50 Book Challenge 2014 Part 3

[Southeastdweller]

Thread 3 of the 50 book challenge. Here are the previous threads...

The idea is to read 50 books in 2014 (or more!)

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/adult_fiction/1951735-50-Book-Challenge-2014

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/adult_fiction/2000991-50-Book-Challenge-2014-Part-2?

Hi everyone

Cote invited me to join this thread after seeing my 'scary books' thread, so I'd love to. I haven't read much for about 8 years, I have a DS who's 7 which says it all really I guess.

Anyhow, I decided to try the '52 Challenge' someone told me about, even if I didn't think I could read a book a week, but so far it's going wonderfully. I have used a lot of recommendations on various threads on here, and here is my current list for this year:

1. The Associate - James Patterson
2. The Double Comfort Safari Club - Alexander McCall Smith
3. The Bronze Horseman - Paullina Simons
4. Tatiana and Alexander - Paullina Simons
5. One moment, One morning - Sarah Rayner
6. Shift - Hugh Howie
7. Dust - Hugh Howie
8. The Summer Garden - Paullina Simons
9. The Light Between Oceans - M.L.Steadman

10. The Woman Who Went To Bed For A Year - Sue Townsend. I hated this with a passion, and will never recommend it. 11. The 100 Year Old Man... - Jonas Jonasson 12. A walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson 13. The Last Runaway - Tracey Chevalier 14. e - Matt Beaumont 15. The Racketeer - John Grisham 16. Life Expectancy - Dean Koontz 17. A Fall of Moondust - Arthur C Clarke 18. Shades of Grey - Jasper FFord 19. Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel 20. The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern 21. Oryx and Crake - Margaret Atwood 22. The Help - Kathryn Stockett 23. I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith 24. Behind the Scenes at the Museum - Kate Atkinson 25. The Gargoyle - Andrew Davidson 26. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks 27. She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb 28. The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen 29. The Secret History - Donna Tartt 30. The Book Thief - Marcus Zusac 31. The Snow Child - Eowyn Ivey

Just starting 32: Outpost by Adam Baker, my first scary one as all the others have been very 'safe' books.

I'm really enjoying reading everyone else's lists as well.

Yikes thanks for making the new thread I completely lost off with reading lately!

Will update with my reads so far later

In enjoying seeing everyone's full lists!

Book 40 For A Few Demons More by Kim Harrison

Following on from the fourth in the series, this one deals with the on-going search of the werewolves and, apparently, demons for the statue stolen by Rachel's ex-boyfriend. Plenty of witches, vampires, werewolves, demons, pixies, and elves, with a fair amount of sex and violence thrown in for good measure.

On to book six in the series next. Once that and book seven are done I might go back to a bit of historical fiction, although the most recent in the Merrily Watkins series by Phil Rickman will be out in paperback on Thursday so it might be that one instead.

skinmysunshine I think I might've fallen in a wee bit love with Pasquale I did want to shake Burton for taking so much money off poor Pasquale, although I guess he was too drunk to realise the whole time.

TodaysAGoodDay Welcome! I'm a newbie to this thread too, having just started this year. What I've realised through recording all the books I've read this year is how quickly books slip my mind. I really wish I'd kept a record over the years.

Sorry, Cote - Just seen your question: I got a bit lost/bored by the long, long sections of stuff on Dystopia because I haven't read the book you're on about and so couldn't attach all the long comments to anything.

I've read, 'Dr Sleep' and imho it is not Dystopian because it is clearly our world, with added supernatural elements, rather than the imagined society which I think is necessary for a true Dystopian novel.

Book 60 - Another Edmund Crispin, 'Buried For Pleasure'. I really enjoyed it but they are getting a bit samey now. Need more fiction, as am still not fancying non-fiction, but only have one more Crispin awaiting me, and a stack of non-fiction.

"I've read, 'Dr Sleep' and imho it is not Dystopian because it is clearly our world, with added supernatural elements, rather than the imagined society which I think is necessary for a true Dystopian novel."

Exactly. Thank you

Phew - I passed!

But I still stand by my earlier argument!

What was your earlier argument? That my posts are long and boring?

Well, since everyone is doing lists for the new thread (and I have a suspicion I may have miscounted)...

