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Poppyshake's Reading Year 2016


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I hope you have a great 2016 reading year.  :hug:

Thanks Janet :hug: You too of course! :) xx

Was it? What did it choose?  :)

Ooo, how fun! :D Can't wait to see what you get!

I think it was fairly kind .. although tome alert!!!! It's a 600 pager :drama::D 

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A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry :)

 

I've already started it and it's going really well .. I think the book will practically read itself ... so engrossing. This is what the book jar is for really .. throwing all the tomes at me that I've been avoiding purely because of their size!  :blush2: I've had this book for what seems like ages.

Was made fully aware of my rubbish book filing system though (otherwise known as: no system) .. it took me ten mins at least to find it  :blush2: Great exercise though running up and down from the basement to the attic (and stopping off to look in all the other rooms) .. several times :D Was beginning to get grouchy though. Would pay me to write the whereabouts of each book down at some point.  

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This is one of the books I bought with my Christmas money. It's a door-stopper of a book but that's not worrying me as I intend to take a year to read it. I'm reading the diary entry (there's usually two or three if they're short) for each day on the relevant day :) Or as much as I can anyway .. if I'm away from home then I doubt I'll take it with me .. I'll catch up when I get back.

I've been down the Nile and up the Pyramids .. read about executions and cannibals :o and also read the sad diary entry made by Captain Scott after he realises they've been pipped to the South Pole :( (congrats to the Norwegians though :D)

I haven't travelled to many places outside of my own country and I doubt I will so am enjoying seeing the world through the eyes of others and there are some great contributors here including writers such as George Eliot, Herman Melville, Daniel Defoe, Samuel Johnson, Grahame Greene and Evelyn Waugh :) I'm enjoying it so much.  

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I'm sure A Fine Balance will whizz by for you, Kay ... it's such a fantastic book.  I read it many years ago now, and I still remember parts of it quite well, and know I hated finishing it because I wanted to read more.  I did plan to read more of Mistry's books, but I don't think I ever got around to it. :blush:

 

I love the sound of A Traveller's Year and what a great idea to read the entries for the each on that day ... the trouble is if you're enjoying it, you'd be tempted to keep going! :giggle2:

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A Fine Balance is a fab book, Kay.  I hope you enjoy it.  :)

 

I love the sound of A Traveller's Year.   I hadn't seen your post about this when I said today that I was planning to read a book in its monthly instalments!  :D  

 

Lovely to see you guys today.   I forgot Alan's book again.  :doh:  I'd even moved it to somewhere more obvious.  At least, I thought it would be more obvious...!  :roll:

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I'm going to do it one at a time. Take a book out of the box and then give it ten minutes or so to convince me not to walk it into town.  If I'm convinced then I'll probably just carry on reading it. This is in theory .. in practice I'll forget all about them until we move house 

 

Well yes, doing it one at a time would make more sense :giggle2: I wish one had one of those thingies they have at the library... When you've read a book or at least decided you didn't want to have it around any more, you could just go to the foyer, and there'd be a panel through which you could push the book out into a box, and then someone would come and collect :D 

 

 

Sure are! It pays not to be organised or have any sort of system. I practically wrote myself into a cramp putting those titles in the jar!! All for nothing!  Oh though .. the joy of being allowed a second pick. What a delicious thought .. makes me want to pick from the jar right now! Only I know it'd be mean! 

:lol: Serves you right for thinking your Book Jar could be cruel: now you're reading a book I believe you're very much enjoying at the moment..? No second picks for you! Or maybe the Book Jar is lulling you into a false sense of blissful reading... 

 

 

:giggle: Excreman had one green Smartie and one pink Smartie for eyes and a leaf for a nose which I think was meant to denote that the little piggy ate everything and anything. Also he had a chamber pot for a hat!! Fetching! 

:lol: Very fashionable!! 

 

It would've been helpful if I'd said what I'd added and subtracted :blush2: Sorry!  

 

Probably not... I never remember the different words for the mathematical ... actions. I do know and remember what 'adding' means, but the others... Not so much :D Subtracting I now figured out from the context ^ but if it had been there on its own, I wouldn't have remembered what it meant :D So really it would only have confused me just as much :lol: 

 

 

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Christmas Holiday by Somerset Maugham

 

Loved reading the review :D Sorry it wasn't quite what you were hoping for... :blush: Thank goodness you decided to leave it till after Christmas. Dostoyevskyan Wodehouse? Now that's an interesting combo :D

 

Any how... Toodle pip! 

