November Main Meetup

October's books contrasted well with each other as we had a lively debate about the author's position in Official and Confidential: The Secret Life of J Edgar Hoover (56%) and a lighter chat about a shorter book with Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard (71%).

As the spooky season descends upon us, hopefully this month's books will get you through any sleepless nights...

No Mean City by A McArthur and H Kingsley-Long (nominated by David)

No book is more associated with the city of Glasgow than No Mean City. First published in 1935, it is the story of Johnnie Stark, son of a violent father and a downtrodden mother, the 'Razor King' of Glasgow's pre-war slum underworld, the Gorbals. The savage, near-truth descriptions, the raw character portrayals, bring to life a story that is fascinating, authentic and convincing.

His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet (nominated by Ruth)

The year is 1869. A brutal triple murder in a remote community in the Scottish Highlands leads to the arrest of a young man by the name of Roderick Macrae. A memoir written by the accused makes it clear that he is guilty, but it falls to the country s finest legal and psychiatric minds to uncover what drove him to commit such merciless acts of violence. Was he mad? Only the persuasive powers of his advocate stand between Macrae and the gallows.

Graeme Macrae Burnet tells an irresistible and original story about the provisional nature of truth, even when the facts seem clear. His Bloody Project is a mesmerising literary thriller set in an unforgiving landscape where the exercise of power is arbitrary.

Other books nominated were:

Songs My Mother Taught Me by Marlon Brando and Robert Lindsey (this was voted for by the group, but has been substituted with "His Bloody Project", which came third, due a scarcity of affordable copies).

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

Into the Wild by John Krakauer

The Plot Against America by Philip Roth

Different Seasons by Stephen King

Mr. Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo