Absolutely Unputdownable Books

[spacemonkey]

Just interested to know what books mumsnetters found absolutely impossible to put down ...

Here are some of mine:

• Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
• anything by Jane Austen
• Villette - Charlotte Bronte
• Diary of a Nobody - George & Weedon Grossmith
• If This Is A Man - Primo Levi
• His Dark Materials Trilogy - Philip Pullman
• The Wrong Boy - Willy Russell
• Moab is my Washpot - Stephen Fry
• Things Can Only Get Better - John O'Farrell
• The Consolations of Philosophy - Alain de Botton

and (ahem) all the Harry Potters

What are yours?

So what is it about please?

I've just read Riding in Cars with Boys by Bevery Donofrio. I could of read it in one sitting but unfortunately life didn't permit. Really enjoyed it, very different from the film, which I also enjoyed.

My favs at the moment are "The Other Boleyn Girl" by Phillipa Gregory, historical yes but raunchy and racey and you really feel as if you are a part of what's going on. Also anything by Margaret Forster.

Can anyone tell me please???

"There be dragon's" by Sharron Penman, read when I was 16, and gav me a huge love of British history

and The lovely bones, can't remember whose it's by but was a lovely unputdownable book.

YES YEs the lovely bones, read in one day. and also the curious incident of the dog. and also if no one speaks of remarkable things...beautiful...oh i love unputdownable books!

Am bumping this for chinchilla cos I haven't got the book handy, am nearly tipsy and scared of giving too much away if i try and explain the plot!!

But you should read it anyway chinchilla....

chinchilla, its been a while since I read The Secret History, but what I rememebr is that there is a murder right at the start and you know who did it, so instead of wondering "who", you read the book wondering "why", which I loved. I seem to recall that the narrator falls in with a hugely glamorous set and is full of insecurity about why they are accepting him, a bit like the thingy Mr Ripley when someone doesnt fit in to the glamorous set and its so cringeworthy - nasty high school girls kind of stuff. Well thats what I rememeber of it - I also tried to read her second book but couldnt get into it - there is a family tragedy at the beginning and since ds was born I cant read anything involving things happening to children - gory ends for adults are fine, but children no!

Follow your heart by Susana Tamaro (wept from beginning to end!)

The Pilars of The Earth by Ken Follet (as long as the Bible, hence... couldn't do anything but reading for a week, I don't think I slept much in that week either, the book was with me at all hours )

Sleepers and Lord of the Rings The Two Towers. I couldnt put them down. The other two lotr books I find a bit hard to get into, but the second one is really good

I couldn't stop reading Sleepers either until I discovered that it probably isn't a true story after all. That ruined it a bit!

His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman - brilliant! Also Captain Corelli's Mandolin.

Earthly Powers - Anthony Burgess
The New Confessions - William Boyd
Most things by Ian McEwan
Anything by Martin Amis
Birdsong
Secret History
Poisonwood Bible
Margaret Attwood
Illywhacker - Peter Carey
Anyhting by Iain Banks
Jonathan Coe
and so many more.............
The only book I think I've ever actually read completely at one sitting was The Magus by John Fowles - it took a full 24 hours non-stop!

"Pillars of the Earth" - I'd forgotten all about that book, I loved it. The trouble with these threads is it not only keeps adding new books to my must read pile, it keeps reminding me of old goodies to reread (if only I had the time!). "Jackdaws" (Ken Follett too I think) was good.
And Homebird I love "Rebecca" and "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" too.
Other top favourites:
To kill a mockingbird - Harper Lee(?_
The Commitments trilogy - Roddy Doyle
Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
Pretty much anything by Evelyn Waugh
TOP trashier stuff (IMHO):
The Outlander series - Diana Gabaldon
The Stephanie Plum series - Janet Evanovich
Anything by India Knight or Rafaella Barker
And (I'd be a big liar if I didn't admit it) I adored Jilly Cooper's Riders when I was 14 and I still do. I'm not deep
All time favourite novels:
Far From the Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
The Go Between - LP Hartley (?)

Kittyb - Thanks! (And Moominmama86 for bumping me)

Great thread Spacemonkey, and yeah, there goes the bank balance.

Oh, YEESSS Sponge - The Magus! I just loved this book - read it some years ago now and nothing else quite compares. Was astonished you read this in one go - how on earth did you 'come down' after that? I remember I had to keep surfacing for a reality check - brilliant.

Also..
John Fowles - The Collector
F Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
This Side of Paradise
Emile Zola - Therese Raquin
Flaubert - Madame Bovary
John Steinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath
Stephen Fry -The Liar
Aldous Huxley - Brave New World
Colette - The Claudine Novels
PG Wodehouse - Everything
William Sutcliffe - Are You Experienced? (V funny)

There must be loads more I've read but it's all been submereged under baby stuff over the last few years. Just getting back to books again - oh joy.

can i add The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton

that man really knows how to express himself, he's my top fave writer

'The Shooting Party' by Isobel Colegate. Wait until Autumn for maximum atmospheric impact, then read it and weep. Utterly, utterly gorgeous.

Sorry, that should be IsAbel Colegate. The film, unusually, doesn't disappoint either.

I like easy reading -

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith (think its out of print now, its old but its absolute magic!)
Hawaii - James A Michener (Not actually read but heard its a must but this also seems to be out of print)
Jean Plaidy - particularly Murder Most Royal
Stephen King - The Stand was excellent as was The Tommyknockers and one of his short stories The Long Walk also recommended
John Grisham his last couple haven't been as good
Bill Bryson
Ben Elton
Nicci French

Just started Middlesex and I've got The Little Friend waiting but you lot have put me off that one! so I might skip it and go straight on to Rebecca as you seem to give that the thumbs up!

My faves:-

Oranges are not the Only Fruit (by Jeanette Winterson)
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlo Levi
Death at the Dance Hall (by Tony Hillerman)
Peyton Place by Grace Sartorius
Anything by Ian Rankin/Donna Leon

Rebecca is fab, i can lend it to you if you like. Phillapa Gregory books are great too especially The Queens fool and The other Bolyen9(sp) girl

Hawaii - James A Michener is on Amazon from £2.75, but it doesnt look like easy reading to me?

cp3 - thanks for that! why didn't I think of Amazon - doh! I know its a bit of a tome but comes highly recommended - may give it whirl if its that cheap!

JoolsToo, don't be put off the Little Friend...I LOVED it - it's definitely worth a try. I think you would probably know straightaway if you weren't going to enjoy it.