In an attempt to distract myself from today's seemingly-inevitable-but-horrific-nevertheless political news, have done some long overdue catching up on reviews:
34 - A Buyer’s Market - Anthony Powell
Am well behind the thread-pack on this one and have only reached number 2 of DTMOT but enjoying it hugely. Particularly Widmerpool's appearance in the dungeons followed by his little driving mishap. Volume three (and possibly four) are on my holiday reading list.
35 - Chernobyl: History of a Tragedy - Serhii Plokhy
Opted for the book instead of the TV series and found it fascinating, if rather terrifying. I thought the detailed explanations of how decision-making worked and power was actually exercised in the Soviet state and its satellites were well done and horribly thought provoking. Particularly the section on the payments made to the divers who went in after the explosion, knowing that the job would probably kill them. Such an alien mindset for those of us living in the West and (imho) a good reminder of the value of what we have in a free society, however flawed.
36 - A Body of Work - David Hallberg
This is the autobiography of an American ballet dancer who became the first Westerner to be made a principal dancer at the Bolshoi in around 2010. I was interested since it brings together my obsession with all things Russian as well as a weakness for watching ballet. Also, his time at the Bolshoi covered the recent scandal when one of the dancers employed someone to throw acid in the director's face and the whole theatre divided into factions. However, the book was insanely bland, navel-gazing and self-regarding. Hallberg should probably stick to dancing (which faod, he does very well indeed).
37 - Berlin - Jason Lutes
My first ever graphic novel and surprise favourite book of the year so far. DH has been on at me for ages to read this book, set at the end of Weimar era, just as the Nazis are rising to power. The characters include a young art student coming to Berlin to study, a Jewish family, black jazz players from the US, social democrat activists and street children. With a bit of decadent Weimar orgy thrown in for good measure. It took the author over 25 years to write/draw and I found it astonishingly gripping, moving and powerful. Totally overcame my ignorant prejudice against graphic novels. Unfortunately the book is very heavy (500 pages) and quite expensive but it is a thing of real beauty - a major work of art.
38 - Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Have been reading this for over a year and finally finished! Have to get into the 'Russian' mood for this one, but it is brilliant and tremendously evocative of late 19th century St Petersburg. All the male characters are fairly repulsive and the women are either repulsive or saintly/helpless victims, everyone does a lot of weeping and philosophising, the second epilogue reads as though Dostoyeveky is predicting twitter (character has a fever dream where everyone in the world is convinced that they are right and starts yelling at each other and not listening), the actual murder is not really held against anyone and it's a confusing but amazing epic. Strongly recommend, although maybe not on a beach lounger.
39 - Bolshoi Confidential - Simon Morrison
Still in the Russian/ballet mood, tried to see whether I could improve on the not-very-good-dancer's-autobiography, with a history of the Bolshoi Theatre since its founding, which happened around the time of the Napoleonic wars. This was good in places but somewhat patchy. The best bits were the stories of dancers, choreographers and composers trying to work in the early Soviet years and through the Stalin-purges and 'Great Patriotic War'. The story of Shostakovich's travails at the hands of the regime is heartbreaking. But probably mainly a book for the ballet enthusiast.
40 - This Thing of Darkness - Harry Thompson
Finally caught up to the thread. I really, really enjoyed this (for the most part) and the author successfully brought to life the times and places, both on the voyages and at home in the heart of the 'Evil Empire'. However, I think it had some serious flaws as a novel - he might have done better to stick to either Fitzroy or Darwin's point of view, rather than so much switching (although understand that would have presented difficulties with showing Darwin's trips into the South American interior) and it wore its research rather heavily. I was also very disappointed to read in the endnotes that the author had totally made up a couple of incidents, such as Sullivan's intervention in the Falklands trial. I really don't mind historical invention, where the author invents his leading characters around well known events, with the 'famous' figures in the story just making a cameo. But if a novel gives the reader the impression that it's based on true events starring the main historical figures (albeit with an understood licence to invent the characters' dialogue/thoughts) it undermines that trust to find at the end that some of it didn't happen that way. So a very interesting read but might perhaps have been better as non-fiction? Hope that doesn't bring the wrath of the thread down on my head....
41 - Anne Frank: The Biography - Melissa Muller
We were in Amsterdam recently and I picked this up to read on the train home. Nothing very new to anyone who has read Anne's diary but the background on her family's move from Germany prior to the war and on the people who helped them while in hiding was very interesting. The speculation about who might have betrayed them seemed a bit gossipy though, and when I googled the issue it seems that this author's 'theory' has been pretty much discredited.