Book Reviews
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Book ReviewsThe Bricks that Built the Houses by Kate Tempest
Kate Tempest’s debut novel The Bricks that Built the Houses begins with a quote from William Blake, and the shadow of this great London poet lingers ov... Read more »| 05 Apr 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe Cauliflower® by Nicola Barker
Who is Sri Ramakrishna? 'Is he man or child? Leader or follower? Idiot or genius? A god, a god-man, or just too, too human?' In a world where spirituality se... Read more »| 04 Apr 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe Wolf Trial by Neil Mackay
The premise is intriguing: in a small town in 16th century Germany, a serial killer is captured and tried as a werewolf. There are moments of gory, shocking ... Read more »| 31 Mar 2016 -
Book ReviewsWhat I Learned from Johnny Bevan by Luke Wright
With its cute couplets and wry nods to Twitter and twerking, What I Learned from Johnny Bevan reads at first like a piece from a poetry night at a good ... Read more »| 30 Mar 2016 -
Book ReviewsAnd The Weak Suffer What They Must? by Yanis Varoufakis
Last January, Yanis Varoufakis was catapulted from a quiet life as an economics professor into the centre of the eurozone crisis, as finance minister in Gree... Read more »| 30 Mar 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe Hormone Factory by Saskia Goldschmidt
This novel, newly translated from German, weaves a narrative of sibling rivalry, discovery and power. The Hormone Factory tells the story of two brothers, Mo... Read more »| 17 Mar 2016
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Book ReviewsMartin John by Anakana Schofield
'Caitlin might call him MJ if they were ever on speaking terms. He doesn't think much of her harping on about her boyfriend trouble and her wine glasses... Read more »| 03 Mar 2016 -
Book ReviewsTreats by Lara Williams
'They go back to hers. She has an HDMI cable and Netflix and two thirds of a bottle of wine.' It's 2016 and love is still a battlefield, but its ordnance is ... Read more »| 01 Mar 2016 -
Book ReviewsOn Love by Charles Bukowski
Just in time to miss Valentine’s Day, as the supermarket flowers begin to droop and only the terrible chocolates remain, arrives a new collection all a... Read more »| 22 Feb 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe Outrun by Amy Liptrot
Amy Liptrot’s The Outrun is a beautifully written memoir about alcoholism, recovery and life at the extremes. Ten years after leaving Orkney’s re... Read more »| 03 Feb 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage
Set in 1920s Montana, The Power of the Dog begins as a tale of two competitive brothers. Phil, educated and calculating; George, reliable... Read more »| 01 Feb 2016 -
Book ReviewsUnder the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta
In an understated author’s note sat quietly on a back page between the novel’s epilogue and its acknowledgements, Chinelo Okparanta states her am... Read more »| 01 Feb 2016 -
Book ReviewsThe High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel
Three stories, three grieving men, three years: 1904, 1938, 1981. We begin in Lisbon in 1904, as Tomas sets off in search of an unlikely 17th century artefac... Read more »| 29 Jan 2016 -
Book ReviewsNobody Told Me by Hollie McNish
Nobody Told Me: Poetry and Parenthood chronicles three years and nine months of poet Hollie McNish’s life, from discovering she was pregnant – &l... Read more »| 29 Jan 2016 -
Book ReviewsCockfosters by Helen Simpson
Losing your glasses. Drinking too much at a book group. Getting the fridge fixed. Forgetting the names of things. Helen Simpson’s latest collection of ... Read more »| 22 Jan 2016