I read Iron Curtain by #VesnaGoldsworthy. A page-turner set in the 1980s. A young privileged 'red princess' from a poor unnamed central European country elopes to London in the name of love. The sense of displacement has echoes of the Patricia Engel book I read just before this. There's also enjoyable farce here even if the clichés about the UK are laid on a little thick at times. #bookToot#bookstodon#keefsreads
Enjoyed French Braid by #AnneTyler. Yes, it's the same book exploring the ordinary lives of America middle-class families she always writes. But the characters as ever are completely believable. Nothing much happens, but I really want to know about it. #bookToot#bookstodon#keefsreads
Just finished Reward System by #JemCalder. Short stories about young adults navigating their lives in the smartphone era. Not much happens. But the writing is plenty good enough to maintain interest. #BookToot#bookstodon#keefsreads
Read #Bournville by #JonathanCoe. Redeemed a bit by a strong finish, when the writing and subject matter clearly gets personal, but a really disappointing clunky book. Too reliant on lazy nostalgia; I expected spangles and Choppers to appear at one stage. Some odd writing. Rather than develop characters naturally he just bungs in their internal monologue on one occasion. #bookstodon#BookToot#keefsreads
Just read Animal Life by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir. Musings on life, death and light seen through the eyes of two generations of Icelandic midwives. Not much happens. But that's ok. What did I take from it? A reminder that human life is odd in some respects. Babies of other animals develop far quicker...and the earth will outlive us all. #bookToot#bookstodon#keefsreads
Just finished Lucy by the Sea by #ElizabethStrout, the last of the #LucyBarton series. Set, and I guess written, in lockdown. Not convinced either is conducive to good art. Didn't enjoy as much as the first installment. My main thoughts were that it is striking that Lucy, despite her success as a writer, has little agency over her own life and where it goes. And perhaps that shows us the effects of earlier poverty and poor parenting are hard to shake off. #bookToot#bookstodon#keefsreads