50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Seven

Books 72 & 73 were both short (or shirt ) at under 250 pages. I'm pretty sure it was the quality of the writing rather than their lack of length that made me enjoy them.

Slade House by David Mitchell was first up. I was prepared to be disappointed, but actually ended up really enjoying it. It was the beautiful characterisation of the guests which I simply loved. The ending was rather unsatisfactory, but I didn't mind much.

The Children Act by Ian McEwan was next. I find him such an up-and-down writer but, for me, this was an up (although not him at his finest). I was particularly pleased that they didn't do the whole "oh dear, emotional woman, what did you expect? thing, rather one saw the struggle behind the professional facade. Another unsatifactory ending, but I'm getting used to the idea I may be becoming more difficult to please ...

Oh & Satsuki, thank you for the best laugh ever. The mental picture of you stroking a book and moistening it will surely live on

And welcome Debb

Good to hear biblio, for I've got one on the way (if I ever manage to get through the pointless torture that is The Fifth Heart

I love the scathing reviews, Cote.

Yes, I think the Austen book would annoy you, Remus. I would love to know what JA herself would think about it - I'm sure there would be bits when she would have given a sharp nod, pleased the hint had been noted, and others where she would have rolled her eyes. It's still worth a read as a summary of more complex readings of her novels.

Still loving the Adam Rutherford book on genetics - one of the most enjoyable books I've read in a long time.

vanderly I can't believe you moistened the podcast first! I still haven't got round to it

Just bought His Bloody Project too.

Been absent for a bit mainly reading light stuff due to workload.

Thank you Tanaqui

I love it that you are all warning me off books to spare yourselves the scathing reviews

"Hi Zadie, my name's Vanderlyle, and my online book friends and I were just discussing how your writing causes moistness...what do you mean I'm no longer welcome at these events?"

I listened to the Penguin podcast and am really looking forward to seeing her interviewed tomorrow. She's so thoughtful and articulate.

I'm still reading The City & The City, which I'm liking but progressing through slowly for boring reasons. I'm also using the current discussion to get ideas for next year's 50 Books list...

Thanks- perhaps I'll see if thenlibrary have the second one.

69. (I think, I wish I'd kept a master list!) The Forgetting Time by Sharon Guskin. Cote, don't read this, it's a first novel by a woman full of feels. It's not badly written, but I found the subject matter slightly distasteful, and some of the emotions it roused seemed a bit easy targets. I'd read another book by her, if it had different subject matter.

I plodded through 2 Shardlakes tanaqui, but they are just not my thing and I won't be reading anymore.

I'm going to crack on and read bloody project tonight I think.

I plodded through the first Shardlake but really enjoyed the second, Dark Fire. Sovereign then somewhere between the two, but the setting and characters open up more after the first. I find them enjoyable light reads - my version of a "beach read" so my expectations aren't high. They are a bit of fun, but well researched and written. I need to leave a space between them personally.

I will probably read it again at some point, and see how I feel about the ending second time around!

I like the Shardlakes, so would definitely say to try the second. If that one doesn't grab you (with the lovely Jack Barak) then they are probably not for you.

I still don't like the ending!

Lots of people have recommended The Shardlake books; I read the first one and didn't find it gripping- I kept getting jolted out of the historical time period by modern language use- is it worth persevering with the next one?

Agree with that verdict of the ending, Olly.

I've thought about this book a lot since reading it - always a good sign of a worthy read!

47. His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnett

Not what I expected. so many people recommended this. It's set in an area I know well as Applecross is a where we went camping holidays when I was a child.

It's a gripping story. There have been a few criticisms of the ending. I don't want to give any spoilers but I think what comes to light during the evidence gathering is deliberately shocking and challenges your earlier perceptions. I enjoyed it. Perhaps one of the most moving books I've read this year.

Biblio - So pleased to read your review. I wondered about buying the Austen book and decided it would likely annoy me. Your review proves that it would definitely annoy me, so thanks for saving me a fiver!

Book 124
Making Shore by Sara Allerton
A fictionalised account of a group of seamen torpedoed by a German U boat in 1942, based on a true story. This is exactly my sort of thing in terms of men in peril on the open sea (albeit slightly more modern than the ones I’d usually go for). I quite enjoyed it for its descriptions of the lifeboat and the sea and the relationships and dialogue between the men. What was less effective is that Allerton is unable to use one word when she thinks she can get away with 17 words. Because of this, it was overwritten and a bit laboured and repetitive at times, saying the same thing over and over again – you’d end up with lines akin to (this is my example, rather than really in the text but I think it gives the flavour) – “I felt sick. Nauseous. As if I was going to vomit. I wanted to void the contents of my stomach.” Just say it and move on, for gawd’s sake! The ending was a bit convoluted too. Overall though, quite a decent read.

I have finished 38. A Little Life!

There may be some spoilers here.

I really loved some things about the book, and hated others.

First off, this book was way too long and should have been at least 100 pages and ten mind-numbing parties shorter.

I loved the first hundred or so pages when the main characters had left school and were adults but still very much learning how to be that. I think I related to this part especially as I left university and didn't start a career or do anything I loved. I now regret this deeply and still feel at 34 that I am stuck in that stage of being not quite a fully formed adult. It was also in this stage that we learned the most about the characters and where they seemed most real, in their insecurities and efforts to shape themselves into who they wished to become. I also found it very evocative of a specific section of east coast society and enjoyed that aspect.

On the other hand, I am definitely in the misery porn camp. It is not that I can't cope with sadness or misery, it was just so unbelievably unrelenting. I can see that experiences shape you and that once you begin to expect a certain thing then your own learned behaviours can unintentionally precipitate that outcome, but this was too much.

I also thought that Malcolm and Jude, and to a lesser extent Willem were poorly developed characters. Malcolm seemed so consistently unremarkable and unknown, Jude became just a vehicle for more misery. I wished Willem would be a bastard just once. He was even saintly when he was screwing around. The only character I thought actually seemed believable was JB and I liked him more than the other main four despite his narcissism. I also really liked Harold and found his passages as narrator the most interesting and satisfying.

I am glad I read this book, and I think the central premise of a story about adult male friendship is great and I would have preferred if A Little Life had stuck more closely to that theme.

I believe he is, yes.

Isn't Joe Hill, Stephen King's son?

57. The Fireman by Joe Hill

Apocalyptic themes here - an incurable spore called dragonscale is infecting people, marking them with "dragonscale," causing them to spontaneously combust, and leaving devastation in its wake.

The main character is a nurse, Harper, who discovers that she's pregnant at about the same time she gets infected with dragon scale. She's hoping to survive long enough to give birth to her (hopefully uninfected) baby, which is, of course, a lot easier said than done, when you're visibly infected with a disease that's causing widespread terror among the public.

Generally a good read. The basic idea behind the spore's infection seemed well thought through and very plausible, with interesting characters. There's rather a lot of death defying escapes from peril for our heroine, which although dramatic, did reduce the overall believability of the story.

"Complex personality ...."

Finally getting round to updating my list:-

91. His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet. Already reviewed several times on here. Really enjoyed it.
92. The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking. Hygge is the word of the year. Everyone seems to be talking about it but it is such a lovely concept. Wishful thinking that my draughty old cottage could ever feel warm and cosy :o
93. Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo - horribly sad tale set in 1914-18 war. Very well written, emotionally draining.
94. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer. Audio book. Perhaps I wasn't in the right frame of mind but I didn't feel particularly engaged with it.
95. Belgravia by Julian Fellowes. Not going to win any literary prizes but a rattling good tale well told. Rather enjoyed it.
96. Making it Up as I Go Along by Marian Keyes. Another collection of her non fiction pieces. Mostly amusing, always honest and she never shies away from the difficulties she experiences with depression.
97. Noonday by Pat Barker. The final part in her Life Class trilogy. This time the action moves on to the second world war and the characters are now well into middle age.
98. The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida. A young boy's own account of his experiences of growing up with autism.
99. Fingers in the Sparkle Jar by Chris Packham. An audio book, read by the author. Very good but quite the most unusual autobiography I have ever read. He comes cross as very likeable but a rather comes personality with many difficulties.
100. Freaks, Geeks and Asperger Syndrome by Luke Jackson. Another account by a young boy of growing up with Asperger Syndrome. Interesting but I don't think it told me anything new.

No comparison cote. It was actually kinda scary. I found myself walking around imagining everything being subsumed by water. It was quite visceral for me in that regard.

ooh a espionage thriller, sounds good Stokey will check it out properly later on...

wilting - I enjoyed Flood, too. I haven't read Ark but I definitely will one day (soon).

I found it to be a far more credible apocalyptic / post-apocalyptic read than Station 11 and the like and was surprised to read in Postscript that it was not an impossible scenario.