poppyshake

I love Jonathan Stroud so really happy to hear about this (albeit late ) Sorry to hear that you couldn't get on with it Michelle .. we all have days/books like that You've reminded me though that I must read The Ring of Solomon as I love, love, love the Bartimaeus trilogy.

What a brilliant title Glad it's living up Just finished listening to Five Rivers Met on a Wooded Plain .. not a cheerful read/listen but a really interesting and absorbing story. Now listening to No Time Like the Past (The Chronicles of St Mary's #5) .. brill as usual and reading Olive Kitteridge which I'm also enjoying.

Do you mean the Kate Beckinsale one, Claire? (or is there another?) I'm pretty sure I have it on DVD so don't go spending any money

This is brilliant .. what a great book I absolutely loved it .. hope you do too

Oh me too. I hated it that they only showed half of the episodes last year and then stopped for what seemed like months. Even when it did come back on my mum doesn't like him much and so turned it over when I was staying there This is comfort telly at its best

Magpie Murders - Anthony Horowitz Synopsis: When editor Susan Ryeland is given the tattered manuscript of Alan Conway's latest novel, she has little idea it will change her life. She's worked with the revered crime writer for years and his detective, Atticus Pund, is renowned for solving crimes in the sleepy English villages of the 1950s. As Susan knows only too well, vintage crime sells handsomely. It's just a shame that it means dealing with an author like Alan Conway... But Conway's latest tale of murder at Pye Hall is not quite what it seems. Yes, there are dead bodies and a host of intriguing suspects, but hidden in the pages of the manuscript there lies another story: a tale written between the very words on the page, telling of real-life jealousy, greed, ruthless ambition and murder. Thoughts: A bit more involved than Agatha but written along the same comfy, cosy, lines. Quite Midsomer really too with it's sleepy English village theme, red herrings, bicycling vicars and busy body villagers. The main difference here is that the plot is split into two halves .. both mirroring each other but separate. For the first part of the book we hear the story that Alan Conway has written .. his later murder mystery with his leading man .. Atticus Pund .. a Hercule Poirotesque detective. I forgot actually that I was reading a story within the story so it was quite a shock to me when the story broke off abruptly before it's conclusion and took me back to Alan's editor Susan Ryeland who has a mystery of her own to solve involving the author. On the whole I thought it was a good read, a bit clunky in places and cliched but ultimately absorbing. It's very much in the spirit of Agatha (with several huge nods to her .. including the nursery rhyme title/sub-title) but it hasn't quite got the heart. All the same I love a bit of winter crime and this fit the bill nicely. 3/5

Grayson Perry: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl - Wendy Jones Synopsis: Every inch of Grayson's childhood bedroom was covered with pictures of aeroplanes, and every surface with models. Fantasy took over his life, in a world of battles ruled by his teddy bear, Alan Measles. He grew up. And in 2003, an acclaimed ceramic artist, he accepted the Turner Prize as his alter-ego Clare, wearing his best dress, with a bow in his hair. Now he tells his own story, his voice beautifully caught by his friend, the writer Wendy Jones. Early childhood in Chelmsford, Essex is a rural Eden that ends abruptly with the arrival of his stepfather, leading to constant swerving between his parents' houses, and between boys' and women's clothes. But as Grayson enters art college and discovers the world of London squats and New Romanticism, he starts to find himself. At last he steps out as a potter and transvestite. Thoughts: I really like Grayson so enjoyed reading about his childhood and how he became interested in art and dressing up in frills and bows etc. It's not entirely a comfortable read, art students are often pretty ridiculous or do pretty ridiculous things which of course don't seem at all ridiculous at the time and I always find I'm cringing a bit (a spliff might help with this or some magic mushrooms .. but post Christmas finances meant I could only really run to half a cider! ) plus there's a sadness in reading about his childhood .. he didn't seem to be properly loved or appreciated but I love the way he tells his story with candour and directness. I guess when you've had a time in your life where everything has to be hidden away and where you can't be yourself or are punished for being yourself then being frank is very liberating. He's a very interesting and complex character and his story is fascinating. 3/5

It is boring really .. I think that's the point of it. It's a peep into Frit's life where absolutely nothing happens that isn't mundane and commonplace (except for in his dreams and thoughts which are disturbingly creepy.) It took me ages to accept that it wasn't going anywhere but where it already was and then I did start finding it funny in a dark, bleak, sort of way and also intriguing. Despite me giving it a high rating I actually wouldn't recommend it to anyone though it is highly thought of. Not many people are going to enjoy it. No, don't go back to it Gaia .. deeply depressing. I know it's a Dutch classic and I can totally see why especially given when it was written .. I think it's outstanding but it's a bit of a trudge and the rewards are scanty. It doesn't cheer one up .. quite the opposite .. it disturbs one. Glad you liked the review though Happy Reading to you too Pixie I will definitely read The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy. I mean, who could resist that title? (or the cover?) and it's the sort of book to curl up with in winter. Hot chocolate, piece of cake etc and a nice bit of non-threatening murder .. perfect!

