The Monthly Line: January 2025
It's a whopper
Hello everyone,
I'm sneaking in for the last Sunday of February with my books from January.
I somehow managed to read 12 books in January, which is quite a lot higher than my usual average! I think a combination of the Christmas holidays, and always getting a seat on the tube thanks to my baby on board badge, explains the uptick. An argument for pregnancy if I ever heard one.
This month we've got war-themed non-fiction and a few dystopian novels. Let's dive in.
One. The Book at War by Andrew Pettegree
I got this big non-fiction book for Christmas after spotting it in a bookshop and thinking it might work for me. It's about the role of books - or really of the written word - during European wars. It ostensibly covers a large time period but in reality it spends a lot of time on WW1 and WW2. I enjoyed it for the most part, but I did find the focus on the world wars a little limiting, it would have been interesting to hear more about other conflicts. He also speaks about how different countries have approached the literacy of their fighting troops, which again I could have heard more about.
How I read it: mostly in that funny bit between Christmas and New Year, feeling uncomfortably full
Two. Buried Deep by Naomi Novik
Another Christmas treat, this collection of short stories by my favourite fantasy author went straight onto my list. It has side stories from a bunch of her novels, and I particularly enjoyed the one set in the Scholomance (unsurprisingly). Novik trained herself through writing fan-fiction so it was fun to see her explore that here, by re-imagining Pride and Prejudice in a world full of dragons. There's also a sneak peak of her next novel, which did feel very different in style, I'm excited to read more.
How I read it: probably too quickly, but I'm looking forward to dipping in and out in future
Three. Potty training magic by Amanda Jenner
Not one I would recommend to everyone, given it is an extremely specific guide to potty-training your toddler. Nevertheless, if you're in the market for that then it is clear and helpful, and it seems to have worked! It's very easy to read - you can skim it really.
How I read it: speed-reading one evening to get ready
Four. Rule Britannia by Daphne du Maurier
This is a funny addition to the du Maurier canon, as it's not historical fiction but instead dystopian fiction. It imagines what would happen if the UK became a colony of the USA, and a small group in Cornwall decided to fight back. At the centre is a young woman living with her grandmother and her grandmother's adopted children, a slightly feral pack of boys ranging from 3 to 21. It's odd, but very engaging, and has the sense of foreboding that du Maurier is so good at hinting at throughout a text.
How I read it: a slim paperback so perfect for commuting
Five. The Agency for Scandal by Laura Wood
Avid followers will have noticed I've been ticking off quite a few novels by Laura Wood, who writes incredibly cosy young adult books. This one has a slightly darker heart, as it follows a young woman who has been recruited to be a spy/private detective by an agency that predominantly helps women. It's also a romance, and has a lot of fun exploring the tropes of typical romance novels with a crime setting over the top. The perfect winter evening read.
How I read it: at home on the sofa in a quiet evening
Six. Held by Anne Michaels
I picked this up because it was on the Booker prize shortlist last year, and I did enjoy the experimental style which relies on you picking up on a lot of clues to determine where you are in the timeline and who you are following. It starts with a young man about to go to the trenches in world war one, but it blossoms out from there to encompass a lot more. I enjoyed the experience of reading it, but I find I haven't thought of it since, so it didn't make a deep impression.
How I read it: on the tube to work, not always conducive to concentrating
Seven. Sovietistan by Erika Fatland
I've had this travelogue on my to-read list for ages, and finally picked it up because I felt in the mood to explore. It follows Fatland, a Norwegian author, as she travels through the central Asian states that were part of the Soviet Union - Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. I knew nothing about those nations before, and it was truly fascinating to get a snapshot of their history and culture. They are nations with an extremely long past, but she mainly focusses on how they were affected by the Soviet Union and how they have fared since (which for four out of the five is a question of just how bad their dictator has been). She covers so much ground (both literally and historically) that she could never tell you everything but what she does tell you is startling, maddening, and astonishing in equal measure. We have two more of her books at home so I shall be reading them at some point soon.
How I read it: a conveniently long train journey
Eight. Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
This was a book club pick which I was sceptical about to begin with but I ended feeling like it had a lot going for it. It follows an Iranian-American man in his twenties, a former alcoholic, who is struggling to find his purpose, though he knows he wants to be a poet. I did find him a bit grating initially but as the plot picked up speed he grew on me. His mother died in a plane crash when he was a baby, which understandably had a profound affect on him, and lots of the novel explores the nature of dying, and whether dying for a cause is more noble. It lots its way a bit towards the end, but I liked how it took religion seriously, and the poetic style (the author is also a poet) was beautiful to read in places.
How I read it: commuting with my kindle
Nine. Sweetness in the skin by Ishi Robinson
I can't quite decide how I feel about this one. It had both a fairytale unreality to it, while also holding a darkness that didn't seem to match together. It follows Pumkin, a teenager in Jamaica, whose mother has always been absent, or violent when there, and so she has been mostly brought up by her grandma and aunt Sophie. I loved all the interpersonal dynamics, and how it never landed on one person being bad while another was good. It also explored really powerfully what happens when a young person loses their safety net in one fell swoop and there's no on there to catch them. If you like a lot of plot too, then a whole lot happens so it keeps you reading.
How I read it: my bedtime book, which wasn't ideal actually as the temptation to read another chapter was always very strong
Ten. Hitler, Stalin, Mum & Dad by Daniel Finkelstein
I heard Lord Finkelstein speak to a Holocaust Memorial Day event and picked up his book as a result. His mother was a Holocaust survivor, while his father survived deportation by the Soviets to a barren part of Siberia, alongside his mother. One of the quotes that stayed with me from the event was Finkelstein saying that all stories of survivors of the Holocaust are extraordinary, because if nothing extraordinary happened, you didn't survive, and that certainly rings true with this biography. It's astonishing what they endured and how they survived. It's also very thoroughly researched, while retaining a humanity that I found moving.
How I read it: at home during toddler naps, and my own bedtime
Eleven. The Men by Sandra Newman
Imagine a world where one morning you wake up and all the men have disappeared. Into thin air. And no one knows where or how. What world would rise from the ashes? Newman is an author who likes to explore big questions, and this novel is no exception. It covers climate change, gender-based violence, socialism, power, the mutability of truth... you name it, you can probably find it in there. Despite what sounds like a heavy list, it is short and incredibly engaging. The ending didn't quite work for me, but I imagine it's hard to land a plane which has so many wings.
How I read it: another commuting book
Twelve. When Hitler stole pink rabbit by Judith Kerr
Another one I picked up off the back of Holocaust Memorial Day, as they had a special display at the library. It is a slightly fictionalised account of Kerr and her family's own flight from Germany, first to Switzerland, then to France, and finally, at the end of the book, to England. Despite being written when she was in her fifties she manages to retain the perfect childlike voice as we follow 'Anna' through the family's various moves and challenges. It is written for children, so it never strays too far into giving you the bigger picture, but stays tightly on what she understood at the time. Reading it as an adult, this gives it an extra emotional heft as you can read between the lines and understand what is going on.
How I read it: this was my bedtime book for a few nights
Book of the month: for its clarity and humanity I think it's got to be Hitler, Stalin, Mum and Dad.
Phew, that was a lot of books! Thanks for reading this far, do let me know if you've enjoyed any of these and drop me a line with your recommendations too.