2020 - Where in the World Have You Been? (Book Read and Review Linked)

[Carol]

Andrea wrote: "Carol wrote: "you mean, it's doorstopper capacity? lol ..."

Yes, I had no idea! I guess I will have to buy it, because my library doesn’t do 6-month loans."

I like that rationale. I’m struggling myself because the description makes me says, Yes! but it’s sheer size is daunting and my library has switched to 6 week max checkout periods.

[Val]

Andrea wrote: "Carol wrote: "you mean, it's doorstopper capacity? lol ..."

Yes, I had no idea! I guess I will have to buy it, because my library doesn’t do 6-month loans."

That made me smile, because I have a library reservation on a copy. I'm just hoping I will be able to read enough of it to know whether I want to buy it or not.

[Lilisa]

I’m going to wait until one of you has read it And hear the verdict - no pressure! - before I commit! :-)

[Shomeret]

I recently returned from Sicily in WWII with the military mystery Blame the Dead by Ed Ruggero. This had a great deal of content about sexual harassment of nurses by doctors in a field hospital along with corruption and abuse of authority. In other words, Ruggero doesn't portray WWII as in any way similar to idealized Hollywood movies.

See my review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I got both the NZ location and the food that I wanted from The Pretty Delicious Café last week.

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

[Nadine in California]

I've been in South Central LA, Harlem, Rikers Island, Watts, and astrally projected to a few other locations with Riot Baby. My review

[V.ya]

I've been in South Korea with this non-fiction book: The Little Book of Skin Care: Korean Beauty Secrets for Healthy, Glowing Skin. See my review here.

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Armenia over the past week, with Three Apples Fell from the Sky.

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

[Yrinsyde]

I'm finishing Midaq Alley for Egypt - what a good story! My reviews for my 2 Egypt reads: https://independentbookreview.wordpre...

[Kim]

Have only started venturing back on my reading travels again this week after spending time with books in places I've already gone this year. :D
Japan Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi 4 Stars
My Review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

I recently read b, Book, and Me by Kim Sagwa, translated by Sunhee Jeong, for #KoreanMarch in Instagram. I just love the great works by women being translated from the Korean in this century. This one is set in a coastal town that wishes it were Seoul, about friendships and bullying in childhood, and the entire thing is pretty psychologically foreboding. Here is my review, and I'll talk about it on my podcast episode that posts 3/24.

[Kim]

Took a short and harrowing trip to Nigeria with
Edna O'Brien and Girl
Couldn't last the distance I'm afraid.
This is my review and there are some other insightful reviews there that did complete it. Rachel's comes to mind.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...Edna O'Brien

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I really enjoyed my gothic adventure in modern-day Scotland, right up until the end. Still recommending The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware as a great read, though.

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

[V.ya]

Just finished a fantasy book based on Japanese mythology (the first in the trilogy). I've read it via Kindle Unlimited, but I'm seriously thinking of buying a physical copy because of the beautiful illustrations scattered throughout the story.


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

[Shomeret]

I returned from 17th century France at the end of February, but didn't have time to post about it until now.

My journey was taken through the pages of The Mazarinette and the Musketeer by Heather Rose Jones which proves that you can be escapist while still being immersed in the stories of real historical women.

See my review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I've been in the USA and Spain, reading YA With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. Thanks for recommending this one Lilisa.

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

[Claire]

I've been immersed in a masculine perspective of 1968 1968: The Year That Rocked the World for research purposes, and looking forward to reading some of the harder to find female perspectives of what that turning point was about for them.

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

[Claire]

Shomeret wrote: "I returned from 17th century France at the end of February, but didn't have time to post about it until now.

My journey was taken through the pages of [book:The Mazarinette and the Musketeer|2876..."

That sounds enticing!

[Lilisa]

Andrea wrote: "I've been in the USA and Spain, reading YA With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. Thanks for recommending this one Lilisa.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/s..."

Glad you checked it out. I really liked Emoni and Malachi too. I could definitely relate to the food references :-) She has a new one coming out in a couple of months Clap When You Land.

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

Lilisa wrote: "She has a new one coming out in a couple of months Clap When You Land...."

That one sounds good, too!

[Shomeret]

I've been in contemporary Syria, Turkey, Greece and England with The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

I wasn't aware that beekeeping happened in Syria. This novel caused me to find out about a real Syrian beekeeper. I was inspired by the Syrian refugee protagonists eventually surmounting all their obstacles.

See my review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lilisa]

Finished Foresight - the second in the Uncle Chow Tung series - the Uncle in the Ava Lee series. Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lilisa]

Was in Turkey and a bit in Syria with The Hundred-Year Walk: An Armenian Odyssey. Well worth the listen/read. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lilisa]

Was in Turkey - yes again - one of my favorite countries! Just finished Serenade for Nadia - a lovely read - my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Claire]

I was in and around 1930's America growing up with a young musician acquainted with the blues scene, until he and his band go to Paris in 1942 at the wrong time in history. The Book of Harlan

Wonderful historical fiction, inspired by her ancestors stories and a few other imaginary characters that fill in the gaps. My review:

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

[Shomeret]

I recently returned from 19th century Italy where I encountered Claire Claremont and Lord Byron. This happened through the pages of the historical mystery A Shadowed Fate by Marty Ambrose.

I learned about the Carbonari who were an Italian secret society, and saw Lord Byron is a different light.

See my review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Claire]

Andrea wrote: "Val wrote: "The International Booker list was announced this morning: https://thebookerprizes.com/internati... I have only read one s..."

The length put me off that one to be honest, happy to see the two I'd already read have made it to the shortlist and I'm now reading The Adventures of China Iron, which I've had on my shelf for ages and now reading and totally loving it!

I love all the references to other works of literature and the subversive retelling - the narrative voice here is given to Fierro's wife, who in the original epic poem was only given a few lines, now she's telling the story from a very different perspective, about time these tales were told from those previous sidelined!

[Claire]

I was in France reading Colette's novella, The Shackle, a follow up to The Vagabond which I haven't read. I read it in preparation for reading Vivian Gornick's new book Unfinished Business: Notes of a Chronic Re-Reader.

My thoughts on The Shackle here:

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

[Lilisa]

Was in 17th century Netherlands with Death in Delft - an enjoyable historical mystery. My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Val]

The libraries shutting has curtailed my reading a bit, but I have managed a few of the International Booker list.
They aren't particularly uplifting but some are still very good:
The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa (Japan)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
This one was shortlisted and my current favourite.

Mac and His Problem by Enrique Vila-Matas (Spain)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Serotonin by Michel Houellebecq (France)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (Mexico)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Shortlisted.

The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar (Iran)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Shortlisted.
I will come back to this book when I have thought about it for a while and write a more detailed review.

[Claire]

Just finished The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara and absolutely loved it.

Definitely my pick to win the International Booker prize, my review below:

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

[Val]

I haven't got to that one yet, but it looks promising.

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

I finished Home Is a Stranger, which is a look at Iran through the lens of a woman returning after growing up in America. The writing is gorgeous, and it looks like she has a novel that I'll definitely be checking out as well. My review goes into more depth.

[Shomeret]

I was in 19th century Russia with The Matchstick Girl which is a retelling of the Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Anderson.

I had problems with it. See my review at https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I loved meeting Afrikaner widow, Tannie Maria, in Recipes for Love and Murder (South Africa) last week. It's #1 in a series that I will continue on with.

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

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

Remember when I was in Iceland a few weeks ago? It's taken me ages to settle down to write the review, but that's more about me than the book. Anyone who enjoyed Burial Rites will probably enjoy The Glass Woman too.

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

[V.ya]

I've been to China with To the Sky Kingdom. Unfortunately I wasn't aware that the author has been accused of plagiarism for this book. Glad I've picked this one up for free from an Amazon promotion.

