Good morning and welcome to another edition of What Are You Reading Right Now?, where Hoddle Headquarters likes to survey the audience on what pieces of literature (be it a novel, non-fiction, MAD magazine or any other thing) they’re reading right now.
The last time I checked in on this particular topic I was in-between books. I had just finished Lolita and in need of a palate cleanser. Well, I settled on Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. It debuted to wonderful reviews, but your hoddler-in-chief wasn’t impressed by it. Essentially, I think a lot of it was unnecessary.
The heart of the book, I found, was Cyrus’s talks with Orkideh, and every time we got some momentum there we were sent on some strange perspective from another character. Plus I found some of the prose derived.
But that’s come and gone.
I’ve since gone back to my beloved nature books. And I picked one up not long ago that’s been on my radar for some time - Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures.
There are few things I enjoy more than a good mycological book. I’m still in the early pages of this so please no spoilers, but I’m looking forward to exploring it more.
This book takes a look at fungi and their roles in human life. This’ll be the third book on fungi I have read after The Mushroom at the End of the World and What a Mushroom Lives For. It also comes after a few tree-related books I’ve read including The Secret Life of Trees and The Language of Trees.
I can’t think of a better time of the year to dive into fungi and the roots of nature than autumn.
Fitzie’s track of the day: Jumpin’ Jack Flash, by The Rolling Stones
And now for your links:
Matt Law: “Tottenham keen to reward Micky van de Ven with new deal”
Jay Harris ($$): “Thomas Frank and Spurs bask in incredible healing powers great goals can bring”
Alasdair Gold: “Kevin Danso’s classy gesture to Dane Scarlett after brutal Richarlison decision in Tottenham win”
BBC: “Marinakis on trial in Athens over inciting gang violence”