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Verbwhore's Books Of The Year

Started by Serge, December 09, 2017, 05:00:28 PM

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Serge

I don't think we can do a comparable thread to the Magazines/Websites Albums Of The Year one, as I don't think anywhere really ranks books like that, but I think it would be good to have a thread where we can mention the best things we've read this year. I'm going to count anything that was published in paperback this year as eligible, as I mainly tend to wait for the pb edition to come out before I read most books.

My book of the year is still Michael Chabon's Moonglow, which was a storming return to form after the lacklustre 'Telegraph Avenue'. Taking the form of a fake memoir about his (invented) grandfather, Chabon runs backwards and forwards in time filling in the major events which made his grandad the man he became, and how he was still cultivating new stories even in his retirement, as recounted to him as the old man lies dying. The non-linear narrative helps to keep some plot surprises under wraps until they need to be revealed, and it also makes decent points about the reliability of memory.

It was a good year for American fiction, as my second favourite book is probably Paul Auster's 4 3 2 1, which I started a thread about here, to save me from having to type all of that out again. (There are spoilers.) As with Chabon, it was a real return to form - admittedly, I hadn't read one of his new books in years, though the last couple I had read weren't all that great - so the sheer bulk of it compared to his usual novels compelled me to check it out.

Emma Cline's The Girls thankfully lived up to - indeed, surpassed, the hype, and I wrote about it here.

Joseph Knox's Sirens is the best crime novel I've read this year, set in my favourite city, Manchester, and revealing the seedy underbelly that lurks just out of site, looked over (and sometimes helped by) the police. I didn't see any of the twists and turns coming, and I'm glad to see that a follow-up is on the way early next year. My other favourite crime novels this year were Abir Mukherjee's A Rising Man, Thomas Mullen's Darktown and Ryan Gattis' Safe. Biggest disappointment was the return of Harry Hole in 'The Thirst'. I wish Nesbo had left that one alone.

Elif Shafak's Three Daughters Of Eve was fantastic, and I wrote about that, and one of my other picks for books of the year, Nicole Dennis-Benn's Here Comes the Sun here.

This was the year I fell for Elizabeth Strout's writing in a big way, and although the good but slight 'My Name Is Lucy Barton' seems to be the one garnering all of the praise, I'd say that the linked Anything Is Possible is the superior book. My original write-up is here.

One to add to the Great American Novels pile is Nathan Hill's The Nix, which will help stave off those hunger pangs for a new Jonathan Franzen novel.

A couple more novels I should mention are Amor Towles' A Gentleman In Moscow and Paul Beatty's The Sellout. Oh, and Benjamin Myer's The Gallows Pole. And John Connolly's He. And Muhsin Al-Ramli's The President's Gardens.

In terms of non-fiction, I kicked off the year by reading two fantastic books back to back, Walls Come Tumbling Down, an oral history of Rock Against Racism/Two-Tone/Red Wedge, which I started a thread about here, and Simon Reynold's history of Glam Rock, Shock And Awe, which I started another thread about here.

Danny Baker's third book of autobiography, Going On The Turn more than lived up to the previous two volumes, but probably the best autobiography I read was Bruce Springsteen's Born To Run, in which it turns out that rather unfairly, Springsteen is as good at writing prose as he is at writing songs. Johnny Marr's writing isn't perhaps as brilliant as that of the Boss, but Set The Boy Free is a very decent read anyway.

And, of course, I should mention the excellent Scarred for Life (Volume 1), a massive labour of love which has its own thread here.

Best books I read this year that weren't originally published this year? Elizabeth Strout's The Burgess Boys, Jennifer Egan's A Visit From The Goon Squad and Look At Me, and Hans Fallada's Nightmare In Berlin.

