Sunday 30 October 2016

anemogram. by Rebecca Gransden


anemogram. by Rebecca Gransden
Published by Cardboard Wall Empire in August 2015.

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy from independent booksellers via Alibris
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository

How I got this book:
Received a review copy from the author

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A young girl emerges out of the woods. David is in the middle of wrestling with an unsatisfactory existence when she enters his life. He decides to look out for the girl, but he soon discovers she may not be all she seems. Together they decide to seek out a place of safety, away from a world that could misunderstand their relationship. As their troubles come to the surface, events take a turn that will have life-changing consequences for the both of them.

I didn't know what to expect from anemogram. other than fellow author Harry Whitewolf spoke highly of Gransden's writing so I hoped I would be in for a treat. I certainly was and a perfectly timed Halloween one at that! anemogram. is set in a bleak post-industrial landscape of wastelands and McDonald's car parks that are so richly described that I could almost reach out and touch the rusting wire fences. I loved one moment where a tree consumes the metal through which it grows. We follow a disconcertingly precocious child who names herself differently for each man she latches on to and who is always hungry. Hungry for food and hungry for stories, some of which we read from 'Tinker' - a genuine presence or an imaginary friend? Gransden creates a palpable sense of unease around Rachel/Sarah so I was always aware that 'something bad' was going to happen, but with no idea what. To be honest, I'm still not sure I know exactly what what was going on - I have a theory! - but anemogram. is utterly compelling reading and I am delighted I got the opportunity to discover it.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Rebecca Gransden / Horror fiction / Books from England

Monday 24 October 2016

Courage Has No Color by Tanya Lee Stone


Courage Has No Color, The True Story Of The Triple Nickles: America's First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone

Published in America by Candlewick Press in 2012. Brilliance Audio edition narrated by J D Jackson published in January 2013.

Featured in Cover Characteristics: Aeroplanes

How I got this book:
Downloaded from AudioSYNC

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


World War II was raging, with thousands of American soldiers fighting overseas against the injustices brought on by Hitler. Back on the home front, the injustice of discrimination against African Americans was playing out as much on Main Street as in the military. Enlisted black men were segregated from white soldiers and regularly relegated to service duties. At Fort Benning, Georgia, First Sergeant Walter Morris's men served as guards at The Parachute School while the white soldiers prepared to be paratroopers. Morris knew that in order for his men to be treated like soldiers, they would have to train and act like them, but would the military elite and politicians recognize the potential of these men, as well as their passion for serving their country?
Tanya Lee Stone examines the role of African Americans in the military through the lens of the untold story of the Triple Nickles as they became America's first black paratroopers and fought a little-known World War II attack on the American West by the Japanese. The 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion, in the words of Morris, "proved that the color of a man had nothing to do with his ability."

Courage Has No Colour is short for an audiobook at just over three hours so it is a shame that much of this time is filled out by padding. No doubt the Triple Nickles story highlights an important moment in America's military and social history, but I got the impression that Stone struggled to find much in the way of detailed source material about the experiences of the battalion itself. There are interesting snippets such as the Japanese balloon bomb campaign. I had never heard about this WWII strategy before although my immediate response was to think of Roswell, not forest fires! I liked that Stone did include words from a trio of surviving Triple Nickles whom she interviewed and she did also include frequent quotes from a pre-existing autobiography. It's a shame that more direct information wasn't used - or possibly even available - though because, for a book that is supposed to have been about this historically important batallion, Courage Has No Color spends more time talking generally about 1940s America rather than specifically about the Triple Nickles.

Etsy Find!
by Jennifers Potpourri in
Oklahoma, USA

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Tanya Lee Stone / History / Books from America

Saturday 22 October 2016

The Rape Of Nanking by Iris Chang


The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II by Iris Chang
Published in America in 1997. Blackstone audiobook edition narrated by Anna Fields published in 1997.

