~
I was on my way to the beach, having slept poorly the night before due to the strong wind. . . . I felt confused, out of sorts, maybe I was unwell again, and in that moment of disoriented stillness, the only thing that moved was a small figure outlined in gold: it wasn't a body, a whirlwind of dust, or a flash of light, but a presence, and it ran past me down the steps and burrowed into the sand a little further on.
—From The Old Man by the Sea, a novel by Domenico Starnone, translated from the Italian by Oonagh Stransky (Europa Editions, 2025). Originally published as Il vecchio al mare by Giulio Einaudi Editore, Torino, Italy (2024).
We'd be traveling by night, and anything that might catch in torchlight had to be covered, including my own skin. The Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard was one difficulty, the Guardia Nacional on the Venezuelan side was another, but the worst problem was bandits. Bandits would steal the engine off the back of the boat and leave you out there to drift, or they would take the whole boat, and throw you in the sea. I also had a pillowcase to go over my head: the reflection of torchlight against things like eyeballs and teeth had been known to give people away.
—From Love Forms, a novel by Claire Adam (Hogarth, 2025). (I didn't realize initially that "Forms" is being used here as a verb. The title is from the end of a poem called "The Fortress" by Louise Glück.) After the opening section, I found this to be a slow, rhythmic book, very introspective. I also listened to the audiobook, narrated by Melanie La Barrie. One of my favorite sections of this book, both in print and audio, was the part about Auntie Pam (in Chapter 8, pp. 104-109 in the hardcover).
"I can't marry you." That's what my father told you on the first day of his affair with you. You were so surprised all you could say was, "Oh." My father went on, with what seemed to be genuine regret, that he had a wife and child.
—From Nails and Eyes, a short collection by Kaori Fujino, translated from the Japanese by Kendall Heitzman (Pushkin Press, 2023). The Japanese version was originally published in Tokyo by Shinchosa Publishing Co., Ltd., in 2013. The book includes the title story, excerpted above, which is about ninety pages long, and two additional short stories.
-You must position those [cards] so that you can observe them but I cannot
- OK
- You do not want me to know what you know
- I will be discreet with my knowledge
—From Strange Planet, a collection of comics by Nathan W. Pyle (Morrow Gift, an imprint of William Morrow/HarperCollins, 2019). There is also a follow-up, Stranger Planet (2020).
