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

I’m amazed at how many books you have read eine and chessie ! I think I’ll be able to make it to 50 this year seeing as things have finally settled down. But tbh, if Wattpad/FF.Net/ao3 count as “books” I’d have probably read 1000 or so saying that I also do quite a bit of reading at work (preschool teacher) it makes my voice go hoarse by the end of the day!

But tbh, if Wattpad/FF.Net/ao3 count as “books” I’d have probably read 1000 or so

I have no clue what this means which must therefore mean I am an ancient crone

I believe it is what the young people call fanfiction, M'Lud.

I'm not young and I do spend time on ao3- wattpad appears to be populated only by people who cannot write or spell. But I do feel like an ancient crone when I'm browsing and saying to myself "the quality of fanfic has really gone down hill, there used to be much better stuff than this"!

71. The Clocks by Agatha Christie. Poirot makes an appearance, this is set quite clearly in the early 60s, and read straight after some of the 1920s ones it is surprising how different it does feel. In my head they are all between the wars! Nice bit of plotting, neat solution, slightly too many communists.

@Sadik

"criticising a Philip Roth book for being unrelentingly male is like criticising Watership Down for having too many rabbits"

I loved that too - great critique Keith!

After me complaining about nothing on TV I am losing a days reading riveted to The Crown

40 books in 46 days I can still do it, right? 😂

Yup it’s Fanfiction. I agree tana Wattpad has been shit lately! And quite a few fanfics have gone down hill/all the good ones seem to have been abandoned, always tend to find myself coming up with good ones from years ago. Though I am trying to write more often it can be rather demotivating when you see other stories with 50+ reviews that have less chapters than yours while yours has been up for a while self-pity rant over

@EineReiseDurchDieZeit

After me complaining about nothing on TV I am losing a days reading riveted to The Crown

40 books in 46 days I can still do it, right? 😂

You can do it Eine, this book series will help.

Lol

On the subject of fanfic, I don't really read it myself (I can't think of any characters that I like enough to want to read about them tbh) but I did love Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell who wrote Eleanor and Park.

109. All New X-Men Vol 1: Yesterday’s X-Men
110. All New X-Men Vol 2: Here to Stay
111. All New X-Men Vol 3: Out of Their Depth

In this series, the original X-Men are brought forward in time, and then decide to stay in the present setting. All entertaining enough as long as you try not to think too much about temporal paradoxes (this is something that most of the characters seem remarkably relaxed about).

112. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi

A memoir of the author’s life in Tehran during and after the time of the Iranian Revolution.
I found this very interesting.

You can't ban me from the next thread bett

Thanks Fortuna for your Bass Rock input. I haven't bought it yet because it's not 99p.

Also thanks Keith for your review of the Philip Roth. I think it goes some way to articulate why I'm not going to finish Infinite Jest, which although a totally different book is in many ways cut from the same mould. In claiming to identify something universal, it's really about 'the America of white men', and privileged, racist, misogynistic ones at that. And why should I give that the time of day? Stayed a while for the writing, left in disgust and weariness.

@MuseumOfHam

You can't ban me from the next thread bett

Thanks Fortuna for your Bass Rock input. I haven't bought it yet because it's not 99p.

Also thanks Keith for your review of the Philip Roth. I think it goes some way to articulate why I'm not going to finish Infinite Jest, which although a totally different book is in many ways cut from the same mould. In claiming to identify something universal, it's really about 'the America of white men', and privileged, racist, misogynistic ones at that. And why should I give that the time of day? Stayed a while for the writing, left in disgust and weariness.

It'll be me that's banned because I think Eleanor and park looks dreadful.

Bett - I'm with you, naturally

Eleanor & Park is readable but a bit dark; Carry On and Wayward sun were more fun I think.

Son I mean!!!

I wish I was able to read as much as you Eine, means I could blast through most of the virtual TBR pile in a year.

I would exchange my reading scores for the ability to go out at this point, novelty has truly worn off. Horse they would shoot me etc.

4 The Dark Angel Elly Griftths
One of the Ruth Galloway series. This one’s set mainly in Italy and I enjoyed the descriptions of a small Italian mountain town. As far as the plot goes all the inconsistencies and unlikely coincidences, which annoy me in most psychological thrillers, are in abundance. Somehow I can overlook them here, probably because I find the characters so engaging and the way the author writes about birth, death and family really appeals to me. I think it’s time the love triangle was sorted out though

39. Rake's Progress - Rachel Johnson. This is an account from the journalist and author of her attempts to get elected as an MEP. This starts off well but, as witty as her writing is, she goes too much into the minutiae of what goes on in behind the scenes when a more engaging book would have had less of that and some more stories of family life chez Johnson, her own and the one she grew up in.

New thread - www.mumsnet.com/Talk/what_were_reading/4081169-50-Book-Challenge-2020-Part-Ten?watched=1

Thanks, South.

I think the darkness in Eleanor and Park is why I liked it so much.

Wake me up when all the lists are over with, please!

See you on the other side.

Closed