I buy multiple copies too! Mine is Jane Austen books 😂 I have so many copies of Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion etc all because I thought the covers were so beautiful
I do that with books, too. I'll pre-order a book and then not read it for forever. I also will put off watching the last episodes of TV shows I love because I don't want them to be over. Sometimes for years.
my eyes *immediately* going to the new Sally Rooney not you singing my praises whilst being an ICON yourself 💗you're too kind! -- also you referring to reading multiple books as being a bookslut is my new fave thing 🤣(i do wish i could be a book slut myself, but sadly she's a one on one girl lolll)
Hahaha. I have ambitions to be a book slut, I just don't think I will ever make it... it's a cross I will have to bear. Ps. You are the icon! Pps. Lets do brunch at some point, maybe throw a bookshop into the mix 😉
Splendid pile o’books! I love love loved Coast Road. One of my books of the year so far. Also, I’ve not read James by Percival Everett but I have read The Trees - bloomin’ brilliant! I didn’t read David Copperfield before reading Demon Copperknob and didn’t feel I’d missed out, so go ahead and read James (and let me know how you get on) xx
“Australia should be so lucky!” Yes yes we should! 🤣 I saw Alexis Wright at the Melbourne Writers Festival - absolutely fab- picked up Praisewortthy and I’m determined to read it in July. 😊
I'm half way through James on audio, I've never read Huck Finn, and as an Australian know almost nothing about it, and I'm loving James. I'm sure I'd get more out of it if I did know the story of Huck Finn, but James definitely stands alone. It's my first Percival Everett, but will not be my last. It has actually made me curious about HF, when I never have been before, and I may come to it after. I'm firmly convinced that reading a book never actually decreases your TBR, it only ever increases it! And yes short stories should have their own section, I recently built a library and have a short story section, and love it. I never read enough of them of course. I did just finish Jan Carson's Quickly While They Still Have Horses and absolutely loved it. She''s a master.
That is good to know about James, thank you very much indeedy. I have read Percival Everett before and enjoyed him, with a few tiny issues mum and I discussed when we read the Booker Prize shortlist together a few years ago. I am going to think about the short stories, does seem to make sense though not sure how that will work for my shelving system hahaha.
i love the cover of coexistence ! i didn't know of this collection, thank you! have really loved his writing, so i'll this out as well (although i generally don't get on well with short stories...)
I need to get back to more short stories as when I love them I really loooooove them though I think my issue can be if they are inconsistent it winds me up a bit, ha!
Praiseworthy is outstanding, it's an effort to read but if you can do it with the audiobook too, it can help. Thanks for the Anything is Possible heads-up, I was able to borrow the audiobook from the library, they must have just added it. My Brilliant Sister! Thunderhead! Poor Things! So many great books! Happy Reading 😀
Ha, I have some corkers in the mix. Alas as documented many times on here myself and fiction on audiobook just do not get on but I’m going to dedicated a long weekend to Praiseworthy, probably in August.
Tsiolkas has been a literary inspiration of mine for like a quarter of a century now. ❤ so amazing you got to hang out! Jelly of him too. Would have loved to be a fly on the wall
He was an absolute joy, a really lovely man. My mother and my stepdad were there and they also hit it off which was lovely. They aren't WhatsApp-ing him now though hahaha.
I keep my short story collections separate on my bookshelves and I find it helpful. I wish more bookstores did the same. The ones near me (I live in Ohio) shelve them in with the novels. I suppose that makes sense for collections that fall solidly into a genre such as mystery or speculative but when I’m looking for a sort of straightforward literary story collection I am usually in a different mindset than when I want to read a long novel so to me their uses are different if not their genres. The only bookstore I’ve been in that shelves short stories separatly is Greedy Reads, in Baltimore.
I was in Brick Lane Books today and they had short stories on their own shelves and I did like how they’d done that so maybe I need to give it a whirl. I’ll have to keep an eye out what’s a novel and what’s a collection as I sort the shelves for the libraries makeover.
Sooooo many amazing books in this haul! Monstrilio sounds incredible! Burial Plot and Saltblood on my tbr too. Going to keep an eye out for Fruit of the Dead. Hoping to see Amy Brown talk about My Brilliant Sister at an event at a local indie next week. Would love to hear more about the library redecorate as you go or when you’re done. I think I’ll pick up Praiseworthy on a long weekend too 🤔 Hope you’ve had a lovely week!
