October in Books
I read 12 books in October, and my book of the month is Isaac and the Egg. Read on to find out what else I read, and what I thought...
The first book I read in October was The Lies You Told by Harriet Tyce, whose debut Blood Orange I loved.
The Lies You Told is a page-turning thriller, which was very nearly a five-star read for me. After her marriage falls apart, Sadie Roper moves back to London with her daughter Robin, and has to contend with bad memories as well as new struggles. I really enjoyed the storyline that follows the court case Sadie is working on, and I loved the storyline that focuses on Robin's new school, which is a hot bed of rivalry between students and parents alike. But, I wasn’t fully convinced by the way all the storylines were resolved (especially the one involving Sadie’s marriage).
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Up next was the much-hyped Isaac and the Egg by Bobby Palmer.
Isaac and the Egg is a charming story, about a man who has hit rock bottom. It’s brilliantly surprising in places, comfortingly predictable in others, and utterly page-turning from start to finish. I personally found it a very moving story, which deals with its dark themes with a lightness that means it never becomes too taxing. A book that lives up to its hype.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I continued to #beatthebacklog with The Women of Troy by Pat Barker, the sequel to The Silence of the Girls.
The Women of Troy starts with the wooden horse and the fall of Troy, and ends with the Greek army finally setting off home. I love the way Barker brings a fresh perspective to a familiar story, and I am endlessly impressed by how she evokes an ancient world, while telling a story with contemporary relevance. There is something comforting about this series, despite the horrors they deal with, which keeps me wanting to turn the pages.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Despite the controversy (over whether Rickman wanted his diaries published), I couldn't resist the newly-published Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman.
The fact that “We do not know whether Alan would like to have seen his diaries published” (as the editor acknowledges) makes the harshness and vulnerability of some of Rickman's comments a little uncomfortable to read, especially because it isn't at all clear what has been edited, or why. However, I found Rickman's diaries (which cover 1993 to 2015, with some extracts from 1974 to 1982) a really interesting and enlightening read. I'm left with an urge to (re)watch so much of Rickman's (and others') work, and to make more of an effort to visit the theatre!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
My next pick was The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh, whose standalone thriller I Let You Go I really enjoyed.
The Last Party is the first book in a new series featuring DC Ffion Morgan, from North Wales Police. When the owner of a luxury resort, which runs the border between England and Wales, is killed on New Year’s Eve, everyone seems to be a suspect. I really enjoyed this twisty murder mystery, which somehow never becomes too implausible or convoluted. I fell in love with the delightfully flawed DC Morgan, and loved the way Mackintosh writes about some really important and topical issues.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I continued to work my way through the Bond series, in October, with Diamonds Are Forever by Ian Fleming.
Diamonds are Forever is Bond’s fourth outing, and it sees 007 infiltrate a diamond smuggling ring, and take on American gangsters. I’m really enjoying this series, which portrays a more human Bond than the films do. I like that the books follow on from one another, and I enjoy seeing where the film adaptations borrow from, and differ to, the books. I love Fleming's attention to detail, although his casual racism and sexism have so far stopped these books from being five-star reads for me.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Black History Month seemed like an appropriate time to finally take You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays by Zora Neale Hurston off my to-read shelf.
You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays is a hefty collection of essays, written over more than three decades, and so is bound to contain some essays that appeal to the reader more than others. I found it a fascinating read, and was impressed by the work the editors (Henry Louis Gates Jr. and M. Genevieve West) had put into it. Although I was surprised by how conservative Hurston's politics are, I enjoyed how assertive and forthright her writing is, and I especially loved Hurston’s trial reporting, with which this essay collection ends.
⭐⭐⭐
Up next was Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield, which I'd heard great things about.
Our Wives Under the Sea moves between the past and the present, to tell the story of Leah's long-delayed return from a deep-sea mission that went terribly wrong. I found this one a very slow read, as the author spends a lot of time on fairly mundane content that I didn't think advanced the story in any meaningful way. I liked what the story was trying to do, in the main plot, but it all felt a little familiar to me, and I was ultimately disappointed with the book's resolution.
