A Month in Books: June

Having spent many months moaning about feeling pretty underwhelmed by my reading experiences; this month, perhaps aided by the fact that I was on holiday and just wanting to avoid the disaster of the ~real world~ I am finally back on track with my Goodreads goal and really ploughed through the following (and really enjoyed most of them).

The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide (trans. Eric Selland, 2014, Picador)

The Guest Cat is a quiet novella which explores the lives of a middle-aged couple living in a quiet corner of a Japanese town. They live next door to a young family and their ageing landlords, and one day the family’s cat enters their garden and soon their home. The presence of the cat brings a new routine to the couple’s lives, bringing them closer together and closer to their neighbours.

 This isn’t a book in which anything particularly happens. At all. Hiraide’s descriptions, as translated by Eric Selland, are lovely and the sense of place throughout the novel was really great. As a cat lover, I did also obviously like the way in which the relationship between the characters and the cat was written. However, I wouldn’t say it was anything particularly revelatory and unless you are a real cat lover (or really enjoy Japanese fiction), I wouldn’t necessarily rush out and read it.

David & Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits & the Art of Battling Giants by Malcolm Gladwell  (2011, Penguin)

I really enjoy Malcolm Gladwell’s writing, and his new podcast is just as good. He is great at bringing to life case studies and teasing out an overall message. If Outliers (my personal favourite by him) was slightly depressing in its acknowledgement of how many people succeed due to a very unique set of experiences, then David & Goliath explores how normal, ‘little’ people can really stick up to power.

Gladwell’s writing is as good as always, but I will admit that David & Goliath hasn’t really stuck with me as much as his previous works. Without a quick Google, the only studies that I really remembered were the well-known historical ones (the civil rights movement in Birmingham, Alabama; the popular movement against the curfew in Northern Ireland during The Troubles). However, a brief Google did remind of the amazing story of Emil J. Freireich and his incredible work on attempting to find a cure for leukaemia, and whether that was linked to childhood trauma. 

I did find the theme links in this work a little less effective as they have been in previous books, but it’s definitely worth a read if you’re new to Gladwell or an existing fan.

My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier (1951, Virago)

Daphne du Maurier is one of my all-time favourite writers, but the last book I read by her (Hungry Hill) was not in any way a favourite of mine so I was definitely slightly apprehensive going into this. However, I needn’t have worried as My Cousin Rachel is really good. 

Philip has lived in rural Cornwall with his committed bachelor uncle Ambrose since the death of his parents. One winter, Ambrose travels to Italy for his health and suddenly appears to fall in love and marries his distant cousin Rachel. Philip is overcome with jealousy, which is compounded when Ambrose suddenly dies and Rachel has disappeared. However, when she appears in Cornwall, all of Philip’s previous ideas of her are thrown upside down.

The novel is told from Philip’s perspective, who is a tough character to really like, and who is an incredibly unreliable narrator as he ignores advice from practically everyone else in his life. 

Du Maurier’s writing is excellent, with the opening sentence just setting the scene almost as well as the famous one from Rebecca. Her sense of place is, as always, excellent. Du Maurier is always wonderful at evoking her beloved Cornwall, but the parts of the novel set in Italy also felt excellently stifling.

My Cousin Rachel is almost like a 20^th century Gone Girl, where you’re constantly torn between seeing Rachel as a grief-stricken woman desperate to win over the beloved relative of her dead husband, or as a manipulative gold-digger who may well have had a hand in Ambrose’s death. I really recommend this. 

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler (2015, Chatto & Windus)

Despite Anne Tyler being quite a prolific author, and this being one of her last books (apparently), I’d never actually heard of her until this novel was nominated for the Man Booker last year. A Spool of Blue Thread is the sprawling story of the Whiteshanks over many different generations (which is basically one of my favourite things to read).

It’s summer and Red & Abby Whiteshank, the current patriarch and matriarch of the family, are aging and their family is trying to get them to accept more help than they perhaps think they need. This means that their children; brusque Amanda, often-overlooked Jeanie, prodigal son Stem and somewhat flaky Denny, all descend on the house and the family’s history is unpicked.

A Spool of Blue Thread is at times moving, at times funny and at certain points pretty shocking. The overall feel is like a lovely meander through a family history on a hot summer’s day and if you’re looking for a book to compliment your summer this is a really great one. I’m definitely going to be checking Anne Tyler’s backlist. 

The Improbability of Love by Hannah Rothschild (2015, Bloomsbury)

I really, really enjoyed this. The Improbability of Love came to my attention as a fairly improbable (lol) inclusion on the Bailey’s Prize shortlist.

The title comes from the name of a painting which is at the centre of the story, which opens with its auction to a variety of wealthy and ridiculous people. However, the narrative really kicks off some six months earlier when the broke and heart-broken Annie finds it in a junk shop as a gift for a potential love interest. This sends her suddenly into the art world as it begins to appear that this painting may well have a rich and dark history.

Rothschild just brilliantly draws sympathetic, and not so sympathetic characters, from Annie and her alcoholic mother, to the truly ridiculous movers and shakers in the art world. The plot also moves really well between crazy goings-on in London to exploring some of the truly dark periods of history, and the lengths that people can go to protect themselves. A particularly great technique that Rothschild uses is having the painting itself narrate certain passages, giving a really great insight into the historical importance of art.

The Improbability of Love is a really fun read, which has made me want to visit an art gallery like tomorrow, and I’m so hoping it gets some kind of BBC mini-series adaptation because the novel is just crying out for it. 

Sweet Caress by William Boyd (2015, Bloomsbury)

I picked up Sweet Caress after running out of things to read on holiday and my Brexit-blues making me not too keen to read Owen Jones' The Establishment. It's the fictional autobiography of Amory Clay, a woman who becomes a photographer against the backdrop of the major events of the 20th century. Her work, and her love affairs, take her through London, Germany & New York in the 1930s & 1940s; Paris in the post-war years, back to England and (in my favourite part of the novel) to Vietnam. 

Boyd is excellent at weaving history into his novels, and I really liked the insights into the seedy world of pre-Nazi Germany, the Blackshirt riots in the UK and as mentioned previously, the madness of the Vietnam War.

Against this, Amory deals with more 'normal' life events; strife with family and lovers. Whilst I did find her relationships with her parents, uncle and siblings really interesting and nuanced, I never really found myself caring too much about her romantic relationships. This may well be the point, as Amory's life really shines outside of her private world, but as much of the novel is devoted to her feelings towards various men it did detract a tad from this. I did also find a couple of the plot points a tad convenient or unnecessary; but Boyd is a really solid writer and this is a really interesting insight into being a news photographer (and sent me down a wormhole of looking up the photographers mentioned in the novel who are real).

Amy

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Two Months in Books: April-May

This is a bit of a bumper post; whilst I spent a lot of April still struggling through a reading slump, by the end of May I found myself very much back in the reading zone. Whilst I'm still a little bit behind on my reading challenge, I'm very much hoping that June will get me back on track.

Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth (2012, Allison & Busby)

Bitter Greens starts with the story of Charlotte Rose de la Force, a real woman in the court of the Sun King at Versailles, who is not a beauty but is known for being massively witty. An unfortunate circumstance sees her abandoned to a nunnery where she comes across the story of Margherita, a young girl in a world that sounds an awful lot like that of Rapunzel.

I really loved the parts of the book that focused on the retelling of Rapunzel, both from the perspective of Margherita and the witch herself. The world of Renaissance Venice and Italy came so brilliantly to life in these passages, and the way the narrative is tweaked is really interesting. The emphasis on staying young and beautiful and powerful; and the destructive impact of love on some women, was brilliant.
I wasn't so into the story of Charlotte Rose, a lot of that part of the novel felt like a bit of an info-dump. Whilst the stories of the Huguenots and the poor position of women in French society at the time were really interesting; Charlotte certainly, I couldn’t help but feel that this could have almost been a biography by itself as it did just tend to feel like an entirely separate story.

Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (trans. Lucia Graves, 2013, Weidenfeld & Nicolson) 
I was really looking forward to reading this, as Zafon is one of my favourite authors and I thought this could be the book to break me out of my reading slump. However, I think it just made me very aware that me and Zafon's young adult novels just do not get on.
The novel is set in post-war Barcelona, where one day 15-year-old Oscar stumbles upon a stunning house and meets Marina, who lives there with her reclusive father. They witness an intriguing ritual together, which leads them to discovering a dark mystery from years before.
I felt like the tone of Marina was a tad all over the place; the main mystery plot was really dark and felt like something that could be found in his adult novels but as it was told from Oscar's perspective there was a weird humour there that frequently felt out of place. Also similarly to his previous young adult works, I had real problems around how Marina's entire existence was just to look sexually appealing  to Oscar (he is literally described as liking his lips over her). I'm hoping that I'll get on better with his next adult novel.

Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis (2014, Penguin)
I picked up Flash Boys ages ago, I think from Smiths when I was looking for another book for a deal and it sounded vaguely interesting.
It's a look at the increasing popularity of something called high-frequency trading within investment banks, where banks essentially make a bunch of money at the expense of the actual investors who trust them to make the right decisions for them. It follows a bit of an eccentric mix of Wall Street staff, led by Brad Katsuyama who decide to set up a morally fair stock exchange.
Michael Lewis' writing style is really engaging, even when the topic isn't necessarily action-packed and the 'characters' if you can call real people that were completely fascinating. From Brad, who fell into Wall Street with Royal Bank of Canada and hated the attitude found on trading floors elsewhere; to one of his colleague's who considers it something of a weakness that he was emotionally impacted by 9/11.
The only downside for me was that I felt that Lewis expected a level of understanding of the financial system that I just didn't have, which meant that there were numerous mentions of jargon that I just didn't understand, and there were minimal notes. This is a shame, because I think with that additional layer of understanding I would have gotten a lot more out of this.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (2003, Bloomsbury)
I think I've come to The Kite Runner in a bit of a roundabout way compared to most readers, in that this is the last of Hosseini's novels that I've got to read; despite its massive success.
The novel is the story of Amir, who as a 12-year-old witnesses a horrific attack on his best friend Hassan; an event which tears the two apart and sends ripples down the years of Amir's life.
As with all of Hosseini's novels, The Kite Runner is great at shedding light on historical events in Afghanistan; I was particularly interested in the parts of the novel about the Hazara people. Amir and his father's flight from Afghanistan was also a really interesting, if pretty horrendous, read-especially in light of the ongoing refugee crisis.
However, I was a bit disappointed with some aspects of the novel. I missed the multi perspectives that Hosseini frequently uses, and I felt that the characters just weren't as developed and interesting as the characters in his more recent works (especially And the Mountains Echoed). It felt like a lot of Amir's problems just sort of fell into that ~son seeking father's approval~ trope, which is one that I am just a little tired of. I also found that some of the plot 'twists' could be seen a mile off  which was a shame.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (2014, Hodder & Stoughton) 
I was a little dubious of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet at first, because the type of sci fi I enjoy tends to fall into 'speculative' or 'dystopian' brackets, not spaceships and aliens. However, after loads of hype online, a couple of award nominations and being stuck in a reading slump-I figured that this would be a good book to pick up.
The novel follows the crew of the spaceship Wayfarer, who are a tunnelling ship, meaning they punch holes in the galaxy to travel through. The novel's action really kicks off with them being given the mission to travel to a planet which the galaxy has an uneasy alliance with in a galactic war. 
Chambers divides her attention between all the members of the crew. From Ashby, the captain who loves his crew; to Corbin, in charge of the fuel and who definitely doesn't seem that friendly and Rosemary, a new arrival as a ship's clerk who appears to be running away from a mysterious past. This means every member of the crew is fascinatingly drawn and feels very real; even if they have scales.
I am just seriously in awe of the sheer imagination that must be contained within Chambers' mind. There are numerous different species and planets that the characters visit, all of whom have their own characteristics, specialisms and ways of life. As a bit of a 'hard' sci fi newb I did occasionally find it difficult to remember which species was which, but I can't help but just be dazzled by the amount of thought that must have gone into this. 
The plot was a fairly typical action-adventure, which would make a hugely entertaining film, but it kept me reading and definitely bust me out of the reading slump that I'd been languishing in.

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan (2013, Doubleday)
This book is just a whole load of fun. Nick decides to take his new girlfriend Rachel to his best friend from his childhood's wedding in Singapore; but what Rachel doesn't know is that this is The wedding of Chinese society, and Nick actually comes from the Young family, a hugely famous and admired dynasty ruled over by Eleanor, a pretty terrifying matriarch.
Think Gossip Girl but set in China; super over-the-top and trashy, but a lot of fun.

Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik (2015, Twenty7)
I really surprised myself by how much I really enjoyed this book. The novel opens with Sofia being newly single after breaking of an engagement with a man who wanted to live in a house with a 'hole in the wall' into his parents home. Whilst working in book marketing, she finds herself accidentally pitching and writing a book on Muslim dating; forcing her to through herself into the world of online dating. All this is happening against the backdrop of her nosy family, younger sister getting married and her friends also all struggling with their own romantic entanglements.
This has been described as a Muslim Bridget Jones's Diary which is pretty accurate. Sofia is funny and doesn't always make the best decisions but you do ultimately root for her to succeed. Indeed, all the characters are really well drawn; Sofia's main love interests are all pretty unique, as are her friends and family. None of the characters felt like cardboard cutouts, which is really refreshing in this genre.
The element of this novel which obviously gains attention is the fact the majority of the characters are Muslim. What I really liked about this is that whilst their faith is really important to them, Malik doesn't treat the book like a lesson in Islam. Where she does touch on the issues facing Muslims in our society she does it either through humour (Sofia's response to being called a terrorist on the tube) or in a gently touching way (there's a moment outside a gay nightclub which made me a tiny bit emotional).
I stormed through this book in about one sitting on the train; and I'm very excited to see that Malik is working on sequels.

Amy
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The New York Times By the Book Tag

This tag has been circulating on the BookTube having been started by Marie Berg and the questions were just pretty interesting, and I hunted down the New York Times columns which were really interesting so I figured I'd share my answers here.

