Thank you for watching this month's book news! I've been doing these videos to much the same formula since they started, but always open to switching it up. So please do let me know if there's anything you would like to see differently... Any segments you're less interested in? Anything missing you want to see more of?
Thanks Ben! I am almost done listening to My Friends. I would highly recommend the audiobook (narrated by the author) to anyone who hasn’t started it yet.
Shouting out for Evie Wyld’s new novel The Echoes released on 1st August - her first two were wonderful but I haven’t got to Bass Rock yet. Also a new Claudia Pineiro book came out a couple of days ago - Elena Knows was so good!
I found Bellies such an insightful and beautiful read. Thanks for yet another stellar news episode. The library fundraiser was a great way to end. I’ve been watching the stuff unfold in the UK from the other side of the world and feeling rather despondent about things, but you’re right, community spirit like that is always uplifting.
The "Claire Keegan School of Economics" indeed! The publishers have become so cheeky. Remember the Penguin 60s from back in the day? (You may be too young...) I feel that would be a better format for these very short 'novellas'
I sadly don't remember those! But I do think about the standalone short stories Faber were releasing a while back from Ishiguro, Rooney, etc. and I think they were like £5 or something. That felt more reasonable to me!
I love these videos. Being in Australia, I didn't know Edna O'Brien had passed until I saw on youtube. Alexis Wright's Praiseworthy is the first book to win the Stella and the Miles Franklin award in the same year. I did finally complete, but it was difficult. Looking forward to Elif Shafak's new book, Evie Wyld's new book is out and also a few Aussie bookshops have brought publication dates forward on a couple of the Booker longlisted books. Hooray.
Ahhh yes thank you, I knew this was a first for some reason, but I double checked after filming and there are a few people who have won the Miles Franklin twice.
Hi Ben, I am not sure how to formulate this question without sounding too judgemental 😅 but I am surprised you support Amazon in this way. I understand the temptation of a good deal, but local, independent bookstores are so important for a healthy book culture. Very curious to hear your thoughts on the role Amazon plays in the book industry and the competition between Amazon and independent bookstores?
It's a good question, and thank you for asking it so courteously. Lots of people on the internet would not 😅 In general, I'm with you: I would always prefer to buy from my local indie than Amazon, and a vast majority of my book-buying comes from indies or Waterstones. As with anything though, I don't think it's quite so simple. For instance, access to books is really important. For lots of people, buying full-price physical copies of books from independent bookshops just isn't available to them. Perhaps because of financial constraints, or they have a lack of space to keep books at home. Or maybe they don't even have an indie bookshop nearby. Libraries of course are another option, but again not everyone has access to one, and not all libraries have the resources to make all books available to everyone. A cheap Kindle book might be the only way they can enjoy some of these stories. Another aspect is that it's just a fact that lots of people have Kindles. I don't like the idea of people ditching them and creating lots of electronic waste. I'm not a fan of a lot of Amazon's business practices, but I can't pretend I don't use them. I definitely do. And there are lots of other big corporations in the book industry, especially given the consolidation of larger publishers in recent years, that probably have a lot of the same bad behaviours as Amazon but which aren't as visible. All that said, I don't necessarily see sharing the Kindle deals as support for Amazon - I see it more as support for viewers and readers who have Kindles.
I agree with you, it seems a bit overpriced for a novella. I am mortified though with the prices over here in Spain! They've recently re-edited Fried Green Tomatoes (you could only get secondhand copies until now) and the paperback sells for €27. Sadly, this is not an isolated case. Books usually cost an average of €25 there are no deals, discounts or reward points. So, basically, a normal household can't afford more than a book per month, which definitely clashes with the neverending new releases of the market. There are a lot of people complaining of how this is hindering people's access to culture, especially in a country with such low wages. Libraries are of course always there but not all of them can afford to buy new releases, for example. Also, I'm really happy to see the library fundraising. ✨ Love and culture will always beat hate! 💛
That's such a shame to be priced out of enjoying books! Hopefully libraries are able to meet some of your needs, but as you say they can't always. There are so many parties involved in selling books, and margins so thin at each stage, I fear it's only going to get more and more expensive here in the UK too.
