Books I have enjoyed in the past year
September 30, 2024 at 3:41 pm,
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I don't usually keep a record of books I read in a calendar year - I started doing that one year but forgot halfway through. So this list is partial, simply the books I have most enjoyed or which have most impacted me, books I may read again one day. - Red Smoking Mirror by Nick Hunt (Swift Press, 2023). A stunning alternate history of the discovery of Mexico, beautifully written, haunting and humane. I loved it.
- Reservoir 13, by Jon McGregor (4th Estate, 2017). An intense exploration of what happens to a village when a girl on holiday goes missing. Kind and humane.
- Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo (Penguin, 2020). Wow. Perhaps it could be called a novel-in-story. Twelve stories, twelve women's voices, all linked. Stunning both in craft and in story-telling. Funny, kind, humane.
- The Debt to Pleasure by John Lanchester (Picador, 1996). A brilliant satire about a food critic. Huge fun.
- History of the Rain by Niall Williams (Bloomsbury, 2014). Gentle, loving and humane, and so beautifully written. Set in Ireland, about a family fallen on hard times.
- The Seasonal Quartet by Ali Smith (Penguin, 2016-2020). After sending in my entry to the Weatherglass Novella Prize, I decided maybe I should read these! I devoured them. So humane, kind, and funny. The "Brexit" novels - although they are so much more.
- As a God Might Be by Neil Griffiths (Dodo Ink, 2017). Neil is my publisher and editor, and I took this absorbing book away with me on holiday. It's a metaphysical novel, asking big questions about life, faith and God, and I very much enjoyed it. Beautifully written, and again, kind and humane.
- Dark, Salt, Clear by Lamorna Ash (Bloomsbury, 2020). The only non-fiction book here, this explores the fishing industry around Newlyn, Cornwall, an area I know well, with humanity and insight. Beautifully written.
- The Wife by Meg Wolitzer (Vintage, 2015). Wonderfully dry and funny.
- The Ghost Variations by Damian Lanigan (Weatherglass Books, 2022 - although curiously my copy is undated). Publisher at Weatherglass. Writing about music is incredibly difficult, yet he pulls it off. A quiet novel about music, grief, and living with yourself.
- Amma by Saraid de Silva (Weatherglass Books, 2024). A beautiful novel about migration and finding your place in the world.
- Astraea by Kate Kruimink (Weatherglass Books, 2024). The other winner of the Inaugural Weatherglass Novella Award. Another beautiful book - read it!
I think what all these books have in common is humanity, or humane-ness. Perhaps this is one of the jobs of a novelist, or maybe it's what I require. But without humanity, kindness and compassion, what is there?