1) What book is on your nightstand right now?
At the minute, I have Why Nations Fail by James Robinson & Daron Acemoglu which I’m currently on pause in my reading as whilst the contents are really interesting, the writing is a tad unengaging and I'm finding that I need to be reading something engaging after work. Then there's Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth which is kind of a retelling of the Rapunzel story, so far it's okay; still mostly scene setting. Then I've also got a couple of magazines, Glamour as its one of the only 'women's magazine's' that I can read without feeling rubbish and then The New Statesman.

2) What was the last truly great book that you read?
‘Great’ is such a massive word! I would say that the last ‘five star’ book I read was So You’ve Been Publically Shamed by Jon Ronson which I thought was just brilliant, and prior to that was probably Animal Farm by George Orwell which is such a skilled satire. Or maybe even Quiet by Susan Cain which was so important in terms of helping me feel good about my personality but is maybe not the best-written book? Who knows-all three are definitely worth a read!

3) If you could meet any author, dead or alive, who would it be? And what would you want to know?

Argh I don’t know, I tend to avoid meeting authors because I literally don’t know what I would say to them. I’d love to just get all the biting gossip on the Bloomsbury set from Virginia Woolf or talk to Daphne du Maurier about Cornwall or even just meet Harper Lee to find out what was going on about the Go Set a Watchman drama.

4) What books might we be surprised to find on your shelves?
Whilst this might not be such a surprise now, I have a lot of musical theatre related books floating around. Including both of Stephen Sondheim’s lyric collections/memoirs and a Broadway yearbook. It’s a real love.

5) How do you organise your personal library?

I don’t! Sorry internet.

6) What book have you always meant to read but haven't? Anything you feel embarrassed to have never read?

There are a lot of books languishing on my TBR shelf, some of which I’ve literally had for about five years which I’m definitely embarrassed not to have read them.

7) Disappointing, overrated & just not good: what book did you feel like you were supposed to like but didn't? Do you remember the last book you put down without finishing?
I’d say the last book I was really disappointed not to like was probably The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber, because I so wanted to like it. Aside from Why Nations Fail, the last book I gave up on was Nobody Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July, which was just a little too quirky for me.

8) What kinds of stories are you drawn to? Any you stay clear of?
I read all sorts of things, anything that just has an interesting premise really sucks me in. I do like multiple narratives and a sprawling time period. And stories with a bit of a gothic vibe.

9) If you could require the president/prime minister to read one book, what would it be? I don’t feel like I’ve read enough important, message books that I feel like political leaders could really learn from, but perhaps We Should All Be Feminists by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie because I am tired of male politicians just not getting it at all.

10) What do you plan to read next?
I think Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafon is up next, he’s a favourite author of mine so I’m excited.

Amy
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A Month in Books: March

I feel a little like a stuck record saying this, but I'm just feeling pretty slumpy when it comes to reading at the minute. If you can recommend any books that have sucked you in, please let me know in the comments! I really miss being really sucked into the books I'm reading, so please do share anything you've enjoyed reading lately.

A Sport & A Pastime by James Salter (1967, Picador)
I've heard James Salter completely raved about on Book Riot, and especially this novel which is widely considered something of a masterpiece. It's the story of a young American Philip Dean and his relationship with a young French woman Anne-Marie; narrated by an unnamed male narrator who is also living in France. 

I did just adore the sense of place in this novel, France itself just leaps from the pages and Salter just creates this very real world and the characters that inhabit also feel very vivid too. I just couldn't escape the fact that I just felt like I was missing something; I didn't find it particular new or revelatory and I also wasn't crazy about the way the sex scenes were written (despite numerous reviews calling them 'erotic'...so it might just be me). 

Forty Acres by Dwayne Alexander Smith (2014, Faber & Faber)
This thriller has one of the most interesting premises that I've really heard of. Martin Gray is a young civil rights lawyer, who beats the high-profile and hugely famous Damon Darrell in a case and is invited by the latter into his inner circle of powerful black men. Taken away on a weekend with them without wives or communication, Martin discovers that they share the desire to reinstate slavery-with white people performing the tasks their ancestors had to as a kind of retribution.
This is a really fascinating premise, and the sections of the book that deal with black American history and the real anger present in the characters were great. However, a lot of the characters weren't particularly nuanced and the writing wasn't...great, the flaws of having read thrillers by people like Gillian Flynn, means that perhaps my expectations in that respect are a bit high. However, Smith is a screenwriter by trade and I could definitely see Forty Acres making a very successful transfer to the screen.

Moranifesto by Caitlin Moran (2016, Ebury)
Caitlin is one of my all-time favourite writers, I don't necessarily always agree with her, but I think she's a fabulous person to have writing right now. Moranifesto is a collection of her columns from The Times and new writing under the umbrella of fighting for some kind of political change. She's frequently laugh-out-loud funny, but this collection is also really touching; her writing about the welfare state is massively important, as is her talking about abortion, her letter to girls during the Bad Days and her brilliant posthumous letter to her daughter. It's a tad repetitive, just due to the fact that a lot of pieces are directly lifted from the paper, but I would really recommend this.

Amy

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A Month in Books: February

February was a bit of a *Kanye shrug* month for reading really, I think perhaps I've been feeling a bit slumpy and just not engaged with the books I read this past month. Maybe this is the downside to trying to read books that I've had for a while, rather than books I'm necessarily really excited to be reading.

The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson (2011, Scribner)
I've probably said this here before, but I find Jon Ronson to be a hugely compelling writer and he has pretty much become an author who I want to read more of. The Psychopath Test generally deals with the idea that maybe everyone is just a little bit mad, and the ways in which we can define 'madness' or mental illness. Ronson tells numerous stories of different really interesting people; including a man who has apparently faked madness to get out of a jail term and has now found himself in Broadmoor alongside serial killers, a businessman who views psychopathy as key to business and even Ronson himself as he becomes obsessed with defining those around him. Like Them and So You've Been Publically Shamed, this was just a super engaging read and leaves you plenty of facts to annoy intrigue your friends with.

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker (2013, Simon & Schuster)
This has been on my shelf for an embarrassing amount of time and so I'm glad to have finally read it, although it didn't engage me as well as I think it may have done a few years ago. It tells the story of Julia, an 11-year-old girl who at the start of the novel is just dealing with growing-up. However, it's soon found that the Earth's rotation is slowing, throwing normal life out of context. The writing in this is lovely, as it's told by an older Julia looking back, it feels wonderfully nostalgic and there's a great sense of place; almost reminiscent of To Kill a Mockingbird. However, I just found the plot progressions to be mostly pretty predictable, despite an original premise, and I just didn't find myself really reaching to read it. I will say that this would be a great 'cross-over' novel, if you enjoy Young Adult science fiction novels and fancy something a little more 'adult' (but not by much).

