50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Two

[southeastdweller]

Thread two of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2016, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it's not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

Previous 2016 thread here

Book 3 - Not my Father's Son by Alan Cumming - recommended on here. I enjoyed it, and finished it easily in 2 days which is very quick for me. But I think it's yet another genre that doesn't really do it for me. For those who don't know it is the actor's memoir of his miserable childhood along with some interesting family history. I think I just prefer books which are completely outside of my time and place, hence my enjoyment of Game of Thrones, Golden Son (still reading it!), Wolf Hall, Station Eleven (hello Quog ;-)), 1984, any David Mitchell etc... So it will be my last celebrity memoir for a while!

Chessie - Have you finished Daughter of Time? I thought it was fabulous.

Onto Book 4 which I have just started - Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell. Some of you may remember the film with Jennifer Lawrence, I haven't seen it but I will definitely check it out if the book is as good as it is promising to be....

2 very different experiences of abridged audiobooks:

1. Vanity Fair despite being narrated (well) by Juliet Stephenson, I didn't really enjoy this, though I love the novel. Much of the wonderfully satirical and descriptive detail have been stripped down, along with some meaty bits of dialogue and I found it confusing and little more than 19Th century Bridget Jones- does she get her man or not? Do I care? Shame.

1. Whereas I loved the precise, evocative detail of Jane Shilling's somewhat detached account of ageing, clashing hormones with her hulking teenage boy. This too was an abridged audiobook but very well done I thought and a freebie on R4 website.

Moral of the story for me is that some books abridge badly, others fare well and can even be improved. But knowing which in advance is tricky! Certainly shan't go for an abridged Austen again.

Whoops, forgot the name of book 8. It was Stranger in the Mirror

Apologies again, head in work! Vanity fair was by book before this, I meant Northanger abbey. Shall go now....

This thread moves so fast! I'm really only managing to skim it.

1. oh crap. Potty training DD caught me off guard by telling me she doesn't want nappies anymore, so that's slowed my reading down a bit. But i figure this still counts

1. God's behaving badly. Marie Phillips Light hearted, funny, particularly early on, it tells a story of the Greek gods living in London in the modern era, and how they change the lives of two londoners.In the pay i would have turned my nose up at this but i actually really enjoyed it

I'm not sure what's next yet. I had war and peace lined up but i want to be able to really throw myself into it which i don't think i can do while potty training. I'll have a look through my shelves and pick something i guess.

Books so far:

1. The Christmas Cafe - Amanda Prowse
2. A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backmnan
3. The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver

1. Cannery Row - John Steinbeck An enjoyable meander through the lives of the folks on Cannery Row. Some poignant moments and quotes.
2. Rivers of London by Ben Aaaronavitch I'd seen this a few times on here but made no attempt to find out anything about it so was pleasantly surprised to be taken out of my comfort zone. Thoroughly enjoyed it, particularly the historical descriptions of London. Would never have picked this supernatural detective story - so glad I came on here!

Just starting 6. The Blackhouse (Lewis Trilogy Book One), Peter May. Again, mentioned on here.

OllyBJolly I enjoyed Anne Tyler's The Accidental Tourist last year, and I'm going to try some more this year, so will look out for A Spool of Blue Thread

And I'm still on Jerusalem

1. Touching the Clouds by Bonnie Leon. Book 1 of the "Alaskan Skies" series. Lightweight, easy to read fluffy romance on the Kindle, just a counterpoint to the last book, a 650+ page non-fiction. Oh look, our hero worked out which of the two equally eligible men in her life was the right one. Lots of aviation errors but that's not really the point ;)

1. Fingersmith, Sarah Waters. I loved this. It's a story of an incredibly complicated confidence trick - with more twists to it than a maze might have - and the two girls who are victims of it. It made me cry, but I loved the ending. It has a suitably fairy-tale ending. The best book I've read this year or in a long time. It's like taking an old-fashioned romance (lost heiresses, dashing villains, a gloomy old ancestral home crumbling into ruin, a dark family secret), but updating it with enough grittiness that it doesn't seem hackneyed or melodramatic. Reminds me of Angela Carter's Wise Children, with a touch of Playing Beattie Bow. Really really good.

