For today’s 3 4 Friday, here are some some special books to take a look at next time you are in the shop .
We're very pleased to have signed copies of the latest Julian Barnes. ‘Levels of Life’ is an intense – and intensely personal – story, written in part as a response to the death of Barnes’ own wife in 2008. Barnes tries to get to the very heart of love and grief, and opens his heart in the process.
A deeply moving book by the Booker-prize winning author of ‘A Sense of an Ending’. Email us to reserve a signed copy at £10.99.
Patrick Ness is best known for his ‘Chaos Walking’ trilogy of sci-fi novels for older children and for his Carnegie Medal winning ‘A Monster Calls’ about a boy dealing with his mother’s cancer. He has an adult novel now out ‘The Crane Wife’, a beautiful tale of life-changing love and forgiveness, with elements of fantasy and fairytale woven in.
Both sensitive and imaginative, the ever-creative Ness brings his brooding style to this tale of the arrival of a woman from nowhere who transforms everyone's lives for the better. But Kumiko is hiding dark secrets and there is a wonderfully doomed atmosphere to this bittersweet tale of the transforming power of love. We think this is a a great summer read...
Finally in Barbara Kingsolver’s ‘Flight Behaviour’ Dellarobia Turnbow thinks she has seen a miracle. Her life is soon part of a media circus and scientists with reputations to make clamouring for the story. She was witness to the unexpected migration of the monarch butterfly, but why has it suddenly become erratic?
Dellarobia ekes out a living in the Bible Belt – a life dependent on the seasons and where unpredictable and unreliable seasons are already making her precarious existence more perilous and leaving her son with no future. The explanation is there for everyone to see, but still everyone seems to grapple with the evidence.
An absorbing and entertaining story as well as a timely novel on climate change and the nature of belief. Anyone who enjoyed her much-loved ‘The Poisonwood Bible’ will recognise the brilliant way Barbara Kingsolver conveys blind belief and the inability to face up to reality...
The Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist was announced today, and a mighty list is looks too. 'Heavyweight' isn't the word; you can almost feel the gravitational pull of the authors from here:
- Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel
- Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver
- Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
- May We Be Forgiven by A M Homes
- N-W by Zadie Smith
- Where'd You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple
So what can we recommend from the list?
Well, Mantel, obviously. I'm having a slow-mo love affair with 'Bodies' (i.e. I'm still reading it and trying to make it last). The book trade is apparently worried about 'Mantel fatigue' but it has to be a favourite because of its sheer quality.
The paperback is released on May 7 - so this will feature prominently in our holiday reading recommends this year...
Move past Hilary and - in terms of how we feel about it and what our own customers are telling us - Barbara Kingsolver's 'Flight Behaviour' would be an extremely worthy winner. Beautifully written and touching on important themes, the paperback is published imminently as well...
Thrilled that Kate Atkinson's on the list. Nicki really loved 'Life After Life' and you can read her review here. And a ruthless dissection of life in modern America with 'May We Be Forgiven' by AM Homes (I just wish they'd published the paperback with a slightly bigger font!). Marie Semple and Zadie Smith finish the list...
Slightly sad that 'Marlowe Papers' by Ros Barber didn't make it onto the shortlist - one of Ellie's favourite books of the year, but we're very much enjoying recommending this to customers at the moment...something fresh and different. Here's what Ellie thinks: "a remarkable novel of art and imagination. A rare find of beautiful writing and compelling drama and deserves to win awards."
I think for the first year in it's new guise, the Women's Prize has put together a really strong list - come and take a look in a good bookshop near you...
This year, thanks to Easter being so early, it may have escaped your notice that Mother's Day (or Mothering Sunday) is almost upon us this Sunday. But fear not. It's our (completely unbiased) opinion that a book might be a lovely gift for Mum, so if you are looking to buy something special, we’ve put together some suggestions from the shop to inspire you (and not just books).
This year it’s difficult to move for baking and cook books. But our top pick is woman-of-the-hour, bake-off supremo Mary Berry. Her book 'Mary Berry at Home' is an imaginative collection of her favourite dishes that she cooks everyday for her family and friends. Over 150 simply prepared, delicious, reliable recipes for lunch, dinner and parties as well as mouth-watering, foolproof bakes. Mary invites you to enjoy afternoon tea, with an array of delicious cakes, traybakes and treats.
Perhaps your mum might prefer the 'Fabulous Baker Brothers' (looking mean 'n moody as they lean against their little Morris Van on the cover there), or a rather splendid reissue of 'Delia’s Cakes'. But if you're looking for something a little different amongst a batch of top titles, how about Lynn Hill’s 'The Clandestine Cake Club' - a club which meets once a month at a secret location only revealed a few days before the event.
