Keep an eye out for the sequel to Stolen by Ann-Helén Laestadius. It's called Punished, and it's about the forced separation of children from parents, sending them to boarding schools where they weren't allowed to speak Sami, and how that affected the kids as adults. I thought this one was even better than Stolen.

The Door and Minor Details are books that have stayed with me. This is a great list!

I’m sorry your back is still hurting. I hope you feel better soon. Thank you for the great list of books! ❤

Hello lady, I am a Kurd and I have read your book called the fruitless journeys of a leader, And I would be very grateful if you would take the time to talk about the book and it is a historical event that you were Abdullah Ocalan's lawyer, And the Kurds will be very happy with our conversation... thank you

As always, thank you for the video and the recommendations. I can't wait to read them. I hope you feel better quickly and permanently.

Thank you for the Delphine de Vigan reminder Britta, again 😊, I must read the books I own by her. I also want to read more Magda Szabo after loving Iza’s Ballad. I’m with you on Minor Detail, The Remainder and Woman at Point Zero but still very hesitant as to Tender is the Flesh 😬

Love Magda Szabo and particularly The Door. In Hungarian the Sz is pronounced like an S in English. Cs would be the ch you had said! Thank you for this list!

Great video, every one of these books has me intrigued. ❤️

Have you read The End of Drum-Time? I learned a lot about the Sami people in that book.

Great recommendations! I'm going to keeo your list so I can refer to it later. I hope your back gets better soon!

Ha, still love the Dutchisms, we're such a small language. Did I tell you that I accidentally bought Bird cottage in English? I like it as well. The last one sounds like horror to me 😱 Szabo was recommended to me by a Dutch Hungarian friend, need to get around to reading her. Take care with your back, try to stay friends 😘

Thank you, Britta!🌷And thanks for reminding me of Delphine de Vigan. I’ve had Kids Run the Show by her on my wishlist for a while, and I really want to get to it. I’m a huge fan of Bird Cottage😍I hadn’t heard of House of Endless Waters before, but I definitely want to read it. My most recent WIT reads are the first three volumes by the Danish novelist Solvej Balle of On the Calculation of Volume, for which she won the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 2022. By the way, this is the title announced for the English translation which is expected in November, but it’s already available in German, Dutch, Italian and another bunch of languages. It’s about a woman who gets stuck for years on the 18 november of a certain year (the world around her repeats itself in exactly the same way every day) and how she adjusts to this impossible situation, trying to lead some sort of life and making the most of it. It’s beautifully written and rather mesmerizing.

Yay! I was waiting for this . I love fiction in translation. I love how you mentioned books that few are talking about. Thank you 😊

I really liked Based on a True Story too! Great reminder to pick up one of her novels that I haven't read yet. I neglected her as an author for quite some time after a period of being really into her as a writer.

The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia, translated by Simon Bruni.

Great list! I have been wanting to get to The Remainder for years (I didn't know it was written by a woman!). Based on a True Story, Bird Cottage, Stolen will be going on my TBR. Booktubers vote for their top 10 WIT titles - How fun would that be!

What a great list of books. Is it because I have read several of them? Minor Detail was stunning and it’s impact has remained with me. The stolen I received just before I went to that part of the world in March this year. Lots of reindeer and lots of snow. I’ll put it to the top of the pile. The Bird Cottage sounds just my thing as does House of Endless Waters. Thanks Britta I have been home from my current holiday only for 24 hours. This list of books has given me some encouragement to forget jet lag and get reading.🤭💕

Don't you think if a disease killed all the animals we would eat that we would be dead also? We are animals...? I haven't read the book. (and most likely won't) It just made me wonder. Thanks =)

Thanks for the recommendations . Happy to see House on Endless Waters on your list.

Delphine de Vigan is one of my favorite writers 🤩

Minor Detail has been on my radar for a while.

A small Coda on the Lacks story, last year the family settled with a biotech company for an undisclosed amount. They were represented by Ben Crump, a lawyer who represents many black victims such as George Floyd's family. Interestingly, the family tried to sue John Hopkins but the hospital denied selling or making any money off the cells.

The author of "The Tale of Genji", Murasaki Shikibu, was a contempoary of Sei Shonagon and was a lady - in -waiting in the retinue of the rival empress to the one Sei Shonagon served. They were the two most notable authors in a period of Japanese history (the Heian period) when women dominated the field of fiction. They are hard to find, but there are other diaries (including Murasaki Shikibu's diary); also, there is a book " The World of the Shining Prince," that analyzes the world of Heian era aristocrats. Another diary, "The Diary of Lady Nijo" dates from about 100 - 200 years after "The Pillowbook" and gives a bleaker view of life for an aristocratic lady. Other titles from the Heian era include "A Floating Bridge of Dreams," and "The Gossamer Years."

