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Reserved solely for single book reviews
‘The Mystery Writer’ by Sulari Gentill is a page-turning murder mystery that touches on topical themes in our current post-covid world. While I felt the end was hurried, I enjoyed the first half’s build-up to the twist at the end. While none of the characters, especially Theo, were physically described in detail, I feel like…
‘A place called Here’ is an easy-to-read story about loss, in particular, the emotional response to childhood fears. While reading this novel, I reflected on my own childhood anxiety of not being able to complete everything I’ve ever wanted to do, or not being able to read every book in existence. Sandy Shortt, the protagonist,…
Big Little Lies is a gripping light novel that immediately draws the reader in. Starting with fragmented snippets of police interviews that slowly hint at the story’s truth, the author masterfully builds the suspense to a satisfying climax. This small-town playground mystery thriller addresses serious topics such as domestic violence and sexual assault. Despite the…
The Night Watchman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, was inspired by Erdrich’s own grandfather who belonged to the Turtle Mountain Reservation on which this book’s story is based. The novel tells the story of the resistance to repeated oppression and the real-life assimilation and termination policies against native peoples. Thomas Wazhashk is the night watchman at…
The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams tells the story of two lost souls, Alisha, a 17-year-old, and Mukesh, an Indian widower, who both live in London. They somehow manage to find each other living amongst the chaos of the busy city. They form a unique bond of kinship through books found on a reading…
‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Bernardine Evaristo follows the intricacies and complexities of womanhood, privilege and feminism. Written in a non-traditionalist narrative form, this novel tells non-traditionalist stories of womanhood and otherhood. We have Yass, the university student finding herself, learning that it’s okay for teenage ideals and values to be challenged. Her university friend challenging…
Memoirs of a Polar Bear by Yoko Tawada tells the story of three generations of anthropomorphic polar bears – this intergenerational element is an aspect common in Tawada’s work. The opening act tells of the grandmother who after spending years performing in the circus, retires to an administrative position, where she tackles the bureaucracy of…
Fever Dream was shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize in 2017. It is a complex and almost surreal story that leaves you with more questions than it gives you answers. The multi-layered nature of this story (a story within a story within a story) makes it tricky to jump into its depths at first, especially…
A little about the author… Twitter | Website Julia Wilmot first discovered Transcendental Meditation (TM) as a teenager at school. She was so sure of her path that she decided not to go to University and study law but devote herself to teaching TM and working with the charity that teaches the technique instead! She’s been a founder…
Yes, I haven’t blogged for ages. Yes, this should have been posted in February. Yes, I’m sorry. Now on with the show… * (*I truly am sorry) This play is about exactly what you think it’s about – vaginas (which sounds so weird to say, I guess because I’ve internalised this shame and secrecy surrounding…