50 Book Challenge 2020 Part Nine

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2020, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it's still not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

The previous threads of 2020:

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

The latest posts here are making me want a reread of A Christmas Carol soon. I think at least I'll have some success at finishing a Dickens book, unlike with two of the recent readalongs I was following . Never seen the Muppet Christmas Carol but will look out for it this year

True Keith, I do sometimes wonder whether I would actually enjoy the likes of Wuthering Heights if I reread it now, when twenty years ago I thought it was garbage.

Realistically I think if you didn't like Wuthering Heights as a teenager, you're unlikely to enjoy it as an adult - surely it's the ultimate emo novel

94 Lady in Waiting by Anne Glenconner
This is the autobiography of Anne Glenconner - daughter of an earl, Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret as per the title, and co-founder of the resort on Mustique with her husband Colin Tennant. I thought it was an excellent read. She's had a very eventful life, and writes well about it. She's obviously very aware of her privilege (in the old fashioned sense of the expression!) though she's also had trouble in her life, and she also does a good job I thought of steering the fine line between saccharine and bitchy when writing about some notoriously awkward characters. Recommended if you want an easy entertaining read (& on 99p deal at the moment).

95 The Uncounted by Alex Cobham
This looks at 'uncounting' from both sides of the spectrum. So the ways in which marginalised (and often overlapping) groups including women, people with disabilities, linguistic minorities and many others are excluded in data collection, and the political nature of decisions about how, what and who to count. Then at the other end, the ways in which privileged groups such as rich individuals, big corporations avoid counting and therefore social responsibilities. The result - often unquestioned as the result of supposedly neutral technical decisions - is 'unpeople' who lack voice and representation, and 'unmoney' which avoids regulation & taxation.

I think this is what I wanted Invisible Women to be. It sets out the extent of 'uncounting', but also looks at the theoretical underpinnings to the processes through which decisions are made. At the other end of the book, there are a lot of very practical suggestions as to how these problems can be tackled. Really interesting. (As a side note, the introduction which comes as the Kindle free sample summarises the issues very well and makes an excellent standalone read.)

Couldn't agree more on Wuthering Heights, sadik. I think you are either a Heathcliffe and Cathy type of person, or you aren't. I am not, and never have been. I do love Jane Eyre, though.

Thanks for the review of The Uncounted as well. I am really interested in this issue, and even more interested in short cuts that mean I don't end up adding much to my TBR list. The introduction, for free, sounds exactly what I need!

I'm incredibly mean with my five star reviews on Goodreads, even a boldened book on here only guarantees 4 stars. Which is quite unfair because like Keith I'm then put off by books that achieve less than a four average on GR 🤷‍♀️
Recent (not five star!) reviews:

41.	<strong>Norse Mythology</strong> by Neil Gaiman It took me a little while to settle into this but once I did I really enjoyed it. Unlike reading <strong>Circe</strong>, which revealed how much of Greek Mythology I had assimilated over the years, this book highlighted how little I knew about Norse mythology - little more than the names of Thor, Odin and Loki. I feel better informed now and it was an entertaining listen. I will be adding the Stephen Fry <strong>Mythos</strong> series to my TBR pile as well after <strong>Fortuna</strong> and <strong>Bookwitches</strong> glowing reviews.

42.	<strong>Jamaica Inn</strong> by Daphne Du Maurier, whilst this is never going to match up to Du Mauriers classic <strong>Rebecca</strong>, there is lots to recommend the tale of derring do and pirating around Cornwall's moors and craggy cliffs. 

However I chose this as an Audible credit and it was practically made unlistenable by the ridiculous voice Tony Britton (narrator) adopted for any female character (think a West Country cross dressing Jack Lemmon from 'Some Like It Hot' mixed with a pantomime dame) this may have been just about passable for downtrodden Aunt Patience but was very distracting for our plucky heroine, Mary.
It's very much a product of its time and I got a bit fed up of the references to the weakness of women and the fact that Mary upon entering a virtual strangers house, rather than turning tale and leaving him to fester in his shit heap, feels compelled to clean up the house and make him a hearty meal, leaving him able to wax lyrical on the benefits of having a woman around the place. I also strongly disliked the ending for similar reasons. All that not withstanding the plot of the novel is gripping and I think this book is ripe for a big budget adaptation, Netflix should buy the rights!

43.	<strong>Malorie</strong> by Josh Malerman follow up to <strong>Birdbox</strong>, more of the same but  suffers from repetition and a few stunningly awful and terribly convenient plot twists in the last few chapters to ensure the preceding narrative makes sense, except it really doesn't.

I read wuthering heights for the first time in my 30s and was surprised at what a page turner I found it.

53. Silence by Shusaku Endo

Finally picked this up after a couple of people on the thread reviewed it. Took me longer to read this than it normally would for a 300 page book. Once the priests reached Japan I really enjoyed this, the story moves along and there is alot of religious philosophising which is not normally my thing but I liked how it was presented.

54. Small island by Andrea Levy

Very much a likeable book, not demanding to read, moves along with different narrators and inserts its history, some of which I knew and some I didn't. Ended abit neatly but overall there are parts I think will stay with me and i liked how the characters were portrayed.

