Havana Street Scene

As I mentioned at the beginning of January, I typically read books in this first month of the year written by authors I have not read before. Well, last month’s total was eleven books:

• Maxim Osipov: Rock, Paper, Scissors and Other Stories (Russia)
• Dorothy Parker: “Men I’m Not Married To” (USA) – short story
• Llewelyn Powys: Earth Memories (Britain)
• George MacDonald: The Princess and Curdie (Scotland)
• Alejo Carpentier: Explosion in a Cathedral (Cuba)
• Olga Tokarczuk: House of Day, House of Night (Poland)
• Joseph Joubert: Notebooks of Joseph Joubert (France)
• Pedro Juan Gutiérrez: Dirty Havana Trilogy (Cuba)
• Fleur Jaeggy: Sweet Days of Discipline (Switzerland)
• Luis Vaz de Camoens: The Lusiads (Portugal)
• Leonardo Padura: Havana Red (Cuba)

Three of the books were by Cuban authors, and I enjoyed all three of them. Only three were originally published in English. Three of the authors were women, most particularly Olga Tokarczuk, whose House of Day, House of Night was by far the best book I read last month. Second best was Carpentier’s Explosion in a Cathedral, followed by Powys’s Earth Memories.

Were there any clunkers? I am pleased to say “No, not a one!”