Review: The Survivors

The Survivors by Jane Harper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A standalone from Australian crime writer Jane Harper, set in a coastal small town in Tasmania with a history of loss, and then a young woman dies mysteriously and old grudges come to the surface.

One thing I continue to appreciate and enjoy in Harper's writing is the importance of the landscape. Previously that has been the sparse, dry climates; this is a cold weather island, specifically on the coast where there are caves that are underwater only during high tide. What a perfect place to be full of danger and foreboding! I wish I could go there.

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Reading Envy 206: Black Sheep with Tina Porubsky

Jenny welcomes a new guest - Tina - and we chat about reading more books from our own shelves and great books we've read recently. Jenny also asks about Tina's knitting, a new hobby she enjoys alongside reading.

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 206: Black Sheep

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Books discussed:

The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urrea
Silences So Deep by John Luther Adams
A River in Darkness by Masaji Ishikawa, translated by Risa Kobayashi
Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley
Two Wings to Fly Away by Penny Mickelbury
The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste

Other mentions:

#audioknitting
Rizzoli & Isles novels by Tess Gerritsen
I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong
The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee
2 Knit Lit Chicks (podcast)
Ravelry
RBG dissent sweater and Empower cowl
#yarnbombing
Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea
The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea
The Hummingbird's Daughter by Luis Alberto Urrea
Queen of America by Luis Alberto Urrea
PBS Reads July 2019
Urrea Facebook page
The Writer's Library edited by Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori
Mimi Patterson books by Penny Mickelbury
Smart Podcast, Trashy Books - Beverly Jenkins, episode 421
Burnt Sugar by Avni Doshi
Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste
Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli
Tell Me How it Ends: An Essay in 40 Questions by Valeria Luiselli
New York Society Library - Maaza Mengiste
Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi
Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

Related episodes:

Episode 088 - Author Head Space with Sara Moore
Episode 133 - To Understand the World with Lauren Weinhold
Episode 160 - Reading Plays with Elizabeth
Episode 161 - Women in Translation Month Recommendations with Lauren
Episode 183 - Birthing Rabbits with Jessica
Episode 189 - Surreal Superpowers with Tim
Episode 203 - Backlist with Marion

Stalk us online:

Tina at Goodreads
Tina is @godmotherx5 on Instagram and Litsy
Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy

All links to books are through Bookshop.org, where I am an affiliate. I wanted more money to go to the actual publishers and authors.

Reading Envy 199: Awkward Melacholy with Karen

Karen returns to chat books, and we talk about how we met the Reading Envy Summer Reading challenge, the awkward melancholy of books we are drawn to in dark times, and the translated standalone graphic memoirs that seem to call to each of us.

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 199: Awkward Melancholy

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New! Listen through Google Podcasts


Books discussed:

     

Broken Harbour by Tana French
Transit by Rachel Cusk
5,000 Kilometers Per Second by Manuele Flor
Today is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life by Ulli Lust, translated by Kim Thompson
Luisa: Now & Then by Carole Maurel
The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, translated by Michele Hutchison

Other mentions:

Dublin Murder Squad series by Tana French
Outline series by Rachel Cusk
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
The Last Policeman trilogy by Ben H. Winters
Broadchurch (tv show)
Alexandria Quartet by Lawrence Durrell
Fantagraphics in Hoopla
Shine, Pamela! Shine! by Kate Atkinson
Just Like You by Nick Hornby
The Searcher by Tana French
The Survivors by Jane Harper
Siete Casas Vacias by Samantha Schweblin
Little Eyes by Samantha Schweblin
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
The Margot Affair by Sanaë Lemoine
Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

 
Related episodes:

Episode 004 - Home, Frightening and Banned with guest Karen Acosta
Episode 015 - The Time for Exclaiming Over Costumes with Jean and Karen
Episode 051 - Dreaming in Books with Karen Acosta
Episode 066 - When Time Stops with Karen Acosta
Episode 101 - A Different Kind of Time Travel with Karen Acosta
Episode 114 - Raised by Wolves with Karen Acosta
Episode 146 - Complicated, Crazy, and Loud with Karen  
Episode 151 - The Stories They Tell with Karen
Episode 161 - Women in Translation Month Recommendations with Lauren
Episode 166 - On Brand with Karen
 

Stalk us online:
Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy

Reading Envy 170: Permission to Read with Joshua Greer

Joshua Greer has known Jenny since he worked for her in the music library as a new college student, and since then has gone on to become a librarian. We have been talking about having him on the podcast for a while, so I'm glad it finally worked out!

