Clinton Moodley shares 7 books that should be on your holiday reading list this summer
Supper Club by Lara Williams
Acclaimed by critics, Supper Club is about a group of women who dine in risqué locations. According to Penguin Random House, the ladies invent the “Supper Club, a transgressive and joyous collective of women who gather to celebrate, rather than admonish, their hunger. They gather after dark and feast until they are sick; they break into private buildings and leave carnage in their wake; they embrace their changing bodies; they stop apologising.”
Available on Loot.co.za for R213.
Christmas Invitation by Trisha Ashley
Trisha Ashley, a Sunday Times bestselling author, does not disappoint with her new festive read called Christmas Invitation. It revolves around Meg, who is invited to spend the run-up to Christmas in the snowy countryside, rather than dreary London.
But, things take a turn for the worst when she spots Lex, a man who she wants to get far away from.
The book has been described as “fabulously funny, intelligent and heart-warming’ and “the feel-good Christmas novel of the year” by critics.
Available on Loot.co.za for R169.
Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse by Charlie Mackesy
Hailed as a “book of hope for uncertain times”, Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse takes you into the world of four unlikely friends and their important life lessons. Personality Richard Curtis called it “A wonderful work of art and a wonderful window into the human heart.”
Available on Loot.co.za for R286.
Grand Union by Zadie Smith
If you are into short stories, this book makes for a great holiday read. The book contains 11 new stories with some of her best-loved pieces from the New Yorker and other publications. Penguin Random House describes the book like a “dizzyingly rich and varied collection of fiction that moves across genres and perspectives.”
Available on Loot.co.za for R316.
Shopaholic Christmas by Sophie Kinsella
Sophie Kinsella’s books make for exceptional reading, and her latest offering Shopaholic Christmas does not disappoint. The SundayTimes bestseller revolves around Becky Brandon who adores Christmas. She loves Christmas so much that she starts looking at online bargain shopping sites. Her rationalisation: “If you spend enough, you even get free delivery. Sorted!”
Available from Loot.co.za at R210.
If you want to make God Laugh by Bianca Marais
If you want to make God Laugh is a rich, unforgettable story of three women in post-Apartheid South Africa who are brought together during dark times of their lives.
The synopsis: In a squatter camp on the outskirts of Johannesburg, 17-year-old Zodwa lives in desperate poverty, under the shadowy threat of civil war and a growing AIDS epidemic. Eight months pregnant, Zodwa carefully guards secrets that jeopardise her life. Across the country, wealthy socialite Ruth appears to have everything her heart desires, but it’s what she can’t have that leads to her breakdown. Meanwhile, in Zaire, a disgraced former nun, Delilah, grapples with a past that refuses to stay buried. When these personal crises send both middle-aged women back to their rural hometown to heal, the discovery of an abandoned newborn baby upends everything, challenging their lifelong beliefs about race, motherhood, and the power of the past. Available on Loot.co.za for R251.
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
The Giver of Stars revolves around Alice who moves to Baileyville, Kentucky, with her new husband. She starts a travelling library, which attracts an unlikely group of women who travel far and wide on their mission to bring books and reading to those that need it.
The Giver of Stars is Reese Witherspoon’s book club pick. Witherspoon said of the book: “So amazing and transportive. I'm the biggest Jojo Moyes fan. It is so beautifully written.”
Available on Loot.co.za for R199.