Thanks, Greg. I like this list. "Still Born," "Pyre," and "Time Shelter" are easiest for me to get hold of right now, so I'll start with one of those. I'm most excited about the Nordic books, and I absolutely love the description of East Germany’s answer to "Trainspotting." I think there's a lot to enjoy here from new-to-me authors.
I am currently pregnant with my twins, during pregnancy complications has occured, so I was drawn to Still born. I loved it, a very important read indeed. It discovers motherhood and the decision being childless in a very complex and non judgemental way. Also, it shows how the healthcare systems deal with women which is I think a global problem, unfortunately I also experience it as a patent and healthcare worker myself.
The premise of Time Shelter reminds me of Time and Again by Jack Finlay! Pretty cool I might have to read Time Shelter. Thanks for sharing the awards I go to you for this coverage
I’ve ordered Time Shelter (or pre-ordered the paperback) and Boulder. Been waiting for the paperback of Time Shelter to come out since it was released in hardback, sounds fascinating.
Still Born, Time Shelter and Boulder are the ones standing out the most for me. As a mother myself, I love reading books that challenge the "status quo" of parenthood. It's fascinating.
I immediately put Still Life on my TBR. I read, and loved, Nettel’s fascinating novel, After the Winter. I discovered David Diop through this prize and the winner, At Night All Blood is Black, still haunts me.
I haven't read any of them, or even heard of most of these, so I cannot comment on any shortlist thoughts, but I am very curious about Ninth Building (I've read a few cultural revolution period novels and so far thought each one was amazing.) Time Shelter and Pyre are the other two I'm most intrigued by.
Currently most interested in Still Born & Time Shelter. 😂 feel you on the Amurikan public school education… I’m often like 😳 😬. I’m not quite awake either, but your reason is more legit. I passed out reading despite telling myself I’d use this off day to clean 🤦🏼♀️ Blahdiggityblah, appreciate the video as always 📖 🪱 💚
First a disclaimer. I have not read Ninth Building but have read a lot about the cultural revolution. I’m thinking this is such a different approach on how it effected lives, it’s going to be fascinating. I have the ninth building, the Birthday Party and Time Shelter on order. I’m adding Pyre (as I loved Story of A Goat.). I’m adding aSystem so Magnificent It’s Blinding. ( it may have quirky characters but not a quirky story) That makes up the Short list. On a separate note. I enjoyed Grey Bees by Andrew Kurkov was very good.
Ninth Building does sound like a very different, personal approach. It's a solid list of books! Not all of them sound like they would be to my taste, but they all seem worthy of discovery and discussion. That's the hallmark of a strong longlist.
From the long list, I’ve only read Is Mother Dead - I enjoyed it a lot, but I think Will and Testament was better and Is Mother Dead is sort of a response to that book. I’d personally recommend starting with it, but Is Mother Dead can definitely be read alone. I just love Hjorth and the way she writes adult characters dealing with their childhood traumas - so apt, in my opinion. Ones I was already interested in: - Still Born - Time Shelter - Andrey Kurkov in general - this one sounds interesting, but I still think I’d like to start somewhere else with him (Grey Bees) Never heard of but now want to read: - Boulder - While We Were Dreaming - The Birthday Party And to a lesser extent: - Ninth Building - Pyre Interesting list! I always get so excited by the longlist and hardly read anything off it 😄 I’d be happy to read 4 or 5 this year. Great video, Greg 😊
Thank you! Someone else in the comments had nice things to say about Grey Bees, so it sounds like you're on the right track there. Thank you for the thoughtful feedback on Is Mother Dead and Hjorth. Longlists can definitely get overwhelming when they have a lot of good options!
Pyre and Time Shelter sound the most interesting to me. I would want to know more before reading Ninth Building. Boulder and Still Born could be interesting but the subject matter (wanting or not wanting parenthood) may be hard for me. We'll see.
I'll wait for a few people to read Pyre and Time Shelter I think and probably buy those two. My local library will probably not stock them. It seems like a really varied and interesting list :)
I requested two of the titles that have been released in the US but I'm not optimistic about my library purchasing them. I think I'm going to wait at least until the shortlist is announced before thinking about any purchases.
This is a season of a glut of book prizes The Carol Shields Prize ( Canada) Womens Prize International Booker In April I think it’s The Stella ( Australian)
Pyre, Standing Heavy, and Time Shelter are the only ones that really piqued my curiosity. The religion book was an instant no for me and I started shaking my head at Whale not far into the blurb. 😉 I checked my library e-site and found Pyre with an excellent narrator. Scribd didn’t have any of those three. For those in the know, it’s probably a strong longlist, but not many grabbed me. Thanks for taking the early hit to get us a reaction video so fast!
