26-ish books in 2022

[StColumbofNavron]

Roll up, roll up ...

Shiny new thread for 2022.

I am setting my target at 25 this year.

I want to read at least a min of 5 in hardcopy and at least 4 non-fiction.

I loved Hamnet, highly recommend.

Another vote for Hamnet, adored it!

Another Hamnet fan here

I cannot possibly read it yet though. It is usually about 5 years after the rest of the world that I get around to books everyone else has already read.

5, Bitter Oranges by Claire Fuller.
Started this last year, bit of a slow burner with lots of atmosphere, but I didn't spot the twist.

1. A Country Christmas - Veronica Henry
2. The Skylarks’ War - Hilary MacKay
3. Still Life - Sarah Winman

1. *The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (Audio).

An excellent sequel to The Thursday Murder Club - I think I enjoyed this one more. Great characters, lots of tongue in cheek humour and an intriguing, twisty mystery plot to untangle.

4. The Radium Girls by Kate Moore fascinating, but absolutely heartbreaking

I loved that book, dolly.

5. Shadowghast, Thomas Taylor

Love this kids series set in Eerie-on-Sea —Hastings— we immediately tweeted Thomas Taylor who let us know book 4 is ready but that publishing it sometimes takes 6 months.

6. Lady Macbeth of Mtensk and Other Stories by Nikolai Leskov trans. By David McDuff

A collection of 19th. Century Russian short stories. I really enjoyed these, the titular story was fantastic and I loved it, Musk-Ox and A Winter’s Day were funny and a bit crazy, The Sealed Angel I could have left to be honest. Overall a decent read, 3.5 stars.

Book 6 Aisling in the City - Wmer McLysaght This is the fourth book on.rhe series. A light easy read, but it annoyed me that it ended on a cliff hanger and now we've to wait for the next book!

Book 7 The Reptile Room Book 2 in A Series of Unfortunate events that I'm reading to the children.

We've moved onto the next in the series. I've also started reading The Underground Railroad too, but work is so busy I think I've only managed about 10 pages in the last 2 weeks!

I’ve finished number 6 which was A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami. I persuaded myself I was a Murakami type of person because I loved Norwegian Wood and I think he’s cool but I found it pretty surreal for my tastes. #sigh.
Now I’m onto My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

I can’t stop buying books… every time I step into Oxfam I come out with 3 more

My local Oxfam bookshop is like my place of worship. Mercifully, it is at the opposite end of the high street to where most other things I need are.

1. Jews don't count - David Baddiel

10. Piranesi - Susanna Clark - Absolutely loved this book. 11. The Sanatorium - Sarah Pearse - My first disappointing read this year, should have been a DNF really.

Finishing The Testaments took me forever in the end but I really enjoyed it and do recommend . I started / continued reading other books on my kindle at the same time at the moment I’m in the middle of

1. Into the Water - Paula Hawkins which I’ve had untouched in my bedroom drawer for years

5 . A Class of Their Own , Adventures in Tutoring the Super- Rich - Matt Knott ( kindle ) is quite amusing and a quick read so I think I’ll finish it first I’ve been trying to finish the books in my drawer first and not buy new physical ones just on kindle but the other day I did get The Girl Who Lived Twice (the last of the The girl with the Dragon Tattoo series I haven’t read) , and My Friend Anna that the new Netflix series Inventing Anna is based on . I like the convenience of the kindle and not accumulating more stuff in my house but also enjoy holding a physical book and turning the pages so I compromise .

1. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid. Really good. Couldn't put it down. I hadn't really read the reviews and wasn't sure what it was about but.. Wow.

P.s. @dollybird I think we're frIends on Goodreads/FB.

drspouse, I read the Such a Fun Age last year too and thought it was pretty good …

@drspouse

7. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid. Really good. Couldn't put it down. I hadn't really read the reviews and wasn't sure what it was about but.. Wow. P.s. *@dollybird* I think we're frIends on Goodreads/FB.

I can't see any of my Goodreads friends who've read The Radium Girls or your last couple of books. Why don't you like one of my updates, so I can see who you are? ☺️ I've never had someone on MN know me in RL before!

Jumping on the thread - 26 books is about all I can squeeze in with no commute and the lure of the Internet!
Last year I reread Hilary Mantel's 'Mirror and the Light' (part 3 of her Tudor/Thomas Cromwell trilogy) taking 3 months
So far this year I have read;

1. Ali Smith ' Spring'
2. Jonathan Franzen 'Crossroads'

I have already read 'Summer' and noticed that the library have the complete quartet. I often work my way through the whole cannon of a particular writer - my favourites are Muriel Spark, Lionel Shriver, Anne Tyler and my new fave Curtis Sittenfeld (read 'American Wife' and 'Rodham' last year, it's such a long time since I have been so totally absorbed in reading). The problem I have is that I've been exchanging books for the last 35 years with a university friend (male) for our birthdays and our rule is that it has to have been something we have read in the last year. It means finding something a bit off beat and probably not on the top sellers at WHSmith. We also both studied Eng Lit. There have been forays into non-fiction.

Ps. Loved 'Radium Girls'!

@SmithfamilyRobinson

Would you like some recommendations for quirky novels on the slim side ( that you can read quickly?)

Here are my recommendations for what it’s worth

Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami
10 Minutes & 38 seconds in this strange world by Elif Shafak
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiradi
I Love Dick by Chris Kraus… I actually read Torpor by Chris Kraus but I watched I Love Dick on Amazon and I prefer the thought of you sending your friend that title. Plus I don’t remember what happens in Torpor.

I’ve just finished My Sister the Serial Killer which is a simply written, pacy read. The lead character is a nurse working in Lagos who has the misfortune to have a beautiful younger sister who keeps murdering her boyfriends. I enjoyed the Nigerian setting without the book being about Nigeria per se.

Can I ask you helpful lot a question about Goodreads. I want to add some books I read last year. You used to be able to add a date that you read it but I can’t find that feature anymore. I don’t want to mess up my reading challenge by adding titles I haven’t read this year. Am I being thick / blind or have they changed it?

I think it might only be on the website - I can't do it on the Kindle, certainly.

On the website you will be able to amend the date read column when you click into books. They are slowly updating their pages though so I’m not sure if that has hit the new format. Alternatively if you just don’t enter a date then it won’t add to your challenge this year but just be listed as something that you read. As you add them on the site it should also allow you to amend the dates under where you might write a review.

I have rashly sent DH out with my Readers Challenge list for the year to find me a book for my birthday. He's not much of a reader and he's gone with DD who is 7

Intrigued as to what they might come back with.