I am a little late with my monthly roundup – but all in all April was a pretty good month for books. One book was something of a let-down, but pretty much everything else was great. The reading challenges seemed to pile up a bit, my own #ReadingMuriel2018, the 1977 club and last weekend’s readathon have kept me busily juggling. What with reading challenges and book group reading, I have found that my ACOB is suffering a little bit. At the start of the year I was happily ticking off years for every book I read, recently more and more duplicate years are creeping in. In May I need to concentrate on ticking off a few more years.
Here, briefly is what I read during April.
Crewe Train by Rose Macaulay, Denham Dobie has been allowed to run wild, growing up abroad in a less than conventional household. After her father’s death, her smart, society relatives take her to London and try to civilise her. In this novel Macaulay highlights the absurdity in conventional society and the so called civilised way of life.
The Montana Stories by Katherine Mansfield – A wonderful Persephone collection of stories and unfinished fragments written in 1921/22 when Katherine Mansfield was in Switzerland attempting to recover from TB.
The Bachelors by Muriel Spark Has something of an unpromising opening, though I ended up really rather enjoying the novel. It is a novel of London in the 1950s, of bedsitting rooms, public bars and spiritualist meetings. Patrick Seton; a medium is the malevolent presence throughout the novel – he is a truly brilliant Spark villain. Patrick is due to appear in court – charged with defrauding a widow; Freda Flower of her savings. The Bachelors of the title are all connected somehow to Patrick or the court case.
Men without Women by Haruki Murakami; Was a collection of short stories chosen by my very small book group. It certainly gave us a lot to talk about. I really couldn’t engage with the book fully – and of the seven stories only two interested me at all. I decided Murakami wasn’t for me.
The Danger Tree by Olivia Manning; my first read for the 1977 club, The Danger Tree is the first book in the Levant trilogy, and gets it off to a fabulous start. We find the Pringles who we first met in the Balkan trilogy, in Egypt, and follow the fortunes of young junior officer Simon Boulderstone, who has just arrived with the draft.
Sweet Days of Discipline by Fleur Jaeggy is beautifully written novella translated from Italian, it tells the story of a fourteen-year-old girl’s fixation on another girl at their Swiss boarding school.
Dancing Girls and other stories by Margaret Atwood – Perhaps not my favourite Atwood collection of short stories, The Dancing Girls is still definitely worth reading, with at least half the stories being of really stand out quality.
Aunt Clara by Noel Streatfeild; A truly delightful read from the author of many children’s favourites, this is one of Noel Streatfeild’s novels for adults. Aunt Clara is the sixty something niece of curmudgeonly old Simon Hilton. Unmarried, he lives in London with his cockney valet Henry. Simon leaves Clara his house and some unusual instructions in his will – much to the disgust and bafflement of her selfish warring relatives.
Faces in the Water by Janet Frame is an incredibly powerful read. The story of a young woman’s life in two New Zealand psychiatric hospital.
The Ballad of Peckham Rye by Muriel Spark; The second book for #readingMuriel2018 I read in April was perhaps my least favourite Spark to date – oddly I know many people love it. I still have to review it –I loved the opening chapter and certainly the character of Dougal Douglas is superbly drawn – but I found other aspects of the novel a bit confusing.
Trick by Domenica Starnone; sent to me as part of my Asymptote book club subscription, Trick is translated from Italian by Jhumpa Lahiri a literary novelist in her own right. I loved this story of a grandfather and his grandson.
Murder Underground by Mavis Doriel Hay; another winner from the British Library – I found this hard to put down, which was lucky as I read it during last weekend’s readathon. A woman is found dead on the steps of a tube station, and the residents of the boarding house she lived in begin to try their own theories out to discover what happened.
So, three of April’s books still to review, but I’ll get to them all in good time. Sometimes it’s a bit of a job finding the time and energy for blogging.
After all my reading last weekend I’m currently experiencing a bit of a slow reading week, juggling two books Writers as Readers, essays about VMC writers by other writers, and Delta Wedding by Eudora Welty. I’m also planning on reading The Hothouse by the East River by Muriel Spark, very soon, really looking forward to it.
A slightly rushed round-up I’m afraid – but I’m pleased that I managed twelve books in April – a little up on my average. I’m looking forward to a quiet-ish May bank holiday – with lots of reading time, and perhaps a trip to the cinema – if there’s anything on.
Today Virago are celebrating their 40th anniversary of beautiful VMC – you all know how much I love them, so it’s quite fitting that I’m reading an old green at the moment.
