50 Book Challenge 2014 Part 4

[Southeastdweller]

Thread four of the 50 Book Challenge.

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

Here are the previous threads...

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

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

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/adult_fiction/2094773-50-Book-Challenge-2014-Part-3?msgid=49151537#49151537

Duchessofmalfi that would be great

Frog - I'm searchable as DuchessofMalfi on GR as well - profile pic is Stonehenge :)

I'm still reading Confessions Of A Sociopath, still finding it entertaining but starting to feel a bit , it just doesnt quite ring true, I feel as if she is at least embellishing, I'm reminded of 'Shantaram' the tales of derring do are just getting a bit much

42. A Story Lately Told - Anjelica Huston

The Oscar-winning actress's first book, a nicely written but mostly un-insightful look at her life up until she was 22. I got the feeling she left a lot out of her experiences as being the daughter of John Huston and modelling for a few years I felt she could have many interesting stories but there's very little in this book, and instead she focuses on lots of details on inconsequential stuff. I'm now not as excited as I was about the second volume which is out in November.

Book-buying ban going well after two weeks! Was in a charity shop today and picked up almost pristine copies of Burial Rites and Big Brother that were selling for £1 each and put them back when I thought of my 48 unread books sitting around at home. In Brighton on Thursday so will need even more restraint then as the charity shops there are fab .

Chugging through my self-help doorstopper and on Monday I'm starting either The Shock of the Fall or The Rosie Project.

DuchessofMalf great I will come and find you!

I was reading your earlier thoughts on the sociopath book,'would you recommend it? I so think it sounds interesting

South I think I need to join you with the book buying ban. I am terrible, I can't resist clicking the buy now button ok amazon. I must have 3 or 4 hundred books on my kindle which haven't been read yet:

Plodding with love, Rosie (bookclub 2) read. It's long!!! Also south ie read both your Monday books, both good but I preferred Rosie Project, plus you can join the 'hype train' for Rosie Project 2

Book 74 By The Pricking Of My Thumbs by Agatha Christie

I couldn't remember if I had read this before or not, because I have seen the TV version that Miss Marple was shoehorned into a couple of times. Part way through I realised I had, but never mind! Tuppence Beresford encounters an elderly lady, Mrs Lancaster, at the home where her husband Tommy's aunt Ada is living, and becomes concerned about what has happened to her when Tuppence later discovers she was removed from the home suddenly. She decides to investigate, using a painting of a house she is certain she has seen before which Mrs Lancaster had given to Ada as the starting point. But then Tuppence finds herself embroiled in something much bigger than the disappearance of Mrs Lancaster.

94. The Norfolk Mystery, Ian Sansom. Enjoyed this - great characters. The denouement was ridiculous - I don't mind a few intuitive leaps, but this was a straightforward cheat, with the conclusion unsupported by any evidence. Fun all the same.

95. A History of Ancient Egypt, John Romer. A bit of evocative writing, and a corrective to some of the wild assertions about the origins of ancient Egypt that I read in my earlier days (I'm looking at you, Graham Hancock) but far more detail than I wanted to know. I only finished because I'd bought the book new, unusually for me, and wanted to justify the money.

I've started the second book in Lindsey Davis's new series, Enemies at Home. I really need to get stuck into The Sunne in Splendour, which I've heard recommeded lots of times, and which I've had out of the library for ages. Because it feels like I should, I'm reluctant to read it - one reason why I've never joined a bookclub.

30. Longbourne Jo Baker
31. On Tangled Paths Theodore Fontane
32. The Magnificent Ambersons Booth Tarkington
33. The Prodigy Herman Hesse
34. The History of the Rain Niall Williams
35. Bad News Edward St Aubyn
36. Living with a Wild God: A Non-Believers Search for the Truth About Everything - Barbara Ehrenreich
37. The Ocean at the End of the Lane Neil Gaiman
38. Liza or, A Nest of Nobles Ivan Turgenev
39. Offshore Penelope Fitzgerald
40. Staying On Paul Scott

I have a new favourite book of the year so far which is The History of the Rain, perfect to read as part of this challenge as it is all about books and reading, woven into the past history of a family in Ireland. I enjoyed this so much. I thought the writing was very powerful, I loved Ruth, the 19 year old narrator and was moved by the story. I dont want to say too much about it as I dont want to give anything away but I really hope it makes the Booker shortlist tomorrow and that it wins!

I have tried to read some more classic books hence the Hesse, which was interesting and sad, about a very bright boy who is essentially over-schooled and loses his way, the Turgenev, which I ended up enjoying although not as much as some of his other works and the Theodore Fontane. I had only ever read Effi Briest (which is what I call a German Madam Bovary) by Fontane so was keen to read another by him. This was not as powerful but rather sweet, gentle and melancholic. I have just finished Staying On, a past Booker winner and although it took me ages to get into it, I was very moved by the end. Its about a couple who stay on in India after the British leave post Raj era. As the story unfolded I felt great sympathy for Lucy, the wife of the couple, who has been at the mercy of her husbands whims and a hierarchical ex-pat society and is painfully aware of her precarious situation and the loss of a past age.

Onwards and upwards!

I don't know where all the symbols have appeared from in my last post! Serves me right for posting from work. Sorry...

83. London Under by Peter Ackroyd. Lots of fascinating stuff about London. Short book but it has fuelled an interest in the history of London.

