“Against The Loveless World” by Susan Abulhawa (Palestine)Winner of the Palestine Book Award 2020 Synopsis As Nahr sits, locked away in solitary confinement, she spends her days reflecting on the dramatic events that landed her in prison in a country she barely knows. Born in Kuwait in the 70s to Palestinian refugees, she dreamed of falling in love with the perfect man, raising children, and … Continue reading Against The Loveless World
“How We Disappeared” by Jing-Jing Lee (Singapore) Synopsis Singapore, 1942. As Japanese troops sweep down Malaysia and into Singapore, a village is ransacked. Only three survivors remain, one of them a tiny child. In a neighbouring village, seventeen-year-old Wang Di is bundled into the back of a troop carrier and shipped off to a Japanese military rape camp. In the year 2000, her mind is … Continue reading How We Disappeared
“Happiness” by Aminatta Forna (UK – London) Synopsis Waterloo Bridge, London. Two strangers collide. Attila, a Ghanaian psychiatrist, and Jean, an American studying the habits of urban foxes. From this chance encounter in the midst of the rush of a great city, numerous moments of connections span out and interweave, bringing disparate lives together. In this delicate yet powerful novel of loves lost and new, … Continue reading Happiness
“Small Things Like These” by Claire Keegan (Ireland) Synopsis It is 1985, in an Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal and timber merchant, faces into his busiest season. As he does the rounds, he feels the past rising up to meet him — and encounters the complicit silences of a people controlled by the Church. Review “Small Things … Continue reading Small Things Like These
“Claire of the Sea Light” by Edwidge Danticat (Haiti) Synopsis Claire goes missing the night her father agrees to give her up for adoption. Her mother died when she was born. In the tiny fishing town of Ville Rose, Haiti, she and her father are not the only ones to have experienced loss. As the poor townspeople search by moonlight for the seven-year-old girl, each … Continue reading Claire of the Sea Light
“A Long Petal of the Sea” by Isabel Allende (Chile) Synopsis Victor Dalmau is a young doctor when he is caught up in the Spanish Civil War, a tragedy that leaves his life – and the fate of his country – forever changed. Together with his sister-in-law, the pianist Roser, he is forced out of his beloved Barcelona and into exile. When opportunity to seek … Continue reading A Long Petal of the Sea
Review “We Trade Our Night for Someone Else’s Day” is a compelling novel that weaves a story around a female protagonist navigating a landscape marred by corruption and post-war trauma in Croatia. The book begins at a slower pace, which some readers found challenging initially, but it gradually draws you in with its intriguing plot and well-developed characters. The narrative follows Nora, a journalist whose … Continue reading “We Trade Our Night For Someone Else’s Day” by Ivana Bodrožić (Croatia)
Review “Midnight Blue” takes readers on a journey through 17th-century Holland, blending historical elements with a modern twist. The novel sparked mixed reactions among our book club members, resulting in a range of comments that highlight both the strengths and weaknesses of the book. Readers felt that it was an easy, light read that didn’t demand much intellectual engagement. Described by one reader as a … Continue reading “Midnight Blue” by Simone van der Vlugt (Netherlands)
Nicola's Book Club 