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Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang

So this might be a case of an (over?) hyped book that slightly disappoints me.  I should have it read it in a few years when the hype had died down and then I probably would have loved it.

Set in the US publishing scene in the near recent past, (the only thing that really dates it is the use of the word Twitter rather than X etc) it has some really funny moments but, and this is me, not the book, rather than a horror story I just found it sad.  But then again, I do find the cancel culture very sad.

I think it’s my expectations of the book that disappoint not the book itself.  Give it a go and see what you think.   I certainly enjoyed the first half more, and definitely laughed.  

Maybe it’s a Marmite thing, (for those that don’t know what the Marmite thing is, that means it’s a love or hate it thing).  I haven’t read Kuang’s previous books and know nothing about her as a writer, and although I didn’t love this, I would definitely give her another go, the writing was very good, it’s just the story that didn’t ‘do’ it for me.  

Recommended.

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The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

Well I can see why this was shortlisted for so many prizes etc and yes, it’s a perfect book club book. Like in Hamnet - https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/666229562287538176/hamnet-by-maggie-ofarrell-as-anyone-who-reads - O’Farrell manages to convey the time and place to us well, this time sixteenth century Italy and the Medicis.

The portrait in question, https://wordpress.bigissue.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/alessandro_allori_lucrezia_de.gif - is a real one and O’Farrell has woven her story around it and what might have happened.

Well researched, well written.

Highly recommended.

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Mythica: A New History of Homer’s World, Through the Women Written Out of It by Emily Hauser

Wow. So when I heard this book was coming out I couldn’t wait, it ticked so many boxes for me but I wasn’t actually near a bookshop on day of publication so decided to get the audiobook. All I’m saying is, now I’ve finished it, I’m also going to get a print copy so I can refer to it.

If you are interested in Homer, and/or mythology, and/or Ancient Greek history and/or gender studies and/or the recent novels reimagining the myths from the female characters’ points of view, then this book is for you. It has something for everyone. It really helps contextualise a lot of information.

Emily Hauser reads the book herself. But for me, the negative of the audio version is that Hauser quotes from other writers, but in the audio it’s not possible to know where or whom the quote is from.

Some other readers have said that Hauser is skewing the information towards females but as she says herself at the end of the book, every history written is subjective. On the other hand, this review from Goodreads nicely summarises my views on the book - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7461864082

Highly recommend.

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The Day I Lost You by Ruth Mancini

This is a clever mix of emotional and legal thriller told in a backwards timeline. There are a couple of surprise reveals along the way that one doesn’t guess, cleverly crafted.

The ending maybe could have been a bit more complicated but a nice satisfying read.

Won’t give away the plot here but thanks to NetGalley and Century for the early proof.

Recommended.

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The Festival of Insignificance by Milan Kundera

Oh what a surprise and a joy this book turned out to be.  Kundera can be a little ‘heavy’ but certainly not this one.

I hadn’t been reading much lately and was struggling through a different book, I thought it was me and that I just wasn’t in the mood for reading but then I thought maybe I would try an alternative.  Picking up The Festival of Insignificance made me realise it was the previous novel and not me (I won’t/don’t leave negative reviews here, - well only once… https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/189933922526/death-in-the-east-by-abir-mukherjee-i-dont-tend?source=share - so you won’t know what it was).

This may be a very slim volume but there were still several quotable passages I have marked in this little novella 

Translated from the French by Linda Asher - I think Kundera wrote it in French rather than like his earlier books in Czech.  I also see the did the illustration on the jacket.  

There is a strange atmosphere in the book, although written 2013 it has the feel of something written at least 100 years ago. 

I don’t usually like jackets blurbs but this one somehow encapsulates the absurdity of the book : “Casting light on the most serious of problems and at the same time saying not one serious sentence; being fascinated by the reality of the contemporary world and at the same completely avoiding realism - that’s The Festival of Insignificance.”.  

This was a gift from a friend, for which I’m grateful.  Highly recommend. 

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A Promised Land by Barack Obama

I don’t know what to big up first.  This was amazing.    If you look at these posts you will know that I only recently listened to Michelle Obama reading her memoir, Becoming - https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/771008100114235392/becoming-by-michelle-obama-i-cannot-recommend  - what a couple!  To write those books and read them themselves, even with ghost/script writers, fabulous, (if they had them, I don't know).

But I also want to big up BorrowBox - https://www.borrowbox.com - if you are a member of a library (this may be limited to the UK) you get access to this service which lets you borrow eBooks and audiobooks, which is how I just borrowed this book.   What an amazing service.