An Untamed State by Roxane Gay (2014, Corsair)
I've been itching to read this for ages, having heard only good things and really liking Gay's essay collection Bad Feminist. This is the story of Miri, a successful lawyer from a wealthy Haitian family who is kidnapped when visiting her parents in the country with her husband and young son. The novel then tells the story of what happens to her during her captivity, and then what happens after. Gay doesn't flinch from describing the things that happen to a woman in this situation, so it's frequently not an easy read but I really loved the insight into Haiti as a country and culture. Gay also handles the issue of trauma fantastically too. The only thing that distracted from really loving it was some pretty clunky dialogue (especially in the romantic scenes) and some plot choices that just seemed a tad convienet. However, I would really recommend this if you're looking for a fast-paced, thought-provoking read.

Amy
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A Month in Books: January

January has been a surprisingly great reading month. I think it's partly due to the weather finally getting wintery, and my desire to not do much more than snuggle up with a book. That, and the fact that I've had a fair bit of travelling this month. So, without further ado...

You by Caroline Kepnes (Emily Bestler Books, 2014)

You is a seriously creepy thriller which is told from the perspective of Joe Goldberg, an independent bookseller who becomes obsessed with Beck, a young woman who visits his bookstore. The novel is told in the second person, meaning that it feels as if Joe is addressing the reader directly and on the whole it is really well written with a really dark streak of humour throughout. I would also agree with the many reviewers who have pointed to the similarities between this novel and some romantic fiction; with characters with traumatic pasts who are possessive of their love interests but Kepnes (rightly) shows this as being completely destructive and scary. Whilst I found the book engaging, I did feel like the plot was far too unrealistic for me to truly believe in the characters-and I also didn’t find Joe the charming protagonist that many seem to think he is.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (St Martins Press, 2013)

I’d heard so many great things about Fangirl, which the internet adored due to its embrace of fan culture and the fact that Rowell places an introvert in her protagonist Cath front and centre of the novel. The book focuses on Cath, a dedicate fan and fanfiction writer of the ‘Simon Snow’ fantasy series, who is struggling with the move to university. Her twin Wren doesn’t want to live with her and embraces college social life; she has a mildly confrontational roommate Reagan who seems to constantly be accompanied by her boyfriend Levi; she’s trying to find her feet in a fiction writing class; she’s dealing with anxiety disorder and worrying about her Dad who is also dealing with mental health issues. If that seems like a lot of things to cover in a book, that is because it is. Rowell does deal with Cath’s anxiety really well, and there are many moments in Cath’s behaviour that felt very real and very familiar. However, there are certain aspects of the plot that didn’t work quite as well for me. I didn’t love how the characters that enjoy the social side of university get either punished in some way or are depicted as stupid; and I did feel that the love interest was a little too adorable with literally zero conflict at any point. But if you are after a light, fluffy read, it’s worth checking out.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck (Penguin, 1952)

I first read John Steinbeck at school, and Of Mice & Men is one of my favourite novels. East of Eden is widely believed to be his masterpiece, and is the sprawling tale of a variety of families living in the Salinas area in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. It especially focuses on the Trask family; the novel opens on Adam and Charles as young men who are ruled over by their veteran father Cyrus, and whose relationship is poisoned by Charles’ conviction that Cyrus loves Adam more than him. It is further complicated by the arrival of Cathy Ames, a mysterious, cold young woman, who ultimately gives birth to twins to Adam before abandoning their home. These twins, Cal and Aron, seemed doomed to repeat the events of the past. As with the other Steinbeck novels I’ve read, the descriptive passages were lovely and felt incredibly real; as did the majority of his characters. I just felt like I admired this novel more than I really enjoyed it, and I did feel that sometimes Steinbeck’s writing was a little heavy-handed to make his overall message clear. But I’m glad to have read this and look forward to reading more of his work.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Scribner, 2014) 

From one Pulitzer Prize-winner to another, All the Light We Cannot See has got to be one of the most raved about novels of recent years. It tells the stories of a blind French girl and a young German orphan in the WW2 years, whilst the former deals with the coming occupation and the latter is drafted into the Nazi war machine. I really liked the insight into life in Germany and France during WW2, as I always tend to, especially the weird Nazi-training school that Werner ends up in. There are passages that are written really beautifully as well, but I just felt a little disconnected from the main protagonists, and wanted to spend more time with the side characters. This also meant that certain events, whilst upsetting, didn't hit me as hard as I think they should have done. I just generally didn't really get why this book has had so much commercial and critical acclaim. I do recommend it if you're in the mood for a quick, 'intelligent' read, as Doerr writes in an almost thriller style, and  the chapters are all super short which makes it a very readable experience.

After You by Jojo Moyes (Michael Joseph, 2015)
I was very nervous about reading this sequel to one of my favourite 'women's fiction' titles Me Before You after the early reviews were less than kind. However, I actually really enjoyed this. We rejoin Lou Clark, who is working at a dodgy Irish bar in an airport and still reeling from the events in the last novel. Moyes is so brilliant at capturing Lou's grief and complex feelings and I just loved being back with her. Whilst certain plot machinations didn't exactly thrill me, and there were certainly moments when it departed the realism that made Me Before You particularly good, Moyes just has a wonderful way with words and characters that means her work is always (for me) worth a read.

Apple Tree Yard by Louise Doughty (Faber & Faber, 2013)
This novel has been on my Kindle for ages, so it felt right for me to finally read it. The novel opens with the protagonist, Yvonne Carmichael, in the docks at the Old Bailey at the point where she realises that she is about to be convicted for whatever crime that got her there. It then flashes back over the events that got her there, all hinging on a moment when she decides to engage in an affair. Yvonne is a middle-aged, successful woman which was a refreshing change of protaganist. I also liked the way the novel discussed female sexuality in varied ways. However, I wasn't expecting it to be quite so erotically charged, and I felt like it dragged until the final 1/3, and I was mildly disappointed that the final crime wasn't anything more interesting. But it's a pretty page-turning read all the same!

All in all, this has been a pretty good start to 2016!

Amy
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Top 5: Books I'm Excited for in 2016

Here I Am by Jonathan Safran Foer (September, Hamish Hamilton)
New Jonathan Safran Foer!! Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is one of my all-time favourites and I've been (im)patiently waiting for a new novel for him since 2011. We still don't know too much about this novel, but it appears to be about the life of a Jewish American family whilst the Middle East is in turmoil. But to be honest it could be about paint drying and I would read it.

The Hamlet Retelling by Gillian Flynn (Vintage)
Continuing the theme of fave authors releasing new stuff, Gillian Flynn is part of the Hogarth Shakespeare re-tellings and I'm looking forward to all of them, but especially this one. I'm not actually sure if this is due in 2016 or 2017 but I'm excited for it all the same.

The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee (February, Houghton Mifflin)
I've heard people on one of my favourite book press sites Book Riot talking about The Queen of the Night for what feels like most of the year. It's the story of a famous soprano who finally gets the chance to originate a role in an opera, only to find that the story is based on an event from her own life. A theatrical historical mystery sounds so up my street so I'm eager to get my hands on this.

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (April, Borough Press)
Sisterland aside, I generally love the books that Sittenfeld writes, so this updating of Pride & Prejudice really rings my bells. She has a really dry sense of writing characters anyway, so I feel like the modern Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy are going to be really well-done. I'm also one of those strange people who loves adaptations of P&P despite not actually being a massive fan of the original novel.

