Tamara’s Comments (group member since Mar 26, 2019)

Tamara’s comments from the 2025 Reading Challenge group.

Goal: 80 books
61/80. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré. A story about a girl growing up in Nigeria with a fierce determination to achieve her dream of becoming a teacher. The story was somewhat predictable, but her voice was powerful, compelling, and an absolute delight.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
41/50. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré.

Goal: 24 books from the Middle East and Africa
15/24. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré.

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

Goal: 80 books
60/80. The Captain's Daughter and Other Stories by Alexander Pushkin, translated from the Russian by Natalie Duddington.
A delightful novella set in 18thC Russia with echoes of Sir Walter Scott. It has romance, a duel, a rebellion, a swashbuckling hero, and a damsel in distress. An entertaining read.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
40/50. The Captain's Daughter and Other Stories by Alexander Pushkin, translated from the Russian by Natalie Duddington.

Goal: 25 books in translation
27/25. The Captain's Daughter and Other Stories by Alexander Pushkin, translated from the Russian by Natalie Duddington.

Goal: 10 classics
12/10. The Captain's Daughter and Other Stories by Alexander Pushkin, translated from the Russian by Natalie Duddington.

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

Goal: 80 books
59/80. Somewhere Towards the End by Diana Athill. Athill was a book editor with a London publishing firm for many decades and worked with some famous novelists. She wrote this memoir at the young age of 89. It had some interesting insights on aging, death, and dying. I thought it was good but not great.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
39/50. Somewhere Towards the End by Diana Athill.

Goal: 10 books of non-fiction
11/10. Somewhere Towards the End by Diana Athill.

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

Goal: 80 books
58/80. The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by Shadi Bartsch.
A new translation of the epic. Bartsch adheres as faithfully as possible to a line-by line translation, including adherence to Virgil's meter, number of beats in each line, simplicity in language, and his use of alliteration and assonance. She offers a valuable contribution to the reading of this classic.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
38/50. The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by Shadi Bartsch.

Goal: 25 books in translation
26/25. The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by Shadi Bartsch.

Goal: 10 classics
11/10. The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by Shadi Bartsch.

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

Goal: 80 books
57/80. A Night in the Emperor's Garden: A True Story of Hope and Resilience in Afghanistan by Qais Akbar Omar and Stephen Landrigan.
The book chronicles the true story of putting on a production of Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost in Afghanistan in 2005. It describes the many challenges facing the production and provides a fascinating peek into the daily lives of the actors.

Goal: 10 books of non-fiction
10/10. A Night in the Emperor's Garden: A True Story of Hope and Resilience in Afghanistan by Qais Akbar Omar and Stephen Landrigan.

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

Goal: 80 books
56/80. Ariadne by Jennifer Saint.
The story of Ariadne and Phaedra from Greek mythology. The retelling was a little disappointing since both are portrayed as more acted upon than acting. Depicting them as empowered women with agency would have endowed the myth with a fresh and more interesting approach.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
37/50. Ariadne by Jennifer Saint.

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

Goal: 80 books
55/80. Light Perpetual by Francis Spufford.
In 1944, a bomb exploded at a Woolworth's store in London, killing 168 people, 15 of whom were children. Spufford gives fictional names to five of the children who died in the explosion and offers an alternative trajectory of their lives, a what might have been had they lived. Luminous prose, authentic characters, compelling narrative. Very highly recommended.

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

Dorothy wrote: "Thanks for this tip about Beowulf. I have it on audio from Chirp and will promote it to next read..."

Dorothy, we focused on the Seamus Heaney translation for the group read. But if you want to read a more contemporary translation, I recommend Beowulf: A New Translation. Headley's translation is an absolute riot and a lot of fun.

Goal: 80 books
54/80. The Spare Room by Helen Garner. Loosely based on one of Garner's friends, the novel takes an unflinchingly honest look at the challenges faced in taking care of a friend with terminal cancer.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
36/50. The Spare Room by Helen Garner.

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

Goal: 80 books
53/80. 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak.
It opens with the murder of Leila, a prostitute in Istanbul who recalls her life during the liminal phase between death but not quite death. The novel starts strongly, but parts 2 and 3 disappoint.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
35/50. 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak.