January

1. The Secret History of the World Jonathan Black
2. Sherlock Holmes: The Will of the Dead George Mann
3. The Black Country Alex Grecian
4. The Language of Flowers Vanessa Diffenbaugh
5. Death on the Nile Agatha Christie
6. A Most Wanted Man John le Carre
7. The Casebook of Newbury and Hobbes George Mann

8 Wool Hugh Howey

1. Ghosts of War George Mann

10. A Cat, a Hat, and a Piece of String Joanne Harris

February
11. The Mists of Avalon Marion Zimmer Bradley
12. Gone Girl Gillian Flynn
13. The Murder at the Vicarage Agatha Christie
14. Never Go Back Lee Child

March
15. The Witch Hunter Bernard Knight
16. 59 Seconds Richard Wiseman
17. Pagan Britain Ronald Hutton
18. The Reader Bernhard Schlink
19. Let It Bleed Ian Rankin
20. The Complaints Ian Rankin
21. Mindfulness Mark Williams & Danny Penman
22. Cross and Burn Val McDermid

April
23. Divergent Veronica Roth
24. Insurgent Veronica Roth
25. Allegiant Veronica Roth
26. Quirkology Richard Wiseman
27. Mortal Causes Ian Rankin
28. Natural Magic Doreen Valiente
29. The End of the Wasp Season Denise Mina
30. The Hanging Garden Ian Rankin

May
31. Broken Homes Ben Aaronovitch
32. The Celtic Realms Myles Dillon & Nora Chadwick
33. The Book of Unholy Mischief Elle Newmark
34. The English Monster Lloyd Shepherd
35. Heresy SJ Parris
36. Dead Witch Walking Kim Harrison
37. The Good, the Bad and the Undead Kim Harrison
38. Every Which Way But Dead Kim Harrison
39. A fistful of Charms Kim Harrison

June
40. For a Few Demons More Kim Harrison

No - that every book can be considered dystopian because nobody's life is perfect! But I forgive you.

Oi! That was MY comment!

CoteDAzur Sun 01-Jun-14 10:06:49
Well, I think we can all agree that the world is imperfect and always was so every single book ever written would be dystopian by that definition.

I know - and I argued against it (and was right!). :)

Hi, I've not been on since thread one, but I've been keeping count, so here's my list to date:

50 book challenge

1. The Partner - John Grisham
2. The Story Teller - Jodi Picoult
3. The Goldfinch - Donna Tartt
4. The Thirteen Problems - Agatha Christie
5. The Carrier - Sophie Hannah
6. Hercule Poirot's Christmas - Agatha Christie
7. The Listerdale Mystery - Agatha Christie
8. The Shining - Stephen King
9. Doctor Sleep - Stephen King
10. The Time of the Ghost - Dianne Wynn Jones
11. Take a Look at me Now - Miranda Dickson
12. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
13. What Alice Forgot - Liane Moriarty
14. The Cuckoo's Calling - Robert Galbraith
15. The Courage Tree - Diane Chamberlain
16. The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty
17. The Perfect Retreat - Kate Forster
18. The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
19. The Long Walk - Steven King
20. Summers Child - Diane Chamberlain
21. When You Walked Back Into My Life - Hilary Boyd
22. The Secret History - Donna Tartt

Top five so far (in no particular order)...
Doctor Sleep
The Goldfinch
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
What Alice Forgot
The Secret History

Incidentally, I've not read Lexicon, but I heard an interesting thing on University Challenge the other day. Margaret Atwood coined the word 'Ustopian' in discussion about whether her own novels are SF or 'dystopian'. It essentially means a combo of utopia and dystopia, because she felt like each one contained the latent parts of the other, ie. no fictional future could be wholly good or bad, there's always a human element lifting it up or dragging it back.

Ugh - that is why I am increasingly annoyed by Margaret Atwood.

Wednesday - the first three of the Vampire chronicles are probably three of my all time favourites, but it goes waaaay downhill from there
I vaguely enjoyed The Tale of the Body Thief, but I don't think I ever finished Memnoch the Devil, and I tried many times! As far as I'm concerned, it's an awesome trilogy, and that's that - if you're not enjoying, give up now!

Just checking in - still on book 29 - I am a Pilgrim.
My kindle broke and today I got a new one. I have spent all
Evening downloading content. The most irritating thing is that whenever I had seen a good book on here or had one recommended in RL I downloaded a sample so I am now feeling very cross that I have lost them all....

Updating with my list of books read so far this year:-

1. The Cuckoo's Calling - Robert Galbraith
2. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls - David Sedaris
3. May We Be Forgiven - A M Homes
4. Ratburger - David Walliams
5. Takedown Twenty - Janet Evanovich
6. The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
7. Mansfield Park - Jane Austen
8. Apple Tree Yard - Louise Doughty
9. The Cellist of Sarajevo - Steven Galloway

