Reading Wrap Up January 2024

I read a lot of great fiction in January for book clubs, special reading projects and new books that intrigued me. Click ‘Show More’ for info.
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Join my bookclub: / thelonesomereaderbookclub
Books discussed & purchase links:
The House of Broken Bricks by Fiona Williams
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978057...
Prater Violet by Christopher Isherwood
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978009...
The Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978014...
Lies of Silence by Brian Moore
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978178...
Waterland by Graham Swift
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978147...
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978178...
Northwoods by Daniel Mason
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978139...
Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978152...
The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978178...
Day by Michael Cunningham
uk.bookshop.org/a/9054/978000...
My full reviews of some of these books:
Prater Violet by Christopher Isherwood
lonesomereader.com/blog/2024/...
Northwoods by Daniel Mason
• North Woods by Daniel ...
Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang
• Land of Milk and Honey...
The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright
• The Wren, The Wren by ...
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:45 The House of Broken Bricks
3:58 Prater Violet
9:17 The Driver's Seat
12:30 Lies of Silence
14:34 Waterland
17:04 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
20:04 Northwoods
22:14 Land of Milk and Honey
24:17 The Wren The Wren
26:57 Day
28:30 Conclusion
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[@warrenhall1101]

I thought about buying The Wren, The Wren. Now hearing you talk about it I'm sold! Thanks.

[@jackiesliterarycorner]

January 1. Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) by Jose Rizal, Translated by Soledad Lacsin-Locson 2. The Buccaneers by Edith Wharton & Marion Mainwaring 3. Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King 4. Damascus Gate by Robert Stone My favorites were Touch Me Not and Damascus Gate.

[@ldillaway89]

The best book I read in January, and a new all-time favorite, was Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, which I think I first heard about from your channel actually! Wow, what an incredible book.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

That's great to hear! I LOVE that novel. Such a riveting read.

[@walkinthewoods981]

It really is a great book. There is also a movie which was well made.

[@martasoltys9091]

The Adventures of Huck Finn has been a favourite of mine since I was 19. I read it as an adult and right away wrote an essay on it for uni; it just touched me so much. I reread it in 2016 and was surprised how much I loved it still.

[@GemofBooks]

The House of Lost Bricks sounds fabulous! I hadn’t heard of that one, so thank you for putting it on my radar 🤩

[@ArtemisC.DAragon]

Thank you, Eric!!! Wonderful stories, you had a good month readings! My first book of the year was a re-read: 'The Woman in white' by: Wilkie Collins & then 'Woman who run with the wolves' by: Clarissa Pinkola Estés. 🤗📚🍀✨

[@sage2181]

Your haircut looks amazing!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thank you! 😊

[@barbaramcfadden527]

Some good ones I’ve read so far in 2024. 1. The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu 2. My Friends by Hisham Mator 3. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett 4. Stoner by John Williams What I am looking forward to: Last Acts by Alexander Sammartino Thanks for sharing your recommendations! Happy 2024.

[@WarinPartita6]

A​belated​ Happy​ New​ Year, Eric.​ Im​ interested​ in​ rereading Huck Finn, for​ sure.​

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Hope you enjoy it! Happy New Year!

[@smilagan7816]

I had some incredible reads in January, including "Our Strangers" by Lydia Davis, "Checkout 19" by Claire-Louise Bennett, "Jazz" by Toni Morrison, and "Treacle Walker" by Alan Garner. The last one was a surprise, I've heard it's polarizing but I was totally enchanted by it Currently reading "Americanah" by Adichie and "The God of Small Things" by Roy. And for the first read of February I finally finished a certain beloved sci-fi book about a desert planet titled after the shape sand makes ... it was one of the most miserable reading experiences of my life LOL I knew Enright had won the Booker before reading "the wren the wren" -- my expectations were high but I wasn't expecting it to be laugh out loud funny!

[@amandaduvenas8647]

I read 9 books in January, my favorite reads from the month are The Employees by Olga Ravn and American Psycho. Northwood is on my TBR!

[@garthok6224]

In January I read some science fiction and fantasy books some were good some just ok, now I'm going for modern literature starting with The Kite Runner.

