This is good:
“We Need New Names” by Noviolet Bulawayo
there you go, challenge your own personal literary biases by reading a book written by a black, african woman.
this is beautiful prose from the point of view of a child growing up in a slum outside Harare in Zimbabwe, shortlisted for the man-Booker prize in 1993.
finished recently, enjoyed that one as well.
3 more on the list.
Well my year of 12 books is off to a good start.
The Road
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6288.The_Road
Really enjoyed this, quite dark and depressing but I knew what I was in for. Very similar to a few video games I have played (The Last of Us etc).
Dark Matter
I managed to finish this in under 24 hours. This is the first time I have ever done that. Such a good book, do yourself a favour and read this!
The Hike
Another one I put away in a couple of reads. Some people wouldn’t enjoy this type of book - by the sound of the blurb it sounds like teen fiction, but it’s far from it. I had a few LOL moments and I could never guess what was going to happen next.
Last night I finished Slade House by David Mitchell. It’s loosely set in the same universe as The Bone Clocks (they share one character and organisation). It’s an easy read, probably the easiest of his to read so far (not very complex nor long), but it’s gripping and interesting. I’d recommend it if you’re into Stephen King style paranormal thrillers.
Thanks, I just reserved it from the library
Enjoyed.
Recent reads:
Upcoming reads:
About to start this over the next day.
Is Lincoln in the Bardo any good? I’ve got that reserved at the library, also. And family members were recently talking about The Three-body Problem.
Finally read To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf. Fuck me.
It’s pretty different, not sure it’s everyone’s cup of tea, took me a while to warm to it.
Three body is 1 of a trilogy, first translated Hugo winner. Hard scifi.
Just spent a couple of hours reading this
yes, its about a teen werewolf and a ghost, no vampires but.
maybe I should have put this in the True Confessions thread.
Finished Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman on a 3 night hike, easy read, not very challenging but enjoyable Alice in Wonderland for adults vibe.
Finished Fred Vargas’s last book, Quand sort la recluse, very good. Not yet translated into English, but I recommend her work to whoever’s into crime fiction/roman noir. Particularly her Commissaire Adamsberg series - it follows a fairly classic format with a cop/detective solving an inquiry, but it’s done with a lot of black humor, and a lot of work has gone into the characters. Any book in the series is awesome, but I remember really enjoying Have Mercy on Us All and Wash this Blood Clean From My Hand.
Spent the past two weeks skiing in Japan and figured it would be a good time to try a Murakami book. Read the Wind Up Bird Chronicles and loved it but it certainly left me with some questions…
finished another 2 from Mat Reilly (Great Zoo of China / Tournament - i liked this one) have now read all bar 1 (Troll Mountain)
Thought id break it up and now starting Wilbur Smith’s River God.
About to start this… two weeks to finish it which will be a struggle. Might have to split this up over two library loans.
Finished a few books lately.
The Enchanted
About prisoners on death row and some of the workers that deal with them. Has some light ‘fantasy’ elements.
All the Light we cannot see
I have mixed feelings about the book that I can’t really go into because of ‘spoilers’. I gave it 4/5 and definitely worth a read!
The Sisters Brothers
Loved this book - A western novel about two brothers on their way from Oregon to San Fran to carry out an assassination order. A bit of violence and self questioning.
Beartown
I initially wanted to read this because it is mainly about Ice Hockey, and the way that the game can have a huge impact on peoples lives - in both positive and negative ways. It’s the only book I have read that has me thinking about it after the read.
Finally finished this one, bit slow to read at times (for me) with the ancient egyptian setting, but awesome story none the less.
Starting his ‘Seventh Scroll’ now.