Where to buy this book:
Buy the audiobook download from Audible via Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Bought from Audible

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Although not completely unaware of the Japanese invasion of China in the 1930s, I knew very little of the details or the scale of this war. Therefore, when I saw Iris Chang's The Rape of Nanking on Audible, I thought the book would help to fill in some of the gaps in my knowledge. It most certainly does.

The Rape of Nanking is not a book to be taken lightly and is eight hours listening to despicably savage and brutal inhumanity on a truly incredible scale. Anna Fields does an excellent job of the narration and Chang's research was obviously lengthy and thorough to have uncovered such a wealth of detail. I'm sure so much exposure to this level of horror would have turned her mind, even without the harassment she apparently suffered after her book was published.

For me, her most frightening findings are that the events at Nanking, while being perhaps on the largest scale the world has ever seen, are by no means an exclusive result of Japanese culture - a frequent argument I've heard about other WW2 Japanese atrocities. Similar crimes are an all too human failing, as is our ability to remain at a distance and watch rather than instinctively leaping in to protect the victims. I was disappointed but unsurprised by the fact of post-war political shenanigans allowing Japan's government to essentially get away with their actions. Such is the power of money and political paranoia.

I did find it a little odd than the few 'unsung heroes' of Nanking presented by Chang were all white Europeans and Americans. Surely some Chinese must have shown similar bravery? Or perhaps such heroes died before their stories were discovered. I understand that Chang wrote for an American audience, but that gives the book an odd Colonial slant that I found hard to reconcile with her earlier points. Also, I thought the repeated attempts to calculate total numbers were unnecessary and removed me as a listener from the immediacy of the rest of the work. My mind was blown by the initial discussions of between quarter and half a million dead in less than two months. Returning to this numbed me rather than increasing my outrage as presumably was the point.

The Rape of Nanking is a tricky book to evaluate as its subject matter is so horrific and emotive. That it is also still controversial is a bizarre twist. I appreciate Chang's efforts to spread knowledge and open discussions about Nanking. In this, she certainly achieved her aims. However, this is not the strongest written history and, at times, her inexperience shows through. I am sure by now, nearly 20 years later, other historians have taken up her challenge and further titles are out there. I'm not sure that I will be able to cope with returning to the horror in the near future though.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Iris Chang / War books / Books from America

Friday 21 October 2016

The Alkahest by Honore de Balzac


The Alkahest by Honoré de Balzac
First published in France in 1834. English translation by Katharine Prescott Wormeley.

How I got this book:
Downloaded from ForgottenBooks

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I downloaded Balzac's Comedie Humaine novella, The Alkahest, together in a volume with Seraphita, another his stories. Set in Flemish Belgium, The Alkahest concerns a well-heeled family who are driven to the brink of poverty when the father develops an all-consuming passion for chemistry, specifically alchemy. Perpetually convinced that he is at the threshold of a discovery to bring glory and untold riches to his family, he squanders generations of accumulated wealth and possessions to fund his quest.

Balzac's portrayal of the father, Balthazar, is wonderfully written and convincing throughout. His obsession with science did seem an odd choice to me, but as his behaviour deteriorates, obvious parallels can be seen to drug addictions such as to heroin and I would be interested to know if Balzac had any experience of friends or relatives drawn into addiction because he seems to understand the predicament so well. The actions of Balthazar's wife, Josephine, and eldest daughter, Marguerite, are painful to read but also totally realistic. Initially swept up in his enthusiasm for his project, Josephine schools herself in chemistry in order to understand, but is then repeatedly shattered at being cast aside in favour of the obsession. Marguerite finally gains the strength and financial power to stand between Balthazar and his laboratory, but fails to fully comprehend the insidious hold under which Balthazar exists.

