Reading the 20th Century discussion

You should also check out Moore's previous Long Bright River which is also very good.

I'm trying to resist temptation at the moment but they're on my list

I finished a short novel from popular Japanese author Atsuhiro Yoshida Goodnight Tokyo centred on the overlapping stories of the passengers of a late night Tokyo taxi driver. Absorbing, undemanding, a little frustratingly underdeveloped in places but fairly readable all the same. The comparisons to Agatha Christie and Teju Cole in the official GR overview are so nonsensical as to seem bizarre. It's nothing like the work of either author, although it does feature a city as does some of Cole's work and it does have a very slight mystery element.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

ive just enjoyed The Other Garden by Francis Wyndham which is a short read. He was known more as a supporter of a whole clutch of writers and photojournalists and helped to shape the tone of the sixties, being a film fan and lover of popular culture . In this novella you can see his kinship with the misfit emerging .

Here's my review

A delicate novella about friendship and misfits . A small village in Wiltshire during WW2 and an unlikely friendship between a teenage boy and a older neighbour , whose unhappy family life, under the necessary war time restrictions , hangs heavy around her actions .

These days Kay would likely have a diagnosis on the ASD/ ADHD spectrum but in those days her impulsive and erratic behaviours were absorbed by a clutch of well heeled friends . There's a fascination with film stars , enforced periods in sanatoriums and a wonderful dog called Havoc .

The other garden is symbolic , a place where you can be your true self, and the narrator's gentle maturing recognises this essential truth . The war is a background to the domesticity of the story , something inevitable , like weather . At a time when much is made of The Heroic Self its good to read a novella that valourises the anti heroic .

It's reads raher like a single chapter in Dance to the Music of Time , the author being a decade younger than Powell but from the same background .

Hester wrote: "ive just enjoyed The Other Garden by Francis Wyndham which is a short read. He was known more as a supporter of a whole clutch of writers and photojournalists and help..."

That sounds really interesting Hester, haven't even heard of it, thanks!

Me neither


Top tip

Thanks both . I've just reserved his short story collection, Mrs Henderson and Other Stories from the library .

I just finished An Unfinished Murder by Jude Deveraux

I finished Kelly Bishop's memoir The Third Gilmore Girl: A Memoir Gilmore Girls is one of my all-time favourite shows, I love the way it builds on the features of vintage screwball comedy as perfected by Mitchell Leisen, Frank Capra and Preston Sturges. The fast-paced dialogue that the genre's known for is notoriously difficult to deliver but Bishop's performances are uniformly brilliant. Her memoir is a bit workaday in places but it's a nice overview of a marvellous actress aimed at her many fans - close to 80 and, despite numerous setbacks, she's still going strong.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I've just read an ARC of the new Rachel Kushner, Creation Lake - one of my favourite living writers:

www.goodreads.com/review/show/6674472041

I just finished Paul Celan and the Trans-Tibetan Angel. What a rich and rewarding adventure. It might just crown my reading year to date.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Thanks G - I might be misremembering but perhaps Alwynne also mentioned reading this book? It's wonderful when you find something that speaks to you in this way.

Roman Clodia wrote: "Thanks G - I might be misremembering but perhaps Alwynne also mentioned reading this book? It's wonderful when you find something that speaks to you in this way."

I did but it didn't entirely work for me. I think Tawada's an interesting, ambitious writer but I also feel that she has a tendency to throw out ideas but isn't necessarily that convincing/coherent when it comes to following through on her underlying arguments.

I was hesitant about reading Palestinian author Yasmin Zaher's debut novel The Coin partly because it's been so relentlessly hype and partly because of comparisons to Otessa Moshfegh - a less-than-favourite author. But, despite flaws, I found Zaher's novel inventive, intriguing and highly readable - Clarice Lispector meets Mona Awad with an explicitly political underpinning.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. Now reading Mani: Travels in the Southern Peloponnese by Patrick Fermor Leigh.

Alwynne wrote: "I was hesitant about reading Palestinian author Yasmin Zaher's debut novel The Coin"

So glad this worked for you as I have it to read. Love the cover art, love the female writers it's being associated with.

