Well the last few weeks have seen a few Summer reading recommendations in the weekend papers .A discussion the other week after the rather banal Guardian one lead to a question of doing our own well ,I’ve let the dust settle and chosen a few translations that are out now or due out in the next month or so .
The walk by Robert Walser
Now Serpents tail has issued some more great stories from the ever-growing in reputation Robert Walser .This collection is meant to bridge the gap between the earlier works and the later Microscripts .I ve read his Berlin stories that I ll be reviewing for German lit month and all I’ll say now he is worth trying for any one wanting to fill in gaps in German lit inter wars .
Let the games begin by Niccolo Ammaniti
I m reading this myself at the moment ,it has a dark wit and some bizarre storylines and as I said when I first heard about this book we don’t have enough books about man eating hippos !! out next month
21:37 by Mariusz Czubaj
A polish crime novel by the Lovely Joanne and her Stork Press ,we meet Profiler Robert Heinz as he tries to track down a killer of two young men with the number 21 and 37 written on them ,also please note this is on offer on Kindle at the moment .
Russian Stories by Francesc Seres
21 stories from relatively unknown to the west Russian writers ,we see modern Russia through the eyes of various girls in and around St Petersburg ,then go back further through each of the five writers in the collection to get a unique insight into Russia past and present .
The son By Andrej Nikolaidis
We spend the evening with an unknown narrator as he wanders round the city of Ulcnj ,The narrator a writer is at the crossroads of his life his wife is gone ,he has fallen out with his father and during this evening we see him take his life apart and also the place he lives .Very Bernhard at times this one and a real gem from Istros books .
The Parrots by Flippo Bologna
I ve reviewed this already here ,A great comic satire on Book prizes and writers .
Other titles on my radar
These are books already out I’ve them ready to read hopefully over the summer at some point myself .
All is silence by Manuel Rivas
The infatuations by Javier Marias
Man in love by Karl Ove Knausgaard
Every Promise by Andrea Bajani
Oh, a new Ammaniti! I will look for that!
Thanks, as a vegan I’ll pass on the hippo eating, but Polish crime sounds good.
Russian Stories sounds right up my street, Stu – thanks for the recommendation!
Love the sound of several of these, Stu – especially the Polish crime, Let the Games Begin and The Parrots. I’ll check to see if any of these are coming to our library.
I really liked ‘The Infatuations’, btw. It’s almost a meditation on mortality, grief, love, chance…so many of the big themes in life. I’d love to hear what you think of it. I’m reading ‘A Heart So White’ by Marias at the moment and it’s another one to savour. His writing is wonderful.
The Russian Stories one intrigues me, too …and it has a great cover!
This is a great list. I’ve read a lot of Walser and like him but he isn’t a German writer. He is Swiss. I love Ammaniti.
Nice list, Stu! I would love to read ’21:37′, ‘Russian Stories’ and ‘The Son’. Thanks for the recommendations!
All look to be really good books. In particular, Let the Games Begin looks very intriguing. I tend to like books with odd plot elements.
I’ve just got myself a copy of Walser’s ‘Jakob von Gunten’, so hopefully I’ll get to try his work very soon. Loved ‘The Infatuations’ (of course), and while I wasn’t always enamoured with the Knausgaard, I’m still hoping to try the second book this year (especially as there’s a good chance it’ll be on the IFFP longlist in 2014…).
Another book called The Son?! I was confused enough already with the 2 I know of. I’m still interested in ‘The Parrots’ and hope to read Knausguaard #2 over the summer. Enjoy your summer reads!
Quite an enviable list, Stu, with more than a few books I’m learning about for the first time here. Happy reading!
I like the sound of Russian Stories. I haven’t read any contemporary female Russian writers, and I really do want to. Thanks for the list, Stu, some great titles for the TBR pile.
A very interesting list. I think I’ll plump for the Robert Walser. Germany between the wars has always attracted me.
Great list. Bought 21:37 on my kindle on your recommendation. The only one I’ve read is The Walk – I’ve got an older copy of this. The Infatuations also on my summer reading list and planning to see Manuel Rivas at the Edinburgh Book Festival.