April 2023 Reading Roundup

I clock in so much time searching and reading that I can’t remember how I first heard of this unique novel. Perhaps from one of you, dear readers. Yes, let’s go with that.

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata (translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori) is about an unusual woman, Keiko, who wants nothing more than to work at her local convenience store. She finds comfort in the store’s routine despite being of marriageable age. The Guardian called it “sublimely weird” and that’s why it was such a fun read.

In print, it’s about 175 pages, and so satisfying to finish a book quickly. I also enjoyed Keiko’s outsider point of view. For me, this is where the story sings. Her observations regarding how we are supposed to behave and what’s expected of us reminded me of how an alien would view our culture.

At that moment, for the first time ever, I felt I’d become a part in the machine of society. I’ve been reborn, I thought. That day, I actually became a normal cog in society.

My husband also liked the book. In fact, when we were in 7-11 the other day, he said, “Look, there’s Keiko.” Highly recommend.

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell was a fantastic, beautifully written read. I’m excited to be introduced to another great author. O’Farrell was inspired by Robert Browning’s poem My Last Duchess which is based on Lucrezia de’ Medici, who married Alfonso d’Este, the Duke of Ferrara. And just a year after she married him in 1560, at only 16, she died under mysterious circumstances.

O’Farrell breathes life into outsider Lucrezia and 16th century Italy with the right amount of crazy details that make you wonder if she time-traveled there. I couldn’t read it fast enough.

She has always had a secret liking for this part of the embroidery, the ‘wrong’ side, congested with knots, striations of silk and twists of thread. How much more interesting it is, with its frank display of the labour needed to attain the perfection of the finished piece.

I had no idea what this novel was about. Based on the title and cover, I assumed it was some one-off situation or a gruesome tale of an old lady who murdered someone. Aaand I was wrong.

The Old Woman with the Knife by Gu Byeong-mo (translated by Chi-Young Kim) is about a hired thug, an “exterminator”, a 65 year old assassin who has seen younger stronger days. It’s received a lot of accolades, I think, because the protagonist is an old woman who, well, kills for a living.

She exists like an extra in a movie, woven seamlessly into a scene, behaving as if she had always been there, a retiree thrilled to take care of her grandchildren in her golden years, living the rest of her days with a frugality baked into her bones.

I can’t remember the last time I read a thriller. It’s definitely not my go-to or comfort genre. The unpredictability kept me reading, but the protagonist’s nemesis made me want to stop. Perhaps if I understood him better, I would have felt differently. Have you read this book? Or a had a similar feeling with a story?

// I discovered an app called Bionic Reading® through Jane Friedman’s newsletter. It’s supposed to help you read more deeply (in an age of skimming). But I found it also helped me to see more clearly. I just wish I could use it all the time for everything!

// Five years ago (!) when I announced I was publishing a newsletter, Jeremy from Jeremy James in Hong Kong suggested that I put it on the blog, too. At the time, it seemed redundant, maybe even pushy because I am horrible about self-promo.

But now, I realize how much it was just plain good ‘ol common sense. So, I’ve updated my newsletter page on the blog and you can see them all on here as well. I share a little personal antidote and some links to great finds like this article from Spirituality +Health, Become a Connoisseur of Time.