ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
SUMMER READING cont.
Anne Boleyn: A King’ s Obsession ALISON WEIR
Author and historian, Alison Weir, is in the midst of writing a six-novel series about Henry VIII’ s wives. Anne Boleyn: A King’ s Obsession is the second in the series and is a part-fact, part-fiction account of Henry’ s marriage to Anne, mother of the child who would go on to become Queen Elizabeth I.
The Book of Speculation BY ERIKA SWYLER
When librarian Simon Watson finds an old, water-damaged diary that tells the story of a circus performer who lived in the 1700s, he finds a number of mysterious and chilling entries. And, when his real life becomes mixed up in those mysteries, he realises that he needs to solve them to save his family and himself. This is a twisty, turny kind of novel that will keep you guessing until the end.
To Kill A Mockingbird BY HARPER LEE
It is almost 60 years since Harper Lee’ s iconic and groundbreaking novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, was published and if you’ re yet to read it( or even if you have), this summer could be the perfect time to get stuck in. The themes of racial tension and justice( or lack of it) resonate perfectly today.
A House for Happy Mothers MALLADI
Although the title sounds pleasant enough, the eponymous‘ House for Happy Mothers’ is really a baby farm, a place for poor Indian women to sell their wombs for rich Western women to buy. When Priya and Asha connect through the House for Happy Mothers, no one could predict what heartache and happiness their meeting might bring.
The Sunlit Night BY REBECCA DINERSTEIN
The setting for this rather unusual love story is an artists’ colony in the remote north of Norway. A young girl named Frances flees there, needing some time to herself, but instead she finds Yasha, who is there to bury his father. What will become of them and their slowly evolving love? This is a funny and truthful novel that is sure to stay with you for a long time after the last page has been read.
The Great Gatsby BY F. SCOTT FITZGERALD
Jay Gatsby … impressive, rich, debonair, suave … lonely, broken, tired. The eponymous‘ hero’ of F. Scott Fitzgerald’ s classic novel is a pathetic soul and one that, in some ways, we can all understand. His doomed romance with Daisy; his attempt at living a normal life; his inability to understand that wealth does not equal happiness … it’ s all utterly compelling and unbelievably tragic. Not a novel that will leave you with a smile on your face, but one that will speak to you nonetheless.
The Colour of Magic
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep BY PHILIP K. DICK
Perhaps better known as Blade Runner, the title of the movie it( in sorts) became, this postmodern, dystopian novel about a world that has been devastated by World War Terminus is as relevant today as it ever was. Brutal and unswerving, the story revolves around bounty hunter, Rick Deckard, who is stalking a group of murderous androids. We may know the twist, but even so, the build up to it, and the atmosphere of terror, confusion and weariness that Dick evokes is impressive and chilling.
At The Water’ s Edge BY SARA GRUEN
Maddie thinks she is happy. She thinks her life is perfect. She thinks nothing will ever change. Until the day her husband tells her he is taking her to Scotland to search for the Loch Ness Monster. As absurd as the idea seems to her, Maddie follows along with the plan. It changes everything, including how she thinks about her life.
BY TERRY PRATCHETT
Terry Pratchett had a skill that only a handful of authors have – he was funny. Not just a little bit funny. Not just a smile funny. But properly laugh-out-loud funny. Whether or not you have delved into Pratchett’ s‘ Discworld’ novels before, The Colour of Magic, the first in the series, is a fantastic place to start or to start again. This particular book focuses on the Discworld’ s very first tourist and the havoc he may wreak upon the world – which is something like a parallel universe only it is flat and carried on the back of a giant turtle. Because why wouldn’ t it be?
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