The Europe Traveller Book Tag

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As we head into another year where foreign travel remains difficult, a tag inspired by travelling around Europe was a tempting concept. Thanks to JenJenReviews for the tag. I’ve been unable to find out who created the tag originally.

France - Your Favourite Love Story

As regular followers of the blog will be aware, I don’t read a lot of love stories, but I have to admit, the tale of love across the centuries in Outlander is compelling. Claire and Jamie’s devotion to each other is beautiful to read, and you can’t help but root for them to find a way to be together. 

Spain - A Colourful Cover

The First Woman by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi has a beautiful, bright cover, containing a coming of age story that encompasses feminism, war, and love. 

Italy - A Book Taking Place in Summer

I read The Trouble With Goats and Sheep a number of years ago, and yet the imagery of the searing hot summer in which a group of neighbours are investigated by two girls looking to get to the bottom of a disappearance is the lingering image. 

Greece - A Book With Mythology

Mythology retellings continue to be a popular genre, and Madeline Miller is often people’s first port of call. Her 2018 novel Circe gives us a view of famous Greek myths through the eyes of Circe.

Belgium - A Book With Politics

Dickens’ take on the French Revolution, A Tale of Two Cities is full of historic politics. 

Ireland - A Book With A Strong Friendship Group

A Little Life is an incredible, difficult book, but at its heart is a group of friends, all trying to find their way in the world. They argue and fall out, separate and come together, but they remain important in each other's lives.

The Netherlands - Flowers On The Cover

The Lesser Bohemians by Eimear McBride is a beautiful, intense novel dealing with early experiences of love and sex. Its narrative style is intimate and will wrap you in the story completely.

Germany - A Book Taking Place At Christmas

The festive season is a great time for cosy reads, but I often struggle to find a book that’s both cosy and satisfying. Christmas 2021 delivered with Midnight in Everwood, an enchanting, magical read that has a dark side. 

WWW Wednesday, 10th March 2021

 The WWW Wednesday book tag is hosted by Taking On a World of Words.

The three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you'll read next?

What are you currently reading?

I'm about half way through The Fellowship of the Ring and really enjoying it so far. It's a lot funnier than I was expecting, and the hobbits are such likeable characters. I'm enjoying the relative comfort of the opening before it gets darker further into the series. I also recently downloaded the Walk to Mordor app, and although my journey is taking a lot longer to walk than read, it's a nice little side entertainment. Wouldn't we all love to be on our way to Rivendell to see out the rest of lockdown?

What did you recently finish reading?

This week I finished reading On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous. It had been recommended to me as a brilliant non-fiction read so I was surprised to discover it is actually a novel, albeit one that draws on the lived experiences of the author. A reasonably short book, it really packed a punch. There were some deeply unsettling passages as well as moments of real tenderness. Characters were well developed and even if they didn't get a huge amount of space you got a real sense of where they were coming from and what deep impulses led them to the actions they were taking. There's violence and conflict within but also love and acceptance.

What do you think you'll read next?

It feels like a while since I've not known what the next few books I'll read are, the shelves of books left unread for years crying out for some attention. I'll either be picking up a non-fiction, probably in the shape How Was It For You? Women, Sex, Love and Power in the 1960s, or I'll finally start a book I've been intrigued by for the longest time, and that I picked up in a charity shop last year - Wide Sargasso Sea.