BOOKS OF THE WEEK
Blessings by Chukwuebuka Ibeh Viking, £14.99 (ebook, £7.99) Review by Anahita Hossein-Pour
This debut novel explores a moving tale of a teenage boy sent away to a strict Christian boarding school after his father discovered him in an intimate moment with the family apprentice. Obiefuna is forced to learn how to survive and love simultaneously while growing up in a deeply hostile environment for LGBTQ+ people. Set in modern-day Nigeria, this heart-wrenching story is told through narratives from Obiefuna and his mother Uzoamaka, exposing the complexities within family relationships. Author Chukwuebuka Ibeh beautifully captures the human cost of conflict between love and politics, where the status quo traps your most personal being.
The Painter’s Daughters by Emily Howes Phoenix, £20 (ebook, £11.99) Review by Hannah Colby
Peggy and Molly Gainsborough, the unruly children of an unknown Ipswich artist, run free and wild across the Suffolk fields as their father captures their portraits on canvas. Partners in crime, co-conspirators, they are convinced that nothing could ever come between them. So when Molly starts to lapse into violent confusion, Peggy realises that if she is to keep her sister close, she must guard their shared secret or risk losing Molly to an asylum – even when the Gainsborough star rises and the sisters are launched into polite society. The Painter’s Daughter is an account of the sacrifices that are made for love, even in the face of devastating betrayal.
Butter by Asako Yuzuki Fourth Estate, £14.99 (ebook, £7.99) Review by Tom Pilgrim
In a Tokyo prison, an elusive serial killer with a taste for the finer things in life gives a rare interview to a journalist. They discuss food. Rika Machida’s attempts to piece together the life and motives of convicted gourmet cook Manako Kajii – accused of seducing and killing lonely businessmen – sets the reporter on a twisting and challenging personal journey. Author Asako Yuzuki’s translated novel, inspired by a real-life murder case, is part gastronomical thriller, part cultural examination, in which vivid descriptions of cooking and eating alternate with thoughtful and provoking explorations of difficult themes: gender, misogyny, the media, romance, work, friendship and family.
Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story by Leslie Jamison Granta Books, £16.99 (ebook, £16.99) Review by Sophie Goodall
Splinters, the second memoir from award-winning essayist and Columbia University creative writing tutor Leslie Jamison, recounts an emotionally harrowing chapter in her life – the period in which her marriage fell apart as she became a mother for the first time. Leslie’s memories weave the parts – splinters – of herself together; a mother, a wife, a daughter, a tutor and an artist, which she comes to find are as much dependent on each another as they are isolated. By exploring her past, she presents the realisations she now finds herself at. It’s an insightful, intimate and incredibly relatable read about the human psyche and the way we love.