The author is never sued, however, and they even made this book into a (brilliant) TV show. I've watched it and liked it so much, that's why I wanted to read the book. For those interested, in my review I also included the link to the TV shows (available on Youtube for most regions).

[Lilisa]

Was in Iran with Man of My Time by Dalia Sofer. I enjoyed it - well written, complex characters, and multi-layered - well worth the read. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Claire]

I have been in Alaska, Scotland and Tibet/China with Kathleen Jamie's Surfacing, her third collection of excellent nature/archeology essays. My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I was in Korea and Japan with Pachinko, which I adored, excellent and insightful historical fiction, an incredibly well-researched and curated work, that took years to come into being due to the dedication of the author to make the best possible version of history and story. My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I was in the Argentinian countryside in the late 1800's, the pampas, reading the childhood memoir of William H. Hudson, Far Away and Long Ago one of the authors who inspired parts of The Adventures of China Iron. Clearly, it's dated in terms of attitudes toward local and native people, so some of it has to be read taking this into account, but it's an evocative read and an interesting and unique life. My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Kim]

Just popping in after reading a thoroughly delightful book set in a small Armenian village. Such a satisfying and enjoyable read originally written in Russian.
Three Apples Fell from the Sky
My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


Looking forward to catching up on what everyone else has read and hopefully getting to some more translated fiction soon.

[Karen]

Catching up on your reviews... I haven't left the USA except for one deeply moving trip to Sri Lanka with Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit...

Of my recently-read American novels I loved Deacon King Kong by James McBride set in late 1960's Brooklyn, New York and An American Marriage by Tayari Jones set in Atlanta.

Planning journeys to Argentina (The Adventures of China Iron and Samanta Schweblin) and to Nigeria (Girl, Freshwater, and The Girl with the Louding Voice soon.

[Yrinsyde]

I've finished reading Running for my Life - about a Sth Sudanese refugee who ran in the Olympics. I haven't written my review yet, but this book is up for grabs if anyone in Australia would like to read it. If you would, send me message with your address and I'll pop it in the mail.

[Lilisa]

Finished The Orphan Collector set in the U.S. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Karen]

I have been in Ireland with Normal People by Sally Rooney which I could not particularly tell was Ireland and which I did not particularly like. I'm reading the 2019 and 2020 Women's Prize longlists. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lilisa]

I was is in sixteenth century Venice, Italy and present day Connecticut, U.S. with The Lost Diary of Venice - I enjoyed it quite a bit. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

I'm back from Ireland, where I enjoyed learning about Persian cuisine and the Iranian Revolution in Pomegranate Soup. It enhanced my enjoyment no end to be concurrently reading The Saffron Tales: Recipes from the Persian Kitchen. I also have a foodie memoir for Iran on my list this year, so I'm taking the cookbook slowly in the hope that it will help me out with that one as well.

[Renae]

Yesterday I went to 12th century Bohemia with Bohemian Gospel. It turned out to be way more of a horror/paranormal novel than I anticipated, so it was a miss. Really unique setting, though!



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

[Lilisa]

Was in Bhutan with Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey Into Bhutan - found it interesting as there aren’t many books I’ve read about Bhutan. I imagine much as changed since it was written about 20 years ago. More along the lines of a 3.5 stars read.

Was in Spain and Chile with a smattering of Venezuela with A Long Petal of the Sea starting out with the Spanish Civil War and spanning many decades forward from there. One of my better Isabel Allende reads - 4 stars.

[Claire]

I was in the South Island of New Zealand reading the book that just won the annual NZ Book Award Auē by Becky Manawatu.

An unforgettable, tension-filled, character lead, lyrical work of rare beauty.

My 5 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Andrea, Slow but steady]

Last week I was in England with one from my gothic list, The Silent Companions. Loved it and look forward to catching up on Laura Purcell's other books.

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