That’s really impressive! I realised after that I claimed the wrong thing as the ‘first’ - she’s the first author to win both the Stella and the Miles Franklin for the same book.
Thanks for uploading the video, even with your busy schedule! I usually don’t get my hopes up with book-to-movie adaptations-imagination’s just better.
Yeah it's rare they're a better experience than the book, but sometimes a good one can really heighten my enjoyment! Dune, Arrival (adapting Story of Your Life), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest... all amazing!
The Donal Ryan is straightforwardly a sequel - it catches up with exactly the same characters (and in exactly the same order). You could just about read it on its own but It'd be a bit daft.
Still reading off last year's prize lists. currently in the middle of In Ascension by MacInnes from last year's Booker and finding it a difficult, slow read but it is very thoughtful science fiction and there are not too many of those. Just finished the audio of Limberlost by Arnott from last year's Miles Franklin and loved it so much. It's my 3rd Arnott and I am anxious for another through the Rain Heron is still my favorite. Finished James this month as well and found it all that had been advertised. Not sure what is next. Thanks for the update. Like you always looking for a great mystery.
I really enjoyed In Ascension - really enjoyed how it comes together. I am still to read my first Arnott, but I have The Rain Heron waiting for me on my shelves!
love this series and was also flabbergasted by the HotD finale - absolutely infuriating to leave it where they did! at least we got another great rhaenyra+allicent scene tho
It was a pretty surprising place to end the season! It's a shame because I've mostly really enjoyed it - R and A have such good chemistry so I'm glad they managed to shoehorn in a few scenes between them. Just needed another couple of episodes with some action. Alas.
Well, you sold me on I Died at Fallow Hall. I paused the video and went to put in my preorder. Sounds fantastic! The Claire Keegan School of Economics! 😂 Might Claire and Susanna be from the same publisher? This is a trend I definitely don’t approve of and it absolutely left a bad taste in my mouth when I was reading the last teeny-weeny Keegan book. Alas, I succumbed to the beauty of the new Elif Shafak book and am awaiting my copy despite my unease with long books. Hope I can get into it. You missed the new Claudia Pineiro book which came out this week. I’m picking up my preorder tomorrow and hope to be stuck in over the weekend. That is IF I finish the new Evie Wyld first! August is a pretty good month for me with a new Janice Hallett book out at the end of the month too. I actually read a book on the Booker longlist! Not because it was on the longlist, but I had heard good things about it and the audio was on Scribd, so if I didn’t like it, there was no real loss. It was The Safekeep and it has been growing in my esteem since I finished it this morning. Feels like 4.5 stars to me. I thought it started quite slowly and went somewhere totally different in part two, but it was part three that really blew me away and made me think this could be a great book. I liked it quite a bit.
I know Bonnie watches some stuff from this channel so she'll be absolutely delighted to hear that! Sadly I think Fuller and Clarke are with different publishers, so it's not just one cheeky publisher, but at least two! And of course - the Pińeiro and the Wyld 🤦♂️ I always miss some.
Dogs and Monsters. I have to wait until it's Oct release. Hugo Award: after last year's debacle the award has no credibility. The Coastal Road: The prologue had me hooked. Looking forward to this.
Today I saw one of our librarians adding Glorious Exploits into circulation. She asked if I wanted it, but I have too many books checked out to finish before they're due back. Bookish problems! Now that you've reported that Glorious Exploits and Praiseworthy are prize winners, I've added them to my list of books to recommend for next year's book club (they asked for our input). Question to the group: Do those two titles sound like good book club books? And, what other hot new titles/prize contenders and winners would make good book club books? Cheers!
Glorious Exploits would definitely be a good book club book, I think! Praiseworthy seems well loved by those who have read it, but I think it would be a big commitment for a book club, I think.
@@benreadsgood I need to look up everything on my list and narrow it down to five -- the form only has room for five! Page count seems like a good way to decide 😀
I love the book news! The book that I am looking forward to is "The Book of Disappearance" by Ibtisam Azem. In fact this is a rerelease by publisher And Other Stories. Although this news is for September, I am over the moon that I have to share it. The final season of "My Brilliant Friend" is coming out. For those who don't know this is the adaptation of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan quartet.
