50 Book Challenge 2018 Part Eight

[southeastdweller]

Welcome to the eighth (and probably final) 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 and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.The lurkers among you are also very welcome to come out of the woodwork and share with us what you've read!

The first thread of the year is here, the second one here, the third one here, the fourth one here, the fifth one here, the sixth one here and the seventh one here.

How have you got on this year?

Indigo, I read a review of Unsheltered that described it as "perfectly competent at the level of the sentence".

Query: do poetry collections count?

I haven’t posted for ages - I lost my reading mojo for a bit. Work has been very busy, and I got distracted by the ‘which fictional boarding school would you like to have attended’ thread so I’ve just been rereading my old Trebizon, Malory Towers and St Clare’s books. I’m not going to count each one individually though as they’re not that long!

186. The Trebizon series by Anne Digby

My favourite of the boarding school books - more modern but still a bit dated now - they were written in the 80s so there’s mention of Walkmans and duplicators. This would be the school I would have liked to have attended!

187. The Malory Towers series by Enid Blyton

I always liked the sound of the swimming pool here - it’s built of rocks at the edge of the sea and is filled by the tide. As it’s Blyton though everyone is a bit snobby.

188. The St Clare’s series by Enid Blyton

Even more snobby than the Malory Towers books! Not sure why really but these are a bit less memorable than MT, even though they’re basically the same - girls play tricks on the teachers (particularly the French teachers), have midnight feasts, and expose the lying/cheating/whatever of the least liked member of the form, and the main characters (Darrell in MT, the O’Sullivan twins in SC) are liked by everyone eventually.

After all that I felt ready to get back to some adult reading....

189. Dying to Tell by Robert Goddard

Lance goes looking for his old friend Rupert, who seems to have disappeared, and gets caught up in events. It seems that Rupert’s disappearance is linked to a historical event..... This is another Goddard that I highly rate.

190. The Time Traveller’s Guide To Elizabethan England by Ian Mortimer

This basically explains what it was really like to live in Elizabethan times and what you would experience if you were able to go back in time - where you would live, what you would eat, how you would spend your time. He’s written a couple of others which I’ve read, about medieval England and restoration Britain, and I found those easier to read than this one which I found hard work. That could be more of a reflection of my current state of mind though rather than the book itself, and I still found it very interesting.

191. Have You Eaten Grandma? by Gyles Brandreth

A book about grammar and what goes wrong when we don’t follow spelling and grammar rules properly. I’m a bit of a spelling/grammar geek/pedant so this is right up my street, and Gyles writes very amusingly. My favourite bit was quoting people on Twitter who clearly have only ever heard phrases rather than read them, so would write ‘hammy downs’ instead of hand-me-downs and ‘my grammars got die of beaties’.

Now reading Sarah Perry’s Melmoth. I liked The Essex Serpent but didn’t love it, so interested to see what I make of Melmoth. I know others on here have rated it.

WelshWabbit - Lots more Susannah in the later books.

Chessie - I love that you're rereading your Enid Blytons. I adored those books as a child. I also found Malory Towers much more memorable than St Clare's, and was surprised to find that she wrote the St Clare's books first - it always seemed to me that she'd written a strong series in Malory Towers and then tried to capitalise on her success with the St Clare's.

I used to love the thought of that swimming pool too.

Vanderly Yes they can count if you want them to. People have counted poetry books by Seamus Heaney and Carol Ann Duffy in other threads.

aconcertpianist, I read Dear Mrs Bird. I wasn't blown away by it. I thought it was okay as a holiday read, but it wasn't entirely successful in capturing the tone of the era. If I want to read about keeping a stiff upper lip during the Blitz, I'd rather read The Provincial Lady in Wartime.

Yes, I've read it now and I agree with you. It just seemed a bit predictable...annoyed that I've bought it in hardback as I'm sure I won't read it again! I'll check out The Provincial Lady in Wartime-thanks!

38. Sing Unburied Sing by Jesmyn Ward
    I know this has featured in quite a few lists this year so I won’t bang on, just that I enjoyed it.

