What's Everyone Reading in the New Year?

[expatinscotland]

I've started w/Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

"The Balkan Trilogy" by Olivia Manning. Got it from the library. All about English colony in Bucharest at time of WW2. Doing wonders for my Romanian.
Also just read "The Partner" by John Grisham, which is classic tosh, and have "Anna of the 5 towns" by Arnold Bennett lined up next.
DS1 (7) is reading me "The Deviant Strain", a Doctor Who novelisation from the last series.

reading my way through lots of christmas present books. this week read:
"The Time Travellers wife" - liked it,

"Haven't stopped dancing yet" (story of growing up as sri lankan in 60's/70's London) - quite enjoyable but fluffy

"Seeking Rapture" by Kathryn something - obsessive account of motherhood, too obsessive for me.

moving on to a new Margaret Atwood which is always good.

If you like books that feature food, I really enjoyed "Tender at the Bone" and "Garlic and Sapphires" by Ruth Reichl. I have yet to read her book that comes between these two "Comfort me with Apples".

I recently read "The Shipping News" and loved it. That led me to "Neap Tide" by Australian author Dorothy Hewitt.

I'm currently reading some Australian crime fiction - Garry Disher and Gabrielle Lord.

"The Balkan Trilogy" was made into "Fortunes of War" a TV series in the late eighties, with Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh. I loved it, but have not read the books yet.

D'oh, it's John Coldstream not 'Drinkwater', lol!

Oh, so many books, so little time.....

Dh bought me 4 books for Christmas so I'm working my way through them.

I finished Gloria Hunniford's book about Caron Keating last night (not a book I would have chosen for myself, I have to say). I found it very moving at the beginning and the end but found myself getting quite annoyed with Caron Keating, which is a terrible thing to say. She was rather a difficult woman, reading between the lines.

He also got me the Alan Bennett book, and Boy and Going Solo by Roald Dahl (I've only read his fiction). Don't know which one to start next.

DD (7) is mad on Roald Dahl and insisted we buy Boy from a secondhand bookshop last summer. Strangely she has not read it yet, preferring The Giraffe, Pelly and Me etc.

balkan trilogy v v good

Jan, Bollocks to Alton Towers is written by an ex-boyf of mine (I have to get that in whenever possible...) Are you enjoying it?

balkan trilogy is fabulous. as is sequel the Levant trilogy. never been able to face up to reading any more of hers as feel would be a disappointment after these two. has anyone read any other olivia manning?

hox, The Accidental from the Booker prize thing is good, I think. Interesting, certainly.

Which book won, anyway?

this year's booker winner was "The Sea" by John Banville.

i really liked the accidental nqc - it's the only one of the set i had already, & i have happy memories of reading in the garden this summer whilst heavily pregnant. have you read any more ali smith? hotel world is good too imo.

Hey, thanks for pointers, mummytosteven.
Have you read any Pernille Rygg? I found The Golden Section alongside the Indridason on the Scandi-thriller shelf. Haven't started it yet. She's Norwegian.

No - she's one of the nextish ones on my list - so many books, so little time . I tried reading a Norwegian thriller recently - Writing on the Wall by Gunnar Staaleson but I gave up a quarter of the way through as it was so ploddingly dull, and my friend who read it said it didn't improve at all!

I've never read her, never heard of her, even. I'm about half-way through, and if I still like it half as much at the end, I will be buying more.

She just conveys each (very different) character's point of view so well! And makes it so easy to identify with them, while still seeing them as fallible etc etc. I really do like books with unreliable/fallible narrators.

it's really well written isn't it. and gripping.

The Accidental just nobbled a Whitbread award, in the novel category

No, it's the first Olivia Manning I've read and I'm really enjoying it - am about half way through. Will also try "Levant Trilogy" after this thread!

I'm reading The Sweetest Dream by Doris Lessing. I'm on page 217 and the jury's still out - it's about the sixties and communism and I'm finding it a bit hard going at the moment. I have ordered The Fifth Child from the library (having read We Need to Talk About Kevin last year).

I have just read Instances of the Number Three by Salley Vickers, which was fab. Lots of Shakespeare in it which went a bit over my sleep-deprived head, but very good.

Have you read The Good Terrorist by Lessing? It's not hard going, I enjoyed it. Actually it'd make a good book club book - lots to discuss, and topical of course.

This is the first book I've ever read by DL, Fauve. I like her style though, I will probably see if I get hold of some more in the future.

Hey Fauve, I've got Briefing for a Descent into Hell by Lessing, if you would like to borrow it?

Is it any good?

After many false starts am now into Jonathan Strange and Mr Morrell and - gulp - enjoying it!