Mumsnet Talk

Nothing about babies/birth or cancer or death.

Not a fan of chick lit but not really likely to be in the mood for some tricky magic realism type literature either.

Authors I love (but have read all of) include Anne Tyler, Margaret Atwood, Iain Banks, Bill Bryson. Have read lots of Scandi crime stuff recently too.

Authors I can't get on with include Thomas Hardy, John Irving, and I thought that The Help and One Day were absolute drivel. No sci-fi.

Can I be the first to recommend practically anything by Georgette Heyer. Very funny historical romances. Not mushy though - and very well written.

P G Wodehouse. My standby for any crappy moments in life. You can't beat Jeeves and Wooster.

Three men in a boat, even though you are going to read it in hospital

The Diary of a Provincial Lady is my sick-in-bed-need-the literature-equivalent-of-comfort-food remedy.

damn was going to recommend bryson .... i tend to go low brow in hospital read all 3 hunger games during stay last year.

There is a book called A short history of tractors in the Ukaine that is good. Its a ficton.

All great ideas. Just the sort of thing I'm after. Keep them coming!

Have read all Jeeves but it could be time for a re-read.

Shockingly Diary of a Provincial Lady isn't available on Kindle.

I'm going to whisper this but Alan titchmarsh writes a decent enough book for holidays or this type of escapism. I've really enjoyed them all. Ill no doubt be laughed on here and I was surprised too in truth but they were really good!

Any in particular you'd recommend?

Unreliable Memoirs by Clive James. Watch out if you have stitches though, it's v funny

I just read the woman who went to bed for a year by sue Townsend. Really enjoyed it. Don't need to think too much and made me chuckle

Starter For Ten is hilarious esp if (like me) you were a teenager in the 80's. I can remember crying with laughter reading it.

Dear Lupin by Charlie Mortimer

WishIwasanheiress - I admit to scoffing at DH for picking up an Alan Titchmarsh novel and reading it recently, but he said it was (surprisingly) rather good. He can tell a good story, apparently. If you're interested, it was called The Haunting. I might even be tempted to give it a go myself

How about 'Diary of a nobody' by George and William Grossmith? Very funny.

Free to download on the Kindle . Excellent.

I thought it might be.

I hope you enjoy it.

PooH! it's Weedon not William, that's what I get for not checking.

Have you read 'an American wife' by Curtis sittenfeld? Or I absolutely loved 'Marjorie Morningstar' by Herman Wouk.

Both well worth it but don't involve too much concentrating!

I gave my DM A Short History of Tractors in the Ukraine when she was in hospital and she got so engrossed she asked us not to visit one day so she could finish it!

How to be a woman Caitlin Moran . It's very funny.

Have read Ukrainian Tractor book, Caitlin Moran (found irritating, sorry), Clive James and American Wife.

Like the sound of the Herman Wouk one but no Kindle edition.

'Peyton place' - grace metalious?