50 Book Challenge 2021 Part Four

[southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2021, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read. Could everyone embolden their titles and/or authors as well, please, as it makes the books talked about easier to track?

The first thread of the year is here, the second one here and the third one here.

@Tanaqui my boys (8 and 6) absolutely love Clever Polly and the Stupid Wolf. It (and the sequels) makes them laugh more than any other book. I love it too. Although it has old fashioned items and expressions, it doesn't feel dated at all, and Polly is a brilliant protagonist.

15. The Fox by Frederick Forsyth
Something extraordinary has happened - American cybersecurity has been comprehensively penetrated. But when a team go in to take the perpetrator into custody, they discover something they didn't expect- a potential secret weapon for the UK and the free world against the murderous dictatorships that threaten it.

I think this has had quite good reviews, and i think it's specially written as a YA novel. I read it pretty much in a single gulp. I still feel it's a bit lacklustre if I'm honest. The central premise is so little shown in the story that the point of a techno thriller is lost and the central protagonist is a big gap, so that the story goes back to well worn Forsyth territory. But I enjoyed a couple of the set pieces, particularly the battle cruiser part.

15. Private - Keep Out - Gwen Grant A comfort read of one of my childhood favourites, tales of everyday life in a working class family in 1948, narrated by the youngest daughter. There's lots of detail about things they eat, how they have a bath, how the bedrooms are laid out (our heroine shares a bed with her 2 older sisters in the same room as the parents so the lads can have the other bedroom), there's a day trip to Cleethorpes and a Sunday School Christmas party. I was fascinated by this book as a child and very much enjoyed revisiting it.

Just bought The Mermaid of Black Conch for 99p in the Kindle deals which looks interesting

Thanks for the thread Southeast

Powering through the books this year (by my standards) although I haven't attempted anything 500+ pages yet...

14. Digging Up Mother: A Love Story - Doug Stanhope

Autobiography of the potty-mouthed comic, from his childhood to finding fame in the 90s / 00s and framed around his close relationship with his mother, like him a heavy drinker with a frequently obscene sense of humour. I found this very funny, as well as moving, but you'll need a strong stomach.

@YolandiFuckinVisser I loved those books when I was little!! Wasn't there one where the heroine (who's never named, if I recall correctly?) spends some time in hospital for a blood problem or something?

Thank you to southeast for the new thread

My list brought over:

1. Ruth Ware - One by One
2. Polly Crosby - The Illustrated Child
3. Simon Mayo - Knife Edge
4. MG Leonard & Sam Sedgman - Kidnap on the California Comet
5. Sophie Hannah - The Killings at Kingfisher Hill
6. Emma Carroll - The Ghost Garden
7. Chelsea Pitcher - This Lie Will Kill You
8. Emily St John Mandel - Station Eleven
9. Ben Elton - Time and Time Again

10. Stephen Fry - Making History 11. Matthew Reilly - The Secret Runners of New York 12. Matthew Reilly - The Great Zoo of China 13. Matthew Kneale - Sweet Thames 14. Jennifer Lynn Barnes - The Inheritance Games 15. Emily Brightwell - Mrs Jeffries Dusts for Clues 16. Richard Osman - The Thursday Murder Club

And to add:

17. MG Leonard & Sam Sedgman - Murder on the Safari Star

The next of the 'Adventures on Trains' series. Yes, they are for kids. Yes, I really enjoy them

18. Julia Chapman - Date with Mystery
19. Julia Chapman - Date with Poison

Murder mysteries set in the Yorkshire Dales. Easy reading really and enjoyable apart from the forced 'Samson and Delilah' connection. What are the odds of there being people called Samson and Delilah in the same small Yorkshire village?! Would have been perfectly fine without it.

20. Robert Goddard - Past Caring

And I really almost was - past caring, that is. I usually like a Robert Goddard but this could easily have been cut by a third! Mystery about why an Edwardian politician was suddenly dropped by his fiance and government at the same time, and how it connects to the present day (1970s).

21. Agatha Christie - Parker Pyne Investigates

'Are you happy? If not, consult Mr Parker Pyne'. Series of short stories about people who respond to the newspaper advert; mini mysteries with (mainly!) happy endings.

