Showcase Sunday: Added to my Teetering TBR Pile

This post is linked up to the Showcase Sunday meme hosted by Vicky at Book, Biscuits and Tea. A great chance for us to discuss our latest pride and joys in acquired books, whether begged, borrowed, bought or stolen (?!).

Yes, I know that every week I promise there will be no further books added to the leaning towers of Pisa piles of books I have placed in various strategic points around the house (and hidden well on my tablet). But who can resist a good bargain (in the case of Netgalley, even free books)? However, one of my resolutions for 2015 is to stop being so dependent on Amazon and falling for all of its promotions. It’s hard to resist its lure when it’s often the only reliable source of English-language books in our part of France. And even buying French books is tricky, if you want to avoid going over the border to Switzerland. In the town created by Voltaire, our local bookshop has closed down, although thankfully we still have a shop specialising in bandes dessinées (graphic novels and comic books), which has expanded to include board games and has introduced a café-style gaming afternoon every week to ensure it remains open.

Review copies from Netgalley (I’m trying to extend beyond my usual crime fiction fare on this medium):

1) Gregory Sherl: The Future for Curious People

If you could see your love life in ten or twenty years’ time, would you still pick the same person to marry? Intriguing premise for a novel which promises to be funny as well as thought-provoking.

2) Katri Lipson: The Ice Cream Man

In the years just following WW2, a Finnish film director makes a film a little too close to reality, about a young couple on the run during the Nazi occupation. The Secret Police starts to believe he may know some uncomfortable truths. I’ve always been intrigued by Finnish literature and worldview (blame that to early exposure to the Moomins).

3) Matthew Thomas: We Are Not Ourselves

A family breaking down under the weight of mental health problems, set in the 1960s-1970s in Queens.

Purchased on a whim:

4) Stuart Kaminsky: Dancing in the Dark

Who can resist a mystery set in the Golden Age of Hollywood movies in the 1930s-1940s, featuring Fred Astaire? Kaminsky’s long-running Toby Peters series is a delightfully frothy, escapist creation.

5) Roger Smith: Sacrifices

I have Margot Kinberg to thank for this one. She mentioned Cape Town, one of my favourite cities in the world, as a setting for crime fiction and I remembered this very dark, very disquieting novel and its author, so I had to make it mine.

From the library:

6) Susan Hill: The Pure in Heart

The second in the Simon Serrailler series, which I have read in such disorder that I cannot remember which ones I’ve read and which I’ve missed out. Once again, it was fellow reviewers’ mention of Susan Hill which reminded me that I haven’t read her in ages and whetted my appetite for her complex psychological constructs.

 

And now for my dilemma: in the above-mentioned BD bookshop, I saw today a bee-yoo-tiful gleaming new graphic representation of Jean-Patrick Manchette’s novel ‘Fatale’, illustrated by famous BD artist Max Cabanes. It costs, however, 22 euros, which is steep even by BD standards. Should I get it or not?

From Bdgest.com

Bedetheque.com

Or am I better off getting the collected ‘romans noirs’ of Manchette for 31 euros?

 

 

 

 

Showcase Sunday: Another Severe Case of Book Acquisition…

I am supposedly on a book buying moratorium, but this week I cracked and completely forgot about it. After the Chateau de Lavigny readings that I attended last Sunday, I could not resist buying  paperback books by at least two of the authors present there.

Jessica Maria Tuccelli: Glow – five unforgettable voices weaving over a century of Southern life in America; slave plantations have been built adjacent to the glades of a razed Cherokee nation. An epic novel, filled with many personal, intimate stories.

 

 

Jason Donald: Choke Chain – Nelson Mandela said: ‘There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.’ In 1980s apartheid South Africa, bad parenting seems to be rife, as two young boys find out about deceit, violence and petty crime from their volatile father.

 

Then I made the mistake of reading some reviews I trust and following some writers’ Twitter stream… and got excited about the following two books, which I downloaded in electronic format.

 Anne Fine: Taking the Devil’s Advice – already read and reviewed here

Mark Edwards: Because She Loves Me – a psychological thriller, filled with passion, obsession, jealousy and murderous intent. I’ve previously enjoyed the build-up of suspense in Edward’s novel ‘The Magpies’, so am curious to see what he does next.

