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?

Plus3 they are beautiful. Might have to reread The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, it's been a long time. I prefer Emily and Anne's work to Charlottes.

Ah, only very remotely! I love Steely Dan, it's from the song My Old School about the American Annandale. ..

It might be difficult to read too many novels about slavery together. Night Women is horrific at times.

Popping into this thread to mark my place and I'll bring my list across soon. I've just finished The Fishermen, and I'm currently reading ~ahem~ A History of the English Puppet Show. More on those later.

And, by the by, plus3, thank you for sharing. Not sure why, but photos of piles of people's books or of their shelves always make me happy.

Hello, please can I join?

Do I do a list and just keep adding to it, or just write what I'm reading at the time?

I used to read loads more than I do currently. Bad habits involving wine during the week tend to mean I go to bed with good intentions of a couple of chapters and end up with a couple of pages. However I really do need to get back being healthy and reading more again; I miss it so much. So... from me....

1. The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley - weird and wonderful and needed a lot of concentration. It was worth it just to read about Katsu the mechanical octopus character who stole it for me.
2. A street cat named Bob by James Bowen. 99p kindle job, about as shallow as a puddle and needed during a tiring week when I needed something very easy to read. Passably enjoyable.
3. Last Seen Alive by Claire Douglas - 1/3rd of the way in, very easy to read, but building in tension and starting to get a bit creepy! Maybe not a bed time read....

Hi Alabaster - you can do either . The former may help you keep a track of your total, if you don’t keep your list elsewhere.

1. Diary of an Ordinary Schoolgirl - Margaret Forster.

What a delightful read this was! It's the 1954 diary from the late author, when she was growing up in Carlisle, when she was fifteen. She writes about her schoolwork, the plethora of the extracurricular activities she was involved in, her family and friends and so on, the typical kind of things a 15 year old would write about. But as well as the social history and fluff there are some entertainingly bitchy observations and it's interesting to reflect on where her fierce ambition came from. I wasn't alive in the 50's but reading this made me feel wistful about that period when life seemed much simpler and innocent, when most people had no TV's and very little in the way of technology, when you were 'forced' to be bored and come up with your own entertainment or study hard (yes I know I sound like an old fart ). The introduction by her husband is fascinating and the design and format of the book is really nice, with some of Margaret's entries reprinted, and the memorandum at the back, with her list of books she's read and films and plays she's seen is a lovely touch. I think a lot of people here would like it, especially Remus, toomuch and Crampton and I'd love to read her adult diaries, if they ever get published.

Next up is Any Human Heart.

Thanks Southeast- it's is on my list. Also A Day in the Life by Hunter Davies which in part is about his life with Margaret.

Thanks for the William Burroughs feedback satsuki and sunset not sure I'm brave enough to give them a go. I'm thinking I should maybe be concerned as to why DP has so many of his books, thinking about it they may have been left by an old lodger who was a bit peculiar.

It sounds exactly my kind of book, Southeast . Putting in request at the library right now.

Gosh - couldn't find you for a while
My list so far:

1. He Said/She Said – Erin Kelly
2. The Mitford Murders – Jessica Fellowes
3. The Cold Calling by Phil Rickman
4. Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens

finished 5. Small Island by Angela Levy
A fascinating insight into 1950s Britain and the bleakness, oppression and racism that those arriving from Jamaica found themselves facing. The novel flips back and forth between 1950s London and the upbringing of the central characters. I would have liked to see more chapters devoted to their later predicaments, as those were the most powerful but overall a very enjoyable read.
started 6: Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell - I've got a busy week but I think it will be a quick read.

Has anyone got any good audible recommendations please? It needs to be an easy plot to follow as I get many an interruption!

I'm now going to catch up with the rest of the thread....

Diary of an Ordinary Schoolgirl is already on my wish list South - I'll look forward to it

SouthEast Diary of an Ordinary schoolgirl was my last read of last year/first read of this year. I too would love to see her adult diaries published.

Reminds me very much of Alan Bennett in the similarity of their backgrounds.

Hi, I didn’t quite make 50 last year but did read more which was my goal. Love this thread for recommendations.

My list so far:

1. My not so perfect life by Sophie kinsella
2. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

I’ve just started The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt which I have been meaning to read for a long time.

Just checking in! Not finished 4 yet, some of you are very quick readers!!

Take your point annandale and I've just finished North Water which was also harrowing at times albeit in a different way. I'm about to read A Room With a View though, so that will be a break from the grimness I'm sure.

As for being a Steely Dan fan .. me too! Rose Darling was my favourite track. I well remember strolling around school in the 70s with a carefully chosen LP casually peeping out between my books to be admired

I finished Where’d You Go Bernadette and then read This is Going to Hurt in one sitting. Bernadette was great - such brilliantly crafted characters and a completely original, satirical story in an epistolary form. I thoroughly recommend it. Adam Kay’s Book was a real page turner too but widely discussed on here already I think.

Now I’m turning to The Essex Serpent. I think it was that book which saw me off the reading trail last year as I only got as far as p17 last time, not for lack of interest but for lack of time. I hope, having read a sequence of fairly easy to read books I’m now ready for something more challenging and I’ve found my reading mojo again.

1 Everything I Never Told You Celeste Ng
2 Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine Gail Honeyman
3 Women and Power Mary Beard
4 Where’d You Go Bernadette Maria Semple
5 This is Going to Hurt Adam Kay

Thanks, South. Have just got the sample. V expensive on Kindle, so might have to be a library job!

I’m now on book three. Read Skellig which was alright and now reading The Secret Garden

I rate Skellig very highly indeed. Think it's really tender, and thought-provoking and moving. Beautiful.

I rate Skellig very highly indeed. Think it's really tender, and thought-provoking and moving. Beautiful.

I'm just registering here:

1: Sarum by Edward Rutherford.

2: The Unseen World by Liz Moore.

best book in bold - and it was a stunner.

Life & lurgy has taken over from reading & am about to fly off to help with new grandchild, so I don't expect to read much for the next few weeks but I really do want to keep up with this thread.

I rate it so highly, I said it twice!

I rate it so highly, I said it twice!

I rate it so highly, I said it twice!

Oh ffs!