It’s been some time since I shared a reading update on here, between lockdown and taking a break for the school holidays. I’ve also found that (sob!) my bookish posts aren’t as popular as some of the other posts I write here – sadly there’s that effort-reward balance in terms of deciding how much time to spend on something that doesn’t seem to engage with people in the same manner as some of my other stuff. With that in mind, I’ve tried to thread more of my reading material into the posts I write here on a (roughly) weekly basis, with a view to sharing a bigger round up at the end of every season. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll see that I often share bookish posts on my grid, or on Stories, and occasionally over on Facebook too. With all that in mind then, this is a quick highlights reel of some of my favourite reads from the summer – a combination of the huge pile of library books I borrowed before lockdown, a couple of books I was given, and the results of my scouring every bookshelf in the house for any previously unread material (which led to an odd dystopian phase, possibly not the best idea for a year like 2020).
All in all, it was a very good season of reading.
Without further ado, then, let’s talk about the books….
My earliest reads of the season were The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon and The Province of the Cat by George Gunn, which you can read about in this post. Technically, I probably read these books in Spring, but this year, I’m not sure such details really count. Next, I moved on to Quiet by Susan Cain, a powerful book on introversion, which I covered in more detail here – essential reading for anyone seeking to validate their discomfort with society’s extrovert obsession. Up next was Peter May’s Coffin Road, a thriller set against the backdrop of the Outer Hebrides, and connected to the fragility of bee colonies, leading naturally, to my worrying about the future of bees in the world (as if there wasn’t enough to be anxious about this year.)
Lost Connections by Johann Hari was a powerful read on the causes of anxiety and depression, made particularly poignant by the compounding effect of lockdown on many of the contributing factors outlined. Lady in Waiting by Anne Glenconner was a fascinating memoir of a life lived on the fringes of royalty (the author was a Maid of Honour at the Queen’s coronation, and also served as Princess Margaret’s Lady in Waiting). I found it a hugely readable account of royal life, drama and devastating personal loss.

Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility were my nod to the classics this summer (Sense and Sensibility wasn’t my favourite Austen novel, but I found myself blubbing away wholeheartedly at the film adaption starring Kate Winslet and Emma Thompson). Book-wise, I preferred Jane Eyre – probably due to the feisty, memorable nature of the central character. That, and the film adaption starring Michael Fassbender – perfect Sunday afternoon fare for lockdown, or indeed, at any other time.

Soon, I was onto my dystopian phase, with Animal Farm, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451 and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale all on the agenda. Of these books, my favourites were by far the first and the last, with Animal Farm taking us on a homeschool detour around the Russian Revolution, and The Handmaid’s Tale sending me in search of the (fantastic) 2017 television show. When our local library re-opened to a new ‘pot luck’ click and collect service, the librarian delighted me with two books she picked out for me. The first was Polly Clark’s Larchfield, a gorgeous time-slip tale of two poets, one a fictional WH Auden, the other a Mother struggling with the isolation of her new home in Scotland. The second was Amy Sackville’s Orkney, the story of an aged professor and his mysterious young wife on honeymoon on an Orkney island – I loved it. A wonderfully mesmerising tale of watery obsession and the sea.



With the kids, I read Uki and The Outcasts by Kieran Larwood, one of my younger son’s favourites in the Five Realms series of plucky humanoid rabbits and their adventures. We also enjoyed Fir for Luck, Barbara Henderson’s evocation of the Highland Clearances in Sutherland aimed at a young audience – a useful insight into history for any young (or not-so-young) readers interested in learning about this sad period in Scottish life. We gratefully received two dyslexia-friendly books from the lovely people at Barrington Stoke – a wonderful retelling of Wuthering Heights by Tanya Landman and Eve Ainsworth’s Just Another Little Lie, a sensitive, compassionate portrayal of a young girl’s experience of life with a parent battling alcohol addiction.


Finally, I read Our House is on Fire, by Malena and Beata Ernman, Svante and Greta Thunberg, an urgent manifesto on climate change, which I wrote about in this post.

Evidence, as if we needed it, that books change lives – and sometimes, might just even save the world.
Gx
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I love Fir for Luck, such a good book. Lots of other fab ones here I’ll be adding to my to be read list xx
Oh good, hope you enjoy Susan. Yes, Fir for Luck is a really interesting read. X
That’s a wide variety of reading Gail!
I have to say I prefer the Bronte’s to Austen any day. I really don’t like how Jane Austen writes, in that she frequently addresses the reader directly; if I’m reading a novel, I don’t want the author stepping in and taking me out of the story.
I studied Language and Literature at University and many of my fellow students thought it was almost blasphemy that I didn’t like Austen or Dickens. I love Dickens’ stories, but I find the lengthy detail of his descriptions, that enable screen adaptations to come to life, very tedious to read. On the other hand, my favourites include Ted Hughes, William Blake, Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, J R Tolkien, J K Rowling, David Eddings, Dan Brown and several international writers – mainly detective, puzzle adventure and fantasy genres. If you hadn’t guessed from the author list, I am a fan of poetry, I love the discipline and conciseness of the writing and it is my preferred way to write, that said it has been many years since I have written anything for pleasure as my writing these days tends to be for work, developing assignments for learners.
Thanks Linda, yes, I do have quite eclectic tastes and will read most things – except perhaps horror, or very dark crime novels. I love learning about different subjects, and other people’s lives. That’s interesting about your own background, it sounds like you also love reading! I’ve become much more influenced by poetry these last years, I think it stems from getting to know some poets at my writing group and absorbing a new sort of appreciation through them. I have to admit I haven’t read any Dickens, I’ve heard it can be a bit of a struggle. I did notice that Barrington Stoke have a retelling of ‘A Christmas Carol’ in their portfolio, so nearer December, I might start off with that! x
Wow Gail, what a mix of books here! I love that you’re not fixed on one genre – the sign of a true book worm. You’ve also managed to devour so many. I like the sound of the book about connection and why the loss of it is affecting our mental health. It makes so much sense. Thanks for sharing these 🙂 xx
Glad you enjoyed Suzanne, yes the Lost Connections Book is really interesting – even though it was written in the pre-Covid era. I do love to read widely and I also think it really helps with developing your own writing style. I usually read about a book a week (unless it’s really, really long!) xx
A few years ago the person who was the reason I first came to Caithness gifted me a book, which I have only just got round to reading – Island of Wings by Karen Altenberg – it’s set on the Island of St Kilda in 1830 and is a fictionalised account of real people and events and in particular Rev. Neil McKenzie and his wife Lizzie.
It was a good read, but I did find some of the themes challenging – not least the ideas of ‘female place and power’ in the early 1800s and also the idea that the ‘native heathens’ needed to be brought to God to improve their souls! That said Lizzie really is the central character and the stronger of the two and the islanders beliefs are prominent themes, although at one point I was so angry about the Reverend’s imposed views undermining the island culture, I almost put the book down, but I’m glad I finished it.
It also touches on the Highland Clearances, which seemed to involve people being forced off their land and being sent to Nova Scotia? This was only briefly mentioned and so I will need to find out more to understand the background of this fully.
Sounds like an interesting book, Linda – and yes, the Clearances are a fascinating (and poignant) period in Highland history. John Prebble has written quite a lot on the subject. I find myself more drawn to understanding history the older I get. X