Book 23: "The Bat Tattoo" by Russell Hoban

That was the music in my head when I left the Coliseum. and with it came Psalm 137 and my remembered Zion. The rain had stopped, and after I crossed St Martin's Lane in the intervals between taxis and was once more in the darkness of Cecil Court I saw again the afternoon sunlight on the wind-stirred grasses of Maiden Castle. How shall I sing the Lord's song in a strange land? I thought. But then, really, that's what life is, isn't it: a strange land.

This is the second of this author's books that I have read, after the wonderful post-apocalyptic tale, "Riddley Walker". It is the modern day tale of a middle-aged man and woman, both widowed several years ago, who come together after coincidentally getting the same bat (a symbol of happiness taken from a Chinese vase at the V&A) tattooed on their left shoulders. It is a tale of art, loneliness, religious iconography, failure, erotica, mysterious millionaires, and an unfortunate obsession with crash-test dummies.

Highly recommended.

Book 24: "Ark Baby" by Liz Jensen

'There will be two world wars,' murmurs the Laudanum Empress, yawning over her untouched cup and saucer. It is the heyday of her psychic particles. 'As a result, a million skulls will be strewn all over France.' She pauses, squinting sideways. 'But on the more positive side, there will be something known as long-life milk.'

A darkly comic satire about Darwinism, heredity and religious belief, and featuring parsons, freaks, laudanum addicts, ghosts, taxidermists, vets, obsessive cooks, and an ark full of zoological samples. The story is set in two time periods: the early to mid-Victorian era and a modern-day Britain that was struck by 100% female infertility at the millennium.

A wonderful book - and there is another of the author's books among my TBRs. I must move "The Ninth Life of Louis Drax" up nearer to the top of the heap.