Thursday, December 11, 2014

Things I read in May and June

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell- Susanna Clarke
I felt distinctly underwhelmed. Though it was nice to go to Venice.

The Summer without Men- Siri Hustvedt
Wasn't really a summer without men, as one might have guessed.

Americanah- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I loved Half of a Yellow Sun. I am not sure this was as good, though it was nice to go to America with the author, and to look at what returning from foreign might feel like.

The Thing Around Your Neck
Yes. Much better. Short stories are wonderful. Some of these were wonderful.

It Felt Like a Kiss- Sarra Manning
I like Sarra Manning, but as I write this in December I can no longer recall what the book was about. And I am not inclined to check. She does always manage to squeeze the tear out though, much like Marian Keyes, and I would recommend this to anyone sitting in bed with the sniffles and wanting a cuddle. 

Is Everyone Hanging out without Me?- Mindy Kaling
I adore Mindy Kaling. I don't know about this thing where people in their thirties suddenly start writing memoirs, but I would happily listen to Mindy talk about her life, which she does in this set of essays, most amusingly.

The remaining four Bernie Gunther novels- Phillip Kerr
These were not as much fun as the first three, but I like things set in Berlin. I like them so much that I will even read the later books in series that started out being set in Berlin.