Good morning!

It's the last Friday before Christmas! And on Fem Fri, that means one thing, which is, it's time for my books of the year. I hope you enjoy reading both my round up and the books I am recommending. It's sort of the time of the year when people come to you ridden with angst and say "I just don't know what to get you this year, what are you into right now"; you can choose any one of the books from this list to tell them, and be sure of a great read.

Pond – Claire-Louise Bennett

There's something particularly delightful about reading a book that feels like the author is talking to you directly, and I like it even more when that author is… just… consistently… a bit demented. You are very pleased to be reading her rather than, for example, cornered by her at a party and steering her along the fine line between harangue and gentle ribbing.

Here's an example of Claire-Louise Bennett's writing in Pond, this is the page that I send to people to convince them that they should read it as well:

It's all like that! And sometimes better! This is my book of the year, no question. I knew it was my book of the year when I read it in July, which as a friend and subscriber noted at the time is a pretty bold claim to make with the year only really halfway through. Definitely buy or ask for this book. You will love it.

A Natural – Ross Raisin

It's worth noting that I read this during the intersection of Pride month and the World Cup, so at a time in my life when I was extremely susceptible to the themes of this book. And you might be reading this and thinking, I couldn't get into a book about football. But I really think you can! Ross Raisin's A Natural is not just about sport, it is also about being good at things, and wanting things, and desire, and it's wonderful to read from start to finish. While I was reading this book, I was cross whenever I had to stop reading it – for example, because I had arrived at work, or because we have to eat and sometimes I am responsible for cooking.

The First Wife – Paulina Chiziane

Speaking of demented narrators. If that is your sort of thing I strongly recommend Paulina Chiziane's The First Wife. There are lots of books out there about African polygamy but no others, that I have read, really get torn in with the bonkers passive-aggressive glee of Chiziane's narrator. I don't want to spoil a second of the plot, just let this one suck you into its mad little world.

Mend The Living – Maylis de Kerangal

This is a heck of a book and I don't recommend you undertake it if you are feeling a bit delicate. It's about – and it sounds too simple when I put it this way – it's about the transplant of a single heart. But it's also a pan through the lives that revolve around this heart, and even as I write this I can feel the tears gathering behind my eyes because it really is quite something. It's a beautiful book, wears its research lightly and has some very thoughtful translators notes. So, so good.

The Party – Elizabeth Day

Here is my favourite ur-genre of book; it's rich people behaving terribly towards one another. And it spans so many other genres – it fits just as well in the lit fic section as in the thriller/murder section. Point being, if you are writing a novel right now, or have an idea ready to go in 2019, here are some settings that will guarantee my rapt interest:

1. Large country house (Warwickshire/elsewhere)
2. Flat in Mayfair
3. Flat in Marylebone (boho/slumming it)
4. The French Riviera
5. Oxford

I notice there is no non-fiction on this list, that's because I didn't read a lot of non-fiction this year. If that's the only sort of book you like, though, how about Jennifer Ackerman's The Genius of Birds, which I have been recommending very freely. If you want to read amazing anecdotes about the cleverness of crows and sparrows, this is the book for you. It's also interesting on models of intelligence in general – what qualities there are that we don't read as "clever" but which are useful for specific circumstances. Lots to think about!

Have a great Christmas, everyone. 🎄🎄🎄 If you don't celebrate Christmas I hope you enjoy having a public holiday or two (and lots of time, dare I say, to read Claire-Louise Bennett's Pond) 🌝🌝🌝

A xx.