It's definitely been a heavy week for coffee so far. 😉 I couldn't find any books (released in the US, of course) at my library or on Scribd. I requested Pyre and Boulder at my library but I'm not optimistic that they'll purchase them. They tend to ignore my requests, especially any that have LGBTQ+ content. 🙄
Just finished listening to Pyre. Very good narrator. It may be well written/translated (I don’t know) but it’s a tremendously painful experience listening to this story. I can’t recommend it.
I checked and just like last year, none of the books are available in my library system (of the ones that have been released in the US, of course). Copies in the UK look pretty affordable but I'm not committing to purchasing any right now. Oh well!
@@SupposedlyFun Have you looked at the books on the Carol Shields prize long list? It seems like it wants to be in direct competition with the Women's Prize. It might have been better if it had not tried to do that.
Please don't bad-mouth public schools. Teachers do the best job possible with very limited resources. Thank goodness you learned how to read in public school otherwise we wouldn't have this channel. 🤗 😉
It was not my intention to denigrate public schools so much as to comment on how the American education system doesn't prioritize language learning. I would fully support funding better resources for schools and teachers to improve this.
Thanks, Greg. I like this list. "Still Born," "Pyre," and "Time Shelter" are easiest for me to get hold of right now, so I'll start with one of those. I'm most excited about the Nordic books, and I absolutely love the description of East Germany’s answer to "Trainspotting." I think there's a lot to enjoy here from new-to-me authors.
Thank you for your program. I look forward to them.
Thank you for watching!
I am currently pregnant with my twins, during pregnancy complications has occured, so I was drawn to Still born. I loved it, a very important read indeed. It discovers motherhood and the decision being childless in a very complex and non judgemental way. Also, it shows how the healthcare systems deal with women which is I think a global problem, unfortunately I also experience it as a patent and healthcare worker myself.
Thank you for the feedback on it. I imagine it felt very close to home for you right now.
The premise of Time Shelter reminds me of Time and Again by Jack Finlay! Pretty cool I might have to read Time Shelter. Thanks for sharing the awards I go to you for this coverage
Thank you--I appreciate that!
I’ve ordered Time Shelter (or pre-ordered the paperback) and Boulder. Been waiting for the paperback of Time Shelter to come out since it was released in hardback, sounds fascinating.
It does sound like a very interesting concept.
i just finished boulder today, its a quick read. i think you'd enjoy it. i'm excited to work through the rest of the list :)
That's good to know--thanks!
Still Born, Time Shelter and Boulder are the ones standing out the most for me. As a mother myself, I love reading books that challenge the "status quo" of parenthood. It's fascinating.
It is definitely a fascinating subject, although it can be an emotional minefield for some people, too.
I immediately put Still Life on my TBR. I read, and loved, Nettel’s fascinating novel, After the Winter. I discovered David Diop through this prize and the winner, At Night All Blood is Black, still haunts me.
I still need to catch up to the Diop book!
I haven't read any of them, or even heard of most of these, so I cannot comment on any shortlist thoughts, but I am very curious about Ninth Building (I've read a few cultural revolution period novels and so far thought each one was amazing.) Time Shelter and Pyre are the other two I'm most intrigued by.
Ninth Building and its place in the history of the Cultural Revolution does indeed sound fascinating.
I also watch Books and Bao! I believe they have a review on "Boulder" as well.
I love their channel! I had missed the video about Boulder--thanks.
@@SupposedlyFun It was fairly recent... it was part of a video about two lesbian novels.
Books and Bao recently reviewed Boulder by Eva Baltasar, seemed to really like it.
I saw their review of it over the weekend--always reliable!
Currently most interested in Still Born & Time Shelter.
😂 feel you on the Amurikan public school education… I’m often like 😳 😬.
I’m not quite awake either, but your reason is more legit. I passed out reading despite telling myself I’d use this off day to clean 🤦🏼♀️
Blahdiggityblah, appreciate the video as always
📖 🪱 💚
First a disclaimer. I have not read Ninth Building but have read a lot about the cultural revolution. I’m thinking this is such a different approach on how it effected lives, it’s going to be fascinating. I have the ninth building, the Birthday Party and Time Shelter on order. I’m adding Pyre (as I loved Story of A Goat.). I’m adding aSystem so Magnificent It’s Blinding. ( it may have quirky characters but not a quirky story) That makes up the Short list. On a separate note. I enjoyed Grey Bees by Andrew Kurkov was very good.
Ninth Building does sound like a very different, personal approach. It's a solid list of books! Not all of them sound like they would be to my taste, but they all seem worthy of discovery and discussion. That's the hallmark of a strong longlist.
