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?

20. Jews Don't Count - David Baddiel

Think it's been written about plenty on here, but I found this an important and clear-headed - while obviously personal - insight into how antisemitism is often seen as a less serious form of racism than others, and the effect that has on Jewish people.

Thanks all for the Heyer recommendations. I clicked before I'd seen Sadik's comprehensive post (thank you) and went for The Grand Sophy as it's been mentioned many times on here. I'll report back!

16. The Marlow Murder Club - Robert Thorogood.

An unlikely trio of women set out to solve a series of murders. You can tell it's written by the creator of Death in Paradise; same style, types of characters and even repeats a suspect's alibi from one of the early television episodes. Enjoyed this book though, a light hearted page turner (and I didn't guess whodunnit).

Chessie, The Key in the Lock looks really interesting, have added it to my wish list

34. Becoming Unbecoming - Una
Thank you so much @MamaNewtNewt for recommending this. In this beautiful graphic novel, the almost unbearably sad story of the author’s own experience of sexual abuse and slut shaming in the 1970s is set against the backdrop of the misogynistic incompetence of the Yorkshire Ripper investigation. And I’m not sure how much things have improved. Made me feel very grateful for being brought up by a 1970s feminist.

I purchased this is my local graphic novel/comics shop, Page 45. If you’re looking to patronise an independent bookshop, you can find them at www.page45.com.

11. The Year of the Runaways, Sunjeev Sahota

A sad and thought-provoking read, this novel, set now or now-ish, followsthree young men who come from India to the UK to seek a better life. The nature of that "better life" is described unsentimentally and unflinchingly - the cold, the hunger, the hard work, the loneliness, the isolation from those who love you, the lack of respect. Short chapters describing the endless cycle of looking for work (for anyone old enough to remember Boys from the Black Stuff, there was a definite echo of Yosser' Hughes' "Gizza job") are interspersed with longer chapters telling us more about the characters' lives in India and the circumstances that have led them to try their luck in the UK. There's also a fourth main character, a young
British-Punjabi woman whose religious faith leads her to get involved with the young men (i found her story less convincing but it was interesting to have a British character, and a female character, to offset the other
three).

This is a book full of sadness and of tension. I read it constantly alert for heartbreak - the characters were so vulnerable and it seemed inevitable that something awful would befall them. I won't spoiler the plot other than to say that the blows don't always fall when you expect them, but there are certainly terrible and sad things in this book. Skilfully, though, Sahota also makes it a believably prosaic account of day-to-day life, and a moving story of coming-of-age, friendship and loyalty, and although it's emotional, I never found it anything other than enjoyable to read.

12. House of Correction, Nicci French

Decent page-turner. Tabitha is in prison, charged with the murder of a man whose body has been discovered on her property. She's convinced that she didn't do it, but her memories of the day are fractured and unreliable - she suffers from severe depression, the medication for which affects her memory, and she also appears to be traumatised. With the police convinced that they have got their murderer, Tabitha will have to piece together what happened on that day to prove her innocence. Some bits of this were deeply
unconvincing but generally it was a fairly gripping mash-up of prison diary, locked room murder mystery and courtroom drama.

VikingNorthUtsire I have had The Year of the Runaways on my kindle forever, so thanks for review and the reminder to give it a go.

I am reading very slowly. I wish I could say I had more important stuff to do, but in fact I've fallen into the habit of watching lots of crap telly.

9. Travels with My Aunt by Graham Greene
Henry Pulling, a middle aged and recently retired bank manager, is introduced for the first time to his Aunt Augusta at his mother's funeral. He suggests that he'd be happy to accompany her on some travelling, imagining days trips to the coast, but finds himself tagging along with his Aunt to Istanbul and beyond, and has his eyes opened to all sorts of counter culture, shady characters and dodgy dealings.

This was quite fun, although the portrayal of Sierra Leonean Wordsworth definitely hasn't aged well. Aunt Augusta is a perfect foil to goody two-shoes Henry, and although she's not always likeable her exploits are always interesting. I could have done without so many seemingly irrelevant references to various characters' Catholicism, but that's Greene for you.

23: This Golden Fleece - Esther Rutter

As discussed upthread, this is essentially a book about knitting, so if you’re not a knitter, it will leave you completely cold.

