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Poppyshake's Reading Year 2015


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As I was saying earlier .. I'm finding that the whole TBR jar thing is helping me to get a bit of a move on. I'm not rushing but I am resolutely ploughing on with the book even though it may be a little bit on the tiresome or difficult side :blush2: And the reason for this is that I can't wait to pick again!!  :D It really is exciting. It's like a Kinder egg without the calories .. though of course there are no real surprises .. I know all the books but still .. could be anything.

So .. this morning it was time to pick again  :cows: and what came out? (I was thinking please let it be a nice Agatha Christie or Roald Dahl perhaps .. with words I can understand  :blush2: )

 

Oh man! The jar really has got it in for me ... 640 pages!!  :thud: let's see how much resolutely ploughing on I do now :D

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Wow the jar is testing you :D

It is isn't it? .. I've been eyeing this one warily for years  :blush2: 

Really interesting review of Iris Murdoch... I really want to investigate her further, but maybe should begin with something a little easier!

Thanks :) A great place to start is with her husband John Bayley's memoirs about her .. great they were and very moving. Her novels are a little bit challenging .. though not Woolf challenging or anything. I haven't read them all by any stretch .. one of them at least is in the jar .. hopefully it will come out soonish :D When the jar has stopped throwing 500 pagers at me  :D 

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Blimey, that jar is really throwing everything at you at the start, isn't it?  Should I feel guilty that my jar gave me a short 156 page novel to ease me in gently?  :lurker: :giggle2:

Yes!! I'm affronted!! .. you've got the nice jar .. how did that happen? :D

 

All the more daunting Claire as I've been reading your massive Mapp & Lucia omnibus .. 700 odd pages!! But .. though it took a little while .. I am as happy as anything in Tilling and Riseholme .. so it's pure pleasure but .. I'm counting it as three books Claire ... I need all the help I can get :D

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*to the accompaniment of violins playing* I'm not meaning to go on but this is the size of the book compared to a normal paperback  :o It's almost impossible to hold it and my wrist is hurting already (about ten pages in  :D  ) The jar is sadistic I tell you .. mine is anyway .. and that's where putting a ribbon on it gets you!  :censored: I'm wracking my brain to think of a bigger unread book in the house .. if there is one I'm sure it'll come out next  :D Actually the ten pages have been pretty good so far so at least that's something  :blush2: 

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Yes!! I'm affronted!! .. you've got the nice jar .. how did that happen? :D

 

All the more daunting Claire as I've been reading your massive Mapp & Lucia omnibus .. 700 odd pages!! But .. though it took a little while .. I am as happy as anything in Tilling and Riseholme .. so it's pure pleasure but .. I'm counting it as three books Claire ... I need all the help I can get :D

 

 

Oh no!  I'll bet mine's just lulling me into a false sense of security and next it'll come up with some monstrously big book that I've been putting off for ages! :lol:

 

The Mapp & Lucia omnibus is TOTALLY three books, there is no way I'd expect you to read it as one!  I'm glad you're enjoying it though … although I always knew you would :giggle2:

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Oh no!  I'll bet mine's just lulling me into a false sense of security and next it'll come up with some monstrously big book that I've been putting off for ages! :lol:

 

The Mapp & Lucia omnibus is TOTALLY three books, there is no way I'd expect you to read it as one!  I'm glad you're enjoying it though … although I always knew you would :giggle2:

The jars are sneaky .. they probably have differing agendas :D

 

I'm glad you approve of me listing the Mapp & Lucia's as three books  :blush2: I've nearly finished though .. I'm already halfway through Lucia in London :) They are right up my street .. clever you :hug: I have got to put actual Mapp & Lucia on my reading list now .. can't wait to see what happens in print when these two Goliaths meet  :D I noticed that some of the plots in the books I've read were used in the TV adaptation .. though not originally from the same time frame .. clever! And quite seamlessly done. One thing confused me though .. I couldn't work out why he was calling Mrs Wyse .. Mrs Poppet (or why the adaptation called Mrs Poppet .. Mrs Wyse I should say) .. until I read further  :D Have watched the adaptations again whilst reading the books .. great stuff!

