I received this book from a friend earlier this year. She enjoyed it, and thought I might, too. The novel is quite unusual, in that there is no real story or plot, more a character study and paean to the Earth. The setting is the International Space Station (ISS), populated by six astronauts from various... Continue Reading →
The Dark Vineyard, by Martin Walker. Pub 2009
This is the second in the Bruno series, and just as enjoyable as the first. Bruno and his neighbours are thrust into the turmoil of the wine world and GMOs, with some ancient family feud for good measure. While the wine industry and wine more generally are main characters here, the novel doesn’t lose sight... Continue Reading →
Death’s End, by Cixin Liu. Pub 2010. Translation by Ken Liu, pub 2016.
This is the third and final book of the Remembrance of Earth Past series that began with The Three-Body Problem. Book 2, The Dark Forest, could easily have been the conclusion to the story, so I was curious to see if and how Liu could expand on the story. The novel begins several years back from the previous... Continue Reading →
All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque. Pub 1928. Translation by A.W. Wheen, pub 1929.
Over the summer, we rewatched the 2022 film version of this story. I was impressed and moved by it the first time I saw it, and the second viewing delivered the same visceral horror and devastation. I’d heard that the book was even more powerful. I was less engaged with the novel, perhaps because much... Continue Reading →
Mindful of Murder, by Susan Juby. Pub 2022
I was drawn to this book on the recommendation of a friend, who knows the author. I was promised a light and engaging murder mystery, and this delivered. Set primarily at the Yatra Institute, a meditation centre and lodge on a remote island in BC, we follow Helen and her colleagues, all recent graduates of... Continue Reading →
The Stone Diaries, by Carol Shields. Pub 1993
Like so many favourite books from the distant past, this is one I hadn’t read since the first time, so didn’t remember much of the story (and in fact was confusing it in my memory with The Stone Angel). Like with A Prayer for Owen Meany, I decided to read it again to refresh the... Continue Reading →
The Forty Rule of Love, by Elif Shafak. Pub 2010
This book was recommended by a friend (the same who recommended The Berry Pickers), and was already in my book pile, so it was a good next choice. The poet Rumi has always seemed like a mythical romantic, someone one “should” read, and this seemed like a gentle way to get introduced. The novel has... Continue Reading →
I Who Have Never Known Men, by Jacqueline Harpman. Pub 1995. Translation by Ros Schwartz, Pub 1997/2019.
Despite this book being on display at the local bookshop and its (unknown to me) TikTok fame, I had never heard of this book, so I consider it to be non-mainstream. Spoiler alert (trying to not give much away): when we meet the unnamed narrator (called by the others, “the child”), she is an adolescent... Continue Reading →
Normal Rules Don’t Apply, by Kate Atkinson. Pub 2023
I’ve read a few Kate Atkinson novels before, and especially enjoyed Life After Life, a clever branched reality speculative fiction story, and so was expecting more of the same here in shorter versions. I was not overly disappointed, but I did find this collection to be uneven in quality. The eleven stories each stand on... Continue Reading →
The Cost of a Hostage, by Iona Whishaw. Pub 2025
The latest in the Lane Winslow series, this time we find Lane and Darling in the wilds of Mexico seeking Darling’s kidnapped brother, while back home in Nelson the young police officers solve a local kidnapping, murder, and smuggling ring. I enjoyed this split story – I bit like A Match Made for Murder –... Continue Reading →
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