50 Book Challenge 2021 Part Six

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the sixth thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2021, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read. Could everyone embolden their titles and/or authors as well, please, as it makes the books talked about easier to track?

The first thread of the year is here, the second one here, the third one here, the fourth one here and the fifth one here.

So, we're now almost half way through the year - how's the first half of the year gone for you, reading-wise?

@Stokey and @MegBusset I first heard parts of The Beginning of Spring as a Radio 4 adaptation and that made me want to read the book properly. It's set in Russia just before the First World War (and then the Revolution), in 1912, though of course the characters can't know what's coming.

The Bookshop has a more contemporary setting (at the time it was wiritten), as a women tries to establish a village bookshop.

Either would be a good place to start and the current editions of her books, Kindle or paperback, all have introductions from writers who know and admire her work. I have a biography of her that's been on my Kindle TBR for yesrs, I bought it (for Kindle) quite soon after publication. I do still have several of her novels and a short story collection TBR as well, and I'd quite like to read her own bographical writings - one book about her uncles The Knox Brothers and one about the writer Charlotte Mew.

Miles behind in my updates!

24. Borrowed Time, by Tracy Clark. Second in the Cass Raines PI series. Enjoyed it, apart from her really annoying client. Good, solid read but not wildly exciting. I'm currently reading the third which is turning into a bit of a slog, but I think that's probably my fault rather than the author's.

25. When the Stars Go Dark, by Paula McClain. One of my reads of the year so far. A bit of a departure from her historical fiction, this is a mystery set in Mendocino in the 80s, and covers the search for 3 girls who have gone missing in separate, but possibly linked, cases. It's definitely a slow burner, so probably not for people who prefer a plot-heavy approach, but I loved it, and felt that Anna Hart, the main character, was beautifully drawn.

26. A Bit of a Stretch, by Chris Atkins. Prison diaries, much reviewed on here. I thought it was a good intro to the infuriating and inefficient prison system, and he writes very engagingly. Not sure how long this will stay with me, but it should be required reading for anyone going into politics or the prison service.

27. We Are Watching Eliza Bright, by A. E. Osworth. Absolutely spectacular. Eliza Bright is a developer at a games company, and when she reports harrassment at work, she's fired and doxxed. The story is told by a chorus of angry male gamers who tell different versions of the story based on what they either observe, or invent. An alternative chorus takes up the story later (but it's hard to say much about them without spoilers). This was so cleverly done, I think it will stay with me for a long time.

28. The Maidens, by Alex Michaelides. An absolute stinker; possibly the worst book I've ever finished. I was hoping for something Secret History-esque as this is set in Cambridge and centres around a cult-like group of Classics students, one of whom is murdered. No such luck, this is wooden, clunky, and infuriating. Characters are conjoured up just to act as potential suspects, and then vanish from the story with no lasting impact. The dialogue is dreadful and the women are written as if he's never actually met a woman in real life. A goodreads one star review (not mine, sadly) just says, "Are you fucking kidding me" which are my thoughts in a nutshell.

29. Malibu Rising, by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Delightful froth - I wish I'd read this on a beach with a cocktail in my hand. It's the equivalent of a modern day Jackie Collins novel, and I mean that as a compliment. Set in Malibu, this tells the story of the Riva children, and how they grow up coping with a feckless rockstar father and a complicated family situation. If you liked Daisy Jones & The Six, you'll probably also enjoy this.

Good grief, sorry for the essay!

Here’s my update.

33. The Best Of Michael Marshall Smith treated myself to the hardback version of this (delightfully unsettling cover picture, haven’t had to turn a book over to hide an illustration for years!). A collection of his most unsettling stories.

34 The Nameless Ones, John Connolly. More tautly written than his Charlie Parker books, although the plot does take place in the Parker ‘universe’. A spin-off for Louis and Angel, who have a skill set perfectly suited to tracking down the human horrors they are battling (Serbian gangsters). The Fulci brothers have a delightful set piece, which is always a treat

35. The Pursuit Of William Abbey, Claire North Entertainingly spooky in places but by the end I just wanted the thing to catch up with him because he was starting to irritate me.

