Category: week in books

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: August 5 – August 11

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A mix of earlies and late shifts this week and a lot of train journeys.  Some interesting reading  and some that was kind disappointing.  But that’s fairly par for the course really isn’t it!

Read:

The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite

Shirley Flight Air Hostess in Storm Warning by Judith Dale

Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean

The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

Love and Death Among the Cheetahs by Rhys Bowen

We Are Never Meeting In Real Life by Samantha Irby

Dig Here by Charlaine Harris and Andrew Gross

A Little Light Mischief by Cat Sebastian

Started:

Empty Mansions by Bill Dedman and Paul Clark Newell Jr

Top Marks for Murder by Robin Stevens

Still reading:

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

The Girls by Emma Cline

No books bought – but two pre-orders arrived – one book and one ebook!

Bonus photo: Another week, another Shirley Flight book – this one was a house warming present from a friend and hoo boy it was a wild ride!

Book of the Week, non-fiction

Book of the Week: Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud

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As I said in yesterday’s Week in Books, it turns out that the week after the move is also super busy.  And I have so little brain space going on for anything that it’s not funny. Anyway, another non-fiction pick this week.  What can I say, all my library holds for non fiction books are coming in and I’m trying hard to read them as soon as I get them so I don’t run out of time on the loans!  And this is one that I’ve heard a lot about – including some great interviews with the author Anne Helen Peterson.

Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud’s subtitle is The Rise and Reign of Unruly Women and examines a series of women and what it is about them that the media and society finds so difficult to deal with.   Each woman is picked for one specific trait that makes her unrulyy – Serena Williams is too strong, Kim Kardashian is too pregnant, Hillary Clinton too shrill.  And in examining these women it sheds light on to how society views women and challenges assumptions that you may have made yourself.  Anne Helen Peterson is a senior culture writer at Buzzfeed and this is incredibly readable, as well as packed with what was clearly a lot of research.

Even if you don’t like all of the women here – and there are definitely some that I wouldn’t say I’m a fan of – but I found that there was something in every chapter that made me think, or reconsider some of my preconceptions.  And as someone who used to be a radio newsreader, I’ve had a lot of comments about my voice over the years, so there was definitely some stuff in the too shrill chapter that I had a lot of feelings about.  But I think most (every?) woman reading this will recognise something that’s been said about her or too her in this.

I know this review is shorter than the usual – but that’s mostly my brainfade talking.  This is a really, really good and interesting read – I raced through it – and fits in really well with some of the other writing about women and society that I’ve read recently.  Peterson is currently writing a book about burnout – if you haven’t read her essay about how Millennials became the burnout generation, you really should – and I’m very excited to see what she has to say about it.

My copy of Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud came from the library, but you should be able to get hold of it fairly easily – there are Kindle and Kobo editions as well as paperbacks and hardbacks that you can get from places like Book Depository.  I’m not sure how easy it’ll be to get in an actual bookshop – because I still haven’t worked out if these are UK editions or imports.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 29 – August 4

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So.  Turns out the week after the move is just as busy (maybe worse?) than the week before the move, especially when you’re away from home for 4 nights of it. Hey ho. We’ll get there.  And the bookshelves are mostly unpacked now, so the new house is starting to look really good!  And on Saturday I met up with part of the UK contingent of Sarah MacLean’s Romance book club as well as Sarah herself for lunch – so it’s been a pretty bookish week all things considered!

Read:

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

The Hairy Hand by Robin Bennett

Shirley Flight, Air Hostess in Canadian Capers by Judith Dale

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Muraka

Dim Sum of All Fears by Vivien Chen

Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud by Anne Helen Peterson

Started:

Brazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLean

The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite

Still reading:

We Are Never Meeting In Real Life by Samantha Irby

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

The Girls by Emma Cline

Two actual books bought – the Shirley Flight (see photo) on a cheeky lunchtime trip to The Second Shelf and the new Sarah MacLean.  Also pre-ordered a couple – one in ebook, one actual book.  August, already the month of book buying.

