I’ve been back in the UK for a few weeks now and in my leisure reading have been trying to focus on the books I already own (especially giveaway books I feel obligated to review) plus a priority list of library reads.
(Thanks to Shannon at River City Reading for the great blog idea and template! Check out her blog for other link-ups.)
LIBRARY BOOKS READ
- Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast [one-week loan from University of Reading library; already returned]
- Glitter and Glue: A memoir by Kelly Corrigan
- How to Connect with Nature by Tristan Gooley [from the School of Life series]
- Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig
- Swithering by Robin Robertson [poetry]
LIBRARY BOOKS CURRENTLY READING
- The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman
- Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi [graphic novel]
- Early Warning by Jane Smiley
CHECKED OUT, TO BE READ
- The Human Age: The World Shaped by Us by Diane Ackerman
- Walking Away by Simon Armitage
- History of a Suicide: My Sister’s Unfinished Life by Jill Bialosky
- Bibliotherapy with Bereaved Children by Eileen H. Jones [will probably only skim]
- Rising Ground: A Search for the Spirit of Place by Philip Marsden
- The Book of Aron by Jim Shepard
Plus, it’s time to redouble our efforts at planning a Europe trip for early summer:
- Travellers Sweden
- Lonely Planet guide to Germany
ON REQUEST
My Brilliant Friend, Elena Ferrante [I’m 8th in the queue, so I’ll be waiting a while!]
Have you been taking advantage of your local libraries? What were some of your best recent reads?
Bookish Beck = Rebecca Foster. American transplant to England. Freelance proofreader and book reviewer.
Bookish Beck 
Very interesting collection. You’ll pass on any good titles from “Bereaved Children,” right? Thanks.
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Of course! That’s the whole reason I’m looking through it.
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The library is the best for travel books! I love that. I’ve heard excellent things about Persepolis, I need to add that to my list.
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I think “graphic memoirs” are really fascinating. Enjoying this one so far.
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I’ve been trying hard not to use the library as much this year, but so far I’m not doing very well. I have a stack of 7 books beside me right now, 3 of which are read. I just finished Birdie by Tracey Lindberg, and before that I read The Douglas Notebooks by Christine Eddie and The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante (I wanted to get in on Ferrante without yet committing to her series). All 3 were really good!
I am curious to hear about both Glitter and Glue and Reasons To Stay Alive. Does Haig bring anything new to the table in his book? The Bereaved Children book also sounds interesting.
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Glitter and Glue was very enjoyable; I think I read it in three days or less. Reasons to Stay Alive…I had such high hopes for it but didn’t really think it told me anything new about depression. For anyone who has been clinically depressed or suicidal, I imagine it would be reassuring. But for me it just seemed a little fragmentary and cliched.
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Also curious about Reasons to Stay Alive! I loved The Humans, but haven’t read anything else from Haig (and imagine this will be much different).
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I’d be interested to try his fiction. I wonder if I’d like it better. In the memoir he says that The Humans was his first attempt to write about his depression.
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