The Mookse and the Gripes discussion

As usual, one comment per person, please use the main discussion threads for general chat.

The Longlist is:

Red Dog by Willem Anker translated by Michiel Heyns (Pushkin Press), (Afrikaans – South Africa)

The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar translated by Anonymous (Europa Editions), (Farsi – Iran)

The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara translated by Iona Macintyre and Fiona Mackintosh (Charco Press), (Spanish – Argentina)

The Other Name: Septology I – II by Jon Fosse translated by Damion Searls (Fitzcarraldo Editions), (Norwegian – Norway)

The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili translated by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin (Scribe UK), (German – Georgia)

Serotonin by Michel Houellebecq translated by Shaun Whiteside (William Heinemann), (French – France)

Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann translated by Ross Benjamin (Quercus), (German – Germany)

Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor translated by Sophie Hughes (Fitzcarraldo Editions), (Spanish – Mexico)
The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa translated by Stephen Snyder (Harvill Secker), (Japanese – Japan)

Faces on the Tip of My Tongue by Emmanuelle Pagano translated by Sophie Lewis and Jennifer Higgins (Peirene Press), (French – France)

The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld translated by Michele Hutchison (Faber & Faber), (Dutch – Netherlands)

Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin translated by Megan McDowell (Oneworld), (Spanish – Argentina)

Mac and His Problem by Enrique Vila-Matas translated by Margaret Jull Costa and Sophie Hughes (Harvill Secker), (Spanish – Spain)

My adjusted weightings method:

Pos, Book, Average, Adjusted, Count, First Places, STD
1, The Other Name: Septology I – II by Jon Fosse, 3.00, 2.49, 9, 2, 0.91
2, The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili, 3.10, 3.63, 10, 5, 1.55
3, The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar, 3.62, 4.14, 13, 1, 1.75
4, Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann, 4.45, 4.86, 11, 1, 1.80
5, Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor, 4.27, 5.28, 11, 1, 2.00
6, The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa, 4.63, 5.66, 19, 3, 2.64
7, The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara, 5.64, 5.88, 11, 2, 1.98
8, Faces on the Tip of My Tongue by Emmanuelle Pagano, 5.71, 6.18, 7, 0, 1.71
9, The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, 6.67, 7.59, 9, 2, 2.54
10, Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin, 6.40, 8.01, 5, 0, 1.92
11, Red Dog by Willem Anker, 8.83, 9.17, 6, 0, 2.24
12, Mac and His Problem by Enrique Vila-Matas, 7.86, 9.17, 7, 0, 2.38
13, Serotonin by Michel Houellebecq, 8.89, 15.33, 9, 0, 4.78

Paul-style aggregate of comparisons

Pos, Book, Average, Relative ranking, Count, First Places
1, The Other Name: Septology I – II by Jon Fosse, 3.00, 36, 9, 2
2, The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar, 3.62, 28, 13, 1
3, The Eighth Life by Nino Haratischvili, 3.10, 27, 10, 5
4, The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa, 4.63, 15, 19, 3
5, Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann, 4.45, 14, 11, 1
6, Faces on the Tip of My Tongue by Emmanuelle Pagano, 5.71, 7, 7, 0
7, Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor, 4.27, 3, 11, 1
8, The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara, 5.64, -5, 11, 2
9, Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin, 6.40, -12, 5, 0
10, The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, 6.67, -15, 9, 2
11, Mac and His Problem by Enrique Vila-Matas, 7.86, -21, 7, 0
12, Red Dog by Willem Anker, 8.83, -26, 6, 0
13, Serotonin by Michel Houellebecq, 8.89, -51, 9, 0

I've read just two so far :

4: The Discomfort of Evening3*

10: The Memory Police 2*

8 Faces on the Tip of My Tongue 3*
10 The Adventures of China Iron 3*

1 The Discomfort of Evening
2 The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
3 The Other Name
4 Hurricane Season
5 The Memory Police
6 Faces on the Tip of My Tongue
7 Tyll
8 Mac and His Problem
9 The Adventures of China Iron
10 Red Dog
11 Little Eyes
12 Eighth Life
13 Serotonin

