A super-big year – all 40 on the list plus 29 extras. I really don’t know where I found the time, but I’m very glad that I did and hope I can repeat it next year. With so many to choose from, completing the categories was much easier, with thankfully only two in the category... Continue Reading →
Becoming Duchess Goldblatt, by anonymous. Pub 2020
This was a recommendation by a fellow reader, who advised that I would love this book. They were correct – I did. I had not heard of Duchess Goldblatt until now, but since this book I am a fan and follower of her on Twitter/X. This book is the memoir of the anonymous author and... Continue Reading →
So Late in the Day, by Claire Keegan. Pub 2023
Rounding out a trifecta of Keegan books this year is the collection of stories, all previously appearing in magazines or other collections. The tagline on the cover is, “stories of women and men”, and the collection lives up to that. In each story, we meet a man or woman who has an unusual relationship with... Continue Reading →
The MANIAC, by Benjamín Labatut. Pub 2023
I got this book as part of a vacation bookstore binge earlier this year. After loving the previous book by Labatut (When We Cease to Understand the World), I was looking forward to this one, and saved it up for some quieter reading time. Almost double the length of Cease, The MANIAC takes its name... Continue Reading →
A History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters, by Julian Barnes. Pub 1989
After recently re-reading Not Wanted on the Voyage and The Preservationist, I wanted to revisit this book for its themes and images from the Noah’s Ark story. These appear in every chapter as either the topic of the chapter, a metaphor, or a mention by a character. Four chapters have a direct connection, while others... Continue Reading →
Melania, by Melania Trump. Pub 2024
After seeing several interviews with Melania Trump about this book, I wanted to read it for the additional details and perspectives on recent history. Melania is much maligned in the mainstream media, and often overlooked in terms of her own experiences. I wanted to give her the chance to be heard in her own voice... Continue Reading →
The Preservationist, by David Maine. Pub 2004
After recently finishing Not Wanted On the Voyage, I wanted to revisit another novel I have about the same story. I first read The Preservationist not long after it was published and enjoyed it enough to seek out David Maine’s other novels (the best of which is Fallen). My current version was recovered from a... Continue Reading →
Not Wanted on the Voyage, by Timothy Findlay. Pub 1984. Introduction by Paul Quarrington, Pub 2006
I recall first reading this in the mid- to late 80s, and it’s been a story that has stuck in my memory as provocative and well written. I don’t think I’ve reread it since then, despite having included it on my ever-changing favourites list for many years. Reading it now, I can see how and... Continue Reading →
The World According to Garp, by John Irving. Pub 1976
It was the summer of 1982. I was 15ish and, while waiting for the bus at the corner of Portage Avenue and Vaughan Street in Winnipeg, I saw the marquee of the theatre across the street advertising the film The World According to Garp. I think I had seen a trailer for the film earlier... Continue Reading →
The Housekeeper and the Professor, by Yōko Ogawa. Pub 2003. Translation by Stephen Synder. Pub 2009
In a recent bookshop trip, I sought out more Yöko Ogawa, after enjoying The Memory Police earlier this year. The Housekeeper and the Professor novel is not speculative fiction, but has an emphasis on the role of memory and how it shapes our lives and relationships. The story is about found family and how connections can... Continue Reading →
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