The Alkahest is slow to start and it took me a couple of goes reading the first thirty or so pages before I got into the story proper. Balzac feels he needs to explain the family history and their roots within their community in detail. I got the gist pretty quickly! However, I think it was worth ploughing through all the early description as, once done, the plot continues at at swifter pace and was a good read. Perhaps the repetition of rise and fall of circumstance could have been more tightly edited, but Balzac is not a writer who felt the need to economise on word counts! I was surprised by how relevant The Alkahest is to twenty-first century living and would actually recommend it to a wider readership than Seraphita as it does not mire itself in doctrine and dogma.

Etsy Find!
by The Bijoux Parlour in
Trento, Italy

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Honore De Balzac / Novellas / Books from France

Thursday 20 October 2016

I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson


I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson
Published in America by Dial Books in September 2014. Brilliance Audio edition narrated by Julia Whelan and Jesse Bernstein published in 2014.

Featured in This Time Last Year for Oct 2019

How I got this book:
Downloaded as part of the AudioSYNC 2016 season

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


'Jude and her brother, Noah, are incredibly close twins. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude surfs and cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and divisive ways...until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as an unpredictable new mentor. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they'd have a chance to remake their world.'

I managed to completely miss the hype about I'll Give You The Sun so downloaded the audiobook without any preconceptions other than it was a young adult novel. I don't think this label is well suited to the book though! Other than its main protagonists being in their mid-teens, this is just as much a book for adults as for teenagers. It explores universal concepts of family, loss, love and fate, and I enjoyed pretty much everything about it. In fact the only aspect that spoilt it for me was the narrators. Please publishers, if a book has a major character from another country, make sure you hire narrators than can actually pronounce words in the relevant accent. Whelan's English accent is mostly ok and gets better as we go along, but I don't think Bernstein ever even hit Europe, let alone Britain. It's so distracting and I wondered if Colombian listeners cringed as much every time Guillermo spoke!

Narration aside, Nelson's rich prose is frequently breathtaking and I loved her use of hyperbole and vivid colour to enhance her scenes. All the characters are complex and thoroughly believable so I felt totally immersed in their lives and am actually missing them now I have finished the book. The device of Noah and Jude individually speaking does result in some repetition, but it's not overmuch and the story has a good pace. Emotionally, I'll Give You The Sun hits hard with some intense scenes, but is also humorous and sexy, artistically passionate and great fun to experience. I would happily recommend this book.

Etsy Find!
by Lovely Bookish Marks in
Washington, USA

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Jandy Nelson / Young adult books / Books from America

Wednesday 19 October 2016

Refugee Tales edited by David Herd and Anna Pincus + Giveaway


Refugee Tales edited by David Herd and Anna Pincus
Published in the UK by Comma Press in July 2016.

Featured in Cover Characteristics: Barbed Wire

Where to buy this book:
Buy the ebook from Amazon.com / Amazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Gift from a friend

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'Two unaccompanied children travel across the Mediterranean in an overcrowded boat that has been designed to only make it halfway across…
A 63-year-old man is woken one morning by border officers ‘acting on a tip-off’ and, despite having paid taxes for 28 years, is suddenly cast into the detention system with no obvious means of escape…
An orphan whose entire life has been spent in slavery – first on a Ghanaian farm, then as a victim of trafficking – writes to the Home Office for help, only to be rewarded with a jail sentence and indefinite detention…
These are not fictions. Nor are they testimonies from some distant, brutal past, but the frighteningly common experiences of Europe’s new underclass – its refugees. While those with ‘citizenship’ enjoy basic human rights (like the right not to be detained without charge for more than 14 days), people seeking asylum can be suspended for years in Kafka-esque uncertainty. Here, poets and novelists retell the stories of individuals who have direct experience of Britain’s policy of indefinite immigration detention. Presenting their accounts anonymously, as modern day counterparts to the pilgrims’ stories in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, this book offers rare, intimate glimpses into otherwise untold suffering.'


I received a copy of Refugee Tales as a gift from friends, one of whom, Andy, took park in the original Refugee Tales walk - A Walk in Solidarity with Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Detainees. In order to raise awareness of the plight of many people trapped in never-ending detention in Britain, people walked for nine days more-or-less along the old Pilgrim's Way, stopping to rest at night and be told stories. Those stories have now been collected into this book. The Walk was organised by Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group and Kent Refugee Help, two charities to which all the profits from this book will go.

