Anna Begins Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 (edited) Next up is my last library book - Fall of Giants by Ken Follett. I loved Pillars & World without end so it'll be interesting to see how this compares. Though it could take me some time to get through as it's somewhat of a massive tome! Have fun with Fall of Giants- its pretty massive as well. I can't wait to get to the Century trilogy, but I have to finish World Without End yet. I'm currently reading Catherine Ryan Hyde - Always Chloe and Other Stories (gifted to me by the lovely Anna Begins). I quite liked the novella Always Chloe, that was really good. The story after that, The Lion Lottery I found a bit confusing with its American slang and some things weren't explained enough to me. It was an allright read but it was just okay. Now there are I believe two stories left in the book. You are welcome! And I hope you enjoy the other two stories! Happy Birthday I saw that documentary a while back and it did amuse me, the way the various historians were disagreeing with each other's theories If you're interested in the fall of Anne Boleyn and you've already read Hilary Mantel's books, Alison Weir's The Lady in the Tower is worth a look I can second ANY recommendation for Alison Weir! I will be re reading The Life of Elizabeth I in December. I just finished the final book in The Good Earth trilogy, A House Divided. Now I will be reading The Martian with Gaia, before the read a thon. Edited November 25, 2015 by Anna Begins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted November 26, 2015 Share Posted November 26, 2015 You are welcome! And I hope you enjoy the other two stories! Happy Birthday I miscalculated, there were actually three more stories . Two of them were good, the other one less so. I just finished the final book in The Good Earth trilogy, A House Divided. Now I will be reading The Martian with Gaia, before the read a thon. I look forward to it! It'll be my next read after Catherine Ryan Hyde - Earthquake Weather and Other Stories (another birthday gift by you ). So far the stories are of varying quality in my opinion, I really liked some, others were just okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 I finished reading My Sister Jodie by Jacqueline Wilson and started reading The Hiding Place by John Burley. This one seems really promising Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 I'm now reading Andy Weir - The Martian. I'm only ~10% into it but I'm liking it already. It is fairly technical, so I can imagine it's not for everyone, but I'm enjoying the book so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 The Martian is great! I hope you enjoy it. I didn't find it too technical, I enjoyed reading about how everything worked. I've started reading The Enemy by Charlie Higson. Liking it so far, not entirely sure how it's spawned an entire series! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 The Martian is great! I hope you enjoy it. I didn't find it too technical, I enjoyed reading about how everything worked. Brilliant film too being much more thoughtful and much less gung-ho than I had expected from the previews etc. Physicist offspring reckoned that pretty much everything, bar one incident, was believable, and even that was certainly possible (I gather Andy Weir is a particle physicist himself) which made it all the more enjoyable. Unlike Gravity, which we all enjoyed but which he said was scientifically nigh on impossible as it was described. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 27, 2015 Share Posted November 27, 2015 (edited) I finally finished South Riding. Liked it, but didn't love it. Now I've started The Year of Living Danishly: Uncovering The Secrets of the World's Happiest Country. I had no idea that Lego originated in Denmark! Edited November 29, 2015 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 I finally finished South Riding. Liked it, but didn't love it. Now I've started The Art of Living Danishly: Uncovering The Secrets of the World's Happiest Country. I had no idea that Lego originated in Denmark! I'm not surprised that Denmark is the happiest country if they invented Lego. I finished Pratchett's Wyrd Sisters last night. Loved it! I think it's my favourite Discworld to date. I thought I'd read the first couple of pages of another book when I went to bed...and ended up staying up until after 5 am to read the whole thing. It was Leanne Shapton's Important Artifacts and Personal Property from the Collection of Lenore Doolan and Harold Morris, Including Books, Street Fashion, and Jewellery. The entire book is written in the form of an illustrated auction catalogue. As you read through the items, you learn about the relationship between Doolan and Morris. Quite cleverly done. Going back to reading Inkdeath now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookShelfy91 Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 Just finished reading "Elianne" by Judy Nunn. A different type of book to what I usually read, I loved it. Fantastic. Takes a bit to wrap your head around the different outlook that people had in that time. Now reading " Dirk Pitt Revealed" -Clive Cussler. Shelfy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontalba Posted November 28, 2015 Share Posted November 28, 2015 I'm now reading Andy Weir - The Martian. I'm only ~10% into it but I'm liking it already. It is fairly technical, so I can imagine it's not for everyone, but I'm enjoying the book so far. So glad you're liking it! I thought it was great. Finished the Karla Trilogy by John Le Carre, and am about halfway through The Wall by Marlen Haushofer. Polar opposite to LeCarre! lol So good though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 I'm about a quarter of the way through The Year of Living Danishly. I'm finding facts about Danish culture very interesting, but I'm not a fan of the author's writing style. She tries to make a jokey and sarcastic comment every paragraph (yes, literally every paragraph ) and it is wearing thin. She's trying far too hard to be funny, and I find myself anticipating her silly comments as I'm reading. Ugh. Today, I think I'll make an attempt at continuing with Guns, Germs and Steel. I got about a hundred pages from the end, put it down to read a fiction book, and just never picked it up again. I don't know why, because it's a very interesting read, but it does require effort and concentration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 Today, I think I'll make an attempt at continuing with Guns, Germs and Steel. I got about a hundred pages from the end, put it down to read a fiction book, and just never picked it up again. I don't know why, because it's a very interesting read, but it does require effort and concentration. Totally understand and