Our Book Club has just begun discussing Ava Homa's powerful novel about a young Kurdish woman fighting back against persecution in Iran, Daughters of Smoke and Fire. We also bring you news of other current and upcoming discussions.
Our Editor's Choice review is for Rupert Thomson's Barcelona Dreaming, a vivid novel about love and longing set in 2008 Spain. The book's three novellas are interconnected by the reappearance of ancillary characters, and our Beyond the Book article looks at one of these characters, soccer star Ronaldinho.
We also have a new Wordplay below, as well as links to the latest issue of The BookBrowse Review.
Very best,
Davina
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Daughters of Smoke and Fire
by Ava Homa
From the Jacket
Set in Iran, this extraordinary debut novel takes readers into the everyday lives of the Kurds. Leila dreams of making films to bring the suppressed stories of her people onto the global stage, but obstacles keep piling up. Leila's younger brother Chia, influenced by their father's past torture, imprisonment, and his deep-seated desire for justice, begins to engage with social and political affairs. But his activism grows increasingly risky and one day he disappears in Tehran. Seeking answers about her brother's whereabouts, Leila fears the worst and begins a campaign to save him. But when she publishes Chia's writings online, she finds herself in grave danger as well.
From the Discussion
"Parts of this book were difficult to read. Having said that, I found it a very descriptive and well-written book. The characters had lots of depth and emotions. This exceptional book will be on all book club lists!" - arlenei
"I really enjoyed this book. I like reading about how people navigate through the struggles in their lives and about different cultures and places. It is interesting to see how differently people react and live while enduring the same circumstances. This book sheds a light on the mistreatment of people who are dominated by those in power." - Patricia Ann
"I loved this book. There were times when it was so difficult to read that I wanted to put it aside. Humans can be so cruel. But I think it’s an important book to read to understand the Kurdish nation and I thought it was very well written." - rebajane
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The Overlook Press. Novel. 304 pages. Published in paperback May 11, 2021 |
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Current & Upcoming Book Club Discussions |
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Discussions are open to all, so please join us! If you would like to receive a message when a particular discussion opens, sign up for a one-time notification. You can also find inspiration for your group among our more than 150 past discussions.
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For Members: The BookBrowse Review |
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The just-published issue of The BookBrowse Review is packed with new reviews and articles; plus author interviews, recommendations for book clubs and previews of notable books publishing soon.
This twice-monthly magazine is just one benefit of being a BookBrowse member. An annual membership to BookBrowse costs just $3.25/month. More about membership
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Barcelona Dreaming
by Rupert Thomson
Rupert Thomson's love for the titular city illuminates Barcelona Dreaming. It was the city in which the author lived for six years, where "the ordinary things were magical, a source of pleasure," but where, at the same time, "sophisticated urbanization faded into run-down concrete apartment blocks and burnt-out cars, areas of weed-choked waste-ground and pale dust," as he eloquently recalls in an essay for CrimeReads.
The novellas are narrated in turn by Amy, the owner of a gift shop; Ignacio, an alcoholic jazz musician; and Jordi, a translator. Even though each piece essentially stands alone, there are subtle strands linking the three narrators with each other as they traverse Barcelona. Shadowing their lives are the failures of past relationships, the intrusion of family violence (even if not made explicit), racism, and, anchoring the novel firmly within its time, the looming threat of the global financial crisis of 2008...
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Beyond the Book:
Ronaldinho: The Savior of FC Barcelona
Readers of Barcelona Dreaming will notice that soccer player Ronaldinho is mentioned frequently throughout the novel. Although not one of the chief protagonists, his presence in Barcelona — and by extension in the lives of the book's characters — is a constant.
Ronaldinho was born Ronaldo de Assis Moreira on March 21, 1980. In a 2019 article, the international football magazine FourFourTwo placed him fifth on its list of "101 greatest football players of the last 25 years" in the sport called football or soccer, depending on where you live. Ronaldinho was born in Brazil where he first started playing football at age eight...
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Other Press. Novel. 224 pages. Published June 1, 2021
Critics' Consensus: 4.6/5. BookBrowse Rating: 5/5
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Solve our Wordplay puzzle to reveal a well-known expression, and be entered to win a 6-month membership to BookBrowse.
"Like M, L D"
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The answer to the last Wordplay: A T I A Teapot
"A tempest in a teapot"
Meaning: An overreaction that is out of all proportion to a minor event
Variations on this expression can be found in a great many languages and far back in time. The first known use is by Marcus Tullius Cicero around 52BC, who in De Legibus (The Laws) wrote excitabat enim fluctus in simpulo ut dicitur Gratidius (for Gratidius raised a tempest in a ladle, as the saying is).
The imagery of weather and a small container representing a minor event magnified out of all proportion can be found in many languages. Some talk of storms in cups (including Arabic and Bengali), others refer to storms in glasses of water (including French and Dutch). Others reduce the size of the vessel even further, such as Yiddish where there are squalls in spoons of water, and Greek where one drowns in a spoon of water...
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With so many new books published every month, it's difficult to find the standouts, the ones which are really worth your time. This is why hundreds of thousands of readers rely on BookBrowse to do the hard work of sifting though the multitude of titles to find the most promising new books, with a focus on books that entertain, engage and enlighten. |
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BookBrowse Highlights is one of our four free newsletters. We also offer Publishing This Week every Sunday, and Book Club News and Librarian News monthly.
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