We’re bringing in a new stream to the Off the Record family – Off the Page – that will feature a range of book reviews and literary features. Follow us on Instagram @offthepage_uk. Now, we are breaking down Imogen’s reading list from October 2020 and picking out her favourite picks from the past month.
1. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
I know there has been a wide debate on this one in the Bookstagram community, but I LOVED and was so captivated by this read as a novel in its own right. The story revolves around Lydia, when her whole family is decimated by a drug cartel, she escapes with her son to make her way to America. My heart was in my mouth as she made the treacherous journey up to ‘El Norte.’ Cummins really fleshes out Lydia’s psyche and the story in granular detail and it’s a real page-turner.
Rating: A+
2. Ghosts by Dolly Alderton
Wildly popular writer Dolly Alderton’s first novel is worth the wait, this is Bridget Jones for the millennial generation, with more thoughtfully fleshed out characters and deeper insights into the internal psyche of the characters. Centred around Nina, a single woman in her thirties, this is more than just a book about love and dating but one around the broader spectrum of relationships and emotions that we all experience, a stunning debut.
Rating: A
3. Verity by Colleen Hoover
Recommended by The Bad on Paper podcast, this is an indulgently juicy thriller, the true definition of a page-turner replete with twists and turns that you won’t see coming. Verity is a sublimely creepy romantic thriller and you’ll be thinking about it for weeks to come once you finish the final page.
Rating: A-
4. Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado
A cult classic that blurs literary genre boundaries, this was the most curiously difficult read on my list. A collection of short stories there were some real gems in here but they were marred by some weirder stories that – to be frank – I didn’t see the point of.
Rating: B
5. The Mothers by Brit Bennett
Having adored her 2020 release, The Vanishing Half, I was excited to delve into Bennett’s first novel The Mothers. Truthfully, I wasn’t as blown away by this release as I was The Vanishing Half but this is still a juicy read delving into the intricacies of a love triangle.
Rating: A-
6. Burnt Sugar by Avni Doshi
Nominated for The Booker Prize this year, Burnt Sugar dives into the intricacies of a relationship between a mother and a daughter, devastatingly honest and raw, the writing is caustically sharp and honest.
Rating: A-
7. You Had Me At Hola by Alexis Daria
As far as juicy romances go, this is a good one, the literary equivalent of a PSL, indulgent, a tad basic but we love it anyway. Set on the set of a telenovela, the novel details the romance between the show’s two main characters on and off screen, but is refreshingly honest about relationships.
Rating: B+
8. The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
Brutally honest and to the point, Whitehead doesn’t waste a word in his sharp prose that tells the story about the Nickel detention centre, this is an eye-opening look into racism at play – leaving you empty and disbelieving at the inherent and harsh brutality that is the common experience for so many.
Rating: A
9. Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed
Feeling like a mother’s embrace, this collection of Agony Aunt letters that Strayed wrote under the pseudonym ‘Sugar’ is raw, honest and real doled out with love and is a stunning and unique read.
Rating: A
10. The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Foley’s ‘The Hunting Party’ was a stunning debut thriller and her follow-up ‘The Guest List’ is no less surprising and clever. Narrating a murder at a wedding party in remote Ireland, the novel twists and turns such that you are unable to predict either the victim or the murderer till the final pages.
Rating: A-
11. Little White Lies by Philippa East
This was an interesting read but not a page-turner, telling the aftermath of a discovered child’s return home, having been abducted for seven years. It’s an interesting dive into the after-effects of a scenario that seems unfathomably difficult but the characters are insufficiently fleshed out to make this a stellar read.
Rating: C+
12. Intimations by Zadie Smith
Our first COVID-19 reads are approaching and Zadie Smith’s intimations is a collection of essays and reflections on 2020, this is one you’ll come back to time and again – quote to anyone at length. Smith’s magic is in her ability to capture both the individual and the collective psyche shrewdly but not patronisingly.
Rating: A+
