50 Book Challenge 2016 Part Six

[southeastdweller]

Thread six 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.

The first thread of 2016 is here, second thread here, third thread here, fourth thread here and fifth thread here.

54. Slade House by David Mitchell enjoyably creepy page-turner about a house that is difficult to locate, and which can make itself incredibly inviting in different ways, depending on the nature of its expected guests...but da Da DA all is not as it seems! This is joined up to DM's other books in theme and, I believe, one or two of the characters; particularly if you've read the Bone Clocks a lot more of it will make sense to you especially near the end, but the bulk of the book constitutes a classic mystery story, so I wouldn't say it was necessary to be familiar with his others. He does go a bit overboard in places, but he is always enjoyable to read and I feel in very safe hands opening one of his books, and I took a child-like pleasure in this one.

Oh and freebuttonbee I've pm'd you about the jogger in the orange and black tracksuit from Slade House just in case it's spoilery.

Updating my list:-

77. The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge. I'm sure this has been reviewed here before several times. So all I'll add is that I really enjoyed it. It is written for the young adult market, but is just as enjoyable for anyone. In fact DH now has it in his reading pile. Chilling and with some sinister twists and very unpleasant characters.

78. The Abominables by Eva Ibbotson. DS's bedtime story. Took quite a while to get going and we took a break to read other books in between. But it did pick up and we ended up enjoying it. It's a tale of a family of yetis being transported from the Himalayas by lorry to Hampshire where their new home is.

79. 11.22.63 by Stephen King. Reviews on here before I'm sure. Loved it. Completely immersed in the story (audio book). My first but not my last Stephen King novel :)

80. To Wee or Not To Wee by Pamela Butchart. Silly title but an accessible retelling of four Shakespeare plays for young children. Very enjoyable read for DS's bedtime.

wilting - I got Death's End the other day and am looking forward to reading it. Good to hear you're enjoying it

Grifone - We have had a Lexicon period some years ago on 50-Book Challenge threads. IIRC reviews were very positive. There was also quite a bit of discussion re whether it is dysgopian or not as you can see at the end of the thread I linked to, which continued to the next thread.

Olly - have you read Grief is the Thing With Feathers? I'd highly recommend it if not, and it is also very short!

Grifone - thank-you for the Silk Road review. My DM and DF have raved about it, but in print, and I was wondering whether it would work as an audio. I think it might be my next month's Audible book :) (Currently listening to and enjoying First Bite by Bee Wilson)

Ooh to Judd Nelson. Melts...

Book 104
Orphans of the Carnival by Carol Birch
I hated this. Only finished it because it was a freebie and I had to review it. I have absolutely no idea how it was Booker shortlisted because it is very badly written and, considering that its subject matter (19th century freak shows) is right up my street, it was very dull. So – there’s a woman covered in hair who looks like an ape but sings and dances like an angel. So far, so good. She sings and dances her way through about 250 pages, however, so not so good. Interspersed with that is some really dull stuff about another woman, this time a v uninteresting modern woman, who is a hoarder. Cue lots of boring stuff about her shelves of crap, and even more boring stuff about two men who seem to love her anyway. It all comes together in the end, but not in a way that makes the journey at all worthwhile. I see the Guardian reviewer didn’t like it either. Frankly, I’m astonished that a publisher was prepared to sell this drivel. The cover was beautiful though.

146. Lie With Me by Sabine Durrant

Couldn't put this down. I don't usually like books with no likeable characters but I really enjoyed this. You don't root for any of the characters, especially the narrator who is especially unpleasant, but you do get drawn in to the claustrophobic atmosphere.

satsuki thanks! I may have to reread parts to make sense of your comments!

beijing coma by ma jian

This follows the story of a young man who is hit by a bullet in tiananmen square. I overall enjoyed it. The story has two strands which alternate and flow in and out of each other. One his life history from early teens right up to the moment he is hit and then the period of his life when he is in a coma unable to move but able to hear and feel the world around him. The boo is deliberately written in a naive, slightly wooden style which reflects Dai wei's world view pre the atrocities. It is a tiny bit annoying but makes more sense as the book progresses. The more interesting part is the coma sections which is moving, heartbreaking and rage inducing in turns. This was a big tomb of a book and I had a day sitting in hospital to make a dent but overall I think worth it. The student political shenanigans were illuminating given I had no real clarity on the background to the situation. Shamefully i found it hard to follow some of the ins and outs as I find Chinese names very similar! the sexual bits and interactions with his various girlfriends were the weakest bits and were almost enough to put me off but there was a strong enough concept to see me through and I was glad. Possibly could have done with some stiffer editing - a common theme in his thread!

Thanks folks! Satsuki and Remus he reminds me of my teenage years! Haven't RTFT but there are a lot of books mentioned I haven't heard of, need to get reading.

