50 Book Challenge 2019 Part Five

37. My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

Thumbs up for this modern black comedy. I’ve had a run of interesting likeable reads this year.

Currently half way through listening to/reading Vanity Fair and loving it so far. The only breasts here are suitably, discretely covered up and set to great advantage.

Well done biblio!

Slightly shorter is Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. A short and downright odd little book. Whimsical and quirky would be kind adjectives. But really, it's just weird!

I’m going to have to read TTOD and stop worrying about whether I will like it or not. Did anyone in the second wave so far not enjoy it??

69 The Hot Zone by Richard Preston

Eek. This was totally terrifying, and the real stuff of nightmares. An account of the early stirrings of Ebola, tracing its emergence from the jungle and into a monkey research facility in the US. My aunt nursed people with Marburg and used to tell me stories about it which scared the living daylights out of me as a child, and it turns out that monkey-to-human viruses are still the thing I’m most scared of.

This read like an exceptionally alarming thriller with no happy ending. The author builds up the tension through semi-fictionalised portraits of the leading figures going about their lives before they come up against the virus. It felt a little like an episode of Casualty in that regard. I didn’t need the pages of exposition about what a researcher’s children had for dinner before I got to the point, but I can see how it all added up to something more than a standard non-fiction book.

I would really have liked an update looking at the outbreak in Sierra Leone and Liberia a few years ago exploring what we have (and haven’t) learned, but that isn’t the fault of the book.

No breasts, except when covered by many layers of biohazard suits.

Disappointingly though, there were only passing references to breasts, and all fully justified in context.

Fanfare please - finished This Thing of Darkness, by Harry Thompson.

For anyone who hasn't read it, it's a lightly fictionalised account of the voyage of The Beagle and its aftermath, with a focus on Captain FitzRoy rather than Darwin. It pulls no punches about the naked greed underlying the 19th century colonial enterprise, along with the harm done by the muddled good intentions of spreading Christianity.

The seafaring adventures of the first half are reminiscent of Patrick O'Brian, but the second half goes to some darker places. If O'Brian's hero is Lucky Jack, Thompson's is Unlucky Robert, whose heroic efforts are stymied at every turn by the malice of lesser men. The whole novel left me seething at the injustice undergone both by individuals and by whole populations.

After following the main character for nearly forty years, I felt very emotionally invested in him. It's additionally poignant because the author died the year the book was published, at the age of 45. I hope he at least knew he had achieved something before he died.

52. Bad Apple by Zoje Stage

7 year old Hanna has never spoken a word.
She’s a perfect little angel for her daddy (Alex), but not her mommy (Suzette). She wants her mommy out of the way so she can have her daddy all to herself. And she wants to kill her mommy to get her way.

This focuses mainly on the increasingly toxic relationship between Hanna and Suzette. Alex spends most of the book pretending that everything is absolutely fine with Hanna, despite warnings to the contrary. It seemed strongly slanted towards portraying Hanna as born bad.

It’s an unsettling read, but not one that really worked for me.

One of the things that annoyed me about Daisy Jones was the fixation in describing her bosom and what it represented - her personality was 90 per cent breast tissue. I thought I could escape it in a book written by a woman but pert nipples and see through fabric get everywhere.

Is that the first Big Sky review? Mine has obediently entered the random.number generator.

A very busy week - no time for reading, let alone finding anything I'm actually wanting to read, so just a quick pop in to skim what I've missed.

I enjoyed the breast talk and am going to be trying to keep an eye on what my breasts might be telling me about my emotional state. Currently mine are rather sweaty and hoping for bra removal - any ideas what that might reveal?

Stewart Marconie cba to check if I'm spelling chat correctly. I read and disliked Pies and Prejudice years ago and just didn't understand why he was so popular.

18. Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue, John McWhorter

A slightly alternative look at the history of the English language, the slightly alternative part being the influence of Celtic languages on English. Most historical linguists thought that Celtic was mostly lost in English, place names aside. McWhorter shows how Celtic grammar has in fact shaped English grammar, how vikings bashed English even more out of shape and so on. If you’re into the history of English, you’ll probably enjoy this.

19) Revenge, Yoko Ogawa
Short story collection translated from Japanese. The stories are all linked in some way, some more obviously than others. All the stories are quite dark or unsettling on some way, so it feels wrong to say I enjoyed it, but I really did DH read the original Japanese version and says the phrasing is beautiful in Japanese. That doesn’t come across so much in English - it can be a bit staccato, and is light on description but I actually think that’s a positive. With some stories you wouldn’t know if the narrator was male or female until halfway through, and even then because of a throwaway comment. I much prefer that to the “she brushed her long flaxen locks and blinked her green, almond shaped eyes as she appreciated her curves poured into the I don’t care just get on with the bloody story...” style.

