A few pages from the end of another Anne Patchett for book club. It’s one of her less famous ones, The Magician’s Assistant, and the magician’s assistant is also his widow who only finds out her ‘orphaned’ husband had a full family in Nebraska who she has to meet. Moving and funny and all the family bickering you could ever hope for. And more.
Best books of the summer for me (when I am not obsessively researching every house-porn post from Inigo that pops up on Instagram or email*) are as follows:
The Feast by Margaret Kennedy - bought for a very picky friend because I'd heard it was good and liked the cover, but she raved about it so bought for myself and subsequently others. "a summer holiday vintage crime classic exploring the mystery of a buried Cornish hotel". Set in 1947 and written soon after, but lots of peeps (hotel guests), you may want to make a list (another list!) until you have them in your mind. Funny and quite moving. Somebody described this as a vintage 'White Lotus set in the UK' which kind of hits the nail on the head.
Mrs Bridge by Evan S Connell - this was written in 1959 about a Kansas City upper middle class bored matron between the wars, and her relationships with husband, children and friends. Written in very short vignettes (love that) and a slim volume (double love that). Sneaks up on you in its humour and pathos.
Am also working my way through the Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman, the first one was a bit of a mess plot-wise, but they have improved and are a bit of a surprising treat for me, as I will seldom look at a book unless the author died years ago and all the fuss has died down (see first two recommendations).
Your book posts are the best, Esther - and as ever the comments are so good.
*I have no intention of moving, but still feel the need to find out if there is a cute pub nearby, how long to the sea, etc. It's a sickness)
i have to read lessons in chem for book club and want to hate it already as so many people love it (i'm a dreadful person...)
I have just read all the easy reading penny vincenzi spoils of time trilogy for fun and couldn't put them down, read hundreds of pages incredibly quickly and felt like such a cleanse.
No diving into the great circle which is fabulous.
I am reading Demon Copperhead for my book club. It won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize and everybody raves about it. I am not enjoying it at all and I have to make myself read it. I get why it is important but to me it is stream of consciousness southern hick babble for almost 600 pages. I feel like I’m missing something that everybody else is in on but I would much rather be reading David Copperfield.
I’m just reading The Bee Sting by Paul Murray… on the booker long list but very easy to read and very funny as well as being brilliant. He writes from the perspective of 4 different family members with total command and makes you root for each of them even though when you see them through the eyes of another character they are awful. I’ve seen him described as the Irish Jonathan Franzen, and it’s like a modern, less cynical, The Corrections. It’s long but I don’t want it to end.
P.s. I stashed Darlings by India Knight away like a precious little gem to keep for a holiday read.
If you don’t know it, it’s a retelling of Nancy Mitford’s The Pursuit of Love. So, so disappointing. It’s just plain wrong to now imagine Linda fiddling around with iPhones and the like. Own fault. It’s a strange genre, the retelling of popular fiction…
Found my old paperback copy of Portrait of a Lady and re-read on holiday and oh my word you get a completely different take as a 60 year old than as a teenager. It had sadly completely disintigrated by the end but I thoroughly enjoyed every yellowed, teeny weeny printed page - the characterisation is incredible and I found it a much more compelling read than i remembered. Except for the teeny weeny print. Followed it up with Everthing's Fine. Which was .... fine but pretty forgettable. Mind you I'm 60 so I forget a lot.
I'm 43 and forget literally everything. Sam went to a birthday party and a fortnight before a mum had a whip round all the families for a giant Lego thing for the birthday boy. I paid my tenner into the pot then it dropped completely out of my head and I arrived at the paint balling party with a box of cricket balls wrapped up in a bow and the mum was like... ? thanks...?
You’re clearly well on the way… In a way it’s quite restful, wandering around in a sort of fog. Eventually your family gets used to it and they stop asking you to do things for them and actually do it themselves which is a win at least. I hope you took the cricket balls back home with you.
I’m thoroughly enjoying A Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling which I found in a charity shop and am taking on holiday. She writes very well and the characters are so well observed.
