Weekend Miscellany

January review

Detail from Banksy’s Brexit mural in Dover

A sad day yesterday, but we all have to live with it now, so I shall SUMO – shut up and move on.

I’ll start today, by updating you on how I’m doing on #TBR20. The plan was,  (with Lizzy and Richard @caravanablog and any others participating), not to read or buy any new books until I’d read twenty from my TBR – which I define as anything on the shelves already by the end of 2019.

  • While I have read ten books from the TBR, I’ve snuck in three that weren’t. One was a book group read from the library, so doesn’t count, but the other two, one from the library, one a review copy just demanded to be read. But ten from the TBR ain’t bad for me!
  • New books – I’ve cut my expenditure on new books a lot, but a few have still managed to creep in – Jeff Vandermeer’s Dead Astronauts, and Ray Robinson’s Portico-shortlisted The Mating Habits of Stags. (Thank you to Lightning & Eye Books, who not only offered signed copies of the latter at half price, but also sent me a copy of Ryan O’Neill’s Their Brilliant Careers which sounds rather brilliant – a novel in the guise of biographies of sixteen invented Austrailian writers.
  • Luckily all the Feb proofs I have arrived before the end of 2019, so will count towards finishing my twenty books.

It always happens though – I start the year, trying to read from the TBR – do well for 1,2,3 months, but by then the shiny new books have built up so much I rarely look back. Must try harder to make sure I keep TBR books in the mix, but two exciting ARCs arrived this week – the latest DI Alexandra Cupidi book by William Shaw, and a mad sounding Japanese novella about a stand-up comedian. (Thank you to riverrun and Pushkin press respectively).

February plans

PAUL AUSTER READING WEEK

From hereonin for me, it’s Paul Auster all the way, as I am hosting Paul Auster Reading Week from Feb 17-23. I’d love it if you would like to join in – I’ll do a linky post at the beginning of that week.

I’ve given the project its own page under my ‘Projects’ tab above – or click here, where you’ll find a bibliography.

All these reads will be from my TBR or re-reads, so count towards #TBR20 of course!


There’s also Karen and Lizzy’s Fitzcarraldo Fortnight running from the 16th, so after I’ve finished my Paul Auster week, I’ll be reading It Gets Me Home, This Curving Track: Objects & Essays 2012-2018 by Ian Penman, which I bought last year on Karen’s recommendation.

February is going to be a great reading month!

3 thoughts on “Weekend Miscellany

  1. kaggsysbookishramblings says:

    It was indeed a sad day yesterday – not a happy bunny here…

    And glad you can join in with the Fitzcarraldo event – so looking forward to it! If I had an Auster I’d try to join in but I haven’t and tbh I never got on *that* well with him – though I’d be prepared to have another try! 😀

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