And god yes, Philip K Dick is atrocious. For all his imagination with settings and worlds, he had no imagination with women. I think he thought women could only express emotions through their breasts. Scared women’s breasts will wobble. Excited women’s breasts will vibrate. Sad women’s breasts will shudder.

Odd man.

39 The Kindly Ones by Anthony Powell
Continuing the series in this one someone dies, someone's marriage breaks up, someone else gets locked in the lavatory and war is declared. This made me laugh but also felt sad at the funeral (won't say more than that as spoilers) where even family members couldn't be bothered to turn up. Powell is very good at describing the judgements we all make on each other's lives.

I am now reading the next one which is also good so far.

Pressed post too soon!

117. Believe Me by J P Delaney

Another completely bonkers thriller. Claire works as a honey trapper, but gets involved with a man whose wife has been murdered. She is asked to try and trap him into a confession. It all gets completely ridiculous from that point onwards. Not recommended!

118. Big Sky by Kate Atkinson

This, on the other hand, is very much recommended! I love Kate Atkinson and the Jackson Brodie books and this didn’t disappoint. I listened to this on Audible read by Jason Isaacs, who played Brodie in the TV adaptations. This brings back a character I liked from one of the earlier books and I enjoyed seeing where that character is now. I was pleased to see from the interview linked upthread that Atkinson is working on another Brodie book.

113. The Life Changing Magic Of Numbers by Bobby Seagull

This is meant to be an accessible look at maths in real world situations (understanding bank interest, gambling, online dating algorithms). Mostly it was,but there were a few occasions it went over my head!

114. Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild

Listened to this on Audible. Love the book (a childhood favourite) but didn’t like the narrator which affected my enjoyment.

115. Hard Pushed: A Midwife’s Story by Leah Hazard

Latest in the medical memoirs genre and I really enjoyed this. There are some heart breaking moments but also some amusing ones. If you enjoyed The Language Of Kindness by Christie Watson then you would also enjoy this. However - if you’re pregnant/TTC and you’re the sort of person who worries about things you read, then DON’T read this as it is quite graphic in places about things that can go wrong in labour!

116. Annelies by David Gilham

This is based on the premise that Anne Frank didn’t die in Belsen, and imagines the life she might have had afterwards. It’s an interesting idea but I didn’t like the execution. None of the characters were likeable in this book and for me this tarnishes Anne’s memory. I wish I hadn’t read this.

Scribbly, if you enjoy Tememaire, I strongly recommend spreading them out- i found they got a bit repetitive and ended up giving up, which was a shame as I had enjoyed them.

I really enjoyed Bloody Brilliant Women . Still here reading and following thread just drowning under family stuff, work stuff and a tiny bit of blogging. 50 Bookers are keeping me quietly sane. Roll on end of term

54 How to Marry a Werewolf by Gail Carriger

At the end of the 19thC, Faith follows a well worn path across the Atlantic to join other rich American girls on the hunt for a husband in London society - but with the strict instruction from her parents that she is to catch herself a werewolf. To British eyes this is unusual but not overly surprising - the packs are rich, socially well connected and have political influence. For conservative and religious Americans, it is rather different - and her parents' agenda is not all about Faith's best interests.

This was on Audible - I've read it before but got a free code in an author giveaway. It worked well as an easy fun listen while I was working.

55. The Heartland: finding and losing schizophrenia by Nathan Filer Short but exceptional both in content and writing. Nathan Filer explores 'schizophrenia' and other forms of mental distress and disorder through the experiences of a number of individuals, and in the context of changing models of diagnosis, medication & other therapies offered and wider society. I imagine most of us will have known people - friends, family or wider acquaintance - who have suffered psychotic episodes and/or had a diagnosis of schizophrenia, but even if they haven't I am sure that any reader would get helpful insight from this book about their own and others' mental wellbeing.

33. Mythos by Stephen Fry

Retelling of Greek myths by Stephen Fry (I listened on Audible and he narrates too)
Starts from the very beginning of Greek Mythology, where the gogs emerged out of chaos. Well told, with an occasional contemporary touch (Hera does get irritated with Zeus and could write a fair few AIBUs!) , I also enjoyed the little linguistic information and points of interest, it is amazing how much these stories have influenced out language and culture (eg the story of how we got the verb to tantalise, and how a huge amount of words beginning with G that refer to the earth (Ground, Geography, Geology) are all named after Gaia - mother earth.
Well worth a read.

68 Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton
A short, fun read that was better than I expected. Total ripoff of The Talented Mister Ripley, with mobile phones. I wanted something diverting and easy after a string of quite worthy reads and this did the job.

Perhaps Bloody Brilliant Women by Cathy Newman is the right book to be reviewing after al the discussion of Follett's breasts!

This is a really interesting, thoroughly researched and detailed book. The title and the vivid front cover actually may make the book appear less serious and astute than it is. It goes though the last two centuries or so in terms of women 'our history teachers never told us about', which is usually true, sadly.

