I went into this with no expectations at all. I had been mildly interested in it before its nomination for the Booker Prize, and that made me pick it up sooner. But I don’t much care for dystopian books, and though the concept behind this is timely and brings up a few important issues, READ MORE
Month: August 2019
TOP TEN TUESDAY | BOOKS AND EDITIONS I WANT
I’m very lucky because I’m at a point in my life where if I really want a book, I can just get it. There are exceptions to this, though. Some are out of print, others I can only find in damaged editions or at prices I’m not willing to pay. I don’t know if READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | VINTAGE 1954 – ANTOINE LAURAIN
I’ve only read one Antoine Laurain novel, the delightfully charming The Red Notebook. It was the closest I’ve come to finding a book that felt like watching the film Amélie, one of my favourites of all time. Laurain is a master at capturing details of character and setting that bring the story to life READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | FAVOURITE TROPES
I feel like, particularly among adult readers of YA books, the word “trope” tends to conjur negative associations. The word is usually applied to played-out plot devices and relationships that we are all so, so tired of reading. So to come up with a list of ten (seriously, ten??!!) that I like feels like READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | FIVE FEET APART – RACHAEL LIPPINCOTT
I’ve had this book on my radar for a while. In my current quest to find books about illness, it drifted up to the top of my TBR – it helped that I also wanted to watch the movie and felt like the book had to come first. I’m going to be up front READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | CHARACTERS I CONSIDER FRIENDS
The best books are ones that feel real, like you’ve actually stepped into them and live, for a time, in their world. Because of this, the characters we find there often feel just as real to us as the people we bump into in real life. There are characters I have loved, hated, learned READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | LANNY – MAX PORTER
I’ve heard wonderful things about Max Porter’s last novel, Grief Is the Thing with Feathers. It wasn’t a story that appealed to me, but I was curious about Porter’s writing because all the rave reviews talked about his linguistic ability. Lanny has started to generate similar praise, bolstered now by the book’s inclusion on READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | COVER RE-DESIGNS
I don’t have a ton of re-designs I loved or hated, but I do have a few special editions I like and wish were the only editions, and a few books I wish had better editions but I haven’t found any! Books I don’t love the covers of in any edition: I love READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | LOCKING UP OUR OWN – JAMES FORMAN JR.
Let me begin with the one thing I want you to take away from this review: You need to read this book. I don’t care who you are, what your background is, whether you live in the USA or whether you are even interested in this topic. You need to read this book. It READ MORE
BOOKER PRIZE 2019 | LONGLIST
After a year of waiting, it’s finally Booker Prize season again! The 2019 longlist has just been announced and includes a “Booker’s Dozen” – thirteen books. Some of you may remember the furor last year’s longlist brought about on account of the inclusion of a thriller and a graphic novel. This year’s list is READ MORE