I haven't read much for a long time, help!

[Dancergirl]

I hope you knowledgable lot can point me I the right direction!

I've got out of the habit of reading and now don't know where to start. There are loads of classics I've never read but they all seem too daunting at the moment. But I don't want anything too chick-litty either.

Can anyone recommend some books to get going with? I'm not even sure what type of books I like its been so long. I used to read Ruth Rendell in the past but found them too slow burning. I suppose I'm looking for well written books but not too heavy going if that makes sense.

Any ideas?

Here's a few ideas - The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion, The Shadow if the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon, The Spinning Heart - Donal Ryan, Three Men in a Boat - Jerome K Jerome, Tigers in Red Weather - Lisa Klaussmann, Brooklyn - Colm Toibin, The Color Purple - Alice Walker, The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters, This is How it Ends - Kathleen MacMahon.

You may find something there to start you off again

That should be The Shadow Of The Wind.

One more - The Light Between Oceans - M L Stedman.

You could also try short stories to start with. I've just started the new Edna O'Brien book of short stories. But I would always choose a good selection of short stories over a novel. Alice Munro, Helen Simpson and the late Carol Shields and Elizabeth Taylor are my favourite authors. But if you loved Ruth Rendell (crime?) books before how about Agatha Christie?

For easy reading but a step above chick lit I'd recommend Sarah Moss, Anne Tyler, Maggie O'Farrell and Penelope Lively.

Recently I've enjoyed Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan and The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

For classics that are not too heavy going, how about To Kill a Mockingbird or Jane Austen.