So, a rough top ten:

1. 'Moonglow' - Michael Chabon
2. '4 3 2 1' - Paul Auster
3. 'The Girls' - Emma Cline
4. 'Walls Come Tumbling Down' - Daniel Rachel
5. 'Sirens' - Joseph Knox
6. 'Anything Is Possible' - Elizabeth Strout
7. 'Shock And Awe' - Simon Reynolds
8. 'Three Daughters Of Eve' - Elif Shafak
9. 'The Nix' - Nathan Hill
10. 'The Sellout' - Paul Beatty

holyzombiejesus


Danger Man



A retired Mumbai police inspector solves crimes with his companion, a baby elephant called Ganesh who is probably the reincarnation of his uncle.

I'm surprised Vaseem doesn't change his surname to McCall Smith, such is his desperation to create a The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency 'tribute'.

But I was on a long flight and it certainly moved quickly along. Quite charming in places and at least he'd deleted the reference numbers from the descriptions of Mumbai landmarks he'd obviously gotten off Wikipedia.

I don't read much, to be honest.

Serge

Heh, I think its resemblance to the dreaded McCall Smith is what made me run a mile from that book. The best crime novel set in India by an Asian writer this year would have to be Abir Mukherjee's A Rising Man. Just waiting for the sequel to be published in paperback now.....

ASFTSN

I can't remember the last time I read a book in the year it was actually published.  My budget can only handle crusty old second hand books, further divorcing my brain from modern reality.

BritishHobo

My top read of the year wasn't published this year, but it's literally the first one I read, and I never got around to mentioning it here. It's In Plain Sight: The Life and Lies of Jimmy Savile by Dan Davies, and it's stayed with me all year.

It's got the dual narrative thing going on, which I really love in non-fiction books (it works really well in Nick Davies' Hack Attack, ), alternating the chapters between Savile's life story and the story of the Newsnight investigation and where it led. Mainly though, the whole thing is just such an astonishing story, it couldn't help but be engrossing. Charting his history, especially as someone young enough to have only been dimly aware of him when the scandal broke, is fascinating. Going from the mines during the war, through his early career, the fundraising and then the way he seemed to capture the attention of the whole nation, would be fascinating even without the horrible, ever-present knowledge of what was going on, always lurking in the background.

What fascinates me more though is reading about the timeline of accusations, the little things spread out here and there. One truly sinister moment is Savile going to a city to do some event, and telling the mayor in return he wants a tent and four local girls - which the mayor promptly presents. It's talk of the girl's school that really fascinated me though, and the ex-pupils who were cagily discussing his abuse on FriendsReunited years before it came out. They were there online, all along. Makes me shiver.

holyzombiejesus

I read this too and got a bit freaked out where it states Jimmy may well have visited the children's home I used to work in. There was a scandal (well, a couple actually)  a few years before I started there but the stuff about him actually visiting and the home manager delivering kids to him at Piccadilly Station was proper shocking. 

Famous Mortimer

My ex also thought he was a wrong 'un, while he was still knocking about, because she used to be a social worker in Leeds and would regularly run into him at "his" hospital. I shall have to read it.

smudge1971

Quote from: Famous Mortimer on December 24, 2017, 12:34:02 AM
My ex also thought he was a wrong 'un, while he was still knocking about, because she used to be a social worker in Leeds and would regularly run into him at "his" hospital. I shall have to read it.
I recommend a stiff drink before taking on the chapter 'Your Porter Hurt Me'. Brutal cunt of a sub-human being.

BritishHobo

Fucking hell, that one ruined me, that did. It's astonishing to read the book and wonder how on earth it never came out. He was so fucking brazen about it all.

Famous Mortimer

Quote from: BritishHobo on December 23, 2017, 01:48:42 PM
My top read of the year wasn't published this year, but it's literally the first one I read, and I never got around to mentioning it here. It's In Plain Sight: The Life and Lies of Jimmy Savile by Dan Davies, and it's stayed with me all year.