Oh my! A new Eley Williams with an amazing title. I had no idea. Wow! I have heard incredibly things about Praiseworthy (Australia should be so lucky!! 😂😂). And the envy over your having the new Strout this early is real (a summer of Strout. Be still my heart). Super excited for The Coast Road. On James (which is worthy), I think you should know the plot of Huck Finn, especially the parts that Jim is in. Do you “need” more than that? No. Everett said he reread Huck Finn 15 times before he wrote James and will never read it again! I put short story collections on a separate shelf from novels, for whatever that’s worth. And you and font sizes!! 😂😂
I believe the sizes of things in life are very important Cindy, you don't want anything too small and you don't want anything far too large. Hahaha. I am of course talking fonts, don't be saucy! Ta for the James intel, I am torn on knowing a bit and knowing nothing, as I can be a very contrary fairy when the mood is right hahaha.
I read James without knowing Huck Finn and it was a quick, witty and heartbreaking story, that I liked a lot. I only watched some summaries of Huck Finn and found that really helpful going in. Maybe you want to try that as well as a kind of compromise.
Thanks for another great video, Simon. 👏 I've reserved both The Coast Road and Saltblood from my local library. As I'd purchased James I decided to read HF first and was delighted to find a free audio version read by Elijah Wood on Audible (for Amazon Prime members only, I think), and am really enjoying it, more than I expected to (once I got used to the repeated use of the N word). Have just finished - and would highly recommend - the first two of John Boyne's Elements novellas, Water and Earth ❤️📖. Fire is due out in the Autumn sometime.
I refuse to read anymore of Boyne’s books. Sadly his views on trans rights are so wrong I can’t be doing with him or his books. A shame as I loved some of those I had read. The fact HF used that word had given me the reason to not read it. So thank you. Here’s to both loving The Coast Road and Saltblood, I’m very excited for both.
of course, deeply jelly of your copy of Intermezzo. 😭😭😭 looove seeing your name on the back of the book though! honestly, feels so much more personalized i wish more publishers did this !!!
You don’t need to have read Huck Finn to enjoy James! If you’d like to get some of the references and bits he changes, it’s worth reading a plot summary. I actually watched an animated video summary, which helped a lot! But it stands alone so absolutely fine to go in blind. Cuddy is so, so good. And I also got the Small Joys paperback because the new cover won me over. Boy With a Black Rooster is going to be my Savidge Prompts pick for this month!
Ooooh that would be a good call for this months prompt. My prompts are all out of control and kilter lol. Once this month is through I’ll refocus. Actually a mega wrap up will probably help. Ooh and thanks for letting me know about James.
I, too, am spending my summer re-reading Elizabeth Strout. I've recently started My Name is Lucy Barton and I'm loving it just as much as I did the first time. Excited to see your summer of Strout project.
@@SavidgeReads Just finished The Coast Road, Winman didn't lie - loved it! BTW, very happy the Ukraine bookmobile raised the $ needed to make it a reality.
Thanks Simon. Away to start Small Joys looking forward to it. Just finished Brother & Sister Enter the Forest. Also picked up Turnglass which will be an interesting read as it’s two books which you can either read separately or read 1 chapter alternately which I am planning on doing, but I am the same you monogamous with my books. 📚
I thought Brother & Sister Enter the Forest was really good. He’s one to watch. I’m very excited for Small Joys. I’ve seen Turnglass and couldn’t decide if it was gimmick or genius so didn’t buy it. You’ll have to let me know how you get on.
In my opinion, you don’t have to have read “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” in order to enjoy and understand “James.” Reading a summary of the plot of Huck Finn will suffice.
I had an ARC of Monstrilio when it first came out and although it wasn’t a full five star read, that book still haunts me and I catch myself thinking of it on random occasions. I really recommend it! Also, please be sensitive to us booksluts, we prefer the term “book polyamorist”. 😉
Hahahahaha. I was just calling myself a book slut no one else, I would never slut shame, that’s not my bookish bag. I’m glad to hear the little monster haunts you still, that’s a very good sign.
Hi Simon! I'll be interested in hearing your thoughts on Monstrilio because another BookTuber has really raved about it, but she likes reading horror books and I don't, so I'd like to hear your take on it and if we need to be horror fans to pick this one up. You mentioned wanting to read more Australian authors. I just finished reading Everyone on this Train is a Suspect from Benjamin Stevenson. It's the sequel to Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone, which was my favorite book last year, and I think I might have enjoyed the sequel even more, if that's possible. I was totally drawn to the cover of the first book at the store, which is what piqued my interest, and then the title and the blurb on the back just sealed the deal. So I relate to getting drawn to a good cover 😁
Since I have been told Monstrillo is not just a little bit queer but VERY queer, I am now even keener to read it and will be getting to it very, very soon.Thank you for the recommendations from Australia, noted and much appreciated.
i love your info and the videos with you mom too. Just on fyi...you videos are harder to hear than in the past...just letting you know in case something is different with recording...but still watching and enjoying you!!
I did read Huck Finn before James, and I enjoyed seeing echoes of the story, but I think you could just read the Wiki explanation of the plot and get almost as much from it. I read Monstrillio last year and really liked it. FYI, it’s not just a little queer, it’s very queer! I think you’ll like it. 😊
Oooh the fact that Monstrillo is very queer has popped it right up the TBR. I will definitely be reading it this month. Good to know about James, I think I may go in knowing nothing and see how I get on.
I didn’t know. Which one? I think it’s out everywhere now so you should be able to get it from the library or a bookshop. Unless it’s only here it’s out and not overseas.
@@SavidgeReads no I see it out but oddly only in paperback. The prize is The Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize. Great short list. I found the audio on Libby library of one of the short list The Curse of Pietro Houdini.
Small Joys is lovely. It was one of the best books I read in 2023. I started listening to The In-Between by Christos Tsiolkas Have a listen to the narrator on a sound sample and tell me what you think. I’m also reading for #pride Enlightenment by Sarah Perry Henry Henry ( which maybe should come with a trigger warning) How We Named The Stars 🍀👋☘️📖📕📚☕️
Glad that you enjoyed Small Joys so much. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve read The In Between, I loved it. I won’t try the sample though as I’ve a very particular voice in my head I created, if that makes sense.
I ordered Ghost Ship by Kate Mosse and placed the new Elizabeth Stout and Saltblood on the radar, the Stout is not dropped here until September and Saltblood is apparently only available in Britain and Australia so far.
Strout isn’t out till September here either. I wish I could get my mitts on the US editions as they are stunners. Maybe Saltblood will head overseas (see what I did there) in due course.
@@SavidgeReads arr matey, I sar the pun, lassie pirates , sounds good. I always drop the r in Strout's name, I've read the previous Olive, Lucy and the other Strout titles, all of them, some of the best characters ever. Those are lovely endpapers on Coast Road, nice that it is signed too.
I'm a longtime fan of Elizabeth Strout and this summer I am planning to re-read her previous 9 books before Tell Me Everything is released in September. It's been a while since I read the "Olive" books and I adore Lucy Barton and Bob Burgess.
Kind of Sort of Maybe sounds like something I need to read. I'm known for having to leave the dinner table because people are chewing. I get utterly enraged.
I was taught that we say 'a' before words that begin with a consonant and 'an' before words that begin with a vowel. Fewer people do this now and I noticed that, in this video, you say 'A American ' rather than 'An American', do you have any thoughts on this? Do you think the importance and value of grammar is changing?
@@heddwchmerched1918 my thoughts are that yes that’s the correct grammar. However these videos are about books, they aren’t books as they’re visual and audio, and my talking style is chatty and chilled, not always perfect and not designed to be marked like an exam. Hahaha. But thank you 🤣
I don't think you need to read Adventures of Huckleberry Finn before reading James, and I suspect you'd not get on with it if you did. It's challenging to modern sensibilities and, frankly, falls apart in the second half as Twain could not figure out how to finish it. After sitting on a partial manuscript for years, he finally completed it only because he needed the money. It's something of a 'sequel' to Tom Sawyer, which was a financial hit for Twain. So he finished Huck Finn by bringing Tom Sawyer back into the story and turning it into a boy's adventure novel...not at all like how it began. I reread it before reading James, and it only made me admire Everett's story even more. Simply put, James exists so you don't have to read Huck Finn. Yet Twain is a big influence on Everett's sense of satire and humor, and it is interesting to experience this 'dialogue' between the two authors. However, my recommendation would be to jump right into James and don't look back! (And thanks for the video given the time crunch.)