10. The Six Wives of Henry VIII - Alison Weir 11. Into the Darkest Corner - Elizabeth Haynes 12. Love, Nina - Nina Stibbe 13. The Pedant in the Kitchen - Julian Barnes 14. The Song of Lunch - Christopher Reid (poetry) 15. Sisterland - Curtis Sittenfeld 16. The Mammy - Brendan O'Carroll 17. Nonsense - Christopher Reid (poetry) 18. Kiss Me First - Lottie Moggach 19. The Love Object (short stories) - Edna O'Brien 20. The Story of Before - Susan Stairs 21. The Hare with Amber Eyes - Edmund De Waal 22. The Good Thief's Guide to Berlin - Chris Ewan 23. Mad About the Boy - Helen Fielding 24. Harvest - Jim Crace 25. Lady Audley's Secret - Mary Elizabeth Braddon 26. Restoration - Rose Tremain 27. A Scattering (poetry) - Christopher Reid 28. The Examined Life - Stephen Grosz 29. Just What Kind of Mother Are You? - Paula Daly 30. Jigs and Reels - Joanne Harris 31. A Commonplace Killing - Sian Busby 32. Queen's Gambit - Elizabeth Fremantle 33. Me Talk Pretty One Day - David Sedaris 34. One Night in Winter - Simon Sebag Montefiore 35. Big Girl Panties - Stephanie Evanovich (awful, dire rubbish) 36. Alys, Always - Harriet Lane 37. The Sea - John Banvile 38. On The Beach - Nevil Shute 39. The Wild Things - Dave Eggers 40. A Life Like Other People's - Alan Bennett 41. Merivel - Rose Tremain 42. The Marrying of Chani Kaufman - Eve Harris 43. The Age of Miracles - Karen Thompson Walker 44. Twelve Years a Slave - Solomon Northup 45. Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops - Jen Campbell 46. Brighton Rock - Graham Greene 47. And The Mountains Echoed - Khaled Hosseini 48. The Lie - Helen Dunmore 49. Heartbreak Hotel - Deborah Moggach

Am aiming for 100 books this year (fingers crossed) :)

Eeks, sorry for the long boring posts on dystopia! It's been a long time since I had a good debate about a book and I got a bit carried away.

I take your point about Dr Sleep (though I haven't read it so can't compare) and I can see how that might apply to "Lexicon", but I maintain that the novel has a strong dystopian element to it.

Which novel shall we debate next?

Nessalina thank you :) I enjoyed the first and third more than the second, and really enjoyed The Tale of The Body Thief. I think I've got to a turning point with Memnoch and am quite enjoying it now. Though if he mentions Dora's menses once more, I may set fire to him. I think my problem with them is that there are huge sections where nothing happens and the discussion is repetitive and a bit dull.

Duchess I'd say you're well on track for 100.

Wednesday - I enjoyed our debate re dystopia. We'll properly take over the thread when tumble & others finish Lexicon & we can discuss the book without worrying about spoilers [evil laugh]

Providing I stay on track, I should make it to 100 books this year. Last year's tally was around 120 . Still no idea how I got there - sounds like I do nothing but sit around reading all day :o and that's definitely not the case (I don't watch much tv, so read a lot in the evenings, and whilst waiting for the DC to come out of after school clubs etc).

Off to get some jobs done right now ....

" Margaret Atwood coined the word 'Ustopian' in discussion about whether her own novels are SF or 'dystopian'."

Dystopian is a sub-genre of sci-fi. Her dystopian novels are also sci-fi.

"It essentially means a combo of utopia and dystopia"

What? Neither utopia or dystopia, then.

"because she felt like each one contained the latent parts of the other, ie. no fictional future could be wholly good or bad, there's always a human element lifting it up or dragging it back"

Utopia or dystopia doesn't refer to the "human element". It is a literary classification and has nothing to do with whether there are some nice characters in the book

I haven't read any Margaret Atwood. I was going to, but this sort of silliness from an author really puts me off.

CoteDAzur - I don't necessarily think she's right, I just thought it was interesting

Wednesday - ugh, I'd forgotten about the menses!

Right - just had a re-cap by trawling through the thread and this is where I am:
1.Jamaica Inn -Daphne Du Maurer
2.The Oak Apple - Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia
3.Before I Go To Sleep - SJ Watson
4.The Machine Gunners -Robert Westall
5.Charlotte Grey -Sebastian Faulks
6.The Twins - Saskia Sarginson
7.The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
8.The Hangmans Song -James Oswald
9.River of Destiny -Barbra Erskine
10.Burning Bright - Tracy Chevalier
11.My Family and Other Animals - Clare Balding
12.Cold Granite - Stuart McBride
14.The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul -Deborah Rodrigueze
15.Harvest - Jim Crace
16. The Night Rainbow
17. Cuckoos Calling
18. The Light Between Oceans - M L Steadman
19. The Personal History of Rachel DuPree by Ann Weusgarber
20. The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filet
21. The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
22. Last Bus to Woodstock Colin Dexter
23. White is for Witching
24. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
25. The Moving Toyshop by Edmund Crispin
26. The Crow Trap by Ann Cleeves
27. Love in the time of Cholera
28. Love Hunt Fiona Walker
29. I am a Pilgrim (amlost finished!)

I have slowed down a bit recently due to a hectic life.... but need and want to ramp it up - 30 weeks left and want toget to 60 books - luckily I have a 10 day holiday to look forward to which consists of reading all day on a beach or by the pool :)