50 Book Challenge 2018 Part Two

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2018, 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.

What are you reading?

I bloody hated that bloody boring butler, I'm afraid.

It's on my tbr to read soon. I absolutely loved the Merchant Ivory film.

I loved the film southeast and saw it before reading the book - didn’t enjoy the book as much, so interested in what you think.

Meanwhile I’m 70 per cent through This Thing of Darkness and trying to make it go slow as I’m nearing the end and know I’ll have a huge book hangover when it’s finished. So hard to not just keep reading though.

The film was very beautifully done, I thought. Long time since i last saw it but quite fancy watching it again.

I suppose if we all liked the same books then we would be the boring ones wouldn't we, Remus?

Anyway, not decided what to read next. Have got a couple of library books out, so probably one of them.

I haven’t seen the film but was very underwhelmed by the book / just found it really boring and didn’t get any of the emotion that others get from it. I’ve given up with Ishiguro now - I loved Never Let Me Go but haven’t enjoyed anything else of his I’ve read.

I loved Life After Life, but didn't like A God in Ruins at all. Hated Viola so much. Someone on Twitter was recommending Behind the Scenes at the Museum too, might see if the library has it.

I thought The Remains of the Day was an excellent book, but didn't find Stevens an easy character to spend time with at all. Characters you're supposed to think are misguided/mistaken are hard to pull off well, I think, especially in first person.

viola was meant to be awful though, and had her reasons, and as such was very well drawn.

Crampton, I loved The Remains of the Day as well. Yes, Stevens was a naive and pompose arse, but I think that at least partly due to the times and circumstances he found himself in. I found it heartbreaking.

5. Death in the Clouds but Agatha Christie. Poirot's on a plane from Paris to London, when one of the passengers is found dead, with a poison-tipped dart in her neck. It borrowed heavily from Murder on the Orient Express, with the murder happening in a closed environment, and apparent strangers being revealed to have hidden connections. Still, good fun figuring everything out though.

11. Rose In Bloom by LM Alcott Like Cheerful, what struck me about this is how readable it is, for a book almost 150 years old. It is preachy, and there are annoyingly good bits that don't get expanded (like the somewhat ungrateful women she houses; such a realistic flicker it would have been lovely to "see" as well as hear) but it is quite surprisingly feminist, despite ending in happy marriages.

Oh, I know, Satsuki, but we did have to spend an awful lot of time in her head.

I wasn't quite sure how I felt about the reason for her being such a cow. I mean, it did make perfect sense, but at the same time, you found out about it so late that I'd already spent most of the book going "But she has such a lovely dad! Why does she hate him so much?" So my disbelief was already fairly embedded.

There were parts of the parenting-Viola storyline that I thought were really well done - like when they're all "We shall let her be a free-range child like we were!" and she just wants to spend all day in her room - that produced a wry smile. And I liked that the early Viola was recognisably a non-screwed-up version of the later one - you could see many of her faults there, but also that she was basically a normal, slightly weak child. And I liked how you could see his way of trying was to take her on long boring nature walks, which was so completely the wrong thing to do, but very believable.

I dunno. I felt like Life After Life was a really plausible mix of lovely Edwardian idyll and plausibly fucked-up messy family and big "Let's kill Hitler!" themes of inevitability and power (and lack of it). And A God in Ruins was just ... small and petty and depressing. Which I know was the point, but that didn't make me enjoy it any more.

And the ending bloody annoyed me too.

The ending really annoyed me too Cheerful - hated it. But loved Life After Life.

10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F.Scott Fitzgerald really enjoyed this. Very funny and sad. Much better than the movie.

remus I will have to check out Anansi Boys. I have Good Omens and Ocean at the End of the Drive in my tbr pile first though.

cheerful I didn’t love God In Ruins to be honest, and thought lots of things didn’t work - and much preferred the wartime parts to the present day sections which were dull and often flabby - but I did think what she did with Viola was clever; the prolonged build up made the moment later on have more impact. It is one of the few things that really stayed with me from the book. So while it wasn’t a huge favourite I admire the ideas she was exploring with it, the myriad effects of war, and the fact that men like Teddy were just as flawed and complicated as anyone else, The ending yes - in a way it was in keeping with the themes and I see what she was doing, but those types of endings are always unsatisfactory, aren’t they, whatever the reasoning. I’m looking forward to her next one.

Ye gods the Benjamin Button movie. I think I aged forwards backwards and sideways during that nightmare. It just went on and on. Brad Pitt has made a lot of long dull films, and if you don’t find him attractive, as I don’t, it can really be quite trying.

Ha ha satsuki that's exactly how I felt watching, much a I imagine running a marathon must be... Just keep going you can finish it. The book is only a couple of hundred pages and yet the movie just drags and drags.