83.5 The Secret Dead - S J Parris. A short story in her Giordano Bruno series. Doesn't warrant a whole number as it was only 60 pages. Quite good though.

whippet I want to start reading Turgenev. I've got The Torrents of Spring on my to-buy/borrow list. The story sounded interesting. Is it a good one of his to start with? The only Russian I've read is Dostoyevsky.

Hi BsshBosh it's funny you should ask me that because of all the books people are reading, the books you have been reading and are going to read are almost identical to the ones I would like to read and I have been following your progress with much awe and a little bit of envy!

The best Turgenev I have read are Father's and Sons, which I think is his most famous novel and First Love (really a novella) and On the Eve. They are all really interesting and eminently readable. I love Russian novels! My mum is reading Turgenev too, which inspired me this time. I have East of Eden on my list which I think you just read

whippet, thanks for the review of A History of the Rain. I had it on my list to read and then took it off (for no other reason than that I'm Irish and dread a certain strain of Irish sentimentality). Based on your review, I might risk reinstating it...

bibliomania do it! I loved it, but maybe it's because I am from the flatlands of Essex and therefore do not recognise a potentially cliched view of Ireland? I would love to know what someone else thinks of it (and it's not too expensive on Kindle). You could read the first few pages on Amazon to see if you like it. That's what I did and then got hooked
By the way bibliomania you are another awesome reader!

Thanks, whippet (also for the compliment!). I've put it back on my request list at the library. I do love books about books, so it sounds like something I should like.

I don't have a Kindle - I did get a Kobo but I can't get on with it.

Thanks whippet. I'm definitely going to look at the titles you mentioned as I really want to expand my knowledge of Russian authors.

Oh my, East of Eden was heaven but I'm currently reading Byatt's The Children's Book and it's captured my imagination so much that a) the characters and landscapes have started permeating my night dreams (even though I was brought up in Kent and found it dull at the time) and b) I'm planning a trip to the V&A this week alone to meander and look at it all through Byatt's eyes (even though, as a Londoner, I visit often enough)!

East of Eden is my fave book of all time. The Byatt is on my list to read so looking forward to that

43. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. Excellent.

84. The Betrayal of Trust by Susan Hill. Sixth novel in her Simon Serrailler series. Excellent as ever, but feeling rather upset by the serious issues raised in it.

Hi, I have not updated for ages and I can't remember where I got to so I will post my whole list. I will also give each book a star rating out of 5.
1.The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ - Phillip Pulman 3*

1. Underground, Tokyo Gas Attack - Haruki Murakami 3*
2. I'm a Stranger Here Myself - Bill Bryson 4*
3. David and Goliath - Malcolm Gladwell 4*
4. The Last Continent - Bill Bryson 4*
5. Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet - MC Beaton 3*
6. I Remember Nothing - Norah Ephron 3*
7. One Summer - America 1927 - Bill Bryson 5*
8. Anthill - EO Wilson 3*

10. Kalooki Nights - Howard Jacobson 4*

Next 10 -
11. The Elephant Vanishes - Haruki Murakami 4*
12. Fractured - Dani Atkins 3*
13. Darwin's Island - Steve Jones 4*
14. After the Quake - Haruki Murakami 4*
15. The Throwback - Tom Sharpe 3* (not as funny as I remembered)
16. Candide - Voltaire - 4*
17. Whirligig - Magnus Macintyre 4*
18. Murder in Mesopotamia - Agatha Christie 3*
19. How to be Good - Nick Hornby 3*
20. Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener - MC Beaton 3*

21. The Comfort of Strangers - Ian McEwan 3*
22. Death by Black Hole - Neil De Grasse Tyson 4*
23. Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins - Rupert Everett 4*
24. Surely you are Joking Mr Feynman 4*
25. The Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch 4*
26. The Graveyard Book - 5*
27. Anathem - Neal Stephenson 5*
28. Tales of the City - Armistead Maupin 5*
29. More Tales of the City - Armistead Maupin 5*
30. Notes from a Small Island - Bill Bryson 5*

31. Revelation Space - Alastair Reynolds 4*
32. Further Tales of the City - Armistead Maupin 4*
33. Moon Over Soho - Ben Aaronovitch 4*
34. Baby cakes - Armistead Maupin 4*
35. Significant Others - Armistead Maupin 4*
36. Sure of You - Armistead Maupin 4*
37. Michael Tolliver Lives - Armistead Maupin 5*
38. Mary Anne in Autumn - Armistead Maupin 4*
39. The Kingdom by the Sea - Paul Theroux 4*
40. Raising Steam - Terry Pratchett 4*

Tumble I really want to read that one (43) I wouldn't mind starting the SS series by Susan Hill I always enjoy her books. Anyone else read Joyce Carol Oates? I really like her style an I am yet to find someone who also likes her.

I am still unbelievably stuck on love rosie. I have book club next week were reading the memory keepers daughter, I can't say I'm impressed by the blurb, but I shall give it a go

41. The Eagle of the Ninth - Rosemary Sutcliff 3*
42. The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion 3*
43. Kennedy's Brain - Henning Mankell 3*
44. Ash - James Herbert 3*
45. The Days of Anna Madrigal - Armistead Maupin 5*
46. Down Under - Bill Bryson 4*
47. Side Tracked - Henning Mankell 4*
48. Whispers Underground - Ben Aaronovitch 4*
49. Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembly - MC Beaton 3*
50. Solar Lottery - Phillip K Dick 3*