Speak by Louisa Hall (February, Orbit)
Again, another Book Riot recommendation, a novel that focuses on the creation and destruction of a new breed of Artifical Intelligence. Apparently it explores life and science and sounds a tad bit David Mitchell-y which I am always up for.

Are there any books that you're looking forward to coming out this year?

Amy
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A Year in Books: The Best Books I Read in 2015

Happy New Year! I can't quite get my head around the fact that it's 2016 already. Like last year, I thought I'd do a round up of the best books that I read in 2015.

To be honest, this hasn't been the best year I've ever had for reading, whilst I completed my 50 book reading challenge, my average rating on Goodreads for these books has been just 3.3 stars. However, there were definitely books that stood out as being ones that I couldn't stop thinking about.

Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel (2014, Picador)
Station Eleven was one of the first books I read in 2015, and it is one that I just haven't stopped thinking about. It's more speculative fiction than anything else, and follows the world after a devastating super-virus. It has a real The Walking Dead vibe, but is so much more than a dystopian novel; focuses on the arts and what it means to be remembered.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (1958, Penguin)
I wasn't at all sure what to think going into this, but this was a really pleasant surprise. One of the first novels written by an African about the African experience, Things Fall Apart deals incredibly well with the perils of toxic masculinity and also explores the impact of colonialism on a community in Nigeria. I'm very keen to pick up more of Achebe's work.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (2013, Abacus)
It's always good to have the longest book you read in a year to also be one of the best. The Goldfinch is the story of Theo Decker who after a tragic event ends up in possession of a piece of art which will change his life. Theo is an endlessly endearing character, who I never stopped rooting for, and Tartt is a phenomenal author. Her characterisation and descriptions of place throughout this novel are excellent. I'm really looking forward to her next novel (which will probably not be out for a decade).

Slade House by David Mitchell (2015, Sceptre)
A seriously creepy short novel set in the same world as The Bone Clocks, which I loved last year, this is the story of a house which appears every nine years and its visitors are never seen again. Chilling and Mitchell is a master at creating fascinating characters in very few pages.

A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James (2014, Oneworld)
A book that I would have never read had it not won the Man Booker, I'm really glad I read this. Whilst A Brief History of Seven Killings is by no means an easy read but one that I feel is really important. It's the story of a really fascinating part of Jamaican history and whilst this might not be for everyone it's really worth trying out if you're a fan of programmes like Breaking Bad.

So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson (2015, Picador)
A late entry, but one of my favourites from the year. I don't want to repeat my December post too much, but this is a book that really makes you consider the way you behave online.

Honourable Mentions: The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obrecht, Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey, A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson,  Enduring Love by Ian McEwan

Biggest Surprise: Upstairs at the Party by Linda Grant which I knew next to nothing about and really enjoyed

Biggest Disappointment: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown, when you read so many reviews saying a book is life-changing, anything less is going to be a disappointment

Amy

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A Month in Books: December

Hi again, hope you all had a lovely festive period; eating plenty of food and spending time with the people you love. December was a pretty good reading month; largely due to the fact that I travelled home and then down to my grandparents so got plenty of reading done.

The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber (2014, Canongate)

I really wanted to love this book as Jen Campbell, one of my favourite people to get book recommendations from, loves it. It's the story of Peter, a Christian missionary given the mission of a lifetime when he is sent to another country to spread the word of God amongst an alien species. This comes at the cost of leaving his beloved wife Bea behind in an apparently rapidly deteriorating world. Faber's worldbuilding of the new planet and its various inhabitants is really excellent and felt as three-dimensional as it could do. However, I just really struggled to warm to Peter as a protagonist. He has zero empathy for anyone outside his immediate life and some of his actions and thoughts about other people are pretty far from Christian (although I'm not sure if this was Faber's point). To be honest, I wished I was with Bea on Earth; the glimpses of her story we were given seemed far more interesting, as did her back story. Yet, there was some really interesting bits about faith and the final line of the novel nearly made me cry-so Faber is certainly able to pack a punch when he wants to.

The Farm by Tom Rob Smith (2014, Simon & Schuster)
I picked this up on my Kindle pretty soon after it came out, and was pushed to read it after mostly enjoying London Spy (as mentioned here), which was written by Tom Rob Smith. The Farm begins with Daniel receiving a call from his Dad, Chris, who recently retired to Sweden saying that his mother had become ill. Whilst Daniel is on the way to the airport to fly out, he gets a call from his Mum, Tilde, saying that she is not at all ill and accusing Chris of being involved in a pretty awful plot in Sweden. The novel is basically Tilde explaining her 'investigation' into the goings on in the small Swedish community she moved to, and Daniel trying to figure out what to believe. It's fairly compelling and Rob Smith is great at building a sense of place throughout. However, I felt that ultimately the ending kind of petered out which was a bit disappointing.

To the Nines/Princess Mia by Meg Cabot (2007, Macmillan)
As I've probably mentioned before, I'm trying to finally finish this series so that I can read the new instalment Royal Wedding which Cabot released this year, featuring a grown-up Mia. To the Nines is probably the best one that I've read 'as an adult' so far. I don't want to give too much away about what has happened, but this one in particular explores depression very well and sees Mia beginning to really find herself. There's still things that I find frustrating about the series but I'm looking forward to finishing it in the New Year.

So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson (2015, Picador)
This is a fantastic non-fiction book which focuses on what happens to people who get 'shamed' in the new era of social media justice. It explores what makes people get involved in these shamings and why some people come out relatively unscathed, whilst others are deeply traumatised by their experience. You can read Ronson's article about Justine Sacco here, which will give you a taste of what the book is like. It's really one that has made me think about my behaviour online.

Amy

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A Month in Books: November

So....November was a bit of a fail when it came to reading, though I can't really put my finger on why. I think I just simply didn't feel like reading, then got ill and didn't feel like doing much of anything. So, I read one very good novel and one...okay one.

A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James (2014, Oneworld)
I'm always keen to check out winners of the Man Booker prize, especially when they're a novel that I would never have normally picked up. A Brief History of Seven Killings is the story of a group of individuals; from gang members to politicians, whose lives are all touched by the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in Jamaica in 1976. James writes largely in a stream-of-concious style which makes every character a truly complex one, even when they do pretty reprehensible things. The book is incredibly engaging (and eye-wateringly violent) and really worth a read before it inevitably becomes a HBO miniseries.

The Watcher in the Shadows by Carlos Ruiz Zafon & trans. Lucia Graves (2013, Phoenix)
Carlos Ruiz Zafon is one of my favourite authors. I usually love his tales of gothic mystery, so I was pretty sad that this novel didn't quite win me over in the same way that his other work had. The Watcher in the Shadows is the final in Zafon's young adult trilogy which was originally published in Spanish in the 1990s. It follows the Sauvelle family, who move from Paris to a rural sea town when the mother becomes a housekeeper for a local reclusive toymaker. Here, the daughter Irene falls for local boy Ismael and the son Dorian becomes fascinated by the toymaker, until tragedy strikes. The story just felt slightly too young, with the writing feeling clunkier than usual. The insta-love between Irene and Ismael also bothered me. It does just feel like this was a dry-run of concepts and even characters  that re-emerge, in a much better way, in Zafon's Library of Forgotten Books series for adults-which I'd recommend reading instead.

