Wellington, David (2019), The Last Astronaut, orbitISBN 978-0-356-51229-7 David Wellington’s “The Last Astronaut” is a dull and disappointing entry in a time of vibrant and varied science fiction. His language and vision echo Michael Crichton’s repetitive plots of American danger … Continue reading
Ruddick, James (2001), Death at the Priory, AtlanticISBN 1-903809-44-4 The Charles Bravo case is a well-known mystery for True Crime enthusiasts. You may have encountered it in one of the countless books or TV shows that explore its details. In … Continue reading
Sciascia, Leonardo (2003, 1971), Equal Danger, NYRB[Translated from the Italian by Adrienne Foulke]ISBN 9781590170625 In my previous review of a Sciascia novel, the brilliant To Each His Own, I made an embarrassing mistake – I compared the vibe of the novel … Continue reading
Svetoft, Erik, Spa, Fantagraphics [translated by Melissa Bowers]ISBN 978-1-68396-696-8 This is going to be a brief review – there is surprisingly little to say about a 300 page graphic novel. That’s because the book has two aspects – an aesthetic … Continue reading
Inokai, Yael (2022), Ein Simpler Eingriff, HanserISBN 978-3-446-27231-6 In an overall not great year for German-language literary fiction, Swiss novelist Yael Inokai’s third novel, Ein Simpler Eingriff (“a simple procedure”) was among the better entries. Like many of its contemporaries, … Continue reading
Ganieva, Alisa (2018 [2015]), Bride & Groom, Deep Vellumtrans. Carol ApollonioISBN 978-1-941920-59-6 This is the first novel by Alisa Ganieva I have read – and one of embarrassingly few novels by contemporary Russian writers on my shelf. Bride & Groom … Continue reading
Addison, Katherine (2020), The Angel of the Crows, TorISBN 978-0-7653-8740-0 Fanfiction has had an interesting few decades. Some of the biggest bestsellers of the past years are rewritten pieces of fanfiction, most famously 50 Shades of Gray, and the Throne … Continue reading
Valente, Catherynne M. (2021), The Past Is Red, TorISBN 978-1-250-30113-0 I have complained on this blog about the disrespect shown to genre writers who are regarded a notch below mainstream fiction writers, despite often being just as good – or … Continue reading
Ayatsuji, Yukito (2007 [1987]), The Decagon House Murders, Pushkintrans. Ho-Ling WongISBN 978-1-78227634-0 Murder by Death, Neil Simon’s brilliant (though dated) cinematic parody on the whodunit, featuring parodies of various well-known detectives, from Hammett’s Nick and Nora to Agatha Christie’s Hercule … Continue reading
Gerritsen, Tess (2004), The Sinner, BallantineISBN 978-1-101-88739-4 The Sinner is the first novel I have read of Tess Gerritsen’s series of books about homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles. This is a surprisingly good book. I say surprisingly because … Continue reading
Mina, Denise (2021), Rizzio, PolygonISBN 9-781 1534-314405 As I may have pointed out in previous reviews: I am a great admirer of the work of Scottish crime novelist Denise Mina. Unlike many other writers in her genre, her work is … Continue reading
Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips (2021), Bad Weekend, ImageISBN 9-781534-314405 Ed Brubaker’s niche, if you will, are comic books nibbling at the borders of masculinity. Some of my favorite works of his involve characters like Daredevil (his run with Michael Lark … Continue reading
Schutti, Carolina (2010), wer getragen wird, braucht keine schuhe, Otto Müller ISBN 978-3-7013-1178-1 Schutti, Carolina (2012), einmal muss ich über weiches Gras gelaufen sein, Otto Müller ISBN 978-3-7013-1193-4 As has become tradition on this blog, as the Bachmannpreis rears its … Continue reading
Glanz, Berit (2019), Pixeltänzer, Schöffling ISBN 978-3-89561-192-6 I have reviewed a brilliant recent German novel for World Literature Today. It’s an inventive novel that pushes the envelope creatively but it holds back on the political implications of her story. It … Continue reading