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*to the accompaniment of violins playing* I'm not meaning to go on but this is the size of the book compared to a normal paperback  :o It's almost impossible to hold it and my wrist is hurting already (about ten pages in  :D  ) The jar is sadistic I tell you .. mine is anyway .. and that's where putting a ribbon on it gets you!  :censored: I'm wracking my brain to think of a bigger unread book in the house .. if there is one I'm sure it'll come out next  :D Actually the ten pages have been pretty good so far so at least that's something  :blush2: 

 

:giggle2: Oh dear. You do make me laugh, Kay! (With you, not at you, of course.)

 

I've never heard of this book before. I just read the synopsis on Goodreads, and it sounds interesting. I'm looking forward to your review. :)

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Many thanks to Brian for this idea :hug: I have made a TBR jar!!  :boogie:

Very time consuming as I had to write out 200 odd titles ... could have possibly read one of them in the time it took me  :D In theory .. I will pick a piece of paper out at random and read the relevant book. This may well lead to me abandoning books because some of them are only in the house because they were the third or second book in a Waterstone's deal or because they were part of a set bought cheaply from The Book People etc. I will attempt to give them all a fair trial though. It's a large jar .. I can thoroughly shake it for shuffling purposes and I intend to plunge my hand in (possibly whilst looking away) and do a sort of spin cycle movement with it before picking one. 

It will be very Russian roulette though .. not least because .... Carter Beats the Devil is in this jar :o !!! Alan wrote that particular slip so that I wouldn't know the colour and therefore couldn't cheat (I wouldn't .. but some people are suspicious little blighters :D) I have told him that if I find he has written it out several times then there will be sanctions involving dinner, making sandwiches and well .. other stuff!! :D I am working on the theory that the jar knows best. I will try and respect the jar's decision (whilst incanting 'Not Slytherin'  :D

It won't have lights on it all the time .. this is its debut and so I've gone to town a bit.

I will continue to choose books from the shelves so obviously if I pick out a title I've already read then I will pick again. I promise not to throw any fish back into the sea though :blush2:   

 

I suppose thanks must go to Alan who donated the jar .. it was full of Christmas tree marshmallows and enough can't be said about the sterling effort he put in to empty it  :D 

 

Wish me luck peeps .. the first grand draw will take place soon. When the results come in I'd appreciate it if you didn't laugh :D  

 

I love your TBR jar, it's such a great idea x

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Yes .. quite right .. I meant to say that I do tend to plod on with a book when all hope is gone. I'm going to try not to do that this year and the cunning plan is the TBR jar. It will make me read books that would otherwise sit on the shelf for ages and possibly encourage me to read more or at least get me started on reading them. If they're duffers then it's better I know it and then the charity shop can have them and it'll be more shelf space for me

The only thing I'm personally worried about it coming across a book that I don't get along with, and then ditch it and give it away. What if I would've liked the book at a later time, when in a different mood! This is a terrifying notion. 

 

Very interesting .. quite a handful .. you never knew what he was going to say or do on live TV. His books are very funny .. or at least from the glimpses I've had of them. As is often the case though he was very funny but he was also a manic depressive and had electric shock treatment etc. He is in the jar .. more than once .. so he stands a good chance.  

Poor Spike =(

 

I have got over that feeling now as it was ages ago .. so hope to get to it this year even without the jar's help.

I'm really glad to hear you've gotten over it. Bring on TPT, book jar! =D

 

 

We don't want things getting too exciting in the bedroom .. interferes with book reading that does.  Anyway .. Waters intends it always to be lady business from what I can tell and I haven't got time to learn a new skill :D 

:lol: Indeed!

 

 

Glad you like the bookcase :hug: .. I would quite like to be a decorator .. but only for people I know and like. It's the scared of people thing again .. they'd have to talk to me and they mightn't like the things I chose .. ooh .. I can invisage a hundred mortifying situations. I'd have to ask them for money at some point!!   

I would definitely trust my apartment with you! =)

 

 

 

I snaffled the lobster for a forum somewhere (I can't remember where) just in case I ever needed a lobster emoticon. Who'd have thought...

:D Who would've thought, indeed! Maybe you had a sense of a conversation like this taking place... Now that's a skill!

 

 

She's lovely. She's pretty shy, even after nearly two years of coming here, but she's very lovely and very sweet.

She sounds like a real gem. It's always a relief when one's child's partner turns out to be very much tolerable and beyond :yes:

 

 

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Man at the Helm by Nina Stibbe

What a great review! This book is going on my wishlist :D I wasn't interested in the title before, even though I've seen it around on here for a while now. I think it's because I had no idea what the title actually meant. I had to google 'at the helm' :giggle2: I really like the sound of the book now!

