6 January 2014
Lay back, relax and lose yourself in these stellar holiday reads.
The summer holidays are without a doubt the perfect time to allow oneself to be totally absorbed in a great page turner. Here, zealous reader and book store owner Andrew Maben provides us with the ultimate roundup of summer reads:
The Signature Of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert
New York Times best seller Elizabeth Gilbert is back with a dazzling novel of desire, ambition and discovery. We follow the fortunes of the extraordinary Whittaker family, led by self-made titan Henry Whittaker, who has cultivated a thriving import-export business in exotic plants. Exquisitely researched, The Signature Of All Things centres on Henry’s clear-minded scientist daughter, and takes the reader all the way from the greenhouses of 18th century Kew Gardens to the rugged tropical landscape of Tahiti. This proves to the naysayers that Gilbert is far from the glorified self-help writer that Eat, Pray, Love’s raging success made her out to be.
Lion Heart by Justin Cartwright
Part love story, part state-of-England thriller and part historical novel, Lion Heart is an eccentric 21st century tale told across cultural divides. Richard Cathar’s father, Alaric, was a drug addict with a deeply rooted obsession with Richard the Lionheart. Soon after Alaric’s passing, Richard sets out to follow his estranged father’s lifelong preoccupation, and hunt for the last resting place of the True Cross. If you harbour any enthusiasm for the medieval era, Lion Heart will appeal, both for its playful, eccentric prose and perplexing detective-like quest.
Infamy by Lenny Bartulin
Charting the madness of Australia’s early colonial times is Infamy, by author Lenny Bartulin. His exuberant new novel is set in 1830, the action taking place over three days as the colony exists in a state of near anarchy, filled with a wild native population, calculating opportunists, convicts and mad men. It’s a satisfying, chaotic read that bounces along at a frenetic pace, and Bartulin’s unconventional ending will satisfy those who have long been bored of the usual narrative clichés.
Solo by William Boyd
James Bond is back, this time with author William Boyd continuing on where Ian Fleming left off. His authentically written attempt is as epic as Fleming’s originals, and set in 1969, where 007 is dispatched by M to stop a war in the fictional state of Zanzarim, West Africa. Exotic travel, fine-bodied women, violence and superior gadgets all feature, but Boyd also reveals in Bond haunting bouts of doubt, conscience and even vulnerability, making for a thoroughly intriguing read. A triumphant new addition to the Bond family that won’t disappoint on any level.
MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood
As the third novel and final showdown in Atwood’s apocalyptic trilogy, MaddAddam follows on after ‘Oryx and Crake’ and ‘The Year of the Flood’, using lush narrative to devise life on a planet that’s been devastated by a pandemic, rising water and other catastrophes. At the heart of the story lies a woman named Toby, a survivor who lives among Crakes, a population of newly bio-engineered people. Playful and mildly satirical, this is a whimsical take on dystopian storytelling, and read as a whole, the full series serves admirably as this year’s weighty summer read. Think of it as the Hunger Games for adults.
Source:
http://www.thedenizen.co.nz/culture/the-denizen-summer-reading-list-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-denizen-summer-reading-list-2