I've veered wildly between Lisa Jewell et al and classics inc Death in Venice and Howard's End and have also had a huge wallow in the Mitfords courtesy of Mary S. Lovell's The Mitford Girls, which has led me to Debo's autobiog. Will definitely have had enough of them for another 15 years by the time I've finished that. But they are fascinating, in a slightly horrible way (in rather obvious places).
Indeed. I could never past Diana's comment that 'Streicher is a kitten' despite respecting her intellect and loyalty to her sisters. Obviously not her loyalty to the hateful Sir Os. Though far more politically correct, before the phrase was invented, Decca was a naughty little minx, IMH, who enjoyed stirring things up between sisters. Kind regards, Lisa E
A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale. He is genius. I inherited a lot of books from a 3rd party and they included about four of his books. My problems being reading in bed. I always read before turning out the light but these days my bloody hip bursa is aching, along with my lower back which makes it so uncomfortable. I've fallen into listening to books/podcasts as it's just easier on my poor body ...
So sorry to hear of your pain... Patrick Gale is a friend of mine and will be so thrilled to hear this, if you're okay with me passing it on? Kindest regards, Lisa E
I've only recently got back into reading after a long hiatus so am very much in the period where to sustain it I'm focusing on easy-to-read books e.g. the Taylor Jenkins-Reids of this world etc. But back when my brain worked and I had more time my favourite book was Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. Hard recommend.
You asked me to tell you what The Private Lives of the Tudors was like. Well, I'm reading it now, so I will. It's NOT BAD, and if you're not an historian and you are interested in Tudor royal daily life, you'll love it.
But I *AM* an historian and I am irked and irritated on almost every page by sweeping and LAZY comments about fertility, and reproductive cycles in the Tudor age. I'm not sure there's anything new here about the Tudor story, but I am enjoying it despite my paroxysms of rage about menstrual cycles.
In fiction, I've been reading the Master and Commander series. Fuck knows why, Esther, it's been a long summer. But I recently finished the Poppy War trilogy by R F Kuang, and there's a series to make you feel flayed...
Sophie, can I ask if you've read Sex and Sexuality in Tudor England by my client Carol McGrath? Small publisher, bad publicity and It is far too highly priced on Amazon and only currently available as an ebook and hardback, but if you're interested, I can get a copy sent to you. Kind regards, Lisa E (not on here to promote clients, BTW)
I loved that film - master and commander. always makes me cry. I tried reading the books but the print was so weeny it made my eyes go weird. might try on a kindle and make the font 14pt
I've been reading them on Kindle. They're remarkably soothing: men being swashbuckling at sea and then plunged into Pride and Prejudice as soon as they get back on land.
I’ve just started reading Prince Harry’s book Spare. I wanted to read it but wasn’t really bothered about ordering it and paying for it so I waited till it came available on BorrowBox. Interesting so far, but I won’t open up that whole debate!
I’m with you on the Lisa Jewell types. They always promise some mega twist at the end which turns out to be not really very twisty at all. I mean no one is ever actually going to be Agatha Christie again are they?
Could anyone help me on this point? Guilt free daytime reading. I work part time and on my at home days. I genuinely am busy, but I do have time to sit down and read, or God Forbid even watch an episode or two of something but I don’t because I feel terribly guilty.
I’m currently cleaning all the glass shelves out of my big fridge when I could have my feet up with a bag of honey, roast cashews and my kindle.
I’m a big fan of audiobooks for this, when I am doing chores. I do not have a solution for the guilt of lounging, this is the sort of thing my husband could maybe advise on because he excels at this at the weekend even as I am busy around him. Men do not have this guilt!
Not book related per se, but I am totally with you on being at home but feeling as though you must always be busy. My work has peaks and troughs - some weeks there aren’t enough hours in a day to keep on top of the most basic things, but at other times I have more time and would like nothing more than to read for an hour or two, but I rarely do because of the guilt!! I feel I need to be able to explain what I’ve achieved in a day (if cross-examined), and my children need to see me doing stuff/household jobs etc, almost to justify why I’m not at work in an office somewhere….