Green, Anne Katharine (2010 [1878]), The Leavenworth Case, Penguin ISBN 978-0-14-310612-8 Anne Katherine Green is widely seen as a precursor to modern mystery novels – or one of the first modern mystery novels, depending on how you want to judge … Continue reading
Crouch, Blake (2016), Dark Matter, Pan ISBN 978-1-4472-9757-4 I’ve said it before, on this blog and elsewhere – the power of science fiction is to make familiar things less so, to expand the way we read, both texts as well … Continue reading
Valente, Caterynne, Space Opera, Saga Press ISBN 978-1481497497 One of my favorite science fiction novels is The Killing Star by Charles Pellegrino and George Zebrowski. The situation is simple: in the future, with humanity having colonialized the solar system and … Continue reading
Malaparte, Curzio (2018), The Kremlin Ball, NYRB Classics trans. Jenny McPhee ISBN 9781681372099 I reviewed Malaparte’s posthumous and strange novel for Review 31. For better or worse, The Kremlin Ball gives us a point-blank perspective on Malaparte’s literary and personal … Continue reading
Jonguitud, Paulette (2015), Mildew, CB Editions ISBN 978-1-909585-03-4 Is it still a translation if a book was translated by its author? There’s something to that transition that many writers find a bit daunting. Yoko Tawada, for example, an author writing … Continue reading
Clemmons, Zinzi (2017), What We Lose, Penguin ISBN 9780525505051 In German journalism, there’s been a shock recently: Claas Relotius, an award-winning journalist, admitted to having invented the majority of facts and descriptions in his long, meandering tales of Syrian orphans … Continue reading
Hand, Elizabeth, Generation Loss, CR Crime ISBN 978-1-4721-0279-0 Hand, Elizabeth, Available Dark, CR Crime ISBN 978-1-4721-0278-2 Over the past year I have read quite a few crime novels in between doing work and other things, and I’ve increasingly felt that … Continue reading
Müller, Herta (2018), Father’s on the Phone with the Flies, Seagull Translated by Thomas Cooper ISBN 9780857424723 I reviewed the first major translation of Herta Müller’s poetry for Full-Stop: Internationally, Herta Müller is best known as a novelist, but since … Continue reading
Lafferty, Mur (2017), Six Wakes, Orbit ISBN 978-0-316-38968-6 I’m behind on reading all kinds of lists and books – and this year’s Hugo shortlist is no exception. For whatever reason, the first book I picked off that list is a … Continue reading
Ellis, Warren; Phil Hester et al. (2018), Shipwreck, Aftershock ISBN 9781935002802 If you read comics, you will have come across Phil Hester’s work here or there – he’s inescapable. And not like the ubiquitous mediocre artists. Hester’s work is always … Continue reading
Mawil (2014), Kinderland, Reprodukt ISBN 978-3943-143904 The Western discourse on Socialist literature has always been ideological in the sense that we as readers expected something from the literature coming out of the Soviet bloc, and imbued that with literary value. … Continue reading
Ibargüengoitia, Jorge (2018 [1977/1983]), The Dead Girls, Picador ISBN 978-1509870172 Translated by Asa Zatz For a novel called “The Dead Girls,” Mexican author Jorge Ibargüengoitia isn’t particularly interested in said dead girls. In the introduction to the new edition of … Continue reading
Alfred (2014), Come Prima, Delcourt/Mirages ISBN 978-2-7560-3152-1 Despite the Italian title, Alfred’s award winning graphic novel is French. Alfred, whose name is Lionel Papagalli, is a 40something artist and writer from Grenoble. This book is a marvel of emotional storytelling. … Continue reading
Heads up: this is not a review – I reviewed the novel on this blog in 2010. My review is here. I just want to draw attention to it as a brand new translation of the book, by Charlotte Mandel, … Continue reading
