Crema Catalana: Quim Monzó – Gasoline

Translated from Catalan by Mary Ann Newman Heribert Juliá is a famous artist with an exhibition in his wife’s gallery to paint for but he’s leaving it to the last minute and he’s lost his mojo. His state of mind can be detected from the opening sequence in which he dreams of Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks [...]

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A Trio of Books for Browsing

What do you do when life gets in the way and your powers of concentration evaporate?  Or you find it impossible to lose yourself in your latest novel during a short lunch break? I’ve taken to browsing through a trio of non-fiction books that seem specifically designed to accommodate my need for something sharp and snappy.   While I’m [...]

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The tables are turned …. I’ve been reviewed …

And thankfully the Clifford James blog had some lovely things to say!  Naturally I give their review 5-stars! http://www.clifford-james.co.uk/blog/book-lover-blogs-we-love/ Thank you.

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A Very Short (and scotomatic) Introduction to Surrealism

Barcelona June 2010 With a nom de net like mine, it’s a given that I have an interest in art history.  It wasn’t always the case – in my teenage years, when dragged around the Louvre, I fell asleep at the feet of Michealangelo’s David.  Still we live and learn and so I’m sure that [...]

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A Castle In Romagna – Igor Štiks

I was enchanted when I heard Igor Štiks read his short story At The Sarajevo Market earlier this year.  A sad tale about those selling off their belongings at a wartime market.  Have you ever wondered what might happen to your beloved book collection in harder times? People were selling their personal libraries, especially retirees no longer receiving [...]

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Portrait of the Mother as a Young Woman – Friedrich Christian Delius

Peirene title #3, had a mountain to climb …. Roll back 30 years.  University of London, Year 2 German translation class: “Well guys, this week’s translation exercise is only one sentence ….”.  Memories fade from this point -  I still bear the scars.  The sentence turned out to be 6  pages long and I think it [...]

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NYRB Reading Week – A final competition to say thank you

I just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed NYRB reading week. So thanks to the co-hosts The Literary Stew and Coffeespoons for all their efforts and to all the participants for the numerous additions to my virtual TBR and my google reader! It has been an erudite discussion accentuated by some wonderful book [...]

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Red Lights – Georges Simenon

So we know that Ian McEwan loves to build his novels around the critical crossroads moment – the moment when a life on the rails goes off it. Does anyone know if he is in any way influenced by Georges Simenon? Steven and Nancy Hogan are driving to pick up their children from camp in [...]

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Visitation – Jenny Erpenbeck

Translated from German by Susan Bernofsky She locks the door and then walks past the giant rhododendrons to the left of the house, …. she unlocks the gate, locks it again behind her, exits the front garden through the little gate in the fence and puts the worn-out key in her pocket, even though soon the [...]

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The Big Read Bookgroup: To Kill A Mockingbird

October was a busy month.  Reading and blogging hours curtailed not only by long working hours but also by more pleasant things too.  In particular the North Lanarkshire Libraries Words 2010 festival. I attended 4 events – all with no entrance price.  Long live my library and all the Words festival sponsors! I listened to Booker long-listed [...]

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