This made me laugh - when my kids were little and I heard my husband coming in from work I would throw down my novel and pretend to be reading a cook book - as if he was the headmaster or something! He didn't even notice or care, though maybe wondered why we always had the same boring roster of dinners when I seemed to be enamoured of scouring for new recipes
Bliss & Blunder by Victoria Gosling - in its simplest form it’s a whodunnit, but it’s also a modern day re-telling of the Arthurian legends - with Arthur as a tech billionaire, Guinevere (Gwen) an influencer, and Lancelot as a vet or the Afghan war. The book centres on the fractured friendship between Gwen and Morgan, once best friends and now sworn enemies.
Full disclosure - the author is my sister. But you don’t have to take my word for it being brilliant, it got a great write-up in the Guardian and was on the summer reading lists for Grazia and Good Housekeeping. So surely something for everyone in there!
I’m reading Hunger by Roxane Gay, which is an utterly gripping account of living beyond societal weight norms. Just finished Honeybee by Craig Silvey (I think). Loved this one - stormed through it in two days and cried and cried and cried. What else - read Pageboy by Elliot Page (amazing and just so brave and frank) and also Really Good, Actually by Monica Haisey which I didn’t actually find that good. But that is because I was so freaked out by how I didn’t understand ANY of the culture references and the protagonist is less than 10 years younger than me. Thanks for the post! Xx
I have only read two Anne Patchett books; my favourite was Commonwealth. Tom Lake looks great. I am currently reading The Burgess Boys, slowly, but really recommend.
A few pages from the end of another Anne Patchett for book club. It’s one of her less famous ones, The Magician’s Assistant, and the magician’s assistant is also his widow who only finds out her ‘orphaned’ husband had a full family in Nebraska who she has to meet. Moving and funny and all the family bickering you could ever hope for. And more.
Best books of the summer for me (when I am not obsessively researching every house-porn post from Inigo that pops up on Instagram or email*) are as follows:
The Feast by Margaret Kennedy - bought for a very picky friend because I'd heard it was good and liked the cover, but she raved about it so bought for myself and subsequently others. "a summer holiday vintage crime classic exploring the mystery of a buried Cornish hotel". Set in 1947 and written soon after, but lots of peeps (hotel guests), you may want to make a list (another list!) until you have them in your mind. Funny and quite moving. Somebody described this as a vintage 'White Lotus set in the UK' which kind of hits the nail on the head.
Mrs Bridge by Evan S Connell - this was written in 1959 about a Kansas City upper middle class bored matron between the wars, and her relationships with husband, children and friends. Written in very short vignettes (love that) and a slim volume (double love that). Sneaks up on you in its humour and pathos.
Am also working my way through the Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman, the first one was a bit of a mess plot-wise, but they have improved and are a bit of a surprising treat for me, as I will seldom look at a book unless the author died years ago and all the fuss has died down (see first two recommendations).
Your book posts are the best, Esther - and as ever the comments are so good.
*I have no intention of moving, but still feel the need to find out if there is a cute pub nearby, how long to the sea, etc. It's a sickness)
i have to read lessons in chem for book club and want to hate it already as so many people love it (i'm a dreadful person...)
I have just read all the easy reading penny vincenzi spoils of time trilogy for fun and couldn't put them down, read hundreds of pages incredibly quickly and felt like such a cleanse.
No diving into the great circle which is fabulous.
I am reading Demon Copperhead for my book club. It won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize and everybody raves about it. I am not enjoying it at all and I have to make myself read it. I get why it is important but to me it is stream of consciousness southern hick babble for almost 600 pages. I feel like I’m missing something that everybody else is in on but I would much rather be reading David Copperfield.
Ooh Michelle I have just started it and I feel the same. Thought it was just me!
Hey Mandy! Glad I’m not the only one. I’m on page 300 and still not into it. At this point I feel it’s hopeless!
