Some highlights from my 2024 reading

I read 48 novels in 2024, and here are some of the highlights (in chronological order):

Michal Ajvaz’s Cesta na jih (Journey to the South) is a labyrinthine novel with a Russian-nesting-doll structure. On the surface, it follows the murder of two step brothers: tram dispatcher Tomáš and the successful entrepreneur Petr. Beneath this premise lies a web of multi-layered narratives that pull the reader deeper into its surreal world. It’s so easy to lose ourselves in this novel, not just because of its intricate structure, but because each story within it is utterly absorbing.
Lessons is Ian McEwan’s longest novel to date, which explores the lasting impact of parental actions (or inactions) on their children’s lives, as well as the intersections between history individual lives. While there are autobiographical elements, the novel is more straightforward and less intricate than some of his other works.
Nathan Hill’s Wellness is a worthy follow-up to his debut The Nix. The novel explores the themes of medical placebo, wellness culture, the stress of parenthood, social media algorithms, gentrification, and authenticity, all with a touch of pathos and comedy.
Édouard Louis’ Changer: méthode (Change) is about his journey of crossing social class and sexuality boundaries. Unapologetic at times, melancholic at others, but always unabashedly raw.
Asako Yuzuki’s cult novel Butter is about a journalist’s attempt to get a scoop on a female gourmet cook and serial killer. On a deeper level, the Silence-of-the-Lamb-like interaction between the journalist and the killer becomes a springboard for a commentary and a critique of Japanese contemporary society.
失語 (Tongueless), by Lau Yee-Wa, explores the clash between the three languages Mandarin, Cantonese, and English. Set in Hong Kong, it tells the story of a veteran teacher who resists the shift to Mandarin, relying on wit and lies, while a rookie teacher embraces the change and learns the new language later in life. All this leads to a tragic outcome.
Anéantir (Annihilation), rumored to be Michel Houellebecq’s swan song, is more interesting than his previous novel Serotonin, but with a less focused plot. Of course, we don’t read Houellebecq for plots. We pick up his books precisely for his astute observations and numerous tangents.
Jonathan Coe has returned to form with The Proof of My Innocence. This homage to British cozy murder criminal fiction is full of his signature move: an effective satire against modern British politics with touches of comedy.
Tasmania is not the setting of Paolo Giordano’s novel Tasmania (it’s only mentioned one or twice in passing by a side character). The novel offers a compeling perspective on how global issues (climate change, terrorism, and nuclear threat) intersect with and eventually influence our personal lives.
Jane Pek’s novel The Verifiers and its sequel The Rivals feature a detective story in a dating verification agency setting. The detective in question, the English lit graduate Claw Lin, relies on various detective and spy-thriller literary tropes to investigate the way matchmaking industry uses users’ data for nefarious purposes.

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Last updated 03 March 2025