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?

43. The girl on the train – Paula Hawkins
I'm sure any of you who would be keen on reading this book have already read it! The premise is really interesting. I figured out whodunnit quite quickly which is v unusual for me, so maybe that was deliberate. This has taken me AGES to read, but that's probably more a reflection on my current state of mind, than how engaging the book is.

95. Andrew Caldecott - Wyntertide

Sequel to Rotherweird about a town which has been kept officially separate from the rest of England since Elizabethean times to conceal a disturbing secret. The study of history is forbidden but the creative and scientific brains of the place enable it to generate an income through selling its creations to the outside world.

After the events of midsummer the group that came together to protect the town's secret, which had previously been hidden from them, are on the watch for a coming threat. There are odd omens and ancient messages found which point to one thing - the evil Geryon Wynter's plan which has been centuries in the making is coming to fruition. Wynter is coming back.

That's probably not all that helpful as a description, but I didn't want to give away much from the first book. They're really well conceived and I've now got an impatient wait for the final part to be published.

62. Notes from a big country Bill Bryson Popsugar reading challenge prompt ‘a bestseller from the year you graduated high school - well I didn’t ‘graduate high school’ not being American but this was out around the time I did my a levels and probably qualifies as a best seller, plus I already had it on the shelf. I remember really loving it the first time I read it, obviously it’s dated in the intervening 20 years or so and I found it a little twee in places this time round.

Just adding my last few before the end of the year:

85 The Cost of Living - Deborah Levy
Autobiographical musings on life as a woman and a writer after the end of her marriage. Short, funny in parts, also thought-provoking.

86 The Long Shadow - Celia Fremlin
Picked this one up as a Kindle deal after a recommendation on here. Classic reissued crime/suspense novel of the 1970s, nicely done, with some good social observation and a slightly catty tone in parts. The identity of the mysterious entity was not hard to guess from quite early on, but that didn't really affect my enjoyment. Will probably find a few more of hers as light reading.

87 Territory of Light - Yuko Tsushima
Another modern classic from the late 1970s. A young woman moves into a light-filled apartment with her young daughter after her marriage breaks down, but life in general is not sunny. The novel covers a year, in monthly instalments, as she adjusts, not always very successfully, to single parenthood. Atmospheric, and particularly appealing to me as I could instantly recognise the nameless area of Tokyo it is set in as somewhere very close to where I used to live.

I am currently reading A Gentleman in Moscow (Amor Towles) and The Death of Truth (Michiko Kakutani) but not sure if I will finish either or both of them before year's end (I may get distracted with new books...).

87 Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

University physics lecturer Jason Dessen is kidnapped by a mysterious man, drugged unconcious, and wakes up in an alternate universe in which he is a celebrated prize-winning quantum physicist.

Average sci-fi thriller which felt like it had been written with (at least) one eye on a film adaptation. Harmless enough, and one more off of my physical tbr pile.

67. The Woman in Blue by Elly Griffiths Ruth Galloway #8. A highly enjoyable and solid addition to this character driven murder mystery / archaeology series. I was worried, as I thought book 7 was a bit flakey, but this was a great return to form.

68. The Survival Guide for Kids With Autism Spectrum Disorders (and their parents) by Elizabeth Verdick and Elizabeth Reeve Designed to be read with your child, I've read it straight through first but am already cherry picking bits to read with DS. For example, given the time of year, we already went through the section on playing board games. I found this book a bit patchy, with some sections being really insightful into the typical autistic approach to the given topic, but others just seeming to give over the message, 'just stop being so autistic, look let me patronise you a bit and tell you how us normal people do it'. Overall more useful than not though.

69. Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani A quick fantasy read that I was going to slate for its silliness and unnecessary conflict that the reader wasn't invested in. It suddenly picked itself up in the last quarter and did some world building and stuff.

Hope all your book shaped presents are good ones. I know I'm getting Tombland so I'm looking forward to that.

201. The Children Of Green Knowe by Lucy M Boston

One of my festive rereads!

Haven't updated in ages, and as you can see, I don't think I'm going to make it to 50 this year, although I might squeeze in one or two more before New Year! I have however beaten last year's total of 45... maybe 2019 is going to be the year of 50

39. The Hellfire Club, by Jake Tapper. Absolutely awful. Jake Tapper may be a good news broadcaster but is not a good novelist. Thriller set in 1950s Washington and blended with some real-life characters and events, so I did at least learn something, but otherwise this has earned its place on the stinker list.

40. What Goes Around, by Emily Chappell. Autobiographical account of being a cycle courier in London, I really enjoyed this. Well written and with nicely themed chapters. Probably only for people with a strong interest in cycling, London or as in my case, both.

41. Witches Abroad, by Terry Pratchett. Highly enjoyable re-read - I love most of the Discworld novels but especially the Witches series, and this was an excellent distracting comfort read on a long travel day.

42. The Woman in Blue, by Elly Griffiths. One of the Ruth Galloway series - not the best in the series but as with all of them, highly enjoyable.

43. The Witch Elm, by Tana French. I see that quite a few Tana French fans are really disappointed with this but I thought it was excellent. A standalone, rather than one of the Dublin murder squad novels, told from the point of view of Toby, who is badly beaten during a burglary and has to come to terms with his injuries, and with his complicated family history. Beautifully written, I agree it was quite slow, but none the worse for that, and the last couple of chapters were truly unexpected and made my jaw drop.