 

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Iris Murdoch: A Writer at War - Letters and Diaries 1939-1945 Edited and Introduced by Peter J. Conradi

 

 

This was an interesting 'choice' by the book jar :D A long book you wouldn't have picked as your next read yourself, but still a book you've wanted to read. I remember you reading Iris Murdoch's books and maybe it was high time you went back to her :) I remember sending you  my copy of The Bell, and you mentioned you had no idea why I'd underlined the lines I had :D 

 

I can't believe you've already finished the book, though, you are flying through the pages these days!

 

As I was saying earlier .. I'm finding that the whole TBR jar thing is helping me to get a bit of a move on. I'm not rushing but I am resolutely ploughing on with the book even though it may be a little bit on the tiresome or difficult side. And the reason for this is that I can't wait to pick again!!   It really is exciting. It's like a Kinder egg without the calories .. though of course there are no real surprises .. I know all the books but still .. could be anything.

So .. this morning it was time to pick again and what came out? (I was thinking please let it be a nice Agatha Christie or Roald Dahl perhaps .. with words I can understand   )

 

Oh man! The jar really has got it in for me ... 640 pages!! let's see how much resolutely ploughing on I do now

 

I can imagine how addictive it can get, wanting to pick a new book :D But... maybe that feeling will subside if the jar continues to produce titles of books with more than 600 pages :giggle2: 

 

Blimey, that jar is really throwing everything at you at the start, isn't it?  Should I feel guilty that my jar gave me a short 156 page novel to ease me in gently? 

 

:lol: 

 

*to the accompaniment of violins playing* I'm not meaning to go on but this is the size of the book compared to a normal paperback   It's almost impossible to hold it and my wrist is hurting already (about ten pages in) The jar is sadistic I tell you .. mine is anyway .. and that's where putting a ribbon on it gets you!   I'm wracking my brain to think of a bigger unread book in the house .. if there is one I'm sure it'll come out next. Actually the ten pages have been pretty good so far so at least that's something  

 

I wonder if we all end up naming our jars according to how they treat us. Yours would be Sadistic Jar, as you say... :giggle2: 

 

But just think of the muscles you'll be developing in those arms! You'll have Hollywood arms in no time 

  

True .. it's a real bingo wings reducer 

 

Hollywood arms and bingo wing reducers :D :D  You guys crack me up! 

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The only thing I'm personally worried about it coming across a book that I don't get along with, and then ditch it and give it away. What if I would've liked the book at a later time, when in a different mood! This is a terrifying notion.

I'm very much a mood reader, I enjoy a book much more or less if I'm in the mood for "that sort of book". So I can imagine this happening for me, if it were to be like that.

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Met with lovely Claire today and got some lovely bookie presents  :smile: How lucky am I?

Got The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide (brilliant .. I've been wanting to read this since sending it to Kylie) and I Am Half Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley (excellent ... more of Flavia :D) Also Alan got The Humans by Matt Haig ... which I am totally going to beg, borrow or steal  :giggle: 

 

Claire also lent me the following books ..

The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin

Diving Belles by Lucy Wood

Cat Out of Hell by Lynne Truss

The Quietness by Alison Rattle

Don't Point That Thing At Me by Kyril Bonfiglioli

 

Came home laden down with books .. how lovely  :wub:  I've put the titles in the jar, though I'll probably read them soon anyway, and they are diluting Carter Beats the Devil's chances .. perfect  :D 

 

Thanks Claire :hug: 

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Claire also bought me these lovely cards  :wub: Beautiful naive Christmas scenes of The Bronte Parsonage, Monks House (Virginia Woolf's Home) and Chawton Cottage (Jane Austen's Home.)

Aren't they absolutely beautiful? I'm going to frame them .. they're gorgeous :)

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Yikes, I think your jar might have a bit of an attitude on it! Good luck with your tome! :lol:

Thanks Noll .. it's going well so perhaps not as bad as I feared :)

I've never heard of this book before. I just read the synopsis on Goodreads, and it sounds interesting. I'm looking forward to your review. :)

Are you Kylie? I'm not :D It's good and it's keeping my interest at the moment so hope it stays that way. I've not made a dent in it though (reading-wise ... I've made a huge dent in it handling-wise :D 

I love your TBR jar, it's such a great idea x

Thanks Paula :) Brian bought it here (from the outside world :D

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The only thing I'm personally worried about it coming across a book that I don't get along with, and then ditch it and give it away. What if I would've liked the book at a later time, when in a different mood! This is a terrifying notion.