If you are, though, it’s a gentle delight, as Esther travels around from her home in Scotland, visiting places noted for their styles of knitting and/or the distinctive sheep that produce the local yarn, always knitting as she goes. There were a few things new to me (nålebinding, anyone? I had to have a lengthy diversion to YouTube for that one) and lots more that sparked memories - the cabled cricket jumper I once made for a boyfriend, the cobwebby shawl in kidsilk mohair for my mum, the dreaded Single Sock Syndrome.

Definitely recommend this for the knitters amongst us, and it’s a good companion-piece to The Button Box.

Terpsichore Thank you for the review, that sounds lovely. I'm in need of some diversion at the moment so will read that soon. I actually have a nålebinding kit that I bought in a craft shop in Finland. Not sure it's the most efficient way to make a fabric, to be honest, but couldn't resist.

Haha, yes, Maud, it does look quite labour-intensive, but I’m very impressed that you have a kit! I quite fancy trying it now guiltily eyes various UFOs

Viking, I read The Year of the Runaways when it came out and thought it was great. I looked up my old review:

'I felt detached from the characters at first but became more and more engrossed in their stories as the book went on. Sahota's forte is definitely plot rather than style, but the simple, factual way the story is told turns out to be very powerful. This is the kind of novel that transports you into a different universe and makes it entirely believable. It gives you a picture of Sikh culture, both in Britain and in India, as well as an inside view of refugees who risk everything to get to the UK and of what they do once they get here. Initially I found the heroine too pious to be believable, but I loved the way her character evolved.'

@Terpsichore

23: This Golden Fleece - Esther Rutter

As discussed upthread, this is essentially a book about knitting, so if you’re not a knitter, it will leave you completely cold.

If you are, though, it’s a gentle delight, as Esther travels around from her home in Scotland, visiting places noted for their styles of knitting and/or the distinctive sheep that produce the local yarn, always knitting as she goes. There were a few things new to me (nålebinding, anyone? I had to have a lengthy diversion to YouTube for that one) and lots more that sparked memories - the cabled cricket jumper I once made for a boyfriend, the cobwebby shawl in kidsilk mohair for my mum, the dreaded Single Sock Syndrome.

Definitely recommend this for the knitters amongst us, and it’s a good companion-piece to The Button Box.

I'm not a knitter but I think this sounds great!

@cassandre, thanks for digging out your old review. It sounds like we had a very similar response. I really admired the way that he tells the story in such an understated style, concentrating on the day-to-day details in a way which can seem prosaic and sometimes repetitive at a chapter level, but which builds and weaves together into a really credible and affecting emotional journey - affecting us, i think, because we feel we "know" these characters and have walked alongside them rather than just seeing them as people in a story.

13. The Lightkeepers, Emma Stonex

Like some other 50-Bookers who have reviewed this, I felt this added up to less than the sum of its parts. Most of you will know that it tells the story (partly based on a real incident) of three men who disappear without trace from an offshore lighthouse. Starts with a cracking opening chapter, great atmospheric setting, immersive descriptions of the isolation, the claustrophobia, the particular flavour of the mens' lives inside the lighthouse, stuck together for weeks on end. Alternating between 1972 (when the men disappeared) and 1992 (where their wives, estranged from one another, are approached by an author wanting to write about the case), secrets and mysteries are introduced, as well as couple of supernatural elements which sit satisfyingly in the "is this real or are they going mad" spot. You reach the turning point of the novel in the enjoyable position of having several possible answers to the various unsolved riddles, and ready for the denouement. And then, for me, the last section just fell short- the outcomes seemed disproportionately weak considering the skill that had gone into building up the atmosphere, characters and red herrings. Such a shame as I had really enjoyed the first three-quarters of the book.

Read
April in Spain, John Banville
Another Quirke mystery. For the first time, he's not in rainy 50s Dublin but in sunny 50s San Sebastian, on an enforced holiday.