22. Jodi Taylor - Hard Time

I think it's @ChessieFL and @TimeforaGandT who also like Jodi T? I enjoyed this book far more than Doing Time, which was the first Time Police spin off; it whizzed by and I can't wait for the next one in the series!

23. Emily Brightwell - Mrs Jeffries on the Trail

Next one in the series about a Victorian housekeeper who helps her employer (a Scotland Yard detective) solve cases without him finding out. Good fun apart from the occasional Americanism which creeps in

24. Claire Potter - Keeping the little blighters busy

A really helpful little book with ideas for keeping small DC entertained - I've already used a few of the suggestions during the hell that is homeschooling.

25. Karen M. McManus - The Cousins

Three cousins are invited to stay with their grandmother for the summer, many years after she cut all their parents off with a note saying "I know what you did". The parents all insist they have no idea what it means. Even though all the cousins are unfeasibly good-looking American teenagers (and I have only ever been one of those things, so couldn't exactly relate) this was a real page turner.

26. TM Logan - 29 Seconds

What would you do if there was someone you hated and you were given the opportunity to make them disappear? A moral dilemma thriller.

27. Tracy Chevalier - Falling Angels

Two girls and a boy meet in a cemetery and become friends for several years. This didn't really grab my attention although I found the historical background (it's set in Edwardian times) interesting.

28. Simon Brett - The Liar in the Library

One in the Fethering village mysteries - an author is killed after attending a talk about his latest book at the village library, and one of the main protagonists is a suspect.

29. Lesley Cookman - Murder by Magic
30. Lesley Cookman - Murder in the Monastery

Two of the Libby Sarjeant murder mysteries. Comfort reads for me as I like the village setting and Libby's circle of friends. I do tend to forget the plot as soon as I've read them though!

Bringing my list over:

1. Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
2. Rodham - Curtis Sittenfeld

1. Airhead - Emily Maitlis
2. Eight Pieces of Silva - Patrice Lawrence
3. Christmas in Austin - Benjamin Markowitz
4. The Guest List - Lucy Foley

7. Untangled – Lisa Damour

1. Magpie Lane – Lucy Atkins
2. Only Mostly Devastated – Sophie Gonzales

10. The Art of Losing – Lizzie Mason 11. Get Out of My Life...But first take me and Alex into town - Tony Wolf and Suzanne Franks 12. Monogamy – Sue Miller 13. Fates and Furies – Lauren Groff

Nothing new to add at the moment. (My job is book editing (non-fiction), and I find it hard to read anything new when I'm in the middle of a big project. Finishing that this weekend though!)

Clara - yes, there were 3 books, one of them involved her spending a year at a residential school for anaemic girls

Eine, you're right about A Brief History of Time. Groundbreaking in its day, and I suspect paved the way for the many popular physics books that are now available, but so much more of a slog than, say, Rovelli. And somewhat lacking in joy, I think. Someone like Brian Greene doesn't make it feel like homework, whereas I slogged my way through ABHOT without much enthusiasm.

63. Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney

Psychological thriller told from three points of view - a child’s diary, Amber who is in a coma but can hear everything going on, and then the events running up to Amber’s accident. It was far too confusing for me, still not entirely sure who the ‘baddy’ was.

64. Adrian Mole: The Wilderness Years by Sue Townsend

Adrian is in his mid twenties, living in Oxford, working in a pointless job and still lusting after Pandora. Still funny.

65. Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny

I know this has been recommended on this thread before so I was expecting something good, but to me it was just OK. It tells the story of Graham and Audra, and whether either of them will or won’t have an affair. I couldn’t get a handle on the character of Audra, and nothing much happened in the story. It was fine, but I was expecting more.

66. Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens

Will save comments for the read along thread on 1 April!

19 Motherwell Deborah Orr. I found parts of this (the social history) fascinating and other parts deeply irritating (the scattergun approach to diagnosing narcissism in people).

Yes @ClaraTheImpossibleGirl - I have done the first five books in The Chronicles of St Mary’s books. I must admit I disliked the Time Police when they appeared in Book 4 but am prepared to give the series a go and will bear in mind that Book 2 is better than the first one so I need to be patient!

