Reading Recluse

Translated from Japanese into English by Quof, with illustrations by You Shiina. This is a post about four books, the second arc in the Ascendance of a Bookworm light novel series. They're book 4-7 in the series and won't make much sense if you haven't read the first arc. At this point, the series has fully won me over and I'll probably read all volumes at some point. I mostly read these four during the recent heatwaves (plural, sadly), because they're so easy to read. Even when I'm tired or…

Translated from Czech into English by Alex Zucker. This book isn't out yet, but will be in September 2026. I received a digital ARC for it (thanks!). This novel follows a female author right after a recent book release. She’s ageing past 50 and her relationship with her works and as a public figure are changing. One day her two teenage children find her journals and snoop through them, finding out the questionable circumstances of how her career started. Her daughter is not letting it go, to…

This is a collection of short stories, spanning a wide variety of characters and settings, all related to the Pakistani diaspora. I picked this one up not knowing much about it, but the title and cover intrigued me. I was pleasantly surprised. The stories were well-written and I never stopped reading one midway. There’s a tiny bit of overlap between them and a sliver of magical realism here and there, but they mostly read as either contemporary or historical fiction. The stories cover the…

A classic non-fiction about science and humanity's journey towards being able to gather knowledge about outer space. Although plenty of new things have been added to this knowledge since its original publication, it's still a very interesting read. It doesn't feel that outdated at all. Sagan's excitement for science is infectious. He can make any boring topic sound like a magical tale you've finally gotten the privilege of hearing about. At times this book made me feel incredibly small and dumb…

Very mixed feelings about this book and its existence. It’s the story of a man who successfully lived in the woods for 27 years, as told by the journalist author. Fascinating and fun to read, but in the end it felt like a book filled with mostly unsympathetic people. The ‘hermit’, the people he burgled, the people who caught him, and most of all the author himself all did questionable things that made me go: eh... Christopher Knight was in his early twenties when he drove to the woods and was…

I have more free time to read books right now because of all the soccer matches I’m not watching. I’m boycotting the FIFA World Cup 2026. I see no meaning in supporting an event that is being hosted by a country that is terrorizing its own citizens, facilitating genocide in Gaza, bombing schoolchildren in Iran, kidnapping the president of Venezuela, starving people in Cuba, bullying dozens of countries into austerity, sorry, I’ll stop here for now with this 100+ item list. I also see nothing…

I read the Dutch translation, Trieste tijger, translated from French into Dutch by Martine Woudt. The English version was translated by Natasha Lehrer. One of the best non-fiction books I've read so far this year. One that makes it hard to have clear thoughts to express afterwards, which is a good thing. This is a memoir about the author's youth, in which she was sexually abused by her stepfather for many years. Once she'd come of age and left her childhood home, she spoke about it to her…

Hm, after having read a couple of books on the topic, I wouldn't really recommend this one broadly. The first part of the book is mostly an explanation of what abuse and CPTSD entail, along with a lot of research. I thought this section was mostly good and I learned some new things. The author does make some comparisons that I'm not too happy about. He tries to make the point that CPTSD is CPTSD, no matter what initially caused it (as in, we all suffer the same). But I don't think anybody wins…

Have you ever been in a reading mood in which you enjoyed the hard science of The Martian but you thought to yourself: this was too twee, wish everything had gone to hell instead. But also, it's hard to focus on a book because you started reading an article about literature online and it turned out to be AI slop and now you're fuming. Somehow, after going through fourteen other loosely related thoughts in the rant that was forming in your angered mind, you thought back on Confessions of an…

Memoir, essay and literary analysis blend in this non-fiction book. Mainly it's about the author's horrific medical experiences and all of how life changes afterwards having to bear those memories. But it's also about literature, writing, self-reflection, fear, mental health, fragility, the general portrayal of sickness. It's kind of a complicated net thrown outwards, as far as it can reach while standing on the rock of medical trauma, and then pulling it back inwards. She shows us what's…

Translated from Russian into English by Elina Alter. This is a collection of very, very short stories. If I counted correctly, there were 62 short stories. All of them were shorter than five pages. This was a wild variety of stories. Many were philosophical, even more were funny, some were spooky, while others made me stare into the distance in confusion. A few challenged me to look at something in life in a different way, several fell flat and made me quite bored. The most fun thing about…

This is a Dutch short story collection, not translated into any other language (yet). I'm always so surprised by the amount of books that don't get translated. Weird girl lit appears to be quite popular in the English language, and Dutch literature has a lot of that. Truly a lot, never translated. This is kind of a soft entry into that subgenre, more absurd than weird, but fitting nevertheless. How should I translate this title? Maybe as 'the audacity!'. These seven stories delve into truth,…

The eight book in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. There's really nothing I can say at this point that won't be a spoiler, so here's a post with barely anything. Book 5, 6 and 7 remain my favorites so far. They're really strong in how the tension builds up and explodes. After all that action, book 8 is a slightly calmer book of planning and regrouping. Then we enter the last +/- 100 pages and it's clear that the time to fight back has once again arrived. I think there's only two more books…

