RNZ
The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions tells the tale of a lifelong friendship and a schizophrenia diagnosis which leads to murder.
Told through a historical, political and scientifc context, mental health and American healthcare are explored.
Listen to Jenna chat with Kathryn below.
Jenna called into the RNZ studio to review My Brilliant Sister, a Trans-Tasman novel linking three women who observe balancing creativity and domesticity - all with a connection to Australian author and feminist, Stella Miles Franklin.
Listen to Jenna chat with Kathryn below.
Today on Nine to Noon, Jenna was in the studio to chat to Kathryn about some of her favourite 2023 reads.
Listen below for the full review.
Today on Nine to Noon, Jenna chatted to Susie about The Bee Sting. This has been shortlisted for the Booker, which will be announced in just over a week!
A supremely Irish tragi-comedy, this is Jenna’s favourite novel of 2023.
Listen below for the full review.
Described as a “punk” by Mariana Enriquez, Aurora Venturini wrote this novel as an 85 year old, submitting the typewritten manuscript anonymously to a newspaper competition in 2007. After she won, she said, “Finally, an honest jury.” She had previously written 30 novels.
This is a story of vulnerable women, bad men and revenge in 1940’s Buenos Aires. Cousins is the first Venturini novel to be translated into English.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below for more.
PHOTO BY CLAUDIA BERNALDO DE QUIRÓS
“I stood on the most God-forsaken patch of earth I hope ever exists and I thought: I wonder how Elly is.”
Alice Winn’s In Memoriam demonstrates both the despair of war and the distraction of love as we meet two young men in love, Ellwood and Gaunt as they leave their boarding school to sit at the front lines of World War I.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.
Sally Diamond’s Father told her that when he died, to put him out with the rubbish, so when he did die, that’s what she did. This act brings a lot of attention on this woman who has spent her life in her Irish Village pretending to be deaf outside the house.
With a good chunk of the novel set in New Zealand, this book alternates between a Rosie Project-esque tale and a compelling psychological thriller.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.
Kevin Wilson seems to be an undiscovered gem in the Southern Hemisphere, Jenna was very excited to read Now is Not the Time to Panic after loving Nothing to See Here and Tunneling to the Center of the Earth.
A Tennessee based coming-of-age story, that involves an art mystery. An excellent read!
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.
Jenna was back in the Auckland RNZ studio today to review Bobby Palmer’s Isaac and the Egg. We know this sad/happy tale is going to be a word-of-mouth favourite. For fans of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, The Midnight Library and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.
Jenna reviews this epic novel from renowned poet, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers.
Ailey Pearl Garfield, her immediate family and ancestors tackle racism, trauma, colourism, black feminism, academia and history over 800 sweeping and effortless pages. This book is highly recommended!
Listen to Jenna’s review with Lynne Freeman on RNZ’s Nine to Noon below.
Jenna reviews Orwell’s Roses, the brand new book by prolific non-fiction writer, Rebecca Solnit. Starting amongst George Orwell’s (still living) roses, Solnit weaves together connections of war and beauty. Highly recommended!
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.
Today, Jenna reviews the Greek classic, Three Summers by Margareita Liberaki. An escapist coming of age that is filled with the joys of nature and the pains of adolescence.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below, with a little extra mention of The Promise by Damon Galgut, the 2021 winner of the Booker Prize.
Set in a French Village, People Like Them is an immersive and compelling thriller inspired by the murder of five members of a family, by their neighbour.
Narrated by the murderer’s wife, we watch how this tragedy unfolds. Does race play a factor in this murder? Where does humiliation take a human?
Listen to Jenna chat about People Like Them to Kathryn Ryan below. You can buy the book here for delivery in Auckland’s Level 3.
The winner of the Japanese Booksellers’ Award (the book Japanese booksellers most loved to sell.)
Kororo is a Japanese middle schooler, who has given up going to school due to bullying. One day, she notices her mirror is glowing and is able to step inside. There, she finds herself in a castle with 6 other teenagers - she’s not sure why they are there, but it seems they have something in common.
With elements of magic, fairy tales, Matilda and The Breakfast Club - Lonely Castle in the Mirror is a book full of heart, conquering your fears and human connection. Perfect for all fans of Japanese translation but also suitable for young adult readers.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below and buy the book here.
Jenna chats with Kathryn about some of her ‘forgotten favourites’ from 2020.
Earthlings is an absurd & twisted foray into the ‘factory’ of Japanese culture.
Homeland Elegies is a modern day American auto-fiction classic - from the perspective of a Muslim American life post 9/11.
In the Dream House is a searing collection of vignettes that explore an abusive queer relationship and the history of queer relationships in pop culture.
Do you need something FUNNY to read over the holidays? Go no further than David Sedaris. This is a best of collection spanning 25 years of essays, stories and opinion pieces. Listen to Jenna’s review below.
Winner of the 2020 Booker Prize, Shuggie Bain is a novel brimming with heart and soul and the writing positively gleams. Shuggie Bain is Kiran’s novel of the year and she reviewed it on RNZ’s Nine to Noon.
On RNZ’s Nine to Noon Kiran reviewed Mayflies by Andrew O’Hagan. A charismatic and spirited ode to friendship, this gorgeous novel is a positive and celebratory representation of male friendship. While it’s heartbreaking, it’s also a joyous headrush.
This is Jenna’s most anticipated book of the year and it hasn’t disappointed.
A coming of age story that has all of the classic Ferrante ingredients - Naples, the class divide and passionate women. Highly recommended and on the shelf now.
Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below and buy the book here.
Her name was Magda. Nobody will ever know who killed her. It wasn’t me. Here is her dead body…
So begins Death in Her Hands, the compelling new novel from Ottessa Moshfegh who is an expert at evoking the weird, eerie and mordantly funny. Kind of like Patricia Highsmith meets Ottessa Moshfegh meets Murder She Wrote, Death in Her Hands is a pageturner of a mystery - comic in places and pitch dark in others.