Did you do better than me this month? I'm at the stage where I've completed my Goodreads challenge so I'm not too stressed about my lack of reading.

Amy
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Top 5: Favourite Couples from Books | Blogmas #1

Emily from The Book Geek did a really fun video talking about her favourite fictional couples; and I really wanted to do a similar thing here. However, when I began to think about couples that I really liked, it did lead me to realise that a lot of the books I read don’t exactly feature positive relationships. There may be some some spoilers ahead.

Beatrice & Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare

The ultimate fictional couple in my opinion; starring in basically the world’s first rom-com. They have some kind of history and now hate each other, so their friends and family decide that they’d actually be a perfect couple. Hilarity and a fake death ensue. Beatrice is a fabulous character, especially when you consider just how old this play is and her sparring with Benedick is just perfect. The Emma Thompson/Kenneth Branagh film is pure fun (also ft Denzel Washington! Keanu Reeves! The guy from Dead Poets Society), and so is the recorded stage version starring Catherine Tate and David Tennant. Just a fab play with a fab central couple.

Max & Fang from the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson

So slight disclaimer, I haven’t actually read all the books in this series as by Book 3 I felt that it was 

pretty well wrapped up, but Patterson decided to drag the series on probably a lot longer than it really needed to go. However, I read these books as a teenager and was totally enamoured with the relationship between Max and Fang. This is a Young Adult series focusing on children who were genetically modified and are attempting to live a normal life away from the clutches of the evil organisation that imprisoned them. Max is kind of a Katniss Everdeen mark1 and Fang is the standard broody YA male that I really dug when I was younger. Part of me is tempted to read the next six (6!?) books in the series but I’m scared that I’ll hate them (Goodreads seems to).

Emma & Dexter from One Day by David Nicholls

This book broke my heart into many tiny pieces. Whilst Dexter is definitely bit of a tool, he’s a tool with his heart in the right place and Emma is just such a lovely character and I have never wanted a couple to get together and just be happy more. Even the film, with Anne Hathaway’s dubious accent, gets to me. Such a great story.

Christabel La Motte & Randolph Henry Ash from Possession by AS Byatt

Okay, so this is a definite spoiler for Possession but I had such a ridiculous crush on a fictional poet when I was reading this that I had to include it. The novel focuses on two academics one a specialist in La Motte and one on Ash who realise that these two Victorian (I think) poets; one a suspected lesbian, the other who was long believed to be a family man had in fact had an intense love affair. Their part of the novel is told in gorgeous love letters and poetry and I think I would die if I was sent a letter like those in this novel.

Petrocles & Achilles from The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

This falls into a couple whose story doesn’t end particularly well, which you would know if you’re familiar with Greek mythology. However, Miller writes a really beautiful story between the two of them and this was another which really got me too. I really recommend checking this out, both for the love story which kills me, and the really interesting take on the familiar myth of Troy.

Do you have any particular favourite couple?

Also, I am going to attempt to give this Blogmas thing ago, because why not? 

Amy

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A Month in Books: October

October wasn't such a successful reading month, I'm not sure why but I just didn't find myself picking up a book automatically at the end of the evening; a fact that towards the end of the month could definitely be blamed on the highly addictive How to Get Away with Murder landing on UK Netflix. However whilst the first two books I read were okay, the final (which I steamrolled through on Halloween) was actually pretty fantastic. Also I've officially completed my 50 Books challenge which makes me very happy.

The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford (1945, Penguin)

I've always been a little interested by the Mitford sisters, just because their actual lives sounds like the stuff of costume dramas. This is the first of Nancy Mitford's collection of novels following the lives of an extended family. It tells the story of Linda, a privileged young woman desperate to find true love; marrying first a Conservative MP, then running away with a Communist before meeting an enigmatic Frenchman. This was generally a pretty fun ride, with larger than life characters-especially Uncle Matthew and Aunt Sadie-Linda's parents. The former is hugely bombastic and his default setting is angry, whilst Sadie seems generally slightly detached from the life she's living. Mitford is excellent at skewering politics across the spectrum, with some lines making me literally laugh out loud. There is a rather jarring use of the n-word partway through the novel, the character's aren't wildly developed (the story is told from the perspective of Fanny, Linda's slightly more straightlaced cousin which is a shame) and the ending takes a sudden dark turn. However, I'd recommend it if you'd like to branch out into classics, and fancy something a little light.

Daring Greatly by Brene Brown (2012, Penguin)

Daring Greatly is one of those wildly popular books that I just felt I kind of missed the boat on. Brene Brown's TED talks on this topic is really interesting, and the book's focus-on allowing yourself to be 'vulnerable' and the positive impact that can have on all areas of your life was one that I found particularly interesting. Whilst Brown, a 'shame researcher' is very good at talking about anecdotes and pointing to the problems that refusing to be vulnerable can create in our day-to-day lives (I found the parts that discussed men and shame particularly interesting) her apparent solutions just didn't really jive with me. They mostly involved some kind of mantra or stopping in the middle of a sentence to tell everyone that you're feeling anxious and I just can't ever imagine a situation where I can be on board with that (perhaps it's just my stiff-upper-lip Brit coming out). It's also written in that kind of cheesy style that seems to be a trademark of empowering American self-help books which can definitely take a while to get into. I would recommend it, and I am keeping my copy because I think it could be an interesting one to lend out, but perhaps lower your expectations if you've heard a few too many "life-changing" reviews (or pick up Quiet).

Slade House by David Mitchell (2015, Sceptre)

I really love David Mitchell and really liked his last novel The Bone Clocks, so I was eagerly awaiting Slade House's release. Slade House is set in the same world as The Bone Clocks, so uses the same fantasy structure, but I feel like you can definitely read this if you haven't read the previous book-you'd just miss out on some of the references to characters in that novel, but this also means that the tension would really last right through the final chapter, whereas if you've read the previous novel it's pretty clear what is coming. Slade House is seriously creepy; not much can be said about the plot without totally spoiling it, but it is essentially the story of a house that appears every 9 years and people who visit it are never seen again. As with most Mitchell, he creates really distinctive characters and voices and I was just totally sucked into this. I really, really recommend it.

I am currently reading this year's Man Booker winner A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James which is really engaging with excellent character voices; but is also massively violent so I keep having to take little breaks from it!

How was your reading month? 

Amy

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Top 5: Books

Oh hi laundry

If you haven't picked up by my monthly book posts, I am a big fan of reading. Whilst I've been blogging about the books I've read in the past few months, I thought I might mention some previous reads that I've really loved. I also have way more than five favourites, so this is probably the beginning of a series!

