50 Book Challenge 2019 Part Six

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2019, 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 one here, the fourth one here and the fifth one here.

Also - Jonathan Coe is not my favourite & see above for a review of King of the Badgers - good title - sprawling self-satisfied tome by P Hensher.

ducks, newburyport by Lucy Ellman.

I’ve not read any other David Nicholls but I have Sweet Sorrow given to me as a present and so far it is about teenage boys in the 90s which I wouldn’t have thought screamed female Daily Mail reader but we shall see. My Nan was one of those and she was always more for a Maeve Binchy. But I also have a linen tote bag for every day of the year; they fall out on me every time I open a cupboard yet are never around when I need one.

55. Punch & Judy Politics by Ayesha Hazarika and Tom Hamilton

Declaring an interest because Tom is a friend, this is a very enjoyable and at times educational look at the institution of PMQs by two people who prepared various Labour leaders for the weekly ordeal over the last 10 - 15 years. Lots of stuff I didn't know about the in depth preparation done with the leaders, some great anecdotes about the best lines from recent (and not-so-recent) years, interspersed with some more serious consideration of the wider implications and purpose of PMQs. A bit niche, but a good read for anyone interested in the subject.

I was wondering if anyone was going to get hold of The Testaments as it's out today? I've been nearly buying it on pre-order for the last couple of weeks and then not doing so. I've compromised by reserving a copy in the library but I imagine there is a huge waiting list. The funny thing is that although I think The Handmaid's Tale is a very good book, I wasn't that crazy about it and didn't watch the television series.

Does the new book tempt any of you?

whippet same position as you - not watched the tv show and although I liked the book didn’t feel it was crying out for a follow up. Might well read it but will wait till the hype has died down and I’ve seen some other responses to it.

Fell off thread.

I read an extract from The Testaments in the weekend papers - wasn't wildly keen to get the book. I liked the original book when I read it years and years ago but haven't been watching the TV series.

106. The Body Lies, Jo Baker
A slightly uneasy blend of fiction and meta-fiction. Our heroine is teaching a university creative writing class, and there is much pondering as to whether portraying violence against women is exploitative, a matter of cheap thrills. Too many crime fiction stories start with the classic image of a violated female corpse - does that mean it should always be off-limits? Is it okay if the author is a woman and/or if the violent act is not the sum of her existence? This layer of questioning felt as if it diluted the main story (involving yes, threats to the central female character). The story was absorbing once it got going, and I winced in recognition at the university setting, but overall, it felt a bit less than the sum of its parts.

107. The Bad Mothers' Book Club, Keris Stanton
You know what you're going to get based on the title - bitchy mothers at the school gate. This is kind-hearted enough, and points out that even the Queen Bee has her troubles, and might be quite nice when you get to know her. It's all a bit paint-by-numbers, seen-it-before, but it's harmless enough.

108. Behind the Chalet School, by Helen McClelland
Biography of the author of the Chalet School books. Not especially dramatic or well-written, but I enjoy the image of Elinor Brent-Dyer running her actual school (terrible food, not particularly well-run) and simultaneously writing fantasies about a very idealised fictional school. One new snippet is that Haile Selassie's granddaughters went to the real-life school in England while he was in exile in the UK in the late 1930s.

109. Like a Tramp, Like a Pilgrim, Harry Bucknall
The author's account of walking the Via Francagena from Canterbury to Rome. Covers the same ground, literally, as Guy Staggs' Crossways, which I read last year, but Staggs' is the better book.

110. This is Shakespeare, Emma Smith
The author is an Oxford academic, and reading this is a bit like sitting in a series of tutorials. I felt vaguely intelligent just for being there, but not sure I retained much (I wouldn't like to be tested on it). Her overall theme is that the plays are open to many different readings; they ask questions rather than answer them. This allows space to interrogate new and different sets of concerns through the medium of the plays.

I'm seriously considering buying The Testaments more so because I have the money off voucher from The Guardian this weekend. I may treat myself.

Dismayed to read luke warm reviews of Frannie Langton as I bought it last week . I do like Sarah Waters though, so perhaps it might be ok.

59: Unto Us a Son Is Given - Donna Leon

Nothing overly sensational here, in Comissario Brunetti's well-ordered life (oh, for a university professor wife who comes home almost every day to cook lunch for me!), but I do rather love these tales of slo-mo Venetian crime.

In this one, Brunetti's father-in-law, the Count, confides his worries over a wealthy childhood friend who wants to adopt a son. Only the son is an adult, though younger, man who might well have ulterior motives for wanting this arrangement to go ahead. Not a fast-paced thriller, as per usual with Leon, but plenty of Brunettian reflection on the folly of human behaviour.

49. Fingersmith - Sarah Waters Just seen Waters being discussed earlier. I’ve had this on my shelf for years and, despite not getting to it earlier, I did expect to love it somehow. I did really enjoy part one, and clocked what I thought was going to be ‘the’ twist at just the right time for it to feel totally satisfying. Of course it turns out darker and twistier than that even, and whilst I sort of enjoyed that aspect I did also find myself rolling my eyes at the convenience of some aspects, and particularly the tidy ending. I also found some parts really difficult and uncomfortable reading, which I suppose speaks to good and affecting writing, but did have me skimming quite a bit.

I'm off in a minute to see Margaret Astwood in the cinema- live from The National I think- so should be interesting!

