Penguin, Little Black Classics

I'm at little bit late to the party on this one - as they were published back in March, but thought I'd still do a quick post to bring these marvellous little books to other people's attention:-

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Penguin Little Black Classics are  80 slim snippets of novels, collections of short stories, essays or poems all newly packaged and on sale for a mere 80p each. They have been released to celebrate the imprints 80th Birthday.  Authors include Karl Marx (who is currently selling the best), Jane Austin, Edgar Allen Poe and Samuel Pepys. As they are 64 pages long,  authors that some people might find intimating are made manageable.

As they're from Penguin they are beautifully, and simply designed. I can't wait to get my grubby little hands on them.

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My top choices would be:

1. A Pair of Silk Stockings, Kate Chopin
2. Circles of Hell, Dante
3. The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman
4. Woman Much Missed, Thomas Hardy
5. The Fall of Icarus, Ovid 
6. Anthem for Doomed Youth, Wilfred Owen
7. Gobin Market, Christina Rossetti
8. Come Close, Sappho
9. The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent Tongue
10. Wailing Ghosts, Pu Songling   

*hint hint* it's my birthday next month

Penelope Lively, Moon Tiger

Moon Tiger has the kind of heroine that appeals to me, red-haired, sharp-tongued and quick-witted. The kind of woman who travels to exotic places, verbally spars with male colleagues and takes lovers.

The Plot: Dying in her hospital bed, Claudia reminisces about her life and the men she has loved; Gordon, her brother and rival, Jasper, fickle and charming and Tom, the love of her life. Non-linear, the narrative skips between Claudia's childhood, her time as a war correspondent in Egypt and her dotage.

Rating: ««««¶ (4/5)

For my full review click under the jump, but in brief if you enjoy novels such as Julian Barnes Sense of an Ending or Alison Moore's The Lighthouse, books about retrospection and nostalgia, this should also appeal to you. Moon Tiger is full of charm, glamour and truth.  

Presents for readers

Today is my birthday (yay!), and as I will be jollying around Lisbon this is a scheduled post of suggestions for presents for bibliophiles:-

One. 

How about a good book? hahaha pretty obvious, but why not? If you're stuck for ideas, have a look at my recent reviews and see what I did/didn't enjoy. Another useful place to look is goodreads which has a massive archive of reviews. Alternatively go out there and get some human contact, your local bookseller will have loads of recommendations. 

Currently on my wishlist are:-

image from Amazon.co.uk

1. The People of Forever are not Afraid- Shani Boianjiu. A coming of age novel about young women doing their national service in Israel 
2.  We, The Drowned- Carsten Jensen. A literary voyage about a crew of Danish sailors in 1848 
3. The Lost Books of the Odyssey-Zachary Mason. Continuing my current hobby for Greek epics. 
4. Far From the Tree- Andrew Solomon. Non-fiction, examining genetics and parenting     

Ok if a book is too obvious or you're not sure what the person you're buying for has read, I have plenty of other suggestions after the cut....