44. The Hanging Tree, by Ben Aaronovitch. Part of the Rivers of London series, I read most of it on a plane journey and it was a good distraction. However I am a getting a bit fed up with the way this series meanders about without ever really resolving very much. I won't say any more for fear of spoilers, but a bit frustrating.

45. Anatomy of a Scandal, by Sarah Vaughan. I found this pretty slow going - a good legal thriller but somewhat hampered by being rather overwritten. I didn't realise how much, until I followed it up with...

46. The Chalk Pit, by Elly Griffiths ... which was very simply written but incredibly enjoyable and assured.

Onwards!

57. State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Someone upthread said this was one of their top reads of 2017 and I can see why. A sort of 21st century Heart of Darkness with all sorts of thought-provoking themes and well-written characters who stay with you. The story of Marina who goes into the Amazonian jungle to find out what happened to her dead colleague, who in turn went to find out what was going on with the development of a fertility drug paid for by their company. The doctor running the trial knew Marina when a terrible mistake curtailed her medical training, and all the ends come together in the last few chapters in a hugely satisfying way.

58. I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O' Farrell

Memoir of Maggie O'Farrell's life through a number of near-death experiences. Beautifully written and much more life-affirming than it sounds.

Might get up to 60 before the end of the year with a fair following wind. Merry Christmas everybody!

Arnold Schwarzenegger's autobiography Total Recall is 99p on the Kindle today. You will be surprised to hear that It is nothing short of amazing. Highly recommended.

Happy Christmas all!

Welshwabbit I loved both those!

Merry Christmas everybody!

60. Work Like a Woman - Mary Portas. Nicely written guide on trying to move away from the Alpha Male status quo culture that dominates many workforces today. Lots of humour and passion here.

61. Coal Black Mornings - Brett Anderson. Memoir from the Suede frontman up until he was 24 in early 1992, much better written than other books of this ilk. I was a bit less interested in the book's second half when the emphasis moves from his family to his music but this is still one of the better memoir's I've read for quite some time.

Is everyone going to do this all over again and join the new thread next week?

Merry Christmas!

Happy Christmas, everyone! I hope you all got at least one new book today...

I am certainly planning to join in again next year, but one of my goals is to read Infinite Jest, so I am not sure my total will be as high as this year.

Merry Christmas, all. I got Erebus plus a nice new edition of Ballet Shoes, as my old one is falling to pieces.

I got Transcription and Normal People. Very disappointed not to get Erebus but did very well otherwise so can’t complain and will be treating myself to it stat! Will definitely be in next year, got a few in the battle to be 50 then I’ll post my final reviews. Also got my husband Middle England so will be borrowing that in the New Year.

Happy Christmas all! Hope the day was as everyone hoped.

Satsuki, all the books you mentioned are on my wishlist and I didn't get any of them! But I'm reading a Barbara Pym at the moment
( Crampton Hodnet ) so I'm happy

Happy Christmas :)

Four books here, both sequels to Too Like the Lightening (thank you dd!), Rotherweird which I've been wanting to read for ages (it's a rather lovely physical book, so very pleased to have it in hard copy rather than in kindle on cheap deal), and The Happiness Hypothesis, which I've not heard of but looks interesting.

Just got to finish my current book before I pick which one to read first :) :)

I got Becoming - Michelle Obama from both DD and DH. Co-ordinated gift giving there .

I also got lots of puzzle type books and a book on local architecture.

On which note:
88 The European Union: A Citizen's Guide by Chris Bickerton

Excellent short book about the EU. The main thrust of the book is an exploration of the way in which governing - and most specifically management of the economy - has become effectively depoliticised over the last 30 years, with political arguments/goals replaced by sets of rules enshrined in EU law and enforced/decided on by the ECJ. (The UK of course has not experienced this to the same extent as the Eurozone countries.)

The author makes the point that this is not 'the EU stealing our democracy' but rather an active choice that has been made by the politicians from individual states. (And also that it is not just an EU phenomenon of course, GATT/the WTO is another aspect of this depoliticisation.)

Not a 'pro' or 'anti' EU book, but a good resource for anyone seriously interested in the spread of technocracy and the countervailing rise in populism, and considering how we could re-build citizen engagement in a more constructive way (and potentially a more genuinely democratic EU/international political space).

Merry Christmas! I have a book of ghost stories (Help the Witch by Tom Cox) given by DH to add to my pile.
South I will definitely rendez-vous on the appointed thread on the first of January.

Merry Xmas To all!

I did really well on the book front today
My lovely MIL gave me the latest Carol Ann Duffy - signed too.
I gave my husband a long wish list and quite unexpectedly he bought me the lot.
I got Transcription, The men who man Henry VIII - Tracy Borman, Bloody Brilliant Women - Cathy Newman, Heroes- Stephen Fry, The silence of the Girls - Pat Barker, Under Everything - Daisy Johnson, Queens of their Conquest - Alison Weir, Fox 8 - George Saunders, Votes for Women - Jenni Murray, and a guide book to Berlin as apparently we are going on a weekend there. All recommendations about Berlin related literature and must see sights welcome!

Happy Christmas everyone! Welsh it was me who said State of Wonder was one of my reads of 2017. You're right, it has all the ingredients for a fantastic read.

I didn't get any actual books, bit did well with book tokens. I'm looking forward to a book buying binge in the new year.

Merry Christmas. I got three books Educated, Diary of a bookseller and Nevermoor 2. Very happy with them.