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50 Book Challenge Part Five

990 replies

southeastdweller · 18/04/2017 08:05

Welcome to the fifth thread of the 50 Book Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2017, 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 the year is here, the second one here, the third thread here and the fourth one here.

What are you reading?

OP posts:
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9
bibliomania · 19/04/2017 13:29

Sorry, have been offline and feel off the old thread.

  1. The Secrets of Gaslight Lane, M R Kassassian

  2. Harpole & Foxberrow, General Publishers, J L Carr

  3. The Brontes, Brian Wilks

  4. Four Dreamers and Emily, Stevie Davis

  5. Do Not Pass Go, Tim Moore

  6. The Brontesaurus, John Sutherland

  7. Hand to Mouth, Linda Tirado

  8. Rhapsody in Green, Charlotte Mendelson

  9. Not Just Jane, Ellen De Wees
    10. Weatherland, Alexandra Harris

  10. The Dead Student, John Katzenbach

  11. Time after Time, Molly Keane

  12. The Year of Living Danishly, Helen Russell

  13. Take Courage: Anne Bronte and the Art of Life, Samantha Ellis

  14. Books for Living, Will Schalbe
    16. Victorians Undone, Kathryn Hughes

  15. My Beautiful Genome, Lone Frank

  16. The Story of the Human Body, Daniel Lieberman

  17. Take Six Girls, Laura Thompson

  18. Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari

  19. Good Evening, Mrs Craven: The Wartime Stories of Mollie Panter-Downes

  20. Game of Throw-ins, Ross O’Carroll-Kelly

  21. Sorcerer to the Crown, Zen Cho

  22. The Cyclist who went out into the Cold, Tim Moore
    25. Border, Kapka Kassabova
    26. The Strangest Family: The Private Lives of George III, Queen Charlotte and The Hanoverians, Janice Hadlow

  23. The Woman in Cabin 10, Ruth Ware

  24. The Last Train to Zona Verde, Paul Theroux

  25. One for the Books, Joe Queenan

  26. Desperate Romantics, Franny Moyle
    Found this a slow read. Nobody came out well. Kathryn Hughes’ chapter on Rossetti and Fanny Cornforth in Victorians Undone is more sexually explicit and memorable. I’d always felt vaguely sorry for Ruskin’s marital humiliation, but by this account it was thoroughly deserved.

31.Ready Player One by Ernest Cline.
Extensively reviewed on her already. Video game-style quest set in the near future. Enjoyed it although I've never been a gamer so I didn't get the buzz of nostalgia, but the quest was fun, if shallow, and the bleak glimpses of the future world are nicely astringent.

  1. Soul of Discretion, Susan Hill. Attracted by the description on here of the series as middle-class crime, and yes, that's accurate! Will probably read a few more of these, although the main character seems a cipher.
SatsukiKusakabe · 19/04/2017 14:05

Bringing my list over. I'd read double this amount this time last year. Had a good start but haven't been finding many good enough to finish in recent weeks. Highlights in bold, raspberries in italics. Quite a few were good but only 3 standouts.

1.All the Light We Cannot See - Anthony Doerr

  1. The Essex Serpent - Sarah Perry
  2. His Bloody Project - Graeme Macrae Burnet
  3. Golden Hill - Francis Spufford
  4. 11.22.63 - Stephen King
  5. The North Water - Ian McGuire
  6. The Three Body Problem - Cixin Liu
  7. The Vegetarian - Han Kang
  8. The Long Goodbye - Raymond Chandler
10. Revelation - C J Sansom 11. Wishful Drinking - Carrie Fisher 12. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline 13. The Name of the Sodding Wind - Patrick Rothfuss 14. Heartburn - Nora Ephron 15. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius - Dave Eggers 12. Madonna in a Fur Coat - Sabahattin Ali
SatsukiKusakabe · 19/04/2017 14:07

That should be 16, lost ability to count as well as read.

Tanaqui · 19/04/2017 15:40
  1. Reqdy player One by Ernest Cline. Reviewed just above! Although I was a teenager in the 80s, gaming was not my thing, so a lot of the references here passed me by. In fact, I'm not quite sure who this book was aimed at- I assumed young adult, but no idea if a teenager now would get any of the 80s stuff! Also, I found the narrative voice very one note- I wouldn't seek out anything else by Cline.
Passmethecrisps · 19/04/2017 20:27

Evening all. Glad I found you. Thanks for the new thread.

