Lockdown Library 3.0: Latest Reads

January always seems like the longest month of the year, and this year, in lockdown, it’s seemed unnaturally long. Dull, drizzly days. Dry January. Searching the kitchen cupboards for leftover Christmas goodies. But it’s given me plenty of time to tick off a number of the latest reads from my TBR pile.

Away With The Penguins – Hazel Prior

This is such a wonderful read, a tale which will want to make you pull on your thermals and head to Antarctica. The cast of characters include the delightfully cantankerous 85-year-old Veronica. her estranged grandson Patrick, a housekeeper, various scientists – and a penguin chick called Pip. I may have shed a tear or two as my emotions dipped and soared along with Veronica’s.

The Thursday Murder Club – Richard Osman

OAP fiction seems to be all the rage at the moment. Cooper Chase retirement village may sound charming with its Zumba and Conversational French classes but it’s also where Ron, Ibrahim, Elizabeth and Joyce pore over old cold case files for fun. And when there’s a murder close to home they can’t help pulling on their best detective hats and helping the investigation along. A fun and gentle read, with nice short chapters helping the narrative flow.

Love After Love – Ingrid Persaud

Betty, Solo and Mr Chetan are not a conventional family, but this novel explores relationships, secrets, acceptance and the hunt for happiness. Set in Trinidad and New York, each of the main characters narrate the story; the dialogue is peppered with local dialect and colloquialisms which are surprisingly easy to get used to. It’s a love story, and a tragedy, beautifully written by Persaud. One that stays with you long after the final page.

Such a Fun Age – Kiley Reid

One of the “must read” books on every book club’s list of 2020, I really enjoyed Reid’s debut novel. Shining a spotlight on privilege, race and saviourhood, it tells the story of 25-year-old Emira, and her relationships with the white family she babysits for and her white boyfriend. It’s an easy and fun read which touches on many issues that are highly relevant today.

Beautiful Ruins – Jess Walter

Partially set in a tiny coastal village on the fringes of Italy’s Cinque Terre, this beautifully written book immediately transports me back to one of my favourite destinations. A story of regret, of longing, of potential, of failure and of redemption, this multi-narrated tale bounces from Italy to Hollywood, with other vignettes in between. And it has a gorgeous cover, echoing back to the traditional Penguin classics.

The Mothers – Brit Bennett

I read The Vanishing Half last year; The Mothers was Brit Bennett’s debut novel and it is similarly compelling. The lives of Nadia, Luke and Aubrey are narrated by a group of church women, observing this complicated love triangle. There are themes of loss, consequence and responsibility, with motherhood – or the lack of – holding the threads together.

The Authenticity Project – Clare Pooley

This book was a recommendation from the lovely Kerry of Kerry Life and Loves and I’m passing on the recommendation to others. It tells the story of a group of strangers, brought together after writing their deepest secrets in a notebook. The lonely pensioner with a flamboyant past. The displaced Australian. The cafe-owner desperate to find love. The struggling “perfect” new mother. A City boy battling addiction. It’s a warm and fuzzy debut novel.

The Girl With The Louding Voice – Abi Dare

This moving debut novel tells the story of Adunni, a young girl who dares to dreams about a better life for herself. Even when faced with an arranged marriage, fleeing her village, death and modern slavery she believes that she has the right to an education and to a voice. The story is told in broken English, but the rhythm of Adunni’s dialect is easy to understand and adds authenticity to her narrative.

The Beekepeer’s Promise – Fiona Valpy

I accidentally activated Amazon Prime membership so thought I’d read this book for free via their Kindle Unlimited programme. In modern day France, Abi is recovering from a traumatic accident and abusive relationship. In occupied France Eliane and her family are secretly fighting to save their lives and their village. The two stories entwine, with beautiful vivid descriptions in both timelines. This is the first book I’ve read by Fiona Valpy, but will definitely seek out her other novels.

The Midnight Library – Matt Haig

With more than a nod to Christmas classic “It’s A Wonderful Life” Midnight Library is the tale of a woman desperately seeking her way out of a lonely life. In between life and death, Nora gets the opportunity to “try on” alternative lives, to see if any would have fit her better. Although it touches on some dark moments, it is thought-provoking and poses some interesting questions. It is however a little predictable, and I feel that Haig tries to weave in “clever” information which is a little tough to wade through at times – quantum mechanisms anybody?

Liane Moriarty – What Alice Forgot

Alice has an innocuous accident at the gym and loses ten years of her life. She doesn’t remember her children. She doesn’t remember her sister’s battle with infertility. And she certainly doesn’t remember that she is in the middle of a messy divorce. In fact, it turns out that 29 year old Alice and 39 year old Alice are very different people. It’s a fun read with the subtle humour that always peppers Moriarty’s books. I like the interspersion of her sister’s letters to her therapist, and her adopted nan’s blog, which tell a different side to Alice’s uncertain narrative.

It Takes Blood and Guts – Skin (with Lucy O’Brien)

I don’t read a lot of autobiographies, but Mr Fletche picked this out for me as a Christmas gift, and it was a great choice. For those not in the know, Skin is the lead singer of the rock band Skunk Anansie, and she has had to fight for her place in the musical hall of fame as a black, working-class, gay frontwoman. She is an activist, an inspiring role model, a poet and a global icon. Her story also gives a fascinating insight into the music scene of the 90s, when Britpop dominated.

Currently reading:

A History Of The World With The Women Put Back In – Kerstin Lücker

The Familiars – Stacey Hall

Pull Of The Stars – Emma Donoghue