50 Books Challenge 2022 Part Five

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the fifth thread of the 50 Books 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.

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

What are you reading?

Cornish Many thanks for your review of Dervla Murphy. As a keen cyclist, I've always meant to read one of her books but never quite got round to it. You have inspired me to take the plunge!

Off-topic, but can I pick people's bookworm brains? I read a novel ages ago and would like to read more of the author, but I can't remember her name or the title...!
(This will be vague; advance apologies)
So it's set in the US, modern-ish times (possibly as long ago as the 60s, possibly more modern), over a hot summer. It's basically about a blended/extended family and their tensions and relationships. The only snippet I can recall is that there's a young boy who somewhat resents the narrator, who I think is a stepmother or similar figure. Whenever she walks into a room he says 'Boom chicka wa-wa' and at one point she thinks his voice when he says it is 'strangely sexual for a five-year-old' (may not be five, but you get the gist).
I know this is annoying. Undying gratitude to anyone who knows it!

Not annoying! I love this kind of question and I'm really intrigued now, but I have no idea what book this is.

@CornishBlue and @Boiledeggandtoast I really like the Dervla Murphy books I've read - 4 of her most recent ones and one from the late 1980s which isn't so typical of her work, because it's closer to home for her or for most readers - a book about two cities, one of which is Bradford (hazy, a long time since I read it). The ones I read are her two post Soviet Russia books, and her final two books about Gaza and Israel/Palestine. She only died very recently aged 90 and she carried on travelling and having adventures into her early 80s. I have Full Tilt and Wheels Within Wheels and quite a few of her other books TBR, and would quite like to read the late 1980s one again.

Another female travel writer I like is Sara Wheeler.

Thanks elkiedee.

Metamorphosis: Selected Stories - Penelope Lively
Masterclass in writing. She discusses in the introduction how these are from the full span of her career so you can see the development of her writing as time goes by. Absolutely brilliant exploration of what it is to be human.

The Men -Sandra Newman
At the same moment in time all men and boys across the planet disappear. As women come to terms with their grief for their loved ones, they also need to keep the lights on and new political movements form in the aftermath as science and society need to move forward with the new normal.

I really liked this, it has an interesting and gripping start. I felt it didn't quite keep up the momentum to the end, but is still worth a read. The author gets an absolute slamming on GR for being transphobic, for daring to write a book which is based on chromosomes not gender feels. Absolutely ridiculous. It's an interesting idea and well explored.

Burning Questions: Essays and Occasional Pieces - Margaret Atwood
50 essays, speeches and articles she has written, organised in 4 parts to span her entire career. She looks at many topics throughout including society, politics, climate change and writing.
Some very thoughtful and interesting pieces. She is incredibly well travelled and read, her prices are intelligent and wise as well as very wide ranging. Atwood is one of those authors I want to read more of, but some of her work is not really 'my thing'. The more sci-fi-ish feel of some of them really doesn't appeal. I will read Hagseed once I've got round to rereading The Tempest, although I haven't been that impressed with others from the Hogarth Shakespeare project.

Just catching up after falling off for a bit and bringing my list over

1. The Pursuit of Love - Nancy Mitford
2. The Memory Police - Yoko Ogawa
3. Animal - Lisa Taddeo
4. Happy Families - Julie Ma
5. The Mystery of the Blue Train - Agatha Christie
6. Archangel - Robert Harris
7. Special Topics in Calamity Physics - Marisha Pessl
8. Seating Arrangements - Maggie Shipstead
9. A Gentleman In Moscow - Amor Towles

10. Malibu Rising - Taylor Jenkins Reid 11. China Room - Sanjeev Sahota 12.The City We Became - N K Jemisin 13. Rachel's Holiday - Marian Keyes 14. Accidental Tourist - Anne Tyler 15. Death on the Nile - Agatha Christie 16. The Sittaford Mystery -Agatha Christie 17. Matrix - Lauren Groff 18. The Heron's Cry - Ann Cleeves 19. Spring - Ali Smith 20. On Earth, We're Briefly Gorgeous- Ocean Vuong 21. Build Your House Around My Body - Violet Kupersmith 22. The Bread The Devil Knead - Lisa Allen-Agostini 23. Why didn't they Ask Evans? - Agatha Christie 24. To Paradise - Hanna Yanagihara 25. Hungry - Grace Dent 26. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry 27. The Twyford Code - Janice Hallett 28. The Paper Palace- Miranda Cowley Heller 29. The Final Revival of Opal and Nev - Dawnie Walton 30. Record of a Spaceborn Few - Becky Chambers 31. The Space Between Worlds - Miciah Johnson 32. Emily - Jilly Cooper 33. Strangers We Knew - Elle Marr 34. Oh William - Elizabeth Strout 35. I Capture The Castle - Dodie Smith 36. Train Dreams - Denis Johnson 37. Wild Fire - Anne Cleeves 38. The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides 39. Nine Lives - Peter Swanson And just finished