Yes, read Huckleberry Finn, I'm tired of the canceling of dead people, which is just another form of censorship. His book uses sad words (sad, hateful words were used at the time of the novel), but it was really an attack on the recent past slave culture. Jim comes off as the best character in both Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Twain was the first successful author to write in a truly American style, not just copying the Europeans. Disclosure, I grew up in Missouri, emersed in Twain, had an entire college class just on Twain in the sixties. I'm currently reading Bret Harte's Gabriel Conroy and looking into Harte's falling out with Twain, partly because Twain gave him bad financial advice regarding the publishing of Gabriel Conroy. However, I'm sure you could read James, without reading Huckleberry Finn, I enjoyed Jon Clinch's book, Finn,the Secret History of the Father of Huckleberry Finn. Both Twain and Harte were poor businessmen. After the falling out, Twain criticized Harte's dialogue in Gabriel Conroy as untrue, but he was saying several hateful things about Harte by that time, which were reciprocated. Twain was a better family man than Harte, who left his family behind and moved to England, where he was buried. I am enjoying Gabriel Conroy, bad vernacular accent choices or not. It was an untruth that Twain told that he did not financially support the family he left behind. People say lots of things when they are angry.
Oooh ok. Thank you for your thoughts. I got a tiny but lost with Harte and Clinch but I think I’ve got the measure of it. I wasn’t cancelling Twain, I just don’t know if I want to read it… or buy another book to read a book I already have. Though I will say from what I’ve been told the words he uses aren’t sad, they’re appallingly and whilst used at the time I don’t know if in 2024 that’s something we can now overlook to be honest.
I added "Private Revolutions" to my TBR! My son told me NOT to read "Poor Things"!--he saw the movie and said it was nothing but gratuitous sex, women empowerment ( a topic I'm tired of), and a woman finding empowerment through prostitution. I think this last subject sends a dangerous message--there is NO empowerment to be found in prostitution. I highly recommend "Huckleberry Finn" on its own account--I originally wasn't too motivated to read it, but found it was a gem. I don't know if you should read it first before "James" necessarily, but you probably would enjoy "Finn"--dry humor throughout and not racist. It shows the institution of slavery as not a good thing by the way of humor and ridiculous situations and people--as Mark Twain was so expert at doing!
With regard to Poor Things, I have heard similar but I have also heard Emma Stone, who also produced it, talk really insightful about lots of choices in the movie... which is why I will still watch it at some point. I don't know if I have time for Huckleberry Finn, me and classics, we just don't gel anymore but who knows my tastes may switch again at some point as I used to love them.
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I buy multiple copies too! Mine is Jane Austen books 😂 I have so many copies of Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion etc all because I thought the covers were so beautiful
If you love a book I see it as only right to have many, many, many of them.
I do that with books, too. I'll pre-order a book and then not read it for forever. I also will put off watching the last episodes of TV shows I love because I don't want them to be over. Sometimes for years.
Hahahaha. I do that with tv shows too. I’ve still not watched the last season of The Good Wife.
@@SavidgeReads There must be a name for this condition because that's three of us (so far) who behave this way.😀
my eyes *immediately* going to the new Sally Rooney
not you singing my praises whilst being an ICON yourself 💗you're too kind! -- also you referring to reading multiple books as being a bookslut is my new fave thing 🤣(i do wish i could be a book slut myself, but sadly she's a one on one girl lolll)
Hahaha. I have ambitions to be a book slut, I just don't think I will ever make it... it's a cross I will have to bear. Ps. You are the icon! Pps. Lets do brunch at some point, maybe throw a bookshop into the mix 😉
Splendid pile o’books! I love love loved Coast Road. One of my books of the year so far. Also, I’ve not read James by Percival Everett but I have read The Trees - bloomin’ brilliant! I didn’t read David Copperfield before reading Demon Copperknob and didn’t feel I’d missed out, so go ahead and read James (and let me know how you get on) xx
Oooh if you loved it Kate then that gives me all the more excited book tingles about it. Demon Copperknob 😆
“Australia should be so lucky!” Yes yes we should! 🤣 I saw Alexis Wright at the Melbourne Writers Festival - absolutely fab- picked up Praisewortthy and I’m determined to read it in July. 😊
I am going to head to it over the August bank holiday here I think. Give myself a nice long weekend to get lost in it!
I’ve got Monstrillo on my shelf to read too! The cover you have for this is lush! Also love your shelves 😍
Thanking you, they are about to have a bit of a makeover. Though I keep looking at them and thinking 'do I really have to pack those all up?' Ha.
@@SavidgeReads that’s the worst part of a makeover
I'm half way through James on audio, I've never read Huck Finn, and as an Australian know almost nothing about it, and I'm loving James. I'm sure I'd get more out of it if I did know the story of Huck Finn, but James definitely stands alone. It's my first Percival Everett, but will not be my last. It has actually made me curious about HF, when I never have been before, and I may come to it after. I'm firmly convinced that reading a book never actually decreases your TBR, it only ever increases it!