My copy of this just arrived, and I'll be starting it tomorrow. I may alternate between chapters of that and something a bit lighter. Anyway, here's an answer to a 6-year old question:

Quote from: Viero_Berlotti on November 11, 2011, 11:53:08 PM
Does anyone remember a BBC TV show in the late eighties/early nineties, that was a hard hitting interview programme where famous and often controversial figures of the day were given an absolute grilling by the interviewer? It was pre-Paxman and I can't remember who presented it, but it was pretty good and I remember one episode where Jimmy Savile was the guest and they basically did a massive hatchet job on him an confronted him about some of the more alleged negative aspects of his personality. I think Savile thought his corner pretty well though.

I was thinking about it today, it's something that will probably never be repeated or shown on clip shows, but I wondered if it was as gladiatorial and savage an interview as I remembered.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mJ4a0ODPBM

Gamma Ray

Quote from: Serge on December 09, 2017, 05:00:28 PMJoseph Knox's Sirens is the best crime novel I've read this year, set in my favourite city, Manchester, and revealing the seedy underbelly that lurks just out of site, looked over (and sometimes helped by) the police. I didn't see any of the twists and turns coming, and I'm glad to see that a follow-up is on the way early next year.

I just finished this, mainly because I was taking that Fall book back to the library and it was the only one on your list that was on the shelves.  It was indeed compulsive reading and I'll be tracking down the sequel. I'm posting this mainly to thank you for taking the time to post your thoughts and also Neil for creating this forum.

Serge

The follow-up is called The Smiling Man, and is out in March. I have a proof copy which I am literally going to start reading in a few minutes, so I'll report back on that!

smudge1971

I've procured a copy of Sirens and I will report my findings, in brief, once I finish. Cheers for the recommendation. I hope 🙄

Serge

Halfway through The Smiling Man and it is even better than Sirens. Though it is putting me off moving to Manchester.

smudge1971

Serge, I thank you unreservedly for that recommendation. More people should take 8 years over a novel. Although I am glad the next one will be out in time for my birthday.

I loved it. I had to eke it out I was enjoying it so much. At first there were echoes of Tom Benn's Mancunian crime novels but it soon whipped its way past those. Some of the prose was exemplary and a knowledge of Manchester (a place close to my heart and home) enhances but doesn't preclude.
  The finale is as unexpected and exciting as it is plotted. If you say The Smiling Man is BETTER then I can only trust you after this excellent recommendation.
  I send Karma Cabs to deliver you a bagful 👍🏼

Serge

No problem! I wrote a slightly longer post on The Smiling Man here, but didn't want to say too much about the plot, as the less you know the better.

As with Sirens, a well-known Manchester landmark features prominently in the new one. I met Knox at the Derby Book Festival last year and asked him if he'd had to ask permission to use Beetham Tower, given some of the nefarious goings on surrounding it, but he said not at all. I assume the same holds true for the new book....!

Quote from: smudge1971 on January 18, 2018, 05:58:30 PMTom Benn's Mancunian crime novels

Now, I don't know about these! Given what you say, I'm assuming you don't recommend them as highly as you would Sirens, but are they worth checking out at all?

smudge1971

Yes. Similar terrain in both the grim streets of Manchester and the seedy underworld therein. I would recommend, definitely. 

Phil_A

Quote from: smudge1971 on December 24, 2017, 09:11:44 AM
I recommend a stiff drink before taking on the chapter 'Your Porter Hurt Me'. Brutal cunt of a sub-human being.

You're not kidding. I just got through the book yesterday and that chapter was peak grimness. That bizarre image she describes of Savile leaping onto the body of a sleeping patient is beyond creepy. It made me think of Killer BOB.

The other thing that got me was the detail of two victims both mentioning his smell, "he was bony, and he stank". Just imagining the stench of old cigars and God knows what else makes me feel a bit ill. The fucking dirty old dead cunt.

smudge1971

It is as grim as it gets. I mean, I cry at films, but they are usually fiction or even if true made more dramatic. And, whatever folk say, any kind of distance from horror does dilute it a little. This is a man we actually watched grooming kids on TV for years, one of the most recognisable men in Britain and an acolyte of the government and Royal circle.

To read that chapter is a brutal punch to the heart.