I’m probably the last book blogger (at least in the UK, who likes this sort of thing, etc…) to read this book. The hype around Sally Rooney has been quite something, and I often have mixed feelings about hype. Often with “popular” novelists, especially female ones, I find that the novels that get the most… Continue reading Conversations with Friends (2017) by Sally Rooney
Yearbook (2021) by Seth Rogen
I read Yearbook way back in May, but because of life I am only now getting around to writing about it. I also read it in about two days - partly because it’s so short and partly because it was so engaging - so it was one of those reading experiences that just sort of… Continue reading Yearbook (2021) by Seth Rogen
The Island (1959) by Ana María Matute
Getting ready to write this post, I realised it's been three months since I posted on here. I honestly didn't realise that much time had passed. That is this pandemic life - time has completely changed. Living in this weird in-between state of anxiety and hesitancy with little pockets of “normal life”, with hardly any… Continue reading The Island (1959) by Ana María Matute
Cardiff, by the Sea by Joyce Carol Oates (2020)
This book of four novellas is about women, about what it is like to be a woman, though sometimes through extreme examples. It is not always a pleasant book. Cardiff, by the Sea shows us the worst, most devastating things about being a woman - as well as the exquisite moments of joy that can… Continue reading Cardiff, by the Sea by Joyce Carol Oates (2020)
The Montessori Toddler: A Parent’s Guide to Raising a Curious and Responsible Human Being by Simone Davies (2018)
I realise that this book is a bit of a departure from the sort of thing reviewed in my last few posts (which I realise were months ago, hello 2021), but this is the first book I have read all the way through since I think October - so I'm reviewing it. Honestly having a… Continue reading The Montessori Toddler: A Parent’s Guide to Raising a Curious and Responsible Human Being by Simone Davies (2018)
My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier (1951)
2003 Virago paperback I first read this in 2014, which seems like a lifetime ago, and decided to re-read it earlier this year when I was fed up with everything I had on my bookshelves. At some point I put it aside, and I left it for so long, I'm not sure why, that I… Continue reading My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier (1951)
East West Street: On the Origins of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity by Phillippe Sands (2016)
image: goodreads.com This is a book about many things. Ostensibly you could say that East West Street is about a lawyer and historian, Phillippe Sands, exploring the lives of his maternal grandparents (and his mother) before and during the Second World War. It starts as that, catalysed by Sands being invited to give a lecture… Continue reading East West Street: On the Origins of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity by Phillippe Sands (2016)
House of Glass by Hadley Freeman (2020)
Let me preface this review by saying that I have not written a book review, or any blog post, for months now so please bear with me... in June I went back to work after maternity leave, but due to lockdown my little one's nursery was not open at the time and so my husband… Continue reading House of Glass by Hadley Freeman (2020)
I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron (2006)
I honestly don't know why it's taken me so long to read any of Nora Ephron's books. I adore her movies, particularly When Harry Met Sally, and I'd always heard her books were just as good. Perhaps I was afraid they wouldn't be and my reverence of her script writing would be ruined. But then… Continue reading I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron (2006)
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski, tr. Danusia Stok (1993, 2007)
I have not written a book review in quite a while. My last one was Stet by Diana Athill in July 2019. A month later I had my baby and though I tried to read during feeds or when he was asleep, it just never really happened - I started a couple of books but… Continue reading The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski, tr. Danusia Stok (1993, 2007)