 

I also borrowed a book in French from the library: Susie Morgenstein: Confession d’une grosse patate – a half-serious, half-humorous look at the plight and self-flagellation of an overweight woman. I later discovered it was not by a French writer at all, so there were no loving descriptions of foie gras and wine…

Finally, yesterday I attended the literature festival ‘Le Livre sur les Quais’ (Books by the Quay) in Morges in Switzerland. I had the pleasure of meeting several writers I know, admire, have read or am currently reading: Louise Doughty, Noami Wood (of ‘Mrs. Hemingway’ fame), Val McDermid, Nathan Filer. I was with a German/Swiss friend who introduced me to some German-speaking writers, while I introduced him to some French and English-speaking ones. So of course I had to buy a few books and get them signed… Sadly, none of them are yet available in English.

Fouad Laroui: L’étrange affaire du pantalon de Dassoukine (The Strange Affair of Dassoukine’s Trousers).

A short story collection which won the Goncourt novella prize last year, this is a wonderful mix of surrealism, absurdity and cross-cultural comparison written with great humour and compassion. I previously read and briefly reviewed this Moroccan-French writer’s wonderful book about a year in the French education system. And doesn’t this one have an irresistable cover?

 

Joseph Incardona: 220 Volts

I love the noirish style of this Swiss-Italian writer (who writes in French) and hope he will soon get translated into English. This is the story of writer’s block mixed with marital block – a couple go on holiday in an isolated mountain chalet to try and rekindle both their relationship and their artistic inspiration. Of course, things don’t go according to plan…

 

Mary Anna Barbey: Swiss Traffic

The latest book by this American-turned-Swiss author, it is crime fiction with an extra literary dimension. It also bravely examines human trafficking in this wealthiest, most peaceful of Alpine countries. It is also the book that I saw several French writers reading while they were waiting for their book signings to start: always a good sign!

 

This post is linked up to the Showcase Sunday meme hosted by Vicky at Book, Biscuits and Tea. A great chance for us to oooh and aaah over our latest acquisitions. And remortgage our house to buy some more!

Showcase Sunday: Book Haul

Inspired by Pop Culture Junkie and the Story Siren, the aim of Showcase Sunday is to highlight our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders each week. For more information about how this feature works and how to join in, see the sparkling and fizzy blog of Books, Biscuits and Tea.

This week the theme has been ‘return to old favourites or classics’ rather than new releases, all (new to me) books by authors I’ve already read and enjoyed.

In the postbox

Joan Didion: The Year of Magical Thinking

How can you deal with sudden, unexpected grief and loss? A heartbreakingly honest look at the year following her husband’s sudden death and the illness of her daughter.

Joan Didion: Blue Nights

Just after the previous book was published, Didion lost her daughter too.  A haunting, passionate and almost angry memoir of her daughter and of parenting in general.

I think these two will have me in a flood of tears… so the rest of my picks for this week are very light-hearted and easy to read.

Pamela Des Barres: I’m with the Band. Confessions of a Groupie.

From the woman who hung out with Jim Morrison, turned down a date with Elvis Presley and was best friends with Robert Plant and Frank Zappa, here is a witty and warm-hearted kiss-and-tell account of the rocking and swinging 60s and 70s, without any of the sleaziness or score-settling that ruins other memoirs. Something to which I suspect my good friend Nicky Wells, rockstar romance writer, will relate.

Downloaded on special offer

Anne Zouroudi: The Bull of Mithros

Anne Zouroudi: The Feast of Artemis

Two installments in the delightful series set in the Greek islands and featuring the mysterious, always nattily-dressed Hermes Diaktoros. The taste, smells and sounds of Greece truly come to life in her books – the perfect summer read.

Irving Wallace: The Prize

I saw the film, starring Paul Newman as the rather non-plussed Nobel Prize-winning writer, but have never read the book, which sounds like good, juicy, scandalous fun. Another ideal read for the summer.

Sent for review

Cathy Ace: The Corpse with the Platinum Hair

I have previously read and reviewed two books in the series by this Welsh-Canadian writer, featuring the indomitable amateur detective and dedicated foodie Cait Morgan. I’m happy to say that Cathy Ace never forgets to get in touch when she has a new book out to ask me if I’d be interested in reading it. Thank you, Cathy, always a pleasure!

 

Sunday Showcase: Bumper Crop of Books

Admittedly, this is 2 weeks’ worth of books, as some of the books I’d previously requested or ordered were all approved and/or delivered this week.

