21st Century Literature discussion

What was your most recent 21st century fiction read?
How did you come across it? Why did you read it?
Is it from a publisher with which you were already familiar?
Would you recommend this book?
Do you plan to read more by the author (if that's a possibility)?

I just finished Lote by Shola von Reinhold published by Jacaranda Books. I came across it because it was longlisted for this year's Republic of Consciousness Prize and I read it because this prize usually has some unique selections (I chose this one because it was in the top 3 I was interested in from the longlist, I could get a copy immediately, and I was also trying to purchase books by black authors during Black History Month). Both the author and publisher were completely new to me. I gave it 4 stars, but still need to write an actual review, so I'd definitely recommend it and I look forward to reading more of their work if and when another novel comes out.

Well, I just finished Hadriana in All My Dreams by René Depestre, which was published in English in 2017 by Akashic Books. (The original was first published in 1988 in French.) I came across it in my library database because I would randomly enter different country names, then filter the hits for fiction. This came up for Haiti & I requested it. I have read books by Akashic previously & generally enjoy reading books put out by smaller &/or indie presses. Yes, I would recommend it & may explore more by this author someday. (My review of the book is here.)

If that doesn't work since the original was published in 1988, the most recent book would be Hammers on Bone by Cassandra Khaw, published by Tor in 2016. I came across & read it because of a friend's recommendation. I have read other books published by Tor (including some of the very fun Murderbot series). I would recommend this book for fans of hard-boiled PI &/or Lovecraft who have a sense of humor & are not averse to some horror; it's frivolous & gross fun. I may read something else by the author down the road. (My review of the book is here.)

Akashic put out one of our December reads, An Unkindness of Ghosts. That was the first book I'd read from their catalog. Both books sound intriguing--thanks, Stacia!

The most recent 21st Century book I finished was a reread of Donna Tartt's The Goldfinch. I adored it first time round and during this second reading my adoration increased two hundredfold.

I just finished Karin Tidbeck's new novel The Memory Theater. It's a bit too respectful of fantasy genre conventions for my taste, not sure if it's appropriate here. But there are some clever ideas, and it's nicely executed.

Right before Tidbeck was Brian Allen Carr's Opioid, Indiana. The young male narrator's voice was nicely done, and it's good fun overall in that harsh rural fiction vein. I was concerned that it would be preaching to the choir about opioid abuse, but opioids are a pretty minor component.

I can already tell that my to-read list will be growing after this thread. I already downloaded a sample of Lote & have been drawn right in. (Not like my library piles & regular bookcases aren't already more than stacked!!)

Robert, I love The Goldfinch. A piece of perfection.

Bill, I will have to check out the books you've mentioned.

Finished a good one yesterday - The Office Of Innocence by Thomas Keneally. Found it on my parents' shelves and having read five of his previous novels, all of which are interesting and stylistically varied, I couldn't resist borrowing it. The first half is a slow burner - the main protagonist is an idealistic young Catholic priest in wartime Sydney whose life is described in some detail with a little dry humour. The second half is brilliant, as Keneally explores the moral ambiguities such an innocent can get drawn into and the inflexible nature of the church hierarchy's responses, against the backdrop of the growing Japanese threat.

My review.

I don't aspire to read all of Keneally's novels because of the number he has written, but I could certainly be tempted by more - there is a lot more to his writing than you would expect just from reading Schindler's Ark.

Hugh wrote: "Finished a good one yesterday - The Office Of Innocence by Thomas Keneally. Found it on my parents' shelves and having read five of his previous novels, all of which ar..."

In fact I'm curious about his other books - I recently read Schindler's Ark and I was disappointed. I'll definitely try a couple of his other titles.

For a very odd Keneally, try A Dutiful Daughter

Ang wrote: "For a very odd Keneally, try A Dutiful Daughter"
Yes, I agree - that one was very odd. The ones I really liked were Gossip from the Forest, a vivid recreation of the talks that led to the Armistice, and The Widow and Her Hero. I also read Jacko: The Great Intruder but wouldn't recommend that.

Yesterday I finished A Ghost in the Throat. Like Marc's, it is one of the books on the 2021 longlist for the Republic of Consciousness Award. The publisher is Tramp Press. It's a delightful book; the first prose book by an Irish poet. This description from the back of the book is a good summary: In this strikingly inventive prose debute, Doireann Ni Ghriofa sculpts essay and auto-fiction to explore the deep connection between two writes centuries apart. I've not yet written my review. When I do, I'll rate it 5 stars.

