- Ilaria or the Conquest of Disobedience by Gabriella Zalapi
- Things fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
- Bound to Violence by Yambo Ouologuem
- Outsider Everywhere BY Mercedes Halfon
- Too great a sky by Lilana Corobca
- On the Edge by Markus Werner
- Tree by Aya Koda
- Monique Escapes by Édouard Louis
It was a quieter month than I had wanted, but I managed 8 books. I started with a young girl on the run with her father driving through Italy, then a clash of the African tribal world and the Western world in an African classic. Then another classic from Mali, rediscovered after it was used in part in the Prix Goncourt winner The Most Secret Memory of Men, which was inspired by Bound to Violence. Then a look at the great Polish writer Witold Gombrowicz. Then a train journey in World War II and then living in exile. Then two men talk about marriage, love and divorce; who is the older man ? Then, a collection of stories about trees and the writer’s interactions with them. Then Edouard Louis’s mother finally escapes another abusive relationship and finds peace at last.
Book of the month
It was a hard pick; there was a dud book this month, but this book was a real favourite and one I will be thinking about for a few evenings, especially the interaction between the two main characters. It just drew me in?
Non book things
Amanda and I watched the end of the series The Last Day of Ptolemy Grey with Samuel L. Jackson as a man who has taken an experimental drug to reverse dementia for a short time; not just that, but to make him remember all his life what was the treasure he had found as a kid and who killed his nephew are the two main threads. Music-wise, I got the recent Adlous Harding Album, Train on the Island; I still love lots of what 4ad brings out on their record label.
Next month
I have a few TBR books for the TBR of summer challenge; a post later this week about that. Other than that, I have a couple of books from Two Lines Press to read, and I can’t wait to get the latest book from Dasa Drndric in Translation.. Lots of options I am off for two weeks now so hope catch up on some reading.