The Evenings - Gerard Reve Synopsis: Twenty-three-year-old Frits - office worker, daydreamer, teller of inappropriate jokes - finds life absurd and inexplicable. He lives with his parents, who drive him mad. He has terrible, disturbing dreams of death and destruction. Sometimes he talks to a toy rabbit. This is the story of ten evenings in Frits's life at the end of December, as he drinks, smokes, sees friends, aimlessly wanders the gloomy city streets and tries to make sense of the minutes, hours and days that stretch before him. Darkly funny and mesmerising, The Evenings takes the tiny, quotidian triumphs and heartbreaks of our everyday lives and turns them into a work of brilliant wit and profound beauty. Thoughts: This was the book that I bought as soon as I got home from my mum and dad's. I thought it was the ideal book to get me back into reading .. I had a house full of books at home but I wanted to treat myself .. a reward for being kept away from books for so long. WHAT AN IDIOT!!! What I should have picked up was one of the cosy comforting Agatha Christie's on my TBR or something by Jenny Colgan .. that was what I needed. It was coming up to Christmas after all and so reading time was still limited and concentration in short supply. But no .. I picked this (I did love the cover ) .. a book you have to immerse yourself in, not a difficult book but not a book to take lightly either and not one that you can easily get into. Needless to say, I didn't get far, I had to put it to one side until the last of the Quality Street had been eaten I thought I was reading a modern book and was astounded to see that it was written in 1947 (but not translated until now.) It's very experimental for a book written back then. I think this is key though, the war isn't mentioned much but I think Frit's behaviour is a direct response to having lived through WW2. He's not a very nice person .. not a great person to be spending the whole book with and certainly not someone you want to constantly read the thoughts of but he is fascinating. It is comic as the synopsis says but very, very, dark and disturbing. He is insidious, making the most of everybody's insecurities and being that horrible little voice in your ear which underlines and strengthens your fears. He does this out of boredom really. He lives with his mum and dad who he's exasperated with .. bleak house indeed! The ten evenings did seem like an eternity but for all that, once I gave the story space and time I started to really enjoy it .. though I was still constantly revolted by it. It is really a little masterpiece, but it's not easy and it's not pleasant Worth reading though. 4/5

Whatever next?! Well done for resisting the temptation to buy a book .. very impressive How is the bullet journaling coming on? Hope you're enjoying it

It is the most beautiful cover and the other one is lovely too .. that's why they had both stayed on one of the main shelves in the living room for such a long time I like him too, I love the way he recounts his experiences .. you feel as if you're there. I can't get enough of reading about his family. I think I said to you before, if you can get hold of a copy of Kenneth Branagh reading Cider with Rosie then do (alas .. I only have it on cassette and haven't been able to find it on any other format ) It's brilliant! Oh bother!! Goodreads are already telling me I'm one book behind schedule

Thanks Hayley, Happy Reading (and everything else ) in 2017 too! I should get to read Jamaica Inn this year, the one thing against it (well .. two .. there's that terrible pub ) is that I know bits and pieces of the story because I've seen or heard little bits of it. I like all stories to be fresh but then again, I don't really have a clue about it and I love Daphne's other stories so I should just dive in and see. I don't think I've read any Kate Morton yet (I get her confused with all the other literary Kates ) so she's new to me. Again, the book has been on my shelves for too long so .. hopefully this year Yes, this sort of weather makes you feel like you should be staying in with a book, I need to get my audio books sorted out so that, if it does cheer up weather wise, I can go out for a walk and take a story with me She sounds a bit hit and miss Glad to know though that The House at Riverton is one of the hits! I did persevere with The Children's Book but it was a challenge .. and I drifted and struggled (though it left me with a lot of admiration for her as a writer .. parts of it were stunning!) Something has to give though .. I needed the shelf space Thanks Will, I think I did go slightly bats .. hard to tell Possession is still in the house as I said, both it and The Children's Book have beautiful covers and that makes me loath to get rid of them .. I still might give it a go. I haven't made any headway with Virginia's fiction sad to say. I will definitely fix that this year. I'm enjoying the letters, I read Vintage's Selected Letters of Virginia Woolf in 2012 and loved them but obviously these editions are much more in depth. I saw Alan Bennett's Diaries on TV at Christmas and was tickled to see that he had the same set as I have on his shelf (all except for one of his editions .. which was different and not matching .. I felt a small victory over him there ) Do you listen to A Good Read on Radio 4? I was catching up with an old edition yesterday which featured Miriam Margolyes and Mark Haddon. Miriam was championing Great Expectations and Mark, To the Lighthouse (the presenter's choice was Breakfast at Tiffany's.) They were pretty universal in their love for Great Expectations and Breakfast at Tiffany's but Miriam wasn't a fan of To the Lighthouse at all (and the presenter wasn't all that enamoured ) It does seem to be a book that polarises opinion

