Welcome to a series of posts that chart my wonderful reading year, 2020. I don’t have the time to review all the books I read and wanted I way to celebrate each one. So I’m going to do a monthly post of all the wonderful books I’ve been reading that month. Short snappy reviews, simple comments about why I enjoyed them so much.
It is a scary world out there at the moment and my reading is suffering, but I am keeping it up and hoping my reading mojo doesn’t disappear totally.
Sending Cwtches to all those that need one.
So welcome to my celebration of my reading in November 2020.
The first book I finished this month was the stunning When I Come Home by Caroline Scott. Deeply moving and beautiful written this novel is without doubt a contender for my book of the year!
Following this came two fabulous and very different non fictions books.
Boy Erased – A Memoir of Identity, Faith and Family Garrard Conley. This is the story of a young man journey to acceptance and his deeply damaging time undergoing church supported conversation therapy to cure him of his homosexuality. It is a complex and moving tale, heartbreaking and yet also a powerful story of survival.
And the The Greatest Beer Run Ever – A Crazy Adventure In A Crazy War by John “Chick” Donohue and JT Molloy. On the first looking at this book I was expecting a very macho feeling adventure story, but it is much more nuanced than that. It is a story about friendship and coming to terms with a war that was both pointless and tragic.
My next fiction read was Fallen Angels by Gunnar Staalesen. Dark and troubling this is another stunning offering from the author who never allows his character to become static, also ensuring he evolves within the narrative.
Dead Already by Tim Adler turned out to be much more than your run of the mill thriller. Full of ghostly atmosphere and the tale of a man tortured by sins from his past.
Following this, WinterKill by Ragnar Jonasson was a cleverly constructed, atmospheric triumph. The last in the series, I was sad that the journey was over, but glad it ended on with such a magnificent story.
My next non-fiction read was the moving and compassionate story of a young life lived with extreme anxiety. In The Fear Talking -The True Story of A Young Man And Anxiety by Chris Westoby, the author bravely tells how his life came to be controlled by a condition every bit as devastating as physical illness. Powerful reading.
Then came the wonderful The Smallest Man by Francis Quinn. Historical drama at it’s best.
Well that is another reading month that has sped past, excited to reading some fabulous books in December!
booksaremycwtches 