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notesfromthesofa.jpg

 

 

Well well well, if it isn't the return of the Excreman...!!!   :ghost:

 

I was just browsing the new acquired books on the libraries' website, and the title 'Notes from the Sofa' caught my eye. For some reason I didn't remember it from your review, but it made me think of Bill Bryson. And then I looked at the book cover. And the name of the author. And thought I'd seen it somewhere... The I thought the illustration reminded me of a Finnish or a Swedish children's book from my childhood. I searched the title on Amazon and at the mention of The Snowman I realized it must be the book that you recently reviewed.  :doh:  :lol: 

 

The Excreman has come to take over Finland!!!!

 

(Are you sure you don't work for the Finnish library? Or could you possibly check the library's not following your reading log on here? Because more and more often it seems that once you've read a book and liked/loved it and reviewed it, the library will get a copy of the book if they don't have one already. I've seen this happen with The Girl on the Train and now The Excreman Notes from the Sofa and just the other day, Our Endless Numbered Days. :lol: )

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I'm sure A Fine Balance will whizz by for you, Kay ... it's such a fantastic book.  I read it many years ago now, and I still remember parts of it quite well, and know I hated finishing it because I wanted to read more.  I did plan to read more of Mistry's books, but I don't think I ever got around to it.

I'm two thirds of the way through and loving it .. I'm so invested in the characters that it's going to be a wrench when it ends  :blush2: I havent looked the author up yet Claire .. has he written much more? 

I love the sound of A Traveller's Year and what a great idea to read the entries for the each on that day ... the trouble is if you're enjoying it, you'd be tempted to keep going! 

I've done that once or twice already  :giggle: plus peeped at the next day's offering quite regularly  :blush2: 

A Fine Balance is a fab book, Kay.  I hope you enjoy it.  

Thank you Janet .. I am indeed enjoying it .. very much :)

I love the sound of A Traveller's Year.   I hadn't seen your post about this when I said today that I was planning to read a book in its monthly instalments!  :D

:DGreat minds thinking alike! 

Lovely to see you guys today.   I forgot Alan's book again.  :doh:  I'd even moved it to somewhere more obvious.  At least, I thought it would be more obvious...!  :roll:

Honestly, don't worry at all. He's not missed it .. be a month of Sunday's before he ever gets around to looking at it again. And if that happens, and it's not here, it'll be a good excuse to call on you and sample your brownies again :D 

Just passing by to say I'm loving the TV adaptation of Love in a Cold Climate (I've just finished part 1).   :wub:  I think it's pretty clever how they're weaving the two books together!  :D

:cows: :cows: :D Oh .. good!! I hoped you would and thought you would but you never can tell. I know they take a few liberties and it's always harder when you've just read the book and it's fresh in your mind. Hope you love part 2 just as much! Great cast! 

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Well yes, doing it one at a time would make more sense. I wish one had one of those thingies they have at the library... When you've read a book or at least decided you didn't want to have it around any more, you could just go to the foyer, and there'd be a panel through which you could push the book out into a box, and then someone would come and collect :D

Wouldn't that be ace!! .. and what if there was an incoming chute as well? .. where the books that other people discarded (but which were on your list) came in! :D :D Oh .. what bliss! To be buried in books :D 

Serves you right for thinking your Book Jar could be cruel: now you're reading a book I believe you're very much enjoying at the moment..? No second picks for you! Or maybe the Book Jar is lulling you into a false sense of blissful reading...

That is the way its mind works. Yes, take it from me .. it's going to be super evil next time! :D 

Probably not... I never remember the different words for the mathematical ... actions. I do know and remember what 'adding' means, but the others... Not so much :D Subtracting I now figured out from the context ^ but if it had been there on its own, I wouldn't have remembered what it meant :D So really it would only have confused me just as much.

Wouldn't help that I don't know how to add and subtract properly. Best leave things as they are :D I have come up with some figures ... which may or may not be a work of fiction :D 

Loved reading the review :D Sorry it wasn't quite what you were hoping for... :blush: Thank goodness you decided to leave it till after Christmas. Dostoyevskyan Wodehouse? Now that's an interesting combo :D

:D Certainly is .. and it was good in a way that it surprised me. Anyone could write a book about the Christmas Holidays .. bah! Still, I wish he had done just that! :D My nerves were stretched .. I needed soothing! 

Any how... Toodle pip!

