“A Fine Balance” by Rohinton Mistry (India) One of Nicola’s 100 Best Books for Inspiration in the 21st century! Synopsis Set in mid-1970s India, “A Fine Balance” tells the story of four unlikely people whose lives come together during a time of political turmoil soon after the government declares a ‘State of Internal Emergency.’ Through days of bleakness and hope, their circumstances – and their … Continue reading A Fine Balance
“No Man’s Land” by Duong Thu Huong (Vietnam) Synopsis Set in a hamlet in the countryside of central Vietnam immediately following the end of the war in 1975, the novel’s plot is set in motion when a young woman, happily married to a successful farmer, comes home one day to find a throng of villagers assembled around her gate. She learns that her first husband, … Continue reading No Man’s Land
“Three Day Road” by Joseph Boyden (Canada) Synopsis It is 1919 and Niska, the last Canadian medicine woman to live off the land, has received word that one of the two boys she saw off to the Great War has returned. Xavier Bird, her sole living relative, is gravely wounded and addicted to the army’s morphine. As Niska slowly paddles her canoe on the three-day … Continue reading Three Day Road
“One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel García Márquez (Colombia) Synopsis Equally tragic, joyful and comical, “One Hundred Years of Solitude” inhabits a strange dream-like space where very little makes real sense, but everything is mysteriously and vividly alive nonetheless. Blending fantasy and reality seamlessly, the characters struggle hopelessly against a merciless backdrop of madness, corruption and death… all measured out equally with farce and … Continue reading One Hundred Years of Solitude
“Wizard of the Crow” by Ngugi wa Thiong’o (Kenya) One of Nicola’s 100 Best Books for Inspiration in the 21st century! Synopsis In exile for more than twenty years, Ngugi wa Thiong’o has become one of the most widely read African writers of our time, the power and scope of his work garnering him international attention and praise. His aim in “Wizard of the Crow” … Continue reading Wizard of the Crow
“I Am A Cat” by Soseki Natsume (Japan) Synopsis ‘I am a cat. As yet I have no name.’ So begins one of the most original and unforgettable works in Japanese literature. Richly allegorical and delightfully readable, “I Am A Cat” is the chronicle of an unloved, unwanted, wandering kitten who spends all his time observing human nature – from the dramas of businessmen and … Continue reading I Am A Cat
“Expo 58” by Jonathan Coe (UK) Review Members of our Summer Reading Group liked the differences in writing styles and themes of this year’s four shortlisted books finding most of the stories highly enjoyable. At the end of the discussion, when it came time for voting, a majority picked “Expo 58” as their choice for Best Summer Read 2014. “Expo 58” is set in Brussels … Continue reading Best Summer Read 2014 – Expo 58
“We Need New Names” by NoViolet Bulawayo (Zimbabwe) Review Members of our Summer Reading Group liked the differences in writing styles and themes of this year’s four shortlisted books finding most of the stories highly enjoyable. Nicola has chosen the novel “We Need New Names” as her Coup de Cœur Summer 2014. Set in Harare and Michigan (US) in the present day, readers found the … Continue reading We Need New Names
Nicola's Book Club 