Millet, Lydia (2002), My Happy Life, Holt ISBN 978-0-8050-6846-7 So I have a lot of books in this apartment of mine, as I said yesterday. And this includes several books by whole writers. Those acquisitions were made on reputation alone … Continue reading
Nolte, Jakob (2017), Schreckliche Gewalten, Matthes & Seitz ISBN 978-3-95757-400-8 So I complain about translation a lot here, and if you’re following this blog, I’m sure you’re a little bit tired of it, but among the whining about infidelity, and … Continue reading
Edelbauer, Raphaela (2017), Entdecker- Eine Poetik, Klever ISBN 978-3-903110-13-7 Raphaela Edelbauer is the writer I am most excited to see at this year’s Bachmannpreis. The only book of hers I have read is the magnificent Entdecker – Eine Poetik, a … Continue reading
Lohse, Stephan (2017), Ein Fauler Gott, Suhrkamp ISBN 978-3-518-42587-9 In my loose series of reviews of books by participants in this year’s Bachmannpreis, I continue to not necessarily pick the cream of the crop for review, by accident. Stephan Lohse … Continue reading
Dündar, Özlem Özgül (2018), Gedanken Zerren, Elif Verlag ISBN 978-3-946989-07-3 After a review of Anna Stern, who will read at this year’s Bachmannpreis, I want to turn to another very intriguing writer, similarly young, also slated to perform in Klagenfurt … Continue reading
Stern, Anna (2014), Schneestill, Salis ISBN 978-3-906195-17-9 Stern, Anna (2016), Der Gutachter, Salis ISBN 9783906195438 This coming Thursday, the Bachmannpreis will begin again and I will, again, follow along, glued to the TV screen. Excitement, excitement, excitement. I will write … Continue reading
Ono, Masatsugu (2018), Lion Cross Point, Two Lines Press Translated by Angus Turvill ISBN 978-1-931883-70-2 Lion Cross Point is a gentle little book about how to deal with violence, trauma and memory. Its author, acclaimed novelist Masatsugu Ono, offers us … Continue reading
Offill, Jenny, Dept. of Speculation, Vintage ISBN 978-0-345-80687-1 If you think back on the final two pages of Michael Chabon’s sophomore novel Wonder Boys, you’ll remember it ends with the writer-protagonist jettisoning his monstrous manuscript, “the whole exploded clockwork” – … Continue reading
Garner, Helen (2014), This House of Grief: Story of a Murder Trial, Text Publishing ISBN 9-781925-240689 I had previously only read one other book by Helen Garner – and it was a novel. This House of Grief is a nonfiction … Continue reading
Englander, Nathan (2017), Dinner at the Center of the Earth, Knopf ISBN 9781524732738 In a tunnel, dug by a Palestinian “tunnel millionaire,” a Palestinian politician and an Israeli ex-spy meet up and have a dinner as the 2014 Gaza War … Continue reading
Pinto, Jerry (2012), Em and the Big Hoom, Viking ISBN 9787-0-670-92358-8 Ah, man. I’ll just say it. I thought this novel was awfully mediocre, on a multitude of levels – but it comes with a big bag of praise. The … Continue reading
Salzmann, Sasha Marianna (2017), Ausser Sich, Suhrkamp ISBN 978-3-518-42762-0 This was not, strictly speaking, the next review I wanted to write, but after I finished it this morning I was so impressed, so genuinely stunned by this book that I … Continue reading
Gomringer, Nora (2017), Moden, Voland & Quist ISBN 978-3-86391-169-0 The most prestigious German-language literary award is the Büchner Preis. It is not given for a single work, it’s given for a whole oeuvre. Sometimes it’s given to younger writers, sometimes … Continue reading
Anders, Charlie Jane (2016), All the Birds in the Sky, Tor ISBN 978-0-7653-7995-5 So I love science fiction. And nothing bums me out more when a book or text or movie is marred by a lack of imagination or a … Continue reading
