24) The Things I Would Tell You ed. Sabrina Mahfouz The subtitle to this collection is 'British Muslim Women Write', and it's a varied collection of short stories, poetry, essays and play scripts all written by Muslim women in Britain. And an extremely interesting and powerful collection it is too - with a wide range… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 24: The Things I Would Tell You
Category: literary fiction
Year 4 / Book 22: Asymmetry
22) Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday This novel was widely praised in 2018, and it's been on the To Be Read pile for a while Chez Temple. The premise of the book is that it is split into two relatively distinct sections, and then that a third short section helps reveal how these two stories connect… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 22: Asymmetry
Year 4 / Book 19: You Think It, I’ll Say It
19) You Think It, I'll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld You Think It, I'll Say It is a book of short stories that are witty, sharp and at times extremely moving. I've never read anything by Sittenfeld before (though seen reviews of her novels that have praised her highly), and I'd heartily recommend this as… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 19: You Think It, I’ll Say It
Year 4 / Book 18: Perfidious Albion
18) Perfidious Albion by Sam Byers This is a book that puts the Z in zeitgeisty - every element of a timely contemporary satire is in place: a Farage-esque MP (with far-right affiliations), a social networking / tech giant infiltrating democracy and employment; a vacuous Jordan Peterson-type character; #metoo gender politics and online trolling (and… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 18: Perfidious Albion
Year 4 / Book 9: The Pesthouse
9) The Pesthouse by Jim Crace I remember finding this book somewhere shortly after I'd been prompted to read it by Ronnie Hughes in an exchange under this blog post. That tells me that I"ve been hanging on to the book for more than a year, and it was worth the wait. Crace is a… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 9: The Pesthouse
Year 4 / Book 7: Ghost Wall
7) Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss This came from the Christmas pile of gifted books, and was added to the list after reading multiple positive reviews in the 'books of the year' round-ups. And bloody hell, does this book deserve it - it's an absolutely compelling novella, which gripped me from start to frenzied finish.… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 7: Ghost Wall
Year 4 / Book 4: Convenience Store Woman
4) Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata This was one of several books I got for Christmas, and I'd added it to the Santa list after reading quite a few positive reviews of it last year. And now I can see why: it's a wonderfully quirky, insightful, surprising short novel, quite unlike any books I've… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 4: Convenience Store Woman
Year 4 / Book 3: Family Life
3) Family Life by Akhil Sharma I picked this up at the local charity shop, I think having read about Akhil Sharma's A Life of Adventure & Delight (which is on the TBR pile) in some well-informed person's recommendations list at some point in the not-too-distant past. So I knew little or nothing opening the… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 3: Family Life
Year 3 / Book 48: Anatomy of a Scandal
48) Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan If you've read Apple Tree Yard by Louise Doughty or The Party by Elizabeth Day, then you may well enjoy this book, as it struck me as a combination of the two - the courtroom drama and scandal of the former, mingled with the party politics and… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 48: Anatomy of a Scandal
Year 3 / Book 37: Ghachar, Ghochar
37) Ghachar, Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag I can't for the life of me remember where I heard about this wonderful, short book by the Indian author Vivek Shanbhag, brilliantly translated by Srinath Perur - but it got added to the wishlist a while back, and then spotted in the local Oxfam bookshop. It is one… Continue reading Year 3 / Book 37: Ghachar, Ghochar
