The four shortlisted Summer Reads this year all had plain writing styles making them easy to read despite some heavy themes. After some interesting discussion, the votes for Best Summer Read were spread equally over all 4 books, with one reader’s last vote tipping the balance in favour of “Afterlife.” “Afterlife” by Julia Alvarez (Dominican Republic) was chosen as Best Summer Read 2021. Set in … Continue reading Best Summer Read 2021 – Afterlife
“The Old Drift” by Namwali Serpell (Zambia) Review This book was initially chosen for our Summer Reading Group 2019, but because of its length, most readers didn’t manage to finish it on time. As a result, we organised a one-off book club meeting to discuss it. To start with, readers were concerned by the scope of this book, fearing that they would be overwhelmed by … Continue reading The Old Drift
The four shortlisted books for this year’s Summer Reading Group were all first novels by authors under the age of 40. There was a lot of originality in the styles of writing and they had some common themes: from political cleavages to mental health issues. When it came time to vote for Best Summer Read, we had to base the choice on only 3 of … Continue reading Best Summer Read 2019 – Sadness is a White Bird
“Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi (Ghana) Synopsis Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery; one a slave trader’s wife. The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow. Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem, spanning three continents … Continue reading Homegoing
“The Guru of Love” by Samrat Upadhyay (Nepal) Synopsis Ramchandra is a math teacher earning a low wage and living in a small apartment with his wife and two children. Moonlighting as a tutor, he engages in an illicit affair with one of his tutees, Malati, a beautiful, impoverished young woman who is also a new mother. She provides for him what his wife, who … Continue reading The Guru of Love
“How to Stop Time” by Matt Haig (U.K.) Synopsis Tom Hazard has a dangerous secret. He may look like an ordinary 41-year-old history teacher, but he’s been alive for centuries. From Elizabethan England to Jazz-Age Paris, from New York to the South Seas, Tom has seen it all. As long as he keeps changing his identity, he can stay one step ahead of his past … Continue reading How to Stop Time
“It’s Fine By Me” by Per Petterson (Norway) Synopsis Audun is the only one of his family who remains with his mother in working-class Oslo. He delivers newspapers when he is not in school and talks for hours about Jack London and Ernest Hemingway with his best friend – but there are some things Audun won’t talk about. Stories about his family, the weeks he … Continue reading It’s Fine By Me
“Lila” by Marilynne Robinson (U.S.) Synopsis Lila, homeless and alone after years of roaming the countryside, steps inside a small-town Iowa church – the only available shelter from the rain – and ignites a romance and a debate that will reshape her life. She becomes the wife of a minister, John Ames, and begins a new existence while trying to make sense of the life … Continue reading Lila