Clavadetscher, Martina (2017), Knochenlieder, Edition Bücherlese ISBN 9783906907017 Sometimes a book is so surprisingly good that you stop reading and go online to look up what other books the author has written and how on earth this is the first … Continue reading
Abonji, Melinda Nadj (2010), Tauben Fliegen Auf, Jung und Jung ISBN 978-3-902497-78-9 [Translated into English by Tess Lewis Abonji, Melinda Nadj (2014), Fly Away, Pigeon, Seagull Books ISBN 9780857422125] German language literature is full of tales of migration – often … Continue reading
Zehrer, Klaus Cäsar (2017), Das Genie, Diogenes ISBN 9783257069983 Sometimes, when I look askance at a book I dislike, I ponder the question of what makes a bad book. I don’t mean going down the Bourdieu/Herrnstein-Smith path – I mean … Continue reading
Allan, Nina (2017), The Rift, Titan Books ISBN 978-1785650376 I love Nina Allan. You can read my review of her debut novel The Race here. Go ahead. And this week, I am pleased to tell you that Strange Horizons has published my … Continue reading
Marković, Barbi (2016), Superheldinnen, Residenz ISBN 978-3-7ß17-1662-3 I’ve discussed this issue before: how do you define a German novel? Some of the most interesting books published in the German-speaking countries recently have complicated this question beyond the usual distinction between … Continue reading
Allen, Nina (2016), the Race, Titan Books ISBN 978-1785650468 There’s so much good science fiction coming out these days, it’s quite mind boggling. Not, I think, since the heyday of Delany, Blish, and Ballard have we had such ample riches … Continue reading
Cornell, Paul (2015), Witches of Lychford, Tor ISBN 978-0-7653-8523-9 Reading Adorno’s Kulturindustrie, people like to focus on his curmudgeonly complaints about popular culture. My favorite aspect of it has always been the idea that whatever noxious ideology we see displayed … Continue reading
Jackson, Shirley (2013 [1951]), Hangsaman, Penguin ISBN 978-0-141-39198-4 I know little about Shirley Jackson, and Hangsaman is only the second novel I have read of this famous writer of the American Gothic. I have little context for this book, but … Continue reading
Larcenet, Manu (2003), Le Combat Ordinaire, Dargaud ISBN 9-782205-054255 I picked up this book in a Parisian comic book shop yesterday and read it all the way through on the Metro ride home. Granted, it’s not very long. That said, … Continue reading
Kureyshi, Meral (2017), Elefanten im Garten, Ullstein ISBN 978-3-548-28849-9 This is a good book. Meral Kureyshi is a Swiss-Albanian writer who is part of that country’s Turkish minority. At the age of nine, she moved to Switzerland, where she still … Continue reading
Bhagat, Chetan (2008), The 3 Mistakes of my Life, Rupa ISBN 978-81-291-1372-6 I don’t often read genuinely terrible, awful, no-good books. When I read a book I consider bad, it’s often “just” mediocre. It’s just – look, my reading habits … Continue reading
Fior, Manuele (2016), 5,000 km per second, Fantagraphics [Translated by Jamie Richards] ISBN 978-1-60699-666-9 I can’t believe I never heard of Manuele Fior before. 5,000 km per Second is an extraordinary book – succeeding on all levels: as story, as … Continue reading
Kallifatidis, Theodor (1977), Masters and Peasants, Doubleday [Translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal] ISBN 0-385-09916-9 Kallifatidis is a Swedish novelist and poet of Greek descent. That is all I know. He has a large body of work, but very … Continue reading
Menmuir, Wyl (2016), The Many, Salt ISBN 978-1-784630485 So, to get things out of the way, this is a novel about grief, some of it quite affecting. Short books about grief are not uncommon. Max Porter’s debut novel(la) Grief is … Continue reading
Starova, Luan (2012), My Father’s Books, U of Wisconsin P [Translated by Christina E. Kramer] ISBN 978-029928794-8 So I had been looking at the Macedonian language for a little while, which is fascinating with its closeness to my own Russian. … Continue reading