There's a season 4 of The Boys now?! I'm still trying to get around to watching season 2 😆 😅 The Muslim Cowboy sounds good! I'll have to see if my local indie might stock it, but they are fairly specialised. Which month is indie month on your Read Good challenge? Was it December?
Haha yes, 4 so far! Plus the Gen V spin-off between seasons 3 and 4, which is also good. One more before it ends 😢 Indie-cember is December, yep! The Muslim Cowboy would be a cool pick.
I didn’t say I’m not interested! I actually just picked up a copy. But I have such a big backlog of books to get through I don’t know when I’m going to fit it in.
Hi Ben 👋 I’d highly recommend Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Haworth The Coast Road by Alan Murrin Wild Houses by Colin Barrett Which I’ve just read. I’m currently reading The Alternatives by Caolinn Hughes I just started The Safe Keep 🍀🤗☘️📕📚☕️📖
Hmm, good question, I'm not too sure! Some indie presses do some stuff, and some BookTubers have merch - one I know a lot of people love is the Sunny's Bookstore merch from CJReads. You can also often get stuff from your local indie bookshops!
i've tried to comment twice and my comments are being deleted by youtube i think :((( trying on my phone instead to say please read Bellies!! I am sure you will love it! I was a bit disappointed by HOTD finale - the lead up was really good but I didn't feel as if the finale felt like a proper final episode of the season, if that makes sense? However..... Interview with the vampire now has both seasons on iPlayer so ..... sounds like it's calling.... (youtube please post me this time :/)
Glad you finally managed to make a comment that stuck - that’s so weird! It’s not even in the ‘held for review’ section that TH-cam sometimes moves comments to 🤔 Yeah HoTD was all build up no payoff. A shame because I mostly really like it. I really need to read Bellies and Interview with the Vampire - they’re both on my shelves!
Thank you for watching this month's book news!
I've been doing these videos to much the same formula since they started, but always open to switching it up. So please do let me know if there's anything you would like to see differently...
Any segments you're less interested in? Anything missing you want to see more of?
“Claire Keegan School of Economics”😂😂 Love these updates, thanks Ben!
Her publisher has started a very bank-balance-unfriendly trend 😂 Thanks for watching!
This is so much fun as always, thank you! And ‘the Claire Keegan school of economics’ got me 😂
IT'S VERY CHEEKY! Thanks for watching!
Gavin from Gavin Reads It All left a link to the Liverpool library fundraiser as well. So sweet to see the book community rally.
Gotta rally round to protect the books where we can!
Thank you so much Ben for all the work you put into this video!❤️
Thank you for taking the time to watch!
Honestly 9.99 for a 64 page story is extortionate but I also love Susanna Clarke... 😅
It’s incredibly cheeky!!
I’m very excited for the new book from Elif Shafak. She is such a unique writer. Thank you for another great Book News episode!❤
Thank you for watching! 🙌
I love this series Ben. It’s become one of my Booktube faves. Thank you for making it for us. ❤
Thank so much for watching Charlie! ❤️ Looking forward to the Booker plod - knew you would be drawn in!!!
Thanks Ben! I am almost done listening to My Friends. I would highly recommend the audiobook (narrated by the author) to anyone who hasn’t started it yet.
I’m kind of doing a physical/audio combo and I agree! Took me a while to get into Matar’s cadence but really enjoying it.
Shouting out for Evie Wyld’s new novel The Echoes released on 1st August - her first two were wonderful but I haven’t got to Bass Rock yet. Also a new Claudia Pineiro book came out a couple of days ago - Elena Knows was so good!
There are always some I forget! Thanks Ian 🙌
I found Bellies such an insightful and beautiful read.
Thanks for yet another stellar news episode. The library fundraiser was a great way to end. I’ve been watching the stuff unfold in the UK from the other side of the world and feeling rather despondent about things, but you’re right, community spirit like that is always uplifting.