And yes short stories should have their own section, I recently built a library and have a short story section, and love it. I never read enough of them of course. I did just finish Jan Carson's Quickly While They Still Have Horses and absolutely loved it. She''s a master.
That is good to know about James, thank you very much indeedy. I have read Percival Everett before and enjoyed him, with a few tiny issues mum and I discussed when we read the Booker Prize shortlist together a few years ago. I am going to think about the short stories, does seem to make sense though not sure how that will work for my shelving system hahaha.
It’s true that “The Coast Road” is stonkingly good. Stonkingly!😄
That is very, very, very good to hear.
Seconded! Think you’ll love it Simon!
i love the cover of coexistence ! i didn't know of this collection, thank you! have really loved his writing, so i'll this out as well (although i generally don't get on well with short stories...)
I need to get back to more short stories as when I love them I really loooooove them though I think my issue can be if they are inconsistent it winds me up a bit, ha!
Praiseworthy is outstanding, it's an effort to read but if you can do it with the audiobook too, it can help. Thanks for the Anything is Possible heads-up, I was able to borrow the audiobook from the library, they must have just added it.
My Brilliant Sister! Thunderhead! Poor Things! So many great books! Happy Reading 😀
Ha, I have some corkers in the mix. Alas as documented many times on here myself and fiction on audiobook just do not get on but I’m going to dedicated a long weekend to Praiseworthy, probably in August.
Tsiolkas has been a literary inspiration of mine for like a quarter of a century now. ❤ so amazing you got to hang out! Jelly of him too. Would have loved to be a fly on the wall
He was an absolute joy, a really lovely man. My mother and my stepdad were there and they also hit it off which was lovely. They aren't WhatsApp-ing him now though hahaha.
Hi Simon At long last just read My Name is Lucy Barton which u spoke about yonks ago. Great book. Thanks!
It’s brilliant isn’t it? So pleased you enjoyed it.
I keep my short story collections separate on my bookshelves and I find it helpful. I wish more bookstores did the same. The ones near me (I live in Ohio) shelve them in with the novels. I suppose that makes sense for collections that fall solidly into a genre such as mystery or speculative but when I’m looking for a sort of straightforward literary story collection I am usually in a different mindset than when I want to read a long novel so to me their uses are different if not their genres. The only bookstore I’ve been in that shelves short stories separatly is Greedy Reads, in Baltimore.
I was in Brick Lane Books today and they had short stories on their own shelves and I did like how they’d done that so maybe I need to give it a whirl. I’ll have to keep an eye out what’s a novel and what’s a collection as I sort the shelves for the libraries makeover.
Sooooo many amazing books in this haul! Monstrilio sounds incredible! Burial Plot and Saltblood on my tbr too. Going to keep an eye out for Fruit of the Dead. Hoping to see Amy Brown talk about My Brilliant Sister at an event at a local indie next week.
Would love to hear more about the library redecorate as you go or when you’re done. I think I’ll pick up Praiseworthy on a long weekend too 🤔 Hope you’ve had a lovely week!
Was sooooooo lovely to get to hang out with you that lovely Liverpudlian afternoon, what a treat. And thank you so much for those books again.
Oh my! A new Eley Williams with an amazing title. I had no idea. Wow! I have heard incredibly things about Praiseworthy (Australia should be so lucky!! 😂😂). And the envy over your having the new Strout this early is real (a summer of Strout. Be still my heart). Super excited for The Coast Road. On James (which is worthy), I think you should know the plot of Huck Finn, especially the parts that Jim is in. Do you “need” more than that? No. Everett said he reread Huck Finn 15 times before he wrote James and will never read it again! I put short story collections on a separate shelf from novels, for whatever that’s worth. And you and font sizes!! 😂😂
I believe the sizes of things in life are very important Cindy, you don't want anything too small and you don't want anything far too large. Hahaha. I am of course talking fonts, don't be saucy! Ta for the James intel, I am torn on knowing a bit and knowing nothing, as I can be a very contrary fairy when the mood is right hahaha.
I read James without knowing Huck Finn and it was a quick, witty and heartbreaking story, that I liked a lot. I only watched some summaries of Huck Finn and found that really helpful going in. Maybe you want to try that as well as a kind of compromise.
