Book Chat Issue #72

Some books you may have missed

Dec 26, 2023

Welcome to Book Chat! I’m Marg Moon, reader, writer, and lover of salad (and cake).

I started this newsletter a couple of years ago because my friends kept asking me what I was reading, so I thought I would share that information with the world! Since then, Book Chat has become a reliable source of recommendations for hundreds of readers, which is thrilling!

I also love talking about books, so I started a FREE international book club. Our next book is Remarkably Bright Creatures and we’ll be meeting online to talk about the book in January. Hit reply if you’d like an invitation. It’s a low-key affair, so if you’ve never been to a book club, don’t be nervous about joining in.

What I’ve been reading

It’s that time of the year when everyone reveals their favourite reads for 2023. I love reading these end of year round-ups because there’s always a book I’ve missed, or one I meant to read, but forgot about. Books sometimes fall off my radar because they aren’t in the library when the reviews come out and by the time they are on shelf, I’ve moved on to something new. Like many avid readers, my TBR is constantly growing and sometimes feels like it’s out of control. It’s a lovely problem to have though.

And while many book reviewers have access to ARCs (advance review copies) or are gifted free copies by publishing houses, I get nearly all my books from the library, so I have the luxury of only reading books I actually want to read.

Even so, when I looked back at my lending list I was surprised to see that I had only read about a quarter of the books I borrowed. Many were returned because I wasn’t in the mood, or they weren’t quite what I expected. Of those I did finish, most of them made it into this newsletter, except for one I’ll talk about today.

All the Water in the World by Karen Raney is a terrific novel about a mother and daughter who grapple with first love, family secrets, and tragedy. Sixteen-year-old Maddy is struggling with leukemia when she decides to contact her biological father, whom she has never met. She manages to track him down and they start corresponding by email, something she decides to keep a secret from her mother. While Maddy connects with her father, she also discovers first love with a boy named Jack Bell as they collaborate on a video project to raise awareness about climate change. The story is told in alternate chapters from the perspectives of Maddy and her mother and the author manages to pull this off beautifully. She brilliantly captures Maddy’s teenage angst, as well as her mother’s grief. You might need a few tissues at the end, but this is an excellent novel you’ll no doubt remember for years to come.

Other favourites reads from 2023 include:

The schoolhouse by Sophie Ward
The Rachel incident by Caroline O’Donohue
All that’s left unsaid by Tracey Lien
In the blink of an eye by Jo Callaghan
Lenny Marks gets away with murder by Kerryn Mayne
The dead romantics by Ashley Poston

What were your favourite reads this year?

What I’ve been eating

Here in Australia the weather at Christmas is usually hot and stormy with regular afternoon thunderstorms interspersed with patches of hot sunny weather. Either way, most of our meals involve salad. This year we spent Christmas Day at my son and daughter-in-law’s house and were treated to a wonderful array of canapés, fresh oysters, salads and baked ham, topped off with a fabulous pavlova for dessert. It was all delicious and it was wonderful to spend the day surrounded by family.