50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Four

[southeastdweller]

Thread four 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.

First thread of 2016 is here, second thread here and third thread here.

How're you getting on so far?

Wilting - it was the first Pierre Lemaitre- Irene - which had way too much graphic violence for many of us last year. Probably sounds a bit strange but the violence was so relentless that it stopped upsetting me after a while, rather mind numbing. It was so unrealistic, a bit like the last series of Luther on BBC - it was just too much and I got bored. I liked Alex much more, the story was much more interesting, but it is still not for those who don't like any violence. I am wondering whether to bother with the third in the trilogy, I believe it's called Camille. Have you read that one?

I've moved on to an Agatha Christie now, hopefully a nice gentle murder

"a nice gentle murder"

Agatha Christie, queen of cosy brutality

Book 59
Ice Cold Heaven by Mirco Bonne
59 19/5/16 The Ice Cold Heaven Mirko Bonne A novelisation of Shackleton’s 1914 Endurance voyage, narrated by a 17 year old stowaway (there really was one!). This was very slow to get going, and I thought the final third was by far the best bit. Bonne takes some liberties with the truth – the stowaway is sent on the open boat journey and land-crossing to Soth Georgia/Stromness, after the Endurance is locked and then broken in the ice, which is obviously essential for the narrative but wasn’t true! In fact, the biggest problem with this was the choice of narrator, I thought. It would have been a vastly superior novel if narrated by Frank Wild or Tom Crean, who really did do the rescue journey, or by Wild who was left in charge of the others on Elephant Island, to wait for the 6 men to make the terrible boat journey in the hope of rescuing them all. The story is obviously amazing but I thought the stowaway’s narration and the attempt to bring him to ‘life’ with a girlfriend etc got in the way and was a bit boring and clumsy. I also felt the writer wanted to prove that he’d read a lot, which also got in the way. This probably wouldn’t hold much appeal at all to anybody not interested in polar exploration. For anybody who is and fancies reading it, I’d recommend skipping quite a lot of the first half (I read every word and wished I hadn’t). It’s at its best from once the Endurance is trapped, especially in its portrayal of the men’s support of each other, their ‘Englishness’, the references to Scott and the admiration for men such as Crean and for Shackleton as a leader.

The first Frank should be Worsley, not Wild!

31. The Reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent - Read this for book group. It's about a man who hates his job in a paper-pulping factory. At the end of each day, he rescues stray pages from the machine and reads the series of random extracts out loud on his commuter train the following morning. I quite enjoyed it as a gentle read - there were some beautifully-written passages and some funny moments. The last few chapters let it down a bit in my opinion - having had a lot of slow, gentle build-up of character, it was almost like the author decided he'd had enough of the idea and sped it through to a semi-conclusion. It's quite a short book too, so could have been more developed without getting over-long.

Right you lot I need some help/advice. For my next book I am thinking about reading Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks . It has been on my shelf for years untouched. My question is how said is it. Are we talking Mill on the Floss and goodnight Mr Tom sad or are we talking Regeneration Powerful or a combination of the two eg A testament of youth.

Muskey I found Birdsong awful and ditched it, which I don't do very often. If it helps, I don't think I would have gone on to find it sad had I finished it as it was all so annoying that the characters didn't feel real to me and there was too much laughably breathy sex in the bits I did read. Some people love it though so you will hopefully get some more helpful answers

For parameters I quite liked Regeneration but it didn't move me that much; Goodnight Mr Tom almost has me in pieces at its mere mention.

I cried over Birdsong, I quite like crying over books though!

Not as sad as Goodnight Mr Tom. Sadder than Regeneration.

I didn't finish Bird Song - in fact I didn't get further than about 60 pages iirc.

Regeneration is okay, but I absolutely detest (abhor/loathe/want to burn/insert suitably stronger emotion of hatred here) the second one in the trilogy and the third has a few pages of good writing amidst a lot of twaddle imvho.

Goodnight Mr Tom has me in bits, though.