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

I picked this off my GCSE English teacher's classroom bookshelf and just immediately fell in love. From it's famous opening line 'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again' du Maurier just sucked me straight into this gothic tale. It tells the story of an unnamed narrator who is working as a ladies companion in Monaco when she meets widowed Maxim de Winter. A whirlwind romance later, she accompanies him home to his large estate, Manderley. It is there that she realises things may not be all that they seem with Maxim, and that some people-especially the delightfully wicked Mrs Danvers-are keen to keep the ghost of Rebecca haunting the house. Du Maurier is now one of my favourite authors and I really recommend reading this as a 'classic that doesn't feel like a classic'.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
I very rarely cry at books, but I sobbed through the last few pages of this novel. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is the story of Max, a young boy whose father is killed in the 9/11 attacks. He discovers a key inside an envelope which is convinced will explain to him why his father died. Interwoven into Max's story is the story of his grandfather, still dealing with the aftermath of surviving the bombing of Dresden. This is beautifully written and moving without (in my opinion) being manipulative. It deals with love and loss and family and urgh it's just a really beautiful book. I'm impatiently awaiting Safran Foer's next novel.

A little glimpse at the multimedia used throughout the novel.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I didn't read this in school, so was probably pretty late to the Fitzgerald party. In case you have no idea what happens, The Great Gatsby follows Nick Carraway, a young man who moves in next door to a sprawling estate owned by the enigmatic Jay Gatsby. No one knows anything about him, aside from the fact that he throws hugely popular parties; which could be aimed at winning back a lost love. Gatsby is pretty bleak; everyone is pretty awful and the final message of the novel isn't particularly upbeat. However, it is pretty darn perfect when it comes to the writing. Every word feels perfectly chosen and those famous opening and closing passages are famous for a reason. If, like me, you haven't picked this up yet-you really, really should.

My edition is the gorgeous Tiffany's designed edition; which narrowly survived water damage when my room flooded at uni (really).
The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan
David Levithan is a pretty popular Young Adult author, but The Lover's Dictionary is his first foray into adult writing (although it is still accessible for mature YA readers). It tells the story of a relationship in the form of non-linear dictionary entries. It's brilliant and makes up about 95% of my Goodreads quotes.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
I figured I would throw in a non-fiction title to this list as well. Susan Cain first came to my attention after her TED talk on the differences between extroverts and introverts. I, as well as a lot of people, always felt that the former was the thing to aspire to and as an introvert myself desperately wanted to avoid the 'people-hating' label that the term seems to have. Quiet tackles this division head on, by first explaining how introverts don't hate everyone, they just lose energy when interacting with people rather than gaining energy from this. Cain explores different societies and the positives that can come from being an introvert, as opposed to using it is a character trait that needs to be changed-I'm sure I'm not the only one who had school reports telling me I was too quiet in class, something that Cain tackles head on. This book was a bit of a welcoming hug for me, and I recommend it to introverts and extroverts alike.

What are some of your favourites? Or do you have any recommendations based on these?

Amy
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A Month in Books: September

I cannot quite believe that we're in October! September was another fairly good reading month for me, especially as I ticked off a few books that have been on my TBR for a while.

Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead (2014, Blue Door)
I picked up Astonish Me knowing nothing about it other than the blurb mentioned the Cold War (a favourite period of history) and ballet (a favourite thing in general). It tells the story of Joan, a dancer in the corps de ballet, wholly aware of the fact that she will never be a great dancer. A chance encounter with Russian dance star Arslan Rusakov leads to a love affair and to Joan helping him defect to the US. However, when their affair fades Joan turns her back on the world of dance and returns to the familiar arms of her childhood best friend Jacob and decides to raise a family. However, when their son Harry exhibits signs of being a dance prodigy himself all the characters converge again.

Shipstead writes a really compelling version of ballet which is not romanticised but still contains enough sparkle for the reader to understand why people would be drawn to it. However, the characters-whilst vivid and incredibly 'real'-are almost universally unlikeable, to the point that a lot of the time I almost didn't want to pick up the book as I didn't really want to know what the characters were going to do to each other. Plus, the plot contains very few surprises.

Upstairs at the Party by Linda Grant (2014, Virago) 

This was another totally cold purchase, I think I was attracted to a story being set at university. This is a purchase I definitely don't regret. Upstairs at the Party follows Adele, who through sheer luck manages to escape her humdrum and tragedy-riddled youth in Liverpool, to get to university at the new University of York (never named, but it's clear that it is that uni). Whilst there, she becomes fascinated by Evie, a fellow student, a fascination that becomes lifelong after the titular event takes place.

I loved Grant's writing style and the way she really captures the self-assured nature of teenagers and students; especially at a time when uni was free and leftist ideas were brand new. As with Astonish Me none of the characters but are particularly likeable, but I was invested in finding out what happened with all of them. I especially liked how the novel follows the group of friends over the years; as they enter the workplace and how their lofty ideals fall apart or strengthen. I really recommend this.

The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer (2013, HarperCollins) 

I expected to really, really like this. The Shock of the Fall received loads of buzz and awards upon its release. Filer has a background working as a mental health nurse and this novel follows the story of Matthew, a young man struggling with his declining mental state after the tragic death of his brother when they were children. As an insight into someone struggling with mental illness, and one that is not usually covered in literature, The Shock of the Fall is great. Matthew is an undeniably sympathetic character who you just wish someone could get through to. I did feel that the writing was a little clunky and the central 'reveal' wasn't really that surprising. It is always good to see mental health tackled in writing, and I'm keen to see what Filer's next works will be like.

Why I Write by George Orwell (2005, Penguin)
Having ticked off both of Orwell's most famous novels, I really wanted to read some of his non-fiction. Why I Write is part of the Penguin's Great Ideas series and is a collection of four of Orwell's essays. There's the self-explanatory title essay, 'The Lion & The Unicorn' which is an exploration of socialism in England, 'A Hanging' based on Orwell's travels in Burma and 'Politics and the English Language' which is again pretty self-explanatory. I found these really interesting, and it was different to see Orwell really weaving a biting humour through his pieces. I will say that unless you're really interested in politics or language you probably won't be that interested in this; but it is well worth a read if you do like those things.

The Female of the Species by Joyce Carol Oates (2005, Quercus)
This was a bit of a downer to end the month on. Joyce Carol Oates is a really prolific author and I was really intrigued by her work so picked up this collection of short stories a while back as I thought it could be a good place to start. The blurb claims that these stories show that women are just as capable of men of committing evil; but pretty much all these stories feature women being pushed into desperate situations...by men. Plus all the stories had pretty much the same narrative voice which got a bit repetitive. I did like the two longer stories-'Hunger' about a woman sucked into an affair with a handsome stranger; and 'Tell Me You Forgive Me' about a woman divulging a dark secret. But I can't say this really sold Oates to me.

Amy
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A Month in Books: August

For some reason, when I was thinking about what I'd read this month I was under the impression that I hadn't read that much, but I still managed about a book a week. I will say that I didn't really read anything that was really brilliant, but here's what I read anyway.

Winter of the World by Ken Follett (2012, Macmillan)
Winter of the World is the second in Ken Follet's Century trilogy which is set throughout the 20th century. This novel focuses on the children of the charactersfrom the first novel during the run-up and events of World War Two, crossing the UK, USA, Germany and Russia. Unfortunately, I felt that the characters tended to be quite 2D-either being crazily brave & courageous or awful, with the only character that I really liked being killed off.  Plus, as I've studied this period of time both at school and at university, the pages of political developments were a little dull. However, I did like the insight into normal life in Germany, and the fact that Follett didn't shy away from showing the rising right-wing sentiment in the UK. I'll be picking up the final installment, mainly because my Mum assured me that it is really good.