(1) Witch is When Life Got Complicated by Adele Abbott
(2) Witch is Where It All Began by Adele Abbott
(3) Coming Clean by Kimberly Rae Miller
(4) Die Last by Tony Parsons
(5) Restaurant Babylon by Imogen Edwards Jones
(6) The Sugar Men by Ray Kingfisher
(7) The Hospital by Barbara O'Hare
(8) Fade Out by Rachel Caine
(9) Yellow Crocus by Laila Ibrahim
(10) Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer
(11) Would You Like Some Magic With That by Annie Salisbury
(12) The Ride Delegate by Annie Salisbury
(13) The Magdalen Laundries by Lisa Michelle Odgaard

This is a novel based on true events and although enjoy isn't the right word it is a good read until the end. I felt the author captured it emotion and situations perfectly through out the book but tried to tie it all up in a happy ending which was a bit hard to believe.

I really liked Life after Life and interesting to read people's thoughts about God in Ruins. They echo over reviews I have read which really put me off reading it.

4 - The Good Girl - Fiona Neil Having really enjoyed The Betrayals last year I thought I would try another book my the same author. A light and quick read telling the story of Romy who is as the title suggests causes no problems at home and is a straight a student at school. When Romy gets herself embroiled in a scandal her mum is quick to blame her new boyfriend but it gradually becomes apparent that Romy is not the only member of the family to be keeping secrets. Not quite up to the standard of The Betrayals but still an enjoyable read.

Now on to The Child by Fiona Barton

Scribblygum I love Blithe Spirit, I first watched the film with my sister when I was about 11 and remember laughing all the way through it.

Interesting reading peoples opinions on God in Ruins I really enjoyed it but I think that is mainly because I love the characters of Teddy and Ursula.

I am currently reading This Thing of Darkness and about 2/3 of the way through. I have read the factual account of The Beagle trips, the one written by Darwin and another account and in my very limited and small opinion, this book is fantastic about bringing all of that together. The only downside is I know the historical ending so am slowing down my reading pace to enjoy it all.

Also, I don't know if poetry counts here? But I have finished reading Complete works of Emily Dickinson, I started reading poetry after a few deaths in the family meant I could not concentrate on longer novels for a time and this was a book I inherited from my Grandfather after he passed away. Beautiful edition and wonderful poems.

I loved both Life after Life and A God In Ruins, although I will admit to being a bit frustrated by the ending of GiR. I love everything Kate Atkinson’s done though (except Emotionally Weird, which was just, well, weird!)

I think I started watching Benjamin Button but got bored and never finished watching it. Will give the book a go sometime though!

Another one who loved Life after Life. First I'd read of hers and thought it was beautifully written and fascinating concept.

I enjoyed A god in ruins too but not quite as much... I actually liked the ending tho!

When I (eventually) finish oryx and crake I've got behind the scenes ... waiting

I did like Mumsnet's shout out in God of Ruins as well. Thought it was very funny!

I really enjoyed Life After Life and A God In Ruins. I had AGIR as an audio book and just couldn't stop listening to it. That ending was excellent, can't say too much but it completely took me by surprise.

I've enjoyed Kate Atkinson's novels ever since I read Behind the Scenes at the Museum many years ago.

I really need to pick up a book as I haven't read for 5/6 days. I've been ill to be fair and my concentration has been terrible, but I really need to get back on track.

I went to a charity shop today, and bought 3 books. There was very little on offer, but I got Nigel Slater's Tender, volumes 1 and 2, and a random book ''Echoes of Family' by Barbara Claypole White for £3 total. The Nigel Slater books were £2.50 each, or you could have any 3 books for £3 so it was cheaper for me to buy the extra book. Hopefully it'll be worth a read.

Read two books by women about the delights of sea-swimming to take your mind of your troubles:

1. I Found my Tribe, by Ruth Fitzmaurice

10. Leap In, by Alexandra Heminsley

The first has a husband with motor neurone disease, the second was struggling with failed IVF. The first is all poetic glances and swimming in the moonlight, while the latter gives practical advice on improving your stroke and choosing a wetsuit.

I found the first one slightly annoying for non-literary reasons - I'm irritated by women who talk about their "tribe" of children, and I think it was poor decision-making to opt for a fourth pregnancy when her husband is completely incapacitated. She nearly died of sepsis with this last (twin) pregnancy, which seems rather irresponsible with regard to her existing three small children. I know that's not exactly literary criticism, but it came between me and the book.

Teufelstrad nice to see you back. Hope things improve soon.

Chessie interesting you mention Emotionally Weird I read that a while back having not read anything else of hers and subsequently avoided everything like the plague! Got lots of catching up to do!