New Leaf Nominations for August 2019 • First Things First: Debuts

[gmw]

I was flicking through my list of "authors of interest" (generally come from reading short fiction collections and discovering authors whose work I find interesting), and came across: Benjanun Sriduangkaew, and found that her first novel Scale-Bright seemed like a good match (an award winning debut novel) and the tide this month of looking outside Anglophone works.

But a couple of odd things I found out (while waiting to see if a client is going to spoil my unusually quiet day). First, Wikipedia says ... well, I'll let you read it for yourself, see here under the "Online Activity" heading. This controversy is also mentioned in various Goodreads reviews. Had anyone here heard of this before?

I also noted that Wikipedia said:

Sriduangkaew has said in an interview that she was born in Pattani Province in southern Thailand. After attending university in Bangkok, she worked in Manila, Jakarta and Hong Kong. Other sources dispute this, claiming that she was born in California.

I must say that my enthusiasm for trying this author has waned considerably.

[Bookpossum]

I must say none of this does anything for me! That said, just because it's on the internet doesn't mean it's true of course.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by gmw

Without meaning to sway you in any way (well, maybe a little) as interesting as Ben Pastor sounds, the books are very expensive on Kobo AU ($17.57), whereas Boris Akunin's books are merely normally expensive ($12.99).

I was going to check prices before I made my decision, so you've made that call for me! Also a factor is that while I know Akunin is widely available on OverDrive, I don't think Pastor is. There are also audiobooks of the Fandorin novels, for those who prefer that (I'm currently listening to a later one while I swim.) For anyone who's interested in the Pastor books, they occasionally go on sale at Kindle US for $1.99, but obviously I can't count on a timely sale and it wouldn't work for the ROW anyway.

Originally Posted by gmw

I must say that my enthusiasm for trying this author has waned considerably.

The allegations seem to be proved and that would be it for me, also. I think it's one of the issues of our times: is a work good enough to justify supporting a person of reprehensible character, ideas or actions? Certainly not in this case!

[issybird]

As indicated above, I'm nominating The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin, the first in the Erast Fandorin chronology. I've been reading this series over time with enjoyment. There's much of interest in terms of Russian political and social history and part of the fun is that each novel is written in a different crime novel style. The translation is highly regarded and I personally enjoy the narration of the books, also.

From Amazon:

Moscow, May 1876: What would cause a talented young student from a wealthy family to shoot himself in front of a promenading public in the Alexander Gardens? Decadence and boredom, most likely, is what the commander of the Criminal Investigation Division of the Moscow Police thinks, but still he finds it curious enough to send the newest member of the division, Erast Fandorin, a young man of irresistible charm, to the Alexander Gardens precinct for more information.

Fandorin is not satisfied with the conclusion that this is an open-and-shut case, nor with the preliminary detective work the precinct has done—and for good reason: The bizarre and tragic suicide is soon connected to a clear case of murder, witnessed firsthand by Fandorin. There are many unresolved questions. Why, for instance, have both victims left their fortunes to an orphanage run by the English Lady Astair? And who is the beautiful “A.B.,” whose signed photograph is found in the apparent suicide’s apartment? Relying on his keen intuition, the eager sleuth plunges into an investigation that leads him across Europe, landing him at the deadly center of a terrorist conspiracy of worldwide proportions.

US$12.99 | CA$13.99 | AU$12.99 | UK£8.51 | OverDrive | Audible

290 pp.

[Bookpossum]

Sounds great! I second The Winter Queen.

[Catlady]

I find this a frustrating category; it's been difficult to find first books without having a specific author in mind, and often the first book turns out to be one that isn't anything special.

Going against the trend, I'm nominating a thoroughly American book by an American author: The Road Through the Wall (1948) by Shirley Jackson.

The compelling novel that began Shirley Jackson's legendary career

Pepper Street is a really nice, safe California neighborhood. The houses are tidy and the lawns are neatly mowed. Of course, the country club is close by, and lots of pleasant folks live there. The only problem is they knocked down the wall at the end of the street to make way for a road to a new housing development. Now, that’s not good—it’s just not good at all. Satirically exploring what happens when a smug suburban neighborhood is breached by awful, unavoidable truths, The Road Through the Wall is the tale that launched Shirley Jackson’s heralded career.

