Well that seemed to be the longest January ever, so you’d think we’d have got time to read plenty of books! It’s that time of the month where we share our admin reads from the previous month. The whole FRA admin team loves to read but we all love different stuff, and so here’s what we read, what we loved, and didn’t, over the last month!
As always we want to hear what you think too, and our monthly readers chart will be up in the next few days so we can see what you’ve been reading too!
Jacqui
January was completely hectic but I managed to finish two books.
My first was In The Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami, my Cwts Book Club read for January. At first I thought it was going to be a bit dull, following a tour guide in Japan, then suddenly it turned really dark, so dark in fact it reminded me of a Quentin Tarantino film. A fun read, definitely not for the faint-hearted.
My second was Nina is Not OK by comedian Shappi Khorsandi. This wasn’t the light-hearted, laugh a minute I expected. It’s a tale of teenage love, sex, self esteem issues and alcoholism. I finished it thinking it ought to be on school reading lists.
Thom
I read Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig. I was kind of apprehensive about it when I started. I was worried it would be really depressing or fail to really give any insight on mental health. Fortunately it was really good. Funny, moving, inspiring, and sad, definitely one to pick up if you or someone you know suffers from depression or anxiety, I also really like that it isn’t preachy or dense.
Rosie
I’m reading Margaret Drabble’s A Day In The Life Of A Smiling Woman. The collection includes classics from the last four decades, such as The Merry Widow, and is an inspiring and often wryly funny read. I always find it funny how relatable some stories are despite being as old as myself.
Shan
January was a busy month for me and my reading suffered, however I did read the second book in the Miss Peregrine trilogy and really enjoyed it. the story is unfolding beautifully and the links to the photographs that inspired the tale flow much better than in the first novel, I am just about to start the third book and can’t wait to see how everything is wrapped up.
Kath
It’s been a jarred month of reading for me and for all the right reasons. I’ve been bombarded with many new reads and I have books distracting me from books! I started the screenplay of Fantastic Beasts at the beginning of the month but ended up putting it aside for A Street Cat Named Bob (my review), which was a lovely read and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I then started a Harlen Coben mystery, which would have been my first book by the author, but I ended up putting that aside too for Rebel of the Sands, (my review) Alwyn Hamilton’s debut novel. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it’s been a while since I read anything YA and it’s a fantastic read! I went along to see the author at a book signing last week and got an advanced copy of the second book in the series, Traitor to the Throne, I’ve just started that and it looks promising too!
We hope you have a good reading month!
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