1) Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel.
An interesting take on the post-apocalyptic tale with a focus on the power of culture and stories in a broken world. Very ambitious and the interlinking of the characters is well done, though I found the climax a bit rushed and perfunctory after the long buildup to it. #books #bookstodon

2) The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, by NK Jemisin
A fascinating fantasy set amidst the human elite in a world where gods are real and tangibly present. Sometimes a little overwhelming in the strangeness and I was scrabbling to keep track of it all. Want to see more of this world, especially how the people below live their lives in the shadow of the conflicts that rage above them, and I will be reading the rest of the trilogy.
#books #bookstodon

3) Walking, by Thomas Bernhard
Can you guess why I got this one? Turned out to not really be my cup of tea, but still some interesting ideas in there. A translated Austrian novella about two friends walking and talking about the events and thoughts leading to another friend going insane. Well, one of them does most of the talking while the other records his stream of consciousness. #books #bookstodon

4) The Old Ways, by Robert Macfarlane
The idea of how some pathways have survived centuries and help us to tell stories of our ancestors and ourselves fascinates me, so I really liked a lot of this. A reminder of some of the different ways of seeing a landscape and finding stories in it, yet Macfarlane is interested in the people around these routes now and their stories too. #books #bookstodon #walking

5) The Red Scholar's Wake, by Aliette de Bodard ( @aliettedb)
Enjoyed this. Has the structure of a romance novel, but set in a future of sentient ships and space pirate politics where the stakes are much higher than the fate of a relationship. Lots of strangeness to get used to, but introduced well through the characters. Not read anything in this Xuya Universe before, but now I want to read more from it. #books #bookstodon

6) The House of Wisdom, by Jonathan Lyons
Interesting but relatively short book on how the scientific progress and intellectual discoveries made by the Arab world were introduced to Europe in the medieval period. Learned a lot about the process of knowledge transfer, but would have liked to read more on the wider effects of it. #books #bookstodon

7) The Debatable Land, by Graham Robb
A book about the history of one part of the Anglo-Scottish border, but quite unfocused. It's like four or more different books are all vying for space, which gave me a feeling of constant digression and a lack of focus. A shame as the parts on the border families and the traditions of reiving were something I'd have enjoyed reading a lot more on. #books #bookstodon

8) Inverting The Pyramid: The History Of Football Tactics, by Jonathan Wilson
Not just a book about tactics, but a look at how the game's development was pushed by wider social and cultural factors. Perhaps a bit too much on England while the real (and more interesting) story was happening elsewhere and some poor editing (who is this Ronaldo Koeman?) but an interesting and informative read. #books #bookstodon

9) A Certain Idea Of France: The Life of Charles De Gaulle, by Julian Jackson
Superb biography, detailed but never overly so and seeking to answer the question of how De Gaulle became such a central figure in modern French history. Jackson is good at showing the possibilities of the times, exploring why the importance of the Free French, the Fifth Republic, and much else wasn't inevitable. Strongly recommended #books #bookstodon

10) Africa Is Not A Country, by Dipo Faloyin
A book I learned a lot from. Faloyin is a talented writer, mixing together righteous anger in sections on subjects like the Scramble for Africa and the looting of cultural treasures with a joyous wit in sections on Western media depictions of Africa and the jollof rice wars. A bit scattergun at points, but always interesting and illuminating. #books #bookstodon

11) Silver In The Wood, by Emily Tesh
A short tale, but one that drew me in well. It's a story about an old wood, its guardian and a newcomer who stumbles in, but there are plenty of layers to the story beneath that. Like an old tree, there's a lot going on beneath the surface, revealed as the story unfolds and grows. Will definitely be looking out for more from Tesh. #books #bookstodon

12) Lying For Money, by Dan Davies
I wasn't expecting to laugh out loud several times during a book on financial fraud, but Davies manages it. It would be easy for a book like this to turn into a financial analyst patronising us little folk while trying to explain complex things, but he's an excellent (and amusing) storyteller who explains both the how and why of fraud. Also refreshingly honest about how frauds get missed by overconfident analysts. #books #bookstodon

13) Endymion, by Dan Simmons
I enjoyed the Hyperion books last year, but this was a bit of a slog. Interesting world building from the previous books, but the story is mainly characters wandering the universe looking for someone to explain the plot to them until its time for the ending and a whole new plot device character drops in to make that happen. Add in some really icky undertones to one relationship and things aren't good here. #books #bookstodon

14) Conspiracy, by Tom Phillips and Jonn Elledge
A book that doesn't seem sure of what it wants to be. Some good in-depth sections (especially on health and pandemic conspiracies) but the rest is a very surface-level look at things with way too much jokiness., like diving into Wikipedia while someone tests out their standup material in the background. #books #bookstodon