Reading and Watching the World: Books, Film and Art
There's a whole world out there! I'm an experienced, UK-based editor and a bit of an aesthetic dilettante. I'm making it my off-duty duty to bring to your attention books, films, artists, music and TV from all over the world. Reviews are SPOILER FREE. New posts every week. See Reviews by country for my reviews from each nation.
FAR EAST, SOUTH ASIA AND AUSTRALASIA Translated from the Korean by Deborah Smith When it came to choosing a female South Korean writer, there was really no choice to be made. Han Kang is a previous winner of the Man Booker International Prize, and two of her novels recently made it onto the top 5 …
Continue reading “Review no 27: Han Kang, Human Acts (South Korea)”
FAR EAST, SOUTH ASIA AND AUSTRALASIA China/US film The Farewell premiered at Sundance in 2019, and has received glowing reviews. Lulu Wang, who wrote and directed it, emigrated from China to the USA as a child (like the film’s principal character, Billi, played by insanely talented rapper and actress Awkwafina, who also starred in the …
Continue reading “Review no 18: The Farewell, film by Lulu Wang (China)”
FAR EAST, SOUTH ASIA AND AUSTRALASIA “It may be argued that stories should not sprawl in this way, that they should be grounded in one place or the other, put down roots in the other or the one and flower in the singular soil; yet so many of today’s stories are and must be of …
Continue reading “Review no 14: Salman Rushdie, Quichotte (India)”
FAR EAST, SOUTH ASIA AND AUSTRALASIA Translated from the Japanese by Eric Selland “What would you sacrifice for an extra day of life?” This novel has sold over 1 million copies in Japan, and has been made into a film. I spotted the book in a branch of Waterstones when I was visiting family, and …
Continue reading “Review no 3: Genki Kawamura, If Cats Disappeared from the World (Japan)”
