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?

@JaninaDuszejko

Fuzzy and Janina, I also loved Mischa (penguin! obvs) but he was so sad.

17. On Chapel Sands: My Mother and Other Missing Persons , Laura Cumming

This could have been great but was a bit of a mess. The book has also been published with the subtitle "The Mystery of my Mother's Disappearance as a Child" and it feels like the publishers maybe lent on Cumming to ham up the mystery element, withholding information until near the end and revealing "twists". This doesn't really work as the story isn't especially twisty or unusual, just an interesting human tale of a particular time and place (1930s Lincolnshire - vividly brought to life). The subtitle on the edition that I read is better; it reflects the themes that Cumming explores through the book - memories and family stories, and the unreliability of both. Cumming is an art journalist and I loved her analysis of the tiny family photos as she decodes the relationships between the long-lost people who appear in them.

18. Unsettled Ground, Claire Fuller

I've been in bed with Covid and just read this straight through in 24 hours. This to the fourth book I have read by Fuller and the one which, to me, comes closest in atmosphere to Our Endless Numbered Days. It tells the story of middle-aged siblings Julius and Jeannie, brought up in an isolated rural cottage by a fiercely self-reliant mother after the early death of their father. The novel opens with their mother's death, and the siblings, who have dealt relatively little with the outside world, are forced to confront its challenges. Jeannie in particular has been kept close to her mother because of her poor health - a heart condition which prevents her from being able to tackle anything physically strenuous - and is mostly illiterate through missing long chunks of school. There is a feel of Shirley Jackson (I've said this before about Claire Fuller I think - I do think she is good at finding that same spot of gothic domestic horror, although there is nothing supernatural in this story) with interaction between the stubborn, isolated siblings, and the suspicious and hostile outside world.

This isn't a very nice book - as well as Jackson I can see comparison with Hardy - it's about poverty, loss and injustice, misunderstandings and mistreatment. But I found it completely compelling despite the lack of any real plot, and admired many things about how it is written.

He was so sad, Viking, and so sweet!

Get well soon, Viking!

16. To Calais, in Ordinary Time - James Meek In 1348 Berna, a young noblewoman, flees her home in Gloucestershire to escape an arranged marriage to her father's unattractive friend. On the same day Will, a ploughman bonded to her father's estate, leaves to join a band of archers bound to fight in France. Joining them along the way as they pass through Wiltshire are Thomas, a proctor returning to his home in Avignon and Hab, a swineherd from Berna's village who is accompanied by a friendly boar and who has romantic intentions towards Will. As they make their way to the south coast, the black death is making it's way upland and this, along with disputes among the band of archers affects the entire entourage and their ability to make progress.

I loved this. The writing style varies according to whose viewpoint we are reading. Thomas's style is scholarly and mediated. Will's style is an attempt at 14th century middle English, while Berna's style mixes the local vernacular with a peppering of "french" words which are beyond the comprehension of her uneducated companions. As such it's not a terribly easy read but not to the extent of obscurity. There is no explanatory information or glossary of terms, the reader is obliged to work it out when an unfamiliar term is employed. Themes of romantic love, freedom and conscience are played out between nobles and commoners alike, the plague providing a leveller for all humankind in the end

11 Francoise Sagan's Bonjour Tristesse translated by Irene Ash because I am a barbarian

I enjoyed this.

I don't know whether the mildly unusual rhythm of the prose is due to the translator's own style, the author's own style, a product of translation from the French (suspect this is most likely) or a conscious decision for this particular novel. The other half of the book is by the same author so I could read that and either confirm or eliminate that fourth possibility.

Anyway, it was quite evocative of a hedonist's lazy summer beach villa holiday and nicely self-aware in the protagonist's teenage introspection. Only one place where the punctuation and page break in the middle of a quote from an abstruse philosopher meant that I had to read it three times to work out what it was actually saying (which is appropriate really as the protagonist was doing the same thing).

Didn't warm to any of the characters, though I don't think we're intended to.

12. The Outrun by Amy Liptrot
Reread inspired by the release of the author's new book. As Liptrot's life in London unravels, she goes through a rehab programme for alcoholism and returns to Orkney to be be near her family. Her nature writing is brilliant. I enjoyed this the first time round, and loved rereading. It was striking to find that elements had stayed with me, including some aspects of the nature writing which I reread and realised 'ah, that's where I learned that'!
Bought her new release The Instant yesterday and am looking forward to reading it. Such a gorgeous cover!
13. Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift
Looking back on her life, an elderly lady reflects on a warm, sunny Mothering Sunday in the 1920s when she was a maid in domestic service. This is a very short novel and I enjoyed listening to the whole thing in one day. The portrayal of the 'upstairs, downstairs' relationships and the lives of the main characters in the post WW1 era of change is incredibly evocative.
14. Kiss Myself Goodbye: The Many Lives of Aunt Munca by Ferdinand Mount
I won't review as Terpsichore did such a great job in a recent post - many thanks Terpsichore as I wouldn't have picked up this fascinating book before I read your great review. I listened to this on Audible and it is part of a 2 for 1 deal that is still running until this weekend if anyone is interested.