agree! I didn't get as far as you though. I'd like to finish it before the end of the year, but I'm also scrabbling a little to complete my Goodreads challenge, and GG&S won't help with that! I've read two books in the last two days—unusual for me! Only short ones of course: Jacqueline Wilson's The Illustrated Mum (quite a heavy story for a young adult book, but very good) and Roald Dahl's Rhyme Stew. It's been many years since I last read any of Dahl's poetry; I'd forgotten how good it was. Still also trying to get back into Inkdeath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 (edited) I finally finished South Riding. Liked it, but didn't love it. Now I've started The Year of Living Danishly: Uncovering The Secrets of the World's Happiest Country. I had no idea that Lego originated in Denmark! I listened to SR on audio, with Carol Boyd reading. She is a brilliant reader, and really brought the book to life; that could be why I absolutely loved it. The original Legoland is at Billund, right next to the original factory and the airport. We took offspring there for a couple of days when he was five at the end of a ten day cycle tour across Denmark from the ferry from Germany at Rodby - brilliant trip, and a perfect finish! The one at Windsor was a virtual copy. I think I remember from that trip that Lego is a portmanteau word from the Danish for 'play well'. Will be very interested to read what you have say about the book, as have worked a fair bit in Scandinavia too (if not Denmark itself - but love the country). Just finished a couple of books: The Magic Toyshop by Angela Carter last night - very gothic, and a bit disturbing! - and Under Milk Wood this morning, a reread of the script for one of my challenges (for which I needed to read a play). Still a comfortable six stars. Just about to start The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul for my book group. Edited November 29, 2015 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 The original Legoland is at Billund, right next to the original factory and the airport. We took offspring there for a couple of days when he was five at the end of a ten day cycle tour across Denmark from the ferry from Germany at Rodby - brilliant trip, and a perfect finish! The one at Windsor was a virtual copy. I think I remember from that trip that Lego is a portmanteau word from the Danish for 'play well'. Will be very interested to read what you have say about the book, as have worked a fair bit in Scandinavia too (if not Denmark itself - but love the country). The author's husband got a job with Lego, which is why they had to relocate. I think I will have mixed opinions about the book - the 'educational' content is interesting, but the delivery is very poor so far!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Begins Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 I finished The Martian early this morning and now have started on Station Eleven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontalba Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 I finished The Martian early this morning and now have started on Station Eleven. Loved them both! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 29, 2015 Share Posted November 29, 2015 I finished The Martian early this morning and now have started on Station Eleven. Oh, I loved Station Eleven. It's my only 6/6 book for the year. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 Finished The Hiding Place by John Burley, have no idea what to read next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 The Martian is great! I hope you enjoy it. I didn't find it too technical, I enjoyed reading about how everything worked. Brilliant film too being much more thoughtful and much less gung-ho than I had expected from the previews etc. Physicist offspring reckoned that pretty much everything, bar one incident, was believable, and even that was certainly possible (I gather Andy Weir is a particle physicist himself) which made it all the more enjoyable. Unlike Gravity, which we all enjoyed but which he said was scientifically nigh on impossible as it was described. So glad you're liking it! I thought it was great. I finished The Martian early this morning and now have started on Station Eleven. I loved The Martian !! It was such a great book, and it's made it onto my list of favourite books. I really enjoyed every page of it. I'm currently reading Rainbow Rowell's newest book, Carry On. It started off a bit slow, but then things got really interesting. The story is interesting in that while it involves fantasy elements, it has elements from other genres too (as the back of the book says). I quite like the book so far, I look forward to read more in it later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Begins Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 I finished The Martian early this morning and now have started on Station Eleven. Loved them both! Oh, I loved Station Eleven. It's my only 6/6 book for the year. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Thanks! It hasn't totally grabbed me yet, I am still trying to figure out what is going on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 Thanks! It hasn't totally grabbed me yet, I am still trying to figure out what is going on Oh no, I hope it picks up for you!! It was probably my favourite read of the year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 I started reading Dear Mr M by Herman Koch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookShelfy91 Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 I started reading 'Witches Of East End - Meslissa De la Cruz' yesterday. So far really enjoying it. Shelfy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
More reading time required Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I saw that documentary a while back and it did amuse me, the way the various historians were disagreeing with each other's theories If you're interested in the fall of Anne Boleyn and you've already read Hilary Mantel's books, Alison Weir's The Lady in the Tower is worth a look I haven't actually read any Hilary Mantel, just watched the tv series. How does it compare to the book (if you've done both)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
More reading time required Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 I recently read The Pillars of the World and World Without End, they are massive! They were great though, I quite enjoyed reading them. I own Fall of Giants but I haven't read it yet (after those two big tomes I need a long break from huge historical fiction books). I hope you enjoy it . Enjoying so far, even though I'm not as far into it as I'd like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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