36. Learning To Swim, Clare Chambers
Unworldly Abigail’s fortunes become tangled up with those of a bohemian family. Found this very readable, and I also enjoyed her writing style in Small Pleasures.

37. All The Lonely People, Mike Gayle I used to read MG’s fiction years ago but went off him. This book reminded me why. Trite, tin eared dialogue and a struggle to get through. The last chapter was risible.

38. Maxwell’s Demon, Stephen Hall Thomas Quinn’s mentor wrote a book then disappeared. So what/who is now stalking him? Some mind-bending sciencey stuff in this highly enjoyable and twisty book.

39. It’s A Grimm Life, various short stories with delicious bite, all based loosely on Grimm’s Fairytales. Carl Barker and Adrian Tchaikovsky stood out, although all good distractions for insomniac hours.

40. London Bridge Is Falling Down, Christopher Fowler. The final Bryant And May book. Can’t say too much for fear of spoilers but oh my, just fantastic. Then I went on the author’s website to see what he had to say about it and found out he has terminal cancer, so that just about finished me off.

41. Tall Bones, Anna Bailey. Grim family secrets and abuse in small town America.

42. Rabbit Hole, Mark Billingham One of the authors whose books I always buy full price as soon as they are published, but this was quite disappointing. I knew it wasn’t a Tom Thorne novel but his stand alone books are usually of the same quality. You can tell from the beginning that Alice is an unreliable narrator, but I expected a lot better than this. Another laughable twist at the end. Alice’s ‘voice’ got on my tits more and more as the book went on. Passably entertaining at half price or as a 99p deal but not worth full price.

43. Toast, Nigel Slater After seeing it reviewed on here I realised I’d never read it, even though I love Nigel’s Eeyoreish outlook on cooking and life in general. Alternately sad and seedy. Led me to buy 44, Eating For England, which I used as a palate cleanser between fiction.

45. The Vet’s Daughter, Barbara Comyns Another recommendation from here and after a slow start I really enjoyed it. An interesting forerunner to the current fashion for novels about tightly-bodiced, oppressed young women.

46. I Couldn’t Love You More, Esther Freud. Heartbreakingly real and full of men who need a damn good slap. Maybe one too many coincidences towards the end, but I’ll not mark it down for that.

@YolandifuckinVisser- I hate it when writers do that "fook" thing. I don't think there is any northern accent that pronounces "fuck" in the same /u:/ way that some (my Derbyshire grandad) would pronounce "book", "cook" "look". It's lazy stereotyping and sometimes writers who are northern do it. Fook knows why.

I have been to the Sistine Chapel this afternoon. It's probably very bad and heathen of me to have spent longer looking at the photographs of the Conclave and pondering on the cardinals all having little bottles of water and plastic cups with then and what looks like the menu of a restaurant with the names of all of them and a little description, than I did looking at the ceiling. I didn't lie down and scream either for those MNers old enough to get the reference. I like the map room best I think.

Another Northerner who definitely says Fuck not Fook Utopia is on my TBR but I am still in s raging slump. I think I burned myself out with 286 or whatever it is in 18 months

@noodlezoodle

Taylor Jenkins Reid has become my Guilty Pleasure. I know they aren't Fine Literature but they are like Pringles.

The fuck/fook discussion is highly educational, thank you

I'm enormously jealous of you in Rome, Sol, and you in Kefalonia, Stokey! I'm just coming to the end of a week in Weymouth, which has been brilliant actually, but I long for the days when we can holiday in France again (I mean, I know it's theoretically possible to holiday in France now, but the rigmarole and expense of tests has put me off, especially with DC in tow). I've done shockingly little reading on this holiday, I feel a bit silly now staring at the pile of untouched books about to go back in my suitcase. I've been reading the Pym biography though (a choice inspired by this thread).

