Onion Budgie

I was disappointed by Life of Pi too, MrCat. By the rave reviews, I was expecting something quite different. But all of the zoology and religion in the first half, and then the interminable stretches of inaction in the second, ah, no thank you. In other news, I have ALMOST finished Middlesex. Faaaaaantastico. 10/10 would recommend. After Middlesex, begins my Christmas reading! And nothing says Christmas quite like a crime novel filled with murder, recriminations and ill humour.

Same here. I track my calorie intake with the Cronometer web app -- which is marvellous -- but I've learned that in order to reliably lose weight, I have to cut about 300 calories from their recommended allowance, otherwise I'll only maintain (or even worse, regain). Which is a big nuisance when you don't have that many calories to play around with in the first place! I just assumed it was age-related, and having a slightly slower metabolism.

Gonna Make You a Star -- David Essex

Another Country by James Baldwin

Congrats, Talisman! And good news re. the juicy pay rise, too. Those are always nice!

Welcome to the forum, Trevor. Who are your favourite authors?

I couldn't find anything either. If you're able to recall anything else that the same author wrote on that site, perhaps try Googling that title instead, and that might at least lead you to a contact point? (Assuming of course that they transferred their work elsewhere.) As the author was/is unpublished, it's a bit of a tricky one.

I have a few: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (Mainly because I can't remember a thing about it!) Other Voices, Other Rooms by Truman Capote Maurice by E.M. Forster Dracula by Bram Stoker The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde The latter four are old favourites that I haven't revisited in years, although they're still firmly wedged in my memory. The Capote one is fairly short; I might have a go at re-reading that one soon.

We haven't had any settling snow for years now, in the area where I live. I miss it. There's nothing like waking up of a winter morning, throwing open the curtains and seeing a mass blanket of beautiful white. Rain and hail here today, grey skies and bleurgh.

I just looked back to see what titles I'd included when I first posted in this thread. Hey, I actually managed to read some of 'em! Go me. Maybe I'll get to the others next year. (No, Ulysses, that won't include YOU.)

I'm lax, I really don't follow or pay attention to publishers. Looking quickly at my front shelves, I'm seeing these guys pop up more frequently: Picador Harper Collins Black Swan Pan Penguin Grove Press They seem to be specific to favourite authors. I also have a large collection of art books published by Phaidon. So -- for art, at least -- I suppose this publishing house would be my favourite.

Other Voices, Other Rooms by Truman Capote

Thanks, Lau_Lou! No, I don't eat fish anymore. I rarely did even when I was omni. Swimming is great exercise. I used to swim a lot when I was a kid.

Thank you, Madeleine.

So how's everyone been getting on with their fitness regimes, now that the year is almost over? Oh man, the struggle is real. I waffled on at the start of the year about wanting to crack on with a serious exercise plan, and well, that started, and is ongoing. (I'm surprised at this, having been the laziest old bat for such a long time.) I invested in a manual treadmill a few months ago, in addition to my stationary bike, and have been putting in an hour or so's huffing-and-puffing on these every day. The results have been encouraging. I also turned vegetarian earlier this year -- one of the best decisions I ever made -- and this has contributed to my overall level of fitness. I'm certainly paying attention to nutrition, what I'm lacking in, and what I'm doing right. I feel pretty good right now, but I've still a way to go. I really want to drop into the "normal" slice of the BMI chart before we're too far into next year. I'm only a little overweight. I can do it.

Wet and (extremely) windy here on the east coast. Yuck!

Anna, I'm so sorry to hear that.

Halfway is good progress! (At least from my point of view.) How are you liking it? Talking of halfway, that's just about where I am currently with Middlesex. I am LOVING this book. The characters are so well drawn, and the story is so intricate. Don't quote me on this, but I think it could be a 5-star read for me, and there haven't been many of those this year!

How horribly stressful, Talisman. I'm glad you were able to find out some information by the end. I hope your partner recovers quickly.

Welcome to the forum, Maxie! I've always loved Martin Benson from the Benson trilogy of books by Michael Carson. (Actually, there's a fourth in the series now, but it's far removed in tone from the earlier novels.) Benson is such an earnest, truthful, foot-in-mouth doofus that you can't help but love him. My main man, though, is Sherlock Holmes, forever and always.

The nibble box company Graze send out a fantastic afternoon tea blend (in a bag) along with their cake squares. The tea has a hint of citrus to it, and is delicious. Graze also sell the teabags separately. My everyday tea is Tesco's Assam, with soya milk. If I'm feeling fruity, then I'll have a cup of Twinings Cranberry & Blood Orange (my favourite of theirs), or something similar. Very occasionally I'll have a green tea, but I have to be in the right mood for it!

Oooh! I've bought myself a copy of that for Christmas. I can't wait to read it. It's had a lot of good reviews, so I hope you enjoy it!

When You're Hot, You're Hot (And When You're Not, You're Not) -- Jerry Reed

The Knight of the Flaming Heart -- Michael Carson

Your real name: Tabatha Your detective name: Stephanides December (Hey, I like that!) Your soap opera name: Jane Ruth Your star wars name: ReeJa Your Superhero name: Black Cloud Your Rockstar name: Purple Parakeet