Let me know what you’ve been reading in April – anything I really need to know about? Happy reading for May everybody.
heavenali 
A very successful month!Always enjoy reading about your choices.I must get some Spark done soon. I managed only three. Rebecca, which I had read many, many years ago but remembered little about, certainly not appreciating the quality of the writing and the complexity. I was so fired up with Rebecca I tried Mrs de Winter by Susan Hill which I much enjoyed after its possibly weak start. When I finished it I read some reviews which I thought were very harsh claiming Susan Hill had written it for the money and had generally done a bad job.Both these count for ACOB. Then I read the very clever and sensitive Swimming Lessons by Claire Fuller with its skilled management of flash back. My months’ choices seem linked by the supernatural and flashback! I was dreading a weak ending but she managed it brilliantly. Not an ACOB title unfortunately but I’m back on track for May.
Yes heard good things about Swimming Lessons glad you enjoyed it so much. Rebecca is a brilliant novel always good for a reread.
A great month of reading Ali, it can be a struggle to juggle it all sometimes. I love the sound of the Janet Frame.
The Janet Frame is excellent. Juggling is hard but I always enjoy this blogging thing really, I just want more time. 😉
Me too Ali!
Am inspired to read more of my second-hand bookshop finds having read your roundup this month. Speaking of Janet Frame, I am reading a recent novel inspired by her time in Ibiza as a young, newly discovered writer. It is called Salt Picnic by Patrick Evans. Lovely, atmospheric writing.
Great,thanks for the recommendation.
Great round up. I didn’t Noel Streatfield wrote for adults – I will look for this one.
I like Murakami but he takes some getting used to – an acquired taste.
She writes lovely adult books. Look out for Saplings published by Persephone books.
What a lovely variety of books for the month. And impressive that you wrote as many reviews as you did in the month itself.
Thank you. I read a little more than usual because of the two week holiday from work.
Your round-up has reminded me that I have a copy of Manning’s Balkan Trilogy on the shelves. I must get around to that at some point, maybe later this year.
Oh I hope you do. I really loved it.
I had a feeling you were reading a lot and this just proves it. If it wasn’t for your post on the Manning I wouldn’t have had a book for the #1977 club nor would I have had the enjoyable experience of reading it so a big thank you from me
So glad you enjoyed The Danger Tree, I always find Olivia Manning a good read.
Its down to you that I read her!
That’s a really good month of reading, Ali – well done! I’m just finishing an early feminist manifesto and then – well, I don’t know what next, apart from a few more Penguin Moderns! 🙂
Thank you. Happy reading, Whatever you choose.
Dear Ali,
A great list of reading; many thanks! Would you mind including the date of first publication as that’s always interesting, I think – helps me to place books on my mental timeline.
Thanks again for your great posts.
Best wishes, Trudi
Duly noted. I do put year published after the title of the book on my review posts.
Wonderful reading month! Those new Virago anniversary editions are STUNNING. I’m salivating over them here in the US. Hope to come across some over here sometime! I read a collection of Mansfield stories years ago and was so impressed with her. I need to read her again.
Those editions are fabulous aren’t they. The Mansfield collection was a joy, I want to read more by her myself.
I haven’t read Mansfield yet and think that The Montana Stories would be a good place to start. I’m getting close to the halfway point in ACOB but have only doubled up one year and have read only one book that is outside the century. Notable reads this month include Botchan by Natsume Soseki (1906), about a first year teacher. I also read my first Arnold Bennett, Anna of the Five Towns (1902), Tirra Lirra by the River by Jessica Anderson (1978), Injury Time, a black comedy by Beryl Bainbridge (1977), and John Galsworthy’s The Country House (1907).
Wow, you are doing superbly well with ACOB. I suspect I will take over a year to finish. Originally I said two years so as not to pressure myself but I secretly would love to finish it in one. I will have multiple books by the same author though too.
Thank you and happy reading in May to you too 🙂
Great reading! I’ve not got off to a good start in May and we’re almost half-way through – I haven’t even started my Iris Murdoch for this month yet!
May has been slow so far, just been so tired.
i am reading a new Persephone called “Despised and Rejected” by Rose Allatini.From 1918.
I like it a lot.Not seen it on any blogs so far.
I don’t have Despised and Rejected yet, though I had a copy of Young Anne bought for me. All the new ones are ones I want. Hope you enjoy it.
YOUNG ANNE is great–i have read it twice and think it the perfect novel.I am jealous of those yet to read it.Thankfully my library had an ancient copy of this so i have not been waiting for Persephone to print it.