Category: UK author

Lessons – Ian McEwan

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jodie In a type of anti-memoir, McEwan has created Roland, a character who has lived the same years as him, observed the same global events and pondered the same questions about humanity and society. Roland has even lived in… Continue Reading “Lessons – Ian McEwan”

The Dictionary of Lost Words – Pip Williams

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jodie ❝ Esme Nicholl is the daughter of a lexiographer, raised in the Scriptorium where the first dictionary is collated. She hides beneath the table and collects slips of paper containing words that are lost or deemed unsuitable. As… Continue Reading “The Dictionary of Lost Words – Pip Williams”

Sisters – Daisy Johnson

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Rachel The story of a darkly intense sisterly relationship that examines where one person ends and the other begins ⫸ Born ten months apart, July and September are almost like twins. They do not look the same, they do… Continue Reading “Sisters – Daisy Johnson”

Blue Ticket – Sophie MackIntosh

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jo A woman granted a blue ticket and therefore a childless life, takes matters into her own hands. ⫸ “Set in a dystopian future, all women, on the first day of their menstruation, are allocated a future at random:… Continue Reading “Blue Ticket – Sophie MackIntosh”

Summerwater – Sarah Moss

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Twelve groups of people holiday on a Scottish loch, unaware of the tragedy that is about to unfold. Chosen by Jo “Apt for a loch setting, there is dark and mysterious element at work in Summerwater. Its title is a reference… Continue Reading “Summerwater – Sarah Moss”

Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell

Chosen by Becks Political satirist George Orwell’s nightmarish vision of a totalitarian, bureaucratic world and one man’s attempt to find individuality.. ⫸ “Winston Smith is both an anti-hero and an everyday man who re-writes history for a living. He lives in Oceania in an… Continue Reading “Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell”

Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart

READ FOR BOOKERTHON A story of addiction, love and hardship in a working-class Scottish family  ✚ “I knew I was in deeeep with Shuggie Bain when I put a load of washing on partway through reading it and said to myself “Ah! I dinnae put… Continue Reading “Shuggie Bain – Douglas Stuart”

Normal People – Sally Rooney

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jodie Marianne and Connell  struggle to define themselves in their on-again, off-again relationship ✚ “Normal People follows the lives and  relationship of Irish students Connell and Marianne. Born to different social classes, the two experience fluctuating power struggles and divisions.… Continue Reading “Normal People – Sally Rooney”

The Man Who Saw Everything – Deborah Levy

READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Rachel A man who is hit by a vehicle on Abbey Road represents the difficulty of seeing oneself and others clearly. ✚ “In the opening pages of The Man Who Saw Everything, Saul Adler, a young historian, steps onto… Continue Reading “The Man Who Saw Everything – Deborah Levy”

The Long Take – Robin Robertson

READ FOR BOOKERTHON A war veteran tries to assimilate back into every day American life post war. ➽ “I was completely consumed by The Long Take and while the storyline and themes were far from uplifting I felt captivated by the events that were occurring. “Initially… Continue Reading “The Long Take – Robin Robertson”