50 Books Challenge 2023 Part Ten

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the tenth and final thread of the 50 Books Challenge for this year.

The challenge was to read fifty books (or more!) in 2023, though reading fifty wasn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, it’s not too late to join, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

The first thread of the year is here, the second one here, the third one here here, the fourth one here, the fifth one here, the sixth one here, the seventh one here, eighth one here and the ninth one here

How have you got on this year?

This one has been on my wish list for a while. Good to see such positive comments.

Happy New Year, you lovely bookers, and thanks to @Southeastdweller for organising us all.

My early 2024 reading involves more mountains, plus Jane Austen. I've also still got When the Dust Settles, Unwell Women and Trespasses on the Kindle. I keep putting the latter off, although not really sure why.

I’m a bit (OK, a lot) of a curmudgeon over New Year, but….Happy New Year to all. This thread has definitely been my sanctuary in a difficult year, so thank you to @Southeastdweller and everyone.

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie I do like to start my year with an Austen. As it happens I am starting with Emily Bronte this year.

@Southeastdweller Thank you for the threads.

Everyone, thanks for the chat, the recommendations and the occasional bun fights.

My last books of the year. Thanks to Southeastdweller for keeping the threads going and thanks to everyone for sharing your reviews.

117. Into the Uncanny by Danny Robins
     I got this when it was 99p on kindle thinking it would be a bit of a trashy read, but it's actually pretty good. Robins delves into four cases involving poltergeists, ghosts, ouija boards and UFOs, and also has chapters on reasons to believe/not to believe. It didn't challenge my beliefs the way the introduction said it would (I started reading as a sceptic and firmly remain a sceptic) but I enjoyed reading the stories. Recommended if you like the podcast (but not at the current kindle price of £9.99).

118. Hide by Nell Pattison
     A nature group's Boxing Day walk ends in murder and the surviving members spend half the night running around in the dark and snow, mistrusting eachother and hoping their secrets won't come out.
     I quite liked the nature reserve setting but the book is very slow to get going, introducing each of the viewpoint characters chapter by chapter, and I hated the twist.

119. Word Perfect: Etymological Entertainment for Every Day of the Year by Susie Dent
     Exactly what the subtitle says.
     Not a lot of depth, as it's designed to be a short daily read, but it was quite nice getting a little nugget of word related info every day.

120. The Waiter by Ajay Chowdhury
     Kamil has left his job as a detective in Kolkata after something awful happened and is now working as a waiter in a family friend's restaurant in London. When their friend, millionaire business man Rakesh is found dead after his sixtieth Birthday party, an event Kamil was working at, his detective mind kicks into action.
     I really enjoyed this. It's written quite lightly but gets pretty tense in places. The chapters alternate between Kamil in London and the events leading up to his departure from Kolkata, and it works well, these two cases unfolding
     in parallel.

And as it's my last post of the year I'm posting my full list with highlights in bold.

1. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling narr. Stephen Fry
2. Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb

3. Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb 4. Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb 5. Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb 6. The Mad Ship by Robin Hobb 7. Ship of Destiny by Robin Hobb 8. Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb 9. The Golden Fool by Robin Hobb 10. Fool's Fate by Robin Hobb 11. Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb 12. Dragon Haven by Robin Hobb 13. City of Dragons by Robin Hobb 14. Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb 15. Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb 16. Fool's Quest by Robin Hobb 17. Assassin's Fate by Robin Hobb 18. Are You There God? It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume 19. Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri 20. Insomnia by Sarah Pinborough 21. The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher 22. The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis 23. The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward 24. The First Time Lauren Pailing Died by Alyson Rudd 25. Three Apples Fell From the Sky by Narine Abgaryan trans. Lisa C Hayden 26. Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani 27. Nothing by New Scientist ed. Jeremy Webb 28. Build Your House Around My Body by Violet Kupersmith 29. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi trans. Anjali Singh, Mattias Ripa and Blake Ferris 30. The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse 31. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones 32. One of Us is Lying by Karen M McManus 33. Burmese Days by George Orwell 34. O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker 35. The Foundling by Stacey Halls 36. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See 37. Celestial Navigation by Anne Tyler 38. The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley 39. Red Dust Road by Jackie Kay 40. Jigs and Reels by Joanne Harris 41. The Stranding by Kate Sawyer 42. A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende 43. Nation by Terry Pratchett 44. On the Natural History of Destruction by WG Sebald trans. Anthea Bell 45. The Whispers by Heidi Perks 46. The Keepers of Metsan Valo by Wendy Webb 47. Tomorrow by Chris Beckett 48. The Light Through the Leaves by Glendy Vanderah 49. House of Glass by Hadley Freeman 50. My Name is Leon by Kit de Waal 51. The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa trans. Philip Gabriel 52. The Watcher in the Shadows by Carlos Ruiz Zafon trans. Lucia Graves 53. The Beauty of Your Face by Sahar Mustafah 54. We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach 55. The Secret World of Polly Flint by Helen Cresswell 56. Fireworks by Angela Carter 57. Quiet by Susan Cain 58. Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand 59. Tag You're Dead by Kathryn Foxfield 60. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho trans. Alan R Clarke 61. The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde by Eve Chase 62. Planet of Exile by Ursula K Le Guin 63. Full by Julia Spiro 64. Sexing the Cherry by Jeanette Winterson 65. The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri 66. The Last Rose of Shanghai by Weina Dai Randel 67. The Smell of Other People's Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock 68. Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead 69. The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar 70. Nova by Samuel R Delaney 71. Tin Man by Sarah Winman 72. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry trans. Katherine Woods 73. The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin 74. Stamboul Train by Graham Greene 75. The Dark Behind the Curtain by Gillian Cross 76. Friend by Paek Nam-Nyong trans. Immanuel Kim 77. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous 78. Terry Pratchett: A Life With Footnotes by Rob Wilkins 79. The Insect House by Shirley Day 80. Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith 81. A Clergyman's Daughter by George Orwell 82. We Need to Talk About Kelvin by Marcus Chown 83. The Motorcycle Diaries by Ernesto 'Che' Guevara trans. Alexandra Keeble 84. The Crow Garden by Alison Littlewood 85. Bunny by Mona Awad 86. The Haunting of Brynn Wilder by Wendy Webb 87. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury 88. Parable of the Sower by Octavia E Butler 89. The Nesting by CJ Cooke 90. The Whistling by Rebecca Netley 91. The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean 92. Dreamside by Graham Joyce 93. The Shadowing by Rhiannon Ward 94. House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland 95. The Apparition Phase by Will Maclean 96. The Hiding Place by Amanda Mason 97. Ghostbird by Carol Lovekin 98. Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan 99. The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell 100. Old Magic by Marianne Curley 101. Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura trans. Philip Gabriel 102. The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak 103. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame 104. Now You See Her by Heidi Perks 105. The Gate to Women's Country by Sheri S Tepper 106. Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi 107. The Stationery Shop of Tehran by Marjan Kamali 108. One of Us is Next by Karen M McManus 109. Deceived Wisdom by David Bradley 110. A Town Called Solace by Mary Lawson 111. The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan 112. The Orchard on Fire by Shena Mackay 113. Grey Bees by Andrey Kurkov trans. Boris Dralyuk 114. Midnight in Everwood by MA Kuzniar 115. Christmas Days by Jeanette Winterson 116. The Ickabog by JK Rowling 117. Into the Uncanny by Danny Robins 118. Hide by Nell Pattison 119. Word Perfect by Susie Dent 120. The Waiter by Ajay Chowdhury