@VikingNorthUtsire I liked Unsettled Ground a lot, one of the best books I've read recently. Very bleak though. I hope you feel better soon.

Glad you enjoyed it, CluelessMama

Thanks for the heads up about Kiss Myself Goodbye being in the 2 for 1 Audible sale, Clueless! I was looking for something to pair with Put a Wet Paper Towel on It.

Meant to say to anyone listening to Kiss Myself Goodbye on Audible, the last chapter is listed with the title 'End Credits' and shows as over 50mins long. It is actually the Postscript, including further information that the author received after he had finished writing the main text. It is DEFINITELY worth a listen, wouldn't want anyone to miss it thinking it is just credits and references!

I haven't been reading enough recently. I'm having a bad patch with books. We're on holiday and have been quite active, plus an sleeping better than at home, which hasn't helped! I started To Paradise by Hanya Yannagihara on the plane but am bogged down in the second part which I'm finding pretty dull. Even the first part was a bit naval gazing for my liking.

Enjoying the reviews though. Dd1 is about to start They Both Die At The End so glad to see a positive review. And thanks to @FortunaMajor for all the Woman's Prize reviews, disappointing though they are. I have Build Your House Around My Body and The Bread the Devil Knead on my Kindle so think I'll try one of those and give up Hanya. I also read On Earth We are Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong. This is a letter from an American boy to his illiterate Vietnamese mother, they moved to America when he was a child. I found the Vietnamese history and immigrant experience was very well done and beautifully written, but there were other parts I didn't think worked as well - his older life and relationship. It's a rather sad book.

International Booker Prize shortlist is out and it looks a good one. I've not read any yet but a couple (Elena Knows and Heaven) are on my TBR list. The heavyweight (in more ways than one) The Book of Jacob will be the one to beat I suspect.

Just finished Jess Phillips' book about being an MP. As you'd expect it's breezy, a bit bolshy and very determined and impassioned. I enjoyed it but did feel it lacked a bit of depth or detail.

Yet again I’ve let this thread slip away - I have been reading but not updating! Here’s my latest reads.

70. Verity by Colleen Hoover
71. Until It’s Over by Nicci French
72. Copycat by Alex Lake
73. The Red Monarch by Bella Ellis
74. Finders, Keepers by Sabine Durrant
75. The Herd by Emily Edwards
76. The Snow Spider by Jenny Nino
77. The Interview by C M Ewan
78. Scoop! by Evelyn Waugh
79. A Window Breaks by C M Ewan
80. Worzel Gummidge by Barbara Euphan Todd
81. Nomadland by Jessica Bruder
82. Class by Jilly Cooper
83. The Pursuit of Laughter: Essays, Reviews and Diary by Diana Mitford Mosley
84. The Holiday by T M Logan
85. A Page In Your Diary by Keith A Pearson

Happy to give more info about any of these if anyone’s interested!

Good to see your review of Mothering Sunday above CluelessMama as I have that on my TBR pile and it sounds just my thing.

Yolandi - I read the James Meek last year but really didn’t enjoy it so it was interesting to read your perspective.

I've also fallen off the thread a bit, I've got a few paper library books on the go that I need to finish off as they're on their last renewal, and a few other things that I've not quite got into.

In the meantime I've finished my latest audio book which I absolutely loved and feel rather bereft to have finished:
25. Land of a Thousand Hills My Life in Rwanda by Rosamond Halsey Carr with Ann Howard Halsey
Ros Carr moved to what was then the Belgian Congo with her husband in 1949 to manage a pyrethrum plantation. Their marriage didn't prosper, and they separated relatively soon thereafter, but by that time she had fallen in love with the region. She lived there until the end of her life, managing farms and moving to Rwanda in the 1950s where she eventually bought out the owner of the place she was living. She remained through the end of the colonial era (and she writes honestly about the gilded life of a European in that era, and the ways in which her attitudes changed over time) and political unrest. She also writes about the terrible times of the genocide in the 1990s. After 4 months in the US she decided to return (at the age of 84), and turned her flower farm into a home for lost and orphaned children, where she remained until her death in her 90s.

As well as being a fascinating book, this is beautifully read on Audible, and was just perfect listening for work.

Viking Hope you are feeling better soon.

Agree on Mothering Sunday, enjoyed it last year. It was made into a film last year with Olivia Colman and Colin Firth. I've not seen it yet, but would be interested to.

Stokey Good news on The Bread the Devil Knead, just finished. It's good.