Bonus photo:

Copy of Shirley Flight Air Hostess in Canadian Capers in a pink and white striped paper bag.

Book of the Week, non-fiction

Book of the Week: The Great Successor

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So I did manage to do some reading last week in between packing boxes, moving boxes and unpacking boxes, and in between all the comfort reading to try and calm me down, I finished this fascinating non-fiction read.  But as it’s still all go here, please forgive me if this post is a little shorter than usual!

Cover of The Great Successor

Anna Fifield is currently the Beijing bureau chief for the Washington Post, but her previous beat was the Koreas and Japan.  She’s also worked for the Financial Times in Seoul.  The Great Successor is her look at Kim Jong Un – his childhood, his rise to power and what he’s done since he became ruler of North Korea.  She’s knowledgable and her sources are people with real experience of the regime.  But it’s also incredibly readable – if a little bit terrifying.

Along with pretty much every journalist on the planet, I’ve done a lot of watching of North Korea – particularly since Donald Trump came to power.  And this is the best insight I’ve yet found into what might be going through the mind of Kim Jong Un – who is pretty much the same age as me and who might have the power to change the world as we know it if he so chooses.   Try not to panic.  This is definitely worth trying to get your hands on if you’re interested in international affairs – and if you’ve read some of the books looking at the inside of the Trump White House, this would make an interesting addition to your to-read pile.  Equally, this isn’t the first book about the Korean Peninsular that I’ve read – and it would make a great trio with The Birth of South Korean Cool and A Kim Jong Un Production.

British cover of The Greaet Successor

My copy of The Great Successor came from the Library, but I think it should be available fairly easily – it’s certainly out in Kindle and Kobo and the hardback is out now and available from Book Depository – all though you’ll note the difference in subtitles between the US and British editions!

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 22 – July 28

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So we moved house.  I’m exhausted and still surrounded by boxes, despite my best efforts.  And this week I’m away three nights for work, so it’s only going to get worse right?  Anyway, the house got packed up on Tuesday, so most of this weeks reading were ebooks – because the actual books were Unavailable!

Read:

Money in the Morgue by Ngaio Marsh and Stella Duffy

T is for Trespass by Sue Grafton

U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton

The Great Successor by Anna Fifield

A Kiss in the Snow by Susan Mallery

Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams

Pride by Ibi Zoboi

Started:

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Muraka

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

Still reading:

We Are Never Meeting In Real Life by Samantha Irby

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

The Girls by Emma Cline

No books bought.  Hurrah.

Bonus photo: the bookshelves in the process of being reassembled.  NB: The car magazines belong to Him Indoors.

Bookshelves part filled

Book of the Week

Book of the Week: The Money in the Morgue

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This week’s pick is the Inspector Alleyn continuation that I mentioned in my Alleyn series post. It’s a bit a of cheat because I finished it on Monday, but it was my favourite of the books I read last week that I hadn’t already written about!

Cover of the Money in the Morgue

World War Two is raging in Europe and Roderick Alleyn is in New Zealand undercover, staying at a hospital as the threat from Japan moves closer. On a dark and stormy night, the official bringing the wages to the hospitals on the plains gets stuck there for the night when his car breaks down. Also at the hospital are stir crazy soldiers, employees trapped in a love triangle and a dying elderly man and his grandson. Then the money goes missing from the safe and the body count goes up and Alleyn has to reveal himself (at least partially) to try and solve the crime.

I have a mixed track record with continuations of classic series in general and detective stories in particular. I like a couple of the Wimsey ones but have serious reservations about the later ones, the first Sophie Hannah Poirot is quite good and I’ve got a few Campion ones yet to read. And this is definitely on the positive end of the spectrum – hence why it’s a BotW pick – although I didn’t think it always read entirely like the rest of the series.  I think it helps that this is based around opening chapters written by Marsh herself. The best Wimsey continuation is the first one – based on a Sayers plot outline – and they go downhill from there.

