What I Read – April 2021

Read: Salt Fat Acid Heat - Samin Nosrat (Simon & Schuster, 2017) Shuggie Bain - Douglas Stuart (Grove Press, 2020) My Heart - Semezdin Mehmedinovic (Catapult, 2021) (translated from the Bosnian by Celia Hawkesworth) The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald (Longman, 1992) The Dogs Are Eating Them Now - Graeme Smith (Alfred A. Knopf… Continue reading What I Read – April 2021

Book Review: Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell

Utopia Avenue - David Mitchell (Alfred A. Knopf Canada, 2020) For the most part, I quite enjoyed this latest book from David Mitchell. It is an exploration of youth, of dreams, of music. It's set during that unique musical period of the late 1960s, in London. It's a time exploding with creativity and Utopia Avenue… Continue reading Book Review: Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell

Book Review: Black Swan Green by David Mitchell

This was the fourth book I've read by David Mitchell and his work surprises me each time. If you've read Cloud Atlas then you may know Mitchell as an author who isn't afraid to play with form. But what really impresses me about Mitchell's novels is how entirely different they are from one another. Black Swan… Continue reading Book Review: Black Swan Green by David Mitchell

What I Read – April 2018

READ: Mysterious Fragrance of the Yellow Mountains - Yasuko Thanh (Hamish Hamilton, 2016) I went to school with Suko and so was familiar with her unique style and had an idea of where her interests lie. This historical novel set in Vietnam lined up with my expectations and I love her short stories (Her collection Floating Like… Continue reading What I Read – April 2018

Book Review: Fall Down 7 Times, Get Up 8 by Naoki Higashida

  This collection of short essays (plus an interview and a short story) follows Higashida's previous book translated into English, The Reason I Jump. I haven't read Higashida before and while The Reason I Jump may provide some helpful context and personal history, I don't think it's necessary to have read it first. It also… Continue reading Book Review: Fall Down 7 Times, Get Up 8 by Naoki Higashida

What I Read – April 2015

The First Person and Other Stories by Ali Smith (Hamish Hamilton, 2008) I once tried to read a novel by Ali Smith, lost interest part way in and returned it unfinished to the library. I did finish reading this short story collection but now, less than a month later, can't remember much about it. I… Continue reading What I Read – April 2015