Frannie Langton is getting more silly by the page. I don't like Sara Waters either.

Wow 'David Nicholls is dire cliche ridden tripe I am sorry to say. The sort of thing female Daily Mail readers would take on holiday in their linen tote bag'

I've been lent it in hard back by my sister who could't be further from that description, and I thought Starter for Ten and One Day were superior chick lit, great holiday reading.
I've not heard great things about Sweet Sorrow (my sister was disappointed) but I'll try not to be too patronising in my review when I eventually get round to it!

I'm thinking I might get The Testaments on Audible if it sounds good. I've got six credits and I think new releases are a good use of them because they're so expensive. I read THT last year and really enjoyed it.

Well I got home yesterday and DP said he'd ordered me a copy of The Testaments which should arrive today, so that solves that dilemma for me

@bibliomania your review of The Body Lies reminds me of a short story I read where the generic dead female murder victim of all the TV detective shows climbs out of the TV for a break and sits on the sofa with a drink and becomes an actual person. It's a really good story but I can't remember who it's by, which is very annoying. Possibly Lauren Groff or Joyce Carol Oates.

16. This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay. I really, really hated this. I think there was some discussion here previously about whether the book was misogynist or not. I'm not sure that is misogynist exactly, in that the awful way he speaks about many of his patients is because he is a massive dickhead and the fact that they are women is kind of incidental. That being said, women's bodies are grotesquely appropriated here for comedy, which of course is a mainstay of misogyny. Also - I did not buy it. I feel confident that at least 75% of it is made up, with the anecdote being written around a punchline the he came up with years later. It's unkind, and devoid of empathy, and makes a joke of his patients. I completely understand that he was disillusioned by his experiences, but the exploitation of junior doctors should have been much more strongly discussed than it is here. But I guess that's not as funny as a dumb broad who sticks a Fireman Sam sponge up her vagina for three months so that she can continue to have sex for money while on her period, or a silly bint who refuses a Vit K injection because 'vaccines cause arthritis'.

Yikes, that was a bit ranty. I just found it so disappointing. I understand that he is a comedian, but it's such a serious subject matter, and it deserved a more subtle approach. There were moments of pathos, especially when there was a poor outcome, but it just wasn't enough to balance the parade of fools through which he glided, god-like.

I’ve got The Testaments reserved at the library, but no idea when I’ll get it - unfortunately my library app doesn’t tell me where I am in the queue! I really rate The Handmaid’s Tale so am looking forward to the sequel. I avoid buying hardbacks though (they’re more expensive, they take up more room on my bookshelves, and they’re cumbersome to read especially as most of my reading is in bed/in the bath/while travelling) so I will have to be patient!
I watched the first TV series of THT, but stopped watching the second series when the violence got really graphic and haven’t bothered since.

I know it’s very late in the year, but I’m just getting back into reading and could do with somewhere to get ideas and to log what i have read. I’m not going to be too ambitious for now, but am aiming to read ten books by the end of the year.

whippet, that short story sounds intriguing and yes, potentially a pithier take on what Jo Baker was doing in her book. I did think the book was worth the read, even if not entirely successful.

September's a good time to start, Equimum. That new school feel is in the air. I just write mine down in notebook, but I think some people on here have fancier systems.

Hi equimum welcome

Hi Equimum, welcome. I use goodreads to keep track of what I’ve read so maybe have a look at that?

I'm 15% into The Testaments on audio and enjoying it so far. I did watch the TV series and loved the first book.

Equimum I use the Goodreads app/website to record what I read and it throws up suggestions of what you might like based on what you have read. I can also follow friends and see what they are reading and their reviews/ratings.

Back from hols and did very little reading as it was too bloody hot.

Welcome Equimum. I just keep a list of the books I've read on an excel spreadsheet.

72 The Secret Lives of Colour by Kassia St Clair
Reviewed earlier this year - this is a collection of 75 short articles about different dyes, pigments and shades, working through the rainbow colour by colour. I've had it by my bed for ages (had to finish it because I'd renewed it too many times from the library), and it made perfect bed-time reading one or two colours per night, interesting but not overly gripping.

I've given up and taken Evening in the Palace of Reason back to the library, as life is just too busy right now. Luckily it's only £2.99 on Kindle, so have bought it & will come back to it when I have have more time.

No desire to read The Testaments or This is Going to Hurt whatsoever.

And losing the will to live with all the lesbian longings and sighings in Frannie. I'll finish it, but it's really not very good.

Stephen King has a new book out this week, so I'll probably buy that at the weekend.

50 - The Dream of the Celt - Mario Vargas Llosa

Epic and weighty are the words that spring to mind for this one, a great book to mark my fiftieth read on the thread.

A fictional biography of Sir Roger Casement, one of the leaders of the 1916 Easter uprising, this was a satisfyingly dense read that has left me much better informed about the complex issue of Irish nationalism around the turn of the century. Knighted for his work as a British diplomat exposing the exploitation of native communities in The Belgian Congo and Peruvian Amazon, this tracks his progress from humanitarian hero to his imprisonment in Pentonville Prison for high treason.

Very long and quite a demanding read, but ultimately worth it. I loved the vivid descriptions of the Amazon and the sympathetic portrayal of a complex and sensitive man trying to make sense of a cruel world.