By Jasmine Jones The anticipated new memoir from Prince Harry, is a complicated and explosive book. It paints a sad and unbelievably raw account of the experience of growing up inside one of the most famous families, and has broken all records upon release becoming the UKÔÇÖs best-selling memoir ever in just the first week of sales. From the impact of his motherÔÇÖs death, to … Continue reading Momentous or Mockery? Spare – Review
By Leah Hocking Although a rather bold departure from her previous two novels, ÔÇÿBeautiful World, Where Are YouÔÇÖ is still stamped with Sally RooneyÔÇÖs signature minimalist writing style and overarching theme – young adults struggling to make sense of the world. Her third novel features her largest cast of characters yet with four protagonists: Alice, a successful novelist; Felix, a warehouse worker; Eileen, a writer … Continue reading Book Review: Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
by Amy Green. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo explores the life of a bisexual actor in the golden age of Hollywood. Evelyn, an effortlessly seductive actor, finds herself using her assets to leverage herself out of poverty. Being thrust into stardom in the 1950s, she quickly finds herself a male suiter and fell hard. … Continue reading LGBTQ+ Faces in Literature: Evelyn Hugo
by Jess Macaulay. If you’re at all involved in the side of the book world where fantasy and romance exist or have found yourself on BookTok or even BookTube at some point, then it’s highly likely youÔÇÖve come across or at least heard of Sarah J Mass. A best-selling author with over 12 million copies of her books sold worldwide and translated into 37 languages, … Continue reading How to Start Reading Sarah J Maas
By Leah Hocking Sex, drugs, and rock and roll. ItÔÇÖs a phrase often used to describe the music scene in the 1970s, but it also aptly sums up the book Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. The novel tells the story of a fictional band who shot to fame in the late 1970s, releasing a best- selling album and embarking on a … Continue reading Why was Daisy Jones & The Six such a hit?
by Suraya Rumbold-Kazzuz Capricorn:┬á As a serious and independent person, Capricorns will often reach all of their goals and do everything they set out to do. These are some very admirable traits, but sometimes Capricorn you could do with some light-hearted fun. This is why the book┬áEverything I know about Love┬áby Dolly Alderton is great for you. The novel will feed your appetite for more … Continue reading Book Recommendations Based on Your Zodiac Sign
Jasmine Snow on Olive by Emma Gannon Olive is the debut novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author, Emma Gannon. Olive is about a woman of the same name, who is struggling to come to terms with the fact that she does not want children. As she does so, she reflects back on her University days which she spent with her three best friends and where they are today. Bea married young … Continue reading Quench’s Year in Books: 2020
By Suraya Kazzuz In light of the current political climate, it seems that Barack ObamaÔÇÖs newly published memoir, A Promised Land, couldnÔÇÖt have come at a better time. After a tumultuous four years following Obamas precedency, it is refreshing to reminisce or discover a time which was, if not necessarily better than the times we live in now, certainly more hopeful and less erratic. Barack ObamaÔÇÖs eloquent … Continue reading Review: A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Essex County by Jeff Lemire By Chahat Awasthi Sophisticated black-and-white graphic novelÔÇÖ set, the trilogy of Essex County is close to what is called a story prose. The intertwining collection of stories empathetically traces membersÔÇÖ life at various points in an isolated community. Set in a rural Canadian county, the novels have a striking characterization and will blow your mind in terms of clear-sightedness ÔÇô … Continue reading Graphic Novels to Read if YouÔÇÖve Never Read a Graphic Novel
Katie Waits on Friends to Lovers There are tropes we love, tropes we hate, those that are overused and others that we wish were appreciated more. There are many romantic tropes that frequently appear in literature, including the friends-to-lovers trope. Although often very unrealistic, with the power to ruin dating expectations, friends-to-lovers is, if well-written, a wonderful trope. Usually, I donÔÇÖt seek out romance novels, … Continue reading Our Favourite Literary Tropes
