It’s been an excellent week for reading! Last weekend I read two books which I can’t recommend enough. Some really interesting translated fiction has also been on my agenda this week, plus I finally read Pulitzer-Prize-winning The Nickel Boys.
Disclosure: titles with an asterisk* were gifted by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I’m an affiliate for Blackwell’s, so this post contains affiliate links to their site. If you buy a book via my links, I’ll earn a small commission at no extra cost to you – thank you!
FRIDAY 11 SEPTEMBER
I end up having another really busy day so I don’t sit down to finish A Musical Offering* until around 7pm. So far, I’ve only read around 30 pages of it over two days, so I’m happy to finally be able to immerse myself in it fully. It’s such an unusual book but absolutely delightful and poignant too. The sections are all vastly different, some choppy and cyclical and some telling a fairly straightforward narrative. All the sections concern the immense power of music. The chapter on music during times war and siege hit me particularly hard. I’ve honestly never read anything like this, and would recommend it to everyone. Especially big music fans! I’m not a fan of Bach or The Beatles or anything and I still got so much out of this book.
I also stumble across one of those fun bookish coincidences! Sagasti references the Jewish legend which says the philtrum (the little dent above our lips) is caused by an angel placing its finger on our lips in the womb. This causes us to forget all the secrets in the universe, which we’re created knowing. I got shivers when I read this because the same legend (which I’d not heard before) was mentioned in the short story Wilgefortis by Eley Williams in the Outsiders* collection I read at the beginning of September! Spooky.
Then before bed I read 30 pages of Daisy Johnson’s Sisters*. I’m pretty much hooked from the first page. Johnson’s prose is exquisite and anything eerie to do with siblings has my name all over it.
SATURDAY 12 SEPTEMBER
Most of my early Saturday morning is spent immersed in Sisters*. When I started reading it, my friend Varsha on Instagram mentioned that she thought it read more like a literary thriller and I would have to agree – but this is a good thing! I’m completely hooked on the story of July and September, two sisters who are closer than close. After an incident at school, they move with their mother to an old house in North Yorkshire for some time to heal. Anyone who’s a fan of stories where houses are basically their own character will want to read this one. Also, anyone with an interest in twisted sibling relationships (me) will need it too!
I finish it in the afternoon and although I saw what was coming before it was announced, it was still a highly satisfying read. I enjoyed it a lot more than Everything Under, which was slightly too opaque for me to appreciate fully. Next I’d like to try her short story collection, Fen!
When I do my chores, I start a new audiobook because A History of My Brief Body* requires concentration. I also like to be sitting down so I can quickly pause it and note things down if I need to. For chores, I want something more relaxed and fun, so I finally start Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert. If I do say so myself, I made an excellent choice. I listened to around an hour and a half of it and I LOVE IT. It makes me want to do more chores so I can carry on listening.
In the evening I watch a few films, so I don’t start a new book yet.
SUNDAY 13 SEPTEMBER
My excellent weekend of reading continues on Sunday! I pick up Learning to Talk to Plants* by Marta Orriols, translated from Catalan by Mara Faye Lethem. Pushkin Press kindly gifted me this copy and their translations are usually incredible – this is no exception!
The premise of the book hooks me from the get-go. A woman’s partner breaks up with her, telling her he’s been having an affair and is leaving her for this other woman. But then, just a few hours later, he dies in an accident. Paula then has to wrestle with all of these conflicting feelings of grief, anger, loss, pain, betrayal… I just found it so fascinating – and very sad!
The translation by Mara Faye Lethem is fantastic. The whole book reads so smoothly and she really brings Paula to life in translation. Her story hypnotises me and I read the whole book in a day (although it’s only 250 pages). Orriols depicts all of the emotions Paula experiences so delicately, and there are plenty of passages which make my eyes sting.
I think if you enjoyed Here is the Beehive by Sarah Crossan then you’ll enjoy this too. Both deal with the unique way grief manifests. In Here is the Beehive, a woman mourns her (married) lover, but no one knew about their relationship so she can’t confide in anyone. Similarly, very few people know Paula’s partner ended things just a few hours before her death, so they can’t comprehend that she’d feel anything but pure grief. If you’re into character studies and explorations of loss then you need this book.
I also continue listening to Get a Life, Chloe Brown and PHEW! Everyone who says this book is steamy isn’t wrong!
MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER
Recently I’ve not been utilising my time in the mornings properly and I want to change that from this week. Usually we get back from walking Mia at 6.30am and I either end up going back to bed for an hour then starting work, or starting work at 7am. No more! I’m going back to reading for a full hour between 7am and 8am, as it puts me in a great mood for the day!
Today I’m reading Doppelgänger* by Daša Drndić which is made up of two novellas, one very short and one lengthier. Arturo and Isabella is a rather unusual story where two 70-somethings meet on New Year’s Eve. Both are incontinent and somewhat eccentric collectors, but that doesn’t stop sparks flying in their encounter. Interspersed with their encounter are police reports, as both Isabella and Arturo are being watched by the police for their political pasts.
In the longer story, Pupi, we follow the eponymous Pupi as he navigates family troubles and become a vagrant. Similarities begin to emerge between the two tales, strange coincidences, hence the title of the book. I’ve never read any Drndić before and this little taster of her work definitely has me interested!
There’s a great piece on Granta by Katharina Bielenberg where Drndić talks about the peculiarities of her style. She’s very precise about the way she wants her books translated into English, and I respect that! Her style is self-described as ‘meant to irritate’ and she doesn’t want any edits to make her texts more palatable. And indeed, the repetitions and rhythms of Pupi especially put me on edge. They induce a strange, panicky sort of feeling in the reader, as though you’re right in the head of the narrator undergoing a crisis.
While cooking tea I keep listening to Get a Life, Chloe Brown and my kitchen gets even hotter. Then I spend an hour in the evening finishing A History of My Brief Body* while cross-stitching. This book is brilliant, and really gives you a lot to think about. I imagine I’ll get myself a physical copy at some point, because there’s so much to be gleaned from these pages upon a reread.
TUESDAY 15 SEPTEMBER
I read the last 50 pages of Doppelgänger* during my morning reading hour. The ending is absolutely brutal! I think I talked enough about this book in yesterday’s entry. But it does make me want to read more of Drndić’s work, as well as learn more about Croatia’s history with the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
In the evening I start The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead which I’ve been wanting to read for ages! I finally bought a copy in July and honestly, reading it two months later is, for me, pretty good. Back in 2018 I read The Underground Railroad which I liked but didn’t love. Already I can tell I’ll love The Nickel Boys. It’s only a slim book and I end up tearing through 120 pages in one night. It reads like a thriller almost, except with a lot more depth. I read the boxing scene right before bed and cannot get it out of my mind all night.
WEDNESDAY 16 SEPTEMBER
I don’t feel very well today, with a sore throat and constant sneezes. No temperature though so hopefully just another cold! I do manage to finish The Nickel Boys which, oh my god, is fantastic. It’s probably one of the most powerful 200-page novels I’ve ever read. Whitehead’s prose is like a punch to the stomach, except you want him to keep punching you.
I think the sections of the book set in Nickel are slightly stronger than the more recent parts, but only slightly. And then the ending is the ultimate sucker punch. My brain is so foggy by the time I was finishing it that I had to read two pages again to make sure of what I was reading! I also didn’t realise that Whitehead had so many books. This is always great to learn after reading such an incredible book – excuse me while I buy the rest of his backlist.
Before bed I try to start Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Tales from the Café*, but I’m out like a light within five minutes.
THURSDAY 17 SEPTEMBER
Before starting work, I make a bit more progress with Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Tales from the Café* by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, translated by Geoffrey Tousselot. I actually haven’t read or even own Before the Coffee Gets Cold, which I know is a tragedy. But this one showed up at my door unexpectedly the other day, and you can read it as a standalone. Plus, I’ve read so many reviews of it I’m aware of the premise already. I’m sure this will make me finally get around to buying the first book anyway!
I think the characters are very endearing which makes for a charming read! Hulking and reticent Nagare, thoughtful Kazu, the rambunctious Miki and her flair for the French accent. At first I was questioning why people would want to return to the past under such stringent rules. You can’t change anything, so it seems like a futile undertaking. But as I read on, the four stories are all so sad and sweet that I can’t help but fall under the café’s charm. I’m definitely going to buy myself a copy of Before the Coffee Gets Cold. It’s the same blend of wholesome and melancholy, I would imagine.
I read over 100 pages in the evening. I actually finish the last 30 pages early on Friday morning, but I’m sneakily writing it into Thursday’s entry. I’ll start a new book on Friday evening to write about in next week’s post!