Athena Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 On GoodReads, and also on blogs and YouTube, there is such a thing as 'Top 5 Wednesday' where every Wednesday there is a bookish topic and then you talk about your top 5 (creator: GingerReadsLainey). For Dutch blogs, they do a "Top Ten on Thursday" (by Emmy from Zon en Maan. For example for this week the topic is 'Favourite Retellings (fairytales, myths, literature, etc.)'. I thought it might be a nice idea to do this here, so every Wednesday (or maybe Thursday) I will post the topic of that week and whoever's interested can post their top 5 (usually involving books, but on occasion it can be about for example book to movie adaptations). The top 5 doesn't have to be in order (ie. 1, 2, 3,...), but it can be if you want it to. Since I know most of us find it hard to choose, we could change top 5 into a top 10 instead, I'll leave that up to the posters, we can just see how it goes. Hopefully there will be at least one reply! So for this week the topic is Top 5 (or 10) Favourite Retellings (fairytales, myths, literature, ...) I have to admit I haven't read a lot of retellings, the main ones that come to mind are the Stilton retellings of famous literary works. I have some retellings I still want to read though. Here's my top 5 of what I can think of right now (not in any particular order): Natsuki Takaya - Fruits Basket series Melissa Nathan - Acting Up Juliet Marillier - Trilogy van de Zeven Wateren 1: Dochter Van Het Woud (Sevenwaters 1: Daughter Of The Forest) Geronimo Stilton - De Avonturen van Robinson Crusoe (Le Avventure di Robinson Crusoe) Geronimo Stilton - De Avonturen van Koning Arthur (La Avventure di Re Artù) And another 5 (okay, so I couldn't stick to a top 5 ): Geronimo Stilton - Het Jungleboek (Il Libro Della Giungla) Geronimo Stilton - Alice in Wonderland (Dutch translation) (Alice Nel Paese Delle Meraviglie) Geronimo Stilton - De Geheime Tuin (Il Giardino Segreto) Geronimo Stilton - Robin Hood (Dutch) Geronimo Stilton - Heidi (Dutch) And here are some retellings I want to read (I'm just throwing this in.. for the sake of it ): Marissa Meyer - The Lunar Chronicles Naomi Novik - Uprooted Rick Riordan - Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (& other series) Sarah J. Maas - Throne of Glass Alison Goodman - Eon series Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer - Between the Lines series (fairytale themed) Michael Buckley - The Sisters Grimm series Isaac Marion - Warm Bodies Other Stilton retellings What are your top 5 or 10 favourite retellings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) A very interesting idea! I don't think I've read many retellings... Only two come to mind: Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith and I didn't much like either of them... I gave them both 2/5, but the P&P&Z is better. Edit: So yeah, in a nutshell: I don't have any favorite retellings Edited December 10, 2015 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 Edit: So yeah, in a nutshell: I don't have any favorite retellings Awwww . I hope you find something nice in the future! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kell Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 The Child Thief by Brom is a dark retelling of the Peter Pan story that should not be missed - a fantastic combination of wonderful writing and awesome illustrations (he's an artist as well as an author!). I also loved Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith, and can hardly wait to see the film adaptation - I thought the addition of the walking dead to the original story was done very cleverly and handled well. I found Warm Bodies surprisingly good to read, and I've read the first in The Lunar Chronicles, which was quite clever. There was also a YA novel called Sisters Red that I read a few years back and rather enjoyed, and the cover was gorgeous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 12, 2015 Author Share Posted December 12, 2015 I found Warm Bodies surprisingly good to read, and I've read the first in The Lunar Chronicles, which was quite clever. Sounds good, I'm glad to hear you liked those two books . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 I can't think of too many off the top of my head. I've read Wicked and enjoyed it (more than Sari did anyway!) But I I can't think of any others. I have The Child Thief and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies on my TBR pile and Warm Bodies on my wish list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 Awwww . I hope you find something nice in the future! I don't think I'm actually that keen on retellings, in general, for some reason or another So maybe I won't find anything in the future.... But that's just me! Looking forward to next week's top 5/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Begins Posted December 13, 2015 Share Posted December 13, 2015 This is such a great idea! I'm with Frankie though, waiting for the next one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 13, 2015 Author Share Posted December 13, 2015 I hope you'll like next week's topic more! I'm happy some of you are interested . I'll be sure to post the topic in a few days (on Wednesday). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nursenblack Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 I had to do some thinking about this, but I'm always intrigued by a retelling and have read some good ones. Some are more of a new-telling than a retelling, but these are the ones I enjoyed the most. They all happen to be YA as well. 1. Splintered by A. G. Howard (a new twist on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland) 2. Jane by April Linder (the story of Jane Eyre set in modern times) 3. Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale (Brothers Grimm fairy tale) 4. Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay (a modern, paranormal Romeo & Juliet) 5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer (futuristic take on Cinderella) I've also read Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George (based on Grimms' The Twelve Dancing Princesses), but I didn't enjoy it as much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Budgie Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Spike Milligan had a good run with retellings of classics. Among others, he retold The Hound of the Baskervilles, Wuthering Heights, and The Bible, and all with a humorous twist. I remember The Bible one in particular being laugh out loud funny! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 16, 2015 Author Share Posted December 16, 2015 This week's topic is: Your Top 5 (or 10) Books to read by the fire (winter / holiday recommendations). Instead of being the first one to type her Top 5, I'll let someone else go first and come back with my list in a little while. Maybe it's just me, but "books to read by the fire" makes me think of slightly different books than "winter / holiday recommendations". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Budgie Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 1. Mystery in White, A Christmas Crime Story, by J. Jefferson Farjeon This book would be perfect for reading by the fire. A mysterious house on Christmas Eve, hemmed in by snow, so much snow, with blazing fires that an unknown someone has lit, and a table set for tea, but with no-one at home... (I'm currently reading this, and thoroughly enjoying it.) 2. Hercule Poirot's Christmas, by Agatha Christie (Another mystery for fireside reading!) 3. A Christmas Memory, by Truman Capote (A nostalgic and bittersweet childhood story.) 4. Comfort and Joy, by Jim Grimsley (A seasonal M/M romance. I need to re-read it.) 5. The Night Before Christmas, by Walter Wick (This is a picture puzzle book that's really aimed towards kids. But I'm a big kid, and this is such a beautifully photographed book, and so fun to look at.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 What a great idea (I loved Spike Milligan's interpretations of the Bible by the way, very funny). My top 5 winter/fireside reads are (in no particular order) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - moors, madness, old houses, bad weather , etc Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier - more moors and bad weather, plus it all comes to a head over Christmas Dark Matter by Michelle Paver - set in the Arctic Circle during winter, so no daylight for 2 months and very cold The American Boy by Andrew Taylor - set in a mixture of London and the countryside, mistaken identity, unrequited love Lord of the Rings - just a wallow, perfect for holiday reading and it has such a dark, wintry feel to it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 18, 2015 Author Share Posted December 18, 2015 Some interesting ones there, Onion Budgie and Madeleine . Here are mine. I think of different things with 'reading by the fire' and 'winter holiday recommendations'. Winter / Holiday Recommendations / Christmas Carolyn Nash - The First Day of Christmas Eowyn Ivey - The Snow Child Scarlett Bailey - The Night Before Christmas Chrissie Manby - Benson Family 2: A Proper Family Christmas Cecelia Ahern - The Gift I would also recommend Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol if I'm allowed an honourable mention or something. By the fire I think of reading more big, long books such as (because we have the fire on not just in December but also earlier in the year or the first few months of the new year if the weather calls for it). Usually though I don't pick a book any differently if I'm sitting in front of the fire, I just continue on reading what it was I was reading and pick what I feel like reading. But I generally think of big books like: Stephen King - IT (this is an October read for me, but we have the fire on in October sometimes) Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson - The Wheel of Time series Peter F. Hamilton - The Night's Dawn series I don't know why though I think of big epic books by the fire. I think it has something to do with staying in front of the warm fire and not wanting to get up again . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 I didn't automatically think of wintry/Christmas/snow themed books as my fireside reads, but some did come into my thoughts straight away. I cannot explain why it was these books, but here is my top-of-the-head five; Magyk by Angie Sage Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling A Maiden's Grave by Jeffrey Deaver No Good Deed by Manda Scott Judas Child by Carol O'Connell Looking at the list I'm baffled as to my choices; two magical stories, and three thrillers/crime stories. Obviously toasty fires make me think of magic and murder! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 18, 2015 Author Share Posted December 18, 2015 Obviously toasty fires make me think of magic and murder! Haha . I can second the recommendation for Magyk and the Harry Potter book, I really liked them both. I should read some more of the Magyk series, my sister owns most of them but I haven't got around to borrowing them yet and reading them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 Haha . I can second the recommendation for Magyk and the Harry Potter book, I really liked them both. I should read some more of the Magyk series, my sister owns most of them but I haven't got around to borrowing them yet and reading them. Read them, read them, read them! It is such a clever and imaginative series. I love it! Darn it Gaia, you given me an urge to re read them...................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 24, 2015 Author Share Posted December 24, 2015 Sorry for forgetting about this yesterday! This week's topic is: Top 5 Series you want to start next year. I'll think about it when I have some more time to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 Looking at the list I'm baffled as to my choices; two magical stories, and three thrillers/crime stories. Obviously toasty fires make me think of magic and murder! I've missed the last two questions but I'm a bit too tired to give them some serious thought at the moment. I'll have to come back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 27, 2015 Author Share Posted December 27, 2015 I'm not sure what to answer either, at the moment I'm keen on continuing some series that I'm reading. I've got quite a few series yet unread, but I'm really not sure which ones of those I'm going to start next year. It'll depend on my mood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 (edited) The series I am particularly looking forward to reading in 2016 is Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan novels, there are four in the set, the first being My Brilliant Friend which is sitting impatiently on my book shelf, all four have been published so I am so hoping that I like them, as if I do I will be able to read them all without having to wait! I also have the first two of The Little Beach Street Bakery series by Jenny Colgan, I'm not sure if they will be my kind of thing but I'm keeping them in reserve for when I need something light to read. The only other series I have on my TBR shelves is the first in Elizabeth Jane Howard's Cazalet Chronicles series, The Light Years. There are five in the series and they are fairly big books, but they do cover one of my favourite eras, WWII, so I am very much looking forward to getting started. Sorry, I couldn't get to 5!! Edited December 27, 2015 by chaliepud Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 I don't have any series that I want to start, but there are a few I want to continue, so I might answer with those, if that's OK. Boris Akunin Erast Fandorin Alan Bradley Flavia de Luce Kerry Greenwood Phryne Fisher Charlaine Harris Sookie Stackhouse Terry Pratchett Discworld I'm hoping to read two books from each series, but three from Charlaine Harris (which will mean I finally finish the series). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna Begins Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 (edited) The Tudor Court series by Philippa Gregory Gone Saga by Michael Grant Matched trilogy by Ally Condie The Selection trilogy Kiera Cass Six Tudor Queens series by Alison Weir That's what's scheduled for this year, at least OH! And I will complete Brandon Sanderson's The Reckoners trilogy this year as well, with Calamity. Edited December 28, 2015 by Anna Begins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 The topic for this week is Top 5 Books of the Year. We have kind of already answered this in other threads, so I fully understand if no one wants to do this topic. I've compiled my list (it's hard to pick between books though, but I managed to narrow it down to 5): Brandon Sanderson - Alcatraz 1: Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians Jodi Picoult - Perfect Match Diane Chamberlain - The Silent Sister John Flanagan - Ranger's Apprentice 1: The Ruins of Gorlan Brandon Sanderson - Mistborn 3: The Hero of Ages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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