My list thus far:

1. The Muse - Jessie Burton

  1. Gone Without a Trace - Mary Torjussen
  2. Flesh Wounds - Christopher Brookmyre
  3. Phantom: a Harry Hole Thriller - Jo Nesbo
  4. Dead Simple (Roy Grace Series) - Peter James
  5. All Good Deeds (A Lucy Kendall Thriller) - Stacy Green
  6. The Turtle Boy - Kealan Patrick Burke
8. His Bloody Project - Graeme McRae
  1. The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion
10. The Last Day of Christmas: The Fall of Jack Parlabane (short story) - Christopher Brookmyre 11. Tales of Protection - Erik Fosnes Hansen 12. The Wall of Sky, The Wall of Eye - Jonathan Letham 13. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline 14. The Essex Serpent - Sarah Perry 15. Gallows View (inspector banks series) - Peter Robinson 16. The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler 17. Dead Man's Prayer - Jackie Baldwin 18. As the Crow Flies - Damien Boyd 19. Head in the Sand - Damien Boyd 20. Kickback - Damien Boyd
  1. Swansong - Damien Boyd

Another enjoyable middle class crime. This time set in a boarding school where our protagonist, DCI Nick Dixon must face his demons if he has a chance of solving the murder of a 17 year old girl and a cold case. I liked the setting and the characters are fun if not always convincingly drawn out - for example the chief super who supposedly is highly dubious and critical of Nick but actually backs him at every turn and appears really rather fond of him. It's a bit like the author has forgotten how he intended to play it.

Anyway, easy reading and good fun.

InvisibleKittenAttack · 19/04/2017 21:07

ooh, new thread!

My list so far:

  1. Sword Song - Bernard Cornwall
  2. The Essex Serpent - Sarah Perry
  3. House of Cards - Michael Dobbs
  4. Sparkling Cyanide - Agatha Christie
  5. The Moving Toyshop - Edmund Crispin
  6. Crow Hollow - Michael Wallace
  7. Moving - Jenny Eclair
  8. The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
  9. Rather be the Devil - Ian Rankin
10. The Killings at Badgers Drift - Caroline Graham 11. Cold Earth - Ann Cleeves 12. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall - Anne Bronte 13. Death of a Hollow Man - Caroline Graham 14. The Burning Land - Bernard Cornwell 15. 84 Charing Cross Road/The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street - Helene Hanff 16. The Hanging Tree - Ben Aaronovitch 17. Dark Fire - C. J. Sansom 18. The Woman in Cabin 10 - Ruth Ware 19. The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra - Vaseem Khan 20. Eleven - Mark Watson 21. Black Plumes - Margery Allingham 22. The Various Haunts of Men - Susan Hill

The last is the first of the "Simon Serrailler" detective books as recommended on here as middle class crime fiction - and my days it was very middle class, the discription of sash windows and furniture layouts was almost pornographic. So very naice. However, there's a bit of a twist towards the end that I wasn't expecting.

If you are in the market for something a bit cosy but with a tiny bit of a more edge than a midsummer murders, this is the one for you.

Ladydepp · 19/04/2017 22:33

Satsuki - I'm going straight into the library tomorrow to ask for The Name of the Sodding Wind! Sounds amazing GrinWink

  1. Golden Hill by Francis Spufford. Reviewed on here many times. I loved it, gripping plot and gorgeous writing - my favourite combo! I especially loved the set piece scenes, so vivid. For once the cover reviews lived up to their hyperbole.
Murine · 19/04/2017 22:44

I haven't read The Gustav Sonata, mugglebumthesecond, I have it on my never ending wish list to read though as it sounds like the kind of thing I'd like. Would you recommend it?
I found Nightwoods by Charles Frazier in a charity shop for 50p today, has anybody read this? I remember loving Cold Mountain when I read it years ago so bought it, though it'll be a while until I get around to reading it, I've got 4 library books on loan to go first!

MuseumOfHam · 19/04/2017 22:48

Thanks for the new thread southeast

  1. This Thing of Darkness by Harry Thompson (kindle)
  2. Where the Bodies are Buried by Chris Brookmyre (kindle)
  3. Nothing to Envy: Real Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick (kindle)
  4. The Dud Avocado by Elaine Dundy (hard copy)
  5. Thank Heaven Fasting by EM Delafield (kindle)
  6. 11.22.63 by Stephen King (audible)
  7. Blue Lightning by Ann Cleeves (Dad's kindle)
  8. The Devil in the Marshalsea by Antonia Hodgson (Dad's kindle)
  9. The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu (kindle)
10. Only the Innocent by Rachel Abbot (Dad's kindle) 11. The Hit by David Baldacci (Dad's kindle) 12. Weavers by Aric Davis (kindle) 13. Coffin Road by Peter May (audible) 14. The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes (Dad's kindle) 15. A History of Scotland by Neil Oliver (hard copy) 16. In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park (kindle) 17. The Loney by Michael Andrew Hurley (kindle) 18. Born to Run by Christopher McDougall (hard copy) 19. Red Dwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers by Rob Grant & Doug Naylor (audible) 20. Maul by Tricia Sullivan (kindle) 21. The Reason I Jump by Naoki Higashida with an introduction by David Mitchell (kindle) 22. Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham (dad's kindle)

