50 Book Challenge 2018 Part Two

THanks Satsuki, that was me! Also re kindle sale I would wholeheartedly recommend Frederica, but I found Call Me By Your Name a real disappointment after the film.

Someone mentioned Westerns, sorry I couldn’t find you again scrolling back - but I really recommend True Grit if you want to give one a go. Excellent female protagonist and well written. I’ve got Lonsome Dove and Butcher’s Crossing (by the chap who wrote Stoner) lined up to read this year, both in that genre.

I quite liked Death and the Penguin - I think there was a sequel too? Penguin Lost or something.

tarahumara oh well, I’m no scientist!

piggy The Secret History is quite an easy page turner once you get past the first bit, I don’t love it as some do though.

There is a Valentine’s Kindle sale, so fans of books written by women for women, about women, with romance themes are in luck

I saw a couple that might be of interest here - Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld, her modern reworking of the Pride and Prejudice story, Federica by Georgette Heyer and Call Me By Your Name - the film adaptation of which is up for Best Picture at the Oscars this year.

9. Death and the Penguin by Andrey Kurkov

A somewhat bleak political satire set in post-Soviet Ukraine in the mid-90s, featuring a newspaper obituary writer and his pet penguin. Society is in a state of collapse, corruption and gangsters are taking over everything, human life is increasingly valueless, and the lead character is caught unwittingly in a deadly conspiracy. The penguin is a humanising touch, as a silent observer and reminder of the absurdity of life in those circumstances. A good book, though rather depressing (I gather things have in many ways only got worse in Ukraine since the novel was written twenty years ago).

Oh no 3 days with no internet! But I have finished 9. The Medieval murderers-The Tainted Relic which was better than I thought it would be with lots of footpads and naughty monks. Reading Eye in the Sky by PK Dick at the moment. People get smited by God for doing wrong with locusts and things. Its all a bit crazy but I can't wait to see how it pans out.

11 (because I seem to have misnumbered earlier) - The Vanity Fair Diaries by Tina Brown

I’ve been listening to this as an audiobook which was perfect because it let me fade in and out of the detail at times. I found her quite a sympathetic character when she’s talking about balancing work and motherhood, negotiating raises and discussing being a powerful woman in a male environment. And the 80s excess is great, as is the name dropping. Trump looms large and it did make me wonder how much editing she’d done to reflect current circumstances.

12 A River in Darkness by Masaji Ishikawa

The story of a Japanese born Korean who like many returned to North Korea when Kim Il-Sung promised paradise on Earth. Although it was a quick read and I’ve read several memoirs by N Korean refugees it was notable for its descriptions of what hunger feels like and does to a person, which were striking and utterly harrowing. It wasn’t the most well written book but that’s ok. I hope the money he makes from it helps him - his life in Japan doesn’t sound a whole lot better in some ways, despite the much improved material circumstances.

It really enjoyed the first Shopoholic book- it was funny and had a streak of reality- but I think she has squeezed it to death now. Once married to the millionaire it lost the “buy 3 for 2 in boots, plus get my points, then that’s half price” kind of detail, which I had liked.

The Herald Mage stories were definitely some of the first positive m/m romance stories around in that genre- I think I would describe them as slash, before slash fanfic became a widespread thing. I have hesitated to use the word gay, as as with a lot of slash, I think it fits with being written by women, primarily for women readers, another interesting genre.

I went through a Sophie Kinsella phase a few years ago, and read a lot of the Shopaholic books then.
I think the main character in the Shopaholic books (Becky) is one of the most annoying characters I’ve ever come across. I reckon in real life someone like that would have alienated her husband and everyone else close to her long ago.
It’s especially annoying because I suspect Kinsella wants the reader to think that Becky’s really a dippy but adorable person who deserves everyone’s affection and a million second chances.

I am still gluey/fluey and hopeless and have raided DD’s bookshelf and read my way through some of The Princess Diaries (bittersweet memories of reading them to her) and the last 3 Shopaholic books. God, they are annoying. What an irritating character. I have no discernment clearly because I couldn’t put them down.

1. The Silkworm Robert Galbraith - mixed reviews for this series on here I know but I’ve enjoyed both books, this one possibly slightly more than the first. It’s all a bit daft, and could do with tighter editing, but an enjoyable read.

