my favourite reads of summer 2019

For the majority of these past few summer weeks, I have been filling my days reading glorious novels in the sun, staring at pages of exquisite text for hours on end. I have found myself engrossed in an extraordinary number of fictitious worlds, ranging from eerily uncanny dystopian universes to the realms of an American…

my thoughts on… promising young women by caroline o’donoghue

I first came across the Irish writer Caroline O'Donoghue when I was listening to one of my favourite podcasts on a morning run. For a brilliant episode titled 'How to Write That Novel', O'Donoghue was a guest on the sensational 'Nobody Panic', a light-hearted audio guidebook to adulthood hosted by the hilarious comedians Stevie Martin…

my thoughts on… crudo by olivia laing

This was the first novel that I have read in a long time where I have put down the book and thought 'Wow. It was really really important that I read that.'  I sped through the pages, engrossed in Kathy Acker's world and fully captivated by the intensity of Laing's writing. The tone was just…

the intimacy of literature

It has been too long! Oh my, I've missed writing on this blog so so much. I've been so busy these past few weeks with schoolwork that I've just not had the time to sit down and write my thoughts on the two wonderful books, 'Three Poems' and 'The Diary of an Ordinary Woman', that…

what I’ve read recently

I picked these books up around November - December time. They were engrossing and marvellous and shocking and bewildering and I adored them all. Right now, I'm suffering through mock exams for my a levels (help!) so I don't have too much time to read but, when I can, I'm making my way through the…

my thoughts on… the wasp factory by iain banks

Like Everything Under by Daisy Johnson, The Wasp Factory is twisted, abnormal and deranged. It follows the life of the rather disturbed Frank Cauldhame, a teenager who lives alone on a secluded island in Scotland with his manic father. In the attic of his home, he has built a Wasp Factory. This is a strange device,…

my thoughts on… atonement by ian mcewan

Atonement is undeniably my favourite novel and it has been for years. I know that quite a few people would disagree but, in my eyes, it is perfection and if you have not yet indulged in this tragic tale then I insist that you invest in a copy as soon as you possibly can. It…