⭐⭐⭐
After this, I picked up Earthlings, written by Sayaka Murata and translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori.
Earthlings is a strange and brilliant book, which treads the line between fantasy and realism, and I loved how its story (and especially its ending) can be interpreted in several ways. This is a book about surviving abuse, defying conventions, and choosing your own path in life. I really enjoyed the way it coupled a strong plot line with an exploration of ideas, and I also enjoyed the contemporary Japanese setting. Convenience Store Woman is definitely going on my to-read list.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wanting to read more non-fiction, I picked up Roaring Girls: The Forgotten Feminists of British History by Holly Kyte next.
Roaring Girls is the latest book I've read that tells the stories of remarkable women from history who deserve to be better known. What I particularly liked about Roaring Girls was the amount of space it devotes to each of the eight women featured, so that we get to hear the full stories of their lives and legacies. I also particularly liked the sharp and engaging style of writing. There are always going to be generalisations in this kind of book, which will irk anyone who knows better, but I think Roaring Girls achieves a good balance between depth and breadth.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
My library reservation for the Booker-longlisted Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley finally came in, so that was my next read.
Nightcrawling is a gritty, page-turning book that doesn’t make for easy reading. When their rent is increased, 17-year-old Kiara turns to sex work, beginning a downward spiral which she is unable to find her way out of. The author’s note acknowledges the real-life influence on this story, and there is no doubting the importance of the issues Leila Mottley writes about. This is a book whose writing and plot grabbed me from the first page, and didn’t let go. A book worth spending your time on, if perhaps not quite polished enough to make five stars (for this reader).
⭐⭐⭐⭐
At the end of October, I squeezed in one last (slim) book: the seasonally appropriately titled Ghost Wall, my first read from Sarah Moss.
Ghost Wall tells the story of an exercise in experiential archaeology, as an amateur historian takes his wife and teenage daughter to join a small group of university students and their professor, in trying to reenact Iron Age life. This is a slim but impactful book, which deals with themes of domestic abuse and sexism. I would have liked a little more from the Northumberland setting and the book's climax, but I really enjoyed the conceit of this one, and I would definitely like to read more from Sarah Moss.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
What did you read in October?
The first book I read in October was The Lies You Told by Harriet Tyce, whose debut Blood Orange I loved.
The Lies You Told is a page-turning thriller, which was very nearly a five-star read for me. After her marriage falls apart, Sadie Roper moves back to London with her daughter Robin, and has to contend with bad memories as well as new struggles. I really enjoyed the storyline that follows the court case Sadie is working on, and I loved the storyline that focuses on Robin's new school, which is a hot bed of rivalry between students and parents alike. But, I wasn’t fully convinced by the way all the storylines were resolved (especially the one involving Sadie’s marriage).
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Up next was the much-hyped Isaac and the Egg by Bobby Palmer.
Isaac and the Egg is a charming story, about a man who has hit rock bottom. It’s brilliantly surprising in places, comfortingly predictable in others, and utterly page-turning from start to finish. I personally found it a very moving story, which deals with its dark themes with a lightness that means it never becomes too taxing. A book that lives up to its hype.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I continued to #beatthebacklog with The Women of Troy by Pat Barker, the sequel to The Silence of the Girls.
The Women of Troy starts with the wooden horse and the fall of Troy, and ends with the Greek army finally setting off home. I love the way Barker brings a fresh perspective to a familiar story, and I am endlessly impressed by how she evokes an ancient world, while telling a story with contemporary relevance. There is something comforting about this series, despite the horrors they deal with, which keeps me wanting to turn the pages.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Despite the controversy (over whether Rickman wanted his diaries published), I couldn't resist the newly-published Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman.
The fact that “We do not know whether Alan would like to have seen his diaries published” (as the editor acknowledges) makes the harshness and vulnerability of some of Rickman's comments a little uncomfortable to read, especially because it isn't at all clear what has been edited, or why. However, I found Rickman's diaries (which cover 1993 to 2015, with some extracts from 1974 to 1982) a really interesting and enlightening read. I'm left with an urge to (re)watch so much of Rickman's (and others') work, and to make more of an effort to visit the theatre!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
My next pick was The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh, whose standalone thriller I Let You Go I really enjoyed.
