Welcome to the first On Our Reading Radar of 2024 - a live discussion thread which is our chance to share:
Anything we’d recommend on the theme of LIVING ABROAD
Anything we’ve loved reading / watching / listening to over the past month.
I’m very excited that we’re joined by Barnaby Rogerson from Eland Books, the publisher of our January book, The Ginger Tree by Oswald Wynd. He’s going to be sharing his expertise on the topic and letting us know a little more about the world of Eland Books. I’ve got a few questions for him up my sleeve; please do join in with your own.
The live typing event takes place TODAY at 1.30-2pm GMT, but if the time doesn’t work for you, don’t worry, please feel free add your contribution at a later date.
As an added bonus this month, the ever-generous Eland Books are enabling a GIVEAWAY of these three beautiful books, which all explore the theme of living abroad, plus a copy of The Ginger Tree to pass on to a friend. To be in with a chance to win, simply leave a comment on the thread.
So, what recommendations have you got for me? I’m longing to know…
On the "living abroad theme", I loved "The Idiot" by Elif Batuman! It follows the story of a young college student who's navigating growing up while living abroad. I especially loved the focus on language and culture, as a way of feeling connected to new people and places.
Anything by Pico Iyer (Oxford-born to Indian parents, was raised in California and then emigrated to Japan) especially The Lady and the Monk (memoir). I was just re-familiarising myself with his bibliography and found his great quote : "for more and more of us, home has really less to do with a piece of soil, than, you could say, a piece of soul".
I have remembered! Books about living abroad: A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville is a very good read. The story of a woman who travels to NSW with her (ghastly) husband and has to make a life in the brutal colony. Based, apparently on a true story. Who could miss Eight Months on Ghazza Street by the inimitable Hilary Mantel the book that got me started on reading everything she published from therein afterwards. My most enjoyable read so far inJanuary has been Pig Ignorant by Nicholas Fisk a funny and poignant memoir of a WW2 boyhood published by Slightly Foxed.
On the theme of living abroad I can recommend a rather reverse "abroad" story about Chinese immigrants living in London: Sour Sweet by Timothy Mo. It is funny and poignant and just as enjoyable as a re-read twenty years on. I woke up in the middle of the night with another idea but it's gone.......I'll post if I ever remember!
Thanks for all your recommendations! I enjoyed 'The Country of Others' by Leila Slimani recently. It's about a French woman who marries a Moroccan soldier after WW2 and they go to live together in Morocco. It's loosely based on Slimani's own family history
I was so sorry to miss the Live but am catching up now.
Some years ago I went to the launch of several republished books by the Devon photographer James Ravilious, which had become very scarce, and had a wonderful conversation with the original founder of Eland who had funded the Ravilious project. I’d been a huge fan of the books for many years so it was a real treat. I love Dervla Murphy’s books and also Jonathan Raban and how much I have loved The Ginger Tree. These editions are such things of beauty and that matters with books these days.
On the subject of Living Abroad, several recent reads had taken me to Berlin (The Boys in the Boat by Daniel J. Brown, Grand Hotel by Vicki Baum and The Oppermans by Lion Feuchtwanger) so I picked up a copy of The Undercurrents: A Story of Berlin by Kirsty Bell (Fitzcarraldo) which is a memoir combined with biography and all the cultural and literary connections she discovers to the house and area of Berlin where she lives.
Aren’t armchair travels such a joy at any time, but especially in January.
It's obviously a Spanish film about Spanish people but Almodovar's Parallel Mothers is on iplayer and is really good about families and tragic history plus featuring a delicious looking tortilla
I'm conflating travelling and living abroad. One sounds more like fun that the other, but maybe the difference in experience is more connected to who you are rather than the reason for your visit. Generally men in books have a nice time whereas for women it is exhausting. Jeff in Geoff Dyer's "Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi", Robert Byron on the Road to Oxiana and Laurie Lee in "As I walked out" all pass through foreign lands like they belong everywhere. Others that spring to mind, who have a harder time, are Villette and Isabel Archer in The Portrait of a Lady.