[@SineadScrap]

I'm missing England, so The House of Broken Bricks is what I'll read next. Thank you! My first read of the year is "The Good Companions" by JB Priestley. It's so wonderful!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Great, hope you enjoy Williams’ novel as much as I did.

[@penelopegough6050]

I had a good reading month. It’s very hot and humidity has been 100% at times so easy to be indoors with air conditioning on. I started with the Conversion by Amanda Lohrey, Australian author. My haunting read for my physical book club was Nomadland by Jessica Bruner. Cannot stop thinking about it.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Those sound interesting! 📚

[@KanwarAnand]

Maeve Fly - Outrageous pacing and storyline but a lot of fun Alone in the ether with you - I liked it for the conversations and the character study but not sure if this is a great book.

[@jenniferlavoie2548]

i started and finished east of eden by Steinbeck. Oh my...what a great read!!!

[@EricKarlAnderson]

I love Steinbeck's writing but have yet to get to that.

[@fallingwickets]

thanks for the reviews...heaven and earth grocery opened 2024 for me

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Ah I've been wanting to read that.

[@ReinReads]

My fist book of the year was The Wind That Lays Waste by Selva Almada translated by Chris Andrews. A beautifully written short novel exploring masculinity. Great start to the year.

[@Barryislarge]

My first was Journey to the West! Had been meaning to get around to it. Glad i did!

[@jamesduggan7200]

wow - great reading month! Kudos. I used to enjoy watching Elizabeth Taylor too. My favorite without a doubt is Taming of the Shrew. There's this one scene where Zeffirelli zooms in on her kaleidoscope eyes, and it just blows your mind. There are others ofc : Black Beauty, Cleopatra, Whos Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Some good stuff. I never read much Twain. Maybe someday, I don't know. Great haircut btw, and thanks!

[@jacquelinemcmenamin8204]

The author of House 🏠 f Bricks was interviewed on Womens Hour this morning. I really liked North Woods and The Wren, The Wren. Best books read in January How To Build A Boat Falling Animals North Woods Tom Lake I really want to read Day. 🍀📖☘️👋📖📚📕🇮🇪☕️

[@sandracorbett1]

Happy New Year! I have read 13 books (some novellas). Funnily enough, Day by Michael Cunningham has been my favourite thus far, followed by Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov. Thanks for the video 🙂

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Great! thanks. 📚

[@TaliWolfstarreadsbooks]

Hello Eric, all these books look like they are good reads. I have only read 2 books last month, but I do want to read more.

[@joniheisenberg]

Highly recommend “Baumgartner” by Paul Auster.Looking forward to “The Editor”,the biography of Judith Jones. Among her clients were Sylvia Plath, John Updike and Julia Child.

[@NYLeafy.V]

Love Auster and the Jones book sounds good - there’s an article in TNYTimes today about the woman who translated Thomas Mann “Mrs Lowe-Porter by Jo Salas . It sounds good , too.😊

[@marciaalbaum2597]

try 4 3 2 1 if you have not read it. I loved it

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Oh, I actually forgot to mention I've also been reading Baumgartner aloud to my husband (we've been reading it together off and on for the past two months) and we're almost done. I've been really enjoying it though it's often quite solemn.

[@joniheisenberg]

I think it is a beautiful novel and reading it aloud must really illuminate the gorgeous writing passages.One of my favorite lines in relation to memory, refers to “the lure of a counterfeit nostalgia.” I do hope you will highlight the book in one of your upcoming videos. ❤️

[@sarahwiltshire5851]

Thanks for the reviews, as always. Although I started slow, I've been able to read 9 books, including: 'Moll Flanders', 'Washingon Black, 'Homecoming' & 'Close Range: Wyoming Stories' + 3 non-fiction & one poetry collection. Looking forward to February for 'North Woods', 'Tom Lake' & 'Deacon King Kong' (will wait for the paperback edition of 'Heaven & Earth Grocery Store'!) & 'Northern Lights' - tackling 'His Dark Materials', too this year.

[@nvccru]

Alis by the Fire by Jon Fosse, 1979 by Val McDermid, Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart, Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead, The First Prince of Wales by Sean Davies. And I continue to plow through In Search of Lost Time.