ScribblyGum I loved Restoration. The fact that Merivel's a bit of a tit makes him quite relatable, a bit like Pepys in that respect. I hope someone will get me Merivel for my birthday - have moved it to the top of my wish list.

6. The Road Home by Rose Tremain Lev is an Eastern European migrant worker fresh off the coach in London, and with little idea of how he will make a living. He has left his mother and daughter back home, his wife having died of cancer. From spending his first night on the streets, his circumstances gradually improve, but the fate of those he's left behind seems only to get worse.

The world of the economic migrant feels very real, although perhaps Lev's continued ability to land on his feet is perhaps a bit unbelievable. Lev news modern British life as an outsider, giving the opportunity for a critical look at modern art and restaurant culture. A good balance of light humour to contrast against some of Lev's starker experiences.

I read the early Valdemar books when they came out in the late 80s / early 90s. You didn't really get YA lit in the same way back then really I don't think, but I'd say I was a typical reader in being late teens / early 20s. Anne McCaffrey's Pern books aimed at very much the same readership I guess.
I know it's very fade-to-black, but it's also worth remembering that the gay sex in the Last Herald Mage trilogy was pretty groundbreaking back then for mainstream fantasy.

There's a lot of YA -ish books about that do seem to be aimed at the 'next step' readers, bit more grown up (so lots of sex) but still not too complex with a big dollop of 'angst'.

My next 2 books (I'm reading much slower than many of you)
5. Sea Fever - Ann Cleeves - I've read her Shetland series and just saw this in the library and picked it up. It was written in the early 90s, and rather than a police detective, it's a private detective series.

A 20-something man's parents hire the private detective to ask him to come home , officially to discuss the sale of a family business, but really because his mother misses him. They know via a recipt that's been sent to their home that he'll be on a bird watching boat trip holiday. There's rumours that he's involved in the drugs trade (noone really knows how he comes by his money). On the trip he's murdered. Quite a good murder mystery. Well written, although I know very little about bird watching so think I missed elements.

Which brings me to the terrible:
6. According to YES - Dawn French . Where to start with this shite. It's a book club choice so I was stuck reading it.

A jolly, fat Cornish woman (ex primary teacher) with a charity shop wardrobe, moves to New York and becomes a nanny for a rich Upper East side family, looking after the younger grandsons, who have moved back into the grandparents' apartment with their dad, who is divorcing their Mother. The mother has sent them off to live with their Dad, having no access for months because the boys want their Dad's attention - this is used as proof she's a better parent than the Dad because "she puts the kids first" .

Our "kookie" chubby English nanny fucks everyone, which is fine because she's helping them discover who they truly are. And anyway, the gran of the family is thin and cold and likes her staff who are paid to clean the apartment, to keep the apartment clean - so it's competely ok to shag her husband, grandson and son (in that order, this is the 18 year old, still at school grandson, completely fine for a late 30s Nanny who's an ex-primary school teacher to do, and the son case is all a bit rape-y, but hey, he learns about himself...)

Just don't bother.

1. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin.

A good read although I struggled to care about the characters in the beginning. This is the story of the Lindbergh marriage narrated by Charles Lindbergh's wife, Anne Morrow. They were the 'Princess Diana' of their day - mobbed by the press wherever they went. It's a fascinating story. By all accounts he was a brilliant but complicated man and I take my hat off to her for staying married to him for her whole life. If she'd been on the Relationship's board on MN, she'd have been told to LTB without a shadow of a doubt .

Next up - I'm off to the Himalayas again; this time with Ghosts of Everest

I think a lot of King could be considered YA Clash- Carrie, It, maybe The Stand- so not too far fetched a thought, depending on your definition of a children’s book.

Chilli, I think most of the Valdemar books were intended as young adult- 14-18 bracket, and they mostly seem to cover childhood up to early adulthood.

Cheddar, I love DWJ (Howls Moving Castle is possibly my favourite book ever!), so as you can see I am on the side of those who enjoy children’s lit- Cote, even if you remember your own childhood, does it not interest you to read about the world from other child perspectives? I also often think writing for children is harder- you have generally more limited space, so have to use your words more precisely, you can’t rely on a significant pool of general knowledge to fill in any blanks, and you can’t add a ton of sex!