Yes .. toodle-oo old bean! 

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Well well well, if it isn't the return of the Excreman...!!!   :ghost:

 

I was just browsing the new acquired books on the libraries' website, and the title 'Notes from the Sofa' caught my eye. For some reason I didn't remember it from your review, but it made me think of Bill Bryson. And then I looked at the book cover. And the name of the author. And thought I'd seen it somewhere... The I thought the illustration reminded me of a Finnish or a Swedish children's book from my childhood. I searched the title on Amazon and at the mention of The Snowman I realized it must be the book that you recently reviewed.  :doh:  :lol:

 

The Excreman has come to take over Finland!!!!

 

(Are you sure you don't work for the Finnish library? Or could you possibly check the library's not following your reading log on here? Because more and more often it seems that once you've read a book and liked/loved it and reviewed it, the library will get a copy of the book if they don't have one already. I've seen this happen with The Girl on the Train and now The Excreman Notes from the Sofa and just the other day, Our Endless Numbered Days. :lol: )

Haha .. The Excreman gets everywhere! :D I'm very happy to think that the Finnish libraries and me are on the same wavelength! We know what we like when we see it and we order it in. Have they got a copy of CBtD? Because I may take it as a sign if they have .. then again I may not! :D 

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Wouldn't that be ace!! .. and what if there was an incoming chute as well? .. where the books that other people discarded (but which were on your list) came in! Oh .. what bliss! To be buried in books  

 

Actually, yes, I like the idea of an incoming chute a lot better than the outgoing! :D I'd love to work as a book postie, dropping books off at people's houses. Although, I wouldn't get to see their faces of pure joy whenever I dropped a book in... Hm... They'd have to sign a contract where they'd promise to take a polaroid picture of their face when they saw the book come in, and then leave it for me when I dropped the next one :D 

 

Wouldn't help that I don't know how to add and subtract properly. Best leave things as they are :D I have come up with some figures ... which may or may not be a work of fiction  

 

Yes, best not disturb sleeping dogs books... Just let us know of the numbers and we'll take them as they come. Next year we will, that is! No confusing Finnish inquisitions next year, promise!! :giggle:

 

Certainly is .. and it was good in a way that it surprised me. Anyone could write a book about the Christmas Holidays .. bah! Still, I wish he had done just that! :D My nerves were stretched .. I needed soothing! 

 

:lol: But not all Christmas Holidays books are good, so maybe it was good that this one was not one of those :D John Grisham's Skipping Christmas was bloody awful, for example. I wish I'd skipped reading it. 

 

It's odd, though, because you said Cake and Ale wasn't all that, but then again, I have the book on my wishlist and I do wonder if your review made me add it there. I have a feeling it did, even though you didn't even enjoy it to a great extent :D 

 

Yes .. toodle-oo old bean! 

 

Is that how you spell the word?? I've never known!! When I was in junior high school, me and my friends used to say 'toodle-oo' all the time, I don't know where we came up with it, but we were obsessed, but none of us knew how it was spelled... So we would write 'tyyydylyy', which is what it sounds like to a Finn :D Oh my gosh, to have gone so long without knowing how it was spelled... 

 

Haha .. The Excreman gets everywhere! I'm very happy to think that the Finnish libraries and me are on the same wavelength! We know what we like when we see it and we order it in. Have they got a copy of CBtD? Because I may take it as a sign if they have .. then again I may not!  

 

I knew they have copies of CBtD because I've done a search before, but I went to check again. When I wrote 'cartes beats the devil', the library site asked me if I had meant 'dances with the devil'. :lol: Meaning they don't have English copies... But they have plenty of Finnish copies!  :lurker:  They are all at their respective libraries, though, meaning, nobody's borrowing them :giggle: 

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A Year of Marvellous Ways by Sarah Winman

Synopsis:
Marvellous Ways is eighty-nine years old and has lived alone in a remote Cornish creek for nearly all her life. Lately she's taken to spending her days sitting on a mooring stone by the river with a telescope. She's waiting for something - she's not sure what, but she'll know it when she sees it. Drake is a young soldier left reeling by the Second World War. When his promise to fulfil a dying man's last wish sees him wash up in Marvellous' creek, broken in body and spirit, the old woman comes to his aid. A Year of Marvellous Ways is a glorious, life-affirming story about the magic in everyday life and the pull of the sea, the healing powers of storytelling and sloe gin, love and death and how we carry on when grief comes snapping at our heels.