1 The Eighth Life
2 Hurricane Season
3 The Memory Police
4 Little Eyes

(Highly doubt my number one spot will change, but who knows)

1 The Eighth Life
2 The Other Name
3 The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
4 The Adventures of China Iron
5 Tyll
7 Red Dog*
8 The Memory Police
9 Hurricane Season
11 Mac and his Problem

* still reading, and I am unlikely to finish before the shortlist announcement

1. Hurricane Season, 5*
2. The Other Name, 5*
3.
4.
5. The Memory Police, 4*
6. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree, 4*
7. The Adventures of China Iron, 4*
8.
9.
10. Mac and His Problem, 3*
11. Red Dog, 3*
12.
13. Serotonin, 2*

1 The Eighth Life 5*
My book of the year in 2019 - highly unlikely I will read anything better.

2 Tyll 4*

I have 4 others in the TBR, and my library has one other, though I’m not sure I want to read Serotonin ....

1. The Memory Police
2. Still Eyes
3. The Adventures of China Iron
4. Faces on the tip of my tongue.
5. The Discomfort of Evening
6. Hurricane Season (DNF)

1.
2.
3.
4. Tyll ★★★★
5. The Adventures of China Iron ★★★★
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11. The Memory Police ★★★
12.
13.

1. The Memory Police
2. The other name
3. The Eighth Life
4. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
5. Mac and his Problem
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13 Serotonin

1. The Other Name
2. The Eighth Life
3. Faces on the Tip of My Tongue
4. Tyll
5. The Adventures of China Iron
6. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
7. Hurricane Season
8. The Memory Police
9. Little Eyes
10. The Discomfort of Evening (DNF)

That concludes the voting from Neil: I do not plan to read the remaining books.

Placeholder for my rankings. I've only read one so far:

1.
2.
3.
4. The Memory Police
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

1.
2.
3. The Other Name
4. The Memory Police
5. The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12. The Discomfort of Evening

1. The Eighth Life

OK, my first rankings this year, subject to change, of course...

1)
2) The Memory Police
3)
4)
5) The Eighth Life
6) Little Eyes
*****
7) The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
8) Red Dog
9)
10) Mac & His Problem
11) Tyll
12)
13) Serotonin

1.
2. Tyll
3. Mac and His Problem
4. China Iron
5. Memory Police
6.
7.
8.
9.
10. Serotonin
11. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
12.
13.

1) The Memory Police
2) Hurricane Season


3) Mac and his Problem


4) Serotonin
Position likely to change as I read more of them.

1. The Adventures of China Iron

1. The Adventures of China Iron
2. The Memory Police
3. Serotonin

1. The Other Name
2. The Memory Police
3. The Discomfort of the Evening
4. Serotonin

1.
2. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree ★★★★★
3. Tyll ★★★★
4.
5.
6. The Other Name ★★★
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13. Discomfort of Evening (DNF)

1. Tyll (5 stars)
2. Faces on the Tip of My Tongue (5 stars)
3. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree (4 stars)

UPDATE 3/29:
4.
I'll stay with these three for now and might read more when the shortlist is announced.

1. ( Pretty sure this is reserved for Little Eyes)
2. Tyll
3. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
4. The Eighth Life
5. Faces on the Tip of My Tongue
6. The Memory Police
7. The Other Name
8. Mac’s Problem
9. Hurricane Season
10. The Adventures of China’s Iron
11. Serotonin
12. Red Dog
13. Discomfort of Evening

1. The Discomfort of Evening
2. The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree
3. Tyll
4. The Memory Police
5. Red Dog
6. Serotonin

1.
2. Hurricane Season
3. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
4.
5.
6.
7.
8. The Memory Police
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.

I’m only reading 3, so:

1. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree
2. Hurricane Season
3. The Memory Police

1) The Eighth Life
2)
3) Hurricane Season
4)
5)
6)
7) =The Adventures of China Iron
=Tyll
9) The Discomfort of Evening
10)
11)
12) Faces on the Tip of My Tongue