Goetsch, Daniel (2016), Ein Niemand, Klett-Cotta ISBN 978-3-6ß8-98021-9 So you may remember my posts about the Bachmann–Preis earlier this month – I always try to read books by authors involved in it but I don’t always manage. This year I … Continue reading
Tevis, Walter (1962, 2015), The Man Who Fell To Earth, Gollancz ISBN 978-1-473-21311-1 Greene, Graham (1936, 2009), A Gun For Sale, Vintage ISBN 978-0-099-28614-1 I read Walter Tevis’ SF novel on a hot summer afternoon in preparation for a paper … Continue reading
Mazer, Ben (2017), February Poems, Ilora Press ISBN 978-0-9962063-2-7 April may be the cruelest month, but the heartbreak of Ben Mazer’s February Poems seems overwhelming. February doesn’t usually get such a bad rep. Margaret Atwood anticipates spring in her poem … Continue reading
Mina, Denise (2009), Still Midnight, Orion ISBN 978-0-7528-8404-2 This is the second novel by Mina I’ve read (I’ve reviewed Field of Blood here) and it is just as good, probably slightly better than the other one. Denise Mina has a … Continue reading
Schweblin, Samanta (2017), Fever Dream, Oneworld [Translated from Spanish by Megan McDowell] ISBN 978-1-78607-090-6 There is only one other book I know that is like this: it’s Lessing’s The Fifth Child. And it’s not just the nightmare depiction of parenthood … Continue reading
Campbell, Sophie (2017), Shadoweyes, Iron Circus Comics ISBN 978-0989020725 Sophie Campbell is one of my favorite people in comics. She’s been publishing comics for a long time now, sometimes as artist and writer, sometimes “just” as artist. It’s been a … Continue reading
I review a lot of translated literature on this here blog thing. I also advocate for translating German literature. I love translation (I may be of two minds about poetry translation) as I love literature. I also think that ethically, … Continue reading
Villalobos, Juan Pablo (2010), Down The Rabbit Hole, And Other Stories [Translated from Spanish by Rosalind Harvey] ISBN 978-1-908276-00-1 I was emailed an article two days ago about someone or other who was decapitated by the MS-13 gang in Mississippi … Continue reading
Jones, Gwyneth (2017), Proof of Concept, Tor ISBN 978-0-7653-9144-5 So I am biased, I suppose. I love science fiction, and I love every Gwyneth Jones book I have ever read. Regrettably, that’s not a ton, because she hasn’t written that … Continue reading
Elmiger, Dorothee (2010), Einladung an die Waghalsigen, Dumont ISBN 9-783832-161941 [translated into English by Katy Derbyshire: Elmiger, Dorothee (2011), Invitation To The Bold Of Heart, Seagull Press ISBN 978-0-85742-019-0 This is a curious little book. Dorothee Elmiger’s debut novel Einladung … Continue reading
Trondheim, Lewis and Stéphane Oiry: Maggy Garrison: Fais un Sourire, Maggy, Dupuis ISBN 9-782800-160788 “Sometimes, winning just means not losing.” This, said by the protagonist of Lewis Trondheim’s book with Stéphane Oiry, just about sums up the darkly humorous tone … Continue reading
Greg, Wioletta, Swallowing Mercury, Portobello ISBN 978-1-84627-607-1 [Translated from the Polish by Eliza Marciniak] Look, it’s not that I regretted reading this book; it was, after all, fairly short. On the other hand, I’m not particularly elated about the fact … Continue reading
Chessex, Jacques (2009), Un Juif Pour L’exemple, Grasset ISBN 09782253129615-4 [English edition: Chessex, Jacques, A Jew Must Die, Bitter Lemon Press ISBN 9781904738510 translated by W. Donald Wilson] I’ve long meant to write something about the Swiss novelist and poet … Continue reading
Strout, Elizabeth (2016), My Name is Lucy Barton, Random House ISBN 978-0-8129-7952-7 I’ve actually read this novel twice. Twice! And I am still not sure what to think about it. It appears to be written and conceived so clearly in … Continue reading