I might just dive in knowing nothing and see how I go. Then do a summary as I go if needed, or even afterwards for the reveal lol.
Thanks for another great video, Simon. 👏 I've reserved both The Coast Road and Saltblood from my local library.
As I'd purchased James I decided to read HF first and was delighted to find a free audio version read by Elijah Wood on Audible (for Amazon Prime members only, I think), and am really enjoying it, more than I expected to (once I got used to the repeated use of the N word).
Have just finished - and would highly recommend - the first two of John Boyne's Elements novellas, Water and Earth ❤️📖. Fire is due out in the Autumn sometime.
I refuse to read anymore of Boyne’s books. Sadly his views on trans rights are so wrong I can’t be doing with him or his books. A shame as I loved some of those I had read. The fact HF used that word had given me the reason to not read it. So thank you. Here’s to both loving The Coast Road and Saltblood, I’m very excited for both.
of course, deeply jelly of your copy of Intermezzo. 😭😭😭 looove seeing your name on the back of the book though! honestly, feels so much more personalized i wish more publishers did this !!!
I think it may become more common with all that naughty selling on the internet. Seems wise too me, personal yet practical. Lol.
You don’t need to have read Huck Finn to enjoy James! If you’d like to get some of the references and bits he changes, it’s worth reading a plot summary. I actually watched an animated video summary, which helped a lot! But it stands alone so absolutely fine to go in blind.
Cuddy is so, so good. And I also got the Small Joys paperback because the new cover won me over.
Boy With a Black Rooster is going to be my Savidge Prompts pick for this month!
Ooooh that would be a good call for this months prompt. My prompts are all out of control and kilter lol. Once this month is through I’ll refocus. Actually a mega wrap up will probably help. Ooh and thanks for letting me know about James.
I, too, am spending my summer re-reading Elizabeth Strout. I've recently started My Name is Lucy Barton and I'm loving it just as much as I did the first time. Excited to see your summer of Strout project.
Ooh a summer of Stout for you too. I am not going to reread the books I have already, just had for those I haven't.
@@SavidgeReads I'll be curious to see what you think of the ones you've not yet read.
Got The Coast Road from the library yesterday, hope it lives up to the hype. I can't wait to read Blue Sisters, loved Cleopatra & Frankenstein!
I’m hoping it’s the stonkingly good read that Sarah Winman promises. Hahaha. Hope you enjoy Blue Sisters.
@@SavidgeReads Just finished The Coast Road, Winman didn't lie - loved it! BTW, very happy the Ukraine bookmobile raised the $ needed to make it a reality.
I went to see coco mellors in Edinburgh and I’m now officially a fan girl ❤ LOVED Blue Sisters and C&F
Ooh I have seen you have popped a vlog up so will check that out!
@@SavidgeReads aww thank you, you’re very kind to watch!
Thanks Simon. Away to start Small Joys looking forward to it. Just finished Brother & Sister Enter the Forest. Also picked up Turnglass which will be an interesting read as it’s two books which you can either read separately or read 1 chapter alternately which I am planning on doing, but I am the same you monogamous with my books. 📚
I thought Brother & Sister Enter the Forest was really good. He’s one to watch. I’m very excited for Small Joys. I’ve seen Turnglass and couldn’t decide if it was gimmick or genius so didn’t buy it. You’ll have to let me know how you get on.
In my opinion, you don’t have to have read “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” in order to enjoy and understand “James.” Reading a summary of the plot of Huck Finn will suffice.
Okey doke. Thanks so much for letting me know. I may just read it and look up the summary afterwards. Lol.
Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer are great books! I read them as an adult and don't regret. But I've not read James.
Interesting. As I’m trying not to add to the TBR while the library gets a revamp over the next few months, so I may hold off and just read James.
I had an ARC of Monstrilio when it first came out and although it wasn’t a full five star read, that book still haunts me and I catch myself thinking of it on random occasions. I really recommend it!
Also, please be sensitive to us booksluts, we prefer the term “book polyamorist”. 😉
Hahahahaha. I was just calling myself a book slut no one else, I would never slut shame, that’s not my bookish bag. I’m glad to hear the little monster haunts you still, that’s a very good sign.
Perceval Everett James is amazing. No need to read Huck Finn. Hope you like it.
Oooh ok, thank you. I’ve had an array of answers on this one. Hahaha. Glad you loved it.
I bought my dad James. He couldn’t remember much of Huck Finn from decades ago and was fine. Same really as Demon Copperhead and David Copperfield.
