Category Archives: Book Review

Book Review: Tabish Khair’s Just Another Jihadi Jane

Posted on 21 November 2016 by andyq

Jihadi Jane by Tabish Khair My rating: 4 of 5 stars How to imagine the unimaginable? Tabish Khair sets himself quite a task, and a particularly relevant one, in asking how young people from around the world have joined the … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Christos Ikonomou’s Something Will Happen, You’ll See

Posted on 20 October 2016 by andyq

Something Will Happen, You’ll See by Christos Ikonomou My rating: 3 of 5 stars A friend left this behind on our bookshelves after staying with us. It’s a collection of short stories all about the collapse of families and communities … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Garth Greenwell’s What Belongs To You

Posted on 20 October 2016 by andyq

What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell My rating: 3 of 5 stars There was a phase in gay fiction where authors (or their fictional stand-ins) seemed to be lauded for writing about their encounters with poor, rough sex workers. … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Joan London’s The Golden Age

Posted on 12 October 2015 by andyq

The Golden Age by Joan London My rating: 2 of 5 stars I did find the setting and time intriguing, and the idea of a care home for kids with polio and a European immigrant couple adjusting to the New … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Carmen Aguirre’s Something Fierce

Posted on 5 September 2015 by andyq

Something Fierce: Memoirs of a Revolutionary Daughter by Carmen Aguirre My rating: 4 of 5 stars On my last visit home to Vancouver, a friend gave me this book; I think he knows the author. When I first became friends … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Michel Houllebecq’s The Elementary Particles

Posted on 10 November 2014 by andyq

The Elementary Particles by Michel Houellebecq My rating: 2 of 5 stars When in France… Well, I’d heard about Houellebecq for years but never picked up anything until ‘The Elementary Particles’, much celebrated and much discussed, though I stayed away … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Roddy Doyle’s Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha

Posted on 24 October 2014 by andyq

Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha by Roddy Doyle My rating: 2 of 5 stars Sigh. The last time I was suckered into reading a Booker Prize winner and disliked it was Ben Okri’s Famished Road. When I was in university, … Continue reading →

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2014 in lists (art, books, entertainment, shows)

Posted on 31 May 2014 by andyq

Aha. New organisational system for 2014… Rather than continue to add to the same big posts of shows and concerts I’ve EVER seen, I’ve organised the old lists into separate archival posts either by the year, or before that… And … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Camilla Gibb’s Mouthing the Words

Posted on 18 February 2014 by andyq

Mouthing the Words by Camilla Gibb My rating: 3 of 5 stars Funny. I’ve had a couple of books that are taking me ages to read. But I found a copy of Camilla Gibb’s Mouthing the Words in a crazy … Continue reading →

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2013 in lists (art, books, entertainment, shows)

Posted on 11 January 2014 by andyq

The year in concerts, shows (musicals/theatre/dance) and books! CONCERTS Sing the Truth, State Theatre (January) – Welcome 2013. Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves and Lizz Wright. Quite a triple-bill, but the surprise for me was Lizz Wright. I don’t think I’ve … Continue reading →

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