Refugee Tales is a varied mix of short stories and poetry by an impressive roster of novelists, poets and storytellers: Ali Smith, Abdulrazak Gurnah, Chris Cleave, Marina Lewycka, Jade Amoli-Jackson, Patience Agbabi, Inua Ellams, Avaes Mohammad, Hubert Moore, Stephen Collis, Michael Zand, Dragan Todorovic, Carol Watts and David Herd. What all the pieces have in common though is that they are not fictions. Shocking and heart-rending tales of suffering, trafficking, state betrayal and abandonment are difficult enough to read, but knowing that each of these stories is essentially true makes them especially powerful.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Short stories / Political books / Books from England


And now for the giveaway.

This week I am offering my own carefully-read copy of Refugee Tales as the giveaway prize. The book was given to me and it feels right to pass it along in the same spirit, raising awareness of these detainees plight by doing so. My giveaway posts generally have up to four times as many views as standard book reviews so I know I will reach the most people this way.

If you'd like the chance to win this important book, here's the giveaway widget:

Refugee Tales book giveaway

The Giveaway is open worldwide and previous giveaway winners are welcome to enter. Entries must be submitted through the Gleam widget by midnight (UK time) on the 19th October and I will randomly pick a winner on the 20th. If the winner does not respond to my email within 7 days, they will forfeit the prize and, yes, I will be checking that entrants did complete whatever task they said they did.

Good luck!

Tuesday 18 October 2016

Live This Book! by Tom Chatfield


Live This Book! by Tom Chatfield
Published in the UK by Penguin Random House in August 2015.

How I got this book:
Received a copy in a Penguin ThinkSmarter giveaway

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



'Do you want to spend more quality time with the people, ideas and passions that matter most in your life? In an age of weightless, disposable digital products, here's a book to help you live more fully: that invites you to explore your beliefs, ambitions, friendships, memories and flights of imagination. A mixture of inspiration and reflection, it's unlike anything else you've seen before: a beautifully crafted object blending text and design into something for you to make truly your own. Downloading a million digital books won't make you happy - but carrying this one with you might.'

I'm not generally a reader of self help books, but I was surprisingly impressed with Live This Book! It doesn't lecture or offer up solutions, instead its pages are filled with thoughtful questions and ample space to fill in answers. The idea is that by getting to know ourselves better, we can determine exactly what will bring us individual happiness. Chatfield doesn't tell readers what to do in order to be content, he asks what five objects we might put in a time capsule, what sensations we experience while going for a walk, what the last live performance we really enjoyed was. Exercises include Sherlockian (is that a word yet?) Mind Palace imagining, controlled breathing, dinner table conversation starter questions, and asking both friends and acquaintances about ourselves then comparing the answers.

As well being well-considered and insightful, Live This Book! is also a great piece of design and I can imagine it gracing many desks purely as an object to flick through for visual stimulation. I would highly recommend it for anyone wanting to get to know themselves better, but also as a gift suggestion for bloggers and writers as I think it would be a very useful idea generator for when the creative well runs dry!


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Tom Chatfield / Self help books / Books from England

Monday 17 October 2016

Here In Harlem by Walter Dean Myers


Here in Harlem: Poems in Many Voices by Walter Dean Myers
First published in America by Holiday House in 2004.

How I got this book:
Downloaded as part of the AudioSYNC 2015 season

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


'These fifty-four poems, all in different voices but written by one hand, do sing. They make a joyful noise as the author honors the people-the nurses, students, soldiers, and ministers-of his beloved hometown, Harlem. Worship with Deacon Allen, who loves "a shouting church," and study with Lois Smith, who wants "a school named after me." Don't get taken by Sweet Sam DuPree, who "conned a shark right outta his fin." And never turn your back on Delia Pierce, who claims she "ain't the kind to talk behind nobody's back" while doing precisely that-with panache. Inspired by Edgar Lee Masters's classic Spoon River Anthology, Walter Dean Myers celebrates the voices and aspirations of the residents of another American town, one that lies between two rivers on the north side of an island called Manhattan.'

