Polka Dot Rock

Hello Donna! I too was a 'lurker' on the forum before I started posting... And I never stopped once I started Addictive, it is...

That's what I find frustrating with the Booker Prize... By the time the Orange shortlist is announced, the majority of books are in paperback. But I can't buy afford to buy hardbacks unless from charity shops (and even then, I normally go for paperbacks - I've only got small hands y'know! )

I've had a deluge of book orders/swaps so I've now also printed the big ones and stuck those in There's no escape!

I'm sure you could explain to Penguin To clarify, I have copies of A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to swap for other Penguin Classics to be blogged.

I don't think there is Oh dear, what am I going to do?

I don't believe it... I just thought I'd 'cheat' and get another book (I know, I know!) and... I've got ANOTHER book that I already own! What on Earth am I going to do now???

Drat! Anyone else? I'll even write the review for the Woolf

None of them are particulary famous (except McEwan), which is why it's caused a bit of a rumpus in the publishing industry this year. Someone is definitely sending me Mister Pip so I'll be able to read that. At least I'll have a book I can champion on the basis that I've actually read it

Kylie & Judy - Thank you both I'll be seeking out your recommendations. (I'm expecting a copy of Peter Cary's The True History of the Kelly Gang soon so that'll be interesting)

Does anyone want to swap with me? I can't believe I got a book I already own! It's A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf and whilst it is a favourite of mine, I don't really want another copy. How about your Romantic Poets book, Michelle?

My experience with BookMooch is going great so far I've already sent two, and have another two to despatch tomorrow. One of those is going to Denver, USA And in the spirit of global Mooching someone from New Zealand has accepted my request to send a book to the UK, which is lovely! I also have a copy of The True History of the Kelly Gang winging its way across the country.

Guys! Penguin have started something called Blog a Penguin Classic:

I'm really pleased to see Nicola Barker on there as I think she's a great writer. I haven't read Darkmans as it's only out in hardback at the moment. But I'm glad she's been acknowledged There are quite a few that I really fancy reading when they become paperbacks, so it's a nice surprise to see them nominated! Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones (which, fingers crossed, I may be getting soon from someone in New Zealand), Gifted by Nikita Lalwani and What Was Lost by Catherine O’Flynn.

Yes, it's that time of the year again! The Man Booker Prize 2007 Longlist has been announced and it's already ruffled a few literary feathers by being quite 'low-key' (i.e. no really big names except McEwan). (Anyone interested can find a good article here ) Here's the longlist: Darkmans by Nicola Barker (4th Estate) Self Help by Edward Docx (Picador) The Gift Of Rain by Tan Twan Eng (Myrmidon) The Gathering by Anne Enright (Jonathan Cape) The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (Hamish Hamilton) The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies (Sceptre) Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones (John Murray) Gifted by Nikita Lalwani (Viking) On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan (Jonathan Cape) What Was Lost by Catherine O’Flynn (Tindal Street) Consolation by Michael Redhill (William Heinemann) Animal’s People by Indra Sinha (Simon & Schuster) Winnie & Wolf by A.N.Wilson (Hutchinson)

This is a subject that really interests me - what novels did you read that sparked your research off, Kylie? I want to read more fiction set in Australia, so I'd be grateful for any tips!

I'm really enjoying Heroes, thus far I thought the last (BBC2) episode was a corker, especially the very end...

Hello and a - belated - welcome from me! Hope you're feeling all settled in now

A (belated, sorry!) welcome from me, too

Welcome Anne! It seems like you'll fit right in with us

Y'know, I can totally believe that to be true! How scary is that?!

Holiday twins! I really want to read Lost in a Good Book - I've wishlisted it everywhere but I only find the others, which would mean I was reading the series in the wrong order. D'oh.

I too had a wet 'n' windy holiday (North Devon) but I still managed to get through a few books. Over two weeks, I read the following: Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde The Inheritance of Loss - Kiran Desai Special Topics in Calamity Physics - Marisha Pessl The Apple: Crimson Petal Stories - Michel Faber I'm going away for a week at the end of August but I have no idea what I'll pack to read

Ah, what a good description of a politician, nevermind their reading habits! What about our American political cousins? Any ideas about what they'll be reading? (I'm not going to suggest a certain Mr G.W Bush will be reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar again, for the 14th time Whoops!)

On Friday night, I finished Just In Case - I did enjoy it but it wasn't in the same league as How I Live Now. Still, I thought it was very well done and an unusual novel for teenagers. Now, however, I'm not sure what to read! I have a few options in mind but I can't decide... The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood Possession - A.S. Byatt The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini Life of Pi - Yann Martel Knowing me, I probably won't end up picking any of those in the end! (Weirdly, I really want to read The Book of Not -Tsitsi Dangarembga but I want to 'save' it!) Gah! I hate moods like this! Update: I decided upon Possession by A.S. Byatt and I'm really enjoying it so far

Then there is only one answer, angerball: Crimson Petal! Crimson Petal! Oh, and... CRIMSON PETAL! Seriously tho', I and several other members have enjoyed this book an obscenely huge amount so it sounds like a safe bet But why don't you try the first couple of chapters before you travel, that way you know whether you'll be hooked enough for the flight?