50 Books Challenge 2023 Part Ten

Happy with my lot. Some heavily hinted for and some a surprise. MN influence is apparent!

Oh, and Christmas greetings everyone!

@PepeLePew I enjoyed The Secret River too and generally like Kate Grenville as a writer. You know there's a sequel? Called Sarah Thornhill. It's the daughter's story.

Two books for me, both of which I asked for, but I also had generous Amazon vouchers and a book token, so some further whittling of the ever-growing wishlist can take place.

I'm hoping the 12 Days of Kindle will happen this year although frankly who knows what the hell's going on with kindle deals these days.

A colleague gifted me Betty and Cleopatra and Frankenstein which I have on Kindle already but appreciate. She also included A General Theory of Oblivion which I don’t have and wasn’t on my radar, but the blurb says ‘the light detachment and readability of Louis de Bernieres…’

As you can see I am a LdB fan, my DC for the first time ever bought me a gift without input from DH, though I did tell them that my favourite living writer has a new book out in hardback, so I am excited to read LdB again.

DH was less courageous in trying to buy me a book, but delivered a substantial Waterstones voucher so I will find myself a day to potter around Gower Street or Piccadilly I think.

Nice work @JaninaDuszejko ’s DH! Hope you enjoy reading them.

I’ve finished four books over the last few days- most of which were novellas/ short stories- but I’m going to count them to try and make 160. I’ve also read one of my best reads of the year.
153 The Lover Silvia Moreno-Garcia
A short tale by the author of Mexican Gothic (which I didn’t like). This is a dark fairy tale about a dissatisfied girl living with her overbearing sister at the edge of the woods. Short and atmospheric. I enjoyed it.

154 North Woods by Daniel Mason
A series of vignettes all set in the same place and covering themes of time, change, man’s impact on the world and American history. Each tale has a different tone and style and they intersect in different ways. The writing (especially the nature writing) is sublime. There’s a hefty dose of magic realism (which I normally hate) and some parts are shocking, others moving and others outright hilarious. All of it made me think. I’ve read a lot of good books this year but this one could be best of all. Highly recommended.

155 Standing by the Wall- Mick Herron
A short Slough House story, this one partly centred around Rodney Ho, but ultimately on Lamb, as they all are in some way. It was fine, no great shakes.

156 Small Things like These by Claire Keegan
Much reviewed so not a lot to add. The writing is beautiful. The story has plenty to recommend it. I too am one of those who did my inter cert in 1989, so think the historical era is slightly off. I think Foster is her best book so far.

I have We, The Drowned but it's sat unread for years!

Yeah, DH didn't know what to buy me so went with the safe option of books from my wishlist so he's responsible for most of these.

What a haul! @JaninaDuszejko

Really?! I'm so overdue a reread - it's 5, 6, and 7 I can't face!

Merry Christmas everyone! I did very well this year. No influence from you lot at all on my wishlist.

@EineReiseDurchDieZeit i seem to remember all the time turners get destroyed in the battle at the office of mysteries 😬

I also put Burntcoat in my bolds this year

I don't feel particularly ill. Like getting over a cold with a weird but mild sense of being a bit wonky - it's happened each time I've had COVID so that's what made me do a test. Nothing like the great horror that was March 2020, though.

No one really buys me books either. I have a Celia Fremlin I put in my stocking and a book called Rules by Lorraine Dalston which DP gave me because as he said, I like rules. I have no books currently on the go so am trying to decide which to pick up next while I mourn the end of The Secret River.

It might have been your review that prompted me to get round to ordering it from the library Stokey - definitely someone on here.

Happy Christmas lovely book people.

I'm another one that people are too scared to buy books for but I got a bookmark from DD1. I also gifted lots of YA books to the DDs who were very pleased with their haul. I may have to join them.

@Sadik I thought Burntcoat was excellent. She fits so much into a short book.

Just one book here which DP knew I wanted. DD was always my top surprise book buyer, but sadly the combination of her having left home & me reading a lot on kindle / e-library (so DP can't check shelves) means she doesn't have confidence I won't have already read things. However, my library haul plus kindle bargains are keeping me well occupied :)

98. The Lost Rainforests of Britain by Guy Shrubsole
    Lovely book about the fragments of temperate rainforest, remnants of the original wildwood, that remain along the west coast of Britain. Like The Butterfly Year that I read in summer, this is definitely a book to make you slow down & look at the world differently. It was conveniently also the perfect read for a wet December in west Wales, & I'm now planning my holiday walks to visit local woodlands & have dug out lichen & fern identification guides lurking on our bookshelves.

99. Burntcoat by Sarah Hall
    This is told in the first person by sculptor Edith Hall, who knows that she will die shortly from the resurgence of a virus caught during a global pandemic.
    
    Where Hall's previous books The Carhullan Army and The Wolf Border centred the Cumbrian landscape, this is essentially a novel about relationships & art. Short, intense & powerful, it's one that will stay with me (as the other two have).

I'm still hoping to hit 100 this year before doing my top reads.

I did pretty well on the books front:

• Holly by Stephen King
• The Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub
• Step Aside Pops by Kate Beaton (graphic novel)
• The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy (clothbound classic)
• The Outsider by Albert Camus (clothbound classic)

I also got Amazon vouchers (which will go on books) and a Thirsk University T shirt (one for the St Mary's fans 😊)

The whole veil thing annoys me because she tricks us into thinking he’s not’Just dead’ as it were.

It's always annoyed me Sirius and his preventable death, had Harry confided in him properly he wouldn't have died

A) I don’t think Sirius is actually dead in Prisoner, but he is in Order

B) I think it’s more respect than friendship

I got Gulag and Last Train to Istanbul but the big surprise was a Kindle Paperwhite signature. I mentioned back I June that I was worried my Voyage was getting a bit slow

So

a) they used the time turner to save Sirius in Prisoner Of Azkaban, why couldn't they do this in Order Of The Phoenix?

b) Harry's established friendship with Mad Eye Moody is based on a lie as he was always Barty Crouch Jnr. So how come they have a friendship later, he should be a stranger to Harry really.

Both things annoy me

Ask away @EineReiseDurchDieZeit