A book for every conceivable taste

STEVEN KRAWITZ

Business Books:

Alibaba: The House that Jack Ma Built, by Duncan Clark (ECCO) 

Alibaba, China’s answer to Amazon, has more than 334 million active buyers. That is more than the population of America. In this book Clark weaves together the worlds of business, technology, entrepreneurship and rising China. He draws on his personal knowledge of Jack Ma who he has known since 1999. The business personality of the decade in the Business Book of the Year.

Current Affairs:

A Rage for Order by Robert F Worth (Picador)

The New York Times Middle East correspondent tracks the tormented legacy of the “Arab Spring” by introducing a riveting cast of characters, including two Syrian women whose friendship turns into enmity when their sects go to war and two 80-something statesmen who save Tunisia from disintegration.  An original analysis of how the dreams of an Arab world turned into a nightmare, this book is a must-read for anyone who follows the wider Middle East happenings.

Psychology:

Angela Duckworth’s TED talk on Grit has been viewed more than 8 million times.  Now in her book Grit (Vermilion), she elaborates on how the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent but a special blend of passion, persistence, and grit. Duckworth also explains how grit is something that can be learned. A must-read book for anyone striving to succeed.

Neapolitan Books:

In her bestselling Neapolitan quartet, Elena Ferrante creates a modern masterpiece of literature, following two women – Elena and Lila – across decades in Naples.  The four books (My Brilliant Friend; The Story of a New Name; Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay; and The Story of the Lost Child) are now locally available.  Also look out for Only in Naples (Virago) – a memoir by Katherine Wilson who arrived in Naples as a young intern at the American Consulate, married an Italian and was initiated into Italian culture through the cuisine by her mother in-law.

Thrillers:

The Trap by Melanie Roabe (Mantle) tells the story of Linda Conran, a reclusive bestselling author, whose sister was murdered. Her killer was never caught, but Linda saw him, and 12 years later, Linda sees him again, on TV.  He is a well-known reporter. Linda sets the only trap she can think of: writing a crime thriller called Blood Sisters and granting her first media interviews to the one person who knows more about the case than she does.

Literary fiction:

The Woman Next Door (Chatto and Windus) by Johannesburger Yewande Omotoso is set in a Cape Town gated community and follows the “hateship” between two cantankerous octogenarians, one white and one black.  Comedic in nature, this novel deals with so many real contemporary issues and sparkles with Omotosa’s rare talent to create rich characters and bring them to life.  A compulsory book for all book clubs.

The Sellout by Paul Beatty (Oneworld) is a biting American satire about race, a timely topic.  When a black town is removed from the map to save California from embarrassment, some of the black residents in a bid for recognition, reintroduce slavery and segregate the local high school, setting off a journey that challenges the sacred tenets of the US constitution.

In Mend the Living (MacLehose), French prize-winning author Maylis de Kerangal follows one heart over a 24-hour period.  Simon Limbeau’s heart starts the day beating as he sleeps, but today it will encounter a very different passage and end in a different body.  Devastating and mesmeric, this is a story of the intertwined destinies of a young surfer, Simon and a chronically ill older woman: a majestic testament to the agony of grief, the joy of life and the unfathomable intricacies of the human heart. 

Sci-fi:

In Sylvain Neuvel’s Sleeping Giants (Michail Joseph), giant parts of what can only be an alien robot are found around the world and assembled in secret by a shadowy US government body. The reaction of other nations, shifts in the balance of international power, personal agendas and politics all make this a thrilling and compelling read.