ThanksSadik - Grief has been added

46. I, Partridge - Alan Partridge

Funny but throwaway 'autobiography'.

90. Small Move, Big Change by Caroline L. Arnold

This one advocates making small changes - microresolutions - which will eventually have a big impact on your life rather than trying to make the sort of big changes usually associated with new year resolutions which always seem to fall by the wayside in a short space of time. She advocates only adopting two microresolutions at a time and trying to stick with them until they become habit in place of whatever your previous autopilot was, and then moving onto the next rather than trying to take on too many things at once. All sounds very sensible, and there are plenty of examples and suggestions to help you on your way.

The Sugar Men, Ray Kingfisher. It's the story of a woman who after discovering her cancer is terminal, admits to her children that she was a concentration camp survivor. The story then switches between past and present day.

I'm in two minds about this one. While I was reading it, it was gripping. But towards the end I realised just how raw and brutal a read it was. I felt a little exhausted after reading it. Frustratingly there's some flaws in the story too, which has really negatively affects my opinion a few days on.

20% into the Revenant and really enjoying it.

About 40% into The Luminaries. It's good, but some of the back story waffle is annoying me. It seems tedious and unnecessary.

I was a bit meh about the Luminaries. I didn't enjoy the final third and thought the promise was wasted.

ChillieJeanie, have you read "Help!: How to become slightly happier and get a bit more done" by Oliver Burkeman? I really enjoyed it, he surveys the self-help genre, and picks out useful ideas from the morass on various different topics. (It's based on his Guardian column, if you read that, but I thought it was worth reading as a book anyway.)

43. The Lake District Murder - John Bude - one of the British Library re-releases of 30s murder mystery books that had been forgotten. This book was forgotten for good reasons - god it was dull. I expected a slower, slightly more formal pace and language, but several chapters were spent on the very great detail of a possible petrol stealling gang, which turned out to be bollocks. I am not quite sure why I continued to finish this book. Don't bother.

44. The Lady in the Van - Alan Bennet - short book, collecting all the items from his diary about the lady who really did live in a van on his drive. Sad, and felt such pity she didn't get the help she so obviously needed.

45. We Are Liars - E Lockhart - is a YA book, but works for an older audience. Based on a very rich family with a private island off Martha's Vineyard where they spend each summer, grandparents who have the main house then 3 houses for their 3 daughters, all of whom have had their marriages breakdown, the 3 daughters (the Mums in the book) are all competiting with each other and trying to secure their share of the inheritance. The narrator is one of the 3 oldest cousins - the oldest children of each daughter - who are very similar in age, and 4th outsider who is a similar age, the nephew of one of the 3 daughter's boyfriend.

At some point in her 15th summer, the narrator has an accident that leaves her with painful headaches and memory loss. She doesn't go the following summer, being too ill, then returned on her 17th year and is trying to piece together what happened around her accident.

The book is clearly leading up to a big reveal/twist, but I was imagining soemthing rather different than what did happen, although looking back it was sort of signposted. Would recommend.

Abandoned The Long Weekend, non-fiction about English country houses in the interwar era.

99. The Strange Death of Fiona Griffiths, by Harry Bingham Excited to have found a good new crimes series. This one has a whiff of calculation - oh look, a an Aspie-style narrator, who is a police officer dedicated to her work and ready to go rogue, some awkward romance and wait, is that a mysterious secret in her background that is going to tantalise us throughout the series? Why yes, it is. But it's executed with panache and I'm planning to get stuck into the series.

46. The Various Haunts of Men (Simon Serailler Book 1) by Susan Hill.
Crime novel setting the scene and introducing the young-ish inscrutable but attractive Chief Inspector Simon Serailler, his family and work colleagues. I liked it and will read more from this series.

47. Uprooted by Naomi Novic.

The kind of magical fantasy novel that I love. Witches, wizards, kings and queens fight a magical evil with a bit of (entirely appropriate 😉) romance thrown in there. Great fun!

Sadik, enjoyed your link to add to the debate of Atwood vs Science Fiction. The power of words..

Wilting, that's The Three Body Problem added to my massive tbr pile..

No, I haven't come across that, Sadik. Thanks for the tip! It sounds interesting.

Casually marking my place. I used to be a voracious reader and am finally getting back into it after 12 months of health difficulties which affected my concentration.

So far I've read 5 books, but will be looking to join in in January.

I will read back through the thread but :

Please have a look at the two threads I have running, What are you reading this month? and Can I have your best book of 2016? It's to give me ideas.

Hi everysongbirdsays

I only did around 20 on this last year, and have only got more up to speed again this year for similar reasons. Some people on here read 20 for breakfast, and there are lots in between

Just list what you've read and a few lines on what it was about and what you thought of it, and jump in when you're ready.