willoyd Posted May 17, 2018 Share Posted May 17, 2018 5 hours ago, Janet said: Ah, the Round Robin! I was a bit surprised as I wouldn't have said this was your choice of book at all, so that explains it. Do bear in mind that it being a Round Robin Challenge means that I already had it on my TBR pile! 5 hours ago, Janet said: It's good that you're finding it addictive - I guess that means you're enjoying it? Very much so. Pilcher's writing style took a little bit of getting used to, but it's grown on me, and she tells a good story. Characters are a little bit paint by numbers, but I can't help but like the central character, even if I know I'm meant to (and others). 5 hours ago, Janet said: I'm currently rereading My Family and Other Animals. I first read this in about 2005 on the recommendation of my then GCSE English tutor (I did the exam as a mature student) and I loved it. I had forgotten just how beautiful the writing is. Glad you're enjoying it; I think there is something particularly pleasurable about revisiting a book you loved and finding you still do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted May 19, 2018 Share Posted May 19, 2018 Finished The Shell Seekers last night. Classic story telling to the end, with a leading character with whom I found it very easy to empathise (even though of the opposite gender and of a different generation!) and elements that really made me sit back and reflect. Have now started A Shadow Above by Joe Shute, natural history non-fiction subtitled 'The Fall and Rise of the Raven'. Already some four chapters in and absolutely loving it: informative, enlightening, personal, evocative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted May 19, 2018 Share Posted May 19, 2018 7 hours ago, willoyd said: Have now started A Shadow Above by Joe Shute, natural history non-fiction subtitled 'The Fall and Rise of the Raven'. Already some four chapters in and absolutely loving it: informative, enlightening, personal, evocative. I bought that a couple of months ago, but haven't started it yet. Glad to hear you're enjoying it! Had a dry spell reading-wise this week, after a week off which didn't go according to plan (I won't go into details, but it was a rubbish week), I had an incredibly busy week at work, and didn't read anything at all for five days. Day off on Friday, so had chance to pick up a book again, and finished Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides for my Round Robin challenge, which brings me up to 7/9 of the books I was challenged to read. I've got a few books on the go at the moment. I've started my next Round Robin book, To Serve Them All My Days by R. F. Delderfield. It's a long book, and I'm reading on Kindle, so I'm going to take it slowly and mix other books in around it. I've read the first couple of chapters and I love it so far, and think this could be a very good read. I've also started Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen which is YA book about a Jewish orphan girl who becomes a spy in a Nazi elite school, and it's just as entertaining, but in a completely different way. I'm also reading a couple of nature books, Mrs Moreau's Warbler by Stephen Moss and Dun Cow Rib by John Lister-Kaye. Enjoying both of these too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted May 19, 2018 Share Posted May 19, 2018 I'm reading The Princess Bride, after finishing As You Wish by Cary Elwes (which is about his experiences filming the movie) . I also watched the movie this morning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 (edited) A Shadow Above proved a very addictive read, so ripped through it and finished it last night. Have now started one of my Round Robin challenges, Lindsey Davis's Rebels and Traitors. It's another big, 600+ page, book so may take a week or so to finish. Am enjoying these bigger reads this year: average pages per book is running currently at around 380, whilst last year it was just under 300. Edited May 22, 2018 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted May 23, 2018 Share Posted May 23, 2018 (edited) On 22/05/2018 at 5:53 PM, willoyd said: Have now started one of my Round Robin challenges, Lindsey Davis's Rebels and Traitors. It's another big, 600+ page, book so may take a week or so to finish. Well, nothing like that long, but then I didn't finish. Around 150 pages in, and enough's enough. It's a vaguely entertaining fictionalised history lesson, but I'd rather read a proper history book. As a piece of fiction it's dull, and nowadays I'm not prepared to give a book like this the benefit of the doubt - life's too short. Have started Farewell to the Horse by Ulrich Raulff. Edited May 23, 2018 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted May 25, 2018 Share Posted May 25, 2018 On 22/05/2018 at 5:53 PM, willoyd said: A Shadow Above proved a very addictive read, so ripped through it and finished it last night. Good to hear - I'll probably try this one after I've finished Dun Cow Rib. Also currently reading To Serve Them