Thanks for being my online book friends everyone!

Happy New Year all - I've loved your company this year and look forward to seeing you on the 2024 thread!

Happy New Year from la rôdeuse française! (Had to look that one up!)

I am still re-reading books in French to get my language abilities up but I love this thread and am looking forward to reading in English again soon.

Many, many thanks to @Southeastdweller for all the work you put in to keep the lovliest place on the internet going.

I won't finish another book in 2023, so that's 53 for me this year. Happy new year everyone, and thanks for another year of this lovely thread!

47! I made it to 47 which is the most I have read in a year since before children which is now 11 years.

i don’t post very often but my goodness do I enjoy the chat. Thank you 50 bookers for your wit, intelligence and utterly inclusive attitude to all things narrative.

This has been the year of yet more Greek Mythology and the Hilary Mantel trilogy as well as making, what feels like, a lifelong commitment to Terry Pratchett. 2023 has also been the year of the Novella. Particular standouts for me have been Rizzio and Hex from the Darklands series, For Thy Great Pain have Mercy on Thy Little Pain and Small Things Like These. I have discovered that sometimes I just want a story. Sharply written and not a word spared. I have always loved a short story but this year I have had my eyes opened to the 150 pager - small but perfectly formed.

i have a Rivers of London novella downloaded and ready for tomorrow to start the year as I mean to go on.

Turns out I did have one more in me after all! Been reading this for ages but it ended more quickly than I anticipated.

44. Don't Call Me Home, by Alexandra Auder. Absolutely mind boggling. Alex is the daughter of two of Andy Warhol's collaborators - Viva Superstar and Michel Auder. To say her upbringing was unconventional is the understatement of the year. This memoir about growing up with erratic parents, with much of her childhood spent at the Chelsea Hotel, is funny, infuriating and fascinating. Loved it.

Hi, I hope everyone enjoyed their Christmases and congratulations to @@LessObviousName!

I just read The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan. Carmen is thrown into saving a dying bookstore in Edinburgh during a low period in her life and the book gently explores some of her relationships and Carmen's journey to purpose and satisfaction. Somewhat predictably, I was more invested in the book shop element than the love and it was an OK read, nice for this time of year. This is the first book I've read from this author and I may read another one.

I'll start the next thread in the morning. Thank you to everyone for posting 😀

I've somehow read quite a lot more books this year than for several previously, though this does include a few standalone short stories, mostly Amazon Prime or public library ebook collection loans. On the other hand there were a few heftier tomes including some non fiction.

My probably final book of the year was The Second Chance Year by Melissa Wiesner. Appropriately this starts and finishes at New Year (I rarely manage this sort of seasonal match), with a woman in New York City wishing she could redo the last disastrous year over again and avoid being dumped by her boyfriend and losing her job. Things seem to start off ok but then, is this alternative year really what she wants? Lightweight fluff but I did quite enjoy it.

However many books I manage to read/listen to in 2024, my aim is to write something about a few more of them.

@ABookWyrm this has the possibility to out me, but nevertheless, I’ve got The Waiter on my bedside table because I had lunch with the writer not very long ago (a competition of sorts) but haven’t read his work. I don’t normally read police procedurals or mystery type things except the odd Poirot.

Happy new year everyone! I’ll post my final list and stats on the round-up thread - a total of 62 books for 2023. Looking forward to starting 2024 strongly as I’ve nearly finished Nicholas Nickleby (didn’t manage to keep to the readalong timetable)!

Happy new year all 🎉

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/what_were_reading/4974680-50-books-challenge-2024-part-one

Happy new year, everyone

I forgot a reread:

28.. Lexicon by Max Barry

I read this along with teenage DC who loved it, like I did and still do. Fantastic story that everyone remotely interested in SF should read. Interesting and satisfying in every way.