50 Book Challenge 2022 Part Three

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2022, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it’s not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

If possible, please can you embolden your titles (and maybe authors as well) of the books you've read or going to read? It makes it much easier to keep track, especially when the threads move quickly at this time of the year.

The first thread of the year is here and the second one here.

What are you reading?

The only book set in Borneo that comes to mind is Kalimantaan by Godshalk, niceMum . Read it years ago and don’t remember much but I still have it so must have rated it a keeper.

16. The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue

Donoghue apparently finished this novel, set over three days in the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic, just before the Covid-19 pandemic. It was published in 2020 and I'm rather glad I didn't read it then! The story is told from the point of view of Julia Power, a nurse on the maternity ward for those suffering from the flu. I like Donoghue's writing and I was gripped by this, to the extent that I probably raced through it too quickly. The characters are well drawn, as always with Donoghue. There is, justifiably because of the setting, a lot of death and awfulness - perhaps too much because at points I did feel a little hammered over the head with it. There's a character based on a real-life woman, Dr Kathleen Lynn, who I felt worked quite well, and a love story, and some beautiful writing - but the end, when it came, happened a little fast after a careful build-up. Many of the reviews described this as like a fever dream, and it is, until the last few pages which wrench you out of the moment. Good, but not quite as good as it could have been.

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers Much reviewed already. Enjoyable bedtime reading.

Free by Lea Ypi Coming-of-age memoir in Albania, amid the huge changes wrought by the fall of communism. This was not just a fascinating description of her family's life before, during and after the monumental changes, but it brought together the personal and political into a terrific read thanks to LY's dry humour and sense of the absurd. It is rightly described on the cover as "Funny, moving but also deadly serious..." Recommended.

@nowanearlyNicemum I’m not sure that these would be exactly what you’re after, but.... Anthony Burgess's Malayan Trilogy? Again, not specifically Borneo, I’m afraid.

@nowanearlyNicemum

Dear knowledgeable 50-bookers, I'm look for fiction (or non-fiction) books about Malaysia and, if we're being specific, Borneo. Many thanks in advance, nowanearly x

De-lurking to recommend Black Water Sister by Zen Cho, which is a fantasy book set in contemporary Malaysia (in the city of Penang).

Wasn’t Neal Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon partially set around Malaysia/Borneo?

nowanearlyNicemum For non-fiction, years ago I read and enjoyed Into The Heart of Borneo by Redmond O'Hanlon, an intrepid but very funny Irish explorer. His persona is bonkers and bungling but he clearly knows his way around. Also ages ago I read Tales From the South China Seas by Charles Allen, which includes first-hand accounts of British people living in Borneo in the twentieth century. It also has first-hand accounts of the fall of Malaya. I've just this minute found this is £1.99 on Kindle, in fact, and I've bought it to have a reread

I think Rose Tremain's Islands of Mercy is partly set in Borneo - I haven't read it but would be very interested to hear any reviews.

@Cornishblues, @Terpsichore, @EllieQ & @BestIsWest thanks for the recommendations

Definitely not a fantasy fan so will give those a miss and having looked at the link to the Anthony Burgess Malayan trilogy I think I'd need to sample a few pages but you're right, it's probably not what I'm after ;) Have added Kailmantaan to my list.

Oooooh @MaudOfTheMarches those sound great, thank you.

Just discovered I bought Islands of Mercy back in September as a 99p kindle deal. Result!

@nowanearlyNicemum The Burgess trilogy is actually good but obviously of its time and so best approached in the spirit of a colonial period piece.

Good shout on the Redmond O'Hanlon from Maud, though.

Thank you for the review of Free @Boiledeggandtoast - it's on my TBR, and I've just bumped it up :)

I think I'm going to DNF The Wreath - I enjoyed it initially but have really lost momentum (despite having the more modern translation), and your review @SOLINVICTUS has decided me.

I'm in a bit of a reading slump and definitely need to invest in some books I think - atm all the things I have to read are either library books picked a little at random or other people's books (mostly my dad's on Kindle family library) / things I've been given. While they're probably all things I'll read eventually none appeals enough right now to get me off the computer and back into reading. (Apart from War & Peace, where I'm trying to avoid reading too far ahead of the readalong, because I'm enjoying the process)

Just discovered I boughtIslands of Mercyback in September as a 99p kindle deal. Result!