This has been a fairly good year for books (albeit not for literature as a whole, which is no longer allowed at the cool table, apparently), but not necessarily for me. Many books published this year – among them novels … Continue reading
Jiles, Paulette (2016), News of the World, William Morrow ISBN 978-0-06-240920-1 “Some people were born unsupplied with a human conscience and those people needed killing.” – If you think this is a great sentence, many of my criticisms of Paulette … Continue reading
Tsushima, Yuko (1983 [1978]), Child of Fortune, Kodansha [Translated from Japanese by Geraldine Harcourt] ISBN 4-7700-1524-0 Sometimes accidents have interesting results: the only reason I heard from Yuko Tsushima in the first place is Jake Waalk’s essay on this blog. … Continue reading
Liu, Marjorie and Sana Takeda (2016), Monstress, Vol. 1, Image Comics ISBN 978-1632157096 Gibson, Claire, Sloane Leong and Marian Churchland (2016), From Under Mountains, Vol. 1, Image Comics ISBN 978-1632159441 Marjorie Liu is slowly but surely growing into one of … Continue reading
Evenon, Brian (2016), The Warren, Tor ISBN 978-0-7653-9315-9 The Warren is a short book – and one of the best books I read all year. In it, Evenson condenses a science fiction story about what it means to be a … Continue reading
Gardi, Tomer (2016), Broken German, Droschl ISBN 978-3-85420-979-9 This novel is German – its author is not. This helps, I think, explain why its author is one of the most vital German literary voices to emerge in 2016. Like Sharon … Continue reading
Wilson, Kai Ashante (2015), The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps, Tor ISBN 978-0-7653-8524-6 This book is very good. Very good. Unbelievably so, for a debut. An exceptional novel. Now, somewhere to the left or right of this paragraph will be a … Continue reading
Atwood, Margaret; Johnnie Christmas, Tamra Bonvillain (2016), Angel Catbird, Dark Horse ISBN 978-1-50670-063-2 I wrote the first sentence of this review before reading the book. Angel Catbird arrived here this afternoon, and I immediately noted down this sentence: “This is … Continue reading
Forney, Ellen (2012), Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo + Me, Robinson ISBN 978-1-4721-0689-6 You know how when you feel a bit unwell and you go on WebMD and suddenly, you feel as though you were dying of a terminal illness because … Continue reading
Ștefănescu, Cecilia (2013), Sun Alley, Istros Books [Translated from Romanian by Alexandra Coliban and Andreea Höfer] ISBN 9781908236067 At this point in the year, this is the worst book I have read all year or at least the worst book … Continue reading
Hoven, Line (2008), Liebe schaut weg, Reprodukt ISBN 978-3-938511-66-4 [Translated into English as Love Looks Away (2014) Blank Slate Books ISBN: 978-1-906653-18-7] The great medievalist Jacques Le Goff, in discussing memory, posits that what we call memory is really an … Continue reading
Laroui, Fouad (2016), The Curious Case of Dassoukine’s Trousers, Deep Vellum Translated from the French by Emma Ramadan ISBN 978-1-941920-26-8 Maybe the particular quality of Fouad Laroui’s humorous fiction is best described with a phrase from his 2010 novel Une … Continue reading
Otoo, Sharon Dodua (2015), Synchronicity, Edition Assemblage With Illustrations by Sita Ngoumou ISBN 978-3-942885-95-9 Otoo, Sharon Dodua (2012), The Things I am Thinking While Smiling Politely, Edition Assemblage ISBN 978-3-942885-22-5 Is this German literature? Sharon Otoo is not a German … Continue reading
Reid, Iain (2016), I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Text Publishing ISBN 9-781911-231042 So this is a weird book. Not weird as in weird fiction, or weird as in unusual. Iain Reid’s novel is a fairly straightforward psychological (horror) thriller. If … Continue reading
