50 Books Challenge 2024 Part Seven

[Southeastdweller]

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

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2024, 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.

If possible, please can you embolden your titles and maybe authors as well of books you've read or going to read? It makes it much easier to keep track.

Some of us bring over to the new thread lists of the books we've read so far, but again - this is your choice.

The first thread is here, the second one here , the third one here, the fourth one here , the fifth one here and the sixth one here.

What are you reading?

Several of the railway stations here in South East London have shelves of second-hand books for travellers to pick up; I don't know if this is just a local thing.

We have this too (Surrey)

Second hand books can be a bit of a nightmare.

I know someone who manages a charity bookshop and they bin about 2 skip worths a week as well as sending off to resellers. They can't cope with the volume and a lot of what they get is not fit for sale. They only put what they think they can shift in the shop. I used to keep books I'd read that I liked, but now I pass them straight on. I'd rather they were read and enjoyed by someone now than know they'll be dumped when I'm dead.

In my library we accept donations, but we only take fiction published in the past 5 years in excellent condition. We do bend the rules for the odd recent autobiography, but most of what we get offered is unfit. People try to dump estates worth of mouldy/stinking of smoke books on us and expect us to be grateful. They get very offended when we refuse them.

Years ago we sold withdrawn books, but COVID and the associated costs eg Securicor stopped us cash handling. We then used to send out to resellers, but they got really snotty with us about the quality of what we were sending, expecting us to give them our newer stock. We only got 2-3p per book anyway so we set up free donation tables instead where customers could help themselves. Proved very popular and moved old stock a lot faster. Anything not borrowed for 2 years plus gets withdrawn to make space for new stock. My library receives approx 10-20 new books per week, so we do need the space. Delivery day is like Christmas because we never know what we're getting.

Haven't posted in a while but been pushing on with my Dark Tower re-read

68. The Wind through the Keyhole by Stephen King Wish I'd left this off my re-read really as I really dislike this book. Written after the series was completed, King calls this book Dark Tower 3.5 as it slots in between Wizard and Glass and Wolves of the Calla but doesn't impact the main story in anyway.

During their journey to Calla Bryn Sturgis, Roland and his gang take shelter from an immense storm known as a Starkblast. Whilst hiding out Roland recounts another story from his youth, this time a mission he was sent on to find a skinman. There is then a story within a story of Tim Stoutheart. Roland claims this is a story from his childhood and this is where I get so frustrated with this addition. The story from hundreds of years before talks about "Directive Nineteen" and also a "Dogan" and yet in the main books Roland doesn't react at all to the references to nineteen his ka-tet keep coming up with and doesn't seem to have any recognition of Directive Nineteen when Andy mentions it. I find this book detracts from the main storyline and I'm not sure why King wrote it. It took me ages to read this as I just wasn't interested enough to pick it up

69. Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King Roland and his gang are approached in the forest by a group of people from nearby Calla Bryn Sturgis, asking them to save their children from the Wolves who raid their village once every generation and remove one of each pair of twins (almost all children born in the Calla are twins) sending them back severely brain damaged. One member of the Calla party is from New York and has a key role to play in the future of Roland's quest.

I remember not really liking this book when I first read the series but it's definitely grown on me

I'm taking a quick break from the series now so I can read this month's Read Christie challenge book before the end of the month

@satelliteheart I also hated Wind through the Keyhole
Only read it once and won’t bother with it again. Really not sure why he wrote it. I love Wolves though - 2nd only to The Drawing of the Three for me.

TYSM for making me aware of the revival, will try to book. Bring lots of tissues when you go!

A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel Epic novel about the French Revolution focussing on three key players - Danton, Desmoulins and Robespierre. I loved this although I did get slightly lost with the huge cast of characters. The recent The Rest is History podcast on the French Revolution was a good companion piece.

I should preface my next two reviews by saying that I read them following on from The Revelation of St John the Divine (don't ask) and nothing can really compete with phrases such as "And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God." (Revelation 14:19)

Absolutely and Forever by Rose Tremain Marianne is fifteen when she falls in love with Simon and continues her infatuation through her adult life until the inevitable secret is revealed. Fine as bedtime reading but rather too chick lit for me and I think she is a better writer than this.

Meet Me at the Museum by Anne Youngson Much reviewed previously on the thread. Another one that was fine as a book at bedtime but didn't really do anything more for me.

Six Stories by Stefan Zweig I'm sorry I can't remember who recommended this but think it might have been @JaninaDuszejko , to whom very many thanks. This was a terrific collection of short stories written in the early 20th century by the Austrian-Jewish Zweig and brilliantly conveys the concerns and philosophy of the time and place. It was my first Zwieg and I will definitely read more. Very much recommended if you like mitteleuropean literature.

I am back from Nepal having safely summited the Thorung La pass at 5416m!

