“Tram 83” by Fiston Mwanza Mujila (Democratic Republic of Congo) Review From a classic plot-driven novel to an unusual collective ‘novel-essay,’ the four shortlisted books for this year’s Summer Reading Group varied greatly in structure, style of writing, and point of view. Our summer readers also noticed a recurrent theme in all four of dreams and their many meanings. “Tram 83” was chosen as the … Continue reading Tram 83
“The Story of My Teeth” by Valeria Luiselli (Mexico) Review From a classic plot-driven novel to an unusual collective ‘novel-essay,’ the four shortlisted books for this year’s Summer Reading Group varied greatly in structure, style of writing, and point of view. Our summer readers also noticed a recurrent theme in all four of dreams and their many meanings. “The Story of My Teeth” is an … Continue reading The Story of My Teeth
“Reckless” by Hasan Ali Toptas (Turkey) Review From a classic plot-driven novel to an unusual collective ‘novel-essay,’ the four shortlisted books for this year’s Summer Reading Group varied greatly in structure, style of writing, and point of view. Our summer readers also noticed a recurrent theme in all four of dreams and their many meanings. “Reckless” is largely set on the Turkish-Syrian border and tells … Continue reading Reckless
“The Narrow Road to the Deep North” by Richard Flanagan (Australia) Book Club Favourite of Season 19 Review Readers loved the book, describing it as beautifully written with clean and polished prose. They found it easy to get inside the heads of the different characters, and enjoyed the changing voices and different perspectives from chapter to chapter. They loved the vivid descriptions that brought the … Continue reading The Narrow Road to the Deep North
“The Ventriloquist’s Tale” by Pauline Melville (Guyana) Review Readers described the book as interesting, fascinating and beautifully written. They found it easy to get into and felt that it broached serious topics in a light manner. They liked the parallels between the past and the present, between the modern and primitive worlds, and liked the historical context and insights into the Amerindian culture and life. … Continue reading The Ventriloquist’s Tale
“In the Country of Men” by Hisham Matar (Libya) Review Most readers enjoyed the book finding it beautifully written and insightful, with one reader going so far as to describe the author as a wizard with language! They loved the setting and the descriptions of the house and its surroundings. They liked how the characters were portrayed and warmed in particular to Suleiman’s mother. They … Continue reading In the Country of Men
“Beloved” by Toni Morrison (U.S.) Review Filled with mixed emotions, readers described the book as outstanding, depressing, horrific, and surrealistic. Most got into the story quite quickly, whereas others struggled with making sense of the language or with believing in the supernatural element. When the initial hurdles had been overcome, all readers enjoyed the book immensely. They empathised with Sethe and felt her actions justified … Continue reading Beloved
“The Lazarus Project” by Aleksandar Hemon (Bosnia-Herzegovina) Review Readers liked the layout of the book, they liked how the author alternated the two stories set a hundred years apart intertwining the narratives at times, and they appreciated the black & white photos that separated each passage and that spoke of things to come in them. Some readers said they preferred the modern day story, especially … Continue reading The Lazarus Project
Nicola's Book Club 