Stuck in a Book

I continue to listen to lots of audiobooks, many of them from the Audible Plus free catalogue, and here is a round up of some recent listens… I’ve marked them with an asterisk if they’re in the free catalogue, or at least were when I listened to them, so you can hunt them out if you wish.

On Color (2018) by David Scott Kastan and Stephen Farthing*

This is an absolutely brilliant non-fiction book – about, as the title suggests, colour. Kastan and Farthing devote 10 chapters to the colours of the rainbow, followed by black, grey, and white. Each chapter looks at the significance of the colour in many different ways – while each chapter is quite wide-ranging, they are often also tied to particular issues. ‘Red’ is largely about science, ‘yellow’ about race, ‘green’ about politics, and so on and so forth. One of the authors is an artist, and so art history is threaded throughout.

It’s an ambitious premise for a book, particularly one that comes in at little over 200 pages in the print edition, but is done brilliantly. I found it fascinating, thought-provoking, and captivating. It was free in the Audible Plus catalogue, so if you’re an Audible subscriber then I definitely recommend downloading it.

Piranesi (2020) by Susannah Clarke

You probably already know all about this award-winning fantasy novel, long awaited from the author of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (which I never actually read). Piranesi lives in an enormous, perhaps endless, house which consists of halls after halls after halls. Many have statues in, some are empty, and some are filled by the ocean. He believes there are only 15 people in the world, and only regularly meets one of them.

Even for someone without a visual imagination, I found this world-building enveloping – brilliantly simple while also being other worldly. Chiwetel Ejiofor’s narrative expertly capture Piranesi’s naivety and gentleness. As we gradually learned more about the world, and followed stray clues to build a complete picture, I thought Piranesi was a wonderful success.

Lady Audley’s Secret (1862) by M.E Braddon*

One of those books I’ve read about quite a lot, this sensation novel is about Sir Michael Audley’s new young wife, who is mistrusted by Sir Michael’s nephew – and the mysterious disappearance of Sir Michael’s friend George Talboys. It was a fun and interesting read, nowhere near as histrionic as I’d imagined, and Braddon’s writing is a joy.

Is it let down by the fact that George Talboys is appalling, and his disappearance should be considered an enormous blessing in a paper-thin disguise? Or by the fact that at least one of Lady Audley’s secrets is obvious to any modern reader by the end of the second chapter? Well, those things help make this something of a period piece – but it’s still a silly delight.

Ayoade on Ayoade (2014) by Richard Ayoade*

You’ll either really enjoy this or hate it and, judging by the Amazon reviews, most people are in the latter category. I really liked it, though it wasn’t what I expected. Supposedly about cinema, it is actually quite a silly and surreal serious of interviews between Ayoade and… himself. Not a moment of it is serious, and you have to chime with his off-the-wall humour. Luckily I do.

A Damsel in Distress (1919) by P.G. Wodehouse*

I mean, what can I say – the usual wonderful Wodehouse stuff of misunderstandings, falling in love at first sight, improbable coincidences, and bucketloads of brilliant, brilliant writing. As always, absolutely delightful and hilarious.

The Cross and the Switchblade (1963) by David Wilkerson*

What a brilliant (true) story – about a minister from a small rural community who is called by God to reach teenagers in criminal gangs in New York. He initially goes because he feels called to help a particular group of seven teenagers, but ends up transforming whole communities. The book is packed with examples of miracles and interventions by God, and is a moving and powerful account of what happens when somebody humbly obeys. An extraordinary story that I had previously seen adapted for stage, but is even more amazing as a book (although I did have to skip some of the drug bits). Co-written with John and Elizabeth Sherrill.

Escaping the Rabbit Hole (2018) by Mick West*

This is a non-fiction work about helping people escape from conspiracy theories. It’s really written for people who have a friend or relative who needs help getting out of the grip of these theories. I don’t have anybody in my life in that position – I just find the topic interesting. West goes through some of the most ‘popular’ conspiracy theories – from 9/11 to chemtrails to flat earth – and painstakingly explains why they aren’t true, and what arguments and evidence will help demonstrate that to people ‘down the rabbit hole’. As such, a lot is very detailed – West’s main advice is to learn all you can, and have polite and informed conversations, since so many conspiracy theorists think that ignorance is the only reason people don’t agree with them.

One of the most interesting notes in the book was that we are all conspiracy theories – it’s just that, for most of us, that theory might be ‘the government doesn’t always tell us everything’. Conspiracy theories are along a spectrum, and you’ll find that everyone has a point where they stop believing things. For example, a 9/11 ‘truther’ might think that a flat earther is very wrong. Definitely a book that would be useful to help a loved one, but fascinating even if that’s not your position.

So You Want To Talk About Race (2018) by Ijeoma Oluo*

A look at racism – individual and institutional – in America. Probably nothing much new to anybody who has paid attention to the issue, but Oluo’s detailed research and thoughtful writing help present things like police reform, cultural appropriation, the ‘model minority’ myth, and much more in a succinct, accessible, and still impassioned way.

8 Deaths (And Life After Them) (2021) by Mark Watson*

This seems to have been exclusively an audiobook – Watson telling the story of his life in comedy, largely through the times it went wrong. Most memorably while almost dying in a reality TV show. He is enjoyably candid about the motivation for some of his work being financial, or simply to keep his name out there, and clear-sighted about his profession. I always like his self-deprecating humour – the reason 8 Deaths didn’t work perfectly for me was that it quite often veers into self-help territory, which is a genre I don’t really have any interest in.

Reasons To Stay Alive (2015) by Matt Haig*

This short memoir (described as ‘novel and memoir’, but really seems just a memoir to me) is about Haig’s experience with depression. It is extremely honest and moving, and I thought it was very powerful. Occasionally there are things that are clearly page-fillers – lists, or observations that don’t add much to the book – but overall a very worthwhile and well-written book.

Just Ignore Him (2020) by Alan Davies

A memoir by the comedian Alan Davies – about grief at his mother’s death when Alan was a young child, and about the abuse he faced from his father. It’s obviously a very sad book, and important to talk about these things. Sadly was let down by Davies being an unexpectedly bad narrator (very staccato) and by some curious framing that didn’t really work.