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David Wroblewski – Familiaris

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David Wroblewski – FamiliarisFamiliaris by David Wroblewski
Published by Hachette UK on June 11, 2024
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 992
Goodreads

AN OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB SELECTION

'An epic novel... David takes us on an extraordinary journey that brilliantly interweaves history, philosophy, adventure, and mysticism to explore the meaning of love, friendship and living your life's true purpose' Oprah Winfrey

'A story-telling bonfire as enthralling in its pages as it is illuminating of our fragile and complicated humanity. Familiaris is as expansive and enlightening a saga as has ever been written' Tom Hanks

'Impossibly wise, impossibly ambitious, impossibly beautiful' Richard Russo

'An American tour de force' Colum McCann

Spring 1919, and John Sawtelle's imagination has got him into trouble...again. Now John and his newlywed wife, Mary, along with their two best friends and their three dogs, are setting off for Wisconsin's north woods, where they hope to make a fresh start - and to live a life of meaning, purpose, and adventure. But the place they are headed for is far stranger and more perilous than they realize, and it will take all their ingenuity, along with a few new friends - human, animal, and otherworldly - to realise their dreams.

By turns hilarious and heartbreaking, mysterious and enchanting, Familiaris takes readers on an unforgettable journey from the halls of a small-town automobile factory, through an epic midwestern firestorm and an ambitious WWII dog training program, examining the dynamics of love and friendship, the vexing nature of families, the universal desire to create something lasting and beautiful, and of course, the species-long partnership between Homo sapiens and Canis familiaris.

Asako Yuzuki – Butter

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Asako Yuzuki – ButterButter by Asako Yuzuki
Published by HarperCollins UK on February 29, 2024
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 464
Goodreads

WINNER OF WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024

THE NUMBER 2 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

A BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK

‘A full-fat, Michelin-starred treat’ THE SUNDAY TIMES

'Unputdownable, breathtakingly original' ERIN KELLY

'I have been glued to Asako Yuzuki's new novel Butter’ NIGEL SLATER

'Compelling, delightfully weird' PANDORA SYKES

The cult Japanese bestseller about a female gourmet cook and serial killer and the journalist intent on cracking her case, inspired by a true story, and translated by Polly Barton.

There are two things that I can simply not tolerate: feminists and margarine.

Gourmet cook Manako Kajii sits in Tokyo Detention Centre convicted of the serial murders of lonely businessmen, who she is said to have seduced with her delicious home cooking. The case has captured the nation’s imagination but Kajii refuses to speak with the press, entertaining no visitors. That is, until journalist Rika Machida writes a letter asking for her recipe for beef stew and Kajii can’t resist writing back.

Rika, the only woman in her news office, works late each night, rarely cooking more than ramen. As the visits unfold between her and the steely Kajii, they are closer to a masterclass in food than journalistic research. Rika hopes this gastronomic exchange will help her soften Kajii but it seems that she might be the one changing. With each meal she eats, something is awakening in her body, might she and Kaji have more in common than she once thought?

Inspired by the real case of the convicted con woman and serial killer, "The Konkatsu Killer", Asako Yuzuki’s Butter is a vivid, unsettling exploration of misogyny, obsession, romance and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan.

'Luscious ... I devoured this' IMOGEN CRIMP

'A salty morsel with one hell of a bite’ ALICE SLATER

‘Nothing short of ingenious’ INEWS

‘Ambitious and unsettling’ GUARDIAN

'It isn’t entirely clear whether to read the novel or devour it’ OBSERVER