My Audiobook Adventures #7 and book awards!

Audible has sent my listening statistics for the first half of the year! I’m going to give out some awards of my own below to certain books since I’m too ill to review each book properly. However, I have been able to give mini reviews for some of them!

NB: I’m only able to listen to audiobooks; I’m unable to read physical books or ebooks because of my neck (see About Me for more details).

MY BOOK AWARDS:

Most important book to which I’ve listened:

– ‘The Lasting Harm’ by Lucia Osborne-Crowley:

Every adult should read this book. Although it is both harrowing and healing, it should be essential reading for everyone. The journalist and writer Lucia Osborne-Crowley tells the accounts of several of the victims of Epstein and Maxwell.

At the end, the book widens to detail the beginnings of how the law and trials need to change in order for the courts to start to issue a modicum of justice for survivors of all sorts of abuse and how not to keep re-traumatising them. Each account illustrates the wider issues, how public consciousness needs to increase of:
• the decades of lasting harms that childhood abuse causes
• how grooming works
• the science behind traumatic memory (and how it differs from normal memory) and the need for proper expert witnesses

Everyone needs to be equipped with the knowledge in this book, especially anyone who might ever serve in a jury. They need to know that the things that are often used to cast doubt and aspersions on the credibility of victims, their memories and their characters are actually, according to the neuroscience, the very things that make their testimonies more credible.

I can’t underscore enough how important this book is and the courage of both the journalist who wrote it and the women who entrusted her with their stories. It’s a dangerous book to write and is an exacting indictment of many institutions and systems in our society. It also underlines how the wealthy and powerful are using defamation laws to crush and silence women. The journalist wasn’t even allowed to publish many stories and names of abusers due to the publishing company’s fear of defamation law suits, even though it is all true. She is not going to rest until it is all able to be brought to light. I have nothing but admiration for her.

This book obviously comes with a trigger warning and it’s intense but it’s sensitively written and measured; you will be riveted and filled with potent anger both at what was done to these women and how they were then treated in court. Anger that will hopefully fuel change.

Two series of books that have been personally joyful:

– ‘The Song of the Lioness’ quartet and ‘The Protector of the Small’ quartet, both by Tamora Pierce:

I first read these books when I was 12-14 years old. They were a very big deal to me and meant so much. I even remember exactly where I was in Lowestoft library when I first found the books. They are finally FINALLY available as audiobooks in the UK and it’s been a joy, but also emotional to read (listen to) them for the first time since I was a mid teen.

Along with a few other books, these were the start of my great love of the fantasy genre. I revelled in identifying so strongly with many aspects of the female main characters in both series, who were unlike anyone I had come across in fiction at that point in my life.

As a young teen, ‘The Song of the Lioness’ quartet was my favourite and listening to it as an adult, it did hold up well and brought back so many memories and joy. But it was actually the second quartet ‘The Protector of the Small’ that stood out to me as an adult as the better story, with more nuance to the characters and writing. Alanna will still always hold a special place in my heart though.

Engaging and compelling memoirs:

– ‘A Very Private School’ by Charles Spencer:
important to bring these things into the light

– ‘Rebel Rising’ by Rebel Wilson:
loved learning about life in Australia when she was young.

– ‘Making It So’ by Patrick Stewart:
fascinating. I actually found the insights into what life was like in Yorkshire when Patrick was young to be more interesting than the ‘becoming famous’ parts!

– ‘Back Story’ by David Mitchell:
a surprisingly unguarded and honest (as well as amusing) memoir

Five star adult fiction that I thoroughly enjoyed:

– ‘The Women’ by Kristin Hannah:
on paper, this is something I wouldn’t usually listen to because it contains three areas that I avoid because I don’t tend to enjoy them: historical fiction, the armed forces, and medical personnel. But this book was the exception to the rule and I loved it. Never boring, great characters and plot, moving, well-written and accurate to the trauma experience. The story is about someone who goes to the war in Vietnam as a nurse.

– ‘The Escape Room’ by L.D. Smithson:
excellent, very entertaining

– ‘The Close’ by Jane Casey:
my favourite book in the ‘Maeve Kerrigan’ detective series so far

Good in some parts but a bit of a slow slog in others:

– ‘The Spear Cuts Through Water’ by Simon Jimenez

– ‘Wool’ by Hugh Howey

– ‘The Atlas Complex’ by Olivie Blake

Great Young Adult sci-fi and fantasy stories:

– ‘Defiant’ by Brandon Sanderson:
the final book of a truly awesome sci-fi series. Just as great for adults as Young Adults. I highly recommend the ‘Skyward’ series.

– ‘SkyWake Endgame’ by Jamie Russell:
Satisfying final book to a fun sci-fi trilogy

– ‘The Memory Thieves’ by Dhonielle Clayton:
an exciting sequel in this magical middle grade fantasy series. Sooooo much better with the new narrator.

– ‘The Jasad Heir’ by Sara Hashem:
a tiny bit too heavy on the romance for me but a decent fantasy book all the same. Very enjoyable. Looking forward to the next in the series.

A rather ridiculous, very “teen”, fantasy/romance series with an annoying main character but an easy listen and it wasn’t boring:

– ‘Once Upon a Broken Heart’ by Stephanie Garber:
well, I listened to all three of them so that must mean something?!

All sorts of problematic:

– ‘Kushiel’s Dart’ by Jacqueline Carey:
Very problematic in many ways. Will not be continuing with this series.

What have you been reading lately? Let me know in the comments. I love to hear from you. Have you got any recommendations for me? Thanks to the gifting from a very generous friend of a friend, I have 12 Audible credits to use up!! I love dystopian, fantasy, sci-fi, detective, apocalyptic and memoir; if you have any recommendations for any of those genres (or any other really good books in other genres) please leave a comment. I prefer stories with lots of plot (I enjoy well-written characters as well of course but without good plotting to keep my mind engaged, I get too bored). I also prefer books where you get into a character’s thoughts and feelings, otherwise I feel too detached from the book.

The last three and a half months have been a horrific nightmare, as you will know if you’ve been following my social media. Dealing with what is happening is taking up every moment of our time and non-existent energy. We hope to get back to the even-more-urgent fundraising soon but we would always appreciate any help in that department, if you would like to run your own fundraiser to help raise money towards my essential surgery (gofundme.com/savejenny). Thanks.

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Links to my previous Audiobook Adventures:

My Audiobook Adventures #1
My Audiobook Adventures #2
My favourite books (this is essentially My Audiobook Adventures #2.5!)
My Audiobook Adventures #3
My Audiobook Adventures #4
My Audiobook Adventures #5
My Audiobook Adventures #6