What to Read Now: Vol LXXX
The Secret History: 30th Anniversary Edition by Donna Tartt £20 The Secret History remains one of the most impactful pieces of literature of the 21st century, and for a good reason. An intoxicating blend of unlikeable characters, a vivid setting and a story so immersive that it’s still one of our favourite novels. Now published in a gorgeous hardback for the 30th anniversary, Tartt’s debut is as incredible as it was in 1992. Buy Now |
Colditz by Ben Macintyre £25 From the best-selling author of The Spy and the Traitor and Operation Mincemeat, Colditz tells the true story of one of the most infamous prisons in history. Bringing to life the numerous escape attempts by a group of British officers who were kept captive in a castle on a hilltop in the heart of Nazi Germany, Macintyre once again brings us right into the heart of history, uncovering a story that has gone unchallenged for 70 years. Buy Now |
Faith, Hope & Carnage £20 Musician Nick Cave in association with journalist Sean O’Hagan has produced a book that takes readers deep inside his psyche. More than an autobiography, this is an exploration of the inner workings of the creative mind, and how a person deals with unimaginable grief. Drawing on Cave’s experiences – from his childhood to the present day, this really is an extraordinary document of an extraordinary person. Buy Now |
Less is Lost by Andrew Sean Greer £16.99 The awkward yet loveable protagonist of the Pulitzer prize-winning Less returns, and Arthur Less finds himself just as astray as before. Having yet again run away from his problems thanks to string of literary gigs, Less is taken across the US, going from West to South in search of an escape. But it’s hard to run away from yourself, and eventually, we have to stop and sit with our own personal demons. Buy Now |
Nights of Plague by Orhan Pamuk £20 Having received the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature, Pamuk is a writer of formidable and incredible talent. Now, he has turned his attention to the theme of plagues, and the ways in which they can shroud deeper rooted issues of corruption and greed. A playfully clever epic, his latest is a mesmerizing mystery of fear, passion and power. Buy Now |
Heaven on Earth: The Lives and Legacies of the World’s Greatest Cathedrals by Emma J. Wells £40 Bringing us right back to the construction of the Hagia Sophia in Turkey in the sixth century, Wells’ rich biography of the human history of the cathedral is both impactful and incredibly readable. Tracing the emergence of the Gothic in twelfth-century France and how its elaborate architecture inspired an emergence of cathedral-building across Western Europe, Wells invites us into the stories of some of the most beautiful places in the world, and the lives of the people who built them. Buy Now |
The Lost Girl King by Catherine Doyle £7.99 Sent to stay with their Grandmother in Connemara for the summer, siblings Amy and Liam find themselves drawn to a peculiar waterfall, one that, upon investigation, will lead them to the entrance of Tir na nOg, the land of lost youth. Pulled into a world of danger and mystery, the siblings will have to embrace their destiny if they ever want to return home. Ideal for readers 8+, this is the kind of story that will keep kids reading way past their bedtime. Buy Now |