In Pepper Street, an attractive suburban neighbourhood filled with bullies and egotistical bigots, the feelings of the inhabitants are shallow and selfish: what can a neighbour gain from another neighbour, what may be won from a friend? One child stands alone in her goodness: little Caroline Desmond, kind, sweet and gentle, and the pride of her family. But the malice and self-absorption of the people of Pepper Street lead to a terrible event that will destroy the community of which they are so proud. Exposing the murderous cruelty of children, and the blindness and selfishness of adults, Shirley Jackson reveals the ugly truth behind a 'perfect' world.

Amazon US, $11.99

Kobo US, $11.99
Kobo Canada, CDN $13.99
Kobo Australia, AU $14.99
Kobo New Zealand, NZ $20.34
Kobo UK, £2.99

Can be borrowed through Overdrive. No audiobook.

[issybird]

I'll second The Road Through the Wall.

[Catlady]

My idea of diversity is nominating a British author's first book: Barbara Pym's Some Tame Gazelle (1950).

A novel of two sisters in postwar England that lets you “step into the Jane Austen–like lives of Harriet and Belinda Bede” (The Christian Science Monitor).

Belinda and Harriet Bede live together in a small English village. Shy, sensible Belinda has been secretly in love with Henry Hoccleve—the poetry-spouting, married archdeacon of their church—for thirty years. Belinda’s much more confident, forthright younger sister Harriet, meanwhile, is ardently pursued by Count Ricardo Bianco. Although she has turned down every marriageable man who proposes, Harriet still welcomes any new curate with dinner parties and flirtatious conversation. And one of the newest arrivals, the reverend Edgar Donne, has everyone talking.

A warm, affectionate depiction of a postwar English village, Some Tame Gazelle perfectly captures the quotidian details that make up everyday life. With its vibrant supporting cast, it’s also a poignant story of unrequited love.

It was odd that Harriet should always have been so fond of curates. They were so immature and always made the same kind of conversation. Now the Archdeacon was altogether different . . . '

Together yet alone, the Misses Bede occupy the central crossroads of parish life. Harriet, plump, elegant and jolly, likes nothing better than to make a fuss of new curates, secure in the knowledge that elderly Italian Count Ricardo Bianco will propose to her yet again this year. Belinda, meanwhile has harboured sober feelings of devotion towards Archdeacon Hochleve for thirty years.

Then into their quiet, comfortable lives comes a famous librarian, Nathaniel Mold, and a bishop from Africa, Theodore Grote - who each take to calling on the sisters for rather more unsettling reasons.

Amazon US, $9.99

Kobo US, $14.39
Kobo Australia, AU $12.99
Kobo New Zealand, NZ $16.99
Kobo UK, £3.99

Only the audiobook is available in Canada. No audiobook in U.S. Can be borrowed through Overdrive, Freading, and Scribd.

[Victoria]

Originally Posted by gmw

First, Wikipedia says ... well, I'll let you read it for yourself, see here under the "Online Activity" heading.......I must say that my enthusiasm for trying this author has waned considerably.

Wow - that’s startling.

Originally Posted by issybird

The allegations seem to be proved and that would be it for me, also. I think it's one of the issues of our times: is a work good enough to justify supporting a person of reprehensible character, ideas or actions? Certainly not in this case!

I agree.

[CRussel]

Yeah, I'll pass. I'm reasonably willing to make consideration for the time and context, but not for reprehensible authors.

[issybird]

I'd happily read a Barbara Pym, but I'm on the sidelines for the duration.

[Bookpossum]

I shall second Some Tame Gazelle, Barbara Pym is someone I haven't read and would like to do so.

[gmw]

I second A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

[gmw]

I will third The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin

[gmw]

In my current mood nothing else nominated so far really does it for me, so I'm going to nominate a recent read that I thought was both different (for me) and very good for a debut novel. And while it is written by a US author, she appears to be well qualified to have written this book set in medieval Russia using Russian mythology:

I nominate The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden.

Beware the evil in the woods. . .

In a village at the edge of the wilderness of northern Russia, where the winds blow cold and the snow falls many months of the year, an elderly servant tells stories of sorcery, folklore and the Winter King to the children of the family, tales of old magic frowned upon by the church.

But for the young, wild Vasya these are far more than just stories. She alone can see the house spirits that guard her home, and sense the growing forces of dark magic in the woods. . .

323 Pages.

Ostensibly the first of a trilogy, this first book finishes well enough to be read on its own.

Goodreads

Kobo AU $12.99, Kobo US $11.99, Kobo CA $13.99, Kobo UK must be on special at the moment I think at only £1.99