39. A History of Britain in 21 Women by Jenni Murray
    I always forget how interconnected so many people are. I liked how she brought forward other people in some chapters to promote a wider set of women. I hadn’t heard of everyone and she included things I didn’t know about others. I did find it a bit formulaic towards the end as I read it straight through. I think I wouldn’t have noticed the same if I’d dipped in and out. I was quite annoyed that every woman was defined by her father at the start, but I suppose she has to give a socio-economic context and this is the easiest way to do it. Overall I enjoyed it.

40. Lolita by Vladimir Nobokov
    A self confessed paedophile marries the mother of the child he is lusting after in order to get closer to her. After the death of the mother he embarks on a road trip with the child to avoid detection of his crimes. Narrated by the perpetrator, he tries to justify and excuse his behaviour.

I raced through the first part of this utterly enchanted and delighted with the writing. The skill with which the protagonist grooms the mother, child and indeed the reader is disturbing. However I increasingly became uncomfortable and unsettled with what I was reading, despite none of it being particularly graphic. I had to put it down for a few days during which I read the others listed above as a means of avoiding returning to it. I was disgusted by it, but more with myself for reading it and enjoying it. Once the seduction of both the child and the reader is over the narrative does change and devolves with the mental state of the narrator.

I found this beautifully disturbing. The journey the reader takes is skillfully guided and manipulated. I’ve never read anything like this before from a literary perspective and have a feeling I never will again. The quality of the writing is outstanding and Nabokov has done something extraordinary with it.

Chessie Another Blyton fan over here. I was desperate to go to Malory Towers. I agree that St Clare's is a poor substitute despite them essentially having the same cast of characters, the musically gifted one, the arty one, the sporty one etc.

I recently got my hands on a few of Blyton's I hadn't read, such as the third Wishing Chair book, but didn't count them as they took an hour or so to read. I have quite a collection of hers that I keep in the guest bedroom and find it funny how many visitors come down with a childhood favourite that they haven't read for years.

Definitely MT over SC. Famous Five over Secret Seven, Adventure series over the Secret series and Barney over the Five Find-Outers.

I claim Enid Blyton as a third parent as her books raised me, but sadly into a snobby little prig. Oh the morals.

I claim Enid Blyton as a third parent as her books raised me, but sadly into a snobby little prig. Oh the morals.

Ha, true! I used to worry about my chin because so many of her attractive characters had determined little chins. I remember scrutinising my chin in the mirror and wondering what it said about me. It just looked like a chin as far I could tell.

Funny how a bullish, jutting chin, particularly in an older character, would sound so much less attractive, while probably looking much the same. Ah, the power of the narrator.

Fortuna - The first half of Lolita is stunning and terrifying. Some of the most incredible writing ever, I'd say. Totally agree that the reader is being seduced alongside the mother and child. Spine-chillingly clever.

My absolute favourite Blyton is The Secret Island and I read it at least once a year - utterly perfect comfort reading.

42. My grandmother sends her regards and apologises – Fredrik Backman

When 7-year-old Elsa’s grandmother dies, she is left with the onerous task of delivering apologetic letters from her crackpot granny to all of the residents of the building where she lives. In doing so, she discovers that all of these people have much closer links to her granny than she previously imagined. A real-life fairytale of dragons, knights, princesses and a wurse (!), this is an uplifting story on so many levels.
For me it doesn’t match the beauty of A man called Ove but I will definitely be seeking out more of Backman’s work.

Bibliomania I used to get het up about brushing my hair 100 times until it shone, only in my case with grease because it's a type that doesn't cope well with being overworked. Her books defineltely left you with the feeling of wanting to be 'the right sort'. Heaven forbid being plain and spotty and dull.

Remus I've never been so enchanted. Given that English is not his first language and one he himself claims to be inferior to Russian, he certainly can manipulate it. Scary stuff, but oh so beatiful with it.

I also have all the Famous Five, Secret Seven, Naughtiest Girl And Five Find-Outers books as well as a few others so may read some of those over Christmas! I do like the nostalgia of rereading Blyton although I do recognise her faults.

