26-ish books 2024

19. The Liars - Naomi Joy 6/10 An easy fast-paced read, lots of drama - not really my cup of tea though. 20. Affinity - Sarah Waters 8/10 I really enjoyed this. I only started reading Sarah Waters this year, this was my 3rd - all great books so far! 21. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin 7/10 I mostly enjoyed this, I can see what the author was doing with the characters, their journeys and their relevance in the world of gaming etc I prefer characters to have much more depth though.

13. American Dirt by Janine Cummins

Loved this, god it was tense, fabulous.

Oh I adored this book

9. The Rotters Club by Jonathan Coe. I had read this before, over a decade ago but was on the mood to read it again after watching the TV drama This Town. The prologue and epilogue didn't work for me but that's only a few pages. Otherwise I really enjoyed it. I liked how it works in a fair bit of social history / commentary without it being too laboured. A good balance between daft teenage (and some adult) worries and serious events. I plan to read the sequel.

17. The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy

Thank you to the PP who mentioned this. I have had it on my kindle for years and for some reason not started it. Its beautiful and sad and thought provoking.

In my usual way, I found it difficult to get in to but once I did (sometimes it helped to listen to it than read it) I fell in love with it.

Had a bit of a dry spell of reading which annoys me as I love it so much. I think when I feel busy and overwhelmed I tend to do things like scroll on mumsnet because I don't have the attention span. But, its exactly then I could do with being lost in a story.

Going to look back for inspiration my next read.

16 the Martian chronicles - Ray Bradbury

Picked up when on holiday so slim pickings in the English language section of the bookshop but I really loved Farenheight 451 and DS said he’d read it after me. Very interesting and tragic read, feels incredibly prescient considering what the world is becoming

This has just reminded me to read my copy of the last book in the Cazalet series.
Love the Cazalets!

12. The Foundling – Stacey Halls.
    Did this on audible and whilst it was really good – and narrator was fine – I didn’t enjoy at as much as Mrs England. I was a bit distracted though so don’t necessarily take that to the bank. It’s a great story and lots of lovely historical titbits.

13. The Nightingale – Kristin Hannah.
    I’ve had this lying around forever and having finally got round to reading, and enjoying, her Vietnam War themed ‘The Woman’, I picked it up. I LOVED IT. Two sisters trying to survive occupied France in WW2. It’s just a really bloody good story that sucks you in and drops you in the middle of a little French town in Nice. I was captivated.

14: The Light Years by Elizabeth Howard
What a lovely read and I am so pleased I have the rest of the series on my bookshelf.

13 . Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty

Wouldn't have chosen to read this particularly but got gifted it so took it on holiday as an easy beach read - which is what it was. Typical Liane Moriarty- though not as good as Big Little Lies which is my favourite of hers. 3 stars out of 5.

15 Until August - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

a novella, an unpublished lost novel his children published posthumously. Needed something to rid me of the last boom quickly. I haven’t read any of his books in years and it was perfect, I need to go back and read others that I haven’t by him

Finished The Paper Palace

Loved it, especially the ending!

I have just started a book my DF got me and I don't think I'll finish it - it's also boring - it's a mystery set in a country where we have some distant roots, but also in the US among those kinds of people who are more (insert nationality here) than in (old country). It's full of cliches and overblown language and I want to like it for his sake but I'm not sure I'll make it past chapter 2!
I am currently learning the language of this country on Duolingo and feel that might be more than enough.

14 Trust by Hernan Diaz. Boring, waste of time. Why are Pulitzer Prize winning books by men always rubbish?

I enjoyed that book (as in, found it really interesting and informative, and it chimed with things I'd noticed but not quite clicked).

8. Why I'm No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge. Good overview, starting with some historical background. Most interesting on feminism and class I thought. Her points about class and the different spins politicians put on the white working class /poor was something I hadn't thought through, when in most areas the working class are not white and neither are they the poorest.
It ties in with Chavs (mentioned above) in with the discussion about politicians scapegoating sectors of society.

No 15, To Sir With Love, ER Braithwaite.
Loved it. Really moving, he was very brave in a kind of "better get on with it" way but I'm sure loads of others went through similar.
It was at the same era/location as Call The Midwife and some things that are glossed over in that are dealt with in this.
I need to look up what happened to him and his wife.

My favourite book of this year. Highly recommended!

17. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart.

I have had this book for a couple of years, never really feeling quite ready to read it. Finally got there, loved it and cried a lot too.

12. The Woman Who Lied. Claire Douglas.

OK, very readable, quite convoluted

I've heard so many good things about The Mercies, can't wait to read it.

Currently reading, and enjoying, The Paper Palace.

It was lovely! My aunt is going to Finland (northern) for a photography tour and I recommended it to her too.

This is one of my top 3 books of all time ever on the world always

Absolutely!