says. Heart attack. Very sudden. Charlotte had never been close with her classmates but as she repeats her tale, their expressions soften into kindness.
– and I carried the book straight to the counter (at the always lovely Ramona Books). Continue reading
I picked up Akshi Singh’s In Defence of Leisure on one of my leisurely afternoons browsing at Readings… that tells you I probably don’t ‘need’ the book but hey, who doesn’t like a little validation every now and then?
The premise of Singh’s book is that we all want more free time but don’t necessarily know how to use it. I think I’m pretty good at leisure time, and I’m never short of ideas on how to use it. What drew me to the book was the fact that Singh’s thoughts about leisure are explored in parallel with her reading of the works of celebrated psychoanalyst Marion Milner. I have never read any Milner, so In Defence of Leisure will perhaps prompt a Milner-reading-project. Continue reading
Unexplained noises, flickering lights, gut-churning odours, eating flies, bite marks on pale skin, missing tools, an abandoned house… Hunger & Thirst by Claire Fuller is loaded with gothic elements. Continue reading