A book lover who made the (foolish) decision to read all of the books shortlisted for The Booker Prize over its history. Can often be found guzzling tea and thinking about cake.
I blog occasionally at: thebookerer.wordpress.com
You can support my channel by buying your books through the following links (please note, these are affiliate links, so I will get a small percentage of the cost, but it will not affect the price of the book!)
Helen Garner is an iconic Australian writer. I'm struggling through Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright although more than half way now. It's just so dense and I've found this with her writing before.
Helen Garner remains my favourite female author. Her nonfiction, especially a collection entitled a True Stories never grows old. I’ve read that Jenny Erpenbeck and enjoyed it very much. Am off to explore the other two. Thanks Bob 😊
Ooh, delighted to hear that! I’m intrigued to check out more of her work- she has that very focused, observational style that I find so intriguing! And that’s a nice overlap with Erpenbeck too! Thank you, and I hope you’re having a good week!
@@BobTheBookerer it used to be the case that The Children’s Bach was published along with Honour and Other People’s Children. In my mind the three stories are inextricably linked. 🤗
I admire people who can read books. I have read all or most of an abridged children's version of 'Black Beauty'. I am awestruck by how many novels 'Booker Prize' judges read! To me they're geniuses!
I've only read Blackouts and I absolutely loved it. I'm interested in getting to all of them eventually but I think Ordinary Human Failings is too of my tbr, along with James. Thanks for the rundown!
I own or have current access (library) to the books you have discussed today but am struggling to get anything read at the moment. And now I’ve added the two Goddards . I remember the uproar the Slap created. To slap or not to slap especially when it involved other people’s children. We talked of nothing else for a while. Can’t wait to get to the In Between. Have read the Visitation. It’s just great. You’ve done it again Bob. Seriously added to my Great Pile of Books to be Read. 🤭🤗
I loved the In between. Beautifully done and structured. The last section brought everything together so well and blends the themes in a way that is so hopeful. A really thoughtful and positive novel.
I started of the month being very sensible. I had 3 books each on kindle, text and audio. Then it turned into a Shawn Mooney,ie trying to read everything at once & adding more interesting books. However Shawn eventually finishes something. I have finished nothing. I’m reading The In Between Enlightenment Botanical Daughter Henry Henry Evenings and Weekends The Ministry of Time These are all on audio. Then there are several books in text and kindle that are not started or abandoned half finished. I would love a reading holiday.
You've piqued my interest with Solenoid, even if it was one I had determined I would never touch. I found that Deborah Levy's take on the way time moves in her writing led to a more organic way of storytelling. She's a writer I hope to return to in future, simply for the ease with which I read her living memoir trilogy. As always, decidedly impressed by the way in which you talk about books and hope that while things might have been busy everything else is as wondrous as can be.
Aha, good luck with it! It has a lot of really exciting and interesting things going on in it. Yes! That’s such a good way of putting it about Levy- she’s such a fascinating writer. And thank you! Really appreciate it!
Thank you Bob ❤ I'd never heard of 'Ocean Stirrings' or 'The Future Future' (which sounds quite an experience lol). 'Blackouts' is brilliant, and I got a copy of the Megan Nolan, but haven't got to it yet, looking forward to that one.
From this list I've only read James and Blackouts so far; they are two of my favorite novels that I've read this year. I plan to read a few of the others, especially Orbital, My Friends and Ordinary Human Failings.
Thanks, Bob!🌷I’ve only read Ordinary Human Failings and I think it would have deserved being shortlisted for the WP😢I’m glad to see it on this list. I have My Friends which was highly praised by Eric Karl Anderson some time ago, and look forward to reading it. I’m also considering Caledonian Road. Anyway, it’s an exciting list indeed!
Thank you for breaking down the list. (I've read three (James, Orbital, Ordinary Human Failings) and liked them very much. I really wanted OHF to make the Women's Prize shortlist. I'm waiting for the library for a couple of the others.) I am very curious about Ocean Stirrings. I've read the Autobiography of Malcolm X and his view of women left something to be desired, and I've wondered about his mother's side of the story. I'm not super keen on fictionalised accounts of real people though. That always seems like a bit of a violation.
Oh that’s really interesting about Malcolm X’s book- I’ve not read it, so I wonder if Merle Collins intentionally went from that perspective because of it
@@BobTheBookerer His autobiography is really interesting. Not sure it's entirely correct to call it an autobiography because it was written by a journalist and Malcolm was murdered before he could see the final result, but it's all from the conversations they had.
I have Solenoid ready and waiting for me, and now I'm even more excited to get to it! I'm currently struggling through Ducks, Newburyport and I couldn't tell you what, if anything, I'm getting out of it or why I keep reading it. Yet somehow I don't want to quit. It's a very strange feeling. 😆
Ever wonder where all the books submitted go when the prize is over? I want to get a look at that pile and see what didn’t make it. I hope the rejected books go to a good home.
Thank you, Bob! So glad you liked it. If anyone's interested there will be a launch event at the London Welsh Centre (where else!) on the 25th of June - a chance to listen to Susan Walton and myself being interviewed by Ifor ap Glyn.
Thank you for your clarity. I am an Aboriginal woman so my opinion takes on more and different perspectives..I love the book for taking on the huge array of politics, feelings and complexities experienced by our people fighting for Sovereignty. Our Spiritual Beliefs connect us to our traditional lands and now the recent science is finally catching up with Spirituality and Gaia. We are the oldest living culture for good reason and Alexis Wright is a fine example.
Ah, thank you for sharing! Really good to have your perspective on this! And yes, such an ambitious reach of a book, and like you said, I love how she integrates those beliefs and ideas into a narrative and really pushes against the more ‘standard’ Western approach to narrative.
In the Dublin award Solenoid was up against Praiseworthy and I was kind of hoping the latter would win - any thoughts on the two of them now you have read both?
Yes! I am delighted for them both- I would have chosen Praiseworthy personally, but I think Solenoid is excellent! Both incredibly creative novels that create their own rhythms and language, and feel like they ‘earn’ their length by deeply developing an idea and rigorously exploring it. I think Praiseworthy does it in even more exciting ways, but what other prize would have those two on a shortlist!