We've had a 3D TV for about four years now, love watching a good film on it Favourite films: The BFG, The Jungle Book (the recent live action one which is stunning), Polar Express, Coraline, Avatar, Gravity, TinTin, Alice in Wonderland (the first Tim Burton one.) I prefer animated films in 3D. I find live action ones a bit busy. Al likes live action though .. I'll ask him for faves Takes some getting used to. I saw 3D films at IMAX before they were in ordinary cinemas .. I couldn't take to it at first but love it now. I'm with MrCat though .. I don't like the converted ones .. they're rubbish or the ones I've seen are anyway.

I did cull Possession though It is a beautiful looking book and I did sort of enjoy The Children's Book by Byatt but I heard a bit of Possession on Radio 4 recently .. (dramatised) .. and I found it hard to keep engaged with it. I drifted off something terrible and I just thought, if they can't keep me interested then my voice droning on about it definitely won't It hasn't left the house yet but it has left the bookshelf Oh dear, it is hard!

Merry reading year to you too Claire Hmmm, one of those two books is extremely short .. still, I am encouraged Thanks bobbs, you too It's interesting you should list The Blind Assassin as it nearly got culled! Something stayed my hand ... you must have sent thought waves

Hello frankie! It's a great temptation to spend all my spare time reading but I must spend more time here. Eleven measly pages last year in my book blog That is shameful for someone who gabs as much as I do .. must do better! (I'll probably do ten this year .. this is Goodreads all over again! ) I bet you felt better for it, it's like having a hair cut .. one feels all light and refreshed afterwards. Until one looks in the mirror They might be wrong but then again they might be right No, you're alright, I don't think we need go that far! Thank you lovely I'm going to enjoy my books and cushion as much as possible You'll crease up with laughter when you read them or this one anyway. If you can't find it at the library I'll send you a copy .. I know it'll cheer you up! Oh, you rotter *shakes fist* I'll never live it down!! I am coping with things myself this year and so don't need to engage the militia to help me out .. I might ask them if things get tight

Hello Diane! thank you This wee hoosie may well collapse under the weight of books this year

I'm not sure if the essays have been printed elsewhere. They might have been. I was familiar with the Village Christmas one but he seemed to be telling it from a slightly different angle .. not quite as it was in Cider With Rosie. The other essays I hadn't read before at all. It says on the back that some of them are 'newly discovered'. Again, you're welcome to borrow it Janet It's not really about Christmas, apart from that one piece. It's about the seasons.

It's a genius idea. They all sound hilarious .. I like the thought of Five Go Gluten Free .. .. that's got to play havoc with their picnics! Sort of .. not over yet though so might still be topical. You can borrow this one if you want Janet, nice little read and what's more, a laugh.

St Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves - Karen Russell Synopsis: Charting loss, love, and the difficult art of growing up, these stories unfurl with wicked humour and insight. Two young boys make midnight trips to a boat graveyard in search of their dead sister, who set sail in the exoskeleton of a giant crab; a boy whose dreams foretell implacable tragedies is sent to 'Sleepaway Camp for Disordered Dreamers' (Cabin 1, Narcoleptics; Cabin 2, Insomniacs; Cabin 3, Somnambulists...); a Minotaur leads his family on the trail out West, and finally, in the collection's poignant and hilarious title story, fifteen girls raised by wolves are painstakingly re-civilised by nuns. Thoughts: One of the books I was reading when I went to my mum and dad's was Swamplandia! by Karen Russell .. sadly I never got any further with it and it had to be returned to the library but the little I read I enjoyed. At the same time, while browsing the internet, I happened to notice another book by her and put it on my wishlist and lo and behold .. it turned up at Christmastime Now, the title and the cover were enough to convince me but what I didn't realise (or perhaps I did when I added it .. but forgot later) was that it is a book of short stories and the title story is the last short story!! .. I must admit this caused me some anxiety but only for a few pages because almost all the stories were brilliant and extremely imaginative. They didn't all work or at least some of them felt squeezed into the short story format and ended too abruptly for me but there were a lot of really outstanding tales. The title story thankfully was one of them but also the one about the Minotaur on the trail out West (would love for this one to be expanded upon) and a couple of eerie tales about avalanches and giant conches. Nobody in these tales is 'normal' .. you never know what you're going to be reading about and so are constantly challenged. There is one that's linked to Swamplandia! but that was one of the few that I didn't feel worked as well but all the stories are intriguing, surreal and fascinating. I'll definitely go back to the library for Swamplandia! at some point. 4/5

Thank you Ben Hope you have a fabulous 2017 too!

