Three great new books out this month
A hilarious debut and an inspirational memoir hit the shelves in October
Hi everyone,
It’s so lovely to have you here. In all honesty, it feels quite surreal to be writing this. This newsletter has been a figment of my imagination for so long; a ‘one day I’ll do that’ which never looked like it would actually materialise. But here it is! I really hope you’ll enjoy Well Read over the coming months and get something out of it.
Now, without further ado, here are some absolute gems out this month…
Three of October’s best new books
Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout
Out October 21st with Viking.
Pulitzer-prize winning Elizabeth Strout - one of my favourite authors - is excellent on the minutiae of love, loss and all things in between. In her latest novel, we’re reunited with her much-loved heroine from My Name is Lucy Barton (although this book can be read as a standalone).
Lucy, a writer, is grieving the death of her second husband when a chance encounter means she reconnects with her first, William. Together they slowly unpick an old family secret which skewers everything they always thought they knew. Moving and melodic, Oh William! is a relatively short book, so you’ll want to savour each line.
Manifesto by Bernardine Evaristo
Out 7th October with Hamish Hamilton.
When Bernardine Evaristo won the 2019 Booker prize for Girl, Woman, Other (an excellent novel, by the way), she was deemed an overnight success at 60 years old. Her new book, Manifesto: On Never Giving Up, however, is a glorious testimony to quite the opposite.
Manifesto is about the power of grafting, told through Evaristo’s extraordinary life story. I don’t tend to read that much non-fiction, but I loved this book and found it really quite inspiring. Charting her long journey from a London-based childhood steeped in racism to her history-making win, this is both a powerful against-all-odds tale and a middle finger to every 30 under 30 list out there.
Are We Having Fun Yet? by Lucy Mangan
Out 14th October with Souvenir Press.
The Guardian’s TV critic Lucy Mangan is releasing her debut novel this month, and it’s as funny and witty as her columns. Written in a diary entry format, Are We Having Fun Yet? is a year in the life of a working mother whose husband is sweet yet hopeless and whose kids are adorable yet a pain in the ass.
As she navigates World Book Day costume disasters, ageing parents and a never-ending tonne of washing, you can’t help but smile. Because on the surface it might be a hilarious portrait of the terrors of family life, but it’s also one that’s bursting with joy, solidarity and hope.
And finally…
As the first-look images of the upcoming BBC One drama The Girl Before are released, I’m here to remind you it’s adapted from JP Delaney’s thriller of the same name. So, if you’re the kind of person who likes to read the book before you see it on screen (are adaptations ever as good?!), read it now.
That’s it for today, but I’ll be back in two weeks’ time with five of my favourite short books - perfect for anyone in a reading rut. Until then!
The Girl Before sounds really cool! An upcoming screen adaptation is the best reason to get into a novel. It's the reason I read Great Expectations, way back in the 90s - I was a Lit major but had missed that one up til then, so I decided I should encounter it before encountering Ethan's and Gwyneth's versions of the characters. It's also the reason I read Bridgerton, which I would not normally have read (and actually did not finish!) Meanwhile, I have read every single thing Zadie Smith has ever written, including, I believe!, the nonfiction! But, for some reason I cannot get into Elizabeth Strout. I believe the problem is on my end! Anyway, thanks for these great reviews - I'm looking forward to getting more of your book-takes!