Mind you, I also like a bit of chick lit- I love Marion Keyes, Jilly Cooper, some Sophie Kinsella and Helen Fielding- I don’t go in for the trauma so much as humour I suppose. But I think Chick lit is often a way to dismiss the writing of women, about women- although some is just the current version of mills and boon.

And I also like Jack Reacher and detective novels, hence 13) Artists in Crime by Ngaio Marsh. The best of hers I have read so far, murder and an ounce of romance- strong similarities to Heyers Death in the Stocks, must look up which came first! However, I did not like Gone Girl at all so am not sure I will give Sharp Objects a go.

It’s not surprising I don’t fit much literature in- I think the only genre I never read is Westerns (do they still exist?). But it is surprisingly hard to write a good page turner, and I think all the authors mentioned above have achieved things that are not easy.

Just to add to the childhood memory debate, Stephen king who I think is one of the best writers on childhood (although his books are, of course clearly not kids books) said in the autobiography bit that he doesn't remember a great deal about his childhood bar a few specific incidents.

I know writing from a child's perspective is different from writing a book for children, however given that he writes about childhood so brilliantly,
I wonder what a kids book written by Stephen King would be like...

Book number 9 Night shift by Stephen King.

One of his early short story collections and a really decent read. None of the stories are as good as survivor type which may be the best short story ever written, but bar one, the stories are good old fashioned horror stories without too much navel-gazing or 'deeper meaning'.

Also enjoying nix - well worth a quid I think. Whilst I agree that the writer captures childhood very well ala King, he also reminds me of someone else who I can't put my finger on.

1. (I think!) Michael Connelly - The Wrong Side of Goodbye

Gove and co

*toomuch^ I suspect I will struggle too but it's one of those books I feel I ought to have read...

I think I liked The Little Stranger/ Friend or whatever it's called but can't remember anything about it! Suspect style over substance!

I am proud to say I have read All Quiet in both German and English and seen the film! I used to teach it but, no thanks to Gove and co , such luxuries of choice no longer exist.

Piggywaspushed I have said before that I have tried and failed with The Secret History. I will try again just to get the thing off my Kindle!

22. All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque- just wow. Don't think I have the word to review this stunning novel. Written by an ex soldier who served in WW1. Brutal, honest and heartbreaking. I know I am late to the party with this one but it was worth the wait.

11. Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey

I can't actually decide whether these are meant to be children's or possibly YA books or not. They are very lightweight fantasy, quite short, and pretty simplistic. Certainly the heroine in this trilogy and the hero of the first trilogy I read are quite young at the start of their stories but the amount of sex (implied rather than described in this one, but more overt in the first set) suggests the intended audience is probably not children.

Anyway, this one centres on a 13-year-old girl from a regimented society where women are intended only to be wives or in religious orders and are of no value. When told that she is to be married, Talia runs away and encounters a Companion, a mystical horse-like creature that Choses its human counterpart who then trains as a Herald. The Heralds are the protectors of the Queen and kingdom of Valdemar and each of them has a Gift which is almost but not quite like magic. Talia is Chosen by Rolan and taken by him to be trained at the Collegium, discovering that because she is partnered with Rolan she automatically is given a high position in the court of the Queen. In the course of her training as a Herald she comes to learn her own Gifts but also that there is treachery in the court and she is the only one who can search it out.

Sorry not to be able to corroborate your theory, Satsuki, but I was an early, avid reader and have few vivid early childhood memories.

Toomuch, regarding The Neapolitan quartet, the first book builds slowly and it’s my least favourite of all four, but I still liked it and I hope you enjoy them too.

I think lots of people forget what it’s like to be a child. My DH has hardly any memories of childhood. I’ve got some but certainly none from before the age of 5. My brother was born when I was 4.5 and I have no memory of it at all! My childhood memories are more of time and place rather than emotions, as Toomuch pointed out. I remember my emotions as a teenager vividly, but from childhood, not much.

Amazon tells me that Sharp Objects is being made into an HBO mini-series with Amy Adams.