Book Reviews on the Old FM

World Radio Switzerland is closing down at the end of August. Somehow the ministry for Swiss broadcasting decided that it wasn't worth subsidizing. Quite how they arrived at this decision remains a mystery. It will be off air at the end of August.

This means that the Spead Read will be coming to a close. On Monday they broadcast my second-to-last selection of books. I have to say out of all the broadcasts I have done this is one of my favourites. I think I have got three really strong books. You could read any of these and come away having enjoyed a satisfying read.

Enjoy - there's only one more left. The books reviewed are:  

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Stoner by John Williams
Strange Stones: Dispatches from East to West by Peter Hessler

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Summer Reads

I took a train the other day between Lausanne and Montreux, which is about 20 minutes down the track. I slightly appalled myself when I realised I had packed 3 books for the  journey, as well as a newspaper.

So you can imagine that deciding what I am going to take on a two-week holiday is a painful kind of pleasure.


After much consideration, I have narrowed the choice down to five or six. Here I am restricting myself to the top four:

Transatlantic by Colum McCann: This Irish writer is very close to the top of my list of favourite writers of all time. His newest book starts with the first transatlantic crossing made by aeroplane. This idea of whether we can link the new world with the old develops in the central theme of the book. It's an interesting question for an Irish writer living in New York. I have read the first few chapters and am loving it already.

 The Art of Fielding by Chad Harback: This is a new author, this is his first book, and I am reading it on the recommendation of a friend.

I have to say that I love novels with an American voice and, having read the first few pages, there it is, rich and authentic. The book is also endorsed by Jonathan Franzen. 

It's a  Bildungsroman (coming of age novel - I had to look it up too!) about a genius, young baseball player called Henry Skrimshander. Sounds like the best thing for a hot summer's evening.

The Old Ways : A Journey on Foot by Robert Macfarlane: Macfarlane is a travel writer in the sense that he uses the landscape to reflect what it is to be human. In this book he sets off from his Cambridge home to follow the ancient tracks, holloways, drove-roads and sea paths that form part of a vast network of routes criss-crossing the British landscape and its waters - the kind of journey that send shivers up my spine.

Knowing Macfarlane's style I am expecting a slow-burning book that will stay with me for years.

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter: The cover first attracted me to this book - I love the retro, technicolour feel. It's a love story about a young Italian who watches a beautiful American woman walk out of the sea. Fat-foward a few decades and an Italian man turns up in Hollywood searching for her.

I am hoping the book will live up to its cover, but even if it doesn't I hope to look cool at the beach reading it.



 All these books are of course available at your nearest and dearest independent bookshop. 

Iain Banks is dead....

I was very sad to read that Iain Banks passed away yesterday. I didn't read every book he ever wrote, but the ones I read left an indelible mark.

Banks wrote more than a dozen works of fiction and, writing under the name Iain M. Banks, the popular science fiction Culture series.

He is an author who many people will not have heard of, so I thought it would be worth considering the book that I best remember.

Banks wrote The Wasp Factory in 1994. It was his first novel. His publisher, Abacus, put together a

memorable black and white cover with the key items of the novel -  a burning dog, a catapult, roman numerals - represented by pictograms.

The book is narrated by Frank Cauldhame, who lives with his father on an isolated island somewhere in Scotland. Franks has spent a lot of time alone and is an odd child. He imbues objects with mystic powers and, because of his strange upbringing, is forced to hide when people come to visit his father.

Much of the early part of the book is devoted to Frank's retelling of how he killed three of his young cousins before he turned ten. The story's violent climax arrives when Frank's brother escapes from a mental hospital. It ends with a twist you can't see coming.

I haven't read this book for at least five years, but I can still remember most of the scenes. In that sense I would compare it to The Road, another book which has stayed with me over the years. Macabre, bizarre, gothic. Original, surprising and humorous too.

When the book came out it courted controversy for its depictions of violence. However,  it recently made it onto one of those Top 100 Books of All Time lists, showing that the book has wide appeal.

I have read other books by Iain Banks, but I keep coming back to The Wasp Factory.  I believe it's a modern classic. As the expression goes, read it and weep.

You can buy The Wasp Factory (paperback, ISBN 9780349138909) from us. Select whichever delivery option suits you. Please note that we do not mail outside Switzerland.

Choose from the following delivery options

Pick-up from the Shop 13.00 CHF Mailed in Switzerland 16.00 CHF

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay

Michael Chabon is one of those authors who I've heard good things about, but somehow never got around to reading.

Having yet another friend eulogise this author I decided to finally pick up The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2001 (you can see just how far behind the times I really am.)

The book relates the partnership Sam Clayman, a Brooklyn layabout, and Josef Kavalier, a Jewish refugee from Czechoslovakia, who create a sensation with their Escapist comic strip.

Their story is laced with humour and tragedy. Kavalier left behind his family when he fled the Nazis and he spends time and his considerable fortune on trying to spirit them to America. Clay, the business brains in the partnership, keeps making bad deals for their franchise.

Two things struck me about this book. I can be quite conservative in my reading tastes and will shy away from bizarre stories, but there is an element of the fantastic in the writing which I warmed to. The book is also very funny, with acute character observations I am sure every reader will relate to. 

It's a long book - more than 600 pages - but it doesn't feel like a slog. Each chapter has the feel of a short story and you can read it in bit-sized pieces. Strongly recommended for people looking for something new to get their teeth into.  

Lausanne: City of Stories

Literary Event at the Bookshop

Lausanne has long been an inspiration for literature. Dickens, Byron and Shelley all wrote here and the city has provided the backdrop for numerous novels.

Two recently published books continue this tradtion and I am very pleased to invite the authors to the bookshop to dicuss how the city  inspired their work.

Laura Spinney will be speaking about her book Rue Centrale in which she presents a portrait of a European city, Lausanne, painted in the words of the people who live and work there. The book features interviews with 70 people encountered in the street, in their bedroom, on a barge or in the belfry of the cathedral. Laura is the author of two novels and as a journalist she writes for publications including National Geographic, Nature and The Economist.


Daniel Tschumy is the author of Place du Nord et autres lieux, a collection of short stories mainly inspired by locations around Lausanne. His other works include collections of poems, short texts and a travelogue about a trip in South America. He currently teaches English to high-school students in Lausanne.
 

The discussion will be moderated by Jo Ann Rasch, a poet, editor and author of Blowing Feathers and Transitions.


Lausanne: City of Stories will take place on Tuesday, 12th February at the Zinema. The event will start at 19.00. 

The discussion will be in English and French. Please sign up here if you are interested: http://www.doodle.com/5tvgq2eik4bqu6gs

Mother, I think I might have a problem....

Top book picks for 2012

For ages now I have been meaning to write about the top books I read in 2012, but I've been dogged by two problems, my chronic laziness and my inability to remember even half the books I read. Then these two factors coincided to create an amazng outcome.

In a moment of folly I decided to tidy up all the books that I had left lying beside my bed, in the loo, on the sofa and random chairs and tables. I took a photo of the pile I made and it turned out to be an excellent cross-section of everything I have read in the last few months.

So here are my top picks for 2012, starting from the top.

White Noise by Don Delillo - top of the pile and top of the list. Genuis going full throttle. Read twice.

Thank You For Smoking by Christopher Buckley - Funny in parts. Tongue-in-cheek book about the tabacco industry. Halfway through. Will finish but not reread.

Glamorama by Bret Easton Ellis - Everyone should read one book by this author. My suggestion would be this book or American Psycho. This is a story about vacuous celebrity. Finished but won't read again.

Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein - An American becomes a crime reporter for a leading Japanese newspaper. Read and reread and strongly recommend.

The Dudley Smith Trio by James Ellroy - Gritty noir detective fiction. I would suggest this book to hard core fans. The Black Dahlia is a better entry into his work.

Where The Hell Have You Been by Tom Carver - Monty's grandson describes his father's escape from an Italian POW camp and the effect Monty had on his family. Read but wouldn't reread. WWII buffs only!

Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk - Moments of genius, moments of utter dross. Struggled to finish.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - a retiree makes a pilgrimage across England to get to the bedside of a dying colleague. A good story book that looks at relationships between older people. Liked but wouldn't reread.

The Etymologicon by Mark Forsyth - Found this on, not suprisingly, in the little room. A step-by-step look at the evolution of English words. Fun to flick through. Read and reread.

Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Coupland - I have been reading this author since I was a small boy in short trousers. Not as good as Generation X but have reread numerous times.

Place du Nord by Daniel Tschumy - Short stories in French set in Lausanne. Very interesting and am making my way through.

The Story of English in 100 Words by David Crystal - I am amazed that this guy still has things to say about English given all the books he has read. He still does and he is still interesting. Read and reread.

Classic Cocktails a Modern Shake - Sadly out of print, but my reference for literary cocktails.

The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster - Auster's first book and still a classic. Veeery disappointed with his latest autobiography A Winter Journal. I found myself skipping pages!

Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk - why do I have two copies of this book?

Fifty Shades of Grey by E L James - still in pristine condition if anyone wants it.

The Case for Working with Your Hands by Matthew Crawford - the author argues that skilled labour is more rewarding than office drudge. Who can disagree - but maybe labours the point a bit. Reread.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote - I have very nice memories of reading this book by a canal in Amsterdam. Haven't managed the feat of reading it twice.

Winning! by Clive Woodward - England rugby fans only I suspect....

A Week at the Airport by Alain de Botton - short, sweet and immensely readable. The philospher spends a week at Terminal 5 in Heathrow and simply recounts his observations. Awesome book that I have reread many times.

This is How by Augusten Burroughs - having only recently come to this author I have read almost his entire ouevre in the last month. This is a self-help book laced with dark humour and ancedotes. Worth reading, but suggest Dry for people looking for an entry into his work.

All My Friends are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufmann - A short but sweet romance and a tonic to read.

The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz - An(other) American in Paris with recipes! Dipped in and out of but no read in its entirety.

Two more books which I loved in 2012 but weren't in the photo are The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich and Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden. These books make my top 5 books of the year.

The Plague of Doves is essentially a number of short stories made into a novel. What sets this book apart is the masterly use of language amd the originality of the characters. A love story, a murder story, a story of generations of native Americans. Loved it.

The Three Day Road is about two First Nation friends who served as snipers in the Second World War. The story covers their time in France, as well as the experiences of one of their parents who remained in Canada. A deeply moving story that I thought about for many weeks afterwards.

Four Years of Books Books Books

Lausanne's English Bookshop Celebrates its 4-year Anniversary

I remember August 2008. I gave up my job and rented a space in Holmes Place which I planned to turn into a bookshop. Some days I whirled around making booklists, ordering furniture and speaking to suppliers. Other days I watched the shadows move across the floor, paralysed by indecision.

Can I do this?
Is this a mistake?
What happens if....?

4 years is a long time. The shop has experienced stomach-lurching drops and vertigo-inducing highs. We've yet to have a day where we've made no sales, although we have been close. Other days we've had five people working flat out to get the work done.

Do I wish it was easier? Yes, all the time. Do I stop to think about what I've achieved? No, never. Like many businesses the gap between success and failiure is too slim. Do I feel like celebrating? Yeeeerrrrsssss!

Join me for a cocktail on November 6th at 7pm at the bookshop. Diccon Bewes will be speaking about his books - Swiss Watching and the recently-released Swisscellany.

Sign up here

See you then!