Goal: 24 books from the Middle East and Africa
14/24. 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak.

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

Goal: 80 books
52/80. Beowulf.
I've read this at least half a dozen times in different translations. I recently re-read it for a group read. The more I read it, the more I love it.

Goal: 25 books in translation
25/25. Beowulf.

Goal: 10 classics
10/10. Beowulf.

Goal: 80 books
51/80. Mr. Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo.
It's funny. The central character is an endearing Shakespeare-quoting, dapper individual with a dry sense of humor. Character portrayals are brilliant. Highly recommend this book.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
34/50. Mr. Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo.

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

Goal: 80 books
50/80. The Patience Stone by Atiq Rahimi; translated from the French by Polly McLean.
A compelling novella that gives voice to the oppression of women in Afghanistan.

Goal: 25 books in translation
24/25. The Patience Stone by Atiq Rahimi; translated from the French by Polly McLean.

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

Goal: 80 books
49/80. A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America by Leila Ahmed.
A well-researched and documented study of the veil's resurgence and the activist role of Muslim American women.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
33/50. A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America by Leila Ahmed.

Goal: 12 books from the Middle East and Africa
13/24. A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America by Leila Ahmed.

Goal: 10 books of non-fiction
9/10. A Quiet Revolution: The Veil's Resurgence, from the Middle East to America by Leila Ahmed.

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

Goal: 80 books
48/80. Territory of Light by Yūko Tsushima, translated from the Japanese by Geraldine Harcourt.
It's about a single mother struggling to raise her three-year-old daughter while coping with her estranged husband and the demands of her employment. I was impressed with the use of light imagery. Other than that, I thought the novel was disappointing. It just wasn't for me.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
32/50. Territory of Light by Yūko Tsushima, translated from the Japanese by Geraldine Harcourt.

Goal: 25 books in translation
23/25. Territory of Light by Yūko Tsushima, translated from the Japanese by Geraldine Harcourt.

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

Goal: 80 books
47/80. Nothing Holds Back the Night by Delphine de Vigan, translated from the French by George Miller.
It's a gripping blend of fiction, memoir, and biography. The author explores her mother's childhood and adult life to try to understand the cause of her suicide. Intense and well-executed.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
31/50. Nothing Holds Back the Night by Delphine de Vigan, translated from the French by George Miller.

Goal: 25 books in translation
22/25. Nothing Holds Back the Night by Delphine de Vigan, translated from the French by George Miller.

Goal: 10 books of non-fiction
8/10. Nothing Holds Back the Night by Delphine de Vigan, translated from the French by George Miller.

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

Goal: 80 books
46/80. The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga.
A glowing tribute to Mukasonga's mother, a resilient and loving woman with a fierce determination to protect her children from the ethnic conflict in Rwanda. This is the third book I've read by this author. I thought they were all very good.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
30/50. The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga; translated from the French by Jordan Stump.

Goal: 25 books in translation
21/25. The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga; translated from the French by Jordan Stump.

Goal: 24 books from the Middle East and Africa
12/24. The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga; translated from the French by Jordan Stump.

Goal: 10 books of non-fiction
7/10. The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga; translated from the French by Jordan Stump.

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

Goal: 80 books
45/80. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.
It's been decades since I last read it. I needed a whimsical reprieve from some of the books I've read lately dealing with man's inhumanity to man. This transported me on a delightful journey to fantasy land.

Goal: 10 classics
9/10. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

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

Goal: 80 books
44/80. Human Acts by Han Kang, translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.
The novel deals with the historical 1980 Gwangju uprising in South Korea. It is an important book, but it makes for difficult reading because of the graphic description of torture and the massacre of hundreds of unarmed civilians.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
29/50. Human Acts by Han Kang, translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.

Goal: 25 books in translation
20/25. Human Acts by Han Kang, translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith.

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

Goal: 80 books
43/80. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo.
The novel unfolds in a series of episodes told in the first person voice of a ten-year-old girl in Zimbabwe. The first half of the novel was engaging and full of vivid detail; the second half wasn't as interesting.

Goal: 50 books by women authors
28/50. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo.

Goal: 24 books from the Middle East and Africa
11/24. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo (Zimbabwe).

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