June in Books
I read 11 books in June, and I'm pretty pleased with my choices! Read on to discover what they were...
In my ongoing quest to read more classics, the first book I read in June was The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett.
The Maltese Falcon was an utterly absorbing read, in its page-turning twists and its cinematic writing. Although I can never fully get past the way it talks about women, I have a soft spot for the hard-boiled detective genre, and this one didn’t disappoint. The merits of The Maltese Falcon don’t just lie in its ‘classic’ status; I loved the way this mystery unravelled, and I loved the character of Sam Spade. This is a book that I didn’t want to put down.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Next up was The Sentence by Louise Erdrich, which was shortlisted for this year's Women's Prize for Fiction.
The Sentence was almost a five-star read for me. I was hooked from the first page, by the beautiful writing style and the unusual story. I wasn't expecting the story to be so contemporary, and I'm not sure it always worked; The Sentence covers a lot of ground without quite, for me, bringing everything together. But I'm not at all surprised that it made the Women's Prize shortlist. Definitely a book for book lovers.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller was my next read, which made the longlist for the Women's Prize for Fiction.
I really enjoyed The Paper Palace, a page-turning read about a dysfunctional family and their summers on the cape. I particularly enjoyed the characterisation, and was impressed by how well the book’s structure (something which often lets down a good story, for me) worked. This book does, however, feature storylines of sexual abuse, which always leave me a little uncomfortable, especially in a page-turning read.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The last of my Jubilee bank holiday reading was Omeros by Derek Walcott, which had been on my to-read list for too long.
I found Omeros a difficult read, but, the more I read, the more sense it made to me. I have no doubt that there is a lot I missed - this is definitely a poem that would reward close reading - but I'm a firm believer in not having to understand everything you read. There is so much going on in this poem to think about, and the language is absolutely stunning. I am so glad that I have finally read this one, and I have no doubt that I'll return to it one day.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Up next was Timecode of a Face by Ruth Ozeki, who has won this year's Women's Prize for Fiction with The Book of Form and Emptiness (which is on my to-read list).
Timecode of a Face has a brilliant premise, as Ozeki challenges herself to spend three hours gazing into her own reflection. This book alternates between timecoded observations and thoughts from during the three hours, and personal essays inspired by the experiment. This book, short enough to be read in one sitting, has a really tight focus, which I think the best essay collections should have. And this is one of the best essay collections I have read. It is incredibly well written.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My next pick was The Martian by Andy Weir, which I'd been meaning to read ever since I saw (and enjoyed) the film.
The Martian is a real page-turner, which I was eager to get back to as soon as I'd put it down. The plot is essentially a litany of problems for the characters (mainly the protagonist) to solve, and I loved it. Some of the scientific details washed over me a little, but they didn't feel out of place in the story. I love the way the book shifts perspectives, and I really enjoyed the balance of humour and emotion. I knew how this book ended, but I still found myself invested in the story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I picked Howards End by E.M. Forster as my next classic read, partly because I also wanted to watch the film adaptation.
I found Howards End an unusual book. The narrator is external to the story, but has quite a dominant voice, which I found a little distracting. It took me a while to get into the story, and although I did eventually, I continued to be a little put off by the writing style. I also found the characters quite odd, and often felt like, despite having been told so much about them, I didn’t really know them.
⭐⭐⭐
After this came another classic with a film adaptation I wanted to watch: Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith.
It pains me to only give three stars to Strangers on a Train, but as much as I love the premise, I found the story a little slow. The tension should have been high for most of the book, but I found it a little lacking, especially in the ending. It also turned out to be one of those books where I get frustrated with the actions of the protagonist, which didn’t always make sense to me.
⭐⭐⭐
Up next was an author I'd been meaning to read for too long: Jean Rhys and Wide Sargasso Sea.
As a lover of Jane Eyre, I love that Rhys took it upon herself to tell the story of the first Mrs Rochester, and Wide Sargasso Sea does a fantastic job of playing with the idea that every story has two sides. I particularly loved the sense of place in this book, especially because it’s something that I associate with the gothic genre. Definitely a book I can see myself revisiting, and definitely an author I’d like to read more from.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Despite my disappointment with Howards End, I turned to another book by E.M. Forster next: Maurice.
I really enjoyed Maurice, and was repeatedly struck by the way E.M. Forster expressed certain moments and concepts. I found it a much more engaging read than Howards End, perhaps partly on account of the directness of its protagonist. I also enjoyed reading the author's terminal note, which only served to increase the impact the book had on me. In the terminal note, Forster expressed his opinion that Maurice is of its time, and although that is true in a literal sense, I think the story has a timelessness to it, like all the best novels.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I followed this one with another read appropriate for Pride Month: Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth.
Plain Bad Heroines is one of those books which plays which form and genre, and tells a story within a story (within a story). The layered stories are all incredibly interesting, as well as being funny and clever, and just the right amount of creepy. I loved the cinematic writing style, which helped this brilliantly imaginative story to completely absorb me. This book is on the long side, but the more I read, the better it got.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
In my ongoing quest to read more classics, the first book I read in June was The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett.