11.22.63 by Stephen King

Talking of ratings this is a solid 3/5 for me. Perfectly enjoyable but didn't love it and I won't read it again. Found the relationship aspect in thre realms of fantasy a little (a virgin having sex for the first time orgasming through penetrative sex only after like 10 minutes - sure King ok) but really enjoyed the time travel aspect and learnt alot about the Kennedy assassination.

Hello all.

I was with you all earlier in the year under a different username, but fell off completely and am only just making it back on now. I've kept up with reading all the threads apart from some of this one though, so I'm going to post my list then go back and read number nine in full.

First though, my thoughts and condolences to everyone on here who has had a particularly difficult year. I hope this thread, and reading generally, have provided some comfort

My list:

1. The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
2. The Body, Bill Bryson
3. The Man Who Was Thursday, G. K. Chesterton
4. Dishonesty is the Second Best Policy, David Mitchell
5. A Study in Scarlet, Arthur Conan Doyle
6. The Sign of Four, Arthur Conan Doyle
7. Notes From A Small Island, Bill Bryson
8. The Lost Man, Jane Harper
9. A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson

10. The Dutch House, Ann Patchett 11. The Girl With All the Gifts, M. R. Carey 12. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle 13. The Year of Reading Dangerously, Andy Miller 14. The Return of the King, J. R. R. Tolkien 15. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J. K. Rowling 16. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling 17. Mr Gandy's Grand Tour, Alan Titchmarsh 18. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling 19. World War Z, Max Brooks 20. Bookworm, Lucy Mangan 21. 44 Scotland Street, Alexander McCall Smith 22. Thinking On My Feet, Kate Humble 23. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Frederick Douglass 24. Between the Stops, Sandi Toksvig 25. Untold Stories, Alan Bennett 26. A Man Lay Dead, Ngaio Marsh 27. Bothy Tales: Footsteps in the Scottish Hills, John Burns 28. Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel 29. Bring Up the Bodies, Hilary Mantel 30. Born A Crime, Trevor Noah 31. How to Grow Old, John Bishop 32. Spinning Silver, Naomi Novik 33. The Stranger in the Woods, Michael Finkel 34. The Crossing Places, Elly Griffiths 35. The Tales of Beedle the Bard, J. K. Rowling 36. Hamnet, Maggie O'Farrell 37. Red at the Bone, Jacqueline Woodson 38. Days Without End, Sebastian Barry 39. The To-Do List, Mike Gayle 40. The Extinction Trials, S. M. Wilson 41. Ready Player One, Ernest Cline 42. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins 43. Just One Damn Thing After Another, Jodi Taylor 44. The Lost World, Arthur Conan Doyle 45. Hotel Silence, Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir 46. From Goats to A Garden, Susie Williams 47. Devolution, Max Brooks 48. Uncommon Type, Tom Hanks 49. Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens 50. Piglettes, Clementine Beauvais 51. The Twisted Tree, Rachel Burge

Currently reading:
A Whole Life, Robert Seethaler and The Drowning Guard, Linda Lafferty

I am currently making a second attempt to read Wuthering Heights. I tried the Audible earlier this year and abandoned it as I really could follow what on earth was going on, despite the very good narration by Juliet Stephenson.
I am now reading a chapter a day of a paper copy, with footnotes to help with the difficult words

I am kind of determined for it not to beat me, as I loved Jane Eyre, Anna Karenina, Rebecca, Pride and Prejudice etc.
Don't think it would ever be a favourite though

I’ve had to close my eyes as I scroll through the thread at some of peoples 5 star ratings as my TBR list is getting far too long. However it finally occurred to me to use daughters borrow box so at least I can borrow some of them from the library and give my kindle account some rest.

11. The Great Hibernation. Came across this when looking for something else on BorrowBox. Is a YA book. In a remote town all the adults suddenly fall asleep leaving the children to keep things going but what is the real reason for the adults suddenly falling to sleep. The story had a good basis and good for its age group but it never got into too much detail so seemed over pretty quickly.

12. Girls by Edna O’Brien. Chose this as it was reviewed on here. Enjoyed it.

@SatsukiKusakabe, the brother thing clearly didn't bother me back then (and judging by the amount of Supernatural fanfic, and Fred/George in HP, I was again ahead of my time! Obviously it was Raistlin ftw, Caramon was way too stupid).

68. The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie. Another Poirot, but not one of the better ones, the characters don't quite come alive in this. I suspect it was better when filmed, because the plot is no worse than many others.

Eine - Unnatural Causes annoyed me. I just wasn't interested in him as a person and thought it had far too much autobiographical info.

😂 Thats what I liked about it - it was like a novel about him.

Urgh. I have started Agent Sonya - BenMacintyre (non-fic) about a housewife in the Cotswolds who was a high ranking Soviet officer running a spy ring across Europe during the Cold War. I was hoping for something akin to A Woman of No Importance which was a vibrant and dynamic narrative with suspense and intrigue about a passionate and vividly drawn real person. Sadly this does not live up to the hype about it and the author choosing to read the audiobook himself was a grave error. It sounds like he's giving evidence in court about the antics of a cardboard cutout. I'm about a third in and willing to give it a little more time, but at this rate I won't see the end. I understand there's a need to build a background to events, but it doesn't have to be this dull. What a wasted opportunity. It gets phenomenal reviews and I really can't see how at this point.

