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.

You'll have to wait till Sat which is my birthday!
Unless DD spills the beans first.

1. Once by Morris Gleitzman

DD13 dropped this at my house with a care package of chocolate and face packs when I was isolating. Heartbreaking and not the comfort read I needed but as it's one of the few books that she has read and is enthusiastic about I decided to read it. I've used it as a way to get her on to When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, though, which I have failed to get her to read in the past.

@MargotMoon I read Once last year after DS2 failed to touch it after his teaching recommended some stuff to get him reading. I thought it was magnificently done. I thought the simple prose was so powerful.

@StColumbofNavron It's incredible isn't it? For such a short, simple book it really hits home.

@drspouse I don't think any of my Goodreads friends have a 7 year old DD. Someone else must be reading the same books as me!

I usually make an effort to write separate reviews for this thread and the 50 thread because I straddle both, so forgive me today for pasting the same review, because there are only so many ways I can say INCREDIBLE.

7. Madonna in a Fur Coat, Sabahattin Ali, trans. By Maureen Freely and Alexander Dawe

I’ve overused the word magnificent today, but this is my first stand out read of the year. I’ve given it four and a half stars but I really think it’s five. I think it’s my fault that it hasn’t quite got the extra half. I don’t have faith in my ability to read and absorb this in the original, but it meant that often paused to wonder what turn of phrase Ali might have used at various points which interfered with my reading, so that is on me. It’s a Turkish classic written in the 1940s about a man who travels to Germany in the early 1920s and falls in love. It’s set quietly against the backdrop of the founding and forging of the Turkish Republic. It’s very short, only 168 pages and I devoured it having started last night.

If you liked Stoner I think you would like this.

[quote dollybird]@drspouse I don't think any of my Goodreads friends have a 7 year old DD. Someone else must be reading the same books as me![/quote]
Ha! It just seemed like a big coincidence.

1. Freckles by Cecelia Ahern (book)
2. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (audio)
3. The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri (audio)
4. Goodnight Mr Tom by Michelle Magorian (audio)
5. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling (audio)

6 The Christmas Chronicles by Nigel Slater 7 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling (audio) 8 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban by JK Rowling (audio) - definitely getting better as the series continues, going to have a break for something different now though.

If my next book is the same as your Goodreads friend, then I must be her, and you'll have to tell me who you are!

@dollybird

If my next book is the same as your Goodreads friend, then I must be her, and you'll have to tell me who you are!

That was meant to be quoting drspouse

3.The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles

Is it possible to follow A Gentleman in Moscow?

I really enjoyed this book about a group of youngsters haplessly travelling around America in the 1950s.
The characterisation was superb and the story was unpredictable, heartfelt and life-affirming in the same way as AGIM.

Was it as good?...... IMO, no but it was still a fabulous read.

12. And Away - Bob Mortimer Read in one sitting. Just lovely.

Who is Maud Dixon? Alexandra Andrews

This was ok. I think if mystery/thrillers are your genre then this probably isn’t the greatest attempt.

I’m not a reader of those genres really so whilst I saw quite a few twists coming I didn’t really mind. There are also plausibility questions but I could ignore them and just go with it.

Essentially and aspiring writer finds herself in a position where she can steal a successful writers life.

@VittysCardigan

12. And Away - Bob Mortimer Read in one sitting. Just lovely.

Want to read this. I love him.

I've started Dune but it is hard work. DH says I should persevere and that it does get better!

1. The Inheritance Of Loss by Kiran Desai
2. The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida by Clarissa Goenawan
3. Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson
4. Milkman by Anna Burns

5.The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo

1. Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burn Out Generation by Anne Helen Petersen

7.The Secret History by Donna Tartt

1. The Unwomanly Face of War by Svetlana Alexievich - This was an interesting and at times heartbreaking glimpse into the lives of Soviet female veterans in WWII. I'm glad the women featured were finally able to tell their stories to a wider audience; however I found the writing a bit choppy. The narrative flits between different women's accounts very rapidly, and as a result I felt their individual voices were often lost and merged into one. Still a solid read though.

Book number 9 is Whistling for the Elephants by Sandi Toksvig. I love her on QI, so hope her books are good too!

8 - Saplings by Noel Streatfeild - inspired to read this again by another thread. I just love it, possibly more than her children's books, though the style is similar.

Here are my presents - haven't heard of either but they both look good.

Had my first DNF of the year yesterday. Actually threw it across the room - a first for me. Verity by Colleen Hoover. Terrible writing, terrible everything. What made me throw it was when the male character told a bartender not to serve the female character anything apart from water, and the female character went along with it.FFS. BLEUGH.

@drspouse I loved Cat and the City! One of my favourites from last year. Hope you enjoy it too.

1. Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams. Total chick lit, a fun easy read

'The Fault in our Stars' - incredible! Couldn't put it down, despite it being American YA fiction.
'My grandmother offers her regards and apologises' - unusual but disappointing as 'A Man Called Ove' by the same author is one of my favourites of all time.
Just started 'This is going to hurt' which I've had on the bookshelf for ages - I want to read it before I watch it. Very funny so far.

1. A Gentleman In Moscow by Amor Towles Such a beautiful book - I didn't want it to end! I normally get rid of books after reading them but this has taken pride of place on my bookshelf. 5/5

Struggling on with Winter by Ali Smith. Half way through and not really enjoying it but will persevere a bit longer!

So beautiful Puddock1
I’ve just read online that Kenneth Branagh is set to play the lead in the tv series. I actually think he’s not a bad choice.

He isn’t a bad choice and I don’t have an alternative but I feel there must be one.