Reading Archives - Page 10 of 44

Reading

The Imaginary Lives of James Poneke by Tina Makereti

Set in Aotearoa and London some time in the 19th century, Tina Makereti's excellent novel tells the story of a Maori boy who makes his way to London, where he is exhibited in an artist's show. But he soon begins…

Reading

June 2021 Reading Roundup

In my last reading roundup, I was still emerging from winter. Now, it’s been 30+ degrees for weeks, and I can barely remember what a cloud looks like. The storks that had just appeared on the tops of the electricity…

Reading

Nightshade by Annalena McAfee

If you need your fictional characters to be likeable, to be the sort of people that you can "root for", then absolutely do NOT read Nightshade by Annalena McAfee. If, on the other hand, you want characters to be interesting,…

Reading

The Archipelago of Another Life Readalong, Part 4

Here’s a little life tip for you. If you ever feel that the time is starting to drag and you’d like your life to be busier, try signing up for a blogging event. As soon as the dates roll around,…

Reading

Borges Marathon, Part 3: The Widow Ching—Pirate

Before I read Borges, I used to think there was a sharp dividing line between fiction and nonfiction. In my own writing, there’s a huge gap between the serious, diligently factual articles I write for The Wall Street Journal and…

Reading

The Archipelago of Another Life Readalong, Part 2

I’m reading The Archipelago of Another Life by Andreï Makine in the company of Emma at Words and Peace and Carol at Cas d’Intérêt. The novel is set in the bewitching wilderness of the Siberian “taiga”, a huge expanse of…

Reading

April 2021 Reading Roundup

Spring is here: storks on the electricity poles, calves in the fields, and suddenly a million things to do around the house and garden. Full-time travel around the 50 countries of Europe was, in some ways, less consuming of time…

Reading

The Vastness of the Dark by Alistair MacLeod

The Vastness of the Dark seems to be a quite simple tale about a young man escaping from the confines of his family to find freedom, but it becomes something more complex in the last few pages.

Reading

February/March 2021 Reading Roundup

I missed my monthly reading roundup in February, so here are two months together. As you’ll see, they were dominated by one huge book: Marcel Proust’s seven-volume, 3,000-page masterpiece. But I managed to squeeze in a few more good books…

Andrew Blackman

Andrew Blackman

Andrew Blackman

Reading

The Imaginary Lives of James Poneke by Tina Makereti

June 2021 Reading Roundup

Nightshade by Annalena McAfee

The Archipelago of Another Life Readalong, Part 4

Borges Marathon, Part 3: The Widow Ching—Pirate

The Archipelago of Another Life Readalong, Part 2

April 2021 Reading Roundup

The Vastness of the Dark by Alistair MacLeod

February/March 2021 Reading Roundup