Myers created his collection by remembering the people he used to live alongside when growing up in Harlem and writing around them. Dozens of people each have a short poem or prose piece allowing us insights into their lives, beliefs, passions and friendships. Women, men, girls and boys, of all ages and occupations all line up to speak and, with the audiobook, thirteen different narrators bring their words to life over appropriate music and sound effects. Whoever added the music certainly did an excellent job as this makes the atmosphere real to the listener.

I found the poems themselves a bit hit and miss. Some had strong characters behind the words, but I couldn't always find the person behind others. Perhaps brevity was at fault because most poems only allow the speaker one minute to project themselves. As a whole though, Here In Harlem gives an interesting overview of the district in its jazzy heyday.

Etsy Find!
by Peculiar People Thingss in
London, England

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Walter Dean Myers / Poetry / Books from America

Sunday 16 October 2016

Halo Round The Moon by Steve Turnbull


Halo Round The Moon by Steve Turnbull
Published by Tau Press in June 2014.

Featured in Cover Characteristics: Aeroplanes

Where to buy this book:
Buy the ebook from Amazon.com / Amazon.co.uk

How I got this book:
Bought the ebook from Amazon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

'Pneumatic trains, steampunk air-planes, karmic sex and bloody murder in 1908 India.
When the heir to an industrial empire suffers a fatal accident, Maliha Anderson is called in to determine whether darker forces are at work. What she discovers goes deeper than any crime she's ever investigated. She is forced into intimate contact with the suppressed passions of post-Victorian society and goes far beyond the bounds of what's proper and decent, to bring the murderer to justice.'

Halo Round The Moon is third in Turnbull's Maliha Anderson steampunk mystery series. The novels are set in 1900s India and I like how the atmosphere and etiquette of this time is accurately evoked. Alongside the historical aspects, we also have wondrous fantasy steampunk inventions which, to my mind at least, come across as being perfectly possible and certainly fit aesthetically with the period setting.

I wasn't as convinced by the mystery aspect of Halo Round The Moon as I had been with previous books in the series. Sexuality is a strong theme of the story, but it is hidden behind so many layers of Edwardian repression that I often found it difficult to work exactly what characters were talking about and missed how Maliha made several important deductions. The strength of the book though, for me, is Turnbull's steampunk universe and I was as entranced by the train here as I was by the steamship in the first book of the series, Murder Out Of The Blue. I would so love to see these romantic transports in real life!


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Steve Turnbull / Steampunk fiction / Books from England

Saturday 15 October 2016

Squashed Possums by Jonathan Tindale


Squashed Possums: Off the Beaten Track in New Zealand by Jonathan Tindale
Self published in February 2015.

How I got this book:
Received a review copy from the author

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


'Ten years after returning from the New Zealand outback, Jon receives a mysterious manuscript in the post. Narrated by Jon's former home, the lone caravan, Squashed Possums reveals what it's like to live in the wild through four seasons, including New Zealand's coldest winter in decades.
Discover how Jon finds himself reversing off the edge of a cliff, meet the Maori chef who survived 9/11, the pioneers who paved the way, and catch sight of the elusive kiwi bird. Encounter hedgehogs that fly, possums that scream, and perhaps most importantly, the lone caravan with a story to tell..'

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Squashed Possums. The quirky angle of Jon Tindale's New Zealand sojourn being primarily narrated by the caravan home in which he stayed worked well for me and I was frequently reminded of my own caravan-dwelling months, due to restart in just a few weeks! I have never pitched up anywhere as remote as Tindale did, but am now inspired to do so and loved the descriptions of wide-open wilderness and solitude. References to a slow speed of life and mindful tranquillity were both familiar and, in their heightened New Zealand intensity, very appealing.