Mumsnet gets a whole page devoted to it, noting its influence in the 2010 election and the 'robust' posting style which linguistic analysts found curiously masculine and witty!

I enjoyed some bits more than others but on the whole it is fascinating. Newman writes a good deal about the amount of flak and criticism women get - once via behaviours ( I was very reminded of the awful treatment of the Suffragettes when disrupting meetings and the actions of women at the 1970 Miss World recently when that MP manhandled the Greenpeace protestor), then letters and comments and now online. It seems somewhat frustrating/ironic/ poignant, therefore, that her Amazon rating is undermined by misogynists and transphobic keyboard warriors who take issue with about two sentences in her book, and a photograph, on a couple of occasions. They seem almost exclusively male : and I very much doubt they have read the book. Hey ho.

remus, I do think Newman punctuates and paragraphs correctly (although I wish sometimes she wouldn't hop form subject to subject quite so rapidly) so you might approve....

Great review, Fortuna. Personally, I concentrate most of my personality in my boobies, so I'm always glad when someone picks that up.

Currently on Waterlog, by Roger Deakin, which is justifiably beloved by many. It's nature writing - man swims his way around the UK. I'm okay with nature writing in small doses, provided it's done with a fairly light touch, which this is. Due back to the library soon so I'm gulping it down faster than I'd ideally like.

Slow at reading This Thing of Darkness, partly because it feels like homework and I feel a strange and self-inflicted obligation to report back to thread...

And here is the review for 37 which I managed to miss out!

37 Winner Loses All by Graham Greene
I'd never heard of this one before I picked it up in the library. Young man works as an accountant for a London firm. He is called in to see the big boss and during their conversation mentions he is getting married. The big boss insists that he marry in France and honeymoon with him on his yacht rather than in London and going to Bournemouth as planned. There follows a story about love and gambling which has similar themes (but nothing else) to the story of Oscar and Lucinda, strangely enough, which I read next.

35 Asking for the Moon by Reginald Hill
Some Dalziel and Pascoe short stories which I'd somehow missed reading although I think I've read the rest of his books. Enjoyable.

36 Monarch of the Glen by Compton Mackenzie
When I read the first chapter I was afraid it was going to be all wealthy landowner being put upon by the hoi polloi and how we must all feel sympathy for him. But it was a much more rounded story than that. Set sometime before the Second World War it is the comic fight between the highland landowner and some hikers. There is a very funny scene where an American is taken deerstalking,and for anyone who has attended a Highland Games some very funny descriptions of that. He created a series of good characters. Thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

38 Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey
This is a story that moves back and forward from Sydney to England in Victorian times telling the relationship between Oscar and Lucinda. I found it a very good read although I do have a couple of reservations about the structure which is told through the eyes of a descendent. He very cleverly creates a series of characters who leap off the page at you.

Sorry! That was Stitches review! Too early in the day. Apologies Stitches.

Thanks for the review sadik. I love Poirot and had been wondering whether to give the Sophie Hannah books a go but think I'll stay away. It'll just make me furious if she's messed it up.

50. Give Me Your Hand by Megan Abbott

Kit’s worked hard to get to the top of her profession, when her old school friend Diane suddenly reappears as a rival.
Kit and Diane were inseparable as teenagers until Diane revealed a terrible secret. And soon Diane knows something that could destroy Kit’s life too.

It’s a fairly average psychological thriller. There’s some seriously bizarre behaviour and reactions from the supporting characters about things they think Diane’s doing.

51. Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah

One of Sophie Hannah’s Poirot books.
I was not impressed.

Poirot and Inspector Catchpool of Scotland Yard are invited to spend a week at Lady Athelinda Playford’s Irish mansion, where she announces over dinner that she’s changed her will to leave everything to her terminally ill secretary. Murder follows, of course, so Poirot must investigate.

It starts out ok, but the characterisations were weak.
Catchpool narrates the book, but after getting to the end of the book, I’ve still got very little feel for his character. He seems to be mainly there so Poirot has someone to chat to, and he has about as much personality as a plank.
Plus he doesn’t seem to be a particularly valuable Scotland Yard detective.
He books a weeks holiday off work, fine. The local police demand everyone sticks around in Ireland until after the victims inquest, fine, his boss might not like it, but there’s not much choice in the matter and they can extend leave from work for that sort of thing.
And then! He calls his boss and says that Hercule Poirot wants him to stick around because Catchpool’s a useful sounding board, and his boss immediately gives him an indefinite leave of absence! Must have been a very slow crime month in London
Surely a normal reaction from a boss would be more along the lines of “No, Poirot will have to manage without you, you’ve got your own work to do here, I’ll expect to see you at your desk on Monday” ?

The ending was also unconvincing. The killer’s ultimate motive was pretty unbelievable.

It’s probably okay to pass the time with as long as you’ve got low expectations, but I don’t think I’ll bother with any more of Hannah’s Poirot books.