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Post by sophie on Jan 24, 2022 1:10:49 GMT -5
Operation Angus by Terry Fallis. Definitely Canadian content, a funny novel about how a few Canadian bureaucrats and politicians manage to save the Russian president from being killed by Chechen separatists. A quick but funny read, much like his previous works.
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Post by scrubb on Jan 24, 2022 1:47:23 GMT -5
Another quick reread of a Terry Pratchett today. One of the Tiffany Aching ones, I Shall Wear Midnight. Really good.
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Post by lillielangtry on Jan 24, 2022 17:21:00 GMT -5
#5 Dayo Forster, Reading the Ceiling A book by a Gambian author. We start with the central character deciding to lose her virginity on her 18th birthday. There are 3 potential partners and we follow how her life might have turned out if she had picked each of them. I thought this was going to be YAish but it's actually quite subtle and, on the whole, enjoyable. Not a new favourite but a pretty good read.
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Post by scrubb on Jan 27, 2022 14:52:05 GMT -5
Mary McCarthy - A Charmed Life.
It was good - but after finishing 3 of this author's books, I've realized that I don't really enjoy her writing. I'm not sure if it's the detached observation style, the detailed exploration of the various characters' thoughts, or just the settings in 1950s America, but I'm finding that they don't speak to me much if at all. So, in spite of recognizing her talent, I'm not going to read anything else of hers.
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Post by Oweena on Jan 27, 2022 20:50:30 GMT -5
The Neighbor's Secret by L. Alison Heller
Supposedly a thriller type novel. Centers around the half a dozen or so women in a suburban book club and their kids. Of course they try to hide their secrets, and everyone has at least one. The author tries to make it tricky and subversive when really she's written about a group of pampered helicopter parents who are too involved in their kids lives, and who I can't muster any empathy for. Stretched out way too long, and the ending was lame-o.
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Post by scrubb on Jan 28, 2022 0:39:00 GMT -5
Girl in the Blue Coat, by Monica Hesse. I saw somewhere that it's YA fiction (wasn't aware when I picked it up), and would say it was good YA fiction, though not without flaws.
Set in Amsterdam during the Nazi occupation, the main character is a young woman (maybe 18 or 19) who we learn right away is working in the black market. One of her customers asks her to help find a JEwish girl who had been hiding in her house, and disappeared.
The story is involving. As this young girl ends up trying to save one girl she is exposed to the reality of the round ups and the terrible conditions in the deportation centres. The story is a bit let down by the writing - shaky logic and motivation, sometimes. But not egregiously so.
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Post by scrubb on Jan 28, 2022 17:50:42 GMT -5
By the way, I participated in a book pyramid scheme recently - through FB. I normally would never be interested in a chain mail type thing like that, but hey, books. The investment is to send 1 book, then ask other people to participate. Each of the people you convince sends 1 book to the friend who roped you in, and asks their friends to send you a book. So, total investment is 1 book sent to a stranger. Well, that and the fact that you'll slightly annoy your friends by asking them to participate, but I made sure it was clear I didn't care if anyone did or not.
I figured that even if I didn't get a single book, I was happy to send someone a book. (Also, coincidentally, the person I was to send to is a Brit living in Indonesia. It was hard to get English books there, when I was there, so I was especially happy to send him a good read.)
And I've received 2 books so far - the Girl in the Blue Coat, above, and "Go the F**k to Sleep" which is very funny. If I get any more, it's all gravy IMO.
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Post by ozziegiraffe on Jan 31, 2022 8:26:49 GMT -5
6. Cat Killed a Rat, ReGina Welling and Erin Lynn. Cozy mystery set in an eco-village.
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Post by lillielangtry on Jan 31, 2022 14:47:01 GMT -5
scrubb, I loved The Group, but haven't read anything else of hers.