51. The Weird And The Eerie - Mark Fisher

Short but fascinating book about the concepts of the weird and eerie in literature, music and film. I thought this might be a bit daunting as a work of critical theory by a clearly highly intelligent and knowledgeable writer, but it was surprisingly accessible. Will search out more of his stuff; sadly Fisher died a couple of years ago but an anthology of his writing has recently come out so it's going on my Christmas list.

91. George Mann - The Immorality Engine

Sir Maurice Newbury and Veronica Hobbes are called in by Sir Charles Bainbridge of Scotland Yard to investigate after a suspected burglar is found dead, but crimes with his trademark features are still being committed. But Bainbridge himself is called away to hunt down subversives after the attempted assassination of Queen Victoria. Investigations take Newbury and Hobbes to the Bastion Society, a gentleman's club with a chivalric focus, although Hobbes is also distracted by concern at being kept away from her sister, who is being treated by the Queen's personal physician. Can Newbury and Hobbes untangle the threads of conspiracy to discover the truth?

60. A Good Time Had by All, by Meaghan Strimas : a poetry collection that's sometimes ribald, sometimes raw, and always smart.

61. Chaotic Good, by Whitney Gardner : YA novel about Cameron, a 17-year-old female cod players who's navigating sexism, trolling, a new home, and uni applications. Fed of being disrectfully treated after an encounter at her local comics store, she takes drastic measures. A fun, easy read, but not likely to the taste of many on the thread.

62. Educated, by Tara Westover : much reviewed on here, so I'll only add my admiration for this brilliant, harrowing memoir. I do wonder, though, what people at Cambridge thought of her...

I claim Enid Blyton as a third parent as her books raised me, but sadly into a snobby little prig. Oh the morals.

Seriously. You have just answered all the questions that years of therapy never could answer. Not even joking 🙃😧

Loving the parallel conversations about Nabokov and Blyton. Just one of the many reasons why this is such an enjoyable thread

Pale Fire is also a great Nabokov, I think.

D was mildly obsessed with Nabokov's The Eye aged about 14.

25 - Desperate Remedies: Thomas Hardy
Not sure how to review this without any spoilers, but it is full of mystery and intrigue, wonderful characters (two called Cytherea!) and great descriptions. The dark character of Manston becomes more chilling as the plot progresses. A great first book.

I'm planning to read all of Thomas Hardy in chronological order.

26 - Circe: Madeline Miller
Reviewed extensively up thread - I loved it!

I haven’t posted on here for ages. Here is my list so far (favourites in bold)

1. His dark materials 1, Philip Pullman
2. Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine, GAIL honeyman
3. All the little children, jo furniss
4. The dead zone, Stephen King
5. The Nix, Nathan Hill
6. Friend request, Laura Marshall
7. Conversations with friends
8. Let me lie, Clare mackintosh
9. How to stop time Matt haig

10. The Keeper of lost things, Ruth hogan 11. It Stephen King 12. Cujo Stephen King 13. 11.22.63 Stephen King 14. Humans, Matt Haig 15. The Wildflowers, Harriet Evans 16. The Child, Fiona Burton 17. Lies, TM Logan 18. Salem’s Lot, Stephen King 19. The heart’s invisible furies john boyne 20. Broken bones (Kim stone book) Angela marsons 21. Fierce, Gin Philips 22. Mr Mercedes, Stephen king 23. Dying truth (Kim stone 8) Angela marsons 24. Night music, jojo moyes 25. Thinner, Stephen King 26. Finders Keepers, Stephen King 27. Elevation, Stephen King 28. End of watch Stephen King 29. Fatal promise (Kim stone 9)

As you can see, Stephen King has somewhat dominated my list this year!

Actually meant to bold The Wildflowers too- it was a very enjoyable summer read.

Cedar thank you so much for telling me what piece of music The Box of Delights theme tune is from. It’s very odd that I recognised the beginning of the Carol Symphony immediately (its a Classic FM favourite at this time of year) but have never heard the (?harsichord, I think it’s a harpsichord) section leading up to The First Noel.
I'm going to attempt to listen to the whole thing without interruptions whilst appropriately reading The Box of Delights.