What book or books are you reading this week? We’d love to know!
Just finished Alan Hollinghurst’s Our Evenings. Really exceptional book - which makes it hard to move on. Fortunately my next book is completely different - In Our Midst by Nancy Jensen. It’s historical fiction, about a German family in the US during WWII. I’m only a few pages in but so far, so good. I’m still listening to Book 3 of the Slough House series on audiobook.
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And on a side note, has anyone read the Slough House series and watched the Netflix series? I’d love to discuss/compare them with someone.
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Just finished The Crescent Moon Tearoom and started The Author’s Guide to Murder. This week called for some fantasy, levity, and a murder mystery. Both books I learned about through BookBrowse.
One of my all-time favorite reads published this year was Elif Shafak’s There Are Rivers in the Sky. Beautifully written but it does address some difficult topics and won’t be for everyone. It is one of the few books I will re-read.
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I am currently listening to The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller–A unique and beautifully lyrical retelling of Achilles and the Trojan War–and The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters–Alternating chapters told by Norma [four-year-old Ruthie who suddenly ‘goes missing’] and her older brother Joe, both members of the Mi’k maq tribe in Maine. Downloaded but not yet reading Libby Lost and Found by Stephanie Booth–wildly popular author diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and still chapters away from completing her most recent book, turns to 11year-old fan to help her finish writing the book. Just finished Remarkably Bright Creatures–A slow start almost caused me to move on to a new book, but then I decided to just sit back and enjoy the rather unbelievable, unique friendship between an elderly woman and an octopus in the aquarium where she is a cleaning lady. And I am glad that I stuck with it because the full cast of characters and the way their lives are interwoven was very satisfying if almost a bit too tidy.
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@P_Timko A non-fiction book that I really enjoyed, even more than Remarkably Bright Creatures was Sy Montogomery’s The Soul of an Octopus. Highly recommend it if you want to know more about them.
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It’s actually on Apple TV. I’ve read all the books and enjoyed them. I don’t find the tv series nearly as funny. Although I do think Gary Oldman is an inspired Jackson Lamb.
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Oh, right - AppleTV. Too many streaming services!
I agree that it’s lacking some of the humor of the books. I’m not sure how I feel about Gary Oldman, which is what I wanted to bring up. I like how the TV version is portraying Lamb, but I don’t find him nearly as unlikeable and obnoxious as his book version.
I’m really happy to hear all the books are good. For some reason they were free with my Audible subscription so they’re all in my library now.
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I just finished the heartbreaking ‘Black Butterflies’ by Priscilla Morris and am now starting ‘Intermezzo’ by Sally Rooney.
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@Sunny @Gabi_J This week I’ve been dipping into Katherine Rundell’s new nonfiction book Vanishing Treasures; a series of short essays about endangered or threatened animals from around the world (no octopuses, but everything from hedgehogs to seahorses!). Each piece is only a few pages long and is informed by science as well as literature, folklore, etc. Really beautiful writing.
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So glad to hear this. There Are Rivers in the Sky is the next book on my TBR list. I should be starting it as soon as I finish The Overstory by Richard Powers.
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Kim, I absolutely love Hollinghurst’s novel The Line of Beauty! Highly recommend if you haven’t read it. It’s probably one of my favorite novels I’ve ever read. I’ll have to check out his other novels, I haven’t read any of them!
The other day I picked up a novel I’ve read before, Stay Up with Hugo Best by Erin Somers, because I wanted to quickly read something I knew I liked–and I tore through it. It’s really funny and witty, with lots of witty, semi-flirtatious banter. It’s light but smart. It’s about a comic/TV writer who spends the weekend at her boss’s house (he’s the host of the TV show she writes for, but he recently retired, meaning she’s out of a job). It touches on some interesting, nuanced topics like power and sexual dynamics, but with a light touch–again, it’s funny! I read Curtis Sittenfeld’s Romantic Comedy when it came out, and I was annoyed that it wasn’t funny–it’s about a writer for SNL, the whole point is that she’s a funny person, but there weren’t any jokes!! Somers’ book actually has jokes!
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Reminds me of a really great book by the late, great Doug Adams: Last Chance to See. I revisited it not long ago and, while efforts are being made to save some of the critically endangered animals, they’re sadly still in dire shape.
@Ann_Beman I thought There Are Rivers in the Sky was a really terrific novel, too. I hope you enjoy it!
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I loved The Overstory. I have Playground in the shelf and look forward to reaching for it soon.
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I am reading Undue Burden by Shefali Luthra. It’s about the women’s health care crisis. The author will be at our Texas Book Festival next weekend.
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Playground was one of my top books for 2024. I enjoyed it even more than Overstory. .
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OMG I’m so happy to hear that because I’ve been getting some mixed signals. Thanks Kim.
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Absolute Power by David Baldacci. Thought so appropriate since voting time.
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Ooh, I will check this out! I haven’t heard of this one before.
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