Matthew Selwyn's Blog, page 2
March 28, 2019
Review: The Binding by Bridget Collins
If there is anything to capture the imagination of the reading public, it is a book about books. Throw in a little magic and you have a very good chance of enchanting the many not the few. Bridget Collins is onto a good thing with her first novel aimed, ostensibly, at adults, then. The Binding ’s high concept is pretty simple: what if one could have unpleasant or painful experiences expunged from one’s memory by visiting a binder, who would, for a small fee, bind a book containing the chosen e...
February 26, 2019
Review: Normal People by Sally Rooney
Sally Rooney appears to be the darling of the literary world. Her most recent novel, Normal People (2018) followed close on the heels of Conversations with Friends (2017). Both received fulsome praise in all the right places and awards/nominations to bolster the young Irish writer’s growing reputation. The question with such breakout stars is, always, are they actually that good? To sate curiosity immediately, my answer is: Yes, Rooney is good. But of course, there is plenty to unpack in that...
February 12, 2019
Review: Them: Adventures with Extremists by Jon Ronson
Shady capitalists, corrupt politicians, and 12-foot lizards. They’re all out there, and they’re running our world. At least, that is the contention of many folks on the fringes of society (and, let’s be honest, quite a few not on the fringes too). Going back around 20 years, “humorous journalist” Jon Ronson spent several years tagging along with assorted extremists from a diverse range of backgrounds. What did they all have in common? A belief that our world was run by a hidden elite.
Ronson...
January 25, 2019
Review: La Belle Sauvage (Book 1, The Book of Dust) by Philip Pullman
Children’s fiction in the late-1990s and early-2000s was dominated by one series and one character: Harry Potter, the specky wizard whose greatest trick was filling bank accounts at the swish of a wand. By comparison, it is not difficult to see why Philip Pullman’s aggressively anti-religion, metaphysical adventures with more than a whiff of Milton about them might not have been the ‘box office’ smash to rival the Potter kid. His Dark Materials, however, will have played a large part in the f...
July 3, 2017
Review: The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry
If you are a book buyer of any description, it cannot have escaped your notice that Sarah Perry’s The Essex Serpent (2016) is currently toast of the town and being pushed extremely hard by its publisher (or at least, it was when I started this review!). It is hardly possible to walk into a Waterstones without tripping over several tables laden with this beautifully designed volume. Of course, prominence is less an indicator of merit and more of financial backing these days. So what of the sto...
March 30, 2017
Reading Plan: April 2017
I have been a right lazy toerag this March. I can’t remember the last time I put up exactly 0 posts in a month. I’m afraid I’ve been distracted working on my novel and catching Pokemon in this lovely weather (probably more the latter, to be honest). And so my list of books to review mounts ever higher and the likelihood of me making a dent in the list gets ever less likely. Still, the sun is shining and everything is beautiful (and nothing hurts?). You know, apart from Article 50 being trigge...
February 26, 2017
Interview: Susanna Beard
Susanna Beard is a newly-published novelist who originally trained as a linguist and worked in PR for some years. After taking several writing courses, she embarked on her first project, Dare to Remember, which was published by Legend Press this month.
Dare to Remember is the story of a young woman's recovery and struggle to reclaim her own memories following a traumatic attack that left her best friend dead.
You can read my review here: Dare to Remember by Susanna Beard
In Dare to Re...
Review: Dare to Remember by Susanna Beard
Violent crime is only the start of the story for most victims and it is the recovery from trauma that Susanna Beard’s debut novel Dare to Remember (2017) focuses on. Several months ago, Lisa and her best friend Ali were attacked in their own flat. While Lisa escaped with significant wounds and a serious case of PTSD, Ali was not so lucky. Now, Lisa has moved to a small village to find a safe space in which to recover from the horror of losing a friend and the knowledge that the man responsibl...
January 30, 2017
Reading Plan: February 2017
I hope the image of our beloved leader Theresa May hand in hand with the newly-inaugurated president Donald J. Trump was enough to warm the cockles of your heart and confirm that 2017 is going to be a year in which love wins. That’s the message I took from it at least. *Quietly bangs face against wall until the world makes sense again*
In these parts I have been busy during January. Admittedly, I haven’t attempted to claim ownership of anyone’s reproductive rights or banned any Muslim nations...
January 9, 2017
Review: Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
"The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning."
To my knowledge, I have seen every James Bond film ever made (in the English language and all similar caveats to such a sweeping statement). It might surprise you, then, to know that I have only read one of Ian Fleming’s Bond books previously, despite my father having a complete collection of both hardbacks and paperbacks. This being the case, I thought it might be a bit of a lark to have a go at experiencing B...
