Almost by accident I read three books by Belgians in April, and one has every chance of being my book of the year. One was by a Walloon (well, a Walloon with a touch of Tyneside and Eire), one was Flemish, and one was half Walloon, half Flemish and synonymous with Paris.
The Misunfortunates, by Dimitri Verhulst, paints an affectionate picture of a disreputable family in Flanders. 8/10
My father was a socialist and went to great lengths to be recognized as such. For him, possessions were nothing more or less than extra dusting. You didn’t own them, they owned you. If a burst of unexpected thrift put us in danger of reaching the end of the month with a financial surplus, he hurriedly plundered the bank account and drank his entire pay packet to protect us from the temptations of capitalism.
My father always spoke of the inconveniences of our residence with pride – longing for an easy life was a clear sign of inadequate masculinity – and when we finally moved to Mere Street it was only to be even worse off.
He tells of a childhood surrounded by drunkards and layabouts, where violence was never far away, writing with a keen sense of the tensions inherent in romanticising lives few would choose.
You saw them giving us dubious looks when we made our traditional drunken return from a game of fives, or racing inside with fright when we kicked our cheating wives in the crotch or hurled items of furniture out to smash on the cobbles. But if someone had made a TV series about us they would have watched it with amusement.
I also read, Other People's Countries, by Patrick McGuiness, which I thought was really splendid - full review to follow 9/10
Night at the Crossroads, by Georges Simenon, trans Linda Asher Number Six in the series 6/10
Tenth of December, by George Saunders Came with a big reputation - clever, echoes of Vonnegut, but didn't quite work for me 6/10
The Sound of Things Falling, by Juan Gabriel Vásquez Gripping 9/10
Ostland, by David Thomas Another novel I probably expected too much from... 7/10
The Lieutenant, by Kate Grenville Enjoyed The Secret River, and had waited too long to read this 8/10
The Way by Swann's, by Marcel Proust, trans Lydia Davies A masterpiece, made better by a pitch perfect translation 9.5/10
The Hitman's Guide to Housecleaning, by Hallgrimur Halgason Clever, witty and engaging 7/10
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