A very slow reading month, unfortunately. Too much work, but some good reads nonetheless.
1. The Winter of Our Discontent
— John Steinbeck
Another great Steinbeck novel, and my book of the month. But what a dull cover, Penguin!
2. A Woman
— Sibilla Aleramo
Bought this one because I liked the cover and had never heard of the author. Very nearly my book of the month. The story of a woman — of millions upon millions of women.
3. When We Cease to Understand the World
— Benjamin Labatut
Read this in a day. Couldn’t put it down. Fiction written like non-fiction. Great writing — loved every page. Will read Maniac next.
4. Revenge
— Yoko Ogawa
A great collection of dark and disturbing short stories. Love how many of them are subtly interconnected.
5. The Underground Railroad
— Colson Whitehead
The figurative railroad made material in this fictional true story. “Stolen bodies working stolen land.”
6. Tiamat’s Wrath
— James S. A. Corey
Eighth of nine in the entertaining Expanse series. Great fun.
7. Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?
— Raymond Carver
A big fan of Carver’s short stories. Next up is Cathedral.
8. The Machine Stops
— E. M. Forster
Only knew of Forster through Room With a View. This novella was a pleasant surprise, and how remarkably prescient. Nicely illustrated (by Drew Hill), but pity about the sloppy typography.
9. Before the Coffee Gets Cold
— Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Ideal weekend read. Very sweet, very Japanese. For sure, I’ll read the other four in the series.
10. A Room of One’s Own
— Virginia Woolf
Great message, but I have never got on with Woolf’s writing. There is something about her style that just doesn’t work for me.
I’ve written a short post about my 10 favorite books of 2025.
