Scary Fairy Tales, A Superhero and A Goldfish!
I've decided that I'll start sharing my lovely books with you all so today I'm going to tell you what I've been reading this week. I read really quickly, once I've snuggled down with a book my coffee I tend to be there all night!
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I started my week with a collection of 'Scary Fairy Tales', There Once Lived a Women Who Tried to Kill her Neighbours Baby by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya.
Referred to as ''one of the finest living Russian writers'' by Publishers Weekly, Petrushevskaya is a very talented story teller. Her writing was banned in USSR Russia and her life has been a battle for publication.
This book, a New York Times Book Review Bestseller, is frankly an absolutely stunning collection of stories. The title of the book summarises one of the stories 'Revenge' which really is very dark and tragic but utterly compelling. There are 19 shorts in this volume and, while I had no intention to read them in one go, I finished them in a night and day of insomnia. I have been revisiting them since and re-reading some of them, trying to draw meaning or any sense of comfort from some of the bleak tragedy. And it is there to be found, there is humour, all be it dark or ironic, and a sense of mystery. These stories invite you to explore, imagine, empathise (sometimes with the least likely of characters) and to journey with them. I no longer view them as bleak or tragic, they are a glimpse into the private moments of ordinary people. they are beautiful, disturbing, thrilling, funny, tragic and lovely - truly - in their honesty.
A modern classic, most definitely - I shall be reading as many works by this author as I can find in translation!
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| 10 Year Anniversary Hardback Edition |
Also on the reading list this week was All My Friends are Super Heros by Andrew Kaufman. I've wanted to read this for a while, I recieved The Tiny Wife as a Christmas present a couple of years ago and I loved it - just never got around to buying this one! In Waterstones the other day I saw this lovely hardback edition and I couldn't resist it!
The book itself is small but perfectly formed and tell's the story of Tom who has superhero friends and is about to marry a superhero, the Perfectionist. Things go wrong when she is hypnotized by an evil ex who makes her believe that Tom is invisible. Believing that Tom has abandoned her, the Perfectionist moves away to leave her broken heart behind and she has no idea that Tom is by her side the whole time.
April is depressed, she ponders the real meaning of life from her bowl. She want's to be a pirate, a punk. She want's travel the world. She suffered in her teenage years from fish spots and her parents were aquaholics who sadly died. April considers ending it all but can't figure out how to tie the noose in her fish-bowl! It really is very funny, illustrated solely using red crayon and a black fine liner, you can't help but love April!
Marjolaine Leray is the fabulous French author behind the Little Red Hood - which I also recommend. A fabulous re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood in which Little Red poisons the Wolf...don't take sweets from strangers!
The book itself is small but perfectly formed and tell's the story of Tom who has superhero friends and is about to marry a superhero, the Perfectionist. Things go wrong when she is hypnotized by an evil ex who makes her believe that Tom is invisible. Believing that Tom has abandoned her, the Perfectionist moves away to leave her broken heart behind and she has no idea that Tom is by her side the whole time.
The story is so sad and yet so funny and really makes you believe in love...well, sort of!
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| April |
Lastly, this week I purchased April the RED Goldfish for the book collection. Technically a children's book, I can't imagine reading it to a child!
April is depressed, she ponders the real meaning of life from her bowl. She want's to be a pirate, a punk. She want's travel the world. She suffered in her teenage years from fish spots and her parents were aquaholics who sadly died. April considers ending it all but can't figure out how to tie the noose in her fish-bowl! It really is very funny, illustrated solely using red crayon and a black fine liner, you can't help but love April!
Marjolaine Leray is the fabulous French author behind the Little Red Hood - which I also recommend. A fabulous re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood in which Little Red poisons the Wolf...don't take sweets from strangers!
So all in all, a great week for book's! Currently re-reading Light Boxes by Shane Jones so that'll be on the blog next week!
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