Yes .. I mentioned this at the start of the blog, what if it's a grower? I think, what I might do, is look up the reviews .. if they are overwhelmingly positive then I might chug on. Unless I'm absolutely hating it. It'll be a great relief to me to find out I can abandon a book .. I'd be so grateful to the book that I might actually read it :D 

What a great review! This book is going on my wishlist :D I wasn't interested in the title before, even though I've seen it around on here for a while now. I think it's because I had no idea what the title actually meant. I had to google 'at the helm' :giggle2: I really like the sound of the book now!

Thanks Frankie :) Ah .. yes .. bit of an obscure and not much used expression. I think you might like the book .. difficult to know as Nina has got a strange sense of humour which luckily ties in with my own. Hopefully you'll see it at the library or something and get the chance to give  it a go.

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This was an interesting 'choice' by the book jar :D A long book you wouldn't have picked as your next read yourself, but still a book you've wanted to read. I remember you reading Iris Murdoch's books and maybe it was high time you went back to her :) I remember sending you  my copy of The Bell, and you mentioned you had no idea why I'd underlined the lines I had.

I still believe there was a subtext there that I couldn't quite grasp .. you'd written some things in the margins too .. no idea what :D I still have it .. I'll unlock its secrets one day :D It has made me want to pick up more of her fiction again.

I can't believe you've already finished the book, though, you are flying through the pages these days!

I did pretty well last week .. I was alone a lot and did nothing much else but read (I think I was trying not to eat :D

I can imagine how addictive it can get, wanting to pick a new book :D But... maybe that feeling will subside if the jar continues to produce titles of books with more than 600 pages.

Yes ..I'll probably cover it with an old t-shirt and bung it in the back of a cupboard :D

I wonder if we all end up naming our jars according to how they treat us. Yours would be Sadistic Jar, as you say... :giggle2:

I called it a few names when I last picked out :D Though I also cracked up laughing :D

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Met with lovely Claire today and got some lovely bookie presents  :smile: How lucky am I?

Got The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide (brilliant .. I've been wanting to read this since sending it to Kylie) and I Am Half Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley (excellent ... more of Flavia :D) Also Alan got The Humans by Matt Haig ... which I am totally going to beg, borrow or steal  :giggle: 

 

Claire also lent me the following books ..

The Winter Queen by Boris Akunin

Diving Belles by Lucy Wood

Cat Out of Hell by Lynne Truss

The Quietness by Alison Rattle

Don't Point That Thing At Me by Kyril Bonfiglioli

 

Came home laden down with books .. how lovely  :wub:  I've put the titles in the jar, though I'll probably read them soon anyway, and they are diluting Carter Beats the Devil's chances .. perfect  :D 

 

Thanks Claire :hug: 

 

So happy you're pleased with the books I chose for you, Kay :smile2: I hope you enjoy them!  I forgot to say, but when we were in the café, a man came in and sat at the table behind Alan at one point, and started reading Don't Point That Thing At Me … he must be trying to read it before watching the film :giggle2:

 

Claire also bought me these lovely cards  :wub: Beautiful naive Christmas scenes of The Bronte Parsonage, Monks House (Virginia Woolf's Home) and Chawton Cottage (Jane Austen's Home.)

Aren't they absolutely beautiful? I'm going to frame them .. they're gorgeous :)

 

I hoped you'd love them.  They did have a few more, but I can't remember what they were off the top of my head, but it had to be Brontë, Woolf and Austen for you.

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So happy you're pleased with the books I chose for you, Kay :smile2: I hope you enjoy them!

I know I will actually .. I can always tell :D  :hug:

I forgot to say, but when we were in the café, a man came in and sat at the table behind Alan at one point, and started reading Don't Point That Thing At Me … he must be trying to read it before watching the film :giggle2:

:DI expect he was .. it's a wonder he could hear himself think though  :giggle:

I hoped you'd love them.  They did have a few more, but I can't remember what they were off the top of my head, but it had to be Brontë, Woolf and Austen for you.

I've looked at her Etsy shop already :D I love the ones you chose best and what's particularly nice is that I've been to all three houses :smile:  

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