Really looking forward to Bellies, when I can finally squeeze it in. It's a blessing and a curse to have such a long backlog 😅
What a fantastic video. Many thanks. I hadn't realised there was a gofundme page for the library in Liverpool - I will donate to that ASAP. 😊
Thanks very much for watching! It’s so great that people have come together for the library. A silver lining to the awfulness.
Love, love, love this format! So sorry to hear about the Liverpool library. Thanks for sharing the link for the fundraiser.
Thanks for watching - glad you enjoy the news!
Hello I’ve just found you This video format is brilliant thank you
Thank you for being here! Glad to hear you liked this 😊
The "Claire Keegan School of Economics" indeed! The publishers have become so cheeky. Remember the Penguin 60s from back in the day? (You may be too young...) I feel that would be a better format for these very short 'novellas'
I sadly don't remember those! But I do think about the standalone short stories Faber were releasing a while back from Ishiguro, Rooney, etc. and I think they were like £5 or something. That felt more reasonable to me!
Susanna Clarke? I’m all in. Even if it was 15 pages!
Haha I'm sure you're not the only one!
I love these videos. Being in Australia, I didn't know Edna O'Brien had passed until I saw on youtube. Alexis Wright's Praiseworthy is the first book to win the Stella and the Miles Franklin award in the same year. I did finally complete, but it was difficult. Looking forward to Elif Shafak's new book, Evie Wyld's new book is out and also a few Aussie bookshops have brought publication dates forward on a couple of the Booker longlisted books. Hooray.
Ahhh yes thank you, I knew this was a first for some reason, but I double checked after filming and there are a few people who have won the Miles Franklin twice.
Pachinko is wonderful and the adaptation is beautiful - definitely read/watch it!
I've heard such good things so I'm looking forward to it!!
Hi Ben, I am not sure how to formulate this question without sounding too judgemental 😅 but I am surprised you support Amazon in this way. I understand the temptation of a good deal, but local, independent bookstores are so important for a healthy book culture. Very curious to hear your thoughts on the role Amazon plays in the book industry and the competition between Amazon and independent bookstores?
It's a good question, and thank you for asking it so courteously. Lots of people on the internet would not 😅
In general, I'm with you: I would always prefer to buy from my local indie than Amazon, and a vast majority of my book-buying comes from indies or Waterstones.
As with anything though, I don't think it's quite so simple.
For instance, access to books is really important. For lots of people, buying full-price physical copies of books from independent bookshops just isn't available to them. Perhaps because of financial constraints, or they have a lack of space to keep books at home. Or maybe they don't even have an indie bookshop nearby. Libraries of course are another option, but again not everyone has access to one, and not all libraries have the resources to make all books available to everyone. A cheap Kindle book might be the only way they can enjoy some of these stories.
Another aspect is that it's just a fact that lots of people have Kindles. I don't like the idea of people ditching them and creating lots of electronic waste.
I'm not a fan of a lot of Amazon's business practices, but I can't pretend I don't use them. I definitely do. And there are lots of other big corporations in the book industry, especially given the consolidation of larger publishers in recent years, that probably have a lot of the same bad behaviours as Amazon but which aren't as visible.
All that said, I don't necessarily see sharing the Kindle deals as support for Amazon - I see it more as support for viewers and readers who have Kindles.
@@benreadsgood thank you for sharing your views! And I agree, accessibility of books is really important and ebooks help a lot in that sense.
No problem, thank you for asking! There is definitely so much ethical murkiness in our age of hyper capitalism.
loved this as usual!
Thank you so much!
Oooh off I go to order the new Benjamin Myers. 😊 yes we needed more episodes of HofD this season!
You'll have to let me know what you think! I think I'm going to read a few more of his backlist before I get to this new one.
I agree with you, it seems a bit overpriced for a novella. I am mortified though with the prices over here in Spain! They've recently re-edited Fried Green Tomatoes (you could only get secondhand copies until now) and the paperback sells for €27.
Sadly, this is not an isolated case. Books usually cost an average of €25 there are no deals, discounts or reward points. So, basically, a normal household can't afford more than a book per month, which definitely clashes with the neverending new releases of the market.
There are a lot of people complaining of how this is hindering people's access to culture, especially in a country with such low wages. Libraries are of course always there but not all of them can afford to buy new releases, for example.