But even when it's tough, no one seems to regret it. I kind of envy them, while giving myself tempering advice meant to reduce compulsion to move or go on holiday ("Seeing something new in the world is just about how you look at it", "Wherever you go, there you are"). Maybe these should be challenged.
I haven't read it for many years, so my view may have changed a bit, but I remember Out of Africa by Karen Blixen as being wonderful - triumphs and disasters farming in Kenya in the v early colonial years
Barnaby - In The Ginger Tree, Mary Mackenzie leaves Scotland for Peking, and then settles in Japan for the best part of half a century. This has inspired today’s theme of LIVING ABROAD. I know Eland specialises in travel books, but are there any other books you publish that are about people trying to make a home for themselves in a foreign place?
One of my favorite books about living abroad is Anthony Doerr’s “Four Seasons in Rome.” It’s a delightful little book that captures the year he and his family lived in Rome.
I'm afraid I'm struggling to think of books about Living Abroad but I loved The Ginger Tree and I'm looking forward to my mum reading it as she and my dad lived in China in the early 1980s (my dad was a journalist with excellent Chinese and my mum had daily lessons). I definitely want to read more Eland books.
On the Far Eastern theme, I wanted to recommend Stephen Sondheim's Pacific Overtures at the Menier Chocolate Factory near London Bridge - it's about the opening of Japan in the 1850s and while quite a lot went over my head, it's very beautifully done.
It explores a young woman s coming of age in an expatriate community set against the backdrop of Idi Amins expulsion of the Asian community in 1972 and asks where people really belong.
hello all my recommendation is An Ordinary Youth by Walter Kempowski. Although first published in 1971 it's only recently been translated from german into English. Set in Rostock it's the story of the ordinary life of a family from 1938 to 1945 who go about the business of living with minimal apparent perception of the true nature of the society they're living in. It's not a easy read with some passages almost boring but that's deliberate to convery the 'banality of evil' apparently.
The other day I picked up The Eyes Around Me by Gavin Black, Oswald Wynd's pseudonym for his thrillers. Set amongst the wealthy set in Hong Kong in the early 60s it's completely right off for contemporary tastes but nevertheless entertaining.
Barnaby - The January 2024 pick for Emily’s Walking Book Club is The Ginger Tree by Oswald Wynd, published by Eland. I’m pleased to say that most of us loved it! I’m intrigued as to where it sits in your list of 129 books - is it especially popular?
So, Barnaby: Eland Books is dearly loved by many travellers and readers of travel-writing. For the walking book clubbers who aren’t familiar with you, could you tell us a little bit about what makes Eland so special?
I managed to get on to Hampstead Heath this morning to enjoy a sunny walk up to the top of Parliament Hill. Alfie loved it! He might be joining us on a walk soon - though thankfully is now conked out at my feet
Anyone who is joining this thread at a later date, please feel free to share your recommendations here on:
- Books or films about LIVING ABROAD
- Anything else you've enjoyed this January.
Thank you for sharing your tips!
On the "living abroad theme", I loved "The Idiot" by Elif Batuman! It follows the story of a young college student who's navigating growing up while living abroad. I especially loved the focus on language and culture, as a way of feeling connected to new people and places.
I'm looking forward to Friday's discussion thread.
Anything by Pico Iyer (Oxford-born to Indian parents, was raised in California and then emigrated to Japan) especially The Lady and the Monk (memoir). I was just re-familiarising myself with his bibliography and found his great quote : "for more and more of us, home has really less to do with a piece of soil, than, you could say, a piece of soul".
