This book is about the life and (mostly failed) loves of three women: Chia, her friend Zikora and her cousin Omelogor. They are all Nigerian, living variously in the USA and Nigeria, quite well-off, and each with their own interesting lives and stories. There is a fourth woman too, Kadiatou, an associate of Chia. She is also an African (albeit Guinean) living in the USA, but not at all well-off. Her role in the novel is quite different.
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Two contrasting stream-of-consciousness narratives in this novel, set 100 years ago. Mrs Dalloway is preparing to host a party – we go inside her thoughts and also those of various friends and associates, so we get a full picture of … Continue reading
This is not the story of the feijoa. It is the story of Kate Evans’s journey investigating the story of the feijoa. Along the way we do learn a lot of interesting stuff about feijoas, but we also learn a … Continue reading
This is the third volume of In Search of Lost Time, in which our hero (I’ll call him Marcel even though that’s probably not his name) enters the world of high society, basically by stalking Mme de Guermantes until he … Continue reading
Susan Rogers’ first claim to fame is that she was the chief engineer on Prince’s critically acclaimed and immensely popular Purple Rain album. After a subsequent glittering career as a record producer she became a cognitive neuroscientist. This career path … Continue reading
This is an amazing book. Amazing. The first chapter (Chapter A) is an interesting story written in a quirky style: Continue reading
Lucrezia’s husband is planning to murder her – what can she do about it? This book is a compelling dive into the personal and political world of 15th-century Florentine royalty. It’s a fictionalised account of a real troubled marriage, with … Continue reading
As usual with Wodehouse, I was chuckling all the way through this book. This is the first Lord Ickenham story I have read. He is a great character, like a haphazardly mischievous version of Jeeves. The many characters get themselves … Continue reading
This is a great variation on the time-loop story. Tara, our narrator, wakes up on November 19 only to discover that it’s actually November 18 again. For the rest of the book she repeats November 18 every day, gradually realising … Continue reading
In Search of Lost Time continues. The narrator is now an adolescent, so this book is largely concerned with his newfound fascination with young ladies. The first half of the book continues on from the last book, featuring Swann and … Continue reading