Congratulations to Douglas Stuart for his debut novel Shuggie Bain, winner of the 2020 Booker Prize! Shuggie Bain Winner of the 2020 Booker Prize By Douglas Stuart 1981. Glasgow is dying and good families must grift to survive. Agnes Bain has always expected more from life. She dreams of greater things: a house with its … Continue reading The winner of the 2020 Booker Prize
Books from Abroad
#TheClassicsEight: A Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie
A Cat Among the Pigeons About the Book: Unpleasant things are going on in an exclusive school for girls – things like murder… Late one night, two teachers investigate a mysterious flashing light in the sports pavilion, while the rest of the school sleeps. There, among the lacrosse sticks, they stumble upon the body of … Continue reading #TheClassicsEight: A Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie
Book Review: Before the Crown by Flora Harding
Before the Crown... About the Book: 1943 As war rages across the world, Princess Elizabeth comes face to face with the dashing naval officer she first met in London nine years before. One of the youngest first lieutenants in the Royal Navy, Philip represents everything she has always been taught to avoid. Instability. Audacity. Adventure. … Continue reading Book Review: Before the Crown by Flora Harding
Book Review: The Haunting of Alma Fielding by Kate Summerscale
The Haunting of Alma Fielding: A True Ghost Story... SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE 2020 About the Book: London, 1938. Alma Fielding, an ordinary young woman, begins to experience supernatural events in her suburban home. Nandor Fodor – a Jewish-Hungarian refugee and chief ghost hunter for the International Institute for Psychical research – begins … Continue reading Book Review: The Haunting of Alma Fielding by Kate Summerscale
Book Review: The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida by Clarissa Goenawan
The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida… About the Book: A bewitching novel set in contemporary Japan about the mysterious suicide of a young woman. Miwako Sumida is dead. Now those closest to her try to piece together the fragments of her life. Ryusei, who has always loved her, follows Miwako’s trail to a remote Japanese … Continue reading Book Review: The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida by Clarissa Goenawan
Book Review: Home Stretch by Graham Norton
Home Stretch... About the Book: Shame and longing can flow through generations, but the secrets of the heart will not be buried for ever. It is 1987 and a small Irish community is preparing for a wedding. The day before the ceremony a group of young friends, including bride and groom, drive out to the … Continue reading Book Review: Home Stretch by Graham Norton
Book Review: The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante
The Lying Life of Adults Translated by Ann Goldstein About the Book: A powerful new novel set in a divided Naples by Elena Ferrante, the beloved best-selling author of My Brilliant Friend. Giovanna's pretty face has changed: it's turning into the face of an ugly, spiteful adolescent. But is she seeing things as they really … Continue reading Book Review: The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante
Book Review: Gaijin by Sarah Z. Sleeper
Gaijin... About the Book: Lucy is a budding journalist at Northwestern University and she’s obsessed with an exotic new student, Owen Ota, who becomes her lover and her sensei. When he disappears without explanation, she’s devastated and sets out to find him. On her three-month quest across Japan, she finds only snippets of the elegant … Continue reading Book Review: Gaijin by Sarah Z. Sleeper
Book Review: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Wolf Hall... About the Book: Winner of the Man Booker Prize Shortlisted for the Orange Prize Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award England, the 1520s. Henry VIII is on the throne, but has no heir. Cardinal Wolsey is his chief advisor, charged with securing the divorce the pope refuses to grant. Into this atmosphere of … Continue reading Book Review: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Book Review: The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue
The Pull of the Stars... About the Book: In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city centre, where expectant mothers who have come down with an unfamiliar Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia's regimented world step two outsiders: Doctor Kathleen Lynn, on the … Continue reading Book Review: The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue
