Mathilde
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mathilde314.bsky.social
Mathilde
@mathilde314.bsky.social
58 followers 120 following 38 posts
Books and stuff. I'm all for independent radical bookshops, small presses & indie publishers, literature in translation, local libraries...
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mathilde314.bsky.social
Can't really afford to buy books or travel at the moment so I've decided the next best thing to do is to borrow books about travel from my local library. Tip top reading to start the year ✨ #booksky @monisharajesh.bsky.social @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social
A hand is holding two books in front of a bookshelf. The first one with an orange cover is "Around India in 80 Trains" (paperback) and the second one is "Moonlight Express: Around the World by Night Train" (ebook), both by Monisha Rajesh.
January 17, 2026 at 3:56 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Damn - the first week of January isn't over yet and I'm pretty sure this will be my best book of 2026. Setting the bar high! #booksky
Holding a paperback copy of "How to survive a plague", by David France, in front of a sun-lit window
January 6, 2026 at 2:59 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Always a good day when my drink matches my book 🥂
@canongate.co.uk #booksky
A shot from above of a red-ish drink in a wine glass sitting next to a red-ish book (poyums, by Len Pennie) on a round beige wooden table. The drink's a negroni sbagliato but with double the prosecco, if you care to know.
August 16, 2025 at 5:39 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Latest read: a scintillating collection of interwoven meditations on life, death, and white things.
#booksky
The paperback edition of "The White Book" by Han Kang, laid on a crumpled white duvet.
May 1, 2025 at 5:22 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
If, like me, you've only ever eaten Chinese food in the West, this book will blow your mind. Fuchsia Dunlop does a brilliant job of explaining the exquisite intricacy of Chinese cuisine and its infinite declinations. An instant favourite, chuffed I could borrow this from my local library.
#booksky
A hand holds a hardback copy of "Invitation to a banquet; The history of Chinese food" by Fuchsia Dunlop in front of a blooming magnolia tree. The book has a bright yellow cover with a drawing of a white and blue porcelain bowl from which a white cloud of steam arises. Published by Particular Books.
April 29, 2025 at 11:46 AM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Obviously the first thing I did after finishing the book was to go brave the crowds at the British Museum to see the lamassu. Worth it.
Black and white photo of one of the lamassus at the British Museum - huge stone sculptures of a mythical creature with a human head, the body of a bull or a lion, and bird wings. A sign hanging from the ceiling reads "The royal palaces: Ancient Assyria". Another lamassu in black and white. This one has lion feet.
April 25, 2025 at 5:42 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
OMG this book 😭

#booksky
Black and white e-book cover of "There Are Rivers in the Sky" by Elif Shafak, laid flat on some dark red/brown fabric. (I've had to type this caption twice and both times I misspelled "rivers" as "rovers", which would be a very different type of book 😂)
April 25, 2025 at 5:42 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Currently reading & just finished. Both excellent.
#booksky #freepalestine
@versobooks.bsky.social @andotherstories.bsky.social
The book "Friends of Israel: The Backlash against Palestine Solidarity" by Hil Aked held by a white woman's hand with a pink blooming tree and blue skies in the background "The Book of Disappearance" by Ibtisam Azem and translated by Sinan Antoon, held by a white woman's hand with the same pink blooming tree and blue skies in the background.
April 6, 2025 at 11:13 AM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Unintended theme in the last 4 books I read: (too) bright things #booksky
@faberbooks.bsky.social @canongate.co.uk
From top left, clockwise: Burnout, by Emily and Amelia Nagoski; Feu Mange Forêt, by Clémentine Pons; The Bright Side, bu Sumit Paul-Choudhuri; and Bright Fear, by Mary Jean Chan.
April 3, 2025 at 4:43 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Recent #poetry #bookpost 😍
#booksky @ninearchespress.bsky.social @faberbooks.bsky.social
Two poetry books by Mary Jean Chan propped up on a grey/green linen fabric. The one at the front is "Bright Fear", with the author's name in blue and the title in orange on a pale yellow background. The one at the back is "Flèche", with the author's name in yellow and the title in white on a mid-blue background. Two poetry books propped up on a grey/green linen fabric background. The one on the left is "The tattoo collector" by Tim Tim Cheng, the cover is a drawing of two arms with the hands touching, overlaid by tattoo-like patterns, on a light pink background. The other book is "Blackbird singing at dusk" by Wendy Pratt and the cover is a black, yellow and white lino print of a blackbird singing in a cherry tree.
March 23, 2025 at 7:17 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
So in this spirit I've just started reading Owen Hatherley's Artificial Islands (@repeaterbooks.bsky.social), received as part of the @lighthousebks.bsky.social Beacon (current affairs) subscription in... August 2022 😅
#booksky
Paperback cover of "Artificial Islands: Adventures in the Dominions" by Owen Hatherley
February 27, 2025 at 5:55 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
I just started reading this in ebook format yesterday and found a physical copy while browsing at my local library today. Love the coincidence :)
@bloodaxebooks.bsky.social
#booksky #poetry
The photo shows the poetry book "The Adoption Papers" by Jackie Kay, held in front of a bookshelf at a public library.
February 18, 2025 at 6:05 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
So maybe I write about books *because* the world is falling apart. Because with books we can make sense of this world and, crucially, imagine others (and for this I will refer you to one last book, Lola Olufemi's Experiments in Imagining Otherwise @hajarpress.bsky.social). (7/7)
"Experiments in Imagining Otherwise" by Lola Olufemi (unimaginatively held in front of a bookcase). This is published by Hajar Press, who have a gorgeous navy/yellow/white theme for their covers, by the way. This one has a navy background, and in yellow: the title at the top, the hand-drawn outline of a circle taking up most of the cover, and the author's name at the bottom.
February 9, 2025 at 2:35 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Finally, Violent Phenomena, edited by Kavita Bhanot & Jeremy Tiang (@tiltedaxispress.bsky.social). I'd always loved languages and the idea of translation, but had never questioned it as a tool of imperialism, a re-enactment of colonial violence. I even took NOTES (which I never do).(6/7)
"Violent Phenomena: 21 essays on translation", edited by Kavita Bhanot and Jeremy Tiang. A woman's hand is holding the book in front of a bookshelf. Is that bookish enough yet?
February 9, 2025 at 2:35 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
On a personal level, Susan Cain's Quiet made such a difference to my life when I first read it 12 years ago. It allowed me to consider that my way of being in the world was valid (hell, even valuable!) (5/7)
The hardback edition of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain.
February 9, 2025 at 2:35 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race (Reni Eddo-Lodge)
Crippled (@francesryan.bsky.social @versobooks.bsky.social)
Women, Race & Class (Angela Davis)
Hostile Environment (Maya Goodfellow)
On Palestine (Noam Chomsky & Ilan Pappé)
The Uninhabitable Earth (David Wallace-Wells)
(3/7)
February 9, 2025 at 2:35 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Also deeply enjoyed Tiny Moons, her essays around food which have the same delicate, evocative touch. Thanks to @lighthousebks.bsky.social for recommending it. @theemmapress.bsky.social
Another book held in front of a bookshelf, how original! But the book is great - it's "Tiny Moons: A Year of Eating in Shanghai" by Nina Mingya Powles.
February 4, 2025 at 4:45 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Part memoir, part nature writing, Nina Mingya Powles's contemplative writing is just a gorgeous thing. @canongate.co.uk #booksky
Oh, look, I'm holding a book! This one is "Small Bodies of Water" by Nina Mingya Powles.
February 4, 2025 at 4:45 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
In "Divided", @sosowemimo.bsky.social exposes how structural racism pervades modern medicine. She goes back the colonial roots of medical sciences and shows how non-white people all over the world are still adversely affected both as patients and providers of healthcare services.
#booksky
Black-and-white cover of "Divided" by Dr Annabel Sowemimo displayed on an e-reader, held in front of green ferns by a white woman's hand
February 2, 2025 at 4:48 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
Should I only read green books in 2025? 😅 My first three reads of 2025 were all incredibly good so it is tempting to follow this lead...
Three books with covers in different shades of green held by a white woman's hand in front of a bookcase. The books are, from left to right: amuk, by Khairani Barokka; Nouvelles du Front, by Marine Tondelier; and Les féministes blanches et l'empire, by Félix Boggio Éwanjé-Épée and Stella Magliani-Belkacem.
January 30, 2025 at 4:12 PM
mathilde314.bsky.social
I was lucky to be gifted a 6-month poetry subscription from @lighthousebks.bsky.social last year. What a gorgeous treat that was.
January 26, 2025 at 2:52 PM