My favourite author. Great intro! I have never read Eye of the Heron, I need to get that one still. I started with Left Hand and loved it, but I was already deeply into classic SF so it wasn't as shocking to me, I agree that and Dispossessed should not be the starting point. Tehanu and Left Hand are my favourites. I've just bought Always Coming Home which looks really odd.

For books on language and translation, you might want to check out the memoir Fifty Sounds by Polly Barton, a British woman who moves to Japan and becomes a translator. I'm only part way in but it's really interesting so far.

Thanks for this video! I am planning on reading my first LeGuin as an adult and have been trying to figure out where to begin

Yay for successful birthday reads! 🎉❤

Thank you, Britta!🌷Funny how things go sometimes. The reason why you didn’t particularly like The Flamethrowers is why I think I’ll pick it up😅I was living in Italy in the 1970s when the Red Brigades and other terrorist groups became a destabilizing factor in Italian society. I’m curious to see how an American author deals with this historical background.

I read The Flamethrowers last month. I was intrigued to find out how the title of the book was relevant to the story we read....... unresolved I think! I thought the book started well enough, with a little history and the races on the salt flats before moving on to Reno's story. The history of rubber in South America was new to me. I liked the book, but didn't love it.

You really rock a bun! 😊

Oh no, The Flame Throwers is on my tbr for this month. I somehow missed that you were reading it last month, if I would have known, I could have joined you. I was already quite hesitant to pick it up, because of all the motorcycle stuff, but it is lingering on my shelf for years, so I finally wanted to give it a try.

I picked up Flame throwers a few years ago and then decided it wasn’t going to be for me 🤷‍♀️. Glad that your birthday gifts were successful in the main and House of Ulloa sounds intriguing. I don’t have room to read it now but will be interested in what you make of it Britta.

I normally don't read from this genre, but you had made Le Guin sound so interesting that I went out last night and purchased "The Eye of the Heron". Does anyone know, is it similar to Butler's "Parable of the Sower"? Thank you as always Britta!

I also recently read The Frozen River and felt much as you did. The "mystery" kept the plot moving, but it was in the day to day movements of Martha Ballard and the fact that she was a real woman, that was the most intriguing aspect of the book. I think it was through Heidi's channel that I heard about the book and am so happy to have read it.

I read a bit of Irena Ray and I wasn't sure I wanted to continue. But, if the ending is good, I may. And I'm glad to hear the Ariel Hawthorn was interesting. It's one I have on my list.

I want to read the Maja Lunde books I'll need to order The Bees. I am intrigued now by the Frozen River.

Happy Frozen River was a success. Thanks for the honest reviews. It is much appreciated.

Didion’s fiction leaves me cold, but revere her as an essayist.

The Extinction of Irena Rey is one of my favourite books of the year. I understand what you mean about the messy plot, but I like those sorts of books. I was hoping it would make it onto the Booker longlist. It deserves more attention than it is getting. The writing is just so intoxicating. (I hope you're feeling better.)

The cover of The Extinction of Irena Ray is brilliant - the premise sounds really interesting as well.

Funny that you mentioned Philip K. Dick, as he was in the same high school graduating class as Le Guin. They never met then, only later when they were both published authors.

Sounds similar to Changing Planes, which had one similar asexual group on one of the planes of existence which you would switch to different planes of existence at airports.

Will have to try The Eye of the Heron. Thanks for the recommendation and the le Guin introduction!

I’ve always wanted to pick up a Le Guin book to read but was indecisive where to begin. Happy to say that now I will start with The Eye of the Heron. Thanks for your suggestions and your insight into this writer. ✨✨

Well done! I've been reading Ursula K Le Guin's books since the 60s and love them all. I highly recommend her poetry, essays, and other non-fiction books as well as her sci-fi and fantasy works.

Excellent primer for le Guin! I need to read more of her work.

Thanks for making this video Britta, very handy for me as a Le Guin newbie! I've got The Word for World is Forest and The Left Hand of Darkness on my shelves and this has inspired me to get started. Also thanks for the warning about the violence in TWFWIF, I'll go into it knowing what to expect.

Thank you so much for introducing me to Ursula Le Guin's work. I love that she takes our tendencies as social creatures and modifies or transforms them in other contexts. We take our traditions and habits too seriously and uncritically and think they are etched in stone somewhere as the commandments were thought of. Congrats to you both.

I agree with you about Henrietta Lacks. The familuly parts really didn't work for me either. I have Irena Ray on my shelf so I'lll be interested to hear what you think of it.

Excellent video about LeGuin and her works! I think this will be very helpful for those who have no experience as well as for those who have read at least some of her books/stories. It has been ages since I have read her and this was such a good reminder of her writing.