12. Touching Distance by James Cracknell and Beverley Turner

This was on my Amazon wishlist for over 5 years and I am on a 'read or delete' sweep this year. I can't really remember why I wanted to read this, I knew Cracknell was a gold medallist rower but that's it and not really enough for me to want to read an autobiography. But it was £2 so I gave it a go.

It's a great book, it gives his background and entry in rowing and talks through all the Olympics, but the book is actually about his accident and brain injury and his battle coming back from that. It's also about how bloody minded one has to be in order to become an Olympian.

It was a great reminder of life being short, grabbing opportunities and living in the now, which is something I am thinking about a lot at the moment.

That's 12 book I have read which were at the bottom of my wishlist, or purchased and unread on kindle or next my Stephen King re-read. It's my birthday tomorrow and as a treat I think my next book will be whatever I actually really want to read!

1. Ghosts by Dolly Alderton
2. Blue Ticket by Sophie Mackintosh
3. The Unthinkable by Amanda Ripley
4. Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
5. Pale Rider by Laura Spinney
6. White Mughals by William Dalrymple
7. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson

Currently reading Orlando King by Isabel Colegate - A retelling of Oedipus Rex set in 1930s England, with a focus on class and the rise of fascism. I'm finding it a bit of a struggle, perhaps my brain is too fried from this endless lockdown.

razorstorm, I was just thinking about the unexpected serendipitous joy of picking up a book that you aren't particularly keen on and discovering it's really good. I too have the occasional "read or sweep" and am just embarking on another round after realising I've got so many that I just haven't got round to reading because they don't quite feel right for the moment. I'm currently nearing the end of a completely left-field choice which I would never normally have chosen but which was given to me last year and which I therefore felt I should probably read. And it's wonderful! Review to follow as soon as I finish it this evening.

Happy Birthday for tomorrow, Razorstorm
And thank you Pepe for recommending The Door. I knew it was someone...

21. Clean & Green: 101 Hints and Tips for a More Eco-friendly Home - Nancy Birtwhistle

How to use old-fashioned, eco-friendly ingredients such as citric acid, bicarbonate of soda for all sorts of cleaning jobs. I’m a bit of a slattern, so I like the fact that most of her suggestions sound relatively easy but effective. Also her weekly cleaning routine seems saner than that of some Mnetters. And it distracted me from doing any actual cleaning. Nancy is the former GBBO winner btw.

1. Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens for the read along. Not my favourite Dickens, that accolade goes to either David Copperfield or the much maligned, on here at least, Great Expectations, but excellent nevertheless.

As Piggy said on her expertly hosted read along it really feels like he'd reached 'peak Dickens' with this novel, his last completed book, so much so, that some chapters felt like a parody. The usual crowded dramatis personae, hero's and villains aplenty, and many interweaving plot lines, some more interesting than others. Special mention goes to the memorable Bradley Headstone, the character you love to hate. I look forward to watching the BBC adaptation and see if the lovely David Morrissey can bring him to life.

Has anybody seen the Daily Telegraph list of 100 greatest novels of all time (according to them)? I get the email with the headline but I don’t subscribe. Just interested to see what cropped up

thegreatestbooks.org/lists/115

I think this may link to it, Time. It looks solid enough, if predictable. I've read 31, but am resisting being told what to read.

I do take issue with a list of 100 that includes 4 by Updike yet I don't think I saw a Bronte in there. Hey ho, these sort of lists are always partial and irksome.

Yeah, a very solid list although I'm not sure John Updike deserves 4 spots for the Rabbit series and much as I love it I think HHGTTG is probably dated. I've read 49. The list is dominated by dead white males. I counted 19 female authors and 34(?) books in translation, only 1 of those by a woman. And most of the translated novels by Europeans.

Snap, biblio, I'm on 31 too! HeadNorth - there are a couple of Brontes.

I agree Janina, that's a very conservative list. And four Updike novels is just silly. Especially when they've listed Proust's In Search of Lost Time as one book!

And Dance To The Music of Time. That’s 12 books!

A Dance to the Music of Time is also listed as one book