What’s on your bookshelf: October

Thistles and Kiwis,

It is hard to believe it is a month since I last did a book post, but then time seems to be flying past at the moment. How many weeks is it until Christmas? Don’t ask…

Anyway, first up is Buckeye by Patrick Ryan that was September’s book from the Bookety Book Books subscription I am trying for 3 months. I’ll be honest and say I might not have picked this up normally, but am so glad I got sent it as I really enjoyed it. The story beings in the 1940s in small town America, with a tale that spans several decades, of love and war, of friendship and growing up. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. You can also check out the review in The Guardian.

Another book I might not have instantly selected was one I was recommended by the owner of Marsden Books, Life, and Death, and Giants by Ron Rindo. I haven’t quite finished it, but so far am enjoying this quite unusual tale. The blurb from the publisher states:

Gabriel Fisher was born an orphan, weighing eighteen pounds and measuring twenty-seven inches long. No one in Lakota, Wisconsin, knows what to make of him. He walks at eight months, communicates with animals, and seems to possess extraordinary athletic talent. But when the older brother who has been caring for him dies, Gabriel is taken in by his devout Amish grandparents who disapprove of all the attention and hide him away from the English world.

But it’s hard to hide forever when you’re nearly eight feet tall. At seventeen, Gabriel is spotted working in a hay field by the local football coach. What happens next transforms not only Gabriel’s life but the lives of everyone he meets.

Our book club book this month at the book shop was The Homemade God by Rachel Joyce. This was another book I enjoyed, another book about families, another book about relationships. Four siblings head to Italy after the death of their father who recently married a much younger woman. What follows are voyages of self-discovery and deeper understandings of who the family is. Recommended by all of the book club!

Japanese book of the month was the follow up to The Cat Who Saved Books, The Cat Who Saved the Library by Sosuke Natsukawa. This followed a similar plot line with a special talking cat who helps a young girl save books. If you like these magical worlds then you will like this book. I find them great little moments of escape.

In the non-fiction corner, I enjoyed Ina Garten’s memoir Be Ready When the Luck Happens. If you don’t know her, seek out her cooking shows on YouTube. Her recipes work, her style comforting, and her memoirs interesting.

I picked up Samin Nosrat’s latest book Good Things and if nothing else, this is a great read if, like me, you can read a recipe book for enjoyment. She has an engaging style and can make even simple dishes sound amazing.

And so the ratings:

  • Patrick Ryan Buckeye 5 family sagas
  • Rebecca Tope A Discovery in the Cotswolds 4 cottags
  • Ina Garten Be Ready When the Luck Happens 4 kitchens
  • Rachel Joyce The Homemade God 5 paintings
  • Sosuke Natsukawa The Cat Who Saved the Library 4 libraries
  • Ron Rindo Life, Death, and Giants 4 American footballs so far
  • Samin Nosrat Good Things – haven’t yet cooked anything from it but a lovely read – so far, 5 wooden spoons

And note…no detective novel this month!

Jo is hosting this month’s what’s on my shelf so do check her post out.

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

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Published by Thistles and Kiwis

Loves summer, sunshine and cats. Beginner gardener, likes eating, cooking and reading about food

44 Comments

  1. Sounds as though I have several new books to add to my TBR. All the novels you featured sound so good, and I definitely will be seeing if The Cat Who Saved the Library is in our interlibrary loan system.

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  2. One of the mantras I live by is something like, be ready when the luck happens, so I should dig out the Ina Garten book. Samin Nosrat’s is on my Christmas list (but I suspect I might have to buy it for myself), and I’ve placed a reservation on Buckeye.

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  7. I haven’t read any books on your list. The Cat books look interesting. I have had Buckeye on my list for a while, but keep putting it off, I’m not sure why. Time to get to it I think

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    1. The Ina Garten is a library book, and the others I keep and then once a year do a clear out or ones I don’t want any more and either swap with a friend or take to a second hand book shop that gives credit to buy books from them.

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  11. I have taken an interest in fungus (mushrooms etc) in recent weeks and spent a long time yesterday with an encyclopedia of the same. Now, I think my life and time can be spent far more enjoyably elsewhere!

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  12. I like Rachel Joyce very much and read The Handmade God quite recently. It was my turn to choose at Book Group this month and I went for another Joyce – Miss Benson’s Beetle. I was a bit unsure if the others would like it but apart from one who didn’t take to the characters (really not sure what’s wrong with her 😉) it was a resounding hit. I feel very gratified when that happens with one of my selections! I have also read all the Harold Fry series and The Music Shop which was my first and still remains my favourite with Miss Benson a close second. So if you haven’t read any more I think you should!

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  13. I listened to Ina’s Memoir last month when we were traveling and I enjoyed it a lot. I knew her from her show but knew nothing about how she had gotten there.

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  14. Personally, I have some of Bill Bryson’s travel writings on my October TBR—my whole year has been consumed mostly by non-fiction and travel writing, haha

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  15. I’ve heard great things about Ina’s memoir and with your thoughts added in, I think it’s finally time to add it to my TBR alongside The Cat Who Saved the Library! Hope you have a great weekend!

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  16. You have some wonderful selections here, Barbara. I read Ina’s book earlier this year, which was excellent. I’ve been a fan of hers for years. I have ‘The Cat Who Saved Books’ on my reading list and am looking forward to reading it too.

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  18. I love Samin Nosrat (have been listening to her podcast Home Cooking) and will check out Good Things.

    I have also returned to reading Japanese authors – I find the translations more accessible recently. The current one I am reading is Days at the Morisaki Bookshop. I have heard of The Cat Who Saved … so will check that series out next.

    Thank you for your recommendations!

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  20. These look great. There are a few that I’m going to look up. It would be an odd thing if there wasn’t a mystery/detective type book in my reading list..haha. Hey, I can’t find where to link up this month. I’ve had a hard time finding it the last few months…where is it at?

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  21. Pingback: If we were having coffee…or even a cup of tea… – Thistles and Kiwis

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