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Original poster

26-ish books 2024

695 replies

Tinkhasflown · 01/01/2024 11:51

A shiny new thread for 2024.

All welcome and note 26 is just a number. Everyone can set their own target and you are welcome here even if you only read 3 books a year.

I personally count the larger novel style books I read to my children and audio books I listen to. Others don't and there are no rules.

I look forward to all your suggestions again this year.

OP posts:
Original poster
Tinkhasflown · 02/04/2024 15:45

Just reserved The Mercies in the library. I loved Burial Rites too. Thanks for the recommendation @Breathmiller

OP posts:
Orangebadger · 02/04/2024 16:54

Looking forward to reading The Mercies when I get hold of a copy.

10) The girl with the dragon tattoo by Stigg Larson. Very late to the party with this one. I do recall hearing about it and I think it was a movie too. Enjoyed it. Not my normal genre at all. I really struggle with very plot driven books, especially crime/ thrillers as I literally stop doing anything else as I have to know!! Now for a more leisurely read.

MonkeyTennis34 · 02/04/2024 18:40

I like the look of The Mercies too. Thanks!

Breathmiller · 03/04/2024 09:54

15 And Furthermore - Judi Dench

I chose this as I wanted something a bit lighter after my last few books.

It is a good representative of the wonderful Judi Dench's career with lovely snippets of her sense of humour as well as her absolute dedication to her work and she is an inspiration on how to live a full life doing something you love.

But, I found it a bit dry with many lists of names of those she has worked with and productions in theatre, television and film. I got the impression the lists of names are more about honouring those she has worked with rather than name dropping for name dropping's sake but it didn't make it such an enjoyable read for me.

Goodbyeimgoinghome · 04/04/2024 02:33

#9 Water. John Boyne. I picked this up at the library yesterday and have finished it this morning. I enjoyed it very much, I like his writing style. It looks like there will be a book for each element with, Earth, being published next month so I will definitely look out for that.

  1. Stone Yard Devotional - Charlotte Wood
  2. Strange Sally Diamond - Liz Nugent
  3. Normal Rules Don’t Apply - Kate Atkinson
  4. The Drowning Girls - Veronica Lando
  5. Lessons In Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus
  6. Limberlost - Robbie Arnott
  7. Back to Bangka - Georgina Banks
  8. Zeus is a Dick - Susie Donkin
  9. Water - John Boyne
Asiatoyork · 04/04/2024 13:56

9 the god of small things. Very good, very sad

Iamblossom · 04/04/2024 19:56
  1. None of this true. Lisa Jewell
I read this in 4 days, couldn't put it down, thought it was great
Iamblossom · 04/04/2024 19:56

Bullet should be a number six

Yuja · 04/04/2024 23:05

Taken me till April to get to book 4! But just finished Great Circle - Maggie Shipstead enjoyed it enough to power through 660 pages and largely thought it was good. Had 2 narratives in different timelines though and I felt the modern timeline added very little.

MonkeyTennis34 · 05/04/2024 08:48

Yuga
I loved Great Circle too and agree re the modern narrative.
Will definitely seek out some more Maggie Shipstead novels.

Orangebadger · 09/04/2024 15:40

11) Remarkably bright creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.
Like any book that is so eagerly recommended to you by so many people, you have high hopes. This was a nice enough read, but I don't think I appreciated it as much as others have done. But a good enough story, easy read but lacked something extra for me.

coolmum123 · 10/04/2024 22:02
  1. The Plot Jean Hanff korelitz A lot of brackets which was quite off putting to read. Plot sounded interesting but I found the story boring and there was a twist but by the time I got to it I'd lost interest . Back to the charity shop! Now reading American Tabloid by James Ellory fingers crossed this is better!
Yuja · 11/04/2024 22:15
  1. Weyward - Emilia Hart - a Holiday read - not a very good one!!
MonkeyTennis34 · 12/04/2024 09:25

9. The Librarian by Salley Vickers
This book was a a delight. Set in 1958, it follows the life of Children's Librarian Sylvia Blackwell and the effect she makes on a small rural community.
Will definitely be reading some more Salley Vickers.

Orangebadger · 14/04/2024 10:16

12) Songbirds by Christie Lefteri.
About domestic migrant workers in Cyprus, a fictional story about missing domestic workers that the authorities were not bothered about investigating. Based on real events so in many way very somber reading that exposes both racism and misogyny. Also some quite disturbing parts about bird poaching that are not for the faint hearted. But beautifully written and lovely but sad to read. Would recommend.

Asiatoyork · 15/04/2024 01:07

I love this thread to expand the books I add to my list :)

10 The bullet that missed. Fine for an easy read. Gentle.

SlightlyJaded · 15/04/2024 18:25

10 Holly - Stephen King.

He is just SO reliable. Easy as ever to read, but just draws you in from the get go. Not his best, but Holly Gibney is a great character and it's a good yarn

About to start either The Women by Kristin Hannah or 'Study for Obedience' by Sarah Bernstein - any votes for which one first?

Goodbyeimgoinghome · 17/04/2024 12:00

10 - The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning. I was hoping for some motivation to de-clutter but it failed to appear.

  1. Stone Yard Devotional - Charlotte Wood
  2. Strange Sally Diamond - Liz Nugent
  3. Normal Rules Don’t Apply - Kate Atkinson
  4. The Drowning Girls - Veronica Lando
  5. Lessons In Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus
  6. Limberlost - Robbie Arnott
  7. Back to Bangka - Georgina Banks
  8. Zeus is a Dick - Susie Donkin
  9. Water - John Boyne
  10. The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning - Margareta Magnusson
MonkeyTennis34 · 17/04/2024 13:08

*10. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng.

Wow, what a debut this is.
The writing is just beautiful, the characters' complex human emotions expressed so well.
I loved it.

drspouse · 19/04/2024 08:39

No 11 Lucia in London by EF Benson. I've read some of these before but didn't enjoy this as much though it is funny. It was my March/1930s Decades book.

Nordicmom · 20/04/2024 02:10

I finished my no
6.Come and get it -Kiley Reid
after reading my no
7.Troubled -Rob Henderson
Then started on a Sophie Hannah Poirot book “Monogram Murders “ but I just couldn’t get into it and wondered why I had bought it and 2 others after the first of hers I read earlier had been a bit of a slog so off they went to the charity shop after the first 50 pages as did a John Grisham book I didn’t even try when I noticed it was about basketball since I knew I’d be bored . Now reading
8.Recursion -Blake Crouch
I really liked his Dark Matter earlier that’s soon coming out as a series on Apple TV . I’ve given it to lots of people .

Orangebadger · 20/04/2024 10:02
  1. How not to be a boy by Robert Webb. Aka Mitchel and Webb, Peep show etc. I don't often read memoirs and I have no idea how I ended up with this one! It was a memoir fused with examples and arguments of gender conditioning for men. It was well written and funny. Overall I enjoyed it.
drspouse · 20/04/2024 19:15

I loved that too @Orangebadger !

drspouse · 22/04/2024 10:52

No 12, The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey. Absolutely perfect book to me, my April/1940s decades book. I love the whole Golden Era detective novel (and in contrast to Mapp and Lucia that just dragged a bit).

TrustPenguins · 22/04/2024 20:43

10 . Star of the North by D B John

Thriller set in North Korea. Not my usual sort of read but it was given to me by a friend. I did enjoy it though some of it seemed a little far-fetched / James Bond-y!
A fascinating (& scary / depressing) insight into life in that country though and I learned a lot.

3 out of 5.