50 Book Challenge 2013 -The Sequel!

[CardiffUniversityNetballTeam]

Morning all,

As the old thread here is nearly full, I have created a shiny new one for your delight and delectation.

Sign in and update your progress here!

I'm Cardiff and I've nearly finished book 16, so I'm very behind as to be in track we should be approaching 25 by now. Where is everyone else up to?

30. The Mystery on the Blue Train, Agatha Christie (inspired by another thread on AC). Jewel thieves, male impersonators, foreign women who are no better than they should be and - appalled gasp - Jews. Rather enthralling as a period piece.

31. A Walk with Jane Austen, Lori Smith. The writer is an American evangelical Christian who came to the UK and visited places associated with JA. I thought her conservative and religious background gave her a useful perspective on JA: the importance of doing the expected thing, getting married and being a mother, what it's like to have a major crush on a man you barely know and weave all sorts of fantasies around him etc. I liked the realism of the travel - grotty B&Bs and late-running buses. That said, I didn't find her religious musings all that engaging, and it does fall into that category of American female writers who are all "Wow! Look at me being all daring and having a great big adventure!" when they are doing something fairly ordinary.

32. Alexandria, the Last Nights of Cleopatra, Peter Stothard. Another combination of memoir and travel, with a bit of history thrown in. While this is a genre I like, this particular effort didn't really work. It's mostly about the sayings and doings of his mysterious minders in Egypt plus musings about an old school friend who recently died. While those are potentially interesting subjects, in practice I found the book rather dull.

33. Currently nearing the end of Cat Among the Pigeon, Agatha Christie.

I haven't made a proper list but can I add please? I am finding it very useful for book recommendations. Here are some I have read this year, prob not all, def not in order....

1. The 100 yo man who jumped....
2. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
3. Gone Girl
4. The Ocean at the end of the Lane. I adored this
5. A Monster Calls
6. You had me at hello
7. May contain nuts
8. A Casual Vacancy
9. Life Death and Vanilla Slices

10. Having a lovely time 11. The Snow Child 12. The Uninvited 13. Is it just me? 14. Kind of cruel 15. Making of us 16. Me before you 17. Revenge of the tide 18. The vanishing act of Esme Lennox 19. The vintage teacup club 20. A streetcat named Bob 21. The man who forgot his wife 22. Dearest rose 23. I can make you hate

Currently reading Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. And looking for a few more suggestions for my upcoming holiday....

27. Tripwire (Jack Reacher #3) - Lee Child

Another day on the beach, another beach read. Great for that purpose, too.

read up to part two in the 2 days after i posted about starting her fearful symmetry and havent had a chance to pick it up again (damn headaches!) until today...

just came to post my fave line in a book ever!!... "is it sad to fancy david tennant when you're dead?" ha!

enjoying it so far... will hopefully be done by the weekend

29. Hilary Mantel - Bring Up The Bodies. Better when read in large chunks, but was grim reading, knowing that all those people died because of the king's need for a legitimate male heir.

I'm going to be reading something light and frothy next to counteract it.

30. When First They Met - Debbie Macomber. The kindest thing I can say about this romantic short story was that it featured a recipe for biscotti.

A damning verdict indeed! Hope they're tasty biscotti at least. I've read books where I haven't even got that much from them...

31. Aim High - Tanni Grey Thompson. Inspirational advice as part of the Quick Reads project in Wales, a joint venture between the Basic Skills Agency and the Welsh Books Council. A free kindle download.

nicknametaken at least the DM short story was a free download too.

32. Woof Hall - Hilarity Mental. Parody of the royal romance as if written by a foul mouthed, horny teenager.

Meant to add, it was another free download.

47. The Glass Room - Anne Cleeves

Nearly at 50!

19. A Midnight Clear by William Wharton.

Set towards the end of WW2 in the Ardennes forest where a platoon of American GIs are camped out in an abandoned chateau. A beautiful, haunting anti-war war story. I would really recommend it.

Feel like throwing a party and waving a few flags for ...
49) Leo Tolstoy- Anna Karenina
That was three long weeks but one I've been meaning to read for a while.

33. The Innocent - M R Hall. A prequel to The Coroner, a Jenny Cooper crime short.
34. The Golden Egg - Donna Leon. The latest Brunetti novel in her magnificent series, it's a long muse on identity and ethics.

35. The Turtle Boy - Kealan Patrick Burke. Winner of the Bram Stoker Award and quite creepy. Free download as it's the first story in a series.

Finished book 30: Ian McEwan's "Sweet Tooth".

I loved it. It had me hooked from the start. Definitely a must read for fans of "Atonement". I think I actually prefer this one.

I'm looking for recommendations for other Ian McEwan books if anyone has any?

Book 31 is Lisa Jewell "Before I Met You"

28. Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I know I'm a bit late to the party on this one, but I absolutely loved it. Possibly my favourite book this year.

34. The Istanbul Puzzle, Laurence O'Bryon. I have a fondness for this genre - ancient artefact uncovered, murders, being chased by bad guys through exotic locations, blah de blah. This is a rather paint-by-numbers version, though, and it fizzles out rather pointlessly at the end.

35. After the Funeral, Agatha Christie.

36. The Hive, Gill Hornby. I'm sure we'll be seeing threads on this, as the topic is quite Mumsnetty. Clumsy use of metaphor - there is an actual hive and a conversation of what will happen to the queen bee. My main quarrel was with the character of Georgie, a woman so bovine she has to produce another child because she doesn't know what to do with herself when the rest are at school. All fine and well as a study of pathology, but deeply irritating when the author holds her up as some kind of model of instinctive womanhood. The dialogue isn't as witty as the author seems to think. On the plus side, I quite enjoyed a couple getting wildly aroused during a quiz night.

36. The Main Line Murders - Sonia Kilvington. Patchy and disjointed psychological thriller. Not recommended.

NicknameTaken - If you like that genre, I would recommend Jason Goodwin who writes murder mysteries in Ottoman era Istanbul, where the detective is a eunuch. Interesting and impressively correct re history & detail.

13. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce - really enjoyed it although it wad quite predictable.

Now reading:
14. Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson - can only read it at a certain workplace so it will take me a while to finish it.
15. The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb

Book 65 Gangsta Granny by David Walliams. Bedtime story for DD. Very good - we loved it!

Wednesday - I read Ian McEwan's Enduring Love recently. I'd recommend that - completely engrossing.

Thanks, Cote, I've read most of that series (Janissary Tree etc) but it's a good reminder to go back and see if I've missed any.

Currently on (37) The Letters of Jane Austen. I'm enjoying it as an evocation of the very early 19th century, and there's a palpable warmth between the sisters.