The caravan's chapters are interspersed with diary entries which does result in some repetition, but also enables a wide range of subjects to be naturally covered without Squashed Possums ever feeling like a lecture. I was interested to learn about New Zealand's history and post-Great War changes, and to read descriptions of its unique wildlife, climate and expansive undeveloped landscapes. Discussions of Kiwi and Maori ingenuity and the idea of the solitary life heritage are fascinating.

Squashed Possums is an inspiring read for all wandering travellers, whether they do so in real life or vicariously from armchairs. I am now envious of Tindale's adventure and sorely tempted to book my own ticket to New Zealand. I think I would want to take my own caravan though - the heater works!

Etsy Find!
by Antheas Arts And Crafts in
Nottingham, England

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Jonathan Tindale / Travel books / Books from England

Wednesday 12 October 2016

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott + Giveaway


Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
First published in America in 1868 by Roberts Brothers.

Where to buy this book:
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Bought from a charity shop

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug. So begins one of the best-loved children’s classics, Little Women. Coming of age in the North during the Civil War, the March sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—experience great joy and tragic loss while becoming the true little women of the title. The novel is resonant with themes of friendship, feminism, and building strong character, which are explored through the sisters’ relationships with their family, in particular their beloved Marmee, their friends, and their neighbours.'

It has probably been thirty years since I last read Little Women. I remember it being one of my favourite books as a child, along with the rest of the series, and I know I read them all several times. Returning to the book now I was first reminded of reading Black Beauty again last year because there is so much hectoring and moralising! Strangely I don't think that stood out to me as a child, probably because I was frequently told what to do and how to behave anyway, but as an adult this aspect really stood out. I was surprised by how modern Little Women is, especially in showing strong, self-sufficient women. The fact of Mother, Meg and Jo all having jobs is not seen as unusual and, while Mother obvious expects her daughters to all eventually marry, she does not push this as the sole point of their lives.

I loved the relationships between all the characters, especially the ghastly aunt, and Alcott's understanding of the girls is perfect throughout. Their acts of rebellion, bickering, exuberance and frequent guilt trips are warmly evoked and reading Little Women again did feel like returning to the family. Their incessant striving to be 'good' and games such as Pilgrim's Progress do date the work as I can't imagine teenagers behaving quite like that these days, but I think this novel has well-deserved classic status and I hope it endures for another 150 years and beyond.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Louisa May Alcott / Children's books / Books from America


And now for the Giveaway!

This week's Giveaway prize is two handmade Literary Greetings Cards of the winner's choice from my Etsy Shop.

My charity shop vintage copy of Little Women wasn't in good condition which was partly why I chose to buy it! Having stayed pretty much together for one last read, I am now upcycling its pages to make a range of Literary Greetings Cards embellished with themed motifs I crocheted myself. So far the range comprises cards featuring Little Women, Wuthering Heights and The Yellow Wallpaper all listed for sale in my Etsy Shop at £2.50 each plus shipping (£1.50 per order within UK, £2.25 within Europe, £3 to the Rest of the World). I chose text and embellishments to be appropriate for Halloween or for Christmas and some cards are suitable for any occasion. All are blank inside for your own message and their book's title is noted discreetly on the backs.

If you'd like the chance to win two of these cards, here's the giveaway widget:

2x Literary Greetings Cards giveaway

The Giveaway is open worldwide and previous giveaway winners are welcome to enter. Entries must be submitted through the Gleam widget by midnight (UK time) on the 19th October and I will randomly pick a winner on the 20th. If the winner does not respond to my email within 7 days, they will forfeit the prize and, yes, I will be checking that entrants did complete whatever task they said they did.

Good luck!

Tuesday 11 October 2016

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson


I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
First published in America by Gold Medal Books in 1954. Blackstone Audio edition narrated by Robertson Dean published in 2007.

