So happy to hear you loved A Visit From The Goon Squad P - when I first read it, I read it twice in 48 hours 😂 think I might read again soon as it’s been 10 years now!
Also do you think soldier sailor is best avoided if you haven’t had children yet, are very scared of having children but think you would very much like to have one?! Xx
I've been musing on this for a while and I think the answer is that it depends on your personality. I like to have all the info - I'm very much a forewarned is forearmed person and I also think that having a baby is such a big deal on your body and your brain that this kind of art feels kind of... necessary? Gratifying? BUT -- there's also an argument I've seen a bit, that says we need to stop telling mothers how terrifying having a baby is. That it's putting people off. I think if you do read it, it's useful to remember that Soldier's experience is not everyone's experience. It wasn't mine. Maybe dip a toe in and see how you go?
Counting down the days for new Book Chat, love that podcast so much! Thanks for all your recommendations and musings this year, have a lovely Christmas!
I feel like I had a satisfying reading year, but no incredible standouts for me. I loved Demon Copperhead, and I read Still Life so slowly because I was dreading the weeping I knew was coming...similar emotional tumult to Why is Nobody Talking About This? I really liked Joanna Hedman’s The Trio, very Swedish Sally Rooney. My bestie read it and said “nothing happened... they just smoked and talked...”
I was flying from London to Edinburgh (I had gotten the first train down...and couldn’t face the last train back up) and was looking forward to the airport bookshop and its paperback exclusives and there was NOTHING! Christmas season is always the worst for new literary fiction, which makes sense because people are buying presents, but it’s rubbish for bookish people...
We are off to Portugal to lie on my parents porch and read and I’ve packed The Fraud, which I’ve been saving and a Persephone press reissue whose title is escaping me, and whatever comes up on the Libby app roulette.
I liked it but didn’t love it? It was quick, and I liked how it played with form (Dickensian short chapters etc), but I didn’t feel massively attached to the characters, which is always I want, especially for Christmas reading.
So happy to hear Bookchat is back in 2024!
Loved this 2023 round up!
And OMG the bathwater scene... I will never forget.
Love your list. Love your Substack. Happy Christmas ❤️
Soldier Sailor ❤️ I am waking up early to read every day this week. Sublime writing and scarily on the nose .
I have been enjoying your book recommendations so much, Pandora! Thank you for sharing ☺️
Thank you and merry Christmas to you and all your loved ones.
Hadn’t seen the teenie weenie beanies song before, thanks for sharing. I made my laugh so much! 🤍
Thank you Pandora, this has been great content! And merry Christmas ❤️
Thank you Pandora for all your incredible recommendations this year - I have loved so much of what you read and recommended.
What a lovely, lovely message - thank you for encouraging what I do, it galvanises me to keep on doing it
So happy to hear you loved A Visit From The Goon Squad P - when I first read it, I read it twice in 48 hours 😂 think I might read again soon as it’s been 10 years now!
Also do you think soldier sailor is best avoided if you haven’t had children yet, are very scared of having children but think you would very much like to have one?! Xx
I've been musing on this for a while and I think the answer is that it depends on your personality. I like to have all the info - I'm very much a forewarned is forearmed person and I also think that having a baby is such a big deal on your body and your brain that this kind of art feels kind of... necessary? Gratifying? BUT -- there's also an argument I've seen a bit, that says we need to stop telling mothers how terrifying having a baby is. That it's putting people off. I think if you do read it, it's useful to remember that Soldier's experience is not everyone's experience. It wasn't mine. Maybe dip a toe in and see how you go?
I am now also obsessed with the Sainbos beetroot and orange salmon, thank you! 😂
I have run out already and I am so sad
Counting down the days for new Book Chat, love that podcast so much! Thanks for all your recommendations and musings this year, have a lovely Christmas!
I loved The Rachel Incident so much. Can't wait to dig into the rest of these!
Happy holidays to you and your family, Pandora! Thanks for the great content as always. Worth every penny.
And to you and yours! Thank you so, so much for the support.
I feel like I had a satisfying reading year, but no incredible standouts for me. I loved Demon Copperhead, and I read Still Life so slowly because I was dreading the weeping I knew was coming...similar emotional tumult to Why is Nobody Talking About This? I really liked Joanna Hedman’s The Trio, very Swedish Sally Rooney. My bestie read it and said “nothing happened... they just smoked and talked...”
I was flying from London to Edinburgh (I had gotten the first train down...and couldn’t face the last train back up) and was looking forward to the airport bookshop and its paperback exclusives and there was NOTHING! Christmas season is always the worst for new literary fiction, which makes sense because people are buying presents, but it’s rubbish for bookish people...
We are off to Portugal to lie on my parents porch and read and I’ve packed The Fraud, which I’ve been saving and a Persephone press reissue whose title is escaping me, and whatever comes up on the Libby app roulette.
I haven't actually read The Fraud - I've heard such mixed reviews from friends. Let me know what you think!
I liked it but didn’t love it? It was quick, and I liked how it played with form (Dickensian short chapters etc), but I didn’t feel massively attached to the characters, which is always I want, especially for Christmas reading.