Severance is great
― horseshoe, Friday, 7 January 2022 15:12 (two years ago) link
Milkman is not for everyone (some people seem really put off by the character names) but I really liked it.
― Chris L, Friday, 7 January 2022 15:30 (two years ago) link
I thought Who Killed My Father was devastating but I haven’t read anything else on the list. I liked Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss a lot.
― JoeStork, Friday, 7 January 2022 18:26 (two years ago) link
Oh, definitely voting Milkman. Really evocative of a time period and I identified a lot with the flat affect. With regard to Chris L's comment, I actually found the descriptive names to be much easier to follow than giving people normal names - you know exactly who's being talked about at any given time with "maybe-boyfriend" and "actual milkman", rather than having to remember who Mark or James or whoever was.
― emil.y, Friday, 7 January 2022 20:00 (two years ago) link
Uncharacteristically, I've actually read some of these. To wit: "Normal People", "My Year of Rest and Relaxation", and "Middle England". I also recently finished Sigrid Nunez's "The Friend", which is from this year but not listed. I enjoyed them all to varying degrees. Hard to pick one. Probably between "My Year of Rest and Relaxation" and "Normal People".
― o. nate, Friday, 7 January 2022 20:32 (two years ago) link
I enjoyed Normal People right enough but I think I'll chuck a vote to Melissa Harrison because she has a great book in her and it's not like Sally Rooney needs a boost.
― Vanishing Point (Chinaski), Friday, 7 January 2022 20:38 (two years ago) link
Which is to say, All Among the Barley is great but feels like it has been argued out of the ragged folk horror it could have been.
― Vanishing Point (Chinaski), Friday, 7 January 2022 20:40 (two years ago) link
It sort of passes over from that into psych horror, the epilogue puts it into poignant context. Ofc it is also a Brexit Novel in its own way, but without being remotely obnoxious about it
― imago, Friday, 7 January 2022 20:56 (two years ago) link
Moshfegh for me.
― Legalize Suburban Benches (Raymond Cummings), Friday, 7 January 2022 21:01 (two years ago) link
i recall liking french exit, the movie vers less so
― johnny crunch, Friday, 7 January 2022 21:02 (two years ago) link
Xp From what I've read the prologue/epilogue were suggestions that involved a complete rewrite? I could be misremembering.
― Vanishing Point (Chinaski), Friday, 7 January 2022 21:04 (two years ago) link
Of the four I’ve read, easily milkmanI wouldn’t have voted for it but I think daisy johnson’s everything under prob deserves to be here
― Nerd Ragequit (wins), Friday, 7 January 2022 21:22 (two years ago) link
I agree with every good and every bad thing said about Rooney above, and an artist should have a range, right? Incl. of quality, in some cases---that's what keeps people coming back to Nico, Dylan, Young. Normal People certainly has that, and I enjoyed it more than not, so voted for it (also yet another list where I've only read the one).
― dow, Saturday, 8 January 2022 01:36 (two years ago) link
Would liked to have known more about and from POV of some other characters, especially the leading guy's mother. Still other characters, mostly some of their friends and associates from Trinity on, were p. 1-D, like the bad boyfriend and the ho friend.
― dow, Saturday, 8 January 2022 02:41 (two years ago) link
Read quite a few of these and like them all. Circe is perhaps more easily read than some others, but also the one that's stuck with me the most, the world is so delicately and longingly described I want to dive into it forever.
― abcfsk, Saturday, 8 January 2022 10:23 (two years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Monday, 10 January 2022 00:01 (two years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Tuesday, 11 January 2022 00:01 (two years ago) link
Another three-way! Kind of/and yet not embarrassed to have voted Rooney (that's Rooney for you), but glad to have read y'all's takes on Milkman's affectless clarity and Circe's delicacy x longing, will read them too!
― dow, Tuesday, 11 January 2022 03:46 (two years ago) link
imago's post made Rooney winning a foregone conclusion imo
― Daniel_Rf, Tuesday, 11 January 2022 11:06 (two years ago) link
Not an outright win; I'll be merciful
― imago, Tuesday, 11 January 2022 11:08 (two years ago) link
Wherein We Elect Our Favourite Novels of 2019
― Daniel_Rf, Tuesday, 11 January 2022 14:16 (two years ago) link