And now:
23. The Mangle Street Murders by MRC Kasasian Diverting quick read Victorian murder mystery, done in a humorous style. Intelligent female heroine teams up with curmudgeonly male personal detective. I liked that this acknowledged the sexism, racism and classism of the time in quite a light but knowing way. At first the witty dialogue was genuinely funny, but it all became a bit samey towards the end, and I fear this series could go the same way as St Mary's. I'd read another if it was 99p and I was in the right mood, but wouldn't actively seek it out.

Satsuki I notice the word sodding has crept into one of the titles on your list. Would that be the lute book? Grin

CoteDAzur · 19/04/2017 22:58

"Satsuki I notice the word sodding has crept into one of the titles on your list. Would that be the lute book? Grin"

Satsuki, . You must have missed lute music by now. You are welcome Grin

(Feel free to laugh at my middle-aged sausage fingers Smile)

spinningheart · 19/04/2017 23:48

Murine, I read Nightwoods earlier this year and I enjoyed it. Liked the main characters. I think I have a goldfish memory for storylines but this one is worth reading.

slightlyglitterbrained · 20/04/2017 03:28

Noticed that The Snowden Files which I believe was reviewed on an earlier thread and have had on my list since is now down to £2.74 on Kindle (and Olive Kitteridge on daily deal today).

alteredimages · 20/04/2017 07:37

I am sorely tempted by The Name of the Sodding Wind as relief from The Seventh Scroll satsuki.

I am still irrationally angry about what is, after all, just a cynical money grab disguised as a poorly researched thriller. I need to get a life.

I think it is the condescending tone that gets me most. Gems like knowing that the Minister of Antiquities prefers a robe and sitting on cushions on the floor to sitting at a desk in a suit and tie. I know the current Minister of Antiquities and he would sooner shoot himself in the head than wear a galabeya, and indeed if he did, even in his leisure time, he would almost certainly be fired.

I also really dislike the "real Egyptians" bloodline bullshit. It is divisive, lazy and untrue. I mean, no one would ever write in a novel about Britain that all British people of Anglo-Saxon, Gael, Norse or Norman descent are invaders and the only true Britons are the Welsh. FFS.

If you are going to write a novel about a country, then why not talk to a person from that country? Read a book about it, say?

In tribute, I will write a book about a British couple excavating Stonehenge called Zorg and Sheba, who are foiled by evil villains Kazoo and Dipshit, easily distinguished by their Riverdance outfits.

Sadik · 20/04/2017 08:16

"no one would ever write in a novel about Britain that . . . the only true Britons are the Welsh"
I wouldn't rely on that, altered Grin A friend's dd was once reprimanded in school for speaking "the language of the devil" (ie, English), and I can quite see someone writing a novel saying just that . . .

Sadik · 20/04/2017 08:17

They probably wouldn't write it in English, though!

alteredimages · 20/04/2017 08:36

Haha Sadik. You're right, I can see my aunt writing a novel saying that. Grin

It would still be untrue, but I wouldn't mind an Egyptian writing that. It just pissed me off having someone with no knowledge coming in and deciding that 85 to 90% of Egyptians aren't really Egyptians after all.

alteredimages · 20/04/2017 08:38

The best part in my aunt's novel would be where she would define the term "Welsh". Obviously, northerners, anyone from Gwent and the next town along would not be Welsh.

fatowl · 20/04/2017 09:18
  1. The Wolf and The Raven - Steven MacKay
2.The Hobbit - JRRR Tolkien (Audible)
  1. Greenwitch - Susan Cooper
4.Child 44 - Tom Robb Smith 5.Fellowship of the Ring - JRRR Tolkien (Audible) 6.Into the Heart of Borneo - Redmond O'Hanlan 7.The No1 Ladies Detective agency 8.The Two Towers - JRRR Tolkien (Audible)
  1. Crosstalk - Connie Willis (Audible)
10.The Forest - Edward Rutherfurd 11.Tom’s Midnight Garden - Philippa Pearce 12.1066 - Kaye Jones (Audible) 13.The Reformation - Edward Gosselin (Audible) 14.The Return of the King - JRRR Tolkien (Audible) 15. Lion by Saroo Brierley (for Bookclub) 16. The Muse by Jessie Burton (on Audible) 17. Henry VIII's wives - Julie Wheeler 18. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula de Guin 19. Fall of Giants by Ken Follet 20. Stig of the Dump by Clive King
  1. Edward I - A Great and Terrible King by Marc Morris
    Non-fiction and it's taken me a while to get though, but glad I read it.

