23 Comments

Razorblade Tears has been added to my list ! Appreciate the thorough review of it, your praise has me convinced

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I’m happy to hear it Patrick! I hope you enjoy it. Let me know once you have and we can talk about it!

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Charco Press has been unstoppable at finding good books. I’m glad you picked on of their’s up!

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Oh I absolutely love Charco Press - they are one of my favourite publishers. I’ve got a lot of their titles that are coming out next year on pre order. They hardly ever miss. Which ones of theirs have you read?

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Dec 1, 2023·edited Dec 1, 2023Liked by Martha

Two Sherpas, Havana Year Zero, Loop, The Distance Between Us, Fish Soup and probably another one or two I'm forgetting. Reading each of them was tough because I can't balance reading in one go and trying to enjoy each book in moderation.

Loop I read in one day waiting for the ferry, on the ferry, and back again over the Sound. I've tried to recreate the feeling but right book at the right time.

Any gems you think I should take a look at in their catalogue?

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What did you think of Havana Year Zero? I didn’t expect so much relationship drama haha! Fish Soup & The Distance Between Us are both on my radar, which one was your favourite? I understand - not being able to read books all in one go is frustrating! Especially because Charco books are usually on the shorter side..

The reading experience of Loop sounds perfect!! It’s always hard to recreate those, they are fleeting (sadly).

If you’ve never read any Claudia Piñeiro I’d really recommend her work. I’ve read Elena Knows and A Little Luck and loved them both. Also read Homesick & Dead Girls from them - both interesting too. I’ve also pre ordered Not A River and The Dark Side of Skin which I’m stoked to receive, especially Dark Side of Skin. The titles they’re publishing next year sound epic. If you haven’t had a look at their 2024 bundle you should!

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Advanced Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas Martha!

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Thank you Jam! 💖 Merry Christmas to you too!

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Ok I’m very intrigued by your review of Razorblade Tears because my reaction was different when I read it. I was so mad from the start that these men didn’t care for their gay sons until it was too late, and even then I didn’t understand WHY they started caring or what really changed their minds. I didn’t believe just their death would trigger it. I think that initial reaction tainted the rest of the book for me. Also I read a lot of Don Winslow who is so extremely detailed and psychological that I can’t help but compare. I’ve only heard others say good things about Razorblade tho so clearly it’s me. I will have to reconsider my bias.

Happy early birthday!!! The amount you’ve managed to read this month and year even through your illness is truly remarkable !! Can’t wait to see what your favorites were and what you have in store for next year 😃😃😃

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I’m SO intrigued we had such different experiences of Razorblade Tears! Ok I was also inevitably like why the hell are these men so homophobic towards their own sons this is insane and disgusting (especially as they’ve already spent life behind bars away for significant parts of their kids lives) I don’t feel like what they did redeemed that at all but I guess I felt the story exploring a lot of the toxic masculinity they had experienced/perpetuated themselves helped me understand why they felt the way they did. That it came from places of insecurity / paranoia rather than pure hatred?

What I took from it was that they did care but were under the impression their sons would change one day? And then with their murder, revenge & crime is the language that ike and buddy speak best. So the position of ‘revenge’ was a no brainer for them bc these men are so violent and it comes so easy. It also felt like the murder was a wake up call to them both to how prolific homophobia is/can be and how it is cruel and unnecessary.

I felt like the story had a turning point where they’re seeking a violent revenge because it’s what they know, to then genuinely starting to understand/witness the prejudices via meeting Tangerine and being ashamed of their past behaviour & disgusted by the governors actions.

And then through the revenge they were exposed to a variety of different people and that helped them gain more perspective & empathy for LGBTQI people? Idk this is a lot of thoughts from me hahahaha sorry. It is a very multi layered story and I felt like it was all about showing the real toxicity of masculinity and how damaging it really is / can be for men! But bottom line, Ike and Buddy Lee didn’t deserve Isiah and Derek and they way they were killed was so horrific it was unsettling. When you already have an initial bias towards a book it can be so hard to shake, so I understand!

And thank you Natalie 🥺💖❤️ for the birthday wishes and being so kind, you’re truly remarkable too! When you have to spend a lot of time indoors, reading can be a real saviour! I can’t wait to see YOUR favourites and what’s in store for you next year too! I adore our Substack book obsessed relationship and look forward to our comment interactions every time either one of us posts!

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I liked your definition of "Sertão" :)

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Thank you Luiza! That makes me pleased that I (hopefully) communicated it effectively? I’d never heard of Sertão before. Have you read ‘Rebellion in the Backlands’ by Euclides de Cunha? When researching all about Sertão it came up a lot and I’m really intrigued by the sound of it. I’d like to read it!

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No, I haven't. But the story of Antonio Conselheiro, which the book is about is quite big in Brazil and very interesting. He created kind of a parallel state in Brazil made mostly of black people, former slaves that ran away. They had their own government and were much more communitary in their way of existing. They resisted for many years, but eventually were crushed, unfortunately, by the Portuguese.

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I haven't read it either, but I would say this is the most famous book from the region: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/334228.Barren_Lives?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=mpK0a5YqKM&rank=1

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Yes from what I’ve read the story of Antonio Conselherio sounds unbelievably interesting! Thank you for sharing more about it - I’m itching to know more. It’s a history I have never come across before (thank you UK education).

Thank you for also pointing me towards ‘Barren Lives’ - very grateful! I look forward to getting round to reading both of them. Historical and translated fiction are my favourite genres so this is wonderful - I can’t wait!

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I will be pushing Razorblade Tears up my TBR effective immediately!!!! It’s one of those books I’ve been saying I’m going to read every month but I just haven’t reached for it.

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Yes definitely! It’s such a good read if you’re in a slump or are feeling a bit distracted from reading in general and need a book to really grab your attention and pull you in - it’s a relatively easy read and we all need those sometimes. Reach for it and let me know how you find it!

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Razorblade Tears was a fantastic read--totally agree on the joy of discovering Crosby. And for what it's worth, the whole Southern Reach trilogy is sort of a dazzling fever dream--just loved it.

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Sorry for not replying to this comment sooner Chuck, I’ve had covid! The joy of discovering Cosby is so real - he is one of the most talented writers! It’s rare to find an author where with every book of theirs you read, you’re consistently more impressed! Octavia Butler is the only other author who comes to mind that makes me feel that way.

Your love for the Southern Reach trilogy definitely encourages me to finish it - annihilation felt so standalone in so many ways! Describing it as a dazzling fever dream is very enticing.

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Since you mention Octavia Butler--I love her work so much I'm actually the proud owner of an Octavia Butler t-shirt. I just read Fledgling for the first time, which felt very different from her other work.

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A tshirt!! God I want one. I have actually never read the Fledgling - do you recommend? This year I read Parable of the Sower, Kindred and her Lilith’s Brood trilogy. I loved the trilogy the most - it’ll be in my best books of 2023 post I think I read all 3 books over the course of 3 days? I couldn’t get enough!

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I admit to not loving Fledgling as much as her other work, but her other work is so darn great. I think it was meant to be the start of a series, but then she passed away. It’s worth reading for sure if you’re a fan!

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I am a fan! I’ll get round to it one day - thanks for recommending. Her other work so darn great indeed!

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