Books to make 2017 a better year
What will you fuel up on in January to inspire your new year? Pick books to change how you think, eat, read - and even how you create
A new leaf: Best books to read in the new year
Mad Girl, Bryony Gordon
What is it? A work of fiction from 2016, Transit follows character Faye to London after her divorce. But in this fiction we can still read the echoes of Cusk's shocking non-fiction memoirs A Life's Work, on motherhood (2001) and Aftermath, on divorce (2011). While the memoirs were overly provocative for some, Transit is softened by storytelling and some beautiful writing, whilst still being remarkably relatable.
Pour me a Life, A. A. Gill
What is it? How do we learn to eat? It's not as simple as just taking a bite. Social historian Bee Wilson has got her teeth into her own past to present our eating disorders on a plate. We eat emotively and we learn how to do it, not just by putting things in our mouth as babies, but by watching others. We are hypersensitive to bitterness as children, but we learn to love, or at least tolerate, kale, olives and anchovies as adults. We can change our appetites, one pea-sized taster at a time. First Bite is an emotional read- because everything from comfort eating to stress eating means something more than just calories. Wilson knows this and presents a fascinating examination of our daily bread.
In Order to Live, Yeonmi Park
What is it? Harford, or the Undercover Economist, finally tells us exactly what we want to hear: messiness is good for you. What he really means, unfortunately, is discomfort. Uncomfortable situations can produce genius. Take Brian Eno, who loved creating chaos in the recording studio for U2 by forcing them to swap instruments; creativity comes easier when we make things more difficult. Drawing on Martin Luther King before he made the creative leap to his best speeches, examining musicians and even Donald Trump, it's a meditation on how we create the primeaval soup of genius. Neat freaks need not apply.
Quote this: From the TED talk, “We don't want to be asked to do good work with bad tools... [but] I think we need to gain a bit more appreciation for the unexpected advantages of having to cope with a little mess.”
La Frantumaglia, Elena Ferrrante
What is it? Little is known about reclusive author Elena Ferrante- her identity is completely hidden, though her books, especially the Neopolitan series, are celebrated internationally. She only gives interviews via correspondence, "I will be the publishing house’s least expensive author. I’ll spare you even my presence."
For those who admire this great writer and want to get closer to her, the only way seems to be through a "jumble of fragments"- her published letters and interview questions, Frantumaglia. In this book of letters, Ferrrante's voice is direct, clear and firm- she will not concede her identity. She lays out her philosophy of the role of an author time and time again. She is the constant, weary defender of her position. She teaches us all how to be firm.
Quote this: "Authors, as authors, live in their books. It’s where they appear most truthfully. And good readers have always known it."
Flâneuse, Lauren Elkin
What is it? In the 1800 French poet Baudelaire popularised the term 'flâneur'. Not something you wash your face with, it was a term for the idly wealthy who had no occupation and could therefore spend their time strolling the streets of Paris and generally enjoying huge artistic freedom. The flâneur watched and took notes. And he had a traditionally male gaze. But now, Lauren Elkin has gathered around her evidence of female walkers- not streetwalkers or other derogatory terms for women who are itinerant- but female artists making use of their cities. A fascinating way to write about George Sand, Viriginia Woolf and others, plus Elkin's own artistic explorations of Paris, London, Venice and Tokyo. It makes us all want to be London wanderers.
What is it? A work of fiction from 2016, Transit follows character Faye to London after her divorce. But in this fiction we can still read the echoes of Cusk's shocking non-fiction memoirs A Life's Work, on motherhood (2001) and Aftermath, on divorce (2011). While the memoirs were overly provocative for some, Transit is softened by storytelling and some beautiful writing, whilst still being remarkably relatable.
Pour me a Life, A. A. Gill
What is it? How do we learn to eat? It's not as simple as just taking a bite. Social historian Bee Wilson has got her teeth into her own past to present our eating disorders on a plate. We eat emotively and we learn how to do it, not just by putting things in our mouth as babies, but by watching others. We are hypersensitive to bitterness as children, but we learn to love, or at least tolerate, kale, olives and anchovies as adults. We can change our appetites, one pea-sized taster at a time. First Bite is an emotional read- because everything from comfort eating to stress eating means something more than just calories. Wilson knows this and presents a fascinating examination of our daily bread.
In Order to Live, Yeonmi Park
What is it? Harford, or the Undercover Economist, finally tells us exactly what we want to hear: messiness is good for you. What he really means, unfortunately, is discomfort. Uncomfortable situations can produce genius. Take Brian Eno, who loved creating chaos in the recording studio for U2 by forcing them to swap instruments; creativity comes easier when we make things more difficult. Drawing on Martin Luther King before he made the creative leap to his best speeches, examining musicians and even Donald Trump, it's a meditation on how we create the primeaval soup of genius. Neat freaks need not apply.
Quote this: From the TED talk, “We don't want to be asked to do good work with bad tools... [but] I think we need to gain a bit more appreciation for the unexpected advantages of having to cope with a little mess.”
La Frantumaglia, Elena Ferrrante
What is it? Little is known about reclusive author Elena Ferrante- her identity is completely hidden, though her books, especially the Neopolitan series, are celebrated internationally. She only gives interviews via correspondence, "I will be the publishing house’s least expensive author. I’ll spare you even my presence."
For those who admire this great writer and want to get closer to her, the only way seems to be through a "jumble of fragments"- her published letters and interview questions, Frantumaglia. In this book of letters, Ferrrante's voice is direct, clear and firm- she will not concede her identity. She lays out her philosophy of the role of an author time and time again. She is the constant, weary defender of her position. She teaches us all how to be firm.
Quote this: "Authors, as authors, live in their books. It’s where they appear most truthfully. And good readers have always known it."
Flâneuse, Lauren Elkin
What is it? In the 1800 French poet Baudelaire popularised the term 'flâneur'. Not something you wash your face with, it was a term for the idly wealthy who had no occupation and could therefore spend their time strolling the streets of Paris and generally enjoying huge artistic freedom. The flâneur watched and took notes. And he had a traditionally male gaze. But now, Lauren Elkin has gathered around her evidence of female walkers- not streetwalkers or other derogatory terms for women who are itinerant- but female artists making use of their cities. A fascinating way to write about George Sand, Viriginia Woolf and others, plus Elkin's own artistic explorations of Paris, London, Venice and Tokyo. It makes us all want to be London wanderers.
TRY CULTURE WHISPER
Receive free tickets & insider tips to unlock the best of London — direct to your inbox