I have remembered! Books about living abroad: A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville is a very good read. The story of a woman who travels to NSW with her (ghastly) husband and has to make a life in the brutal colony. Based, apparently on a true story. Who could miss Eight Months on Ghazza Street by the inimitable Hilary Mantel the book that got me started on reading everything she published from therein afterwards. My most enjoyable read so far inJanuary has been Pig Ignorant by Nicholas Fisk a funny and poignant memoir of a WW2 boyhood published by Slightly Foxed.
On the theme of living abroad I can recommend a rather reverse "abroad" story about Chinese immigrants living in London: Sour Sweet by Timothy Mo. It is funny and poignant and just as enjoyable as a re-read twenty years on. I woke up in the middle of the night with another idea but it's gone.......I'll post if I ever remember!
Thanks for all your recommendations! I enjoyed 'The Country of Others' by Leila Slimani recently. It's about a French woman who marries a Moroccan soldier after WW2 and they go to live together in Morocco. It's loosely based on Slimani's own family history
I was so sorry to miss the Live but am catching up now.
Some years ago I went to the launch of several republished books by the Devon photographer James Ravilious, which had become very scarce, and had a wonderful conversation with the original founder of Eland who had funded the Ravilious project. I’d been a huge fan of the books for many years so it was a real treat. I love Dervla Murphy’s books and also Jonathan Raban and how much I have loved The Ginger Tree. These editions are such things of beauty and that matters with books these days.
On the subject of Living Abroad, several recent reads had taken me to Berlin (The Boys in the Boat by Daniel J. Brown, Grand Hotel by Vicki Baum and The Oppermans by Lion Feuchtwanger) so I picked up a copy of The Undercurrents: A Story of Berlin by Kirsty Bell (Fitzcarraldo) which is a memoir combined with biography and all the cultural and literary connections she discovers to the house and area of Berlin where she lives.
Aren’t armchair travels such a joy at any time, but especially in January.
A recommendation is MM Kaye’s “the far pavilions”- a glorious book (although rather long)
Thanks Emily (and Barnaby) I'm still at home with my horrible cold so this has been a great treat!
Thank you to:
Sarah, Claire, Caro, Pat, Michael, Steven, Colleen, and Julia
for taking part in the live discussion.
What a blast!
The winner of our wonderful Eland giveaway will be notified by email.
Everyone else - I'll be sticking around for a little bit
Barnaby - thank you so much for joining On Our Reading Radar and sharing your expertise with the group!
One other thought I had were two books that show the very south of Italy as feeling separate from the rest of it:
Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlo Levi
The Little Virtues by Natalia Ginzburg - her essay Winter in the Abruzzo.
Funny how you can live abroad while still be geographically so close to home...
Barnaby - one final question for you:
What's coming out from Eland in 2024? We're all excited!
Right, help, it's 2pm already!
Just read Absolutely and Forever by Rose Tremain. It at first seems very banal but, of course, being RT ends up being marvellous. Beautifully written.
It's obviously a Spanish film about Spanish people but Almodovar's Parallel Mothers is on iplayer and is really good about families and tragic history plus featuring a delicious looking tortilla
I hope you enjoy it
I'm conflating travelling and living abroad. One sounds more like fun that the other, but maybe the difference in experience is more connected to who you are rather than the reason for your visit. Generally men in books have a nice time whereas for women it is exhausting. Jeff in Geoff Dyer's "Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi", Robert Byron on the Road to Oxiana and Laurie Lee in "As I walked out" all pass through foreign lands like they belong everywhere. Others that spring to mind, who have a harder time, are Villette and Isabel Archer in The Portrait of a Lady.
But even when it's tough, no one seems to regret it. I kind of envy them, while giving myself tempering advice meant to reduce compulsion to move or go on holiday ("Seeing something new in the world is just about how you look at it", "Wherever you go, there you are"). Maybe these should be challenged.
