297 ratings | 10 reviews | avg rating:4.62

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Leonora’s 2024 Year in Books

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Leonora Meriel’s Followers (91)

Leonora’s Bookshelves

to-read (6)
currently-reading (3)
read (301)
best-humorous-novels (5)
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Leonora’s Friends (48)

Andrew Baltasar

808 books | 1,718 friends

Tânia

1,960 books | 240 friends

Suzanne Swift

6,057 books | 58 friends

Vishnu Pingali

24 books | 273 friends

Herb Randall

727 books | 33 friends

Micielle

175,950 books | 1,162 friends

Eram Hussain

764 books | 255 friends

Rebecca Stephen

88,799 books | 405 friends

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Leonora Meriel

Goodreads Author

Born

in London, The United Kingdom

Website

http://www.leonorameriel.com

Twitter

leonora_meriel

Genre

Fiction, Contemporary, Historical Fiction

Influences

Virginia Woolf; Olga Tokarczuk; Lesya Ukrainka; Arundhati Roy; Aimee B ...more

Member Since

December 2011

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Leonora Meriel grew up in London, UK, but draws much of her inspiration from her years living in Ukraine, where she was co-founder of Ukraine’s largest bookshop.

Her debut novel, The Woman Behind the Waterfall, is set in western Ukraine and is a celebration of Ukrainian culture, language and custom. Her novel, And Breathe, centers on a Ukrainian oligarch and her latest novel, Mbaquana Nights, explores Ukrainian immigration at the end of the nineteenth century.

Her work has been hailed as “strange and beautiful” by writer Esther Freud, “ambitious and thought-provoking” by Kirkus Reviews, and “a classic work of art” by Richmond Magazine.

Read more about Leonora and her work at www.leonorameriel.com ...more

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Combine Editions
Leonora Meriel’s books

Average rating: 3.88 · 578 ratings · 314 reviews · 4 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Unity Game 3.93 avg rating — 283 ratings — published 2017 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Woman Behind the Waterfall: A Celebration of Ukrainian Culture 3.69 avg rating — 228 ratings — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	And Breathe 4.38 avg rating — 53 ratings — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mbaqanga Nights really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 14 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

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Leonora is Currently Reading

Leonora Meriel is currently reading

Infinite Jest

by David Foster Wallace

bookshelves: currently-reading, books-read-as-an-adult-25-50

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Jan 19, 2025 07:22AM

Leonora Meriel is currently reading

Evelina

by Frances Burney

bookshelves: currently-reading, books-read-as-an-adult-25-50

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Jan 19, 2025 07:21AM

Leonora Meriel is currently reading

White Noise

by Don DeLillo

bookshelves: re-reads-pending, currently-reading, books-read-as-a-young-lady-10-25, leo-favourites

read in July 2022

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Jul 14, 2022 07:39AM

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Leonora’s Recent Updates

Leonora Meriel is now friends with Vishnu Pingali
Aug 18, 2025 10:52AM · 1 like · like
Leonora Meriel and 17 other people liked Richard Derus's review of Mbaqanga Nights: "Real Rating: 3.25* of five The Publisher Says: 1989. The African Jazz Pioneers are in full swing. The club is hopping. Glasses and plates are pushed aside as the room dances. What’s so special? Look around. The faces are black, brown and white. It’s Durb" Read more of this review »
Aug 18, 2025 12:42AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel and 1 other person liked Marion Hill's review of Mbaqanga Nights: "Two Jewish brothers emigrated from Ukraine to South Africa in the 1800s to find a better life. The grandson of one brother opened a mixed-race jazz club in South Africa during apartheid. Mbaqanga Nights told the story of how the grandson managed Sout" Read more of this review »
Aug 18, 2025 12:42AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel has read Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:28AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Mbaqanga Nights by Leonora Meriel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel rated a book it was amazing The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:25AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel rated a book liked it Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:24AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel is currently reading Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:22AM · like
Leonora Meriel is currently reading Evelina by Frances Burney	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:21AM · like
Leonora Meriel rated a book it was amazing The Golden Age Shtetl: A New History of Jewish Life in East Europe by Yohanan Petrovsky-Shtern	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 19, 2025 07:17AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Golden Age Shtetl by Yohanan Petrovsky-Shtern. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Golden Age Shtetl by Yohanan Petrovsky-Shtern <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Leonora Meriel rated a book really liked it Seiobo There Below by László Krasznahorkai	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 28, 2024 09:40AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Seiobo There Below by László Krasznahorkai. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Seiobo There Below by László Krasznahorkai <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by Leonora Meriel (?)

“was his”
― Leonora Meriel, The Unity Game: A metaphysical thriller

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