40. Salt Lick - Lulu Allison. This was on the Woman's prize longlist. It has two separate stories following Jesse and Isolde in a near future dystopia where the sea is taking over the land and people are dying from pandemics and deserting the countryside. Cars have been banned. I liked this, the writing and descriptions were great. The first half was stronger than the second but definitely worth a read. There a cow chorus that seemed to wind up lots of people on Good Reads but I quite liked it.

45. Half of A Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie

Set in Nigeria in the early and late 1960s (moving between the two periods) during a tumultuous period in history. Twin sisters Olanna and Kainene are from a privileged Nigerian background. Kainene goes into the family business and becomes involved with a white man, Richard, who is one of the characters through whom the story is told. Olanna, from whose viewpoint the story also unfolds, is an academic and in a relationship with another academic and political activist, Odenigbo. Ugwu is houseboy to Odenigbo and Olanna and is the final main voice of the story. Olanna goes from a position of privilege to sharing a single room with her husband, child and houseboy. Whilst the focus of the story is the political unrest, division and tragedy that unfolds between those from different tribal backgrounds and geographical areas the story also focuses on the personal stories of the key characters and I really enjoyed the voice of Ugwu. The characters all had flaws making them more credible. I had no previous knowledge of the political turbulence of Nigeria at this time but feel slightly more informed now. This was a great read (but I preferred Americanah!).

46. Frenchman’s Creek - Daphne du Maurier

Dona, an English lady, moves to the Cornish family seat with her young children to reset from her vacuous London life leaving her husband behind to continue his gambling and drinking. She learns from her neighbour that the Cornish coastline is being harassed by a French pirate ship and it soon becomes clear that her servant is involved. Dona embarks on the adventure of a lifetime. Whilst it might stretch credibility, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Read it, yes. Can't remember much about it and the search facility on here is so awful now that I doubt I'd find my review.

Stokey the cow chorus wound me up too, but I really liked the book overall.

I didn't think it added anything.

41 Let's Do It:The Birth of Pop - Bob Stanley

I've read a lot of books about rock and pop music, to the point where I tend to avoid them now as they tread over very familiar ground. But this encyclopaedic and engaging journey through the musical forerunners of pop as we know it was packed with new info to me - from ragtime and music hall to Broadway and the Jazz Age. It's very readable and great for dipping into. Recommended.

33. Klara and the sun by Kazuo Ishihuro

Reduced to 99p so I thought I'd give it a shot. I didn't really get it. I find books that drop you into a world and assume you know all terminology really annoying. I don't want to work it out for myself, I'm not after pieces of a puzzle, I'm after a story. I kept thinking I'd missed bits or explanations and tried skipping back on my Kindle but I think I just didn't get it.

I was ok to finish it as kindle said it was a 4 hour read, but I wouldn't have persevered with anything much longer.

My next book is going to be the next in my list of Stephen King re-reads. It's Insomnia which I am a bit nervous about as I sometimes have trouble sleeping and don't need this made worse! Its a book that's sat on my shelf since I was 18 when someone who knew I liked horror gifted it to me, so it's probably about time I give it a go!

**

Search is driving me bonkers as well. Apparently the new search only indexes the title and OP's first post, and nothing else!

For now I've resorted to using Google and limiting it to Mumsnet (e.g. I go to Google and type in site:www.mumsnet.com <my search term here>). It's a reasonable workaround until they bring back advanced search, which is apparently high priority but they don't seem to have any idea when...

Although having said it's a workaround I still couldn't find your review of Mansfield Revisited, Remus 😒

Ta da! (I remembered the conversation & found it from there - just wish I could remember whether I've read Jane Fairfax or not.)

