I've been looking forward to this one and wasn't disappointed. It wasn't quite a five star read, but a solid four star bath read. Uplifting story, lovely characters, and of course, a fantastically snarky octopus who is the best part of the whole book; I loved him.
If only we all had smart, snarky octopi to solve our problems.
Thoroughly enjoyed this; had to top up the hot water in my bath last night just so I could finish it!
The memoir device is a really interesting way to tell what could have been a fairly rote fantasy story, and I really enjoyed the older narrators frustrated asides at her younger selves impetuousness.
Less dragons and more geopolitical intrigue than I expected, but I'll still pick up the next in this series.
My first Erdrich and not my last! I think this will benefit from a reread to further engage with the depth of the story.
A good read for book lovers (there's a bibliography!) And features well drawn, loveable, diverse characters.
There's a very strong theme of identity throughout, and what makes an identity - a name? A uniform? A shared culture? Can you be a mum if you've never given birth? Can you be a good cop? Can you change your identity with your actions?
Objectively a good book, but one I found difficult to enjoy.
A pandemic allows humans to understand animals. But not in a fluffy, Disney way - its all very visceral and dark and dirty.
I struggled with the lack of sympathetic characters and the gritty, coarseness of it all. Older female protagonist is good but she's difficult to like.
Ultimately does a good job of showing that for all our pretensions, we're just animals too.
First 5 star read of the year. I absolutely love this book. I raced through it.
Its about stories and how important they are to our survival. About the unseen threads that hold us together. That the Internet, useful as it might be, does not hold much more than a fraction of our history. That the world, as it is, is enough if we decide it is.
It's such a hopeful book too, that acknowledges the danger we're in, but offers a different perspective.
I've read several books in this genre over the past couple of years and what makes this one stand out is the tactility of it, which isn't surprising given the author is a ceramicist. I really enjoyed the focus on objects, and all the ways we imbue objects with meaning. And how stripping people of their belongings is also a way of stripping away their identities.
(Reposted as forget to post to my 2024 thread, which I'm determined to keep going!)
A must read for anyone whose interested in decolonizing the curriculum!
Not perfect, falls off a bit in the second half and relies on some very roughly sketched characters who could have been rounded out earlier.
But the world building is fantastic, the magic system is cool (if more Norrellian than Strangeite and I love you if you get what I mean) and it really makes you think. Letty especially is a challenge for many of us well meaning white women.
Do we see patterns in chaos because there is a system behind it all, or because our brains are attuned to finding patterns?
Huge in scope covering several countries, family relationships, nature vs nature, the end of the world, neuroscience and a very moral monkey, this is a very cleverly written but very dense novel that ended up being a bit of a slog.
The translation is excellent and the prose sparkles, but it needs concentration.
I have apparently been so battered by the last 13 years* of everything that I was unable to read this heartwarming tale of an elderly curmudgeon and the community that forms around him as anything other than a libertarian wet dream, or Ron Swanson's ideal society.
Which is a shame as several people I like and respect loved this, so this is probably a ME problem.
(* David Cameron was elected in 2010 - can you even believe it?!)
You don't need me to tell you that this book is superb, but it's my book thread so I'll do so anyway - this book is superb!
A meandering meditation on the essentially ephemeral nature of our cultures and creations. Things we hold dear for decades, centuries even that then cease to exist or even matter. Could be depressing, but I didn't find it so. Could be boring, but I was riveted and will come back to it over and over.
As alternate Londons go, this one is fab - very dark and creepy with fantastic ideas and imagery. Literal knuckleheads! An enchanted tattoo! The embassy of the sea!
Sadly the pacing made getting into it a huge challenge as after an initial flurry of plot, bugger all happens for 100 pages. And it's hard to stuck with it for the mostly underdeveloped characters either. When the story gets going though, its good!
In a nutshell: more vibes than plot, but the vibes are great!
A beautiful and sad read, this. I could call it a Catholic 'Cider With Rosie' with extra generational trauma but that would be too glib. A sensitive exploration of a boy coming to terms with his family's, and his country's, tragic history.
If you love #DerryGirls you should read this as a background to the city, and to Granda Joe's possible past. It makes his remark about "ghost stories" in the finale even more poignant.
Some proper old school SciFi - not my usual taste but I'm determined to read every word that Le Guin ever wrote, and these are her first novels.
I enjoyed them far more than I expected to - its early Le Guin but the magic is still there, particulary in her world building and characters. Some lovely journey narratives in Rocannon and City, and I enjoyed the love story in Planet.
