Read: Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead ★★★★☆ 📚
More Harlem corruption, criminality, horror & fun. 3 linked episodes across the 70s. Wanders into back alleys & backstories in an engaging way.
Tag: ★★★★
Read: So Late in the Day by Claire Keegan ★★★★☆ 📚
Very short, disturbing & moving tale.
Read: The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston ★★★★☆ 📚
I read this decades ago and was not disappointed by this re-read.
Read: We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker ★★★★☆ 📚
Murder mystery with arms & legs. Despite the rather unbelievable teenage, character, the twists and convolutions kept me reading and engaged. A nice distraction.
Read: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell ★★★★☆ 📚
Enjoyed the dip into the strange world of the 1500s Italy. Not quite as absorbing as Hamnet but I was engrossed, even though the murder is announced at the start I had my hopes up.
Read: Antarctica by Claire Keegan ★★★★☆ 📚
After reading Small Things Like These and watching Foster I was surprised at some of the more dramatic turns and unpleasantness in some of these stories. They have a similar quiet, clarity & almost terseness.
Read: I’m Sorry You Feel That Way by Rebecca Wait ★★★★☆ 📚
dysfunctional family story, that was in turn rather funny and quite serious. I enjoyed the fun and though the description of psychosis was good.
Read: All’s Well by Mona Awad ★★★★☆ 📚
I really disliked, or was made uncomfortable by the narrator. Both when she was describing her illness or in her magically achieved wellness. It was compelling. Never sure if the action was real, unreliably reported or a hallucination.
Read: The High House by Jessie Greengrass ★★★★☆ 📚
Compelling climate crisis novel that focuses on relationships between a very small cast. I like the sparseness the of speech & little moments. Good on our sleepwalking too.
Read: Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes ★★★★☆ 📚
Perseus son of Zeus is not too bright, Medusa is an innocent. The Gods self absorbed & fickle. A bit too jokey for me sometimes but the last couple of page are transforming.