I'm saving Build Your House Around My Body for the end as I've heard good things.

The Bread the Devil Knead
Set in Trinidad, a woman turning 40 re-evaluates her life after she witnesses the murder of a woman by a jealous partner. She is in a violent relationship herself and is isolated from others, when her cousin reappears in her life and she is forced to confront her past and make decisions about her future.

This also contains child abuse and incest as well as domestic abuse, but manages it in a different way to The Paper Palace. It's written in patois, so takes a little getting into, but is really worth it in the end. It's a little simplistic in terms of how the character handles things, but you can't help liking her and rooting for her throughout. I'm not sure I'd shortlist it, but it stands far ahead of many of the others I've read.

In terms of the list in general, others may be really enjoying it, so don't let me and my grumpiness put you off. I am generally not a fan of magic/ magical realism so I'm finding this year hard going. I've only found one book truly terrible, and while the others were ok, I feel the standard doesn't match previous years. I've often struggled to narrow it down to 6, this year I'm struggling to find 6. I've got 3 left with 18 days to go, so I'm miles ahead. I've still got 3 spaces on my shortlist...

I've also finished Atomic Habits - James Clear which is a book promoting making small manageable changes and how to turn them into habits that promote a long term gain without the pressure of an unrealistic and unachievable goal. Nothing earth shattering, but helpful.

All Things Wise and Wonderful - James Herriot for a lovely bit of light-hearted nostalgia of a vet as he reminisces about his vet practice and his time in the RAF when he volunteered for service. Not as funny as the first two, but still a lovely escape into different times.

Three more, all quick reads

26. The Masqueraders by Georgette Heyer I know this is a favourite Heyer for many, but it doesn't quite tick the boxes for me. It starts out well (with a foiled elopement) but it's just not as funny IME as for example These Old Shades and it drags rather in the middle. Having said that even not-perfect Heyer still beats most light reading hands down.

27 & 28 Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic for Tea by Robin Stevens
Much reviewed on here, fun school stories-come-murder-mysteries. I didn't love them quite as much as I did the Crater School books, a little overly arch and clever, but still very enjoyable.

@ChessieFL have you said previously how you read so much 😱😱😱

I found you again after a gap of years , not that I have done much reading this year, maybe five books

Good to know Fortuna. I've found your b reviews really helpful as I'm never going to manage the longlist. I read Great Circle and Sorrow and Bliss last year and really liked both of them, though I know they were a bit divisive on here.
I'm about a third of the way through Build Your House Around My Body and am really enjoying that too - be warned it is a bit magical!

Also agree about last year's standard being very high. A couple of my favourites - Small Pleasures and Nothing But Blue Sky - didn't make the shortlist.

@Palegreenstars I think Fortuna has read more than me although she’s not numbering her reads this year!

However, I do read a lot and this is for several reasons. I am a fast reader, and I do take every opportunity to read a page or two (for example I’ll read a couple of pages on my kindle when I’m brushing my teeth) and also listen to audiobooks when I’m cooking or out for a walk alone. I also don’t really have any other hobbies so when I’m not working or sleeping reading fills up most of my time. I’m lucky that DH is a SAHD who looks after most of the housework, and DD is a bit older now so doesn’t need so much looking after, so I perhaps have a bit more free time outside work than some of you. I probably also tend to favour books that are quicker to read (I read a lot of crappy psychological thrillers which don’t take long to get through). For me though reading is almost an addiction - I get very twitchy if I’m sitting and am not reading anything - which is why most of my spare time is spent reading!!

Thing is, reading as many books as I do is not necessarily something to be proud of - I know I’m guilty of reading things too quickly and not getting as much out of them as I should - for the psychological thrillers that doesn’t really matter but I have to really try hard to slow down when reading something like Dickens to ensure I’m picking up all the nuances and I know I miss lots that others would pick up reading slower. As with everything it’s quality not quantity!

Chessie by sheer coincidence we're on exactly the same number.

I'm trying not to get caught up in numbers this year. I don't really care how many it comes to, and ultimately it doesn't matter but I do have this ridiculous thing that if a nice round number is achievable, I do tend to aim for it. Same with a walking challenge I do. I'm very target driven.

I only get through so many by the power of audiobooks. I don't have a TV and live alone so can listen unhindered for a big chunk of the day. Most modern novels are in the 7-10 hour bracket, which makes one a day possible. Cost isn't a factor due to several library memberships. My other hobbies are knitting and rambling/hiking, both compatible with listening at the same time.

Before my audio craze I was managing the 50 annually and used to wonder how on earth others got through so many, but it was others on here who inspired me to try. I had quite a few years where I couldn't read much at all, so feel like I am making up for lost time. I tend to have a paper book, an ebook on my phone and an audiobook on the go at any given time, so of the opportunity pops up for reading then I take it.