50 Books Challenge 2023 Part Three

[Southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2023, 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 and the second one here.

11 Hiding from the light - Barbara Erskine Set in small-town Essex, where Emma buys an old cottage and leaves the London rat-race. There are strange witchy things going on, and it seems to be tied up with the notorious 17th century witchfinder Matthew Hopkins…

This started well and the spooky witchy element is right up my street - I thought it was going to be a bit Mary Stewart-ish (having read one of Barbara Erskine’s books previously). But unfortunately it’s far too long for the story it’s trying to tell, the characterisation was terrible, and it was overwhelmingly religious. Also dated and sexist - I can’t believe things have changed that much since it was written in 2002! But maybe that’s just me getting old…

Raven & Fisher sounds great @Passmethecrisps

What Matters in Jane Austen by John Mullan
This was a re-read, having read it before when it came out in paperback about ten years ago. It’s vaguely scholarly, but also very readable. I really enjoyed it and it’s made me want to read some more ‘readable but a bit academic’ stuff, if anybody has any suggestions.

I agree with Sadik, @Passmethecrisps.
I used to love Christopher Brookmyre and DS is a big fan. He does write great stories so I'm looking forward to trying this out. I can see the library has it as an eBook which is even better.

Remus, in the "vaguely scholarly but readable" camp, I like Contested Will, by James Shapiro, mentioned by someone on here recently; The Bronte Myth, by Lucasta Miller, and Weatherland, by Alexandra Harris.

Most recent reads:

17. A Hunter-Gatherer's Guide to the 21st Century, by Heather Heying and Bret Weinstein. Written by a husband and wife academics who have spent time on field trips in various remote parts of the world and are bringing us back the wisdom they're learned. A lot is familiar - move your body, take risks, treat yourself and your children as antifragile. There were a few thought-provoking ideas - a community living on fluctuating resources may conspicuously "waste" resources on feasts or pyramids. This "waste" can be adaptive if it prevents the resources leading to a population expansion that can't later be maintained. There was an odd bitter reference to higher education being swept up in chasing social justice rather than truth: some googling revealed the male author was caught up in racism scandal in a US college. He wasn't directly racist, but as a white male, he felt he could tell everyone else how anti racism should be done. There's more than a trace of this arrogance in the book. Some good stuff but flawed.

Remus Have you read Super Infinite by Katherine Rundell? Her doctoral thesis was on John Donne, the subject of this book, so it may be vaguely academic. I haven't read it yet but I love Rundell's writing, and John Donne.

I was going to suggest Clare Tomalins stuff Remusbiographies but plenty of scholarly research

I've also got Super Infinite @MaudOfTheMarches and haven't started yet

Super-Infinite has just been R4's Book of the Week (last week) - it was a kindle deal recently but I missed it (🤦‍♀️)

It was me who read Contested Will recently, biblio - definitely recommend. I know I’m always going on about Richard Holmes but his books are wonderful - Sidetracks and Footsteps are essays on his career as a biographer and more dippable-into than his big biogs of Shelley and Coleridge (good as those are too).

Yes, Clare Tomalin is a good shout, and Jenny Uglow is similar.

14. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng Found this quite dreary and dull. Miserable family being miserable. The last third was a bit better but surprised by the love for this novel.

I seem to be in the minority on this thread but I adored Dahl's writing. My favourite author when I was about 7 or 8, devoured his books. My children like them as well. I don't think books should be changed, an editorial note could be added if necessary.

1. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak.

A forbidden love story set both in 1970s Cyprus and present (ish) day London. This felt a little too issue driven rather than character driven for me. However, I enjoyed the coming of age stories, the soft magical realism elements like the fig tree and for the most part the flowery language. I definitely want to check out more by this author.

1. Moon of The Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice.

This First Nation post apocalyptic novel is a great edition to the genre. Far north in Canada the community on the reservation are so isolated from the wider world that the impact of the unspecified world ending event is slow and subtle. When a stranger seeks refuge with them, big questions are raised about how they should survive. I loved the balance of modern challenges and Anishinaabe traditions. This was a short novel and my highlight of the year so far - I’ve just seen there’s a sequel coming out this year. Can’t wait.

On the Kids literature front I’m reading the famous 5 to my daughter at the moment and despite their dates moments they are such good stories that I’ve found hard to replicate with other authors.
What kid wouldn’t want to stay on an island looking for treasure without parents.
My daughter has been riveted.

I enjoyed Superinfinite - if you like Donne that might tick the right boxes Remus

There's also a very good biography of Gaskell I think by Jenny Uglow

Heads up that Demon Copperhead is £1.89 today

Yup.
All gearing up to the new episodes.woop!
im going to have to really force myself to leave "old" neighbours behind and not compare.as being bought by the new channels they will have to follow different to fit the channel.

I do like the idea of the editorial note.
In this way I think we get to keep actually learning and Improving. You continue then to see how times change. Even be proud of how our words ha e changed or not so proud etc.
I suppose it is difficult though.because we are where we are.so say if certain topics and words were used in books for kiddies when I was little and reading them that were not appropriate from 30 years before it would or could be very damaging.

Thanks, everyone.

I've read a few by Clare Tomalin. Not interested enough in Donne to read much about him, sorry - and I've read enough about Shakespeare to last me a lifetime.

I should have been more specific - would love more stuff on Austen (although I will have read a lot of it already, I think). Maybe something on Mary Shelley, or the Romantics? Maybe Robert and Elizabeth Browning? Or more modern stuff, perhaps? I don't really want biographies - more commentary on their writing.

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie have you read Jane Austen the Secret Radical by Helena Kelly? I really enjoyed it though wasn't convinced by most of it.

Thanks for this. I remember starting it and finding the writing style irritating. Maybe I should give it another try.

Wading into the Dahl chat - probably completely unnecessarily! I enjoyed reading his books as a child and very much enjoyed reading them to my children. There are clearly some dated language and attitudes and I have been known to edit while reading some of them. Stories such as Mathilda and the BFG particularly endure. I enjoy the little girl characters as courageous leaders and problem solvers. His books are often about the underdog rising up against rotten power so I think they are worth sticking with.

@Sadik and @PepeLePew I hope you enjoy them if you read them. As soon as I started the first book I felt really engaged and I can’t remember the last time I felt that proper “page turning” feeling. I was a voracious reader of Brookmyre’s earlier work - the Jack Parlabane stuff and then the standalone work. I even really enjoyed the one which was set in a computer game and I think that was generally poorly reviewed. So I might be biased but I think the combination of Brookmyre’s craft of weaving an interesting yarn coupled with the medical knowledge of the time really work. I did have to work a little past not entirely liking Raven initially

book 15 is The Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett. I have fallen into the habit of a novella at the weekend and a novel during the week but I haven’t seen a Novella this week which has leapt out to me.

How about The Young Romantics, by Daisy Hay or The Poets' Daughters, by Katie Waldegrave? Yes, quite autobiographical but in a way that makes sense of the work.

I could swear I've read a book with a fictionalised Mary Shelley. Drawing a blank and getting frustrated

Thanks @bibliomania I want more 'literary criticism' than biography, I think.

The Godmother by Hannelore Cayre. Translated by Stephanie Smee

French crime caper about a court translator struggling to pay her mother's care home fees who has the chance to acquire some top grade hash and so becomes 'The Godmother', the latest supplier of drugs to the dealers of Paris. Great fun, witty and fast paced. Loved it.