It was a completely epic trip and I am so tired I need a new word for it. I am not a good sleeper and altitude and accommodation of varying levels of grimness did not help. And some big days required 3am start times. This trek really kept crossing the line between 'it's a great challenge' and 'I'm not having fun anymore'. It's partly my fault as I didn't do much training and was consequently the least fit in our group.

Nepal is a stunning country and everyone was really welcoming. I felt very uncomfortable using helpers (apparently they don't like to be referred to as porters as they consider this derogatory) but I couldn't have done it without them and as I understand the job is popular so trying not to feel guilty.

I'll see if I can add a photo or two, not done this before!

Oh, it wasn't me but it does look good.

How beautiful @RazorstormUnicorn - you are so lucky

I didn't get as much reading done as I hoped. It was too cold to have my hands out of my sleeping bag at night to read my kindle, and I thought I might listen to audio books on trail but I was often huffing at the back with one other person and it would have seemed rude to stick my headphones in.

35. A Year Of Living Danishlyby Helen Russell

A re-read for me. I wanted to remind myself to get Hygge and cosy this winter and see what I can do to combat the SAD. I will be buying cosy home furnishings and candles and getting outside when it isn't raining.

36. From A Buick 8 by Stephen King

A car does creepy things. Reasonably diverting book. I spent the entire time convinced it was part of the same universe as The Regulators but Google doesn't agree with this theory.

37. The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell

I got carried away by the good reviews on here and was disappointed to look closer after purchase and see it's a historical novel. I don't love these. But I talked to a walking companion who was trying to convince me it's actually the best genre so I got stuck in and committed to read it. Turns out it's a great story and I really wanted to know how it ended. I really must stop slim reading this thread and being surprised by things like this!!

Now on Mayflies since it was 99p!

101 The Outcast Dead – Elly Griffiths (Ruth Galloway 6) More Cathbad, more DS Judy Johnstone, more chance of Ruth finding love/happiness elsewhere. I really enjoy this series and have started book 7 already.

@SheilaFentiman – I enjoy the Maeve Kerrigan books and will move onto them once I have finished Ruth Galloway.

@inaptonym – I recommend Bernie Gunther. Loved the series. @elkiedee – that’s good to know. I will look out for her

@EineReiseDurchDieZeit – I thought that I had read that Rivals was going to be over two series. I may have made that up!

Wow @RazorstormUnicorn , truly a trip to remember!

68 Wed Wabbit by Lissa Evans.
Another of her books for children and it’s a real hoot. Fidge is sent to stay with her coddled, nervous cousin after her little sister is injured. She’s a quiet ball of angst herself, having lost her father a couple of years previously. While her sister Minnie is in hospital, Fidge is given her beloved toys, but the creepy Wed Wabbit gets tied in a knot and flung downstairs…….tipping Fidge and Graham into a land populated by the Wimbley Woos (dustbins with arms and legs, basically, temperaments determined by their colours). Other characters are the sardonic Dr Carrot, Graham’s “transitional object” and a gloriously flamboyant Ella the purple elephant. The land is ruled over by an unstable toddler-like dictator, who seems strangely familiar in more ways than one….
It has more affectionate references to older children’s books than her Stuart novels and I read it for fun rather than needing to check it for work. She wears her influences lightly and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next, for children or adults.

@Tarragon123

They haven't announced a series 2 yet but I'm expecting it. It ends on a cliffhanger that doesn't happen in the book so I wonder where they'll take it. I preferred the book sequence but it was very dark.

I've finished Maeve Kerrigan and about to start Ruth Galloway!

Amazing picture @RazorstormUnicorn

Amazing pictures @RazorstormUnicorn
Well done on completing the trek!

Apologies to whoever it was recommended Stefan Zweig and thank you!

That looks fabulous @RazorstormUnicorn . Many (many) years ago I was lucky enough to go to Ladakh and it was similarly amazing.

Well done @RazorstormUnicorn what an achievement!

Brilliant photographs @RazorstormUnicorn Do feel free to bomb us with more!

Congratulations @RazorstormUnicorn - looks spectacular.

Sounds awful and wonderful in equal measure @RazorstormUnicorn You must be so proud to be able to say 'I did it!'

I can’t remember which Anne book I’m on now. Could be 4? 5? 6? It feels like number 72. It’s very, very boring. There is a sailor. And a beautiful but damaged girl. And Anne is so very dull. And there’s pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages of old ladies talking.

I hate it. This could seriously be used as a weapon of torture. I think it might have broken me.

Those photos are amazing @RazorstormUnicorn. Are they prayer-flags in the second picture?

I think you're on Anne's House Of Dreams and I really liked that one . It has however, been over a decade since I read it, if you're broken now I felt this was where it should have ended....

Ah Remus, Anne's House of Dreams? My favourite of the lot, sorry you're hating it.