I’ve enjoyed several novels over the past few years about the ownership of stories – Andrew Lipstein’s Last Resort springs to mind as does Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot – which is why I put up my hand for Dominic Amerena’s debut, I Want Everything. When our unnamed narrator is discharged from one of his many […] The post I Want Everything by Dominic Amerena: Who owns the story? appeared first on A life in books.| A life in books
It’s nine years since I reviewed Nicola Barker’s The Cauliflower® describing it as a Marmite novel – love it or hate it for those not acquainted with the expression. Her new one, TonyInterruptor, is more conventional although not a novel that lends itself to an easy synopsis, tossing around ideas between its small cast of […] The post TonyInterruptor by Nicola Barker: ‘Is this honest? Are we all being honest here?’ appeared first on A life in books.| A life in books
Old women aren’t a common subject for contemporary fiction, not one that captures agents’ or publishers’ commercial attention, I suspect. Even that description is uncomfortable for many, but old lady somehow feels more so to me, genteel and patronising. Below are five novels whose authors have created strikingly memorable old woman, three with links to […] The post Five Novels About Old Women I’ve Read appeared first on A life in books.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books
This month’s snapshot includes a much-acclaimed Booker Prize winner, a short story collection by the mother of one of my favourite novelists and an account of a year spent sampling Britain’s subcultures The novel I’m reading is Samantha Harvey’s Orbital which follows six astronauts aboard a space station as they encircle the earth multiple times […] The post A Snapshot of My Reading #7 appeared first on A life in books.| A life in books
September’s a lean month for paperbacks but there are a few that stand out, beginning with one of my books of last year which won the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction and is now longlisted for this year’s Booker Prize. Andrew Miller’s The Land in Winter is set over a few months in 1962/3 […] The post Paperbacks to Look Out For in September 2025 appeared first on A life in books.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books
Book reviews, snippets of book news, and alerts about books outside the glare of the publicity spotlight.| A life in books