Also, I'm really happy to see the library fundraising. ✨
Love and culture will always beat hate! 💛
That's such a shame to be priced out of enjoying books! Hopefully libraries are able to meet some of your needs, but as you say they can't always. There are so many parties involved in selling books, and margins so thin at each stage, I fear it's only going to get more and more expensive here in the UK too.
Not to diminish Wright's accomplishments, but Tim Winton won the Miles Franklin 4 times and so did Thea Astley.
That’s really impressive! I realised after that I claimed the wrong thing as the ‘first’ - she’s the first author to win both the Stella and the Miles Franklin for the same book.
Thanks for uploading the video, even with your busy schedule! I usually don’t get my hopes up with book-to-movie adaptations-imagination’s just better.
Yeah it's rare they're a better experience than the book, but sometimes a good one can really heighten my enjoyment! Dune, Arrival (adapting Story of Your Life), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest... all amazing!
Thank you Ben. This is a great format for a video. Keep on making them and I'll keep on watching 📚❤.
Do read Pachinko when you have time
Thanks for watching! Definitely looking forward to Pachinko!
Thank you for the August news . Some interesting new releases. I have recently got James .
James is brilliant - hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
The Donal Ryan is straightforwardly a sequel - it catches up with exactly the same characters (and in exactly the same order). You could just about read it on its own but It'd be a bit daft.
Hello fellow Ben! Thanks for the intel 🙏
I'm really loving this series!
That's great to hear! Still keeping on with it 😅
Still reading off last year's prize lists. currently in the middle of In Ascension by MacInnes from last year's Booker and finding it a difficult, slow read but it is very thoughtful science fiction and there are not too many of those. Just finished the audio of Limberlost by Arnott from last year's Miles Franklin and loved it so much. It's my 3rd Arnott and I am anxious for another through the Rain Heron is still my favorite. Finished James this month as well and found it all that had been advertised. Not sure what is next. Thanks for the update. Like you always looking for a great mystery.
I really enjoyed In Ascension - really enjoyed how it comes together. I am still to read my first Arnott, but I have The Rain Heron waiting for me on my shelves!
@@benreadsgood I listened to the audio and do recommend it. It is magical
love this series and was also flabbergasted by the HotD finale - absolutely infuriating to leave it where they did! at least we got another great rhaenyra+allicent scene tho
It was a pretty surprising place to end the season! It's a shame because I've mostly really enjoyed it - R and A have such good chemistry so I'm glad they managed to shoehorn in a few scenes between them. Just needed another couple of episodes with some action. Alas.
Well, you sold me on I Died at Fallow Hall. I paused the video and went to put in my preorder. Sounds fantastic!
The Claire Keegan School of Economics! 😂 Might Claire and Susanna be from the same publisher? This is a trend I definitely don’t approve of and it absolutely left a bad taste in my mouth when I was reading the last teeny-weeny Keegan book.
Alas, I succumbed to the beauty of the new Elif Shafak book and am awaiting my copy despite my unease with long books. Hope I can get into it.
You missed the new Claudia Pineiro book which came out this week. I’m picking up my preorder tomorrow and hope to be stuck in over the weekend. That is IF I finish the new Evie Wyld first! August is a pretty good month for me with a new Janice Hallett book out at the end of the month too.
I actually read a book on the Booker longlist! Not because it was on the longlist, but I had heard good things about it and the audio was on Scribd, so if I didn’t like it, there was no real loss. It was The Safekeep and it has been growing in my esteem since I finished it this morning. Feels like 4.5 stars to me. I thought it started quite slowly and went somewhere totally different in part two, but it was part three that really blew me away and made me think this could be a great book. I liked it quite a bit.
I know Bonnie watches some stuff from this channel so she'll be absolutely delighted to hear that!
Sadly I think Fuller and Clarke are with different publishers, so it's not just one cheeky publisher, but at least two!
And of course - the Pińeiro and the Wyld 🤦♂️ I always miss some.
The new Eva Baltasar book, Mammoth, is out this month too 😊
Another one I've missed!! Thanks for mentioning it 🙏
Dogs and Monsters. I have to wait until it's Oct release.
