The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa: A wacky coming of age exploration in a turbulent worldTeenage kicks and fundamentalist religion are tricky subjects for a novelist to balanceWed Apr 19 2023 - 04:23
Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld: An engaging, persuasive novel about the pursuit of loveIn keeping with her reputation as an astutely modern writer, Sittenfeld makes good use of the pandemicWed Apr 12 2023 - 04:52
The Last Days of Joy by Anne Tiernan: Solid debut novel of family drama and traumaStrong, character-driven plotting and astute commentary on relationships make up for some lapses into soap opera and sentimentalitySat Apr 01 2023 - 05:00
Biography of X by Catherine Lacey: Unorthodox portrait of a revered artist by her grieving widowThis frenetic, restless narrative showcases the author’s ingenuity and impressive intellectWed Mar 29 2023 - 04:15
Old Babes in the Wood by Margaret Atwood: Wit and humanity in the darkest of placesFifteen stories show Atwood’s range as a writer, her ingenuity, the ease with which she switches modeWed Mar 22 2023 - 04:31
Juno Loves Legs by Karl Geary: Strays close to misery lit but then redeems itselfSecond novel doesn’t quite match up to its brilliant predecessor but Geary’s story of misfit friendship in 1980s Dublin contains much to enjoyMon Mar 13 2023 - 05:00
Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton: A big, brash cerebral snapshot of the modern worldEleanor Catton blends literary and commercial fiction in her latest masterful display of character set in New ZealandMon Mar 06 2023 - 04:38
One Small Voice: Engaging debut novel offers sharp, human insights into India Santanu Bhattacharya writes with verve, intelligence and compassion with a range of characters crossing religion, caste and classTue Feb 28 2023 - 04:57
Hungry Ghosts by Kevin Jared Hosein: Promising debut about violence, injustice and faith in TrinidadA writer to watch, whose prose is inventive and at times audaciousWed Feb 22 2023 - 04:53
The Home Scar by Kathleen MacMahon: Deft insights into the human conditionA powerful story about legacy, loss and the possibility of reconciliationMon Feb 13 2023 - 04:39
History Keeps Me Awake at Night: A voice-led debut about the trials of modern lifeWith its blend of fact and fiction, Christy Edwall’s novel holds its own among other notable books of the genre in recent yearsFri Feb 10 2023 - 04:57
My Father’s House by Joseph O’Connor: A masterful, seamless blend of fact and fictionThe gripping story of an Irish priest who helped save thousands from the Nazis during the occupation of RomeSun Jan 29 2023 - 04:46
A Girlhood by Carolyn Hays: Compelling and illuminating account by mother of a transgender childAccomplished author tells the story of her child’s emerging identity and her own initial struggle as a parent to accept what was happeningSat Jan 21 2023 - 05:00
Kick the Latch by Kathryn Scanlan: an extraordinary story, radically compressedThe fascinating life of a horse trainer is captured in a series of stylised vignettesMon Jan 16 2023 - 04:56
Avalon by Nell Zink: Offbeat and unsentimental orphan taleA story of female emancipation in contemporary California from the author of DoxologyWed Jan 11 2023 - 04:46
We All Want Impossible Things: A story of friendship, through good times and badCatherine Newman manages to write about the messy business of life and death without ever seeming mawkishSun Jan 01 2023 - 05:00
The Exhibitionist by Charlotte Mendelson: Funny, furious, frenziedThe story is told with great dexterity at a propulsive pace in prose that is another boonTue Dec 27 2022 - 04:50
Lessons in Chemistry: An alchemy of dry wit, sharp satire and original premiseAlthough undeniably set in a particular era – the sexist, patriarchal society of mid-century America – there is a timelessness to this read, as there is to all the best storiesMon Dec 19 2022 - 04:55
Mine Boy by Peter Abrahams: racism is the pitsA timely reissue of the prescient and powerful 1946 novel that explores what it means to be human when many people are dehumanisedSat Dec 10 2022 - 05:00
What Writers Read: an insightful guide to living many lives in one Book of the Day: 35 excellent contributors, including Damon Galgut, Sebastian Faulks and Marian Keyes, describe the books that enchanted or enlightened themSun Dec 04 2022 - 04:09
Flight: An intricate, moving study of character, family and frictionLynn Steger Strong’s subtle depiction of individual plights makes them keenly feltFri Dec 02 2022 - 04:37
It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover: A happy ending for star-crossed loversThis novel is the most pre-ordered book in the history of its publisher Simon and SchusterMon Nov 21 2022 - 04:46
Cells by Gavin McCrea: A riveting memoirOde to the author’s mother is also a ruthless, unforgiving exploration of his upbringing and the traumas he enduredMon Nov 14 2022 - 04:36