LindaJ^ wrote: "Yesterday I finished A Ghost in the Throat. Like Marc's, it is one of the books on the 2021 longlist for the Republic of Consciousness Award. The publisher is Tramp Press. It's a de..."
This is my favourite book of the year so far.

LindaJ^ wrote: "Yesterday I finished A Ghost in the Throat. Like Marc's, it is one of the books on the 2021 longlist for the Republic of Consciousness Award. The publisher is Tramp Press. It's a de..."

That was/is the one I'm most interested in reading from the RoC longlist, Linda. I think Book Depository was the only way I could get it without waiting for the U.S. release. I must have been too impatient to wait. Instead of magically thinking I'm going to put a dent in my TBR pile while still acquiring books at a normal pace, I've tried to slow that pace down by requiring that if I purchase it, I need to read it now. I'll probably order it this month. Glad to hear both you and Hugh enjoyed it!

Stacia wrote: "I can already tell that my to-read list will be growing after this thread. I already downloaded a sample of Lote & have been drawn right in. (Not like my library piles & regular bookcases aren't al..."
Hope you enjoy it! (I had my piles of unread books sort of contained to a single bookcase until last year. Now I have piles around my bed, in my bedstand drawer, etc... As addictions go, it's a pretty healthy one!)

I just finished The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab and really enjoyed it. I had a slog of serious books, so this was an enjoyable change.

I read it because I loved A Darker Shade of Magic and the plot sounded fascinating.

I would definitely like to read more of her work!

My most recent was How Long 'til Black Future Month?, a collection of such inventive stories by N.K. Jemisin. It's my first of hers, and I marveled at how she turns the strange and otherworldly into something so relatable.

I also read some poetry. American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin by Terrance Hayes was excellent. What great images in this collection.

I'm only half-way through so I can't be sure it sticks the landing, but I like The Rain Heron so much that I'm not waiting to sing its praises. I started it reluctantly, thinking I was not in the mood for the story it tells, but I changed my mind after the first few sentences.

A Lifetime of Men, by Ciahnan Darrell, was my favorite read in 2020. The characters are complex, the writing is stunning, and the story captivated me from the first page. I can't recommend this one highly enough! The author has a new book coming out later in 2021, and I will absolutely be buying/reading it the second it is available.

Tree of Smoke, by Denis Johnson. Just finished it. I had mixed feelings about it. I saw it in one of the discussions here. I had high hopes and took quite some time to finish it, as it's a bit long. I liked it to an extent as it is evocative of the chaos and pain of the Vietnam War, the setting of the book. The structure is that narratives of main characters alternate. I read in reviews that some of this author's other novels are stronger, so maybe I'll check them out.

James E. wrote: "Tree of Smoke, by Denis Johnson. Just finished it. I had mixed feelings about it. I saw it in one of the discussions here. I had high hopes and took quite some time to finish it, as it's a bit long..."

This one's been sitting on my shelf for years. Denis Johnson is one of my favorite authors, but somehow I keep putting it off. I wouldn't have thought he'd be an author that would speak to me, but Jesus' Son blew me away, and to a (only slightly) lesser extent, The Largesse of the Sea Maiden.

I just finished The Orphanage by Serhiy Zhadan, published last month by Yale University Press and translated from Ukranian by Reilly Costigan-Humes and Isaac Stackhouse Wheeler. It seems to not have a UK publisher yet, and also seems to be Zhadan's first translated work. It's stunning.

I'm wrong about The Orphanage being Zhadan's first published novel in English Translation. I see that Deep Vellum published his novel Voroshilovgrad in 2010 and that there are others, I've just been clueless about him before now. But always very small presses, and it looks like no single press has championed him, but that each book has found a new publisher.

From his bio:

Serhiy Zhadan (23 August 1974 in Starobilsk, Luhansk region, Ukraine) is a contemporary Ukrainian novelist, writer, essayist, poet, translator, musician and public figure. Among his most notable works are novels Depeche Mode (2004, translated into into English in 2013 by Glagoslav Publications), Anarchy in the UKR (2005, translation into English is yet to come), Voroshilovgrad (2010, translated into into English in 2016 by Deep Vellum Publishing) and Orphanage (2017, translation into English forthcoming in 2020 by Yale University Press) as well as collection of short stories and poems Mesopotamia (2014, English translation by Yale University Press in 2018).

Just finished a reread of all three books of Jeff VanderMeer's "Southern Reach" trilogy (2014). This series, and the world created inside (?) them, is mesmerizing. Uncompromising, to be sure — you must take in VanderMeer's vision on his terms — but mesmerizing just the same.