January was a good start to the year! Though I have to admit, I’m finding book shopping and stumbling across something I’d like to read quite difficult at the moment. Perhaps this is something to do with the new year being a generally low energy time for most of us (those who aren’t going mad at the gym or taking up new hobbies).
I started the year with ‘The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle’ by Matt Cain. An absolute joy. I love reading fiction with older protagonists. What this book did so beautifully was share how universal the search for love and acceptance is. Anyone struggling with the idea that they’ve wasted any portion of their life on worrying what others think, or let it force them out of doing what they really wanted, will find this massively soothing. The reality of life is, we can change our minds, and lives, at any age. It’s never too late.
The book also handles class and inter-generational friendships beautifully too. Albert’s relationship with Nicole, a young mum trying to change her life by attending the local college, is also handled brilliantly. Nicole’s experience of living on a council estate rubs up against the expectations of her new boyfriend’s parents in a way that felt genuine. I’d definitely recommend for anyone looking for something feel good.
Claire Keegan’s ‘Small Things Like These’ is set in 1985, in small-town Ireland. While this may have been more appropriate as a Christmas read, it didn’t hinder my enjoyment one bit. Claire Keegan is a master of storytelling. How she crams so much emotion into such short books is beyond my comprehension. Nothing feels rushed, every word is intentional. It’s sent me on a journey through the rest of her work, but more on that next month! I can’t recommend this enough!
‘Boys Don’t Cry’ by Fiona Scarlett didn’t disappoint either. I don’t know if Irish authors are capable of disappointing. I like to think it’s the Celtic storytelling gene. Irish, Scot, or Welsh, we won’t shut up for the life of us. That’s a lot of practice spinning a yarn.
The novel takes place in a Dublin tower block. Even though I had seen reviews describing the book as heartbreaking, I still didn’t feel prepared. This book is a reminder that we are not all dealt the same cards. And some families are given more than their fair share to contend with.
Finally, and perhaps the most surprising based on everything else I read in January, is Simon McCleave’s ‘The Dark Tide’. Having grown up in North Wales, and missing home from the ever-so-slightly sunnier climes of Cardiff, I was desperate to read something set where I grew up. Perhaps a crime thriller wasn’t the cosiest of vibes, but it sure did it keep me gripped from the first page.
McCleave does a really great job of showing how interwoven small-town life is with the city. Everyone knows someone who’s either left for it, or returned. And with it, brought plenty of baggage. As the first in a series, this book does an amazing job (better than any crime novel I’ve read before) of setting up our protagonist’s origin story. DCI Laura Hart was a top negotiator working for the Manchester police force, and now she’s living in a small town on Anglesey, riddled with both grief and guilt.
It is undoubtedly impressive how McCleave weaves in elements of DCI Hart’s backstory into the plot, and even sets up even more drama in the books to come. I’ll certainly be reading the next in the series.
If you’ve read any of the books mentioned, let me know what you thought!
Tim Wynne 