I’m just reading The Bee Sting by Paul Murray… on the booker long list but very easy to read and very funny as well as being brilliant. He writes from the perspective of 4 different family members with total command and makes you root for each of them even though when you see them through the eyes of another character they are awful. I’ve seen him described as the Irish Jonathan Franzen, and it’s like a modern, less cynical, The Corrections. It’s long but I don’t want it to end.
P.s. I stashed Darlings by India Knight away like a precious little gem to keep for a holiday read.
If you don’t know it, it’s a retelling of Nancy Mitford’s The Pursuit of Love. So, so disappointing. It’s just plain wrong to now imagine Linda fiddling around with iPhones and the like. Own fault. It’s a strange genre, the retelling of popular fiction…
I bought this and couldn't get into it. It just doesn't translate to the modern day.
yes I'm not sure it works unless it's just inspired by it, like Clueless
Found my old paperback copy of Portrait of a Lady and re-read on holiday and oh my word you get a completely different take as a 60 year old than as a teenager. It had sadly completely disintigrated by the end but I thoroughly enjoyed every yellowed, teeny weeny printed page - the characterisation is incredible and I found it a much more compelling read than i remembered. Except for the teeny weeny print. Followed it up with Everthing's Fine. Which was .... fine but pretty forgettable. Mind you I'm 60 so I forget a lot.
I'm 43 and forget literally everything. Sam went to a birthday party and a fortnight before a mum had a whip round all the families for a giant Lego thing for the birthday boy. I paid my tenner into the pot then it dropped completely out of my head and I arrived at the paint balling party with a box of cricket balls wrapped up in a bow and the mum was like... ? thanks...?
You’re clearly well on the way… In a way it’s quite restful, wandering around in a sort of fog. Eventually your family gets used to it and they stop asking you to do things for them and actually do it themselves which is a win at least. I hope you took the cricket balls back home with you.
I’m thoroughly enjoying A Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling which I found in a charity shop and am taking on holiday. She writes very well and the characters are so well observed.
I've veered wildly between Lisa Jewell et al and classics inc Death in Venice and Howard's End and have also had a huge wallow in the Mitfords courtesy of Mary S. Lovell's The Mitford Girls, which has led me to Debo's autobiog. Will definitely have had enough of them for another 15 years by the time I've finished that. But they are fascinating, in a slightly horrible way (in rather obvious places).
Indeed. I could never past Diana's comment that 'Streicher is a kitten' despite respecting her intellect and loyalty to her sisters. Obviously not her loyalty to the hateful Sir Os. Though far more politically correct, before the phrase was invented, Decca was a naughty little minx, IMH, who enjoyed stirring things up between sisters. Kind regards, Lisa E
SO agree, although I've rather changed my view of Decca since idolising her as a teenager. She could be quite ruthless in her dealings with people.
A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale. He is genius. I inherited a lot of books from a 3rd party and they included about four of his books. My problems being reading in bed. I always read before turning out the light but these days my bloody hip bursa is aching, along with my lower back which makes it so uncomfortable. I've fallen into listening to books/podcasts as it's just easier on my poor body ...
So sorry to hear of your pain... Patrick Gale is a friend of mine and will be so thrilled to hear this, if you're okay with me passing it on? Kindest regards, Lisa E
Of course. I would be honoured! All my three sisters enjoy his books so much and have given us so much pleasure. Best Jules
What is going on why are we signing off comments like this? Sincerely, E
LOL no idea. All the very best and see you soon X
I've only recently got back into reading after a long hiatus so am very much in the period where to sustain it I'm focusing on easy-to-read books e.g. the Taylor Jenkins-Reids of this world etc. But back when my brain worked and I had more time my favourite book was Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. Hard recommend.
You asked me to tell you what The Private Lives of the Tudors was like. Well, I'm reading it now, so I will. It's NOT BAD, and if you're not an historian and you are interested in Tudor royal daily life, you'll love it.
But I *AM* an historian and I am irked and irritated on almost every page by sweeping and LAZY comments about fertility, and reproductive cycles in the Tudor age. I'm not sure there's anything new here about the Tudor story, but I am enjoying it despite my paroxysms of rage about menstrual cycles.
