These five books cover everything from non-fiction to science fiction (Image: Vita Molyneux)
Some of my most cherished childhood memories are set in the library. My mum would take me at least weekly, and I would dash about selecting books entirely at random. While waiting for her, I would settle onto a beanbag in the corner and immerse myself in the first volume from the stack, frequently getting halfway through my choices before my mum said it was time to depart.
That passion for reading remained with me throughout my life, propelling me to study English Literature at university. Although during those years I read mostly for academic purposes, it didn’t extinguish the passion, and I remain an avid reader today. I will read virtually anything – but this year, five specific books truly stood out to me. From science fiction worlds where time travel is integrated into the essence of existence, to a peculiar woman who searches for the soul of an imaginary child she once encountered in every infant she sees, these are my five favourite titles.
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Monstrilio – Gerardo Sámano Córdova
This novel chronicles a mother overwhelmed by bereavement. Following her son’s death, she struggles to accept the loss and cuts out a piece of his lung to keep with her.
Upon discovering folklore suggesting the possibility of reviving departed loved ones, she attempts the ritual, yearning desperately for any indication of her cherished son’s presence. T
his fragment subsequently develops into the tailed, clawed, imperfect yet profoundly cherished Monstrillio – eventually known as “M”.
Throughout the narrative, grief and affection remain inextricably linked, with the tale divided into four sections, each presented through a different perspective.
Every storyteller proves fundamentally flawed, overwhelmed by devotion and torment, with successive chapters revealing more layers, mirroring the eponymous creature itself.
This work profoundly affected me, and upon finishing the final page, my sole desire was to erase my memory of it simply to experience the journey afresh.
Monstrilo is a heart wrenching read (Image: Vita Molyneux)
Say Nothing – Patrick Radden Keefe
This was amongst my infrequent non-fiction selections. The book captured my interest from the opening sentence and maintained its grip throughout the subsequent 400 pages.
This compelling and meticulously researched account of The Troubles begins with the kidnapping of mother-of-10, Jean McConville, before unpacking the political upheaval, conflict and violence of that era.
Keefe masterfully crafts the true events in a manner that resembles fiction whilst confronting all the horrors perpetrated by both sides during the Troubles.
For someone with minimal previous understanding of the period, this book delivered relentless emotional impact – more extraordinary than fiction in certain passages and painfully familiar in others.
This book was a great history for a time period I knew little about (Image: Vita Molyneux)
The First Bad Man – Miranda July
This debut novel is small but mighty – and totally bizarre. It chronicles Cheryl Glickman, an awkward, peculiar woman in her mid 40s who appears to develop fixations on everyone she encounters – most notably, her considerably older employer whom she believes she has encountered across all of her myriad past lives.
She is equally fixated on the essence of a child she names Kubelko Bondy, whom she initially encountered as an infant held by her friend’s parents and has sought in every newborn she has observed since.
When her colleagues’ unkempt, trailer park-glamorous daughter Clee is thrust upon her and into her obsessively minimalist residence, Cheryl’s existence transforms into a waking nightmare before evolving into something simultaneously unsettling and peculiarly endearing.
The First Bad Man is such a weird novel it feels strange to be suggesting it, but the writing is compelling, and the characters are so peculiar that I couldn’t put it down.
It’s surreal without being completely detached from reality, and it will make you look twice at every unassuming woman you pass in the street.
This book is utterly bizarre and I loved it (Image: Vita Molyneux)
I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning – Keiran Goddard
Keiran Goddard is a poet as well as an author, and that poetry radiates throughout this novel. It follows Patrick, Shiv, Rian, Oli and Conor as they turn 30, with each of them receiving their own opportunity to speak throughout the course of the book.
Rian has relocated after becoming wealthy and the other four are navigating through their lives as best they can after none of their aspirations materialised.
Oli is a drug dealer, Patrick shares two children with Shiv and attempts to make ends meet by delivering takeaways on his bike, and Conor is on the edge following a marriage breakdown.
This book examines what occurs when the aspirations of childhood fade away, and the ordinariness of life steps up to take its place. How much of our lives are chosen by us and how much of it is routine? And what do we do when a long-concealed secret emerges and threatens to destroy everything?
This novel is understated, bleak, melancholy and poetic. It’s a brief read, only 244 pages, but an entirely absorbing one.
Although the dialogue is limited, you truly inhabit these characters when you read this book and their concerns, hopes and dreams all become yours.
A stunning novel that leaves you feeling empty (Image: Vita Molyneux)
The Other Valley – Scott Alexander Howard
Science fiction isn’t typically my preferred genre, but The Other Valley proved a thoroughly rewarding exception. The narrative unfolds in a small, secluded settlement encircled by mountains.
Flanking the central community are two neighbouring versions; one existing 20 years ahead in time, the other two decades behind.
Occasionally, residents receive permission to traverse between these communities to reconnect with departed loved ones from their own timeline.
These “mourning tours” operate under rigid supervision by the Conseil, and at 16, protagonist Odile is undergoing preparation to join this governing body.
Yet when she identifies members of a mourning tour in her community and realises they are her classmate’s parents, visiting him before his impending demise, she faces an agonising dilemma.
Should she attempt to avert the forthcoming tragedy, despite being unaware of its precise nature or timing? Or must the natural progression of events remain undisturbed?
Time travel and teenage love – what more could you want? (Image: Vita Molyneux)
Beyond the primary conflict in the novel – the dilemma of saving her friend or letting him perish – this book delves into Odile’s occasionally abrasive and difficult relationship with her mother, the excruciating torment of adolescent love, and the ever-present fear that your life may not pan out as you had hoped.
Yes, it’s science fiction, but it’s also a work of literary fiction and despite the seemingly complex concept, it flows seamlessly.
Time travel is as integral to this world as teenage romance, lack of aspiration, and attending school with a hangover.
I devoured this book whilst on holiday with my family, and promptly passed it onto my mother to read; she was equally enamoured with it as I was, and I’m eagerly anticipating reading it again.
