Books I read in 2022: Part 2

Books I read between April and June 2022

Between April and June I read 11 books. Two were non-fiction and all the rest were fiction. Unlike the first three months of the year the number of books that I rated 4 or more stars was disappointingly low. Only one book out of the eleven I read had a score over 4. Below is the full list of books I read and their respective rating. I have linked each book to Goodreads so that you can have a better idea how other people rated them. However, I've found out that you probably cannot read my personal review unless you are a member of Goodreads. So, what I'm thinking of doing in the future, is sharing the same review here on the blog each time I finish a book. This means I will share a review of all books not just the ones that score 4 stars or more. Let me know whether you think you will enjoy reading them. I promise you that you should be able to read the reviews in about five minutes. Anyway, without any more blubbering on my part, here is the list of books I read last Spring.

1. Lucrezia Borgia by Maria Bellonci 3⭐
2. The Almond by Nedjma (translated from Arabic by C. Jane Hunter) 3.6⭐
3. The Book Of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel 2.8⭐
4. A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes 3.5⭐
5. Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell 4.4⭐
6. Honour by Elif Shafak 3.7⭐
7. The Seven Husbands Of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid 2.6⭐
8. Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly 3⭐
9. Watermark by Joseph Brodsky 3⭐
10. The Silence of The Girls by Pat Barker 3.6⭐
11. The Women At Hitler's Table by Rosella Postorino (translated from Italian by Leah Janeczko) 3⭐

Two books, Lucrezia Borgia and Watermark, are non-fiction. The first is a biography of one of the most infamous women of the Italian Renaissance. Watermark is a love letter to Venice. Brodsky was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1987 and appointed US poet laureate in 1991. Unfortunately, I found his writing style rather difficult but I will probably re-read this book in the future.

Now on to my reviews. Ordinarily, I only write a short review of books I've rated 4 or more stars but, since there was only one this time, I am including another book as an 'honourable mention'.

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

This book tells the story of Agnes Hathaway, a woman with unusual gifts, who is married to a person who is known throughout the novel as  'the Bard' but whom we all recognize as William Shakespeare. Hamnet is the son they lost to the plague at the young age of eleven. This book enchanted me from the very first page. The writing was beautiful and lyrical and Agnes is a worthy, if unconventional, heroine.

A compelling and whimsical portrayal of a woman who has been consigned to the shadows by history.

Genre: historical fiction

Honourable mention:

Honour by Elif Shafak

This is the story of a young Turkish family that emigrated to London in the 1970s and their struggle to integrate into Western society while trying to keep their traditions alive. But it is also a story about internalised misogyny, about the cultural perception that still exists in some countries that there is a set of weights and measures for men and another one for women. 

A book that will make you question your preconceived notions about other cultures. 

Genre: contemporary fiction

I hope that some of these books have sparked your interest. As I always like to remind you, I am a picky reader and you might enjoy some of the books that I didn't rate so highly much more than I did. I'm one of those illogical people who cares more about the beauty of the writing than about the actual story. If you have any questions, let me know in the comments and I will be happy to answer you. Books are, after all, one of my favourite things to talk about.