Hugo Award: after last year's debacle the award has no credibility.
The Coastal Road: The prologue had me hooked. Looking forward to this.
Yeah the stuff last year with the politically-eliminated authors was DODGY. Hope you enjoy The Coast Road - I thought it was great!
Today I saw one of our librarians adding Glorious Exploits into circulation. She asked if I wanted it, but I have too many books checked out to finish before they're due back. Bookish problems!
Now that you've reported that Glorious Exploits and Praiseworthy are prize winners, I've added them to my list of books to recommend for next year's book club (they asked for our input). Question to the group: Do those two titles sound like good book club books? And, what other hot new titles/prize contenders and winners would make good book club books? Cheers!
Glorious Exploits would definitely be a good book club book, I think! Praiseworthy seems well loved by those who have read it, but I think it would be a big commitment for a book club, I think.
@@benreadsgood I need to look up everything on my list and narrow it down to five -- the form only has room for five! Page count seems like a good way to decide 😀
The House of Dragons finale was SUCH a disappointment! Another great video
I actually really enjoyed the episode, it's just crazy they concluded the season with that one 😱
I love the book news! The book that I am looking forward to is "The Book of Disappearance" by Ibtisam Azem. In fact this is a rerelease by publisher And Other Stories. Although this news is for September, I am over the moon that I have to share it. The final season of "My Brilliant Friend" is coming out. For those who don't know this is the adaptation of Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan quartet.
Ahhhh the Azem book sounds so good! I'm so intrigued by the premise. I will have to remember to mention it next month.
There's a season 4 of The Boys now?! I'm still trying to get around to watching season 2 😆 😅 The Muslim Cowboy sounds good! I'll have to see if my local indie might stock it, but they are fairly specialised. Which month is indie month on your Read Good challenge? Was it December?
Haha yes, 4 so far! Plus the Gen V spin-off between seasons 3 and 4, which is also good. One more before it ends 😢
Indie-cember is December, yep! The Muslim Cowboy would be a cool pick.
that new Benjamin Myers deserves a WAY better cover!
He's in his seagull era! 😂
Elif Shafak is one of my favourite writers so looking forward to reading her new book...which you are not interested in reading??
I didn’t say I’m not interested! I actually just picked up a copy. But I have such a big backlog of books to get through I don’t know when I’m going to fit it in.
Just watched that bit and I realise I said I didn’t have much intention of reading it - but that’s more about my capacity. Gotta prioritise 😂
Have you read the GN of The Boys, or just watch the show as I’ve done? I’ve not heard directly about the GN by anyone who has read it?
I haven't! I will have to ask my husband if he has, as he's the big graphic novel reader in our house.
Hi Ben 👋 I’d highly recommend Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Haworth
The Coast Road by Alan Murrin
Wild Houses by Colin Barrett
Which I’ve just read. I’m currently reading
The Alternatives by Caolinn Hughes
I just started
The Safe Keep
🍀🤗☘️📕📚☕️📖
Loved both the Murrin and the Barrett! And I'll be starting The Safe Keep soon.
Hey Ben
Do you know where literature fans go to buy merch, as in tshirts or stuff they can wear in public?
Hmm, good question, I'm not too sure! Some indie presses do some stuff, and some BookTubers have merch - one I know a lot of people love is the Sunny's Bookstore merch from CJReads. You can also often get stuff from your local indie bookshops!
i've tried to comment twice and my comments are being deleted by youtube i think :((( trying on my phone instead to say please read Bellies!! I am sure you will love it! I was a bit disappointed by HOTD finale - the lead up was really good but I didn't feel as if the finale felt like a proper final episode of the season, if that makes sense? However..... Interview with the vampire now has both seasons on iPlayer so ..... sounds like it's calling.... (youtube please post me this time :/)
Glad you finally managed to make a comment that stuck - that’s so weird! It’s not even in the ‘held for review’ section that TH-cam sometimes moves comments to 🤔
Yeah HoTD was all build up no payoff. A shame because I mostly really like it. I really need to read Bellies and Interview with the Vampire - they’re both on my shelves!
👏👏👏
Thanks for watching! ♥️