Over the next few days, I’ll be busy with the Salon du Livre Book Fair in Geneva, rehearsals for my older son and organising a sleepover for my younger one, so I don’t think there will be any time left over for reading. So here is my monthly wrap-up, a bit earlier than usual.
- Matt Johnson: Wicked Game
- Cathy Ace: The Corpse with the Garnet Face
- David Peace: 1974
- Paul Kalanithi: When Breath Becomes Air
- Tatiana Salem Levy: The House in Smyrna
- Lisa Owens: Not Working
- Sarah Hilary: Tastes Like Fear
- Tammy Cohen: When She Was Bad
- CL Taylor: The Missing
- Paolo Sorrentino: Youth
- Jean-Michel Guenassia: Le Club des incorrigibles optimistes
- Elizabeth Brundage: All Things Cease to Appear
- Marina Sonkina: Expulsion and Other Stories
- Samantha Hayes: In Too Deep – review to appear on CFL
- Maylis de Kerangal: Reparer les vivants
- Jax Miller: Freedom’s Child
- Alain Farah: Ravenscrag
- Elena Ferrante: The Story of a New Name
- Linda Wagner-Martin: Sylvia Plath: A Biography
- David Mitchell: Back Story
A few figures:
For review on CFL: 4
Crime fiction: 10
Women or BAME writers: 15
Translated or foreign language: 6
Cheating a little bit – the first four were read just before April started but after I’d written my March post, so I had to move them to this month. And just for my own accounting, I wanted to see the source of each book this time: 5 review copies from publishers, 6 requested on Netgalley, 6 bought, 3 library loans.
Books donated this month: 17. Books bought (aside from the slip-up at Quais du Polar): 11. At this rate, the book shipment back to the UK is going to be quite massive…
Crime fiction pick of the month: Tastes Like Fear by Sarah Hilary, with Jax Miller’s book as an Honourable Mention (I need to review it, but suffice it to say it’s got a memorable voice).
Overall Pick of the Month: I won’t even attempt to select between the stand-out reads of this month. Here are the ones which impressed me most (in addition to the crime fiction picks above): David Peace, Tatiana Salem Levy, Elizabeth Brundage and Maylis de Kerangal. I still owe you reviews of the latter two.
Looking forward to reading your review of Med the Living (de Kerangal). I keep hearing great things about it.
Some of my favourite bloggers didn’t like it -they thought it was too detailed in its descriptions. But I was caught up in that detail: felt it added to the emotional impact and yet also helped to detach from it, avoid sentimentality.
I thought it was a fantastic book. The details in the various points of view is what made it so realistic and so impactful, I agree with you.
I see the Brundage is on your top picks list. It’s on my radar but I’m not entirely sure about it. Perhaps you can persuade me!
I was sent it for review on Crime Fiction Lover and was a bit sceptical myself, as it’s pretty slow-moving for a crime novel. But it certainly works as a description of time, place, family dynamics…
That works for me- sold!
You’ve had a productive month, Marina Sofia! I’m glad you liked the Hilary as well as you did. I really need to put her work in the spotlight at some point. I hope the book fair/rehearsals/sleepover go well!
Very impressive, Marina. How did you manage to read twenty books in one month? Obviously, you’ve read that many before. It’s one book every one-and-a-half day.
Try a cocktail of insomnia, not watching TV, children’s holidays when you can’t get anything else done…
Glad you liked All Things Cease to Appear. I read her other novels too. There was only 1 I didn’t care for much. She’s quite different and hard to slot into any one genre.
I rather like and admire writers who do that… I will be looking out for her from now on.
I’ve been thinking about David Peace’s writing in the wake of the Hillsborough Inquest verdict. I haven’t read him for ages but as I remember it he writes incredibly well about institutional corruption.
Do you know, I was thinking about him too after the Hillsborough Inquest! Perfect backdrop to all of that.
I like the fact you’ve documented the books entering and leaving your house – that is quite some reading for the month. Tastes Like Fear was an excellent read but for me the crime fiction book of the month has to be David Jackson’s A Tapping at my Door.