“A Book of Memories by Péter Nádas was first published in Europe in the mid-80s and follows a Hungarian living in Cold War East Berlin, where he falls in love with a frustrated poet (another man) who longs to escape to the West. Chapters jump between the narrator’s adult life and memories of his childhood, a structure made almost insanely complicated by a third series of chapters — again written in the first person — by a belle-epoch writer who also moves back and forth between his past and present. Despite the logistical challenges — and at first it can be hard to tell exactly who’s writing — it’s a beautiful and rewarding read.”
—Matthew Gallaway’s Year In Reading
Click through for my other choice.
Also not included: “Cat Companions,” which my brother sent me for Christmas and (though it’s the thought that counts, etc.,) could be Exhibit A in that Dave Bry piece on the Awl the other day about not giving presents.
