KILDARE BOOK COLUMN: 5 new books to read this week

Fiction

A Shard of Darkness by CJ Tudor

This is CJ Tudor’s first collection of short stories. For those unfamiliar with her work, she has been dubbed Britain’s Stephen King and set the world of literary horror on fire in 2018 with her debut novel The Chalk Man. Here we have 11 tales that aren’t all of the chill variety, but definitely tread on familiar King territory. Tudor has a very clean way of writing that sometimes almost feels like YA. Each story has a satisfying conclusion and a bit of a twist – and there’s a personal author introduction to each, which is a nice touch. Final Course and Butterfly Island stand out, both making you want more, in a positive way. It’s worth mentioning that some of these stories are set against the backdrop of an apocalypse – which, given recent events, makes the terror all the more real.

8/10

(Review by Alan Hutchinson)

Suspect by Scott Turow

A sex scandal is brewing in the fictional county of American lawyer and writer Scott Turow. Quirky private investigator Pinky has been called in to help a female police chief out of a potentially career-ending legal wrangle. The chief is accused of soliciting sex from three male officers in exchange for promotion within the ranks of the police. Amid the tangle of lies and devastating courtroom revelations, all is not as it seems as a dark evil force lurks behind the scenes. Presented as a thriller with a modern twist, Suspect walks a fine line between authenticity and – for UK readers at least – the risk of getting bogged down in US legal proceedings. The book’s greatest strength is Pinky, the sympathetically odd misfit, and her resolute desire to uncover the truth, driving the plot to its conclusion.

8/10

(Review by Emily Pennink)

Best Of Friends by Kamila Shamsie

Kamila Shamsie examines the complexities of a decades-long friendship in a novel split into two contrasting halves. We first meet Zahra, the bookish and sensitive 14-year-old daughter of a cricket journalist, and Maryam, the willful and spoiled heiress of a leather goods business, in 1988 Pakistan ruled by a dictator. . The intimacy of their bond is thoughtfully drawn amid coming-of-age anxieties about bodies, boys, and the injustices of womanhood. Their relationship takes place against a very vivid backdrop of Karachi society and politics. The slightly less compelling second half of the book jumps to London in 2019, where Zahra, now the head of a civil liberties group, and Maryam, a tech venture firm, mingle with the social elite and find their connection tested by divergent ethics and motivations. Here, current political themes of inequity, responsibility, and power feel less well-treated, with the novel at its best when Shamsie explores how friendship evolves and endures.

7/10

(Review by Tom Pilgrim)

nonfiction

Faith, Hope and Carnage by Nick Cave and Sean O’Hagan

For the past five years, Nick Cave has largely avoided interviews. Instead, the 65-year-old Australian musician and writer, long-time Brighton-based, connected directly with his fans via The Red Hand Files, his website, answering their questions at semi-regular intervals. That’s part of what makes Faith, Hope And Carnage – a collection of conversations between Cave and journalist Sean O’Hagan – such a compelling read. They go further, addressing his creative process and how he has become more abstract, less literal, since 2013’s Push The Sky Away, how he responded to the forced self-reflection of lockdown and how he coped with the tragic deaths of two sons in recent years. Trauma weighs heavily on these conversations, but there’s also a levity and humor that comes from the chemistry between interviewer and interviewee. O’Hagan is adept at digging to uncover the most interesting conversational knots, but it’s Cave’s words that are the star of the show. The man talks like he’s writing poetry and the way he describes making music is sure to delight fans and casual listeners alike.

8/10

(Review by Alex Green)

Children’s book of the week

Meanwhile Back on Earth by Oliver Jeffers

Northern Irish artist and writer Oliver Jeffers MBE presents his latest children’s picture book, the delightfully illustrated story of a father traveling with his bickering sons in the back of the car. Jeffers is best known for his works How To Catch A Star and Lost And Found – which was adapted for the small screen in 2008 – and Meanwhile, Back On Earth does not disappoint, following its predecessors in quirky storytelling, the vibrant imagery and heart-wrenching moral messages. Dad attempts to appease the squabbles of his disagreeing children by traveling the universe and presenting them with stories of nature and history, teaching them that what connects us is greater than what divides us. Jeffers’ work is a moving masterpiece, with illustrations so rich that it’s a shame to put this book on a shelf – it deserves pride of place on any coffee table.

9/10

(Review by Holly Cowell)