"Book 109
Mansfield Revisited by Joan Aiken
I loved this! We revisit Mansfield Park, but without the boring sops that are Fanny and Edmund, who’ve been shipped off to Antigua to manage things over there after the death of Sir Thomas Bertram. Mary Crawford is back in Mansfield, having just missed Fanny and Edmund. Unfortunately Mary (the best character in the original novel) is dying. Meanwhile, Susan Price has grown up into a young woman utterly unlike her boring and prudish older sister. Could a girl with spirit be exactly what both Henry Crawford and Sir Thomas Bertram the younger both be looking for?

Sadik Thanks so much for the recommendation. It was just what I needed at the end of a long and rather difficult half term. I've now bought and begun her Lady Catherine's Necklace too."

Impressive work, Sadiq.

I think JF would stand up well to a re-read, if you fancy a treat.

Or even Sadik!

look forward to hearing what you think. I hope to read one of her others at some point.

40. The Choice - Claire Wade

Reviewed on a 50 Books thread earlier this year and it sounded intriguing.

What happens when the Nanny State becomes too prescriptive? Sugar and fats are severely rationed, alcohol and caffeine are banned, compulsory fitness classes and public weigh-ins are the norm, and people are encouraged to report their friends, family or neighbours to face the severest public penalties when the rules are not adhered to.

It was an interesting concept and the story was quite a page turner. There was a great deal happening in the last quarter of the book and it came to a sudden stop. There seemed to be too few authority figures as main characters; they were multi-tasking to quite an extent, but the main protagonists were on the whole believable and sympathetic. A good read but not one of the best this year so far.

I'd like to think that we wouldn't get to the point where cake and sweet treats were banned! I suspect there would be open revolt long before then. There would in the Roman household anyway 🍰🧁

17. Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart This is beautifully written but makes for harrowing reading. So much so that I had to stop reading it two-thirds in and read something light and fluffy instead! Absolutely heartbreaking, it's a totally immersive autobiographical novel, set in 1980s Glasgow, in poverty, in deprivation and ultimately in love and resilience. Shuggie's story will stay with me for a long time.

@RomanMum have your read The Method by Juli Zeh? Basically the same society is envisioned, only this one is in future Germany and it's rather brilliantly done

47. A Dry Spell - Clare Chambers

Nina is a single mother to James, an A level student who has recently found love with Kerry. Guy is a primary school headmaster with two young daughters and a marriage which is going through a rough patch. Jane, Guy’s wife, is struggling with both her younger daughter and her marriage. Calls from Hugo (living in Australia) to each of Nina and Guy to tell them he is coming to visit lead to Nina getting in touch with Guy. The book then looks back at their time as students and a geography expedition to Algeria and the consequences of that trip. I really enjoy Clare Chambers’ writing and this book was no exception.

48. Second Wind - Dick Francis

Still making my way through the Francis oeuvre. Our hero, Perry, is a meteorologist working for the BBC and one of his colleagues, Kris, is involved with the daughter of a racehorse owner. Kris also owns a small aeroplane and unknowingly involves Perry in skulduggery by taking him to a racing lunch. The story travels via Newmarket and Florida to the Caribbean where Kris and Perry, in their professional roles, want to fly to the eye of a hurricane. However, Kris has also been tasked with landing on an inhabited island for reasons which are not clear to Perry. The flight does not go to plan and Perry’s life is in danger. Not one of his best books (for me). Quite confusing in places as a non-scientist and too little racing.

@YolandiFuckinVisser thanks, no I haven't heard of that one. May have to add to my TBR...

30. Whatever it Takes by Adele Parks. Chick lit for 40 year olds. Eloise is dealing with a lot at the moment - looking after her three daughters, moving out of London, her mother-in-law's health issues and her best friend's infertility struggles. It will probably all be okay in the end though.

31. Dracula by Bram Stoker. I had never read this 19th century classic, set in Transylvania, Whitby and London and featuring the eponymous archetypal vampire. It's a little long winded at times (compared to modern books), but I really enjoyed it. This was the Audible version and I thought it was very well narrated, so that really added to the story. I found it a bit surprising that the story is entirely told through letters, diary entries etc - I tend to think of this as a modern literary device, but I must be completely wrong.

Whoops, should say uninhabited island in my recent review not an inhabited island. You may have worked that out anyway…..