In case anyone hasn't seen the jacket:

I finished Ayşegül Savaş's The Anthropologists I found the underlying concept intriguing but found the actual novel slightly lacklustre and unengaging.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I finished Kate Zambreno's memoir/series of reflections The Light Room lyrical yet realistic, thoughtful meditations on art, literature, precarity and motherhood during the pandemic. Beautifully written as always. Should appeal to fans of writers like Olivia Laing - although Zambreno's a much more accomplished writer - Sinead Gleeson, Rivka Galchen, Jenny Odell, Sofia Samatar.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Alwynne wrote: "I finished Kate Zambreno's memoir/series of reflections The Light Room lyrical yet realistic, thoughtful meditations on art, literature, precarity and motherhood during the pandemic"

I really need to read Zambreno, and so much in your review feels like stuff I can relate to.

I've just read The Unfilial: Four Tragic Tales from Modern China, a collection of four novellas which I found utterly engrossing - a bit like Eileen Chang with her interest in domestic life but for a more modern time. Interestingly, precarity is a theme here to0, especially for young women.

www.goodreads.com/review/show/6708985544

I finished a first novel by Glaswegian writer Chris Kohler Phantom Limb despite the need for some drastic editing, I found its exploration of personal/national identity, religion and capitalism fairly intriguing.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I just read Held by Anne Michaels from this year's just-announced Booker longlist: I loved the writing but probably not one for readers who want a story:

My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

There's an ARC on Netgalley if anyone is interested.

Right now, I'm reading Graham Robb's Balzac. it's whetting my appetite for some Balzac books. There are certainly plenty available.

Roman Clodia wrote: "I just read Held by Anne Michaels from this year's just-announced Booker longlist: I loved the writing but probably not one for readers who want a story:

My review:..."

Great review, think it sounds potentially fascinating but have so much to get through right now, not sure if I'll get a chance to fit it in.

I know next to nothing about Balzac - should I be putting that right?

Nigeyb wrote: "I know next to nothing about Balzac - should I be putting that right?"

A bit like Émile Zola, he wrote a vast sequence of books called The Human Comedy/La Comedie Humaine.

You may well like him as he shares characteristics with other nineteenth century writers like Trollope but I'd say has more bite.

Best to start with some of the 'big' books like Old Goriot or Cousin Bette - they're not a sequence and don't have to be read in order.

Thanks RC

Alwynne wrote: "I think it sounds potentially fascinating but have so much to get through right now, not sure if I'll get a chance to fit it in."

Held is worth it, I think. It's not flawless and it loses character connections as it progresses but the writing is lovely.

What I'd say is most remarkable is that it has a spiritual vision of love and shelter at its heart which is quite separate from any religion. It reminded me a bit of the 'only connect' idea from EM Forster but given real depth. There's something a bit mystical about it that touched me.

All that said, it's not a book to rush through (though it's short) when you've got other stuff going on - it'll be there when you're ready.

Roman Clodia wrote: "Alwynne wrote: "I think it sounds potentially fascinating but have so much to get through right now, not sure if I'll get a chance to fit it in."

Held is worth it, I think. It's n..."

Thank you, sounds a me book. It is out in paperback in the UK in late September, will pick it up then.

I've just read Hungry for What by Spanish author María Bastarós. She's being compared to Mariana Enríquez but reminded me of Joyce Carol Oates as well at her most provocative.

My review: www.goodreads.com/review/show/6722915118

A good choice for WiT - published by Daunt so straight to paperback.

You are so right about Held, RC. Your (as usual) excellent review prompted me to read it and I'm grateful for it. I already planned to read James before it was longlisted for the Booker and it didn't disappoint to say the least, but their longlists usually lead me to a gem or two and Held is one of them.

I read Held earlier in the year and have similar thoughts. It's not a perfect book but I appreciate Anne Michaels's approach to storytelling. The prose is stellar albeit occasionally opaque.

I'm reading Off-White by Astrid Roemer now. The novel has elements of a sprawling family drama, which isn't usually my cup of tea, but I'm enjoying it for what it is (including the politics).

Roemer is a writer who straddles the 20th and 21st centuries. Has she been read in this group?

