Earlier this year, I decided to try audiobooks more regularly - and thought short stories would be a good way to go. Julie Koh's Portable curiosities was my choice. It was, overall, a positive experience. Then I thought poetry might be worth trying given it's such an aural form. I chose Margaret Atwood's latest collection … Continue reading Margaret Atwood, Dearly (#BookReview)
Review
Elizabeth von Arnim, Vera (#BookReview)
After a run of tough reads in 2021, my reading group wanted something gentler, so I suggested that for our "classic" we do a novel by Elizabeth von Arnim, whose works I've loved for their pointed wit, delightful humour, and astute commentary on marriage and the relationship between men and women. As is my wont, … Continue reading Elizabeth von Arnim, Vera (#BookReview)
Gabrielle Carey, Only happiness here: In search of Elizabeth von Arnim (#BookReview)
I discovered Elizabeth von Arnim (nee Mary Annette Beauchamp, 1866-1941) back in the 1990s when Virago republished her first novel, Elizabeth and her German garden. Published in 1898, this novel, writes Gabrielle Carey, was an immediate hit, turning her, almost overnight, into one of England's favourite authors. It was certainly a revelation to me. I … Continue reading Gabrielle Carey, Only happiness here: In search of Elizabeth von Arnim (#BookReview)
Nella Larsen, Passing (#BookReview)
For last year's Novellas in November, Arti (of Ripple Effects) posted on a book and author I'd never heard of, Nella Larsen's Passing. She also discussed its 2021 film adaptation. Quite coincidentally, that same month, my Californian friend Carolyn wrote positively about the film in a letter to me. It sounded right up my alley, … Continue reading Nella Larsen, Passing (#BookReview)
John Hughes, The dogs (#BookReview)
Dogs are mentioned frequently in John Hughes' novel, The dogs, but the most dramatic reference occurs when the narrator's mother, Anna, is hiding in a swamp with other partisans during World War 2. The barking of the Germans' dogs tells them "it was only a matter of time" before they'd be found, causing Anna to … Continue reading John Hughes, The dogs (#BookReview)
Ida Vitale, Byobu (#BookReview)
Uruguayan writer Ida Vitale's Byobu was my reading group's second book of the year. Originally published in Spanish in 2018, with the English translation released in 2021, Byobu is Vitale's first book of prose to be translated into English. Few, if any of us, had heard of her - and yet, this now 98-year-old woman … Continue reading Ida Vitale, Byobu (#BookReview)
Jane Sinclair, Shy love smiles and acid drops (#BookReview)
Jane Sinclair's hybrid biography-memoir, Shy love smiles and acid drops: Letters from a difficult marriage, is an unusual book. Covering around two years in her parents' life, this book comprises, mostly, letters sent between her parents between April 1960 and July 1962 when Sinclair and her mother were in England while her father remained in … Continue reading Jane Sinclair, Shy love smiles and acid drops (#BookReview)
Julie Koh, Portable curiosities: Stories (#BookReview)
I've decided to try reading more audiobooks this year, despite not being a big fan of this mode of consuming books. I'm a textual person. I like to see the print on the page, how it is set out. I like to see the words. I like to see how the names are spelt. Given … Continue reading Julie Koh, Portable curiosities: Stories (#BookReview)
David Foster Wallace, How Tracy Austin broke my heart (#Review)
Many readers here, I know, are not the slightest bit interested in sports. You know who you are and I'm not going to out you, but you are welcome to do so in the comments. Meanwhile, this is for the rest of you who enjoy watching sports. For me, watching sports aligns well with being … Continue reading David Foster Wallace, How Tracy Austin broke my heart (#Review)
James Weldon Johnson, Stranger than fiction (#Review)
Several months ago, I bookmarked a Library of America (LOA) Story of the Week offering - as I often do for later use - but, despite its being a very brief offering, I've only got to it now. It's on James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938), and was timed, 17 June 2021, to synchronise with the 150th anniversary of his birth. … Continue reading James Weldon Johnson, Stranger than fiction (#Review)