This is a Dutch book, not translated into any other language. The title roughly translates into 'The songbird: about Iran, displacement and a feeling of guilt that never disappears'. It feels awkward giving this disclaimer, but in this day and age it feels necessary. One can read critical texts about Iran without supporting other countries invading Iran, or bombing, murdering and causing so-called regime changes or democracy deliveries. What the US, Israel and their allies are doing, is wrong.…

Translated from German into Dutch by Piet Meeuse and Barber van de Pol. Every translation seems to have some variety regarding what essays they include in a collection, and I don't think there is a close equivalent in English for this particular one. But anything in English that includes essays, speeches and letters from 1933 to 1938 will probably have these in them. The collection, named after one of his most famous essays, translates into 'Europe, beware!' Mann is so pissed off in these…

This book isn't out yet, but will be in August 2026. I received a digital ARC for it (thanks!). I don't think I've ever encountered this format before, but this is a memoir in verse. It's targeted at young adults, but very much suited for adults too. It focuses on the author's experience with sexual assault within a church setting, and she connects it to women (well, children) prosecuted for witchcraft in the past. This book is so intensely personal, as the reader you really get a look into how…

With illustrations by Samantha Gallagher. I saw this book somewhere on the Fediverse and decided to give it a go. I like bugs. I like seeing them and taking their pictures, even though I have no idea what they are and I easily to panic when they get too close to me. This book was 100% joy. Completely wholesome. I've finally found my type of cozy reads. This guide is written by people who love bugs and their excitement is infectious. There are so many beautiful drawings and photographs of…

I read the Dutch translation called "Wanneer de wereld slaapt: verhalen, woorden en wonden uit Palestina" translated from Italian into Dutch by Manon Smits & Pieter van der Drift. The English edition is translated by Gregory Conti. Happy 'Let's all boycott Eurovision 2026 together' week. I used to love watching Eurovision, but not anymore. Eurovision is dead set on platforming Israel, a settler state that's currently committing genocide and waging war. I'd rather not spend my time watching…

This collection has 30+ contributions from writers talking about being estranged from family members. Most are essays, although there's a bit of experimental writing and poetry as well. I'm happy that there's more material coming out for people who have gone no contact with their family. I still think it's fairly taboo to speak about, but there are more online spaces and books to be found than ever before. They've been essential for my coping. As soon as I saw this collection appear on LitHub,…

This book isn't out yet, but will be later this week! I received a digital ARC for it (thanks!). This is a memoir-style essay collection about the intersection between disability and nature. It's a personal look into being Disabled and finding ways to have access to your surroundings despite the plethora of unnecessary barriers set up by an ableist society. It's about the artificial divide between wild and urban, human versus nature, healthy or sick, abled versus disabled. Instead of reflecting…

Translated from Japanese into English by Allison Markin Powell. Another mixed feelings read for me this week. This is a fairly short work of fiction about a few passengers on a train. It's about how their lives briefly intersect and how that changes them. It reads like something right in between a slice of life novel and interconnected short stories. What I really liked about the book was its structure and general train ambiance. The way the text travels one way and then back again does exactly…

Translated from Korean into English by Anton Hur. This book isn't out yet, but will be next week! I received a digital ARC for it (thanks!). This is an interesting, reflective collection of sci-fi short stories. I enjoyed my time with it, but also have some mixed feelings. I think this collection could have been great, but it's 'just' good enough. The stories have intriguing plotlines. The ideas are good and engaging, you can see them shine in the centre of every tale. The stories take common…

This book is only available in Dutch for now, which is a pity because I think it would do well in an English language market. Sure, it would probably get banned in some US libraries, but what text isn't contested nowadays. The title translates into 'Alex's laws'. It's a novel that follows a neurodiverse woman who works in zooarchaeology and really appreciates her own set routines. To her despair, her daily habits and expectations are completely mixed up after some odd circumstances force her to…

You'll have to wait a little longer for this title. It will be released in October 2026. I received a digital ARC for it (thanks!). This is a romance novel about the relationship between our hero, an author who's awaiting the publication of his second novel, and our heroine, a literary critic who's published a disastrously negative review of his work -for the second time! The situation spirals into a public feud filled with controversies and online drama. Taking a slower pace, we get to see…

Like many I knew of Mark Haddon because of his book "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time". It was one of the first English language books I picked out myself and was able to read (leave me alone, graded readers telling tales of animals going on adventures!). My English teacher ridiculed my book choice and told me I pronounced 'appendix' wrong, but fortunately wasn't able to kill my excitement for reading despite her best efforts. The author came back on my radar when I saw an…

Translated from French into Jordan Stump. My very last International Booker Prize 2026 read. I love this one, I'm glad it made it to the shortlist. It has a terribly low average rating on Goodreads and I haven't seen much excited feedback about it yet, so let me add to the small pool of positive reviews. The Witch is banal and magical. It's a family drama in which we follow a woman dealing with a failing marriage, the divorce of her parents, her uncomfortable family in law, the nosiness of the…