I finally read a paperback whodunnit from my TBR shelf: Vaseem Khan’s delightful Baby Ganesh Detective Agency and Bad Day at the Vulture Club. The delightful aspects were Ganesh, the baby elephant, the morally upright Inspector Chopra retired from the Mumbai Police Force, the Indian setting; not so delightful was the crime setting in the Parsee Tower of Silence and the vultures. But I’m a fan of Indian novels, and Khan’s series in particular, so I bravely read on. A great read.
Remainder of my reads were all e-books.
A short Japanese novella, Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukagawa was another notable November read. What intrigued me was not the theme of what-is-the-meaning-of-life, but the background setting about the treatment of leprosy in Japan, which I found shocking. A quiet, poignant novel, very Japanese in tone and story treatment. Very different.
And then, in much lighter vein, the wonderful, fantastical world of Kim M Watt’s two PIs: Gobbelino, the snarky talking cat and his human partner, Callum plunged into umpteen dangerous chases, brawls and escapades (Kim W writes exciting action sequences ). Mysteries, crimes, and a cast of fantastical creatures – a family of gentrified trolls, angry blue imps attacking like mozzies, the fearsome wizard Ms Jones, she of the Doc Maarten boots, a donkey ruminating on existentialism … to mention but a few of the glorious characters. Love the series, can’t wait to read more .
And finally, good old Sherlock Holmes – see further down under Re-Reads. I enjoyed the solving of the crimes via Holmes extraordinary powers of deduction, but oh! all that Victorian melodrama as the background setting. Conan Doyle’s version of women as frail, pale creatures given to frequent fainting when life’s little problems popped up …. that jarred.
FICTION
Bad Day at the Vulture Club – Vaseem Khan – see intro
Sweet Bean Paste – Durian Sukagawa, trans. Alice Watt – see intro
The House – Teresa Waugh. Post WWII Britain, gracious old houses & aristocrat owners struggle to survive the new world. Very Downton Abbey read, but enjoyable.
Cremains – Rob Johnson . Keystone Cop type criminals v.s. Amateur ‘Tec Bunglers in the UK. Meh .
Gobbelino London and a Scourge of Pleasantries – Kim M Watt – A splendid adventure, featuring a powerful female magician in search of her purloined grimoire. Chaos ensues.
Gobbelino London and a Complication of Unicorns – Kim M Watt – Not as pink & pretty as you might imagine. An introduction to mind-boggling reformed, gentrified trolls. Hilarious!
Gobbelino London and a Contagion of Zombies – Kim M Watt – scary! And unputdownable.
RE-READING
A Study in Scarlet – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – see intro
The Sign of the Four – – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – see intro
NON FICTION
Kept: An American Househusband in India – Gregory E Buford. A culture clash of note, but good natured throughout. Enjoyable
Don’t Go There: From Chernobyl to North Korea – Adam Fletcher. Title says it all: DON’T GO THERE. Short travel pieces from a Brit who should know better. A salutary read.
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