Seascraper is a gem of a novel; the kind that you really hope will win the Booker Prize. Sadly, though the 2025 judges deemed it worthy of longlisting, Benjamin Wood’s novella never made the shortlist let alone walk away with the ultimate accolade. So once again I find myself out of kilter with the judges. […]
If the meteorologists have got their calculations right, the UK will be hit by a snow barrage this weekend. Forecasts like this always get people excited because we so rarely get snow in the UK (Scotland excepted) but I prefer to read about it rather than experience the real thing. I’ve picked ten books that […]
This update comes to you via the brain fog of a winter cold. There is precious little sign of it being “the season to be merry” in the BookerTalk household right now with both of us competing to win the coughing and sniffling heats. Fortunately for you there are no sound effects to accompany this […]
The fractured relationship between a mother and daughter is laid bare in Hanna Stoltenberg’s award-winning debut work. This relationship is seen entirely from the perspective of the mother Karin, a restless creature who seems more of a spectator in life than an active participant. She picks up strangers in bars; has a series of casual […]
It’s been a long while since I last did a Top Ten Tuesday list. Some weeks I couldn’t get enthused by the topic but this week I thought sounded easy enough. It’s a freebie which meant I could pick any topic that took my fancy. Hah! I had so many options I got myself into […]