But back to A Promised Land, Obama is articulate, literate, intelligent, compassionate, funny and since he reads the book himself, it is particularly funny when he does some of his impressions of his fellow world leaders, or himself, or his grandmother.  All endearing. 

On top of that, towards the end of book, Chapter 25 to be precise, Obama manages to succinctly and clearly give a background to the (modern) Israeli-Palestinian conflict which particularly, now in 2025, is helpful to understand, (the book was originally published in 2020).  

Highly recommend (to all)

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The Odyssey by Homer - Translated by Emily Wilson

Five stars!!!   This is the second time I have read The Odyssey all the way through, (as opposed to studying parts of it), and what a terrific read it is.

This time, although I also have the Emily Wilson translation in book form, I used up one of my Audible freebies and listened to it.  When it started, I thought I would be put off by Claire Danes’ reading (it just felt wrong to have an American accent for this) but once it got going, I didn’t notice.

What a fabulous translation and I can see why Emily Wilson has received the praise she has for this, (for earlier full version was the Robert Fagles’ one, also excellent).

If you’ve never tried Homer, don’t be put off by all the talk of epic poems and classic literature and anything else from academia, just take it as a rollicking good adventure story.

Highly recommend.

With thanks to Audible for the listen.

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Tomas and Ironskin - Book 1 of Dragon Storm by Alastair Chisholm

So this is the first book in a series of dragon books for young readers, I think between 7 and 10. Like a pilot episode of a television series, it has to establish the characters and the world they inhabit and for that reason, I think, I’m guessing, the series will get better and better the more books one reads.

I love Alastair Chisholm’s books and his ability to create new worlds for different age groups. If I have a negative, for me, the text is slightly let down by the illustrations but that’s just me nit picking.

Recommend

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The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

This is such a popular best-seller but I’ve only just got around to reading it.  Osman creates a cosy crime  thriller with clever humour.  His characters are likeable and you’re happy spending time with them which, considering they could all be murder suspects, is an achievement.

I liked it.  I read it quickly but, oh you knew there was a but coming.  Would I have raved about it the way this book took off sales wise?  I don’t think so.  If it wasn’t written by someone already famous and in the public eye, would it have been as successful?  We will never know.

I recommend it.  It’s a good read.

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Still Life by Sarah Winman

What a beautiful book. So, about one fifth, one quarter into the book I wasn’t loving it. Oh dear, I thought, another book that disappoints because of the hype and then, as I carried on reading, I realised I was gripped.

I cried a few times as one becomes so involved with the characters here, and I laughed with them too. I don’t want to give away too much but just know the book spans the early 1900s up until the 1970s and is mainly set in London and Florence. It is populated by both fictional characters and real people like the artist, Dorothy Cunningham, the poet, Constance Everley and the author, E.M. Forster.

If nothing else, this book will make you hungry for Italian food, good wine, cigarettes, art, music and Italian light.

Enjoy.

Highly recommend.

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I Am Wolf by Alastair Chisholm

I loved this. Couldn’t put it down and read it in two days. I believe it’s meant for 9+ readers but I would just say that as an adult reader, it kept me gripped and on the edge of my seat.

Alastair Chisholm has an ability to create ‘other worlds’ that you immediately understand and believe. Look forward to the next in the series, (I Am Raven). I also really like the jacket design by Karitas Gunnarsdottir, very impactful.

Highly recommend.

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The Bull From the Sea by Mary Renault

So this may not be as amazing as The King Must Die https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/760330867917848576/the-king-must-die-by-mary-renault-i-read-all-mary but it is pretty damn good and at times very moving and a great adventure story.

Continuing the story of Theseus where it left off in the previous book, (although both books can be read as stand-alones), this covers Theseus’ time in Athens, his meeting the Amazons and his marriage to Phaedra, (I am not giving any spoilers here, don’t worry) but as always it is the way Renault interprets the ancient myths and brings them alive that makes the book special.

Highly recommend

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The Voyage Home by Pat Barker

Anyone that reads these posts knows that I love the re-telling/new interpretations of the myths but, maybe I am becoming over critical of them now, this one just didn’t make me fall in love. I adored Barker’s previous book, The Silence of the Girls https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/177934393531/the-silence-of-the-girls-by-pat-barker-i-couldnt and I wish I could rave the same way about this one.