One of my Favourite Five Horror Stories for Halloween 2015 and one of my Top Ten Books of 2015


How I got this book:
Bought the audio download from Audible

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

'Robert Neville is the last living man on Earth...but he is not alone. Every other man, woman, and child on Earth has become a vampire, and they are all hungry for Neville's blood. By day, he is the hunter, stalking the sleeping undead through the abandoned ruins of civilization. By night, he barricades himself in his home and prays for dawn. How long can one man survive in a world of vampires?'

Horror fiction isn't my usual fare, but when I saw a narration of Richard Matheson's I Am Legend in an Audible 2-for-1-credit promotion I thought I would give it a try. Written in the 1950s, the story is a classic and I assumed that, being of that vintage, it would not be as graphically gory as modern tales. In this I was right. There are flashes of horrific violence, but what made I Am Legend brilliant for me is its creeping dread and its overriding sense of loss.

Our protagonist, Robert Neville, believes himself the last non-vampiric human alive and lives an isolated existence boarded up every night in a home besieged by his hunters. My edition was narrated by Robertson Dean who does a great job. His world-weary tones perfectly suit Neville's predicament so it was easy for me to get past the unreal element and accept the world as Matheson created it. Set in the then future of 1976, the summer is not especially hot - was it in America or just Europe? - but the library contains actual books and I liked how Matheson has Neville take home volumes to study.

Without, hopefully, giving away too much of the plot for anyone like me who hadn't even seen one of the film adaptations, the flashbacks to Neville's previous family life are sad and reminded me at times of the panic and chaos of Jose Saramago's Blindness. The dog is particularly heartrending and I loved the final twist which is so unlike standard narrative fare that I didn't see it coming. Brilliant storytelling and I'm glad I took a chance on it. I think I will learn how to wire up a generator though - just in case!


Etsy Find!
by Ctrl Alt Geek in
Southsea, England

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Richard Matheson / Horror fiction / Books from America

Saturday 8 October 2016

An Ishmael Of Syria by Asaad Almohammad


An Ishmael Of Syria by Asaad Almohammad
Self published in the USA in April 2016.

One of my WorldReads from Syria

How I got this book:
Received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


'Adam is a tortured soul. Exiled from his homeland, forced to watch the horrors unfold from afar. His family, still living – or surviving – in war-torn Syria struggle daily to feed, clothe, and educate their children. Adam tries to be a ‘global citizen’ and become a part of his new community in Malaysia, but is constantly faced with intolerance, bigotry, and plain old racism. Opportunities are few and Adam finds himself working long hours for poor pay so that he can help his family. The increasingly distressing news bulletins, along with Adam’s haunting childhood memories, compel him to examine his own beliefs; in God, in humanity, in himself and his integrity as a reluctant bystander in the worst human catastrophe of the twenty-first century.'

I didn't know what to expect from Almohammad's debut novel having chosen it mainly based on the fact of its author being Syrian - another country for my WorldReads collection - and for the striking cover art by Judy Almohammad. I certainly wasn't prepared for its shockingly powerful streams of furious prose which frequently took my breath away. An Ishmael Of Syria is a truly contemporary novel and one whose writing, I think, is almost experimental. The timeline jumps seemingly randomly through Adam's life, unearthed memories from childhood being recounted at the moment of their remembrance, regardless of how that sits with the narrative. I found this difficult to get into initially and it wasn't until over half-way through that I felt comfortable. Comfortable with the writing style at least.

An Ishmael Of Syria must be intended to shock global bystanders out of our blind reverie and to force us to see into the heart of what is left of Syria. Adam's helpless rage, exiled and isolated as he is in Malaysia, is painful to witness. This novel reads as a first-hand account and it felt as if I were hearing this man speaking directly to me. I had no real idea of the complexities of the war or the people involved and this is a point Almohammad repeatedly hammers home. Other nationals see 'Syrians' and jump to preconceived conclusions about their beliefs and goals. Adam sees his own countrymen individually and argues philosophically and culturally with every one. Even the common ground of shared trauma is experienced independently.