@Stokey, my other favourite Penelope Fitzgerald novels are The Blue Flower (a historical novel about the German poet Novalis so a bit different to her other works) and The Gate of Angels, which is a love story set in Cambridge. (DH and I met and married in Cambridge in the early 90s so Cambridge is kind of suffused in a romantic glow for me anyway.)

@Palegreenstars, I feel like an old fogey saying this, but I think Pullman's tweets have been twisted a bit as well, to sound worse than they were. I've seen several tweets saying that he compared women of colour to Isis and the Taliban. In fact the comparison wasn't direct -- he said that condemning books without reading them was the kind of attitude you would find in the case of Isis and the Taliban. Yes, it was clumsy and insensitive given the context though.

I just hate the way Twitter lines people up in binary fashion, either on the side of Right or the side of Wrong, whereas in reality there are so many shades of grey.

Young Barbara Pym's Nazi boyfriend comes to mind here. Paula Byrne is quite sensitive in the way she handles that, but it's still shocking to me -- I had no idea about that side of Pym. I'm not sure it makes me appreciate her novels less, but it certainly makes me think her political acumen was lacking.

As the thread's North Kent correspondent, growing up 7 miles from Gravesend, I can confirm that Mitchell is wrong regarding "yer". "Yer" = your. "Ya" with a very short "a" will be sometimes be used for you, but not if you is being emphasised. And obviously if you is the second person plural then it's "yoos".

Ah, my people. Where else would I go for an informed discussion of local pronunciations of fuck?

Off to Scotland on Saturday, with the forecast predicting 100% chance of precipitation. Maybe i'll sit in cafes and.read Buchan and Tey and peer out at the rain.

Hi everyone. Long time lurker and occasional poster here. Just want to say that this is one of my favourite places on the internet and thank you all for your recommendations. I’ve read 54 books this year and have lots more on my kindle and ordered in the library. Just need to spend more time reading. Dead envious of how many books some of you get through. Happy reading everyone.

Welcome @Emcla

We are a friendly bunch

Have you got a list?

Best this year?

Thanks eine. Yes I have a scribbled list with stars next to my top reads. They are
Wintering by Katherine May
All that Remains by Sue Black
Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Joulad
My wild and sleepless nights by Clover Stroud
Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny
An extra pair of hands by Kate Mosse

Lots of non fiction but I usually read mainly fiction. Since covid I have found that I am mainly enjoying memoirs.

@cassandre I definitely agree about Twitter it’s such a hell hole. No nuance at all.

SOLV, if you went to the Sistine Chapel and didn't scream, were you really even there?!

Eine, I love a well written frivolous read (raised on Jilly Cooper, Shirley Conran and Judith Krantz) and TaylorJR is so good at what she does. I refuse to feel guilty! I have Evelyn Hugo on my kindle ready to go as a 'break glass in case of emergency' read

Welcome Emcla, this is the nicest corner of the internet, bar none. Wintering is one of my standout reads of the year, it's just so quietly lovely.

I do like a good memoir, Emda. Welcome!

@saucery, oh no, sad news re Christopher Fowler

I've been to the Sistine Chapel too. I loved it. If you so much as looked like you were going to whimper in there, scary henchmen in shades went 'shhhhhhhh'!!! I certainly heard no screaming.There on the wrong day .

Have perked up a bit from illness. managed to read much of The Authority Gap. Probably not a very calming sickness read but at least it focused my mind elsewhere. Should finish today.

In Utopia Avenue, I found the constant levering in of EVERY famous person in the 60s rather annoying.

Jealous of your Sistine visit @SOLINVICTUS, having inhaled Conclave over the last day. If you fancy going further back in time, Harris's Cicero books would be great to read in Rome.

Thanks for the Fitzgerald recommendations. I'm going to download some & the frivolous Taylor JR for a lightweight beach read.

I'm a southerner (born and brought up in London, now living in Hertfordshire) but am also enjoying the discussion about the correct northern pronunciation of fuck

I find writers who do accents in dialogue like that annoying (unless it's to create a particular idiosyncrasy like Dickens does with Sikes). Some writers are brilliant at voice and idiolect without having to do all that silliness. I LOVE Hardy but the West Country dialect rendering annoys me , same with Eliot in Adam Bede. It's a touch patronising, unless it's something like Irvine Welsh. Will need to have a look at Shuggie Bain again and see what he does but I remember being able to clearly hear those voices and I'm sure he didn't render accent in the same way.

I am not sure how we are supposed to say 'fook'... I think I am over doing the oooooo sound. Presumably be means like in book? Because, ime , they say 'look' in a very particular way in much of the North.

Northerner here, who doesn't speak with a Northern accent but is also mightily irritated by the lazy trope of 'fook'.

Welcome Emcla - glad you enjoyed Early Morning Riser. I was pleased she wrote a good follow-up to Standard Deviation.

SOL - I have to say I LOlled at your (not) screaming in the Sistine

Glad you are starting to feel better piggy
Another one here, envying those in foreign climes.

36. Milkman - Anna Burns I'm behind the curve on this one. It's been on my TBR pile for a long, long time. I was born in a working class area of Belfast a few years before "The Troubles" started and grew up in the world described. A friend warned me Milkman would be "triggering* so I avoided it. I needn't have worried, they say "the past is a different country" and I guess with this book it held true (for me). I thought the book in not giving anyone a name to increase the sense of an insular, set apart from the "norm" a great idea theoretically, but in reality found all the "maybe boyfriend", first sister's husband" a bit tiresome and loquacious and felt it got in the way of the narrative. I thought the characters would speak with a Belfast acent with lots of idioms and colloquialisms, creating a rythym to the prose (so I did) but it didn't. I guess since Anna Burns doesn't specify that the setting is Northen Ireland and the story could be set anywhere then that makes sense. However, it was all a bit tortuous and word soupy for me.

I do think that the book had a killer opening sentence:
“The day Somebody McSomebody put a gun to my breast and called me a cat and threatened to shoot me was the same day the milkman died.” (It's a long time since I heard a woman called "a cat".)

I really want to say I liked the book but I didn't. Even a few pages in I just kept thinking that Seamus Heaney said more about life In N.I. in the 1970's in the last few stanzas of his poem from North, Whatever You Say, Say Nothing than this book did in its entirety. I did think it conveyed well how women are seen as a "thing" that men can have ownership over just by deciding so for themselves and that creeping sense of danger and push/pull of flight women feel in the presence of a creepy guy.

Just finished The Authority Gap. Not a good day to read the chapter on incels, really.

It's a book everyone should read.

The chapter on book reading is really interesting for all of us. I checked my own stats. 7/10 of my most recent books are by women. Three are very specifically non 'female' subjects. Whether men would read them or not would be an interesting question. I really hope so.

It's a depressing book. But important especially in context of our government throwing focus back on to the underachieving white male recently.

Only one thing annoyed me. Sieghart tells us THREE TIMES that Cherie Booth is 'Mrs Tony Blair' (and completely irrelevantly tells us Helle Thorning Schmidt is married to Stephen Kinnock). I reckon most of Sieghart's readers know who Cherie Booth is. Only once is she telling us because the point is about being the PM's wife. Calling that out,Mary, as you instruct!!

The page of threats made to Carolin Criado Perez though. Oh my. It made me cry.

Gifting the book to many people now, including my son. Photocopying the page on schools for SLT. Don't care what gendered adjectives they apply to me. Past that. Joked to fellow teachers that I might leave my own highlighted copy lying around SLT offices!

I find writers who do accents in dialogue like that annoying

Same here. I’m (still) reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone out loud to DS1 and the bits where Hagrid’s talking are driving me mad.

And I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone pronounce fuck like fook.