Winston’s cover Grimm for a grim day

The same day I got the Gunter Grass Proof I saw this in the same store he had everything half price so this early seventies selection of Grimm stories selected by Lore Segal and Maurice Sendak and Translated By Lore And illustrated by Maurice, of course sendak is best known for his book where the wild things are . His illustrations here are so in keeping with the Grimm tales.

As you see with this one for The fisherman and his wife, which of course formed the kernel of the idea for the Gunter Grass novel the Flounder I reviewed last month on the blog.

Winston’s covers two Nobel

I always look coming home to a parcel of books and today saw a double helping of Patrick Modiano Novels. Last year before he won the Nobel prize you’d struggled to buy a physical book. So for me his winning was a blessing havin enjoyed the one book I could get easily pre nobel win. So I have read three since he won and these are two latest the first Black notebook follows a writer searching for a lover from 40 years earlier when they were together in the 1960s.

The second book is the story of Louki or as others know her Jacqueline Delanque tld from four points of view herself, a detective, a man in a cafe and her lover. Both are set in Paris and are out next year

Winston’s cover Eça de Queiroz

Today’s cover is part of what I want do next year and that is add more Portuguese literature it is my one weak spot in Europe I haven’t read enough from here. So when I found this from what is considered the great Portuguese writer Eça de Queiroz an old edition  his books are all been published by Dedalus in English he is first in a few writers I want to try from Portugal any more suggestions welcome

Winston’s covers If Orson Welles was a fan I’m sold

I subscribe to Mubi, A movie streaming service with a new film every day to watch so when Last Monday a film from Orson welles The immortal story , a french production for tv he made in the late 1960’s. I had to watch it firstly I hadn’t seen it before but also in looking up about the production for the film Welles was a fan of the writer of the story Karen Blixen (AKA Isak Dinesen). He had planned to do a number of short stories by her but end up making just this one. So when this weekend my great luck at seee or finding a book I have just discovered  struck again when I found the collection containing the Immortal story .I had to laugh another lucky find.

Have you read Blixen/Dinesen ?

Winston’s covers – Eye catching Bird !!

I love this cover, when earlier this year I got the world edition catalogue this picture was on the cover. I wasn’t even that bother by what the book was just that cover. Well I have been sent it and the book well that may be a gem it won the Dutch bookseller prize getting a quarter of the vote of the 117 books up for the prize. The book follows a mother and son relationship, they live on a small island between Scotland and Norway , Mikeal whose  father has disappeared whilst out on the sea. This follows His  and his mother’s life just after that has happened. I just think if Gerbrand  Bakker said “Beautiful Just beautiful ” about this book it has to be worth reading!!!

Winston’s covers Greenland to Iceland Via The congo

Some books in the post before my next review , first up is a huge epic from Atlantic The prophets of eternal Fjord  by Kim Leine , A Danish novel following a priest sent to Greenland to convert the locals but he finds they have their own settlement at the Eternal Fjord on his arrival. An interesting book I know little about Danish history and very little about their time on Greenland so be a chance to learn some more.

Now this is one that has been on my radar for a while Tram 83 came out earlier in the year in America , set in a war-torn city it follows the locals , students and ex-pats as they spend their evenings in the only night club in the town Tram 83. One that I had want to read for a while so great it is being published here by Jacaranda books, the publisher that  does mainly African fiction.

The there is the second in the dark Iceland series, a series following Ari Thor Aarson a young detective sent to a small northern town , in the first he has to deal with the death of an elderly writer and this Night blind his second book follows him investigating the death of a well liked policeman. Ragnar Jonasson has translated Agatha Christie into Icelandic, sure some of her writing skills have rub off on him whilst he translated her books.

What have you had arrived recently ?

Winston’s covers how to read a Novelist

Another day another library book arrives I sometimes get carried away on the library catalogue system.but this is one for me plan to pimp up the reviews for the blog add a bit of blind as this blog slowly clock up it 600th review two to go. I feel need to learn a little bit about reviewing not enough to lose my own voice but enough.to given my own voice a sound of the knowledge Base I have but sometimes struggle to convey in words. So this book is a collection a reviews interview and pieces about writers from John Freeman many years in the lit world.

Winston’s cover 5 the Turkish Nobel

I brought this back from librar after work yesterday a new book by Orhan Pamuk is always worth reading he for me is knew of those nobel winners that win for consistent books not fireworks but just good books every time and this is a epic charting forty years of a Boza sellers life through Istanbul from the 70s to 2012 a time which saw the city grow families strained and the role of woman in Turkey change

Winston’s books first book in post

The first book to arrive this year in the post is thanks to Deborah Smith the translator of this book .This book tells in three acts the reaction to Yeong-Hye a women that has become the focus for her brother in laws art which are video art of an erotic nature .If the cover is a reflection of the book in its subtle nature .I’ll be happy ,yes just have a closer look at the cover it is by the same guy that did the original cover of Hawthorn and son a few years ago .
What was your first book in the post this year ?

The one that got lost winston’s books

Well it was a mystery a postcard from the post office arrived the other day three pound something owed in postage so with Easter and work I didn’t get chance to sort paying it til Tuesday and then when I arrived home from work today found this had arrived . I had to laugh that this book lost luggage had lost its postage en route to me .The book is the story of four brothers spread across Europe with the same father but different mothers all called Christopher or a variant on that name but they don’t know each of yet ! El Mundo called the An astonishing literary artefact