WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: APRIL

I wish I could say I’ve been so immersed in my reading that I’ve forgotten to blog, but that would be a lie. The truth is, I’ve been incredibly busy with writing for work. As my job title, Content Editor, I spend pretty much all of my time writing and researching my blogs for my various shows. Whilst I love this about my job, it does take away some of my motivation to write outside of work, which is why I tend to go AWOL from time to time. But, I’m here now and since I haven’t written in about a month and I’m not likely to finish another book by Wednesday, I thought I’d break down my April reading a little bit early…

The Dreams of Bethany Mellmoth – William Boyd

Any book that very obviously calls itself out on its own pretension is alright with me. And that’s exactly what William Boyd does in The Dreams of Bethany Mellmoth, which will henceforth be known as TDOBM, since it’s a long title and I’m typing this on my phone on the tube.

TDOBM is actually a collection of short stories (which anyone who reads my book blogs will know I like to read a lot of), with Bethany herself taking centre stage at the heart of the book.

The pretension lies in the fact that every single one of these stories revolves around an artist/ author/ actor/ general creative struggling to make their way through life whilst simultaneously having that oh-so-stereotypical creative viewpoint that they are inherently better than everyone else purely because they are creative. But, you know, in a relatable way. Or maybe I’m just one of those pretentious writer types too…

Either way, it’s a collection that’s full of great characters who you hate but root for anyway, with stories and situations that we can all relate to in some or another. Maybe with the exception of the last one (read it and you’ll see what I mean)…

I haven’t read any William Boyd before, but I know that he’s kind of the boss when it comes to realist, social commentary type literature and from reading this, it’s clear why.