50 Books Challenge 2026 Part Five

Welcome @Pigtailsandallwhat a great review of The Seven Moons of Mali Almeida- funnily enough that was a magical realism I enjoyed. Ah well I guess we’re all a ball of contradictions!

Hi, I was hoping to join the challenge if that's ok 😃I have occasionally read this thread and gotten some nice (non-mainstream) recommendations which has been great. I am not the fastest reader, but I have always loved reading and this year I can probably get to 50 books if I keep up my reading pace. I was on the 25 books thread, but it's far less active, and I like how thoroughly people on this thread review their reading (of course many do on the other thread too).

I've finished two books this week (I often have a few on the go at the same time)

28 Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, by Shehan Karunatilaka, and
29 Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

I've been reading Mansfield Park since, I don't know, Christmas? It has reminded me that it's my least favourite Austen. I read all her books in high school, and then re-read P&P, S&S and Emma in my late twenties. So I thought I would re-read the other 3 now, but I have never liked any of the characters in Mansfield Park and so it was very slow. The agonising and fidgeting Fanny Price just gets me irritated. I think I'll do Northanger Abbey next.

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida has been on my bookshelf for years. FIL used to get me the Booker Prize winner every Christmas, and after a reading slump (aka baby and toddler years) I have a bit of a backlog to work through. The story follows a war photographer, gambler and gay man who awakens in the In Between space straddling life and death. He's been murdered, but he can't remember by whom, and he learns that ghosts and ghouls travel around Colombo amongst the living who can't see them. It is heavily seeped into Sri Lanka and its violent history; its religions, mythology and customs, and the deaths of so many are told with wry humour and facts - necessary, I think, otherwise it would all just be too gruesome and horrific. I loved the vividness and sense of place, the flawed characters and magical realism (sorry for those who have just said they hate it!) It was part murder mystery, part historic fiction, part magic. I really enjoyed it although sometimes the multitude of characters and their political affiliations were hard to follow/remember

What about changing it to 'mystical reality'?! 😅

I feel a bit like that @Owlbookend. Although I'd absolutely like to be the sort of person who does appreciate magic realism, as my standard "eh?" reaction makes me feel a bit of a dullard .

The words ‘magic realism’ send me into a cold sweat. The talking crow in The Fell was too much for me. An honourable mention also goes to a novel about early emigration when something magical (and entirely unappreciated by me) happens on the voyage out. Can’t remember the name, but I was like ‘please no I was enjoying the realism - don’t go all wierd’.
Maybe I just lake imagination.

No, I don't think you've oversold it - there was so much there that I did really like, especially the depictions of the different relationships within the family. Enough I liked, in fact, that I've already bought a copy for a friend who I think will love it.

The fish reminded me of Gollum!

I did wonder whether Bran was meant to be related to Brith as he just appears one day.

I'm slightly worried that I've oversold 'Land'. I'm glad that people are enjoying it even if I'm the only one who loved it unconditionally!

I started Land a couple of days ago so am interested in the discussions. I agree with Fuzzy that the magical realism does fit well with Irish folk traditions and beliefs, but even taking that into account, I’m struggling with it a little. I am happy to read fantasy but struggle with magic in a ‘real world’ setting so don’t think it’ll be a bold for me- a me problem rather than a problem with the book though. But I’ll keep going as the writing is beautiful and I love little Liam and the writing about Tomás and Phina as children (I’m about 60 pages in I think)

51. Through A Glass, Darkly - Helen McCloy

A plus point with this crazy heat - I've felt no guilt whatsoever about just sitting about reading an entire book I only started this morning. It’s another of the Mermaid reprints, but I didn’t much want to shell out £5.99 for it, so I was especially pleased to discover it on the Open Library.

McCloy was a prolific US mystery writer who produced a string of books featuring psychiatrist/crime-solver Dr Basil Willing. This is no. 8 in the series, published in 1950, and concerns teacher Faustina Crayle, who's abruptly fired from her job at a prestigious girls' school, but given no explanation. Fellow-teacher Gisela von Hohenems (Willing's future fiancée) decides to help by consulting him. A strange set of circumstances is revealed, which I won't give away - but this is a neat, effective and quite chilling little read, elegantly written. Even if the dénouement might be a bit of a stretch, it does explain the central mystery. I'd certainly explore more in this series.

I hope not! Didn’t think of that! Oh well it was only £3 🤷‍♀️

@DesdamonasHandkerchief I’ll be interested to know if it’s just what is repeated in Enough Said.

There is the Salmon of Knowledge from the Fenian Cycle. Whoever ate him would possess ultimate wisdom. I don't remember that he was an angry, talking fish however 😄

I feel sad it’s probably the last full set of diaries from Alan Bennett too @BestIsWest.
He says in his last entry that he’s no longer able to find the right words or articulate his thoughts properly, which just seems so sad for such a wordsmith.
But then he was diagnosed with aggressive bowel cancer at 63 so I imagine he feels blessed to have seen his 90th birthday come and go.
I think I’ve read all his diaries apart from the slim House Arrest: Pandemic Diaries, which I’ve just bought second hand because your lovely review made me miss his company!

I think as well I'm just not very good with magic realism. I was always going to struggle with the last minute arrival of a talking fish.