#6 Irmgard Keun, Gilgi A few years ago I really enjoyed Keun's The Artificial Silk Girl. This is her first novel, originally published in 1931 (and later banned under the Nazis) and it's set in Cologne, where I live. Recognising all the street names definitely added a layer of enjoyment for me, and the description of carnival in the 1930s was great! It's about a young, independent woman known as Gilgi. She finds out that she was adopted, but that doesn't seem to derail her from her busy life of secretary work, evening classes, and socialising. But then she falls in love properly for the first time and suddenly everything is turned upside down. It's a bit darker than I was expecting, but a satisfying read.
#7 Abdulrazak Gurnah, Afterlives So when it was announced last year that Gurnah, originally from Tanzania, had won the Nobel prize for literature, even quite a few bookish people were left going "...who??". It wasn't that he was unknown, he'd been longlisted for a few prizes and his books were reviewed in literary supplements, but he was by no means a big seller. I certainly had never heard of him. Well, I'm so happy the prize led to my discovery of his work because I absolutely loved this novel set in German East Africa before, during and after WWI. It's not a tightly plotted novel but that's actually one of the things I liked about it. It avoids the typical plot set-up and just follows the lives of two likeable main characters, a young orphan woman and an askari soldier. I could hardly believe it mentions a German colonialist who still (controversially) has a street named after him just near me. I've lived here 15 years and barely knew anything about this period of history (my fault obviously!). So, yes, I hope lots of people read him and I hope translations of his work become much more widely known in Germany.
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Post by HalcyonDaze on Jan 31, 2022 18:14:48 GMT -5
January books:
1. The Once in a Blue Moon Guesthouse - Cressida McLaughlin Frustratingly bland chick lit. Don't bother
2.The Godmothers - Monica McInerney Enjoyable.
3)The Archive of the Forgotten - A.J. Hackwith The second book in the Hell's Library series. Good fun and one for those who maybe enjoyed Jasper Fforde or Genevieve Cogman.
4)You and Me on Vacation -Emily Henry Also known as People we meet on vacation.
Argh, don't bother. This spent at least a month sitting half read in the book pile by my bed. The story of Poppy and Alex and their 10 year friendship that may or may not be a true romance. I really didn't care if they ended up together. Some of the flash backs of the previous holidays in various countries were good but the relationship sucked.
5)Under the Whispering Door - T.J. Klune
Beautiful. As wonderful as Cerulean sea. A gentle book of life, love and death and dealing with grief.
6)The Garden of Hopes and Dreams - Barbara Hannay
I really enjoyed this. Set in Brisbane it is the story of people in an apartment block coming together over the community garden on their roof. The two main characters are Vera - originally from England but spent years on a rural property in Australia and now widowed and feeling lost in the city, and Maddie, who is feeling lost after various unlucky relationships.
I enjoyed seeing the way the garden brought people together and how the various relationships played out. Living in an apartment block that has a communal garden and knowing one of the reasons the council supported the was to create connections between people it was a nice read.
7).The Beautiful Words. - Vanessa McCausland
I've possibly already read my favourite book of the year. I don't know how to sum this up properly. Sylvie and Kase were childhood friends - met the first day of Yr 7 and were soul mates until a tragic accident separated them when they were 17. It is now Kase's 40th birthday and she has invited Sylvie even though they haven't been in contact for 23 years.
Sylvie was considered gifted, a brilliant mind and beautiful soul who was destined for great things. But after the night at the lighthouse the accident robbed her of her memory and her way with words.
There is a lot in this book on the fallibility of memory, of the stories we tell ourselves, the power of words and then language and books. As well as friendships and betrayal.
Vanessa McClausland is such a descriptive writer -her two previous books were set on the south coast of NSW and then the Capertee Valley near Lithgow. I wanted to go there after reading that one. This one is set in Tasmania and Sydney. One part of Sydney set in 1996 made me gasp with total recognition. And yes, I need another trip to Tassie after reading this book.
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Post by ozziegiraffe on Feb 1, 2022 21:49:57 GMT -5
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