But in the case of The Money in the Morgue, the mystery is good, the New Zealand setting is atmospheric and in that response fits in with previous New Zealand installments in the series. And it’s also nice to be back in a period that really suits Alleyn. I read the series in strict order and in the last ones it’s just not quite the same as it was in the early half of the series – he should be too old to be doing what he’s doing and it’s just too much.  The ones I revist are pretty much always the earlier ones in the series.  I did miss the regular side kicks like Inspector Fox, but on the whole the new secondary characters mostly made up for it.

The Money in the Morgue is out now in paperback, and I’d hope you’d be able to find it fairly easily in bookshops – it’s certainly available on Book Depository. It’s also on Kindle and Kobo.

Happy Reading!

 

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 15 – July 21

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As an addendum to last week’s post about historical mysteries, you’ll now note that I’m completely up to date with Her Royal Spyness and am going to have to wait for the next book to come out before I can find out what happens next.  This is a real trial to me.

Read:

The Burning Issue of the Day by T E Kinsey

On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service by Rhys Bowen

Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding by Rhys Bowen

Needled to Death by Maggie Sefton

So Disdained by Nevil Shute

A Deadly Yarn by Maggie Sefton

Gallows Court by Martin Edwards

Sharp by Michelle Dean

Started:

Money in the Morgue by Ngaio Marsh and Stella Duffy

The Girls by Emma Cline

Still reading:

We Are Never Meeting In Real Life by Samantha Irby

The Great Successor by Anna Fifield

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

No books bought. Hurrah for me!

Bonus photo: a wooden knight at an old abbey where we went for a walk on Sunday afternoon

Book of the Week, new releases

Book of the Week: Evvie Drake Starts Over

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Such an easy choice for this week.  I had to be dragged away from this one and it totally lifted me out of what had been a bit of a reading slump as I rationalised the to-read shelf and discovered that there was a fair number of books on it that I didn’t like when I started reading them.

Cover of Evvie Drake Starts Over

Evvie Drake has the car packed. She’s leaving her husband. But just as she’s about to about to go when the phone rings: Tim has been in a car accident, she needs to get to the hospital, fast.  We rejoin Evvie nearly a year later – when everyone in town thinks it’s grief that’s keeping her at home and she hasn’t done anything to correct them.  To help out a friend – and to help pay the bills, she lets the apartment at the back of her house to Dean Tenney, former Major League Baseball pitcher and now a byword for blowing it after a major case of the yips saw him lose his aim.  The two of them make a deal – she won’t ask about his baseball career and he won’t ask about her late husband.  But as the months go by the two of them grow closer and a friendship looks like it could develop into something more.  But those demons are going to need addressing before they can really move forward.

This is just what I hoped it would be.  It’s warm and has a great slow burn romance and two people trying to figure out whether they are right for each other – and whether they’re actually ok themselves.  Evvie (rhymes with Chevy) is a wonderful heroine – smart and funny but also a little bit broken and trying to figure out who she really is and if she can get her life back on track.  And Dean is such an appealing hero – he’s lost the ability to do the thing that defined who he was and has to figure out who he is if he’s not a baseball player.  The supporting characters are wonderfully drawn too and Evvie’s complicated relationship with the town feels very realistic.  I had a few minor quibbles here and there – but nothing that took me out of the story or disturbed my warm and cozy feeling at the way that it was all unfolding.

I had been a little worried that this wouldn’t live up to my expectations for it: I had been looking forward to reading this ever since I heard about it.  Linda Holmes is the presenter of the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR and mentioned more than a year ago (as part of their things that are making them happy this week section) that she had written a novel and that it was going to be published.  On top of that, it’s got great reviews, been picked for a big TV book club in the US and the UK version has blurbs from Rainbow Rowell, Helen Hoang and Taylor Jenkins Reid.  How could it ever live up to all that?  But it did, it really did.  I’m often moaning about not being able to find the sort of romantic novels that I like, the sort of thing that I used to be able to buy really easily 10 years ago – with smart heroines and humour and where people fix themselves and get romance as a bonus – and this did everything that I wanted it to do.  When I got to the end and read the list of thank yous from the author, it was a list of people who I listen to on podcasts or read on my favourite websites and I realised that I should have had more faith and been less worried.