I enjoyed it but… I’m not sure I would be as harsh as this review, but the author, Nastya on Goodreads, certainly has some valid points here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6796884189

Having said all those negative things. If you enjoy the myths, if you enjoy the female point of view, then do give this a go. I’m sure I’m just being a bit negative because I have really immersed myself in this genre in the last couple of years and, as I say, this is probably making me overly judgemental.

I am nonetheless extremely grateful to Penguin UK/Fig Tree/Hamish Hamilton and NetGalley for the free review copy in return for an honest review. Thank you.

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The Strangers : Five Extraordinary Black Men and the Worlds that Made Them by Ekow Eshun

This is an important book. It is important to know and remember how white Europeans have treated other peoples and in particular black people. In the same way that it is important to have books and films about the holocaust because it is all too easy to forget. We must be able to recognise how history is repeating itself and stop it before it is too late.

Man’s inhumanity to man never ceases to amaze and depress me.

However, this book is much more than just that.

The title says it is about five people but there are many more than that that we are introduced to. Of the ‘five’ the only name I was really familiar with was Malcolm X’s but this is a very different man from the one I learnt about through the British contemporary press. The other name I had at least come across was the footballer, Justin Fashanu, but I knew nothing of his (sad) story.

I found this book revealatory not just about the people I had heard of but about historical events I was ignorant of.

Highly recommend.

Courtesy of NetGalley, Penguin UK and Hamish Hamilton.

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Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

I love it, I love it, I love it. This is Anne Tyler back doing what she does best. Taking a small story and making it huge.

If I try to tell the story here, (and anyone that reads this posts knows that I never give spoilers), it might sound lame so all I’m going to say is that I’m an Anne Tyler fan. If you’re one, you’re gonna love this and if you’ve never read an Anne Tyler book before, you will be safe starting with this one.

If you haven’t read Tyler before and want to find out about some of her earlier books, have a look at my comments on Redhead By the Side of the Road : https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/708651570041126912/redhead-by-the-side-of-the-road-by-anne-tyler - Clock Dance : https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/187073772651/clock-dance-by-anne-tyler-another-five-star-outing - Vinegar Girl : https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/161305541406/vinegar-girl-by-anne-tyler-for-me-anne-tyler-can I loved her earlier books too but I wasn’t doing tumblr when I read them.

Highly recommend.

Book courtesy of NetGalley, Random House UK, Vintage and Chatto & window.

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Murder is For Busy People (Max Wolfe #7) by Tony Parsons

So this is the third Max Wolfe book I’ve read, (Die Last, number 4 https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/173138221511/this-is-the-fourth-book-in-the-max-wolfe-series and Girl on Fire, number 5 https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/178307903526/girl-on-fire-by-tony-parsons-this-is-the-fifth ), and I did skip through it but….

Hmmm…. I can’t put my finger on it but it just misses slightly for me. Having said that, if I’m offered another Max Wolfe book I will definitely read it.

To put my reservations in perspective, I love the Robert Galbraith/Strike books but I always have something niggling to say, (take this one about Ink Black Heart for instance https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/729789752313823232/the-ink-black-heart-by-robert-galbraith-a-real ) so a reservation from me isn’t really so bad when I’m looking for perfection!

Read it, enjoy it, and don’t worry about what’s bothering me! As I say, I couldn’t put it down.

Thank you, courtesy of NetGalley, RandomHouse UK and Cornerstone.

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Becoming by Michelle Obama

I cannot recommend this highly enough.

As most people know I’m not a particular audio book fan but among the free books I have downloaded from Audible over the years, I picked this one when it came out. I didn’t listen to it sooner for various reasons but now I have, I have to say this may be one occasion where the audio version might even be better than the textual one: Michelle Obama reads her book herself and she brings something very special to the experience.

I cried so many times during the book I lost count. I laughed and grinned with her. Even though 50% of her story is well known from the news for eight years, she still manages to bring a freshness and perspective to her/their story which is eye opening.

I’m not a huge autobiography reader but I believe that even if Michelle Obama hadn’t been the First Lady of the United States of America, her book would still have resonated with millions and become a bestseller. It speaks to women and to anyone who has other felt their ���otherness’.

Interesting, since writing this and actually posting it I have been discussing the book with others and it turns out the very things I loved about it, the ‘schmaltzy’, sentimentality, are the very things that others didn’t like so, if you like a good weepy movie, say, then I think this book is for you. If you like stories of humanity, then this book is for you. If you like a woman’s story, then this book is for you.

Highly recommend.

With thanks to Audible.