Glad she dropped the interstellar war bits in late Hainish novels as well.
Not an easy read, this, both in form and subject matter. Worth it though, even if (judging by the Afterword) many of the literary allusions went straight over my head!
A family falls apart, while other families are ripped apart at the US / Mexico border. While the narrative focuses on the former it does force you to think about the latter - which children matter? Who gets to have a childhood? Which journeys are necessary and which foolish?
Gothic fantasy horror - not my normal jam, but I like seeing how different authors explore Faerie - and this is an excellent Faerie! Really eerie and dark and not at all twee or predictable. The gothic atmosphere practically drips off the page with the misty moors and the mysterious castle. Also a ton of theology, much of which required wikipedia for me!
Unfortunately I didnt care at all about the characters, and the pacing was very slow.
Angry, teenage, lesbian ghost falls in love with cross dressing French novelist and her family, in 19th century Mallorca.
Funny and sweet and really easy to race through, I enjoyed this a lot. A few anachronisms from Blanca (the ghost) but I forgave them as shes just such a fun narrator.
A patchwork monster exacts "justice" in a wartorn city similarly made up of different ethnicities, religions, motivations and politics.
Really interesting setting of Baghdad under American occupation - the author does a great job of showing people just trying to live their lives under constant threat of terror or investigation, often with very dark humour.
The characters are less interesting, unfortunately, and we don't spend enough time with The Monster.
A wee gem of a book, this, you can soak it all up in one evening and it's worth it.
Explores the lives of two medieval women, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe, and how they came to meet. If you recognise those names, you should read this and if you don't then you still should!
A lovely exploration of what it was like to be an intelligent woman in a time where women weren't educated. And of faith, solitude and self reflection.
Twenty years later than everyone else, but the good books always find you in the end.
Loved this. Mitchell is just so good at drawing you into each narrative and hooking your interest, and each voice feels distinct.
Hits all my favourite themes about human nature and the uncertain future were facing - he shows us the best and worst in all of us and that whichever prevails, the cycle inevitably continues.
Loved the middle section in particular as it felt so very Le Guin.
A celebration of black British women's voices and experiences that should be widely read.
I didnt love the way the stories were told, which was very exposition heavy, but I did enjoy the characters themselves who all felt very real; flaws, dreams, regrets and all. And I liked discovering how they were all connected.
A cool First Contact plot, mothers as diplomats, very "alien" aliens, lots of representation of different but equal identities and families, and a glimpse of a future where many have started to pull together to solve the problems we created.
But there was a lot of political scheming, so much dialogue, tech that made it difficult to follow all that dialogue, many neopronouns and human/alien sex. I felt exhausted by the end!
Read this in one evening; a sweet, easy binge read. It’s not great literature, it’s actually pretty trite, but it has loveable characters, a perfect bookshop on an island setting, a little mystery, a little love story and a bit of heartbreak at the end. If you’re a book lover, then you’ll enjoy this.
A bit like A Man Called Ove but with more books and less libertarianism.
Read this on the ferry crossing to Islay. Perfect little book, with not a word out of place, examining all the choices that are available to us if we let ourselves be aware of them.
Would be a lovely pre-Christmas read, which is probably when I'll go back to it.
"The people in this book might be going to have lived a long, long time from now in Northern California."
Less of a novel and more of an anthology of the lives and communities of these people, the Kesh. Virtually no plot, but a gentle, immersive read that will make you think about the human condition, where we are and where we're going.
This quote from Richard Powers at the back of my copy sums up the importance of this book better than I could in my own words.
@purplepadma@kimlockhartga I'm slowly making my way through everything Le Guin wrote - I'd say I discovered her too late but actually, I think I found her at just the right age to deeply appreciate her writing, in a way I wouldn't have when I was younger. So I'm loving the journey!
An interesting, extended metaphor in a mysterious, eerie, post-Arthurian setting. Definitely more allegorical than fantasy. Loved the themes of national identity and collective memory, and of old age, regret and enduring love.
Really struggled with the dialogue though and the middle section dragged, but the bittersweet ending made up for a lot.
Pleasant, easy read about a beautiful part of the world.
Enjoyed the anecdotal style and the authors obvious love for his home in the descriptions of the seasons and wildlife.
The strongest parts were those about his relationships with his father and grandfather, recognising both the love and the competition between them.
A bit reticent in places (I'd have loved more on Oxford and the foot and mouth crisis) but understandable for a northern bloke! I'll read his next book.
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