Tag: modern classic
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Another Caleb Azumah Nelson Masterpiece in Small Worlds
I couldn’t get enough of Open Water, so I requested Caleb Azumah Nelson’s Small Worlds as soon as it crossed my radar. I knew I was going to fall in love with the writing style and language again, and the themes and characters are so rich and lush, there was no second thought on the…
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Classic Kiwi Brilliance in Janet Frame’s A State of Siege
I have read some of Janet Frame’s autobiographical work in An Angel at my Table, and I knew I wanted to find some fiction pieces to read in the coming months. Imagine my surprise when I found A State of Siege recommended by one of my trusted bookstagram accounts (I believe she is UK-based, so…
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a state of siege, adult book recs, an angel at my table, annafromuni, book recommendations, book review, classic literature, contemporary adult fiction, Contemporary Fiction, daily posts, daily reading, daily reviews, december posting, december reading, famous nz authors, janet frame, kiwi fiction, kiwi novels, kiwi stories, kiwi voices, literary fiction, modern classic, modern classic books, modern classic literature, modern classics, new zealand authors, NZ author, NZ book recs, NZ Fiction, nz literature -
Stunning Short Stories in Claire Keegan’s Walk the Blue Fields
What’s better than a Claire Keegan story? Multiple Claire Keegan stories! Walk the Blue Fields was a library book request I made following Foster, a story I absolutely adored, and I am so happy to have more works of hers in hand. Both gut-wrenching and grand, these stories will transport you and throw you into…
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Elena Ferrante’s The Days of Abandonment is Visceral and Has Teeth
With the summer sun making its appearance, the heat of the day drawing out the fatigue from my bones, and the long invigilating hours making themselves known, I have found myself drifting to shorter reads to keep my brain stimulated. I don’t usually read literary fiction or women’s fiction, but The Days of Abandonment has…
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The Devastating Real Horror of The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway
To think this occurred only thirty years ago. The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway is one of those reads that will haunt you, drawing out the darkest parts of modern history yet shedding a light on the hopeful, resilient acts of humanity that we as humans persist to partake in despite such atrocities. It…
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Hour of the Star – Clarice Lispector’s Short, Sombre Brazilian Classic
There’s a line on page 8 that summarises Clarice Lispector’s Hour of the Star perfectly – ‘what I am about to write can’t be absorbed by minds that are very demanding and covet refinement.’ That could also sum up her writing in general, but I found it profound in the first few pages of this…
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Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Word of World is Forest is Still Relevant Today
I came across The Word for World is Forest by Usula K. Le Guin as a short book recommendation on Bookstagram, with the novel clocking in at 190 pages or so. The little premise given mentioned “Avatar, but good” which gave me a laugh, and followed up with noting the themes of colonialism and conflict…
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Tangi by Witi Ihimaera – An Emotional Tale of Loss and Life
Tangi by Witi Ihimaera stands as a powerhouse in New Zealand literature. A marker of Māori literature, of Maori life depicted in media written by Māori. It stands as a classic piece of New Zealand literature and showcases the long literary life of national icon Witi Ihimaera. Tangi is the first novel to be published…
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Patricia Grace’s Cousins is A Stunning Kiwi Classic
Cousins is one of Patricia Grace’s most well known novels (though she has several and a half dozen short story collections, all of which you should have a look at). Reminiscent of the work of Toni Morrison, Cousins carries an undeniable Māori essence at its core, and introduces the reader to not only life as…
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Catching Fire’s Impact Cannot Be Understated
Catching Fire marks the point of no return within the Hunger Games timeline, with the uprisings in Districts 3, 4, 8 and 11 changing the course of the narrative, not only as pivotal moments in the world of Panem but pivotal moments in Katniss’s life, where she is now stepping into the adult world within…
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