Happy Christmas everyone. This week’s blog post is dedicated to the books I read in 2015. This year I have read 20 books, which is 12 less than last year. This is because I devoted a great deal of time to my 3rd novel, Symbiosis. Symbiosis is a psychological thriller about twin girls called Talulah and Taliah. I will be revealing more information about Symbiosis next week.
The following 20 books are presented in the order in which I read them. Click on the links to read my reviews.
My Childhood by Maxim Gorky (1915) – This is a harrowing account of a turbulent and cruel childhood.
Savage Night by Jim Thompson (1953) – A suspenseful crime novel that explores the ugly side of the human condition.
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov (1950) – A thought-provoking and at times humorous work about the evolution of technology
Chess Story by Stefan Zweig (1942) – This psychological novella examines the delicate divide that separates genius from madness.
Confessions of an English Opium-Eater by Thomas de Quincey (1800) – A self-indulgent, turgid, grandiloquent language-laden ordeal.
Cocaine Nights by J.G. Ballard (1996) – A combination of crime thriller and dystopian fiction.
Heart of Darkness & Other Stories by Joseph Conrad (1899) – Three complex, atmospheric and insightful nautical themed tales.
Rant by Chuck Palahniuk (2007) – This challenging book employs an innovative interview format.
Alva & Irva by Edward Carey (2003) – A quaint and quirky novel whose themes include twinship and loneliness.
Cancer Ward by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1968) – The cancer ward serves as a microcosm of Soviet society.
For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway (1940) –This suspenseful but turgid text is set during the Spanish Civil War.
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (1961) – A satire whose central theme is the futility of war.
The Red Pony by John Steinbeck (1932) – A compact, atmospheric and melancholic book that offers insights into the region’s history.
Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf (1925) – An innovative, intellectual, non-plot orientated work replete with pathos.
Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller (1934) – The parasitic protagonist is an American writer living in Paris.
The Day of the Locust by Nathanael West (1939) – This poignant novel is prescient in its prediction of a celebrity-obsessed society.
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess (1962) – A ground-breaking and controversial book boasting an intriguing narrator.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1884) – A satire of American southern antebellum society that parodies slavery.
A Gangster’s Grip by Heather Burnside (2015) – A fast-moving, plot-driven crime novel set in 90s Manchester.
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1962) – (2nd reading) – The author puts a human face to the plight of the untold millions who suffered in the Soviet Union’s Gulags.
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (1877) – Currently reading.
I look forward to hearing about the books you read this year.