The Last Party is the first book in a new series featuring DC Ffion Morgan, from North Wales Police. When the owner of a luxury resort, which runs the border between England and Wales, is killed on New Year’s Eve, everyone seems to be a suspect. I really enjoyed this twisty murder mystery, which somehow never becomes too implausible or convoluted. I fell in love with the delightfully flawed DC Morgan, and loved the way Mackintosh writes about some really important and topical issues.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I continued to work my way through the Bond series, in October, with Diamonds Are Forever by Ian Fleming.
Diamonds are Forever is Bond’s fourth outing, and it sees 007 infiltrate a diamond smuggling ring, and take on American gangsters. I’m really enjoying this series, which portrays a more human Bond than the films do. I like that the books follow on from one another, and I enjoy seeing where the film adaptations borrow from, and differ to, the books. I love Fleming's attention to detail, although his casual racism and sexism have so far stopped these books from being five-star reads for me.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Black History Month seemed like an appropriate time to finally take You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays by Zora Neale Hurston off my to-read shelf.
You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays is a hefty collection of essays, written over more than three decades, and so is bound to contain some essays that appeal to the reader more than others. I found it a fascinating read, and was impressed by the work the editors (Henry Louis Gates Jr. and M. Genevieve West) had put into it. Although I was surprised by how conservative Hurston's politics are, I enjoyed how assertive and forthright her writing is, and I especially loved Hurston’s trial reporting, with which this essay collection ends.
⭐⭐⭐
Up next was Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield, which I'd heard great things about.
Our Wives Under the Sea moves between the past and the present, to tell the story of Leah's long-delayed return from a deep-sea mission that went terribly wrong. I found this one a very slow read, as the author spends a lot of time on fairly mundane content that I didn't think advanced the story in any meaningful way. I liked what the story was trying to do, in the main plot, but it all felt a little familiar to me, and I was ultimately disappointed with the book's resolution.
⭐⭐⭐
After this, I picked up Earthlings, written by Sayaka Murata and translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori.
Earthlings is a strange and brilliant book, which treads the line between fantasy and realism, and I loved how its story (and especially its ending) can be interpreted in several ways. This is a book about surviving abuse, defying conventions, and choosing your own path in life. I really enjoyed the way it coupled a strong plot line with an exploration of ideas, and I also enjoyed the contemporary Japanese setting. Convenience Store Woman is definitely going on my to-read list.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Wanting to read more non-fiction, I picked up Roaring Girls: The Forgotten Feminists of British History by Holly Kyte next.
Roaring Girls is the latest book I've read that tells the stories of remarkable women from history who deserve to be better known. What I particularly liked about Roaring Girls was the amount of space it devotes to each of the eight women featured, so that we get to hear the full stories of their lives and legacies. I also particularly liked the sharp and engaging style of writing. There are always going to be generalisations in this kind of book, which will irk anyone who knows better, but I think Roaring Girls achieves a good balance between depth and breadth.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
My library reservation for the Booker-longlisted Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley finally came in, so that was my next read.
Nightcrawling is a gritty, page-turning book that doesn’t make for easy reading. When their rent is increased, 17-year-old Kiara turns to sex work, beginning a downward spiral which she is unable to find her way out of. The author’s note acknowledges the real-life influence on this story, and there is no doubting the importance of the issues Leila Mottley writes about. This is a book whose writing and plot grabbed me from the first page, and didn’t let go. A book worth spending your time on, if perhaps not quite polished enough to make five stars (for this reader).
⭐⭐⭐⭐
At the end of October, I squeezed in one last (slim) book: the seasonally appropriately titled Ghost Wall, my first read from Sarah Moss.
Ghost Wall tells the story of an exercise in experiential archaeology, as an amateur historian takes his wife and teenage daughter to join a small group of university students and their professor, in trying to reenact Iron Age life. This is a slim but impactful book, which deals with themes of domestic abuse and sexism. I would have liked a little more from the Northumberland setting and the book's climax, but I really enjoyed the conceit of this one, and I would definitely like to read more from Sarah Moss.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
What did you read in October?
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