This has been a pretty good month, reading-wise. I’ve got through more books and short stories than previous months, but I’ve also squeezed in some other book-related stuff. I went to see Neil Gaiman talking about his new book, which was pretty awesome. I went to see the new Joss Whedon film of Much Ado About Nothing, which is completely amazing (in fact, I can’t wait for it to come out on DVD so I can watch it all the time). And I took part in the Literary Giveaway Blog Hop, which is always fun.

I’ve also found some time to enjoy the summer so far, including having a whale of a time with Tim flying our new kite yesterday, although I did manage to sunburn for the first time in several years, which I am enjoying a lot less.

Books read
A Tiny Bit Marvellous by Dawn French

Winter’s Bone by Daniel Woodrell (review here)

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (review here)

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (review here)

Selected Stories by Saadat Hasan Manto (review here)

31 Songs by Nick Hornby (review here)

The Victorian Chaise-longue by Marghanita Laski

The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli

Short stories read
“The gray goose” by Jonathan Lethem (in the New Yorker, May 6, 2013)

“Axis” by Alice Munro (New Yorker fiction podcast)

“Eveline” by James Joyce (Guardian books podcast)

“On exactitude in science” by Jorge Luis Borges (Guardian books podcast)

“The story of my dovecote” by Isaac Babel (Guardian books podcast)

“Summer of ’38” by Colm Tóibín (in the New Yorker, March 4, 2013)

“Unwelcome reminders” by Emma Newman (available online here)

“The drinking problem” by Emma Newman (available online here)

“The first time” by Emma Newman (available online here)

“The delivery men” by Emma Newman (read by the author here)

“The unburdened heart” by Emma Newman (available online here)

“Made-up” by Emma Newman (read by the author here)

“Sea story” by A S Byatt (available online here)

“The swimming pool” by Jekwu Anyaegbuna (available online here)

“The River of Lost Souls” by Isabel Greenberg (available online here)