“The Cypriot” Andreas Kuomi Feels very much like the home-straight now and, I must admit, my reading choices have lost all chronology. This is largely because I had been struggling with finding books and harboured hopes of finding something that really excited me. But I needn’t have worried because ‘The Cypriot’, while not a literary … Continue reading 25. Cyprus
Category: Coffee
24. Netherlands
“The Ten Thousand Things” Hans Konig; “The Evenings” Gerard Reve; “The Dinner” Herman Koch I found it hard to settle on a book for the Netherlands. There seemed to be quite a few out there, but whether it was tracking them down or finding one which caught my interest, this felt like more of a … Continue reading 24. Netherlands
10. Finland
"Unknown Soldiers" - Vaino Linna. Trans from Finnish by Liesl Yamaguchi. I don’t know how to start describing this book nor the gradual, building effect it compressed into a few hundred, unpoetic, pages. It is like every war film I have seen yet far more human, wordly and affecting. It tells the moribund story of … Continue reading 10. Finland
1. Austria
"The World of Yesterday", Stefan Zweig. Not being overly familiar with continental authors I had not heard of Stefan Zweig until I began researching books to read for Austria. His harrowing memoir, The World of Yesterday, seemed the ideal entry into a European reading list: charting the demise of old nineteenth century Vienna and the … Continue reading 1. Austria
The European Reader 