This is an odd one as it features Quirke and the usual characters from this series, but adds in Detective John Strafford, who is the protagonist of another book (presumably the first in a series) by Banville. A bit like the films where Spider-Man and Batman meet

The melding of Quirke's world and Strafford's is perhaps a bit clunky, and Strafford needing to be there at all is up for debate. But hey, I like them both so I'm not really complaining.
The plot harks back to an earlier Quirke mystery and is interesting in that regard. I felt that the resolution was perhaps a bit dashed off though.
Overall though I liked it. There's some quite funny 'grumpy bloke abroad' comedy and observation. Some genuine pathos and sadness. The writing is as enjoyable as ever. I will certainly read further Quirke and Strafford (and Quirke/Strafford) books if he writes more.

I would strongly encourage you to go for it, @DameHelena And to be fair, it isn’t all about knitting. There’s some beautiful descriptive writing about the landscapes she visits - she has a great way with words. If we could just persuade you to cast on a few stitches as well......?

@Terpsichore

I would strongly encourage you to go for it, *@DameHelena* And to be fair, it isn’t all about knitting. There’s some beautiful descriptive writing about the landscapes she visits - she has a great way with words. If we could just persuade you to cast on a few stitches as well......?

I'll get back to you about casting on

Thanks for the review of April in Spain DameHelena. I have it on reserve from the library. Strafford first appeared in Snow, I think.

@IsFuzzyBeagMise

Thanks for the review of April in Spain DameHelena. I have it on reserve from the library. Strafford first appeared in Snow, I think.

Hope you enjoy it! Yes, Snow was his first outing. I say first as I hope there'll be more.

22. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - JK Rowling one of the best HP books - great story, complete with time travel!

Bit off topic, hope it's ok, has anyone read The Comfort Book by Matt Haig? Thinking of buying it as a gift for a friend but not sure if it's any good or would be in any way patronising? She's been struggling with some health issues recently so don't want to look like I'm buying her a cringey self help book

Totally agree re The Light Keepers @VikingNorthUtsire

@satelliteheart How lovely that you want to buy your friend a book. Personally I think Matt Haig is a really poor writer and very cringe. If you want a lovely cosy comfort book, how about a lovely children's classic or a Persephone (Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is my favourite). Others might be able to recommend something too?

21. From Miniskirt to Hijab: A Girl in Revolutionary Iran by Jacqueline Saper

Jacqueline Saper was born in the early 1960s and grew up in Tehran's Jewish community. Her Iranian father was a university lecturer, her English mother worked for PanAm airlines, & Jacqueline & her older siblings grew up with an excellent education & good prospects.

As the Iranian revolution began to brew, more and more of their friends & relatives moved abroad, but her parents were sure that things would blow over, and were reluctant to leave their country.

This tells the story of the events of the revolution, and the experience of living in Iran as someone from a westernised family & part of a religious minority through the late 1970s and into the 1980s. I had this on audio & really enjoyed it. Although the author's family were obviously pro-Shah, and anti-revolution, she doesn't idealise the old regime or dismiss the reasons behind the uprising. It's really just fascinating hearing her experiences of day to day life, getting married, starting a family, and trying to make the best of things.

13. My Mate Shofiq - Jan Needle Gritty kids book published in the 70s set in a Lancashire mill town where the white & Asian communities are segregated to such a degree that a friendship between 2 boys from either side of the cultural divide is almost unthinkable. Bernard speaks up in Shofiq's defence when he is accused of an unprovoked attack on the school bully, after which the 2 boys gradually become best friends. The racist language and attitudes are quite shocking, but entirely realistic given the setting and era for this short novel.

My parents gave me this for Christmas when I was about 10, it's had an occasional re-read ever since. Powerful and grim, it is uncomfortable reading but excellently done

@satelliteheart

Bit off topic, hope it's ok, has anyone read The Comfort Book by Matt Haig? Thinking of buying it as a gift for a friend but not sure if it's any good or would be in any way patronising? She's been struggling with some health issues recently so don't want to look like I'm buying her a cringey self help book

Yes, I loved it. Did what it meant to do, and great for dipping in when you need your mood lifted. I think it would make a lovely gift for her.

@YolandiFuckinVisser I've never read that but it was advertised in the back of lots of Puffins I did read - I used to spend ages studying the blurbs in order to soften the blow of having finished the book. I have slowly caught up with quite a few of them so maybe will look at that one.