Ooooh that’s good to hear… and a good comparison. I didn’t read David Copperfield before I read Demon Copperhead. Thank you.
Hi Simon! I'll be interested in hearing your thoughts on Monstrilio because another BookTuber has really raved about it, but she likes reading horror books and I don't, so I'd like to hear your take on it and if we need to be horror fans to pick this one up.
You mentioned wanting to read more Australian authors. I just finished reading Everyone on this Train is a Suspect from Benjamin Stevenson. It's the sequel to Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone, which was my favorite book last year, and I think I might have enjoyed the sequel even more, if that's possible. I was totally drawn to the cover of the first book at the store, which is what piqued my interest, and then the title and the blurb on the back just sealed the deal. So I relate to getting drawn to a good cover 😁
Since I have been told Monstrillo is not just a little bit queer but VERY queer, I am now even keener to read it and will be getting to it very, very soon.Thank you for the recommendations from Australia, noted and much appreciated.
i love your info and the videos with you mom too.
Just on fyi...you videos are harder to hear than in the past...just letting you know in case something is different with recording...but still watching and enjoying you!!
Oh that’s strange. No one else has mentioned the sound and I’m doing it at the same volume settings as usual. How bizarre.
I did read Huck Finn before James, and I enjoyed seeing echoes of the story, but I think you could just read the Wiki explanation of the plot and get almost as much from it.
I read Monstrillio last year and really liked it. FYI, it’s not just a little queer, it’s very queer! I think you’ll like it. 😊
Oooh the fact that Monstrillo is very queer has popped it right up the TBR. I will definitely be reading it this month. Good to know about James, I think I may go in knowing nothing and see how I get on.
Just started reading the happy couple 😉
Oooh, hope you enjoy it!
Your room looks adorable.
Thank you very much.
Sooooo jealous I want to get Saltblood!!! Did you know that it is shortlisted for an adventure award!?????
I didn’t know. Which one? I think it’s out everywhere now so you should be able to get it from the library or a bookshop. Unless it’s only here it’s out and not overseas.
@@SavidgeReads no I see it out but oddly only in paperback. The prize is The Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize. Great short list. I found the audio on Libby library of one of the short list The Curse of Pietro Houdini.
@@Phillybookfairyoooh I judged that prize last year. Oops. Shows how behind I am with it all at the moment.
@@SavidgeReads omg wow I don’t remember!! That’s amazing! 🤩
Do you have any plans for doing so again, or reading the shortlist this year?
@@SavidgeReads what were some of your favs from last year…were you able to discuss or was it hush hush?
Small Joys is lovely. It was one of the best books I read in 2023.
I started listening to
The In-Between by Christos Tsiolkas
Have a listen to the narrator on a sound sample and tell me what you think.
I’m also reading for #pride
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry
Henry Henry ( which maybe should come with a trigger warning)
How We Named The Stars
🍀👋☘️📖📕📚☕️
Glad that you enjoyed Small Joys so much. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve read The In Between, I loved it. I won’t try the sample though as I’ve a very particular voice in my head I created, if that makes sense.
I’ve really enjoyed Kaveh Akbar’s poetry.
I have one of this poetry collections too!
Oooh off to seek out Hey Zoe
I m very excited for that, might pack it for the week away next week.
@@SavidgeReads will keep my eyes peeled for you review
I ordered Ghost Ship by Kate Mosse and placed the new Elizabeth Stout and Saltblood on the radar, the Stout is not dropped here until September and Saltblood is apparently only available in Britain and Australia so far.
Strout isn’t out till September here either. I wish I could get my mitts on the US editions as they are stunners. Maybe Saltblood will head overseas (see what I did there) in due course.
@@SavidgeReads arr matey, I sar the pun, lassie pirates , sounds good. I always drop the r in Strout's name, I've read the previous Olive, Lucy and the other Strout titles, all of them, some of the best characters ever. Those are lovely endpapers on Coast Road, nice that it is signed too.
I'm a longtime fan of Elizabeth Strout and this summer I am planning to re-read her previous 9 books before Tell Me Everything is released in September. It's been a while since I read the "Olive" books and I adore Lucy Barton and Bob Burgess.
Kind of Sort of Maybe sounds like something I need to read. I'm known for having to leave the dinner table because people are chewing. I get utterly enraged.
Oh blimey, this could either be very for you or make a very uncomfortable read.