[@TKTalksBooks]

HELLO! Great video! I loved the experience of reading North Woods. And I really mean "experience" . It is imperative, I think, to read the entire book to understand what Mason was doing in the writing of this book. Some folks think it is a book of short stories. It really isn't. Anyway, I thought it was fantastic. .... I want to read the Anne Enright. It is on my tbr. .... I launched my new channel, TK Talks Books & in large part because of you, Eric! Thank you so much! Happy February! Be well 💙

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Thanks so much and, yes, totally agree about Mason's novel. Congrats on your new channel! That's great to hear.

[@-zero.3354]

My Friends Hisham Matar Excellent

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yes! I’m very eager to read that.

[@mildrumpus]

Great wrap-up! I really want to read "North Woods." I'm waiting to see if I win a copy but I'm going to have to pick it up soon.

[@zoebettinson]

The Goldfinch.....loved it so much i am now in a slump 😢

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Ah yeah, I raced through that novel I enjoyed it so much!

[@itseparis5291]

I started the year with the Booker Prize winning book PROPHET SONG

[@sarahwallace2585]

I'm heavily into Isherwood Eric, do read more from and about him 😊

[@user-db3kw3cx8s]

Hi Karl. I recently read A Spy Among Friends by Ben MacIntyre. It is about Kim Philby and Nicholas Elliott's relationship. Thanks Tracey Haworth.

[@cindyhaiken5644]

I really like the sound of The House of Broken Bricks and have put that on my list. Loved North Woods and The Wren, The Wren and had more mixed feelings about Land of Milk and Honey. I will be very interested to hear your thoughts on Day when you are done. It definitely has Mrs. Dalloway vibes. I had a very strong reading month. Standouts included The Curse of Pietro Houdini by Derek Miller, Marty! by Kaveh Akbar and Flatlands by Sue Hubbard.

[@sandeesandwich2180]

I recently listened to North Woods on audio. It's a full cast recording and quite good. I didn't think I would like it that much but it has stuck with me quite a bit. Also just finished Old God's Time by Sebastian Barry and I thought I was really going to love it, but I only liked it. So, liked one way more and one way less than I thought I would,

[@MB-hc9tk]

Those books sound really interesting , I’ll be sure to put them on my list to get to in the future ❤ I have Day on my wishlist too so I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on that. I had a good reading month Eric ! Very mixed bag of all different types of books and some re reads.. I started off the month finishing a re read of Rebecca I had started in December then went to 84 Charing Cross road, de profundis , the prophet , the woman in black, North woods , tress of the emerald sea , the invisible life of addie Larue , Almond , Lonely Castle in the Mirror , a good chunk of the count of monte cristo, like water for chocolate , an essay from Katherine rundell called why you should read children’s books even though you are so old and wise (which I absolutely loved) , a graphic horror book by junji Ito called uzumaki. I just finished I who have never known men a few days ago and I know I forgot a few short stories because when I read Oscar I was reading poetry and his fairytales like “the star child”.. all of these books read but not in that order 😂 I don’t know whether this shows I’m a mood reader or mentally unstable 👀🫣😂

[@ilya1046]

The best book I read in January was The MANIAC by Benjamin Labatut. It was SO SO good.

[@marciaalbaum2597]

I read 5 books this month western lane was the best. goldfinch was well worth the prize.

[@NYLeafy.V]

The first 3 books I read in the New Year 1. Wonderland JCO 2. Them JCO 3. Kathy Chamberlain’s bio of Jane Welsh Carlyle then I read some Fay Weldon, McMurtry , = enjoyed everything I read.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Wonderful! 📚

[@xarup]

Botder District and now readong Amos Oz

[@ryanand154]

The Forgotten History of Mirrors by Juan Costa-Gravitas was a cool work, although it did feel a bit like a Borges ripoff like 88 percent of Latin American fiction.

[@jacquelineturner7206]

My favorite book of the month was the first one I read. It was Fayne - 700 pages, but it flew by.

[@EricKarlAnderson]

Yes! I read this a couple months ago. Such a pleasure and intriguing surprises along the way.