4 The Whaleboat House by Mark Mills

This is a re read, set in 1947. Although it is at heart a crime novel, the crime seems to be a way of exploring the beginning of the development of The Hamptons as a playground of the rich, the lives of the rest of the population who lived in the area the whole time and how to get away with murder. Once again it was an enjoyable read, and although you knew who did it from early on it was an interesting read on how the characters got there.

List so far:

1. The Wild Girl, Kate Forsyth

1. The American Lover, Rose Tremain

A collection of short stories which range from historical, updating classics, to contemporary. My favourite was the story of Rebecca from the viewpoint of Danni, the Polish housekeeper, but there isn't a dud among this collection.

1. Gossip from the Forest, Sara Maitland. A study of all things to do with forests and fairytales - lots of historical, botanical, ecological info as well as scholarly thoughts on how fairy/folk tales develop with and depend on their forest setting. It's written in 12 chapters, one per month, and in each one she explores a different forest in Britain and then writes her own version of a classic tale. These are a delight - wise and witty.

1. Spill Simmer Falter Wither, Sara Baume. The story of Ray, a disabled man in his fifties who has been brought up and kept away from any sort of normal existence by his father, then finds himself having to navigate real life when the father dies. He adopts a stray dog who has been injured during badger-baiting, but the dog's tendency to bite anything that moves leads to problems and they end up having to escape by going on a road trip. Though I wasn't sure how realistic Ray's voice was (for someone who has severe anxiety about social contact he manages to negotiate all sorts of things remarkably well) he is beautifully observant. Despite neglect by his father and ostracism by the community he comes across as a warm, kind person. Glad I read this one.

Like the sound of the Maitland, Frog, same author who wrote Book of Silence? If i remember rightly, this similarly had fairy tales intermingled with her reminiscences of places/times she'd been silent. A thought-provoking read.

Yes I've added Gossip from the Forest to my "want to read" list too, sounds fab. Love this thread for the recs!

Was hoping A Shepherd's Life would be in a similar vein but his description is very plain. And long. Am struggling a little with it.

Gossip from the Forest is very good, I really enjoyed it. It's a lovely book.

1. There's only Two David Beckhams - John O'Farrell

I heard this reviewed in the radio before Christmas and it sounded quite amusing so I bought it for Dh (who normally only reads sci-fi but does like football). It was lying around so I picked it up for a light-hearted read, frankly unless you're massively into football I wouldn't bother. It's set at the Qatar World Cup in 2022 and there is a team of English youngsters who are doing shockingly well, but no-one knows anything about them. The "twist" was spottable a mile off and I can only think all the newspapers posting "hilarious" must have been reading a different book.

List so far:

1. The Versions of Us - Laura Barnett
2. All the light we cannot see - Anthony Doerr
3. Red Rising - Pierce Brown
4. Golden Son - Pierce Brown
5. Flash Boys - Michael Lewis
6. There's Only Two David Beckhams - John O'Farrell

1. The Window- Fiona Barton

Apparently this year's Gone Girl or The Girl on The Train.

A psychological thriller about a woman who's dead husband was accused of a monstrous crime. Throughout the novel we learn from several different characters what really happened.

It was an impressive debut and a captivating read but it wasn't as good as GG or TGOAT. I think because it's been compared to those two I was expected more of a twist or big reveal but it's more about gradual revelations than big surprises. The subject matter might be too upsetting for some.

Arghhhh it's The Widow not window!

1. The silence of the grave by Arnaldur Indridason

Scandi-noir and as implied by the title. .. not a lot of cheer. Domestic violence, dead babies, and a skeleton. I wanted some crime as a palate cleanser after some history books but this was a bit grim. I have read another one of this writer, it's a series with the same policeman with a troubled past. Nice enough if you like your crime dark and gloomy. Started on Plainsong by Kent Haruf for a bit of beauty.