158. Trustee From The Toolroom by Nevile Shute

I didn't like it

RUNS TEARING FROM THE THREAD BEFORE SOMEONE REVOKES MY MEMBERSHIP

Eine I’ve never even heard of that Nevil Shute book, if that helps?

tanaqui I feel very sheltered, I had no idea! Fred and George?! Puts a different spin on Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes.

I liked Old Baggage very much. Also Trustee from the Toolroom. I can see how people wouldn’t but again it was one that just moved me so I don’t overanalyse.

I appreciate Wuthering Wuthering Wuthering Heights for how innovative it was structurally and the bold subject but it was never one I enjoyed. People talk about the Thomases in Wolf Hall being confusing but I could never make head nor tail of all the Haretons and Harebrains. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is a good one to start if you’re embarking on classics, very readable and easy to get into, I came to it quite late but enjoyed it a lot.

Postscript - I found the Da Vinci Code hard to put down as I imagine did all the zillions that bought it, but I would only give it 5 stars if I was rating out of 200. And Jim Henson was a genius and Dan Brown is...not.

64. Three Things about Elsie by Joanna Cannon

This is the story of elderly Florence who has fallen in her room and while she is waiting to be rescued, we get a narrative of her friendship with Elsie and life in Cherry Tree Retirement Home. She is worried she is becoming confused and does not like to socialise with the other residents, preferring to talk to Elsie almost exclusively. The most interesting thing that has happened is that Florence is convinced that a new resident is actually a man she and Elsie knew in their youth, but who died in 1953.
I found it boring, predictable and just not engaging. There were other (unnecessary and underdeveloped) narratives from Simon the Handyman and Miss Ambrose the manager at Cherry Tree.
I saw another review calling it Girl on the Train for old people, which I thought hit the nail on the head, but that was more of a page turner.
A reading low point this year, up there with Normal People for books that have underwhelmed me this year.

@SatsukiKusakabe

Postscript - I found the Da Vinci Code hard to put down as I imagine did all the zillions that bought it, but I would only give it 5 stars if I was rating out of 200. And Jim Henson was a genius and Dan Brown is...not.

I think Dan Brown is a genius. He's made millions out of some very mediocre books. I'm guilty of buying 4 of them.

@StitchesInTime

Eine I’ve never even heard of that Nevil Shute book, if that helps?

It's one of my favourite books so before I get the pitchfork, Eine please explain yourself.

I'm interested to know why you didn't like it as I re-read A town like Alice earlier this year and didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much as I have on previous readings, it was one of my all-time favourite books so I put it down to having read it once too often.

Dan Brown is a genius in the same way that Jeffrey Archer is.

I enjoy Dan Brown’s books (although the later ones haven’t been as good). No, they’re not great literature but they are page turners. Whether they’re 5 stars surely depends on your own personal rating system - it’s clear that some rate depending how much they enjoyed the book whereas others rate based on the quality of the book itself. Based purely on enjoyment The Da Vinci code would be a 4/5 rating for me but based on quality of writing it would probably only be a 2/3! In reality my rating system falls somewhere between the two so it would probably have got a 3 or 4 depending how generous I felt that day (I read it way before I started using goodreads to track and rate books).

I’m not knocking Dan Brown’s success I just don’t think everyone who has great success is necessarily a genius. Without getting too caught up in semantics it’s more of an exceptional ability or level of creativity and lots of people manage to sell millions of mediocre books but there’s only one Kermit the Frog.

I think I rated it 5 stars as it was one of the first books I reviewed on GR and it had been a real page turner. I can recognise that it is not great literature, but it is a good read, especially in the quagmire of trashy crime fiction that is around at the moment (Dark covers, yellow font titles, three word titles like I See You, and You Came Back) Formulaic and predictable.
Angels and Demons was also OK, an enjoyable read, not the best book ever written, but far from the worst. The later Dan Brown/Langdon books are pants (The Lost Symbol - yawn, Inferno - crap)

In fairness I did read it to the end and you can’t say that for all books, it takes a particular skill. I did attempt to write like Dan Brown before on the thread and it is harder than he makes it look. I think my protagonist ended up with too many legs and no plot You’ll be pleased to note I didn’t make use of Lockdown to complete it.

The famous author admired the blue Parker fountain pen he held in his hand, a gift from his mother before she went to the rainforest to study the mating habits of trees, then used it to write dozens and dozens of terrible sentences. The silent scratch of the pen rang out loudly round the room he had worked in for 20 years, the sound bouncing back and smacking him in his handsome ear like a shark, as he constructed a cipher that would, he predicted with his superior predicting skills, be impossible to decipher, unless you watch Countdown regularly and are familiar with "anagrams". He wore blue socks, one on his injured leg, and one on his uninjured leg, and another waited in his drawer. He admired his reflected reflection in a dull spoon as he looked forward to eating a dinner of chicken, noodles, and intrigue.

Satsuki