David wrote: "Roemer is a writer who straddles the 20th and 21st centuries. Has she been read in this group?"

We haven't read her though I like the sound of her On a Woman's Madness. I've just started Off-White which, as you say, is more of a family drama than I expected but done vividly.

Vesna wrote: "I already planned to read James before it was longlisted"

I really want to read James but feel I wouldn't be doing it justice without reading Huck Finn first which I know nothing about so don't know when I'll get to them.

Roman Clodia wrote: "David wrote: "Roemer is a writer who straddles the 20th and 21st centuries. Has she been read in this group?"

I thought On a Woman's Madness was worth reading but not sure I'd ever want to read anything else of hers.

I finished Sam Mill's latest novel The Watermark she's also known for co-founding Dodo Ink. It's a sprawling, meta, inventive series of interlinking narratives that reminded me of the work of Scarlett Thomas/David Mitchell/Haruki Marukami - all writers I'm not that keen on. I also found the use of Baudrillard, ideas around authorship etc a bit superficial, however for those who like this kind of book and still find those kinds of ideas interesting I imagine this will work very well.

Link to my review:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Vesna wrote: "You are so right about Held, RC. Your (as usual) excellent review prompted me to read it and I'm grateful for it. I already planned to read James before it was lon..."

Agree about Held ,although i was hanging on by the coat tails towards the end . It's very meditative .

I've just finished The Long Prospect by Elizabeth Harrower another author new to me and whom I certainly plan to read more of .

Written in the 1950's we are in an industrial city north of Sydney ( modeled on Newcastle where the author grew up ) and in the home of Lilian , a self absorbed and manipulative grandmother who runs a boarding house and who has the care of Emily , her eleven year old grand daughter . Those of you who love Elizabeth Bowen will spot the similar set up and Harrower ,too, is concerned mainly with the unseen emotional and psychological needs of this child who is both insightful and confused . The writing is slow , clear and forensic with every encounter being set with bobby traps, misreadings and volatility , It's not a happy story and there's very little plot but the critique of materialism in the post war Australian boom rumbles along beneath the psychological drama.

Has anyone else read this novelist ? I understand her output was limited to the period and she has only been republished by Text Classics in the last decade . Can anyone recommend which novel i should read next ?

New one on me Hester


Sounds very enticing

I hadn't heard of her either - sounds interesting!

She was friendly with Shirley Hazard too . I understand all her other novels are set in Sydney .

I've just finished Long Island by Colm Tóibín and must say I was disappointed by it. I loved Brooklyn and was excited to hear that a sequel had come out, but I found the plot of this book unbelievable and melodramatic, with too many characters behaving strangely just to create surprise twists. I still enjoyed his writing style and there was a lot that I liked, but overall I don't think it lives up to Brooklyn.

Just reviewed Death of the Red Rider
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I'm really enjoying this series for the strong sense of Stalinist Russia it gives one with all its harsh truths. This entry was slightly less intense than book 1 but excellent all the same

I've seen good things about that series, Lady C so good to have your endorsement.

I finished an ARC of Gifted by Suzumi Suzuki: it feels similar in tone to other writing by contemporary Japanese female authors - a little plain in style but the emotional restraint hiding depths of emotion:

www.goodreads.com/review/show/6746172462

Reading Mani: Travels in the Southern Peloponnese

One of the things in this thread that makes me chuckle is that "what are you reading now" is almost always "what did you just finish reading."

I read The Postcard as part of my women-in-translation challenge. I expected so much better than I found. The book is rather uneven, and to my mind not very successful as a novel, but in the end I'm glad I read it.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I had similar issues with The Postcard, G, and also gave it a disappointed 3-stars.

Roman Clodia wrote: "I finished an ARC of Gifted by Suzumi Suzuki: it feels similar in tone to other writing by contemporary Japanese female authors - a little plain in style but the ..."

That's a shame, have this one on my pile...

Bryan wrote: "Reading Mani: Travels in the Southern Peloponnese"

I loved the Mani when I visited, incredibly beautiful and all those towers left over from feuds where quite bizarre.

Alwynne wrote: "That's a shame, have this one on my pile..."

You may well appreciate it more than me. It's very short so I don't regret reading it.