Following the recent success of NetflixÔÇÖs, The Haunting of Hill House, this spooky season is the perfect time to discover some of Shirley JacksonÔÇÖs scariest works: Rhian Lock on The Lottery (1948) First published in The New Yorker in 1948, The Lottery received more backlash than any piece ever published by the magazine, with many cancelling subscriptions and boycotting Jackson. I first read JacksonÔÇÖs short story in my first year as an English … Continue reading Shirley Jackson’s Scariest
Words by Bonnie Wileman Most of us had our introduction to Greek mythology as kids, whether singing along to DisneyÔÇÖs Hercules or immersing ourselves in the Percy Jackson series. The Greek gods have become household names despite the fact we no longer pray to them or leave them offerings in the form of a sacrificed goat, and although our childhood favourites revived this culture, itÔÇÖs … Continue reading Classic VS Retelling
Hazel Ravu on Cookie When thinking about the long-term ramifications derived from overreading Jacqueline Wilson novels during my adolescence, I automatically think of Cookie as the book which left the most scars. Yes, the tale does encompass the seriousness of domestic abuse, with the main character and her mother as victims of their father and husbandÔÇÖs aggression. This perhaps can be agreed as a challenging … Continue reading The 5 Jacqueline Wilson Books that Scarred Us for Life
Maya Deane on Lord of the Flies To many students, GoldingÔÇÖs Lord of the Flies was one of those books that you were forced to study when you were around 15 years old. Whilst covering themes such as human nature, religion and social hierarchy, the book mostly serves as a fantastic introduction to how society fails to provide young men with skills such as empathy … Continue reading What’s the Big Deal? 5 Classic Novels that Deserve Their Hype
By Sahina Sherchan. ÔÇ£Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.ÔÇØ This is not an easy read. Toni MorrisonÔÇÖs Beloved is about remembrance, a visit from the past disrupting the easy ignorance. We can no longer brush off conversations about slavery and the inequality that still persists in our society. This is a book in dedication to the ÔÇ£sixty million … Continue reading Review: Beloved by Toni Morrison
by Nicole Rees-Williams. Dust off your mocking-jay pins and practise your whistling, because Suzanne Collins is back with a brand-new prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. If, like me, you were thrilled to learn of a new chapter in the Hunger Games story you probably had a few expectations about what this book was going to be. Will this … Continue reading Review: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
By Will Humphrey Ôÿà Ôÿà Ôÿà Ôÿà If you are a fan of Ronan BennettÔÇÖs gritty, unpredictable crime thriller Toy Boy, then I would highly recommend Jameel SandhamÔÇÖs crime novel Impeccable. SandhamÔÇÖs narrative follows a similar road to BennettÔÇÖs exploring the dark underworld of drug dealing ÔÇô thriving on the highs and trying to survive in a world of enemies. The story draws on the … Continue reading Book Review: Impeccable
Ôÿà Ôÿà Ôÿà Mozart in Paris is a compelling graphic novel by French creator Frantz Duchazeau, recounting MozartÔÇÖs adventures in Paris. The 22-year-old Austrian composer notoriously sought refuge in the French capital after being disappointed by the scarce recognition he was getting in his hometown of Salzburg. Mozart travels to Paris with a bag full of hopes and dreams, which, however, are quickly shattered by … Continue reading Graphic Novel Review: Mozart in Paris
By Vittoria Zerbini Ôÿà Ôÿà Ôÿà Isadora, written by Julie Birmant and illustrated by Cl├®ment Oubrerie, is a graphic novel depicting the life and scandals of the ÔÇÿMother of Modern DanceÔÇÖ Isadora Duncan (published by SelfMadeHero, paperback, 144 pages). Isadora was born in America and by the age of 22 she became an acclaimed dancer throughout Europe. Her fame was due to the visceral, free-flowing … Continue reading Graphic Novel Review: Isadora
ÔÿàÔÿàÔÿàÔÿàÔÿå by Lauren Daly The Corbyn craze is only getting crazier! It’s Corbyn but as you’ve never seen him before, in true superhero style in ÔÇÿthe Corbyn comic bookÔÇÖ. Granted he’s not your typical superhero; heÔÇÖs got a bit of a dad bod, he makes jam in his spare time and I wouldn’t really like to think of him wearing his pants over his trousers … Continue reading Review: Corbyn Corbyn HeÔÇÖs Our Man, Can He Save Us? Jezz He Can!