Nothing to Envy: Real Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick (2009, Granta)
I've heard so much about this book which tells the story of citizens of North Korea, before they defected. Demick does a really good job at collecting individual stories and this is a really fascinating insight into the social structures and politics of a country that we in the West are far too good at dismissing as some kind of eccentric wasteland.

The Children Act by Ian McEwan (2014, Jonathan Cape)
McEwan's latest novel tells the story of Fiona, a middle-aged successful family law judge, whose husband tells her that he would like to have an affair-no doubt with a younger woman. Whilst reeling from this news she is given the case of a hospital wanting to intervene to give a teenager a blood transfusion-who is resisting due to the fact that he is a Jehovah's Witness. This is quite a small novel, if anything it's simply a character study of Fiona, who is a really interesting character. However, the novel does start to stretch reality in a way that I wasn't fully convinced by. Plus, the writing whilst good was pretty clinical. This was probably intentional due to the legal background of the plot, but it did mean that I felt quite separated from the action.

In the Woods by Tana French (2007, Hodder & Stoughton) 
I've heard nothing but good things about this novel across the book internet (here's Kate's glowing review), so I went into this crime novel with incredibly high expectations. In the Woods is the story of Adam Ryan, who years earlier was with his friends when they both disappeared. Now Rob Ryan, with an English accent and working in the Dublin murder squad, he is plunged back into the past when a young girl is discovered murdered in his old home town. I loved the relationship between Rob and Cassie Maddox, his partner on the case. Plus, I thought the case itself was pretty interesting. However, I found Rob a little irritating and I've read plenty of books featuring antiheroes so he didn't feel particularly new. Mainly, I think this was just a case of overly high expectations. I think the second in the series focuses on Cassie, so I'll definitely check that out.

And that's it! What did you read in August? September seems to be the start of all the major new releases and I'm excited.

Amy
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A Month in Books: July

This edition is definitely a bit of a bumper one for me. I'm not very good at just lying around when I'm on holiday so I always make a bit of a dent in my TBR. Though it definitely was a reminder of how hard it is to read a Kindle Fire in the sun.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (2013, Abacus)
The Goldfinch was one of the most raved about books of 2013, in part due to the fact that Donna Tartt hasn't written a book since the early 2000s. This novel tells the story of Theo Decker, who survives a bomb attack as a child which kills his mother and leaves him in the possession of a famous piece of art. The novel then traces his journey to adulthood. I'd really enjoyed both of Tartt's previous novels, and I probably enjoyed this one the most. Tartt's writing is excellent-there is a section of this set in Las Vegas which is pretty close to perfect-and Theo is a great, complex character to follow.

Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham (2014, Random House)
I really wanted to like this book, as I do think Lena Dunham is an interesting voice. However this just didn't really win me over at all. There were moments that were funny, and Dunham's journey to self-acceptance was nice to see. However, there were lots of other times where valid moments were undercut by casual homophobia or racism. Plus, I was slightly weirded out by her relationship with her sister. If you're a mega fan of Girls, you will probably like this.

Them: Adventures with Extremists by Jon Ronson (2001, Picador)Them is essentially a work of investigative journalism in which Ronson spends time with a variety of people with 'extreme' views, all united by the belief that some kind of shady group is running world affairs. Ronson is gifted with an ability to make people very human, until they inevitability do something to undo the portrait he has drawn for them. Them is also super readable as it begins to look like, just maybe, these people are really on to something.

After Eight by Meg Cabot (2006, Macmillan)
After Eight is the eighth installment of The Princess Diaries, which is a series I really want to finish as I'm desperate to read Royal Wedding the 'adult' conclusion. This was definitely a book that reminded me that I'm sometimes a little too old to be reading some Young Adult novels. The central theme of this is Mia and Michael attempting to deal with the fact that he is moving abroad, and the epic misunderstanding that results from this. I do still love Mia, but I just wanted to give her a shake this time around!

Underground Time by Delphine de Vigan (2009, Bloomsbury)

I loved No & Me, de Vigan's YA novel that dealt with homelessness in Paris. Underground Time is an adult release which follows Mathilde who is being beaten down by a hideous boss and Thibault who is finally breaking out of a toxic relationship. This had a lot of promise, but I'm not sure if the translation let this down, as the prose felt really repetitive and clunky which is a shame.

Wild by Cheryl Strayed (2012, Knopf)
This is another book which has been hugely popular, and the release of the film adaptation finally spurred me to read this. Wild follows Strayed's decision to walk the Pacific Crest Trail alone after her mother's death sends her in a downward spiral. Whilst I didn't love this as much as Tiny Beautiful Things, this was a good read and made me feel (for a brief moment) that I could do go on a solo hike.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion (2013, Penguin)
Yet another hyped book from a few years ago, The Rosie Project is about Don Tillman, a genetics professor (think Sheldon Cooper) who devises a wife project to scientifically find a perfect partner. Then Rosie, who is the opposite of everything he thinks he wants (of course) and chaos ensues. This has some very cute moments, but I'm not entirely convinced it deserves all the hype that it's received.

A Room with a View by EM Forster (1908, Penguin)
I took this book with me on holiday as it's set in Italy, namely Florence where I spent a day. It tells the story of Lucy Honeychurch who travels to the city with her companion. Whilst there her path crosses the lower class George Emerson and when she returns to England has to face the choice between societal expectations and her heart. This is a pretty fun summer read, despite it's 'classic' tag, with Forster poking fun at everyone. I only wish we spent more time with the central couple, as I wasn't really that connected to George-though Lucy was great.

The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker (2014, Maclehouse Press)
I knew pretty much nothing about this novel, my Mum bought it with her to Italy, and it's received acclaim from across Europe and has been translated into numerous languages from its original French. It tells the story of Marcus Goldman, a promising novelist suffering from writer's block whose mentor respected writer Harry Quebert is accused of murdering a 15-year-old girl 25 years earlier. This is twisty and turny and kept me plowing through despite it being fairly chunky. Whilst there are occasionally creepy Lolita-vibes, Dicker is excellent at playing with the reader's preconceptions.
 
We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (2014, Fourth Estate)
This is essentially a slightly extended version of Adichie's TED talk which is famous for being sampled by Beyonce. It's probably not a must buy, but Adichie is passionate about her beliefs.

We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo (2013, Vintage)
We Need New Names is the story of Darling growing up in a shanty town in Zimbabwe against the backdrop of repressive government crackdowns; and her subsequent move to America. This took a while for me to get into, but once I really fell for the character of Darling it really got me hooked. I feel like despite the fact that everyone knows Mugabe is terrible we don't hear a lot about what goes on there, so this was eye-opening. Whilst sometimes it felt that Bulawayo was trying to pack too much into the book, this was a good read to end the month on.

What have you been reading this month?

Amy
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