As already mentioned, I did struggle with the time leaps and I was also sometimes lost by scholarly flights into long psychological monologues. This contrasted with other sections where conversations suffered from clunky dialogue and overuse of exposition. This is a difficult book to review and rate, hence my middle-ground three stars. Parts are truly inspired and I felt Almohammad's impassioned words emotionally, other parts reminded me that this is an indie author's debut. It feels so harsh and uncaring to criticise though when, although Adam himself may not actually exist, his story most certainly is far too real.


Etsy Find!
by Heartstrings Of Syria in
the United Kingdom

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Asaad Almohammad / Contemporary fiction / Books from Syria

Friday 7 October 2016

Colour New York by Emma Kelly


Colour New York by Emma Kelly
Published in the UK in April 2016 by Ivy Press

How I got this book:
Won in a Project Calm magazine giveaway

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



"Not only is New York one of the liveliest cities on earth, but it’s also one of the most colourful, in both the literal and the metaphorical sense. Colour New York captures the energy and excitement of life on its streets against a backdrop of the iconic buildings and landmarks that give it an instant familiarity all over the world. Emma Kelly’s lively and eclectic style of illustration suits her subject perfectly: with locations ranging from Union Square Greenmarket to the Guggenheim Museum and the views from the High Line to the rides at Coney Island, she’s created a visual extravaganza – all you need to add is colour.."

I'd like to present a very different kind of book for review today! I had so far managed to avoid the adult colouring book fashion which has swept the country over the past couple of years, but I think winning this beautiful example of the genre might just turn me into a convert. Colour New York is a large format book printed on good quality paper. It contains twenty iconic New York scenes all of which are incredibly intricate line drawings. I particularly like the ones of Grand Central Station and The Strand Bookstore. There's also a triple-page spread of the New York Skyline which, to be honest, is a little intimidating for this beginner! I think I will start with the small drawing excerpts on the title pages. This would be a great book for colouring-in fans and people practicing mindfulness. I'm looking forward to getting stuck in and, if I find myself getting addicted, I know two other cities have their own books in this series - London and Paris. I am going to need more pens!


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Emma Kelly / Arts and culture / Books from England

Thursday 6 October 2016

The Lovely Brush by Heather Awad


The Lovely Brush by Heather Awad
Self published in September 2016

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy from independent booksellers via Alibris
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository

How I got this book:
Received a copy from the author in exchange for my honest review

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'In this collection of poems, the author shares her experiences with life, love, and family. With great depth and sincerity, she talks about personal challenges she has encountered. Her poems are visual, framing small moments in time from childhood up to the present day. Her life has been complex but she shares her experiences with the reader with absolute transparency.'

I discovered poet Heather Awad almost exactly a year ago and blogged my review of her first poetry collection, The Girl With The Blue Umbrella. I was delighted therefore when Heather got in touch recently to announce her second collection, The Lovely Brush, especially as she kindly offered me a review copy. Containing a similar number of poems to The Girl, sixty-four to the previous sixty-two, The Lovely Brush allows Awad a wide scope in which to present her universal themes while at the same time being so intensely personal that its reading felt claustrophobic. Demons are surely being exorcised here and I loved her clarity of memory and vision which is frequently almost painful to read.

The poems themselves are all just a single page long and have varied structures which maintained my interest. I identified strongly with two of the earliest, Simply and Diffident. Blushing is a delicate portrait of the beginnings of love and I appreciated the incisive observations in Getting Coffee At Window Two and A Girl's Dream. Awad delves into the darker aspects of family life for several poems highlighting alcoholism, neglect and violence, composing her words into gentle, subtle rhythms that contrast with their meanings to great effect. Overall I did find reading The Lovely Brush to be a bleak and saddening experience due to much of its subject matter which, I think, tells of the power of Awad's work to create such an emotional response.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Heather Awad / Poetry / Books from America