Books for review from publishers:

Dominique Manotti: Escape – political thriller about Italian Red Brigades and an escaped convict settled in Paris who writes a far-too-realistic novel

Julia Crouch: The Long Fall – a Greek holiday has repercussions twenty years later

Louise Penny: The Long Way Home – Inspector Gamache has retired to Three Pines – but of course murder is never far away

 

Books bought for my tablet:

Anna Jaquiery: The Lying Down Room – Paris in summer, a killer who targets elderly women and a detective with a passion for origami

Tarjei Vesaas: The Ice Palace – a deep childhood friendship, a disappearance and the power of memory

Stan Barstow: A Kind of Loving – Northern England in the 1960s, part of the ‘Angry Young Men’ movement

Paul Johnston: The Black Life – when I discovered Sam Alexander was actually Paul Johnston (hey, at least I guessed the author’s gender!) and that he has written a PI series set in Greece, I had to get this

Linda Grant: I Murdered My Library – because I really need to start thinking what I’m going to do with my huge book collection spread across three countries and four sites.

 

Free download:

Faith Bleasdale: Deranged Marriage – a marriage pact gone wrong – it looked fun, although perhaps not my usual reading matter

Special Intro Pack from The Stinging Fly:

This Irish literary journal specialising in new writers and new writing (not just from Ireland) has an intro pack offer of the current issue, two back issues and two of their books (which you can choose). How could I resist this?

Books from the library:

Martin Vidberg: Le journal d’un remplaçant (comic book – The Diary of a Replacement Teacher) – as a former teacher, I think this will make me laugh and cry in wry recognition. Inspired by Pop Culture Junkie and the Story Siren, the aim of Showcase Sunday is to highlight our newest books or book related swag and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders each week. For more information about how this feature works and how to join in, click here. –

Showcase Sunday: Book Haul

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by omnivorous book blogger Vicky at Books, Biscuits and Tea. The aim of this event is to showcase the latest precious hoard of books we received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops and downloaded onto eReaders this week. It’s fun to see what others are reading (or adding to their TBR pile) as well. For more information about how this feature works and how to join in, click here.  

 

A relatively quiet week, without too many extravagant purchases (perhaps because my Internet was down for 30 hours and I had only one trip to the library).

 

Paperbacks:

1) Bought for my children, but since we now have a cat of our own, I too adore the manga series about the cute kitten Chi by Konami Kanata.

2) Sam Alexander is the pseudonym for a highly-regarded crime novelist. I wish I didn’t know that, as now I’ll be searching for clues for his/her identity instead of just enjoying the book. Described as ‘crime noir at its darkest and most terrifying’, Arcadia Books sent me a review copy of this. Set in the Northern English borderlands and replete with Albanian mafia and sex crimes, I think I will need a strong stomach and plenty of sunlight to embark on this one.

3) Finally, a book by Romanian writer Marius Daniel Popescu, who emigrated to Switzerland in 1990. After working for many years as a bus driver, he finally gained recognition for his poetry and novels (written in French). This novel about the immigrant experience and life under Communist dictatorship in Romania won the Robert Walser Prize in 2008. I bought this book after hearing about the author at the Salon du Livre in Geneva.

Ebook:

4) After reading an interview with the author, I was eager to get my hands on Miriam Toews’ book ‘All My Puny Sorrows’, a novel with some autobiographical details, about two sisters, one of whom suffers from depression. According to Faber & Faber, this book ‘offers a profound reflection on the limits of love, and the sometimes unimaginable challenges we experience when childhood becomes a new country of adult commitments and responsibilities.’

Library Haul:

Of course I shouldn’t have, what with a billion books waiting for me back home… but, as the librarian said, ‘Who can resist?’

5) Jiro Taniguchi: A Distant Neighbourhood

This too is a Japanese manga, but this time for adults. Middle-aged salaryman Hiroshi Nakahara accidentally takes a train ride back to his old hometown to visit his mother’s grave. For reasons he can’t explain, he is then transported back in time, and discovers that he’s an 8th grader again, but with all of his adult memories intact. A clear-eyed, only half nostalgic look at Japan in the days before the bubble and the bust. Also asking if we can ever influence or change the past.

 

6) Katherine Pancol: Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles

I’ve heard so much about this book, the first in a best-selling trilogy about two sisters who are polar opposites. I like the premise of one sister writing a novel and the other getting all the credit for it. It has been translated into English as ‘The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles’ and a film starring Emanuelle Beart (as Iris) and Julie Depardieu (as Josephine) has just come out in France in April.

 

So that’s my news for this week! Thank you to Vicky for introducing me to this fun meme, and I look forward to seeing what other people have bought/borrowed/read.