70. Hollow City by Ransom Riggs Number two in the Peculiar Children series. Not quite as good as the first one as the novelty of the story set round photos has worn off a bit but I still enjoyed it and will read number three.

Thanks for your responses re birdsong. I am going to start reading it tomorrow.

Chessie - I think the photographs are what makes them really, and the story is just a series of captions. They are lovely books to own, but I see them as picture books, rather than story books if that even makes sense!

11. The murder of Roger Ackloyd - Agatha Christie
I really enjoyed my foray into Christie's writing and really didn't see the twist coming. Definitely going to read more Christie. A major person in a small village is killed and Hercule Poirot comes out of retirement to investigate.

12. The universe according to Sheldon Cooper - Andrew Alexander Awful, downloaded on a whim and don't know why I finished it. Goes through some key scenes in the Big Bang Theory and explains the nerdy and scientific references. Except it doesn't really explain any and repeats the same scenario word for word multiple times. There are several typos as well. An easy read I read due to having nothing else to. AVOID.

Sorry to hear your news Star,ight

18 Edward Drift by Craig Lancaster

Loved this follow up book, very gentle but very poignant book about autism and relationships and the different levels of autism and about finding your feet and letting go. Definitely recommend it but need to read the first book 600 Hours of Edward.

Muskey, I remember enjoying Birdsong when I read it, but it was a long time ago and I don't know if I would enjoy it as much now. The sex scenes were truly ridiculous though!

I have never read an Agatha Christie book in all my life. People on here read them all the time and I am starting to think I am missing out!

whippet it was my first Christie and i recommend trying it if you like a good whodunnit story.

Starlight Huge sympathies to you. I lost my dad in March although wasn't a shock still found my reading mojo went a little. Hope you find reading a comfort, i know i am.

26. A Line In The Sand: Britain, France And The Struggle That Shaped The Middle East - James Barr

Crikey, it has taken me a month to read one book - a considerable slowing of pace from the start of the year! In my defence, it has been a crazy and stressful month during which I've quit one job and found another, so finding quiet time and the mental space to read has been tricky. And this was a book which demanded a certain amount of concentration.

Anyway, even though it took me ages, I would recommend this book for history fans - it's the story of the Middle East in the early 20th century and how Britain and France's desires for influence in the region, and the unscrupulous means by which they were prepared to get it, basically caused most of the sorry mess that it's in today. Enlightening if rather depressing!

whippet I had never read Christie and thought I should. I have now read two but won't be rushing to read another! I read And Then There Were None but I found the way she explained how/why it happened annoying, then I read Roger Ackroyd and felt cheated and misled!!

29. Unenchanted by Chanda Hahn

YA. Teenager Mina Grime discovers that she's a descendant of the Grimm Brothers and that her family is cursed to continually live through versions of fairy tales until they've either lived through all of them or died in the attempt. Flimsy and forgettable.

30. Night Shift by Stephen King

Collection of short stories. Bit of a mixed bag but mostly a good read.

Apparently I'm literate but not numerate. The last book should have been 49, so now I've just finished:

50. Various Pets Alive and Dead, Marina Lewycka

It was okay, but doesn't set me on fire to read more of hers (I think I started and abandoned We are all made of Glue). Family lived in commune in 1980s: children grow up, one guiltily works in finance, to the backdrop of the 2008 financial crisis.

With books, there are various pleasures to be had - the rush to find out what happens next, or unravel the secrets of the past; characters you want to spend time with; sheer amusement; an authorial voice you fall for. You don't need all, but you need at least one. This book had bits of the above elements, enough to keep me reading, but not enough of any of them to bring me back for more.

biblio what a lovely description of the pleasures of reading

Thanks tumble!

38. The Hogs Back Mystery - Freeman Wills Croft 1930s murder mystery featuring Inspector French investigating the disappearance of a retired doctor. Gently amusing, it was a bit predictable. Christie lovers might enjoy it.