I'd also love to share a few other things I've really enjoyed over the past month - not on the living abroad theme:
I haven't read it for many years, so my view may have changed a bit, but I remember Out of Africa by Karen Blixen as being wonderful - triumphs and disasters farming in Kenya in the v early colonial years
Barnaby - I’m intrigued to know as to whether you’ve experienced living abroad yourself? When and where?
I've been thinking of great books about living abroad and have come up with these:
Also, Barnaby - you publish a wonderful selection of classics, but are there any classics about LIVING ABROAD that you don’t publish but wish you did?
I loved The Ginger Tree and look forward to reading more Eland books. Thanks for sharing the fascinating background of Eland with us, Barnaby!
Barnaby - In The Ginger Tree, Mary Mackenzie leaves Scotland for Peking, and then settles in Japan for the best part of half a century. This has inspired today’s theme of LIVING ABROAD. I know Eland specialises in travel books, but are there any other books you publish that are about people trying to make a home for themselves in a foreign place?
I loved the Ginger Tree. So many books about expatriate life . Passage to India. Barbara Kingsolver Poisonwood Bible...all great books.
One of my favorite books about living abroad is Anthony Doerr’s “Four Seasons in Rome.” It’s a delightful little book that captures the year he and his family lived in Rome.
I'm afraid I'm struggling to think of books about Living Abroad but I loved The Ginger Tree and I'm looking forward to my mum reading it as she and my dad lived in China in the early 1980s (my dad was a journalist with excellent Chinese and my mum had daily lessons). I definitely want to read more Eland books.
On the Far Eastern theme, I wanted to recommend Stephen Sondheim's Pacific Overtures at the Menier Chocolate Factory near London Bridge - it's about the opening of Japan in the 1850s and while quite a lot went over my head, it's very beautifully done.
It explores a young woman s coming of age in an expatriate community set against the backdrop of Idi Amins expulsion of the Asian community in 1972 and asks where people really belong.
hello all my recommendation is An Ordinary Youth by Walter Kempowski. Although first published in 1971 it's only recently been translated from german into English. Set in Rostock it's the story of the ordinary life of a family from 1938 to 1945 who go about the business of living with minimal apparent perception of the true nature of the society they're living in. It's not a easy read with some passages almost boring but that's deliberate to convery the 'banality of evil' apparently.
The other day I picked up The Eyes Around Me by Gavin Black, Oswald Wynd's pseudonym for his thrillers. Set amongst the wealthy set in Hong Kong in the early 60s it's completely right off for contemporary tastes but nevertheless entertaining.
BTW if you haven't been watching Traitors do!
Barnaby - Are there other Eland books that make good accompaniments to The Ginger Tree?
This spurred me on to write my first novel Paradise and Pink Plastic Shoes by Pat Holden
I lived in Uganda,Malawi.Nigeria and Egypt in the 1960s and 70s and experienced the same sense of isolation and need toconform
Hi Barnaby I’d love to know your favorite Eland book
Barnaby - The January 2024 pick for Emily’s Walking Book Club is The Ginger Tree by Oswald Wynd, published by Eland. I’m pleased to say that most of us loved it! I’m intrigued as to where it sits in your list of 129 books - is it especially popular?
Hello. It’s Colleen, the American who lives in London and is currently in Singapore. Looking forward to today’s discussion!
So, Barnaby: Eland Books is dearly loved by many travellers and readers of travel-writing. For the walking book clubbers who aren’t familiar with you, could you tell us a little bit about what makes Eland so special?
I'll be asking Barnaby a few questions over the next half hour. Anyone else is welcome to chime in.
Hi Emily and Barnaby!
Barnaby - let me know when you're here!
I'm a few minutes early - if everyone could introduce themselves and say hi when and as they come along that'd be wonderful
I managed to get on to Hampstead Heath this morning to enjoy a sunny walk up to the top of Parliament Hill. Alfie loved it! He might be joining us on a walk soon - though thankfully is now conked out at my feet
Hello walking book clubbers / typing book clubbers - I'm here in a very sunny London.