The Maltese Falcon was an utterly absorbing read, in its page-turning twists and its cinematic writing. Although I can never fully get past the way it talks about women, I have a soft spot for the hard-boiled detective genre, and this one didn’t disappoint. The merits of The Maltese Falcon don’t just lie in its ‘classic’ status; I loved the way this mystery unravelled, and I loved the character of Sam Spade. This is a book that I didn’t want to put down.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Next up was The Sentence by Louise Erdrich, which was shortlisted for this year's Women's Prize for Fiction.
The Sentence was almost a five-star read for me. I was hooked from the first page, by the beautiful writing style and the unusual story. I wasn't expecting the story to be so contemporary, and I'm not sure it always worked; The Sentence covers a lot of ground without quite, for me, bringing everything together. But I'm not at all surprised that it made the Women's Prize shortlist. Definitely a book for book lovers.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller was my next read, which made the longlist for the Women's Prize for Fiction.
I really enjoyed The Paper Palace, a page-turning read about a dysfunctional family and their summers on the cape. I particularly enjoyed the characterisation, and was impressed by how well the book’s structure (something which often lets down a good story, for me) worked. This book does, however, feature storylines of sexual abuse, which always leave me a little uncomfortable, especially in a page-turning read.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The last of my Jubilee bank holiday reading was Omeros by Derek Walcott, which had been on my to-read list for too long.
I found Omeros a difficult read, but, the more I read, the more sense it made to me. I have no doubt that there is a lot I missed - this is definitely a poem that would reward close reading - but I'm a firm believer in not having to understand everything you read. There is so much going on in this poem to think about, and the language is absolutely stunning. I am so glad that I have finally read this one, and I have no doubt that I'll return to it one day.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Up next was Timecode of a Face by Ruth Ozeki, who has won this year's Women's Prize for Fiction with The Book of Form and Emptiness (which is on my to-read list).
Timecode of a Face has a brilliant premise, as Ozeki challenges herself to spend three hours gazing into her own reflection. This book alternates between timecoded observations and thoughts from during the three hours, and personal essays inspired by the experiment. This book, short enough to be read in one sitting, has a really tight focus, which I think the best essay collections should have. And this is one of the best essay collections I have read. It is incredibly well written.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My next pick was The Martian by Andy Weir, which I'd been meaning to read ever since I saw (and enjoyed) the film.
The Martian is a real page-turner, which I was eager to get back to as soon as I'd put it down. The plot is essentially a litany of problems for the characters (mainly the protagonist) to solve, and I loved it. Some of the scientific details washed over me a little, but they didn't feel out of place in the story. I love the way the book shifts perspectives, and I really enjoyed the balance of humour and emotion. I knew how this book ended, but I still found myself invested in the story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I picked Howards End by E.M. Forster as my next classic read, partly because I also wanted to watch the film adaptation.
I found Howards End an unusual book. The narrator is external to the story, but has quite a dominant voice, which I found a little distracting. It took me a while to get into the story, and although I did eventually, I continued to be a little put off by the writing style. I also found the characters quite odd, and often felt like, despite having been told so much about them, I didn’t really know them.
⭐⭐⭐
After this came another classic with a film adaptation I wanted to watch: Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith.
It pains me to only give three stars to Strangers on a Train, but as much as I love the premise, I found the story a little slow. The tension should have been high for most of the book, but I found it a little lacking, especially in the ending. It also turned out to be one of those books where I get frustrated with the actions of the protagonist, which didn’t always make sense to me.
⭐⭐⭐
Up next was an author I'd been meaning to read for too long: Jean Rhys and Wide Sargasso Sea.
As a lover of Jane Eyre, I love that Rhys took it upon herself to tell the story of the first Mrs Rochester, and Wide Sargasso Sea does a fantastic job of playing with the idea that every story has two sides. I particularly loved the sense of place in this book, especially because it’s something that I associate with the gothic genre. Definitely a book I can see myself revisiting, and definitely an author I’d like to read more from.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Despite my disappointment with Howards End, I turned to another book by E.M. Forster next: Maurice.
I really enjoyed Maurice, and was repeatedly struck by the way E.M. Forster expressed certain moments and concepts. I found it a much more engaging read than Howards End, perhaps partly on account of the directness of its protagonist. I also enjoyed reading the author's terminal note, which only served to increase the impact the book had on me. In the terminal note, Forster expressed his opinion that Maurice is of its time, and although that is true in a literal sense, I think the story has a timelessness to it, like all the best novels.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I followed this one with another read appropriate for Pride Month: Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth.
Plain Bad Heroines is one of those books which plays which form and genre, and tells a story within a story (within a story). The layered stories are all incredibly interesting, as well as being funny and clever, and just the right amount of creepy. I loved the cinematic writing style, which helped this brilliantly imaginative story to completely absorb me. This book is on the long side, but the more I read, the better it got.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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