50 Book Challenge 2017 Part Three

"reading a children's book did not steal your brain cells; you were able to draw parallels with Anna Karenina. "

I have enough brain cells to last me a few of those, thankfully

I'm teasing you a bit - but to be fair I don't think anyone said it was for adults, but that it can be interesting reading such things as an adult for different reasons, certainly not
to be "challenged". I'm quite interested in the history of children's literature, what themes were fashionable etc. It's only as a adult that I've realised similar themes between The Secret Garden and Heidi, for example, and always mean to read them both again to see, but, as I think Tarahumara said, there are always so many other things I want to read. They don't take as much time though

You see cote - reading a children's book did not steal your brain cells; you were able to draw parallels with Anna Karenina. Now isn't that interesting?

Smiley fail! That sad face was supposed to be a

I haven't completely lost it just yet

1. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgkin Burnett

This was a book for small children that went on for 340 pages. No doubt you have all read it so I don't have to explain what it was about, but I hope we can at least agree that it could (and really should) be edited to a maximum of 100 pages.

Imho it was a garden variety (ha!) children's book, where good things happen in quick succession to make everything better by the end.

I'm really disappointed in you lot and can only assume that pretending this book would be appreciated by a middle-aged adult who likes complex brainhurty books was payback for some past grievance

I can understand rereading a childhood favourite because you miss it and want to evoke those feelings again or whatever, but there is no way, none whatsoever that anyone's convincing me that this is a book for adults as well as children.

Anna Karenina has exactly the same themes of finding purpose and happiness in life through hard work, working with nature, and connecting with fellow human beings. Why would I want to spend time on stuff written for kids who have only recently learned to read & write?

No problem Remus, it's just round the corner from the library and I had to go there anyway. Ordered Into The Silence. I have read it but it was a few years ago and I was in bed with flu so I want to re read.

Now reading To Kill a Mockingbird again. Definitely Young Adult.

6 The ADHD Effect on Marriage: Understand and Rebuild Your Relationship in Six Steps by Melissa Orlov.

Read this after seeing it on an ADHD Rec List. I would highly recommend it for anyone who has ADHD affecting their long term relationship, regardless of it is you with ADHD or your partner. Easy to access style but with the necessary bluntness. Plenty of humour but not a fun read because seeing the more painful aspects of your marriage and your own behaviour on paper isn't pleasant. Doesn't blame either party or suggest there are easy solutions, just that there are solutions. Particularly relevant to women because of how under-diagnosed we were in the past and how badly ADHD collides with the family organising and household running roles that are more likely to be seen as a woman's responsibility.

Now going to read some fiction! I deserve it especially as my TBR pile contains more Self Help books. Will be starting to use the tools in this book though.

Fanny Prices is a priss and a prig and needs to lighten up already. Mary Crawford is absolutely the noisy popular girl at school with the annoying loud laugh who all the boys fancy for no earthly reason. Edmund is too good for both of them and needs to run away with me.

I haven't read Sapiens, but I often find that sort of book really does need alternating with something lighter (or I really like non-fic on audio where I can listen while doing boring tasks).

Half way through Bitch in a Bonnet which is entertaining enough though a bit like listening to my mum going off on a rant while watching a bad Austen adaptation. Having just got to Mansfield Park I'm unsurprised but unimpressed by the fact that he loves Mary Crawford (the quintessential 'popular girl' at school) and doesn't appreciate Fanny Price.

The argument about children's books is interesting.

Until a few years ago, I would have been wholeheartedly on the YES side of the fence and I loved re-reading old childhood favourites.

But these days, what with work and kids and life in general meaning less time available for reading, I find that I have very little urge to pick up one of my old children's books. There's too much adult literature I haven't read yet! Which leads me to the conclusion that, possibly, I was enjoying them purely in a nostalgic way rather than because I was seeing them in a different light, or getting more out of them than I had as a child, or similar reasons given by other posters?

Yes, you're right remus, it does.

I'm struggling with Sapiens. It's very well written and extremely interesting but I feel like I need to be in a lecture hall to get the most out of it. My eyes keep wandering to the pile of fiction sitting on my TBR pile. I just can't get excited about Sapiens. Maybe I need to spend a good hour or so on it to make some progress rather than just ten minutes here and there.

I am missing fiction though!! I dare not mix it up with a novel as I know I will never pick it up again.

Just googled and was about to post exactly that, Satsuki! 'Kill' has a far better ring to it than 'murder' though - 'Kill your darlings' has that lovely singsongingly hypnotic 'L' alliteration to it.

Sorry, Stitches - missed your post.

Satsuki - would be interested to know where it originated. It's a great phrase.

Yes, again re North Water I didn't mind the grimness, but just felt it was a case of someone relying on gore to compensate in other areas.

Arthur Quiller-Couch here:

It is Quiller-Couch who originated the saying "kill your darlings":

If you here require a practical rule of me, I will present you with this: ‘Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it—whole-heartedly—and delete it before sending your manuscript to press. Murder your darlings.

I had King in mind because I've just read On Writing. I like his "egocentric scribbler" addition!

Crikey, I didn’t check the thread for a day or two, seems I’ve missed some interesting discussions. Among other things, I’ve been reading Peter Pan, so I think that hints at which side of the fence I fall on regarding children’s books . Personally, I see a good story as a good story, regardless of who the intended reader is. I find stories written for children relaxing and light, good for when I fancy a gentle read. I also find they work well on audio, as they’re a little shorter (I borrow mine digitally from the library, so have a limited time to finish them before they go back to the catalogue to then be spirited away to someone’s reserve list), and it’s not such a problem if I accidently zone out for a few seconds. I also wouldn’t want to miss out on great children’s stories that I didn’t get around to when I was young because I’m no longer the target audience .

Agree that The North Water is relentlessly grim, but I liked that. It seemed, to me, to be a fairly realistic portrayal of what it would have been like.

Now, back to Tinkerbell being grouchy and calling everyone a “silly ass.”

That's the full King quote I was thinking of, thanks remus. I don't think the original was Ginsberg though - it's been attributed to Faulkner, too, but it actually goes further back to someone writing a style guide. Writers have been variously trotting it out, and ignoring it, ever since! I'll Google.

Remus - that was me wondering if Goodnight Mister Tom was aimed at 13/14 year olds because that's how old I was when I did it at school.

Nothing you said!

Kill your darlings is from Allen Ginsberg, and King references it in his wonderful quote, "Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler's heart, kill your darlings."

I didn't say that Goodnight Mr Tom was aimed at 13/14 year olds - that was in reference to The Northern Lights.

Jennifer Ehle for e.g was only 24 though so there wasn't that much in it really. I thought she was good.

I also read Goodnight Mister Tom at primary school when we did a WWII topic, and that wasn't in my final year so would have been 8/9. Also Carrie's War.

Re Goodnight Mr Tom - I disagree that it is aimed at 13/14 year olds. We were reading it in the last year of primary school ( I remember this as I had to miss school due to an op so mum bought me my own copy!). Not saying that teenagers can't enjoy it of course!

Re P&P - I loved the 1995 adaptation but I think they were all a bit too old-looking for the characters they were playing. The Keira Knightley film had better casting age-wise.

Ah - to be more specific - 'life is shit' was his point

I suppose within what you said in your spoiler piece - the corruptibility of human nature, I agree with what you say, that is what he was trying to show, but I felt like he used too many violent set pieces to demonstrate it when he could have reached for something else, and I found it less effective than it might have been as a result.

Agree the descriptions were great and I'm not knocking them individually, but the same man was described as smelling of some degree of groin almost every time he made an entrance! I remember from last time How do repeated episodes of diarrhoea move the story forward? (only on this thread ...) Stephen King has a phrase, something like "kill your darlings". This guy kept every single gory darling in and it somewhat overpowered his story, for me anyway.