  2. Nomad by Alan partridge (on Audible)
    You need to be an Alan fan to get this - a spoof on those celebrity walks to find themselves. I do like Alan Partridge, but some of this fell a bit flat, same old jokes about fat backs and social awkwardness. Meh - 3/10

bibliomania · 20/04/2017 09:26

alteredimages, I'm absolutely loving your hatred for The Seventh Scroll and your insider knowledge. Where but for this thread would I find out about what the current Egyptian Minister of Antiquities likes to wear? And please do write your Stonehenge novel - I promise to read it and sneer.

I have read novels set in Ireland which grate similarly, especially when written by Americans. There was one book where I couldn't work out the dialogue at all, until I realised the author thought "I'm after doing x" meant "this is what I intend to do" as opposed to what it actually means, "I have just done this". I couldn't work out past v present at all. But that's just the delightful scatty colleen I am, tooraloo tooralay.

I'm on another of the Simon Serrailler series. When we say it's middle class, to be specific, it's very much upper middle - Joanna Trollope with a forensics tent dropped incongruously into the background. I've just read a section where Simon interviews a witness in her home, which is (horrors) a new build with a patch of lawn and no flowers and it's clean and tidy and characterless, and he's mentally comparing it with his sister's delightfully characterful home, with children and a dog and books all around. Ostensibly it's about how pets and children make a home, but the witness just happens to be a nurse while the sister is a doctor, and there is a huge dollop of class-bound assumptions about what makes a desirable home environment (it reminded me of Muriel Spark's short story "You should have seen the mess").

I suspect it's not going to stop me devouring the rest of the series, but I may rant from time to time.

SatsukiKusakabe · 20/04/2017 09:43

altered sorry to enjoy your misfortune. The Seventh Sodding Scroll it is.

cote that was mesmerising. To my untrained eye you are really very skilled and I enjoyed watching it. Does that instrument belong to you? It's quite a thing. I'm very envious as I always wanted to be proficient on the piano, but stopped lessons when I was ten as we couldn't afford them.

alteredimages · 20/04/2017 09:44

bibliomania, I love Irish Americans! One asked me if we have electricity in Scotland, congratulated me on my high standard of English, and argued with me about what constitutes a Forfar bridie. Another expected me to be personally acquainted with their cousin in Norway. Good times.

Looking forward to the rants, hopefully they will make me appear slightly less unhinged. Smile

alteredimages · 20/04/2017 10:07

OK, I know I have to stop for my own safety, but seriously. She is described as a devout believer, her husband has just died, they are in Church for his funeral prayers, but instead of wearing black and observing the mandatory 40 day mourning period and praying for her husband's soul while being supported by friends and family, the protagonist is planning to drive alone to Cairo and chats informally with the Minister who expects her at work the next working day. Which is incorrectly mentioned as a Monday . The working week is Sunday to Thursday mate!

Her father was an army officer on the personal staff of Gamal AbdelNasser but inexplicably was not jailed when he married a foreign national, which is a court martial offence in the Egyptian military. It is especially laughable that a high-ranking Egyptian army officer married a British citizen during the Suez crisis which is when the marriage would have taken place.

The least believable part though is when she asks for unpaid leave and arranges it in a chat with the minister instead of submitting herself to the usual three-month process of submitting and resubmitting the correct forms in triplicate to a variety of committees and sub-committees for approval and then fighting over whether she is still liable for insurance payments to cover the period of her absence. That and not leaving the house for forty days might have slowed the plot down a bit though. Grin

That bit and anyone finding a public toilet in Cairo.

Satsuki agreed. The Seventh Sodding Scroll it is.

Cote I really enjoyed your playing too. For the record, no sausage fingers in evidence at all. My grandparents had a spinet which I used to attempt to play as a child. Luckily there were no close neighbours.

Tarahumara · 20/04/2017 11:07

Chuckling away at my desk here. Don't stop ranting altered! Grin

bibliomania · 20/04/2017 11:15

This thread is my happy place .

Sadik · 20/04/2017 11:15

You have to finish it altered for our amusement Grin