Review: This was a strange one. I downloaded it from Audible in November but couldn't get on with it. The author narrates (which, as she's also an actress, is not or shouldn't be a problem) and she just didn't manage to hold my attention. If I put it on late at night I inevitably fell asleep and if I was out walking I just mentally wandered off and started planning my next cake bake etc! :blush2:
 Most frustrating. Some of this was to do with her narration but some of it was to do with the style of the story. It's very whimsical and it leaps about in time etc .. I wasn't able to catch any threads. Anyway, fast forward to Christmas and it was amongst my book presents from my niece .. this led to a VERY embarrassing conversation between us when we met up just before Christmas to exchange presents ... going something like .. 

Louise: 'What have you been reading recently?' ..
Me: 'Ermm .. this and that. I tried to get into the new book written by the author who wrote 'When God was a Wotsit'.
Louise 'Rabbit?'
Me: 'Yes .. that's the one .. I liked that book but I couldn't get on with this one .. had to abandon'
Louise 'Oh dear'
Me: 'Yes'
Louise: 'You'll be disappointed come Christmas day then'
BIG PENNY DROPS and I mumble something about it being the narrator's fault and that I'm sure I'll get along with it just fine when left to my own devices :blush2:
  :blush2:  :blush2: Happily though, this turned out to be the case. I did still have a bit of a mental block about the first few, already half listened to, chapters but once I'd cleared that hurdle I was fine and the story began to draw me in.

 

Marvellous Ways is a character who sets a lot of store in nature .. the type of person who lives like a hermit and heals with herbs and feels things instinctively .. things like rumour and curse. Probably would be called a witch by those who don't understand unconventional ways. It's a very salty tale as she has a close bond with the sea .. claiming that her mother was a mermaid (actually it's a bit salty in other ways too .. there's definitely some racy bits  :smile2: ) The story gets really interesting when Drake comes into it. He's sort of abandoned life but ends up washed up in the creek by Marvellous' caravan. It's no surprise to her .. she's been expecting him. He needs healing but in helping him, she also finds restoration.

 

It's quite a slow story but once you're hooked it's pretty gripping. I stayed up late to finish it with tears in my eyes so it definitely worked its magic on me. There's a soundbite from Patrick Gale on the back which sort of sums it up .. he says it's like 'Dylan Thomas given a sexy rewrite by Angela Carter' .. and I can't improve on that! That's exactly what it's like. It takes perseverance but it's pretty rewarding especially if you like whimsical, salty, mystical tales. I'm glad I gave it another try. Liked it! 

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Actually, yes, I like the idea of an incoming chute a lot better than the outgoing! I'd love to work as a book postie, dropping books off at people's houses. Although, I wouldn't get to see their faces of pure joy whenever I dropped a book in... Hm... They'd have to sign a contract where they'd promise to take a polaroid picture of their face when they saw the book come in, and then leave it for me when I dropped the next on.

:D Wouldn't that be a great job? .. I think one would get tremendous job satisfaction from that but the temptation would be .. if I was book postie .. to drop all the books off at MY house  :giggle: 

Yes, best not disturb sleeping dogs books... Just let us know of the numbers and we'll take them as they come. Next year we will, that is! No confusing Finnish inquisitions next year, promise!! 

I'm going to bribe Claire with toast next year :D  

:lol: But not all Christmas Holidays books are good, so maybe it was good that this one was not one of those :D John Grisham's Skipping Christmas was bloody awful, for example. I wish I'd skipped reading it.

:lol: To be honest, he must have known the dangers when he came up with that title :D It's too tempting!!  :D

I've heard bad things about it before so yes .. I'll give it a miss :D  

It's odd, though, because you said Cake and Ale wasn't all that, but then again, I have the book on my wishlist and I do wonder if your review made me add it there. I have a feeling it did, even though you didn't even enjoy it to a great extent.

Lord! I can't remember saying anything good about it  :blush2: Others have liked it more I think .. perhaps you took your lead from them (very wise :yes:)  

Is that how you spell the word?? I've never known!! When I was in junior high school, me and my friends used to say 'toodle-oo' all the time, I don't know where we came up with it, but we were obsessed, but none of us knew how it was spelled... So we would write 'tyyydylyy', which is what it sounds like to a Finn. Oh my gosh, to have gone so long without knowing how it was spelled...