They bake a cake on a specified theme and then try a bit of each others’. In this book Lynn Hill (creator of the club) has collected together their favourite recipes in this great book. With everything from traditional Victoria Sandwich to Shirley Temple Mocktail Cake, it’s a great, quirky baking book gift.
If the Mum you are buying for is more into brand new fiction – and a nice, gifty hardback to boot – then we can definitely help!
First is the ever-readable Maggie O’Farrell, whose ‘Instructions for a Heatwave’ is a definite change of direction for the author of ‘The Hand That First Held Mine’ and ‘The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox’. Set in London during the unending heatwave of 1976 (does Mum remember that?) it’s the tale of an Irish family’s meeting after their father disappears, with a gradual unravelling of tales of sibling rivalries, religious guilt, shame and secrets. The characters are really brought to life and draw you in to their hopes and disappointments as the story moves from London, to New York – and eventually back to Ireland.
A new book by Margaret Forster is a perfect treat for Mother's Day and 'The Unknown Bridesmaid' is vintage Forster territory. An observant writer, she writes about ordinary lives, but in a captivating way that makes even the unexceptional seem anything less than ordinary. 'The Unknown Bridesmaid' is full of compassion about the disintegrating life of Julia, a child psychologist, whose own troubled past is coming back to haunt her.
Barbara Kingsolver is an author with legions of fans, and ‘Flight Behaviour’ is a gripping, absorbing tale with similarities to her much-loved ‘The Poisonwood Bible’. Anyone who loved this book will recognise the brilliant way Kingsolver conveys blind belief and the inability to face up to reality.
Dellarobia Turnbow thinks she has seen a miracle. Her life is soon part of a media circus and scientists with reputations to make clamouring for the story. She was witness to the unexpected migration of the monarch butterfly, but why has it suddenly become erratic? Dellarobia ekes out a living in the Bible Belt – a life dependent on the seasons and where unpredictable and unreliable seasons are already making her precarious existence more perilous and leaving her son with no future. The explanation is there for everyone to see, but still everyone seems to grapple with the evidence. An absorbing and entertaining story as well as a timely novel that deals with the subject of climate change.
'Sweet Girl' by Annabel Lyon is a strong and intriguing historical novel that follows an intelligent and educated young woman's life in Ancient Greece and her struggle to find her place in society and empower herself at the same time. It's a moving and absorbing story that shows us both the life of the wealthy and the more seedy underbelly of Athenian life. With beautiful, sparse prose, the story unfolds at a wonderful pace with some astute observations on the challenges women faced in this society.
Just out is Jess Richards’ 'Snake Ropes', a skillfully written debut novel in the vein of Angela Carter and Margaret Atwood. It’s a terrific and evocative story in which Jess Richards vividly creates a remarkable island community for us; from their ancient myths and their subtle creole, to the harsh and self-sufficient lifestyle they lead and their isolation from the mainland and their fear of the ‘tall men’ that they trade with. According to Ellie “It is quite magical and a beautiful novel that follows two girls living on the island and the mysterious disappearances of local boys whenever the tall men visit. An enthralling and original debut novel.”
Another gift idea is a classic from children’s laureate Anthony Browne. Publisher Random House have produced a special mother’s day version of the classic ‘My Mum’ – and it even contains a mother’s day card! Here’s what Julia in the shop thinks: “A beautiful celebration of what it is to be a mum with fantastic illustrations and a free mothers day card. Perfect for mummies, mothers and mums!”
And while talking of gifts, have you seen our new range of mugs by Urban Graphic (who also design some of our most popular greetings cards): 'Where There’s Tea There’s Hope' and 'If The Music Is Too Loud, You’re Too Old' A stylish alternative to a book...
Finally, Moleskine have gone all colourful this year with their fabulous large hardback notebooks now in colour (available in pink, blue, green and yellow)! Perfect for someone who needs to keep plenty of notes, plus likes a bit of style (Mum).
And if you can't totally move over to an electronic notebook, we love the Moleskine Folio Smart Phone Cover, in a set complete with a Volant Notebook (it fits phones such as iPhone 3G/3GS and a Sony Xperia) and gives you space to write things down the old fashioned way!
That’s a whole dozen choices for you! If you’re still after ideas though, just ask a member of staff who will happily recommend other great titles for the perfect gift this Mother’s Day.
And if you are in the shop for browsing on Saturday we’ll also be having a baking celebration of our own and offering cupcakes! So why not join us?