I think I'll write down a few thoughts on the two books I've read so far Yes, start as I mean to go on (as I do every January ) Five Give Up the Booze - Bruno Vincent Synopsis: ‘Maybe you’ve been hitting it a bit hard over the Christmas period?’ suggested George. ‘No more than usual,’ he replied – a statement that gave them less assurance than he thought. George, Dick, Anne, Julian and Timmy confront a new challenge: give up the booze. Give up alcohol you say? Why, of course they can! Talk about an easy challenge! Five old friends set about this simple task and find all of a sudden that: the days are longer; they get to see each other for who they really are; the empty laughter of ordinary conversation is so much harder to fake. Yes, they're saving money and losing weight, but the world itself seems to take on a slow, dreary inevitability. Soon they begin to snap at each other, and then fight - until they begin to wonder, have the Five at last found the challenge that will defeat them? The perfect gift for anyone who has woken up and promised themselves that they will never drink again… At least until next weekend. Thoughts: Haha .. the cheeky monkeys! How they've got permission to have Enid's name on the covers of these little parodies I will never know .. surely she is revolving in her grave! It's a great concept and it is well done, certainly had me smiling away. One of the funniest things about it I thought was the way they had used the original illustrations and sort of shoe-horned them to fit .. some of them matched quite well but some were so obviously wrong .. purposefully I'm sure. That tickled me. The synopsis says they were losing weight and saving money, not true .. George at least got the munchies instead and was tucking into chocolate and Anne lapsed back into smoking. Timmy did not of course give up the booze .. he had never been a boozer but he did feel the effects of it .. now the four were into healthy long walks which tired him and there weren't any trips to the pub so he lost out on all the tidbits. Poor Timmy I don't know what the rest of the series is like, I would read them if they came my way but not sure I'd seek them out. A great way to wile away an hour or so though and very jolly 3/5

Here are some of my Christmas books, I've bought a couple more with Christmas money since then but haven't photographed them yet! The mug was from my lovely mum and dad .. and some of the books! The three books on the right are from lovely Janet, lovely Sari and lovely Claire Thank you so much girls It's the start of a new year and I've got new books to read

Met up with lovely Claire and lovely Janet on Wednesday for coffee, tea, toast, cake and booky chats .. and booky purchases for that matter! Al and I had a fab time as we always do .. time flew though, we were there over three hours but could have been there for three more. Left to my own devices, I'd still be there now!! Claire bought our Christmas presents with her, she made this absolutely gorgeous patchwork Christmas cushion for us :wub: You can see from the photos how gorgeous it is but it is even more fab in real life. She is so, so, clever! She also bought the book in the pic .. for Al .. but I will be reading it for sure Fair's fair .. it's in my house and it's a book so open season Thank you so much Claire .. you star!

Apologies for the emoticon cull but you know how it is! I exhausted myself constructing yesterday .. I know it was all copy & paste but all the same Hope you have a brilliant reading year my love Thank you, bless I was saved by audiobooks last year really .. I 'read' more of them than usual. Also, if I had to have three months of virtually reading nothing then they were the best three months as I hardly ever read much, if anything, in December and November can be a bit lean .. and October for that matter. The worst three months would have been Jan, Feb and March when it's so drab outside and cold and one can think of nothing better than to curl up with a book. I have great hopes for the first three months of 2017. Just watch me zoom off into the distance and then flag! :lol: Haha .. one of the main reasons for culling was to provide variation and stop me being bored to death with all the copying and pasting and looking at the same old lists a thousand times over You can't help but think, 'well if it's boring me then what are other people making of it?!' I browsed it in Waterstone's and it looks fab! I love the cover but that first review doesn't inspire .. 'utterly awful' It might be a good one though to get from the library I'm all for egging .. and can you get a bit pushy, shovey, as well .. when egging won't do? Thanks Hayley, you too I must try harder with the TBR this year .. the longer a book stays on the shelf the more reluctant I am to pick it up .. nearly always going for the newer books. It won't do!!!!