19) My Name is Why by Lemn Sissay I was first introduced to Lemn Sissay when I was at university doing a poetry course, and I loved his direct, passionate and poignant poems; and I bought copies of several of his collections. What I had no idea about was the story that lay behind him getting… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 19: My Name is Why
Category: non-fiction
Year 5 / Book 18: The Expectant Father
18) The Expectant Father by Armin Brott The title of this book should give some indication of why I'm a bit behind on book reviews - and has me questioning whether I'll be able to keep up the book-a-week pace. My wife and I had a son towards the end of April (peak-pandemic) and I was… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 18: The Expectant Father
Year 5 / Book 11: She Said
11) She Said by Jodi Kantor & Megan Twohey If you are a podcast fan, then I heartily recommend The Tip Off which interviews journalists and talks to them about big stories that emerged from tip-offs or small leads. It's fabulous and extremely high quality stuff (the R Kelly episode a while back is extraordinary). One… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 11: She Said
Year 5 / Book 10: Trick Mirror
10) Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion by Jia Tolentino I have no memory of where I read about this collection of essays, but I know it sat on my book list for a while until it popped up at reduced rate on Kindle. And I'm very glad it did too. Tolentino zips at breakneck pace through… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 10: Trick Mirror
Year 5 / Book 7: Maid
7) Maid by Stephanie Land The subtitle of this non-fiction memoir is 'Hard Work, Low Pay and a Mother's Will to Survive', which gives you a pretty strong indication of what this is about. Stephanie Land is a single mother in America with little or no family network to support her, which means she raises… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 7: Maid
Year 5 / Book 5: I Am, I Am, I Am
5) I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell Maggie O'Farrell is best known as a writer of fiction, and I confess to having read none of it, though I know quite a few people who speak highly of her work. I'm not sure why this non-fiction book, about her 'seventeen brushes with death',… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 5: I Am, I Am, I Am
Year 5 / Book 3: All My Cats
3) All My Cats by Bohumil Hrabal When the team were all putting up what they liked and didn't like ahead of Secret Santa in the office, I put 'Likes: books, cats', and so here we are: a book about cats. Although not quite as fluffy as one might be expecting. The only previous book I'd… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 3: All My Cats
Year 4 / Book 52: Turn the Ship Around!
52) Turn the Ship Around! by David Marquet So the last book of 2019 (finally caught up on reviews!) is a book by a submarine captain about how he turned round the worst fleet in the US Navy. Of course, it's actually a leadership / business / management book which shares those lessons in such a… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 52: Turn the Ship Around!
Year 4 / Book 49: Black Dahlia, Red Rose
49) Black Dahlia, Red Rose by Piu Eatwell The 'Black Dahlia' was the name given to Elizabeth Short, a young woman killed in Los Angeles in early 1947, and has since been made famous by authors like James Ellroy (who wrote a fictional book with that title) and by countless people still trying to solve… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 49: Black Dahlia, Red Rose
Year 4 / Book 47: Broadsword, Danny Boy
47) Broadsword, Danny Boy by Geoff Dyer I'm a signed-up fan of Geoff Dyer, who I think is a wonderful, slightly uncategorisable writer who drifts from vignettes about artists, photographers and filmmakers to flights of travelogue fancy which walk the tightrope of memoir and fiction. He's a great stylist and seems to write in a way… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 47: Broadsword, Danny Boy
