Stranger's Child | 
pickIt's an Alan Hollinghurst so of course it's a gay and wonderful novel. Following the effect of a weekend and a poem on the lives of two families and those who know them over 90 years, the novel also explores British gay life over the same period.
I have more unread books in my house than I could hope to read if I live to be 100, but I still can't walk past a book sale 😳🙄😬
bailedI was sure I would love this book. Hollinghurst is such a good writer and I love his English-ness and his plots. At least I did in In the Line of Beauty and The Swimming Pool Library.
So I didn‘t want to give up but halfway through this one I had to admit I wasn‘t in the least interested in the parade of characters that came and went. It is more a portrait of England in the 20th century than a novel I think. For me that didn‘t work. #manbooker
pickA beautiful melancholy book full of quiet longing. Though I identify as queer myself I‘ve always found it difficult to enjoy the LGBT+ fiction that I see other people really enjoying - I always love these sad, subtle ones though, the old fashioned books where nothing is resolved and everything stays unsaid. I‘m sure a therapist could have a field day with why I prefer them, I just do, I think they touch me on a very deep level.
More revision for the Booker festival next weekend! This is the perfect book to read on a hot summer day in Oxford. Very Brideshead.
Here‘s a brand new 600 page #chunkster from my #tbr! I adored the Line of Beauty sooo much I just got tickets to hear the author speak in a few months but I thought I‘d enjoy the talk more if I try to read a few more things by him first. They all seem super long but I‘m in the mood for a chunky book!
#readingresolutions
#juneprideweek I'm going to try to get at least one LGBTQ+ author into each post. #gaypride. @NovelDescent @howlinglibraries