I was taught that we say 'a' before words that begin with a consonant and 'an' before words that begin with a vowel. Fewer people do this now and I noticed that, in this video, you say 'A American ' rather than 'An American', do you have any thoughts on this? Do you think the importance and value of grammar is changing?
@@heddwchmerched1918 my thoughts are that yes that’s the correct grammar. However these videos are about books, they aren’t books as they’re visual and audio, and my talking style is chatty and chilled, not always perfect and not designed to be marked like an exam. Hahaha. But thank you 🤣
@@SavidgeReads Thank you for responding.
The video has ended, but my mind is still hearing Le Freak.
Hahaha, if you have seen the other one then it will be in your head for days... it was mine after I edited it.
I’m trying to talk about books please 😂😂😂
Well I was and they were heckling me, albeit without actually knowing they were. Hahaha.
I don't think you need to read Adventures of Huckleberry Finn before reading James, and I suspect you'd not get on with it if you did. It's challenging to modern sensibilities and, frankly, falls apart in the second half as Twain could not figure out how to finish it. After sitting on a partial manuscript for years, he finally completed it only because he needed the money. It's something of a 'sequel' to Tom Sawyer, which was a financial hit for Twain. So he finished Huck Finn by bringing Tom Sawyer back into the story and turning it into a boy's adventure novel...not at all like how it began. I reread it before reading James, and it only made me admire Everett's story even more. Simply put, James exists so you don't have to read Huck Finn. Yet Twain is a big influence on Everett's sense of satire and humor, and it is interesting to experience this 'dialogue' between the two authors. However, my recommendation would be to jump right into James and don't look back! (And thanks for the video given the time crunch.)
Ha, thanks Phil. I think I shall skip the Twain and just go to the Everett.
Just preordered Monstrilio when I saw it in your video. UK cover is much better!
I kind of like them both… but the UK one might just edge it.
@@SavidgeReads The little critter on the front of the US cover freaks me out a bit, so the UK cover is the clear winner for me. 😂
Yes, read Huckleberry Finn, I'm tired of the canceling of dead people, which is just another form of censorship. His book uses sad words (sad, hateful words were used at the time of the novel), but it was really an attack on the recent past slave culture. Jim comes off as the best character in both Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Twain was the first successful author to write in a truly American style, not just copying the Europeans. Disclosure, I grew up in Missouri, emersed in Twain, had an entire college class just on Twain in the sixties. I'm currently reading Bret Harte's Gabriel Conroy and looking into Harte's falling out with Twain, partly because Twain gave him bad financial advice regarding the publishing of Gabriel Conroy. However, I'm sure you could read James, without reading Huckleberry Finn, I enjoyed Jon Clinch's book, Finn,the Secret History of the Father of Huckleberry Finn. Both Twain and Harte were poor businessmen. After the falling out, Twain criticized Harte's dialogue in Gabriel Conroy as untrue, but he was saying several hateful things about Harte by that time, which were reciprocated. Twain was a better family man than Harte, who left his family behind and moved to England, where he was buried. I am enjoying Gabriel Conroy, bad vernacular accent choices or not. It was an untruth that Twain told that he did not financially support the family he left behind. People say lots of things when they are angry.
Oooh ok. Thank you for your thoughts. I got a tiny but lost with Harte and Clinch but I think I’ve got the measure of it. I wasn’t cancelling Twain, I just don’t know if I want to read it… or buy another book to read a book I already have. Though I will say from what I’ve been told the words he uses aren’t sad, they’re appallingly and whilst used at the time I don’t know if in 2024 that’s something we can now overlook to be honest.
I added "Private Revolutions" to my TBR! My son told me NOT to read "Poor Things"!--he saw the movie and said it was nothing but gratuitous sex, women empowerment ( a topic I'm tired of), and a woman finding empowerment through prostitution. I think this last subject sends a dangerous message--there is NO empowerment to be found in prostitution. I highly recommend "Huckleberry Finn" on its own account--I originally wasn't too motivated to read it, but found it was a gem. I don't know if you should read it first before "James" necessarily, but you probably would enjoy "Finn"--dry humor throughout and not racist. It shows the institution of slavery as not a good thing by the way of humor and ridiculous situations and people--as Mark Twain was so expert at doing!
With regard to Poor Things, I have heard similar but I have also heard Emma Stone, who also produced it, talk really insightful about lots of choices in the movie... which is why I will still watch it at some point. I don't know if I have time for Huckleberry Finn, me and classics, we just don't gel anymore but who knows my tastes may switch again at some point as I used to love them.