Thanks@FuzzyCaoraDhubh . I appreciate that Brith's sad tale provided the back note for the mystical aspects and the connection back to the land itself, but I found it a bit structurally odd. It was quite a long deviation from the main thrust of things to then be left alone for such a long while until we pick up Eugene's story at the end. I suppose I think I either needed more of it, to weave better throughout the story, or less of it, but I'm not sure which . And I'm sure a much better understanding of Irish folklore than I have (admittedly not difficult!) is likely to give an entirely different reading experience. But I still liked it very much.

In Land, I think that the episode featuring the Celtic girl and her family serves more than one purpose. It shows the origins of the well, the lost ring and the burial site that Eugene discovers. He is the one who appreciates the land in its fullest sense as he sees and hears everything and understands more than others do. He has a kind of sixth sense and he is as much bound to the land as Celtic girl is embedded in her boggy resting place. This episode reinforces the kind of wisdom that is particular to his character.
I liked too how he evolved at the close of the book and how the ending referenced the oral tradition of storytelling, myths and legends.

The ring is a motif that connects past to present in the story as is the well and even the cottage that is built stone by stone and passed from one generation to the next, rebuilt and restored.

I think that the magical realism aspect of the book ties in well with Irish folklore. I appreciate that that there is an element of far-fetched to it, but the reader can make up their own minds and not overthink it, unlike me!

Enough Said - Alan Bennett

His diaries 2016-2024.

Oh I enjoyed this so much. He covers Brexit, Boris and the pandemic, many deaths and funerals of friends, ruminates on aging (he is 91 by the end), on love, on sex. He is jealous, admiring, sarcastic and generous about his contemporaries by turn but never spiteful (unless about Boris). Lots and lots of name dropping. He reflects on his parents and his own shyness, his army years, noting every year on August 8th the date he joined up. He writes about his partner with such love and their trips home to Yorkshire, the care he gives him, the meals they eat, the people they bump into. He is just so nice all the time whilst reflecting inwardly that he isn’t really.

I guess, going by the title, this might be the last. Truly a national treasure.

@HagCymraeg - I’m very sorry to hear about what you and your DC are going through at the moment .

@ChessieFL Villa Coco sounds very much up my street. I enjoyed Less a few years ago so will give this a try.

@VanGoSunflowers Welcome to the thread! Looking forward to reading your reviews

@VikingNorthUtsire I was also very much not a fan of Audition - either it went completely over my head, or it was the Emperor’s New Clothes.

27.Land by Maggie O’Farrell
A family saga following the fates of Tomás and Phina, and their children Liam, Enda, Rose and Eugene. Tomás and Phina survived The Great Hunger as children. At the start of the novel Tomás now works as a surveyor for the English colonialists, translating place names on behalf of the ruling class. On visiting an ancient well he finds himself more connected to his country’s past. He can no longer tolerate working for the English, and spends the family’s life savings on acquiring a run down cottage abandoned during The Great Hunger. We then hear of how each of the children in turn come to leave their family home, travelling far from Ireland, and how some eventually return.

My views chime in pretty well with those of @Stowickthevast. I should probably start by confessing that I know shamefully little about Irish history and so have no idea how well O’Farrell has portrayed this period. I enjoyed this, but it did feel that there were two clear strands - the family history and a more magical mythology - didn’t blend fully. There’s a point at which the book deviates completely to ancient times and the fate of a young Celtic girl, and this is never returned to later. It reminded me a bit of the long section with the flea’s journey in Hamnet, and I didn’t think that added much either. But I really liked the family story, the relationships of the children to one another, and the idea of always being connected to home no matter where in the world you might be. The descriptive writing about the landscapes is beautiful and quite cinematic - you can feel the bones of a film that I'm sure must already be in development. Not perfect, but still definitely recommended.

@DesdamonasHandkerchief I loved it but I will add the caveat that it was 10-15 years ago that I read it and tastes change, if the narrator was particularly bad that really does affect my enjoyment of a book

And similarly to @TimeforaGandT, do give it a go - if you liked a different book by this author maybe you’d enjoy The Gift Of Rain, and either way I’d be interested to read your review.

The Bride Price by Buchi Emecheta

Aku-nna, her brother and mother leave Lagos after her father dies and go to live with her uncle in Ibuza. Aku-nna is quiet and intelligent so will fetch a good 'bride price' for her uncle. But the man she falls in love with is not considered a suitable match.

I love Buchi Emecheta's writing and this was no exception. Now to stalk WoB for another out of print novel by her...

@EineReiseDurchDieZeit I’m shocked too, I expected to love it. I think the narration was quite off putting, maybe it would have been better in book form.
I did think it must have been well reviewed on this thread as that’s where I get a lot of my TBR recommendations.
The fact it has so many 5 star Goodreads reviews would suggest it’s a me problem!

That's disappointing @DesdamonasHandkerchief as I read another Tan Twan Eng last year - The House of Doors which I really liked so was going to try another. Maybe not that one!

@Stowickthevast- I felt rather sorry for Theo as he wasn’t allowed to be as gorgeous as the other 2! I also thought his storyline was a missed opportunity as his life opens up the day he can cross into West Berlin but then his ending just felt flat. I also found A Guardian quite a grim topic, but I just didn’t care enough about it for it to work. I hadn’t got as far as working out the tenet - but I had started to pick up on it & that would explain why I didn’t warm to it.