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Continue reading →: The Great Good Places – Margaret DrabbleIt was quite fortunate that I found this book when searching through NetGalley after shortly finding out that AS Byatt and Margaret Drabble were sisters. I actually hadn’t really heard of Drabble, but am keen to read more Byatt, so I selected this book and was very fortunate that Cannongate…
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Continue reading →: International Booker Prize 2026 LonglistI woke up early, excited to see what had made it to the 2026 list, and even more importantly for me in my 2026 reading, what countries are featured. I have not read any of these – so please, if you have, shoot me your suggestions for reading order! I…
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Continue reading →: Lazar – Nelio BiedermannI saw this book listed on NetGalley and read the description and absolutely had to request it. I like many people have not read much from Hungary and this book is an epic novel sweeping over three generations during a devastating period for Hungary. The book was listed in the…
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Continue reading →: Departure(s) – Julian BarnesI have only read one Julian Barnes previously and that was ‘The Sense of an Ending‘, which I enjoyed. So I was very keen to read this one, and bought it while I was in France at Smith & Son, a wonderful ‘English’ bookstore in Paris, but wow, you certainly…
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Continue reading →: Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the DeadThis was not originally on my to be read list, but my partner Phil picked it up in London and then was eager for me to read it so that we could discuss it. Review: Olga Tokarczuk’s ‘Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead‘ is a fascinating book…
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Continue reading →: Afterlives – Abdulrazak GurnahI am sadly a little behind on my book reviews. I have been reading a lot as a result of travelling home from from France (flights to Paris and then to Australia), and then this week flying up to Sydney for work. But this has left little time to write…
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Continue reading →: Classic Spin Club #43This is my fifth Classic Spin. The idea is that you choose 20 Classic Books, number them 1-20, post them on your blog and then for whatever number is announced, you read that book by the 29th March 2026. You can read more information about it on the Classics Club Blog.…
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Continue reading →: Nobel Laureates in Literature ChallengeI posted last year that I was going to start to work through the Nobel Prize Literature winners… And this year I have read ‘After Lives‘ by Abdulrazak Gurnah (winner in 2021) and have just finished ‘Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead‘ by Olga Tokarczak (winner in…
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Continue reading →: Transcription – Ben LernerThanks to Granta Books and NetGalley for the ARC. I am really interested in what others think of this book… it is getting a lot of mixed reviews. Hence I am publishing this review early. Transcription will be released in April 2025. Review: In terms of appeal… If you like…
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Continue reading →: On the Calculation of Volume III – Solvej BalleThe first thing that I note, is this has different translators – I wonder if it makes a difference to the moody dream like writing that I loved in Volumes 1 and 2 which were translated by Barbara J Haveland. Note: this review contains spoilers of Book I and Book…
Hello,
I’m Rachel
Welcome to my book reviews and also insights into the two book clubs that I founded and now participate in – The Rose Book Club, which commenced in Nov 2024 and The Yarra Book Club, which commenced in 2019 or 2020 (prior to Covid).
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