Hydra
Howell, Adriane "Hydra" - 2023
#6Degrees is a monthly link-up hosted by Kate at Books Are My Favourite and Best. I love the idea. Thank you, Kate. See more about this challenge, its history, further books and how I found this here.
As so often, I have not read the starter book, so I had to see how I enter the challenge.
First, I looked up the meaning of the word Hydra. The name comes from a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Hmmm, maybe I go with a water theme there.
Then, I checked the description of the book:
"Anja is a young, ambitious antiquarian, passionate for the clean and balanced lines of mid-century furniture. She is intent on classifying objects based on emotional response and when her career goes awry, Anja finds herself adrift. Like a close friend, she confesses her intimacies and rage to us with candour, tenderness, and humour.
Cast out from the world of antiques, she stumbles upon a beachside cottage that the neighbouring naval base is offering for a 100-year lease. The property is derelict, isolated, and surrounded by scrub. Despite of, or because of, its wildness and solitude, Anja uses the last of the inheritance from her mother to lease the property. Yet a presence - human, ghost, other - seemingly inhabits the grounds.
Hydra is a novel of dark suspense and mental disquiet, struck through with black humour. Adriane Howell beguilingly explores notions of moral culpability, revenge, memory, and narrative - all through the female lens of freedom and constraint. She holds us captive to the last page."
The description of this story reminded me of a book I read last year.
Myers, Benjamin "The Offing" - 2019
Sixteen year old Robert is supposed to become a coal miner but first he wants to see something of the world. He hits the sea in Yorkshire and finds elderly Dulcie and her cottage. This changes his whole life.
This book was chosen "Favourite Book of the Independents" of the year 2019 by the German Indepent Bookshops. It reminds me of another young girl who was left all alone and whose story has a lot to do with water. It had been the favourite in the year before, 2018:
Owens, Delia "Where the Crawdads Sing" - 2018
They both fall under the category Bildungsroman, which is now the theme of my chain.
Lawson, Mary "A Town Called Solace" - 2021
Three people tell their stories. At the beginning, they don't seem to have much in common. Seven year old Clara is Elizabeth's neighbour and looks after her cat while the elderly woman is in hospital. Liam knew Elizabeth when he was little, or rather the other way around because he doesn't seem to remember much about that time.
Dickens, Charles "David Copperfield" - 1850
We can follow our hero from his childhood into maturity, get to meet everyone who is important in his life. Even though the book is more than 150 years old, we can still retrace the steps, feel for the protagonist and his sidekicks.
Lamb, Wally "She's Come Undone" - 1997
My first book by this author whom I've come to really adore ever since. Mother-daughter relationship, religion, death and coming to terms with it, obesity, self-delusion, women-men relationships, change in our culture, this book has it all. A lot of familiarity with the characters, sometimes you have to laugh about that, sometimes you feel "touché".
Spyri, Johanna "Heidi" (GE: Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre + Heidi kann brauchen, was es gelernt hat) - 1880/81
The very first book I owned. I still have the copy today and it looks pretty well read.
Heidi was everything I wasn't. She lived in the mountains, I lived in Northern Germany where the highest elevation was probably just a little over 100 meters. She loved the outdoors, I loved sitting inside reading my books. She was an orphan, I had my parents and three brothers and hundreds of cousins (well, "only" fifty, but who's counting).
First, I looked up the meaning of the word Hydra. The name comes from a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Hmmm, maybe I go with a water theme there.
Then, I checked the description of the book:
"Anja is a young, ambitious antiquarian, passionate for the clean and balanced lines of mid-century furniture. She is intent on classifying objects based on emotional response and when her career goes awry, Anja finds herself adrift. Like a close friend, she confesses her intimacies and rage to us with candour, tenderness, and humour.
Cast out from the world of antiques, she stumbles upon a beachside cottage that the neighbouring naval base is offering for a 100-year lease. The property is derelict, isolated, and surrounded by scrub. Despite of, or because of, its wildness and solitude, Anja uses the last of the inheritance from her mother to lease the property. Yet a presence - human, ghost, other - seemingly inhabits the grounds.
Hydra is a novel of dark suspense and mental disquiet, struck through with black humour. Adriane Howell beguilingly explores notions of moral culpability, revenge, memory, and narrative - all through the female lens of freedom and constraint. She holds us captive to the last page."
The description of this story reminded me of a book I read last year.
Myers, Benjamin "The Offing" - 2019
Sixteen year old Robert is supposed to become a coal miner but first he wants to see something of the world. He hits the sea in Yorkshire and finds elderly Dulcie and her cottage. This changes his whole life.
This book was chosen "Favourite Book of the Independents" of the year 2019 by the German Indepent Bookshops. It reminds me of another young girl who was left all alone and whose story has a lot to do with water. It had been the favourite in the year before, 2018:
Owens, Delia "Where the Crawdads Sing" - 2018
They both fall under the category Bildungsroman, which is now the theme of my chain.
Lawson, Mary "A Town Called Solace" - 2021
Three people tell their stories. At the beginning, they don't seem to have much in common. Seven year old Clara is Elizabeth's neighbour and looks after her cat while the elderly woman is in hospital. Liam knew Elizabeth when he was little, or rather the other way around because he doesn't seem to remember much about that time.
Dickens, Charles "David Copperfield" - 1850
We can follow our hero from his childhood into maturity, get to meet everyone who is important in his life. Even though the book is more than 150 years old, we can still retrace the steps, feel for the protagonist and his sidekicks.
Lamb, Wally "She's Come Undone" - 1997
My first book by this author whom I've come to really adore ever since. Mother-daughter relationship, religion, death and coming to terms with it, obesity, self-delusion, women-men relationships, change in our culture, this book has it all. A lot of familiarity with the characters, sometimes you have to laugh about that, sometimes you feel "touché".
Spyri, Johanna "Heidi" (GE: Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre + Heidi kann brauchen, was es gelernt hat) - 1880/81
The very first book I owned. I still have the copy today and it looks pretty well read.
Heidi was everything I wasn't. She lived in the mountains, I lived in Northern Germany where the highest elevation was probably just a little over 100 meters. She loved the outdoors, I loved sitting inside reading my books. She was an orphan, I had my parents and three brothers and hundreds of cousins (well, "only" fifty, but who's counting).
📚📚📚
Is there a connection between the first and the last. Well, of course. First of all, they are all about young people, "Bildungsromane", the first and the last both being about a girl who has to adjust to a new environment. And the titles of the books are almost identical: Hydra - Heidi.
Ah, nicely done my dear! And yes, the titles are close.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Davida. I always try to find a connection between the first and the last. Doesn't always work. These two are probably worlds apart but the title? Couldn't get any better, right?
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