I think that's how it's spelled/spelt (I NEVER know which .. is it both? I hope it is .. I fluctuate :D) How funny to think of you all saying 'toodle-oo' :lol: In a month of Sunday's I'd never have imagined that! 

I knew they have copies of CBtD because I've done a search before, but I went to check again. When I wrote 'cartes beats the devil', the library site asked me if I had meant 'dances with the devil'. Meaning they don't have English copies... But they have plenty of Finnish copies!  :lurker: They are all at their respective libraries, though, meaning, nobody's borrowing them.

Well no .. they wouldn't have any English copies. I've composted them all :lol:

I'm glad to hear that the Finns have sense. I knew it of course but this confirms it :D 

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Anyway, fast forward to Christmas and it was amongst my book presents from my niece .. this led to a VERY embarrassing conversation between us when we met up just before Christmas to exchange presents ... going something like .. 

Louise: 'What have you been reading recently?' ..

Me: 'Ermm .. this and that. I tried to get into the new book written by the author who wrote 'When God was a Wotsit'.

Louise 'Rabbit?'

Me: 'Yes .. that's the one .. I liked that book but I couldn't get on with this one .. had to abandon'

Louise 'Oh dear'

Me: 'Yes'

Louise: 'You'll be disappointed come Christmas day then'

BIG PENNY DROPS and I mumble something about it being the narrator's fault and that I'm sure I'll get along with it just fine when left to my own devices :blush2:  :blush2:  :blush2: 

 

Oh Kay, that's hilarious!  :rolol: Poor Louise. :giggle: I'm sure she will be/was happy to hear that you enjoyed it more when you read it. :)

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Received two brilliant books from Chrissy this week as she saw they were on my wishlist :wub:They are Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers and Redbreast by Jo Nesbo :) Very excited to read Whose Body? which is the first of the Lord Peter Wimsey stories :) I'm more nervous about Redbreast as it's a step up for me .. a grown up detective story :D I'll have to be brave :lol: But I've been intrigued about Harry Hole for ages who is often described as a loose cannon :D That's the sort of detective I like :D

 

Anyway, it's a great reminder of how wonderful and kind the people on this forum are  .. thank you so much Chrissy :hug: 

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Just realised that I didn't write here about the lovely books Claire bought for me :wub: They were Christmas prezzies but we weren't able to meet up until after Christmas so lucky me .. I had late Christmas prezzies .. booky Christmas prezzies!! :cows: Oh frabjous day! :D

I do have a pic somewhere which I will upload later but anyway the books I received were Boris Akunin's The Death of Achilles and Emma Carroll's The Snow Sister (which I read a few days after Claire gave it to me as it was wintery and just the thing to curl up with during the stormy weather :wub:) Also Claire gave A Robot in the Garden by Deborah Install to Alan .. but I take no notice of that :lol: All books that come into the house are equally mine :yes: I will give him a fighting chance to read it first but if he is too slow then I will swoop in. I know you understand these things so won't judge me  :blush2: 

Plus there was chocolate (was being the operative word :D) and a beautiful tree decoration .. I really am so lucky .. thank you Claire :flowers2:   

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Yay for Chrissy! :D Dorothy L Sayers is at the top of my list of authors I want to look for at the book fair next week (I mean their books, not the authors themselves :P). I'll be very disappointed if I don't find at least one of her books!

 

ETA: Ooh, and a new Boris Akunin book! Go Claire! :D

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Oh Kay, that's hilarious!  :rolol: Poor Louise. :giggle: I'm sure she will be/was happy to hear that you enjoyed it more when you read it. :)

:D Yes .. I did tell her but not sure she believes me :blush2: I think she thinks I'm being kind but really I'm not .. I did enjoy it loads but the more you say it the less convincing it sounds .. given your former criticisms  :blush2: Oh dear!

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Yay for Chrissy! :D Dorothy L Sayers is at the top of my list of authors I want to look for at the book fair next week (I mean their books, not the authors themselves :P). I'll be very disappointed if I don't find at least one of her books!

Yes .. Yay for Chrissy indeed :cows: I hope you do find some of Dorothy's books at the book fair Kylie .. surely there'll be some there? 

Have you a hitlist? :D Best to be prepared, though let's face it .. you're going to wander off piste too :lol: 

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I have a bit of a list...in my head! They have a small section dedicated to Agatha Christie (and then the rest of the crime/mysteries are thrown in together) so I'll be heading to her section first so I can pick up any I don't already have, but only if they're the particular editions that you and I have. ;) From there I'll probably wing it!

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