50 Book Challenge 2015 Part 4

Me too ! My fave was Are you there God, it's me Margaret :-)

That would be great. Good idea. Yes, I am planning to read his other novels as well. I was reading that he has linked characters between novels so a discussion with other readers would be very enjoyable.

If I set up a separate discussion thread for The Bone Clocks/general discussion of David Mitchell's novels, aiming to for those of us taking part to be ready by, say, the end of September would that be ok?

Loved her books as a child / teen

Tumble - of course! I'm in p46 & gripped already

Oh I would love a discussion about The Bone Clocks. It is a book I am savouring and do need to concentrate - but I feel I am taking in something special. It would be a great discussion book. I am in awe of Mitchell's narrative voices. I really need to have another at Cloud Atlas.

I've also got the Bone Clocks on my 'to read' list.

Maybe we should have a Bone Clocks read along when we're all ready to start it? Like we did with Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell earlier this year.

Another here with The Bone Clocks waiting for her patiently!

Ah seem to have miscounted my books somewhere, goodreads says 32, pinterest says 29 and MN says 28!!! Must keep better track

33?) Driving Over Lemons by Chris Stewart; This was ok. Was really expecting much more as I thought it was supposed to be a bit of a classic of the genre? I might be mixing it up with something else. Those Provence books maybe? Anyway, v generic, cliched account of moving to live on a subsistence farm with the locals. V easy read but v unsatisfying. He totally romanticizes the whole thing, this is supposed to be a remote rural farm without a proper house, no running water etc etc yet there is no sense of any of it having been any kind of struggle. It must have been TOUGH GOING surely???! After reading the book I'm not ever sure how they learned the language for example? How did they cope with schooling their daughter? What exactly did they grow on the farm? There's just no personality to the book. All v bland. I have read much better books of this sort of thing, really, don't bother unless you are v stuck!

Better traveller abroad books imo would be... French Leave" by Liz Ryan was good for example, Almost French by Sarah Turnball I also enjoyed. McCarthy's Bar* by Peter MCarthy (a trip around Ireland) also vg.

Am now onto Red Rising which is a ripping story so far! Thanks for the recommendation cote!

Another Station Eleven fan :) I really enjoyed it too, Galaxy.

And I've got The Bone Clocks waiting to be read on my Kindle, but think it won't combine well with the school summer holidays and two noisy children demanding my attention, so I'm lining it up for September when peace descends again :o

I have enjoyed reading some new authors recently and I am enjoying pursuing my 50 reads. I think I am on target!

26 Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty - this was so believable! If you have ever been on the PTA and seen the playground politics of suburbs and villages this will definitely resonate. Very good twists and I like all the voices of the main characters. This was my first read by the author and I was very impressed by this thriller.

27 Station Eleven - I LOVED this. I didn't want it to end to be honest and I felt overwhelmed by the emotions of this dystopian novel. I particularly liked the liks between the period before the flu and what happened to those characters linking to the future. I am definitely going to read another by this author.

28 The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty - again, a very good atmospheric thriller. The author understands the characters she writes about so well - and understands her readers. I felt like I was a part of these events and the emotions and enjoyed the story very much.

29 Now readuing The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell - very intelligent epic novel which I need to concentrate on! I tried Cloud Atlas and didn't take to it but I like the concept of The Bone Clocks. The writing and characters are so well executed, but I do need to concentrate! I will keep going but may then need a quick thriller to read afterwards!

Yes Duchess I can imagine an audiobook is helpful and I think I would enjoy listening to them especially in the car/out for walks etc. May give these a try!

tessie-if it's any consolidation, a well read audiobook goes a long way towards pushing me into keeping going and also reading books I might not ordinarily pick up, including some classics .

And I wasn't that fond of The Little Stranger.

57. Alys, Always – Harriet Lane
    I didn’t like this at all. An unlikeable woman witnesses a car accident and attempts to get in with the family of the victim. It reminded me a little of Notes on a Scandal, but about 100% less good. Sorry Harriet Lane, but you can rest assured it was better than The Buried Giant by a long way if that’s any consolation.

58. Memories of My Melancholy Whores – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
    There’s a rather dodgy premise to this novella (about 116 pages all in). A 90 year old man decides to spend a night of love with an adolescent virgin! Don’t worry, it’s not as dodgy as it sounds. I did quite like this because it was so out of the ordinary, and although it is about decline, as Marquez novels tend to be, it was also about regeneration.

I am currently reading The Versions of Us as I got a rather beautiful hardback copy from Mumsnet and I’m still going on Sophie’s World on my kindle which I am loving.
Plus, I spent ages last night wondering which books to take on holiday. I could have read about 10 books in the time it’s taking me to make up my mind!

After reading all the great reviews for Fingersmith I can't believe I have given up on it! I was expecting more! Although slow, I enjoyed part 1 but part 2 going over old ground was just mind numbing in parts....oh well. Thanks southeast I have The Paying Guests on my tbr pile so will give that a try at some point. I want to like Sarah Waters, I really do!

I am enjoying Big Little Lies, Liane Moriarty's writing style is so effortless and captivates you from the first page.

Not sure if anyone is interested but the Roy Jenkins biography of Churchill has dropped to £1.25 :)

Churchill

esio, can I join you in your Judy Blume excitement?!

34. Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey. Like whitewine above, I thought this was well written in that it evoked a real sense of confusion and frustration that must be common to people struggling with memory loss and their carers. However I just couldn't get interested in the plot, to the extent that towards the end I was finding it really tedious, so overall this rates poorly for me.

29. Mr Starlight - Laurie Graham, I like her books and this one was no exception. Story of a British Liberace type character set in LA. She is a very reliable story teller and they are very humorous.

30. Elizabeth is Missing - Emma Healy - I had this as an audible book which made it even more poignant. I also have a mother struggling with memory loss so to begin with I struggled with the sadness of Maud's narration. I found the whole book very engaging. The actual storyline was good to average but Maud's narration, gradual deterioration and relationship with her daughter and granddaughter was really gripping.

Somehow lost my count there so:

18. Short disappointing biography of Turner (the artist of ships and storms fame)

And now 19. Counting by 7s, a YA novel in the same genre as Wonder. Story of a 12 year old girl genius who overcomes tragedy....etc.. I would give it only 2 stars out of 5 but I reckon some tweens and teens might really like it. I finished it very quickly though and it kept me amused for a day and a half. ('Twas a freebie from Mumsnet)

It did make me think about a reread of The Woman in White. Quite fancy doing that soon.

'Fingersmith' just made me think that Wilkie Collins had already done it all, but much better! I didn't like it, but dp loved it.

That's a shame, tessie. I listened to the audiobook, which was very well read and kept me listening, eager to find out what was going to happen next.

I have to share with you all my excitment
Judy Blume's brand new novel ^In The Unlikely Event' arrived at the library for me - hardback & I'm the first to read it , love it when that happens !