LaMarche, Phil (2007), American Youth, Sceptre ISBN 978-0-340-93803-4 I went into this book knowing nothing about it or the author. Someone recommended it to me and I decided on a whim to read it. Not knowing anything about it, I … Continue reading
Vera, Yvonne (2000), Butterfly Burning, Farrar, Straus and Giroux ISBN 0-374-29186-1 So here is another example of me being awfully badly read. The late Yvonne Vera was a leading/important novelist from Zimbabwe, winner of multiple literary awards. And this is … Continue reading
Karlsson, Kolbeinn (2010), The Troll King, Top Shelf ISBN 978-1-60309-061-2 I have never read a graphic novel by a Swedish creator before, but if The Troll King is any indication, Swedes like their comic books like they like their rock … Continue reading
Hiraide, Takashi (2014), The Guest Cat, Picador [Translated by Eric Selland] ISBN 978-1-4472-7940-2 For my birthday a year and a half ago, my sister brought me a cat, as, I suspect, a therapy animal/companion. I love cats, and my sister … Continue reading
lê thi diem thúy (2003), The gangster we are all looking for, Anchor ISBN 978-0-375-70002-6 Much like the last book I reviewed here, I somehow ended up reading this book by accident, but I don’t regret it – lê thi … Continue reading
Takagi, Akimitsu (1999 [1965]), The Informer, Soho Press ]Trans. Sadako Mizuguchi] ISBN 1-56947-243-2 When I started this book I was not aware that The Informer is a very traditional crime novel. I somehow ended up reading it on a recommendation … Continue reading
Dillon, Glyn (2012), The Nao of Brown, Selfmadehero ISBN 978-1-906838-42-3 So this is some odd coincidence. Fresh on the heels of reviewing a book that is artfully crafted but does not, ultimately, feel like a success, I have just read … Continue reading
Haruf, Kent (2015), Our Souls at Night, Knopf ISBN 978-1-101-87589-6 I have not read any reviews of Kent Haruf’s novel Our Souls At Night but I suspect that whatever books I can pull as reference and context for it might … Continue reading
Kang, Han (2015 [2007]), The Vegetarian, Portobello [Translated by Deborah Smith] ISBN 978-1-84627-562-3 I have read and reread The Vegetarian twice in the past two months (first time was in December). It is very good. The translation fits the text perfectly … Continue reading
Ross, Fran (2015 [1974]), Oreo, New Directions ISBN 978-0-8112-2322-5 Let me apologize in advance if this review is a bit odd, I have not had sleep in quite a while. On the other hand, this likely leads to a shorter … Continue reading
Russell, Ray (2015 [1962]), The Case Against Satan, Penguin ISBN 978-0-14-31727-9 In a study of French Romantic poetry, John Porter Houston declared in 1969 that “[Baudelaire’s] diabolical Catholicism is […] a mode of sensibility which neither shocks nor has morbid … Continue reading
Ebershoff, David (2000), The Danish Girl, Penguin ISBN 9-780143-108399 Usually, the advantage of a novel dealing with a real life character vis-à-vis a nonfiction work, say a biography or a historical study, is the ability to gain vividness, color, excitement. … Continue reading
Luiselli, Valeria (2011), Faces in the Crowd, Granta [Translated from the Spanish by Christine MacSweeney] ISBN 978-1-84708-507-8 It’s entirely accidental that my last review of 2015 and my first review of 2016 are both of novels by Mexican authors. Both … Continue reading
So after posting 10 reviews in 2014 I exceeded that number by quite a bit this year and ended up with 26 reviews. An alphabetical list of the books under review this year are below, with short commentary (a chronological … Continue reading
Herrera, Yuri (2015), Signs Preceding The End of The World, And Other Stories [Translated from Spanish by Lisa Dillman] ISBN 978-1-908276-42-1 This is very likely my last review of the year but I just couldn’t let the year on my … Continue reading
shigekuni. 