In fiction, I've been reading the Master and Commander series. Fuck knows why, Esther, it's been a long summer. But I recently finished the Poppy War trilogy by R F Kuang, and there's a series to make you feel flayed...
Sophie, can I ask if you've read Sex and Sexuality in Tudor England by my client Carol McGrath? Small publisher, bad publicity and It is far too highly priced on Amazon and only currently available as an ebook and hardback, but if you're interested, I can get a copy sent to you. Kind regards, Lisa E (not on here to promote clients, BTW)
Hi Lisa. I haven't read it, but it sounds very much in my interests, so yes please!
I loved that film - master and commander. always makes me cry. I tried reading the books but the print was so weeny it made my eyes go weird. might try on a kindle and make the font 14pt
I've been reading them on Kindle. They're remarkably soothing: men being swashbuckling at sea and then plunged into Pride and Prejudice as soon as they get back on land.
I’ve just started reading Prince Harry’s book Spare. I wanted to read it but wasn’t really bothered about ordering it and paying for it so I waited till it came available on BorrowBox. Interesting so far, but I won’t open up that whole debate!
I’m with you on the Lisa Jewell types. They always promise some mega twist at the end which turns out to be not really very twisty at all. I mean no one is ever actually going to be Agatha Christie again are they?
Could anyone help me on this point? Guilt free daytime reading. I work part time and on my at home days. I genuinely am busy, but I do have time to sit down and read, or God Forbid even watch an episode or two of something but I don’t because I feel terribly guilty.
I’m currently cleaning all the glass shelves out of my big fridge when I could have my feet up with a bag of honey, roast cashews and my kindle.
I’m a big fan of audiobooks for this, when I am doing chores. I do not have a solution for the guilt of lounging, this is the sort of thing my husband could maybe advise on because he excels at this at the weekend even as I am busy around him. Men do not have this guilt!
Not book related per se, but I am totally with you on being at home but feeling as though you must always be busy. My work has peaks and troughs - some weeks there aren’t enough hours in a day to keep on top of the most basic things, but at other times I have more time and would like nothing more than to read for an hour or two, but I rarely do because of the guilt!! I feel I need to be able to explain what I’ve achieved in a day (if cross-examined), and my children need to see me doing stuff/household jobs etc, almost to justify why I’m not at work in an office somewhere….
This made me laugh - when my kids were little and I heard my husband coming in from work I would throw down my novel and pretend to be reading a cook book - as if he was the headmaster or something! He didn't even notice or care, though maybe wondered why we always had the same boring roster of dinners when I seemed to be enamoured of scouring for new recipes
Exactly that
start a Substack where you write about books you've read and then it's "work". This has been me for the last nearly 20 years
Bliss & Blunder by Victoria Gosling - in its simplest form it’s a whodunnit, but it’s also a modern day re-telling of the Arthurian legends - with Arthur as a tech billionaire, Guinevere (Gwen) an influencer, and Lancelot as a vet or the Afghan war. The book centres on the fractured friendship between Gwen and Morgan, once best friends and now sworn enemies.
Full disclosure - the author is my sister. But you don’t have to take my word for it being brilliant, it got a great write-up in the Guardian and was on the summer reading lists for Grazia and Good Housekeeping. So surely something for everyone in there!
I’m reading Hunger by Roxane Gay, which is an utterly gripping account of living beyond societal weight norms. Just finished Honeybee by Craig Silvey (I think). Loved this one - stormed through it in two days and cried and cried and cried. What else - read Pageboy by Elliot Page (amazing and just so brave and frank) and also Really Good, Actually by Monica Haisey which I didn’t actually find that good. But that is because I was so freaked out by how I didn’t understand ANY of the culture references and the protagonist is less than 10 years younger than me. Thanks for the post! Xx
I have only read two Anne Patchett books; my favourite was Commonwealth. Tom Lake looks great. I am currently reading The Burgess Boys, slowly, but really recommend.