April Review
What I'm reading, watching, and listening to right now
It’s time for this month’s review of the best reading, watching, and listening! This is an extra end-of-the-month post for all subscribers.
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I’ve had a bit of a bumper reading month in April (for me!) This was something I was consciously aware of over the winter: the temptation for distraction rather than sitting down and committing to reading a book. It’s a habit that I’m working hard to break, and so I was pleased when I sat down to do a round up and realised I’d read more than usual!
I also see from this list however that I have watched more than usual…I can only put this down to taking an extended Easter break and the weather still being diabolically un-spring like here in the North of England…
I have also decided to try out a little reader poll at the end of this review. Don’t worry if you aren’t into that sort of thing, but I just thought it would be nice to catch up on what subscriber’s are enjoying reading about here, and what they might want to see more of. Thank you!
Now on with the review…
Books I read…
French Braid by Anne Tyler tells the story of Mercy and Robin Garrett and their family, set through different decades. I always return to Anne Tyler when I’m in a bit of a reading slump, and her gentle stories of family life got me through months of the pandemic. Nobody writes better about the intricacies of long marriages, sibling rivalry, and mother/daughter relationships than Tyler, and this was one of my favourites.
Keedie by Elle McNicoll. I was ‘encouraged’ to read this young adult book by my teenager, who loved A Kind of Spark by the same author. Keedie is a prequel to that novel, and tells the story of autistic, spirited teenager Keedie as she takes on secondary school bullies. I read it in two sittings, and would highly recommend it for the young people in your lives!
Wayward by Dana Spiotta. I ordered this book whilst listening to an interview with Spiotta on the Virago podcast, OurShelves. The book is about Sam Raymond, an American woman in her early fifties who is going through menopause and all the uncertainty and rage that comes with it. Deciding to buy a house overlooking the city of Syracuse, she leaves her teenage daughter and husband behind whilst she dabbles in night-time wanderings and stand-up comedy nights. The story is set against the backdrop of the 2017 Trump administration and Spiotta interestingly combines the political atmosphere with Sam’s personal turmoil. The book also has sections written from the point of view of Sam’s teenage daughter, Ally, and features some wonderful scenes with her own mother, Lily, with all three of the female characters in the novel experiencing huge transitions in their lives. I found a lot to resonate with in this book. To find out more, check out my full write-up here.
The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante. I have never really settled on a Ferrante book, though I have tried a couple previously and know her work to be popular. I came to this one as it looked interesting in relation to my own research interests into motherhood, and it definitely has some interesting themes around the ambivalence and loss of identity many women feel on becoming mothers. The book has also recently been made into a film which is now showing on Netflix. I still haven’t made my mind up about it yet, and may come back to it in a later essay…
Articles I enjoyed this month…
I was sad to read of the death of Lynne Reid Banks, author of the 1960 classic The L-Shaped Room, a book that has been on my to-write-about list for some time.
New Japanese words make it into the Oxford English Dictionary.
Long overdue investment in UK libraries and museums announced.
A definite book for the TBR pile, Reading Lessons by author and English teacher Carol Atherton looks at the texts we read in school and why they still resonate with teenagers. I started a thread on this topic here.
This excellent article about so-called “sad girl novels” piqued my interest.
As did this report on the finalists for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. Have you read any of these titles yet?
What I enjoyed watching this month…
Hotel du Lac on YouTube. I enjoyed reading the book by Anita Brookner years ago and this quintessentially English film was a gentle and enjoyable watch over the Easter break at the beginning of the month. The whole film is available to watch on YouTube for free.
The Chair on Netflix. I have to confess that this was a re-watch, but I just love Sandra Oh as the overwhelmed Chair of an English Department at a US college.
I had a bit of a romcom renaissance over Easter, revisiting When Harry Met Sally, one of the best 90s romcoms, written by Nora Ephron. This was a cozy re-watch over the Easter break and inspired a newsletter this month looking at the amazing work of Ephron. I also rewatched The Devil Wears Prada with the fabulous Meryl Streep in the role of Editor-in-Chief.
Unforgotten, a drama series I came across on Netflix featuring the ever-brilliant Nicola Walker (and yes, I have mentioned her before and have a slight obsession about her work). I have marched through the first two series of this show so far this month, and every episode is absorbing and well acted. Definitely recommend it if you haven’t already discovered it (I often come to these series’ way after they actually came out!)
All Passion Spent on bbc iplayer. This was a former BBC Four three-part drama serialisation of the Vita Sackville-West novel and was a really fun, stiff-upper-lip story set in 1930s London. Loved it!
What I’ve been listening to this month…
I’ve been trying to cut down on podcasts a bit this month to allow for more reading, and this Japanese Lofi Chill Playlist has been inspiring me to pare down and simplify my living space this spring!
That’s about it for April; how can the first quarter of the year already be over?! I’d love to hear if you’ve read/watched any of my recommendations and what you thought of them, or any other recommendations you have. Please share the love in the comments and fill in the reader poll below if you fancy it 😀
Back Sunday with another literary exploration.
Great recommendations! I’m going to check out the series’ you’ve recommended - and it’s definitely time for a rewatch of The Devil Wears Prada! The Chair is brilliant :) thanks for sharing x
Wow, you’re read and watched loads this month, go you.