Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico (tr. Sophie Hughes): short novel about a young ex-pat couple searching for the perfect life. I particularly like the way it embodies its own theme, skating over the surface of what it depicts. Book 2/13 read from #InternationalBooker2025.

My latest subscriber copy from @galleybeggars.bsky.social. This book is a real gem.

This novel invigorated me: a protagonist living in the shadow of his famous namesake, with the possibility of other paths through life hovering just out of reach.

I enjoyed An Untouched House by Willem Frederik Hermans (tr. David Colmer): a microcosm of wartime horror beneath its own mask of civility. It also had the balance of specific and abstract that I found missing from Prophet Song.

...and now I'm enjoying Catherine Chidgey's tale of a student, a dazzling teacher, and possibly-misplaced loyalty.

Latest reading: Weasels in the Attic by Hiroko Oyamada (tr. David Boyd). I love how these stories subtly illustrate the undercurrents in their characters' relationships.

Excited to have a copy of This Plague of Souls, the forthcoming novel by Mike McCormack. Published by Canongate in October.

Reading my first Hrabal for Czech Lit Month...