All My Days which is both a round robin book and a Backlisted book, and I'm savouring it by just reading a chapter at a time (although they are long chapters so about half an hour each) and it's an absolute joy so far. Recently finished Mrs Moreau's Warbler by Stephen Moss (good), Storm-Wake by Lucy Christopher (very good) and The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry (ok, but a bit irritating at times). Also listened again to Pride and Prejudice and fell in love with Elizabeth and Darcy all over again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted May 26, 2018 Share Posted May 26, 2018 I'm now reading The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes, which for some reason isn't blowing me away. I mean, I'm enjoying it, but not loving it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted May 26, 2018 Author Share Posted May 26, 2018 1 hour ago, bobblybear said: I'm now reading The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes, which for some reason isn't blowing me away. I mean, I'm enjoying it, but not loving it. That's a shame. The book is on my TBR, I bought it after, I think someone on here recommended it, but I can't remember who it was. I hope you'll at least enjoy the whole book . I'm currently reading The Worst Case Scenerio Cookery Club by Chrissie Manby. I'm only on page 85 so not that far yet, I'm liking it so far . I needed something 'easier on the mind' (input-wise) after feeling sick with what is/was most likely a stomach bug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted May 26, 2018 Share Posted May 26, 2018 On 23/05/2018 at 7:18 PM, willoyd said: Have started Farewell to the Horse by Ulrich Raulff. And am reading one of my Round Robin challenges, The House of Doctor Dee by Peter Ackroyd too. I can just about manage one fiction and one non-fiction at the same time (I usually read the former in larger chunks, and tick over with the latter until the fiction is finished). Any more and the books lose their rhythm and impact (or I lose the rhythm - can books have rhythm on their own?!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted May 29, 2018 Share Posted May 29, 2018 (edited) Finished The House of Doctor Dee. Not an easy read, and I'm not even sure I followed some of it, but it got under my skin and I wanted to see it out to the end. Equally unsure about what to make of it - as do, it appears, the body of reviewers on Amazon, with equal numbers giving 1 star and 5 stars. I'm torn between 3 and 4 (out of 6), but will go for 4 at present as I didn't want to put it down in spite of (or because of?) the challenges. Odd one. Also finished this month's book for one of my reading groups, Darke by Rick Gekocki. One star. Back to Farewell to the Horse, a slighty disjointed but interesting read so far. Edited May 29, 2018 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted May 30, 2018 Share Posted May 30, 2018 On 5/26/2018 at 8:04 AM, bobblybear said: I'm now reading The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes, which for some reason isn't blowing me away. I mean, I'm enjoying it, but not loving it. Aww that's a shame, I thought it was one of her strongest novels, and really enjoyed it. On 5/26/2018 at 10:03 AM, Athena said: That's a shame. The book is on my TBR, I bought it after, I think someone on here recommended it, but I can't remember who it was. I hope you'll at least enjoy the whole book . Probably me, I like Anna McPartlin I recently finished One Click by Andrea Mara, which I was really looking forward to after loving her first book, but I was very underwhelmed by it. Still slowly working through Strange The Dreamer and also tearing through With Our Blessing by Jo Spain, the first of an Irish detective series which I'm loving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted May 30, 2018 Author Share Posted May 30, 2018 4 hours ago, Nollaig said: Probably me, I like Anna McPartlin You know, I think it was you ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted May 30, 2018 Share Posted May 30, 2018 Finished The Dun Cow Rib and enjoyed it, but maybe not as much as some of the reviews that have praised it to the hilt, but a solid 4/5. Also read a couple of children's books - The Wild Robot (good) and Tin (better than I'd expected - I bought it on a whim, then decided I probably wasn't going to enjoy it for no apparent reason, but ended up liking it). Now reading Swell by Jenny Landreth and started A Shadow Above by Joe Shute today, which I'm absolutely loving already! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Budgie Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 I'm only just past the halfway point with Rogue Male. I haven't really been in the mood for it, although when I do pick it up, it's enjoyable. This weekend, I might start Unfinished Business by James Van Praagh. It's another book about the afterlife, which I'm fascinated by after having recently read the fab Testimony of Light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.