A Guest at the Feast by Colm Tóibín: Forensic, moving and wry collection of essaysBook review: Religion, homosexuality, illness, literature, art and morality are recurring themesWed Nov 09 2022 - 05:00
Liberation Day by George Saunders: Power and injustice in AmericaThis book is a prescient warning about where things might be headed in the not-too-distant futureMon Oct 24 2022 - 04:16
Our Missing Hearts: A compelling, original dystopian tale from the author of Little Fires EverywhereBook review: Celeste Ng has set her new novel in an imagined future stateThu Oct 20 2022 - 04:07
Lucy by the Sea, by Elizabeth Strout: A novel that makes fresh the pandemic’s strangenessReview: Strout’s story of family and motherhood mixes ordinary life with extraordinary narrative complexity and wisdomWed Oct 12 2022 - 05:00
Shrines of Gaiety by Kate Atkinson: Vibrant, arch, entertainingBook review: a novel inspired by Kate Meyrick, the infamous queen of Soho’s clubland in the 1920sWed Sept 28 2022 - 04:44
Best of Friends by Kamila Shamsie: An enduring literary friendshipBook review: The author returns to her winning formula, using her characters’ personal histories as a way to discuss broader political concernsFri Sept 23 2022 - 04:23
The Unfolding by AM Homes: An impressive, unapologetically political novelBook review: Freedom and democracy examined from the perspective of a group of millionairesWed Sept 14 2022 - 04:31
Total by Rebecca Miller: An enthralling collection full of surprisesBook review: Miller’s ability to allow her characters space to make their mistakes without judgment bears the hallmark of a true writerSat Sept 03 2022 - 00:00
Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri: A short, compelling novelEvery encounter and remark seems charged with significanceMon Aug 29 2022 - 04:49
Haven by Emma Donoghue: Three’s a crowd on Skellig MichaelThe author seamlessly blends allegory, fairy tale, myth and meticulous research into her fictionFri Aug 26 2022 - 04:27
Eden by Jim Crace: A strange, unsettling vision of paradiseA novel showing the drudgery of paradise to be a fairytale to frighten foolsMon Aug 15 2022 - 04:49
The Irish hospital: A harsh world of ugly paradoxes The author skilfully, disconcertingly depicts the hospital as a harsh world of ugly paradoxesSun Aug 07 2022 - 05:00
Things to Come and Go by Bette Howland: A lyrical collection of striking urgency A poignant detail of this story is that Howland came close to not publishing anything at allFri Jul 22 2022 - 06:05
Blue Hour: Page-turning literary fiction spans fractured family over decades in Australia Sarah Schmidt’s prose is elegant and finely crafted and its many plot twists and turns delve into war, violence and the randomness of lifeWed Jul 13 2022 - 05:41
A Certain Hunger: Rollicking tale of one woman’s insatiable appetite for sex, food and fameSarah Gilmartin on A Certain Hunger by Chelsea SummersThu Jul 07 2022 - 05:52
Ghost Lover by Lisa Taddeo: A mixed bag of short storiesToo many of the author’s female characters think the same waySat Jun 25 2022 - 06:26
Keeping in Touch by Anjali Joseph: novel of ideas that runs out of steamThe protagonists are more interested in discussing the state of the world than in making plans of their ownThu Jun 23 2022 - 06:00
Please, sir, can I have some more?: The importance of food in fictionSarah Gilmartin, author of Dinner Party, offers an enticing tasting menu of literary delightsThu Jun 09 2022 - 05:53
Fight Night by Miriam Toews: Holds its own in the tricky world of child narratorsThe fears and embarrassments of childhood come alive through a nine-year-old’s eyesMon Jun 06 2022 - 06:06
Vladimir by Julia May Jonas: The politics of desireBook review: There are many wryly subversive touches in this engaging debut novelWed Jun 01 2022 - 06:00
Mean Baby by Selma Blair: Trite insights into a difficult but privileged lifeBook review: Actor’s memoir reads like a first draft outpouring from start to finishThu May 26 2022 - 06:00
Spies in Canaan by David Park: Masterful storytelling that deserves a wide readershipLayered tale set near the end of the Vietnam war is crammed with astute observationsMon May 16 2022 - 06:00
The Game, a new short story by Sarah GilmartinTwo couples form a friendship over regular games of bridge but suspicion clouds itThu May 12 2022 - 06:40
Here Goes Nothing: Much-needed medicine sweetened with humourSteve Toltz has written smart social commentary on our fossil fuel-guzzling, warmongering, information-obsessed, pandemic-riddled worldSat May 07 2022 - 06:00
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St John Mandel: Original and eerily prescientBook review: Canadian author gracefully moves the reader across time and spaceSun May 01 2022 - 06:00
People Person: Imaginative, funny and thought-provokingReview: Candice Carty-Williams latest novel has plenty to say on experience of black people in BritainThu Apr 28 2022 - 06:00
One Day I Shall Astonish the World: A moving ode to marriage and friendshipBook review: Nina Stibbe’s writing is full of humorous observations and delightful idiosyncrasyThu Apr 21 2022 - 06:00