British cover of Evvie Drake Starts Over

My copy of Evvie Drake Starts Over came from the library – and I got there before a huuuuuuge queue developed behind me – I only had to wait a couple of weeks after release for my hold to come in.  But its available now in Kindle, Kobo and hardback (with a paperback coming out in March 2020).  It would make a perfect read on your sunlounger this summer.

Happy Reading!

books, stats, The pile, week in books

The Week in Books: July 8 – July 14

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I thought this list was going to be shorter than usual this week but actually it’s worked out ok. Why did I think the list would be shorter? Well the Michelle Dean is long and I’ve spent a lot of train journeys reading that, and secondly because I’ve had one of my periodic culls of the tbr-pile which included another round of “50 pages and out” on stuff that I wasn’t sure whether to keep or jettison.

Read:

The Golden Tresses of the Dead by Alan Bradley

Best Of My Love by Susan Mallery

Of Dogs and Walls by Yuko Tsushima

Springtime at Cherry Tree Cottage by Cathy Woodman

All Or Nothing by Rose Lerner

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes

Dockside by Susan Wiggs

One Hot Summer by Kat French

Started:

The Burning Issue of the Day by T E Kinsey

The Great Successor by Anna Fifield

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

Still reading:

Gallows Court by Martin Edwards

Sharp by Michelle Dean

We Are Never Meeting In Real Life by Samantha Irby

And no books bought – I’m trying hard to restrain book buying urges and the library with its ebook loan service is really helping me.  I did pick up a kindle freebie or two though.

Bonus photo: Summer flowers in my parents’ garden this week – it looks so perfectly English country garden to me.

flower borders

 

Book of the Week, LGTBQIA+

Book of the Week: Proud

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Picking a BotW this week was a mix of hard and actually quite easy this week. I read a lot of stuff, but actually didn’t love a lot of it – and some that I did like were by authors that I’ve already written a lot about. But then there was Proud. And it was Pride in London this weekend and I spent my Saturday walking through happy, rainbow-bedecked crowds – firstly on their way to the parade, which started by work and secondly wandering through the after parties in Soho on my way to the theatre in the evening and then back to my hostel afterwards.

Proud is a collection of Young Adult short stories poetry and art edited by Juno Dawson and featuring a mix of new and established LGTBQ+* authors. There’s a huge range of experiences and identities here – including a few that I haven’t seen represented much in my own reading.

I can’t pick a favourite of the stories, because they’re all good and there were several that I really liked. I love a Pride and Prejudice retelling, so I Hate Darcy Pemberley really appealed to me. But then so did The Courage of Dragons – a story about a group of Dungeons and Dragons playing friends who band together during prom to right some wrongs done to one of their number. And then there is Penguins – about prom and crushes and two male penguins who have fallen in love.

Although I read a lot of Middle Grade fiction, I don’t really read a lot of YA – because I find it can tend towards the depressing – particularly when dealing with LGTBQ+ issues. But this is the opposite of that – the stories are affirming and joyous and romantic which is exactly what you want in a book called Proud.

My copy came from NetGalley (yes, I know, I’m super behind because this came out in March and I’ve only just read it) but you should be able to get a copy of Proud from any good bookshop and it’s also available on Kindle and Kobo.

Here’s a bonus picture of the post-Pride march parties.

Partying in the street in Soho near the King Edward Theatre which has Rainbow flags on its big screens

Happy reading!

* I’m using LGTBQ+ here as this is how the book itself describes itself and its contributors.