From the long list, I’ve only read Is Mother Dead - I enjoyed it a lot, but I think Will and Testament was better and Is Mother Dead is sort of a response to that book. I’d personally recommend starting with it, but Is Mother Dead can definitely be read alone. I just love Hjorth and the way she writes adult characters dealing with their childhood traumas - so apt, in my opinion.
Ones I was already interested in:
- Still Born
- Time Shelter
- Andrey Kurkov in general - this one sounds interesting, but I still think I’d like to start somewhere else with him (Grey Bees)
Never heard of but now want to read:
- Boulder
- While We Were Dreaming
- The Birthday Party
And to a lesser extent:
- Ninth Building
- Pyre
Interesting list! I always get so excited by the longlist and hardly read anything off it 😄 I’d be happy to read 4 or 5 this year. Great video, Greg 😊
Thank you! Someone else in the comments had nice things to say about Grey Bees, so it sounds like you're on the right track there. Thank you for the thoughtful feedback on Is Mother Dead and Hjorth. Longlists can definitely get overwhelming when they have a lot of good options!
The Perfect Nanny is called Lullaby in the UK.
I remembered the UK title the second this video uploaded. 😂
@@SupposedlyFun 😂 That's how it usually goes.
@@ameliareads589 Always. 🤪
Pyre and Time Shelter sound the most interesting to me. I would want to know more before reading Ninth Building. Boulder and Still Born could be interesting but the subject matter (wanting or not wanting parenthood) may be hard for me. We'll see.
Parenthood can be such a tricky and triggering topic for sure. I agree that Pyre and Time Shelter sound interesting.
How did I miss this vid?
It's just always nice to be found. 🤗
I'll wait for a few people to read Pyre and Time Shelter I think and probably buy those two. My local library will probably not stock them. It seems like a really varied and interesting list :)
I requested two of the titles that have been released in the US but I'm not optimistic about my library purchasing them. I think I'm going to wait at least until the shortlist is announced before thinking about any purchases.
Boulder is fantastic and very short. If you like dry, spare prose it could be for you!
I requested it at my library, but I'm not optimistic that they'll purchase it. They tend to ignore my requests--especially the LGBTQ ones.
This is a season of a glut of book prizes
The Carol Shields Prize ( Canada)
Womens Prize
International Booker
In April I think it’s
The Stella ( Australian)
The Stella longlist was announced in the last 2 weeks. It’s a busy period!
I almost wonder if the Pulitzer moved to May to get away from all these longlist announcements. 😂
Pyre, Standing Heavy, and Time Shelter are the only ones that really piqued my curiosity. The religion book was an instant no for me and I started shaking my head at Whale not far into the blurb. 😉 I checked my library e-site and found Pyre with an excellent narrator. Scribd didn’t have any of those three. For those in the know, it’s probably a strong longlist, but not many grabbed me. Thanks for taking the early hit to get us a reaction video so fast!
It's definitely been a heavy week for coffee so far. 😉
I couldn't find any books (released in the US, of course) at my library or on Scribd. I requested Pyre and Boulder at my library but I'm not optimistic that they'll purchase them. They tend to ignore my requests, especially any that have LGBTQ+ content. 🙄
Just finished listening to Pyre. Very good narrator. It may be well written/translated (I don’t know) but it’s a tremendously painful experience listening to this story. I can’t recommend it.
@@mradcaqbdb Thanks for the feedback.
@@SupposedlyFun I started the audiobook of This Other Eden by Paul Harding last night. Liking it very much so far.
@@mradcaqbdb I'm looking forward to that one.
I am thinking I am going to wait for the winner. They are usually not available at my library. I did enjoy the winner last year.
I checked and just like last year, none of the books are available in my library system (of the ones that have been released in the US, of course). Copies in the UK look pretty affordable but I'm not committing to purchasing any right now. Oh well!
@@SupposedlyFun Have you looked at the books on the Carol Shields prize long list? It seems like it wants to be in direct competition with the Women's Prize. It might have been better if it had not tried to do that.
I have looked at the longlist but have not looked into the prize itself or its intention. I hope competition is not their goal.
Please don't bad-mouth public schools. Teachers do the best job possible with very limited resources. Thank goodness you learned how to read in public school otherwise we wouldn't have this channel. 🤗 😉
It was not my intention to denigrate public schools so much as to comment on how the American education system doesn't prioritize language learning. I would fully support funding better resources for schools and teachers to improve this.
@@SupposedlyFun I know. I am just overly sensitive because I come from a long line of public educators. ✌️
I have many educators in my family as well. I do not believe they are to blame for any deficiencies in the American education system at all.