Ha, same here!

My Life as a Fake is partly set in Kuala Lumpur. Or there's Ripples and Other Stories by Shih-Li Kow or The Rice Mother by Rani Manicka. Those links are to two blogs where people have read books from different countries, good if you are looking for something different to read.

@JaninaDuszejko Thank you for that link, such a fantastic resource.

Sorry, two links, I meant to say.

Chessie - we don't talk about Bruno, remember?

AliasGrape I also bought Writers and Lovers from a charity shelf last week, but haven't read it yet. When I got home I realised that I also bought it for 99p on Kindle last year.

I'm reading slowly again... The Year of the Runaways, which has been well reviewed here. Really immersive and feels like it is going to break my heart in a Fine Balance way.... I am bracing myself....

@JaninaDuszejko
Wonderful, thank you!

Why don’t we talk about Bruno Viking?

Chessie - we don't talk about Bruno, remember?

I spend my life trying to get this ear worm out of my head.

Aarrrghhh! Mumsnet just stole my very long post

In summary

NiceMum there's a site called Trip Fiction that lets you search for books by location.

www.tripfiction.com/

I have also added Becoming Unbecoming to my TBR.

I read some books.

The Man Who Mistook His Job For His Life - Naomi Shragai
Self help from a therapist who specialises in work related issues. She looks at the baggage people take to work and how it affects them and those around them. Some interesting ideas and case studies.

The Death of Vivek Oji - Akwaeke Emezi
When the body of Vivek is dumped naked on his parent's doorstep they seek answers to what happened to him. Things are not what they seem. A look at LGBT experiences for young people in Nigeria. Beautiful writing as always from Emezi.

The Lonely Girl - Edna O'Brien
Sequel to The Country Girls. More coming of age as two naive girls from the sticks move to Dublin and struggle with work and relationships. An affair with an older married man causes issues for Kate.
These are a brilliant insight into Irish society. They were banned at the time (early 60s) for showing the sexuality and promiscuity of young women. Simple but striking prose.

The King Must Die & The Bull from the Sea - Mary Renault
A retelling of the story of Theseus. Very readable, but I wanted to like them more than I did. I'm don't know of I'm all greeked out or if they dragged on a bit.

Sense & Sensibility - Jane Austen
A reread. Someone was tweeting quotes from this last week so I decided on to revisit it. I didn't love it the first time round and I was that bothered by it this time either. Obviously it's excellent stuff, but I've reread some of the others several times and would again but this never appeals. I don't get on with Emma either.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot
Much read and discussed last year? on the thread. In the 1950s a poor black women with terminal cancer had cells removed without her consent which went on to form the basis of all modern medical research. Her cells are still alive today and have been commercialised, but her family have never seen any money from it. They were unaware for years. The author explores her background, talks to her family and discusses medical ethics. Brilliant.

Thanks for the blog links Janina . Are those where you tend to find the translated fiction you read, or are there other places you look too? I’m looking to read more in translation.

I use those plus books and bao which is good on asian literature but can be quite millennial (very queer literature and graphic novel heavy), also
Translating Women which is closest to my own preferences in novels I think. Plus the Guardian does good reviews of recent books. I do google e.g. 'Ukrainian novels in translation' as well to find things from specific countries but it does vary, I found a fab list of German novels and there's lots of options in Spanish (MIL is south american so I spent a lot of my 20s reading Vargas Llosa, Garcia Marquez, Allende etc so I'm possibly more attuned to those) but other languages can be harder to find translations of.

Thanks @MamaNewtNewt for your recommendation of Becoming, Unbecoming by Una - I just spent the last hour racing through it.

I love graphic novels but struggle to find recommendations.

For those who missed this up thread Una the author intersperses her personal biography and the violence and misogyny she experience in 1970s Yorkshire with the hunt for Peter Sutcliffe.

It reminded me of 5 women which I know is well liked on here and Know My Name by Channel Miller.

Outstanding.

1. Bridget Jones's Diary - Helen Fielding

I haven't read this for years. It was a fun re-read and reminded me of my life in the mid-90s. It's interesting how dated this seems now, but then it was published 25 years ago! Where did all that time go?