1. Celtic Tree Magic by Danu Forest

A handbook on the Ogham looking at each tree and the Celtic myths related to them as well as divination, charms, and spells, and meditation exercises. Interesting read.

I also enjoyed Gossip from the Forest. It's a bit different, and I liked the mingling of real forest walks with the looking back to traditional fairy/folk tales. A lovely book.

Hi all

These are my books so far.

1. Career of Evil - Robert Galbraith. This is the third of the Cormoran Stike novels. In this Cormoran (private detective) and Robin (his assistant) are shocked when Robin receives a severed leg in the post to their office. Cormoran suspects three different people from his past and as bodies of more dead women are found. As the pair investigage different leads to find out who is behind the murders they also are facing many private challenges as well as finding out who is behind the murders. I loved the ending and can’t wait for the next one. I like JK Rowling’s adult fiction a lot and this was no exception. Enjoyable page turner.

2. The Amber Spyglass – Philip Pulman. This is the third in the His Dark Materials Books. I listened to this in the car on the school run with the kids. In this final instalment Lyra and Will continue to make their way through various worlds and continue in their battle against evil. It is such an amazing trilogy and the last book is a fitting conclusion. I first read this book I(to conclude the trilogy) when I was pregnant with my now 12 year old in late 2002 and it was amazing to watch her reaction to it. I found the love story between Lyra an d Will even more compelling this time and the very gentle way Pullman deals with religion is remarkable. It generated a lot of discussion with the kids. I The audio was narrated by Pullman with voice actors and it was superb. I would highly recommend it.

3. The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club – Duncan Whitehead. Picked this up on the kindle Christmas sale. One of the four members of the GLDWC in Savannah dies leaving her husband as a very eligible widower. All three remaining members are very interested in him but not all for the same reasons. Add in a couple of other characters, a few quirks, a trip to Paris, a hitman, a little mystery from the third Reich and this made for a quick, easy, mildly entertaining read with a very unsatisfactory finish.

4. Bad Pharma: How Medicine Is Broken and How We Can Fix It – Ben Goldacre. This was a very serious piece of work looking at the pharmaceutical industry and practices. I love medicine and I love science and as someone with a background in research and evidence based policy I found this fascinating, terrifying and scary. It is not anti Pharma but highlights where there is need for more accountability and better practices so that when doctors are making decisions about treatment that they have all the information they need to make informed decisions. Great book.

5. Neuromancer– William Gibson. I first read this as a teenager and picked it up on an audible daily deal some time back. It is too complex and the narrative doesn’t always flow to work well as an audiobook in my opinion but I still loved it. I had forgotten what a great opening line (The sky above the port was the colour of television – tuned to a dead channel) and closing line(He never saw Molly again) it had.

I am now on The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris (paperback) and A Symphony of Echoes (St Mary's Jodi Taylor) on kindle. On audiobook on the school run we are listening to Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and around the house and walking the dogs I am listening to Christopher Hitchens God is not Great. Lastly night time read with the kids is David Almond - The Boy who Climbed in to the Moon.

Quogwinkle I listened to the Time Traveller's Guide with my daughter last year and she loved it so much she asked for the paperback for Christmas. It is a great book. I must look to see if there are more by the same author.

Too extra Fingersmiths is going on my list!

Managing Pain before it manages you by Margaret Caudill.

This is a return to book that I use regularly to help manage my pain levels. Does sections on various causes of pain, and lots of strategies for ways to look at pain differently/manage it.

ElleSarcasmo - I have SPQR on my to-read pile as I got it for my birthday last year. I love Mary Beard (I read Confronting the Classics which is a collection of essays discussing current issues in Classics a couple of years ago which was excellent, but I do have a background in history and Classics) but I've been putting off starting SPQR as it looks like it will take me ages - I should really just start it and put it down and come back to it if it gets too much!