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 170: Permission to Read with Joshua Greer

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Listen via Stitcher
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Books discussed:

 

I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver
Crossing by Pajtim Statovci
Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
The Blue Sky by Galsan Tschinag
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Little Weirds by Jenny Slate


Other mentions:

Beaufort County (SC) Library
Bahni Turpin (narrator)
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
Frazer Douglas (narrator)
The Song of Achilles by Madeleine Miller
Tuvan throat singers
Russian Doll (tv show)
Circe by Madeleine Miller
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
Jim Dale (narrator)
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann
The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
The Guardian Books podcast interview with Lucy Ellmann
Booker Prize Podcast


Related Episodes:

Episode 099 - Readalong: The Secret History
Episode 100 - 100 Reasons Why
Episode 139 - Stocking Stuffer (Best Reads of 2018)
Episode 162 - Heat Rating with Sara DeSantis
Episode 167 - Book Pendulum with Reggie


Stalk us online:

Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy
Joshua at Goodreads

Some of these links are Amazon affiliate links, where I do get a minor kickback when people click on them. Since I never beg for donations, I don't feel too bad about it.

Reading Envy 169: Simulacrum with Jon Sealy

Jenny sits down in the Reading Envy Pub with author and publisher Jon Sealy. After we talk about the state of publishing and Jon's current projects, we also discuss books we've read and liked recently. Some books are just better in audio, some are necessarily dark, while others clear away the gloom.

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 169: Simulacrum with Jon Sealy

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Books discussed:



The Overstory by Richard Powers
The Circle of Karma by Kunzang Choden
Faithful Place by Tana French
The Line Becomes a River by Francisco Cantú
The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante, translated by Ann Goldstein
The Restaurant of Love Regained by Ito Ogawa, translated by David Karashima


Other mentions:

Jenny's trip to the South Carolina Book Festival in 2014 (where she saw Jon Sealy talk about his book right before a panel of Pat Conroy's siblings)
The Whiskey Baron by Jon Sealy
Hub City Press
Eureka Mill by Ron Rash
Like a Family by Jacquelyne Dowd Hall et al
Fate Moreland's Widow by John Lane
The Last Ballad by Wiley Cash
The Edge of America by Jon Sealy
Haywire Books
Hummingbird House by Patricia Henley
Firebird by Mark Powell
Small Treasons by Mark Powell
The Good Luck Stone by Heather Bell Adams
The Echo Maker by Richard Powers
Orfeo by Richard Powers
In the Woods by Tana French
The Witch Elm by Tana French
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (Neopolitan Novels #1)
Chocolat by Joanne Harris
Tiny Love: The Complete Stories of Larry Brown by Larry Brown (forthcoming)
All This Could Be Yours by Jami Attenberg
The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates


Related Episodes:

Episode 012 - Some Bookers and Some Madness 
Episode 024 - The Attention of Humanity with guests Seth Wilson and Barret Newman 
Episode 130 - All the Jennifers with Fern Ronay
Episode 167 - Book Pendulum with Reggie


Stalk us online:

Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy
Jon on Twitter
Jon on Facebook
Jon's website with tour info
Haywire Books website
Haywire Books on Facebook

Some of these links are Amazon affiliate links, where I do get a minor kickback when people click on them. But many of the links on today's post link to the small presses publishing the books, and although I receive no kickback on those links, I would love for you to support those publishers and writers.

Reading Envy 142: Borders and Bails

Recent birthday boy Shawn Mooney returns to the Reading Envy pub to chat books. Shawn has had a fantastic year, but in his reading, he has somehow focused on a narrow window of literature. He will share more with us on this episode.

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 142: Borders and Bails

Subscribe to the podcast via this link: Feedburner
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Or listen on Google Play
Listen via Stitcher
NEW! Listen through Spotify

Books discussed:



Country Dance by Margiad Evans
Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay
Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston by Valerie Boyd
Aunty Lee's Delights by Ovidia Lu
Alberta and Jacob by Cora Sandel
The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose

Other mentions:

Shawn and Charlotte discuss Country Dance on YouTube
Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
State of Emergency by Jeremy Tiang
Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi
Old Baggage by Lissa Evans
Woman at 1,000 Degrees by Hallgrímur Helgason, translated by Brian FitzGibbon
A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza
Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson


Related episodes:

Episode 077 - No One Messes With a Wolf with Shawn Mooney
Episode 086 - The Queen of Bailing with Shawn Mooney
Episode 100 - 100 Reasons Why 
Episode 107 - Reading Goals 2018 
Episode 111 - Emotional Dipsy Doodles with Shawn Mooney
Episode 140 - Woman Greets Bear (Reading Goals 2019)  

 
Stalk us online:
Jenny at Goodreads
Shawn at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Shawn on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy
Shawn is @shawnmooney on Litsy
BookTube channel: Shawn the Book Maniac

Reading Envy 132: Whimsy and Density with Anna Baillie-Karas

Anna Baillie-Karas is a reader and podcaster from Adelaide, Australia. She joins Jenny in the Reading Envy pub to talk about book award lists, expanding our range, organizing our home libraries, and books we've read lately!

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 132: Whimsy and Density.

Subscribe to the podcast via this link: Feedburner
Or subscribe via Apple Podcasts by clicking: Subscribe
Or listen through TuneIn
Or listen on Google Play
Listen via Stitcher
NEW! Listen through Spotify


Books Discussed:



Milkman by Anna Burns
Our Homesick Songs by Emma Hooper
The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson
A Coffin for Dimitrios by Eric Ambler
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
There There by Tommy Orange

Other Mentions:

Books on the Go (podcast)
The First Tuesday Book Club (Australian tv show)
Man Booker Prize
Clock Dance by Anne Tyler
Circe by Madeleine Miller
Book Riot Read Harder Challenge
National Book Award (now includes translated literature award)
Disoriental by Negar Djavadi
Tricks by Domenico Starnoni
The Romanovs: 1613-1918 by Simon Sebag Montefiore
Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar by Simon Sebag Montefiore
Simon Winchester
Shawn Mooney (Booktube)
Kendra Winchester (Booktube)
Simon Savidge from the Readers (Booktube)
What Kamil Reads (Booktube)
No Bones by Anna Burns
Women's Prize for Fiction
The Water Cure by Sophie Mackintosh
ScotiaBank Giller Prize
Get Booked (podcast)
Etta and Otto and Russell and James by Emma Hooper
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Mythos by Stephen Fry
Heroes by Stephen Fry
Ulysses by James Joyce
Suite Francaise by Irène Némirovsky
The Winter Queen (Erast Fandorin #1) by Boris Akunin
Before Sunrise (film)
Before Sunset (film)
Before Midnight (film)
Lost Connections by Johann Hari
21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari
Billion Dollar Whale: The Man Who Fooled Wall Street, Hollywood, and the World by Tom Wright and Bradley Hope
Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
Annie Muktuk & Other Stories by Norma Dunning


Related Episodes:
Episode 002 - Return of the Euthanized Book with guest Bryan Alexander
Episode 006 -  Bailey's Women's Prize 2014
Episode 074 - The Books We Didn't Love in High School with Blaine DeSantis
Episode 086 - The Queen of Bailing with Shawn Mooney 
Episode 098 - Just a Bunch of Stuff that Happened with Bryan Bibb 
Episode 123 - Godlets and Forests with Lauren Weinhold

Stalk us online:

Books on the Go Podcast
Anna is @abailliekaras on Instagram
Anna on Twitter
Anna at Goodreads
Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy