bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Welcome to my 2019 book list!! Hopefully it will be kept more up to date than my 2018 list (which I started halfway through the year, and only ran to 2 pages ). My format is going to stay the same as previous years. For some reason, I've always categorised books by the year they were purchased....which means I am really cringing when I see how many books I purchased 5+ years ago but have yet to read. My aim is to reduce my TBR pile, but unfortunately it just seems to be growing year on year. Oh well, there are worse problems to have so I'm not too bothered by it. I haven't listed my treebooks (I didn't list them in 2018 either), mostly because I had a massive cull in early 2018 and I just don't have the energy to go through my bookcase and list them all. I will hopefully read some of them this year, but I expect most of my reading with be done on my Kindle. Anyway, enough rambling from me. I hope everyone has a great reading year in 2019 and I look forward to reading everyone's posts in the coming year. Edited December 31, 2018 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Books Read This Year January - June The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris The Salt Path - Raynor Winn The Reality Dysfunction - Peter F Hamilton With The End in Mind - Kathryn Mannix His Bloody Project - Graeme Burnet Them - John Ronson Noughts and Crosses - Malorie Blackman The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters A Captain's Duty - Richard Phillips Hard Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World - Haruki Murakami All That Remains - Sue Black Let Me Lie - Claire MacKintosh The Heart's Invisible Furies - John Boyne The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - Stuart Turton (abandoned) Blood Meridian - Cormac McCarthy Feral - George Monbiot American Assassin - Vincent Flynn (abandoned) Alone of the Wall - Alex Honnold Why We Sleep - Matt Walker Crippen - John Boyne Hired - James Bloodworth July - December The Thing of Darkness - Harry Thompson The Trouble With Goats and Sheep - Joanna Cannon The Yorkshire Vet - Peter Wright Pandemic - A G Riddle Flight Risk - Stephanie Green The Light Between Oceans - M L Stedman The Time of My Life - Patrick Swayze Lone Wolf - Jodi Picoult My Lovely Wife - Mark Lukach A Year in the Life of the Yorkshire Shepherdess - Amanda Owen Almost Love - Louise O'Neill The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster The Confession - John Grisham Snap - Belinda Bauer Elevation - Stephen King Milkman - Anna Burns (abandoned) Audiobooks Listened to This Year January - June Killers of the Flower Moon - David Grann Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine - Gail Honeyman Roots - Alex Haley Jaws - Peter Benchley The War of the Worlds - HG Wells Pale Blue Dot - Carl Sagan I Can't Make This Up - Kevin Hart Crime and Punishment - Fydor Doestoyevsky The Humans - Matt Haig The Dark Tower - Stephen King The Dark Tower II - Stephen King The Dark Tower III - Stephen King Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery The Three Body Problem - Cixin Liu The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula LeGuin July - December Moby Dick - Herman Melville Station Eleven - Emily St John Mandel The Fog - James Herbert 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism - Ha-Joon Chang The Dark Tower IV - Stephen King Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood Edited August 25, 2019 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Books Purchased This Year Barbarians at the Gate - Bryan Burrough, John Helyar The Lottery and other stories - Shirley Jackson The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - Stuart Turton (abandoned) Hard-Boiled Wonderland And The End of the World - Haruki Murakami A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami With The End In Mind - Kathryn Mannix A Captain's Duty - Richard Phillips The Talisman - Stephen King and Peter Straub Feral: Searching for Enchantment on the Frontiers of Rewilding - George Monbiot All That Remains: A Life In Death - Sue Black Brave New World - Aldous Huxley The Collector - John Fowles The Heart's Invisible Furies - John Boyne Blood Meridian - Cormac McCarthy The Yorkshire Vet - Peter Wright A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving The Book of Dust - Phillip Pullman 84K - Claire North The Shepherd's Life - James Rebanks Unnatural Causes - Richard Shepherd Crippen - John Boyne Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain - David Eagleman The Trouble With Goats and Sheep - Joanna Cannon Almost Love - Louise O'Neill Alone On The Wall - Alex Honnold and David Roberts Big Debt Crises - Ray Dalio A Ladder to the Sky - John Boyne Humans: A Brief History of How We hmmmed It All Up - Tom Philips The Last Wolf - Jim Crumley Happy: Finding Joy in Every Day and Letting Go of Perfect - Fearne Cotton Bean Counters: The Triumph of Accountants and How They Broke Capitalism - Richard Brooks Monsters - Emerald Fennell Chasing The Scream: The Truth About Addiction - Johann Hari The Rise and Fall Of The Dinosaurs - Steve Brusatte The Secret World: A History of Intelligence - Christopher Andrew Losing My Virginity - Richard Branson Origin Story: A Big History of Everything - David Christian Chasing The Scream: The Search for the Truth About Addiction - Johann Hari Morgan's Run - Colleen McCullough Flight Risk - Stephanie Green A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry When The Dogs Don't Bark - Angela Gallop The Human Planet - Simon Lewis Under The Knife - Arnold van de Laar Think Dog - John Fisher No Country For Old Men - Cormac McCarthy Choked - Beth Gardiner Skin - Liam Brown The Dark Side of the Mind - Kerry Daynes Audiobooks Purchased This Year The Language Of Kindness: A Nurse's Story - Christie Watson The Dark Tower I - Stephen King Emma - Jane Austen The Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain Vanity Fair - William Thackeray The Monster Collection - Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, Robert Louis Stevenson etc Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen Dogs of War - Adrian Tchaikovsky Notes on a Nervous Planet - Matt Haig Normal People - Sally Rooney Dolores Claiborne - Stephen King The Dark Tower II - Stephen King The Dark Tower III - Stephen King The Prince - Niccolo Machiavelli The Dark Tower IV - Stephen King My Sister, The Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite The Fog - James Herbert Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy When We Were Orphans - Kazuo Ishiguro Surely You're Joking, Mr Feynman - Richard Feynman Metro 2033 - Dmitry Glukhovsky Mindstar Rising - Peter F Hamilton A Tale for the Time Being - Ruth Ozeki The Dark Tower V - Stephen King The Dark Tower VI - Stephen King Codename Villanelle - Luke Jennings Shelter In Place - Nora Roberts IT - Stephen King The Stand - Stephen King Lisey's Story - Stephen King Needful Things - Stephen King Edited August 27, 2019 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Books Purchased in 2018 Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine - Derren Brown The Checklist Manifesto: How To Get Things Right - Atul Gawande The English and Their History - Robert Tombs The Gene: An Intimate History - Siddhartha Mukherjee Why We Sleep: The New Science of Sleep and Dreams - Matthew Walker No Is Not Enough: Defeating the New Shock Politics - Naomi Klein The Quiet American - Graham Greene The Plague - Albert Camus The Gallows Pole - Benjamin Myers Fierce Kingdom - Gin Phillips Unwind - Neal Shusterman The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco Ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life - Héctor García, Francesc Miralles The Third Policeman (Harper Perennial Modern Classics) - Flann O'Brien Solitude: In Pursuit of a Singular Life in a Crowded World - Michael Harris The Greatest Story Ever Told...So Far - Lawrence Krauss Cannery Row - John Steinbeck Tortilla Flats - John Steinbeck The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep - Philip K Dick The Five Giants - Nicholas Timmins Woman on the Edge of Time - Marge Piercy The Science of Everyday Life - Marty Jopson The Light Between Oceans - M L Stedman The History of Love - Nicole Krauss A Brief History Of Time: From Big Bang To Black Holes - Stephen Hawking The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion - Jonathan Haidt Noughts and Crosses - Malorie Blackman Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery - Scott Kelly Edge of Eternity - Ken Follett From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution of Minds - Daniel C. Dennett The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Richard Flanagan Thirteen Reasons Why - Jay Asher As I Lay Dying - William Faulkner Pimp: The Story of my Life - Iceberg Slim This Is How It Always Is - Laurie Frankel The Fact of A Body - Alexandra Marzano-Lesnevich Valley of the Dolls - Jacqueline Susann David Bowie: A Life - Dylan Jones A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess Mortality - Christopher Hitchens An Appetite for Wonder - Richard Dawkins Other Minds - Peter Godfrey-Smith The Yellow Birds - Kevin Powers The Running Hare: The Secret Life of Farmland - John Lewis-Stempel Out of Africa - Karen Blixen Hearts in Atlantis - Stephen King Lisey's Story - Stephen King Storm in a Teacup: The Physics of Everyday Life - Helen Czerski The Chimp Paradox - Steve Peters And Then You're Dead: A Scientific Exploration of the World's Most Interesting Ways to Die - Paul Doherty House Rules - Jodi Picoult Sing You Home - Jodi Picoult Leaving Time - Jodi Picoult My Lovely Wife: A Memoir of Madness and Hope - Mark Lukach Seven Brief Lessons on Physics - Carlo Rovelli Consider Phlebas: A Culture Novel - Iain M. Banks The Walker's Guide to Outdoor Clues and Signs - Tristan Gooley Cryptonomicon - Neal Stephenson The Bonfire of the Vanities - Tom Wolfe The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald At the Edge of the Orchard - Tracy Chevalier Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World - Laura Spinney His Bloody Project - Graeme Burnet The Right Stuff - Tom Wolfe I Capture The Castle - Dodie Smith Behave - Robert Sapolsky Life 3.0 - Max Tegmark The Constant Gardener - John LeCarre All The Little Lights - Jamie McGuire Let Me Lie - Claire MacKintosh Humans - Christopher Seddon Finding My Virginity - Richard Branson What Comes Next and How To Like It - Abigail Thomas The Salt Path - Raynor Winn Crazy Rich Asians - Kevin Kwan The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway 2001: A Space Oddessy - Arthur C Clarke Fragrant Harbour - John Lanchester My James - Ralph Bulger Pandemic - AG Riddle The Thorn Birds - Collen McCullough Adventures of a Young Naturalist - David Attenborough The City of Mirrors - Justin Cronin Holding - Graham Norton Janesville - Amy Goldstein The Happiness Advantage - Shawn Achor Touching the Void - Joe Simpson Hired: Six Months Undercover in Low Wage Britain - James Bloodworth Admissions - Henry Marsh The Great Zoo of China - Matthew Reilly A Year in the Life of the Yorkshire Shepherdess - Amanda Owen The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster The 100-Year Life - Lynda Gratton, Andrew Scott Wicked Beyond Belief - Michael Bilton The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris Freedom - Jonathan Franzen Science(ish) - Rick Edwards, Michael Brooks The Stranger in the Woods - Michael Finkel The Time of my Life - Patrick Swayze, Lisa Niemi Elmet - Fiona Mozley Edited January 19, 2019 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Books Purchased in 2017 The Loney - Andrew Michael Hurley Let The Light Shine - Nick Alexander The Age of Wonder - Richard Holmes Wild Swans - Jung Chang The Power of Habit - Charles Duhigg Horses, Heifers and Hairy Pigs - Julian Norton The Litigators - John Grisham Sniper One - Dan Mills Say Goodbye for Now - Catherine Ryan Hyde Myopia - Jeff Gardiner A Shepherd's Watch - David Kennard Methods of Persuasion - Nick Kolenda Spin - Robert Charles Wilson Cut - Hibo Wardere We Were The Mulvaneys - Joyce Carol Oates The Better Angels of Our Nature - Steven Pinker Superforecasting: The Art of Science and Prediction - Philip Tetlock, Dan Gardener The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair - Joel Dicker Here I Am - Jonathan Safran Foer The Establishment: And How They Get Away With It - Owen Jones Breakfast Is A Dangerous Meal - Terence Kealey A History of the World - Andrew Marr House of Cards - Michael Dobbs Who Rules The World: Reframings - Noam Chomsky The Aquariums of Pyongyang - Kang Chol-Hwan, Pierre Rigoulot In The Darkness, That's Where I'll Know You: The Complete Black Room Story - Luke Smitherd Sane New World: Taming the Mind - Ruby Wax All Creatures Great and Small: The Classic Memoirs of a Yorkshire Country Vet (James Herriot 1) - James Herriot How to Run A Government: So that Citizens Benefit and Taxpayers Don't Go Crazy - Michael Barber East of Eden - John Steinbeck On the Road - Jack Kerouac The Bone Clocks - David Mitchell The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett American Psycho - Bret Easton Ellis Stephen King Goes to the Movies: Featuring Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - Stephen King The Passage - Justin Cronin The Second Coming - John Niven Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE - Phil Knight Allie and Bea: A Novel - Catherine Ryan Hyde The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver Flowers For Algernon - Daniel Keyes The Twelve: The Passage Trilogy Book 2 - Justin Cronin A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived: The Stories in Our Genes - Adam Rutherford All Things Bright and Beautiful: The Classic Memoirs of a Yorkshire Country Vet - James Herriot Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe - Mike Massimino Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know - Ranulph Fiennes The Fear of 13: Countdown to Execution: My Fight for Survival on Death Row - Nick Yarris How to Own the World: A Plain English Guide to Thinking Globally and Investing Wisely - Andrew Craig The Body Keeps the Score: Mind, Brain and Body in the Transformation of Trauma - Bessel van der Kolk The Power of Time Perception: Control the Speed of Time to Slow Down Aging, Live a Long Life, and Make Every Second Count - Jean Paul Zogby The Neutronium Alchemist (Nights Dawn Book 2) - Peter F. Hamilton The Naked God (Nights Dawn Book 3) - Peter F. Hamilton The Evolutionary Void (The Void Trilogy Book 3) - Peter F. Hamilton The Temporal Void (The Void Trilogy Book 2) - Peter F. Hamilton Naïve Super - Erlend Loe Big Brother - Lionel Shriver Black Water Lilies - Michel Bussi, Shaun Whiteside Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone To Take Action - Simon Sinek Our Iceberg is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions - John Kotter, Holger Rathgeber The Finance Book: Understand the numbers even if you're not a finance professional - Stuart Warner, Si Hussain Northern Lights: His Dark Materials 1 - Philip Pullman The Subtle Knife: His Dark Materials 2 - Philip Pullman The Amber Spyglass: His Dark Materials 3 - Philip Pullman Who Moved My Cheese: An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life - Spencer Johnson Einstein: His Life and Universe - Walter Isaacson Under A Pole Star - Stef Penney The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat - Oliver Sacks Invisible Man - Ralph Ellison Foxes Unearthed - Lucy Jones The Case Against Sugar - Gary Taubes Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioural Economics - Richard H Thaler TED Talks: The official TED guide to public speaking - Chris Anderson Jurassic Park - Michael Crichton The Man in the High Castle - Philip K Dick Seveneves - Neal Stephenson The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy The Sundial - Shirley Jackson Contact - Carl Sagan The Last Anniversary - Liane Moriarity The Year of the Runaways - Sunjeev Sahota American Assassin - Vince Flynn A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled - Ruby Wax The Threat Level Remains Severe - Rowena Macdonald All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain's Political Class - Tim Shipman Lone Rider: The First British Woman to Motorcycle Around the World - Elspeth Beard The Sky Below: A True Story of Summits, Space, and Speed - Scott Parazynski, Susy Flory Elon Musk: How the Billionaire CEO of SpaceX and Tesla is Shaping our Future - Ashlee Vance The Universe in Your Hand: A Journey Through Space, Time and Beyond - Christophe Galfard The Element in the Room: Science-y Stuff Staring You in the Face (Festival of the Spoken Nerd) - Helen Arney, Steve Mould Bushcraft 101: A Field Guide to the Art of Wilderness Survival - Dave Canterbury Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth and Happiness - Richard H Thaler, Cass R Sunstein The Outsider - Albert Camus 10% Human: How Your Body's Microbes Hold the Key to Health and Happiness - Alanna Collen The Lord God Made Them All: The Classic Memoirs of a Yorkshire Country Vet (James Herriot 4) - James Herriot Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman - James Gleick On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century - Timothy Snyder A Closed and Common Orbit: Wayfarers 2 - Becky Chambers The Mother Tongue - Bill Bryson Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert B. Cialdini PhD Our Man in Havana - Graham Greene Charlotte's Web - EB White Olive Kitteridge - Elizabeth Strout Outliers: The Story of Success - Malcolm Gladwell Edited January 19, 2019 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 Books Purchased in 2016 The Other Son - Nick Alexander Wilbur Smith Trilogy: Hungry as the Sea, Elephant Song and Wild Justice - Wilbur SmithHer Mother's Shadow - Diane ChamberlainHome - Matt DunnA Short History of England - Simon JenkinsSister - Rosamund LuptonThe Three-Body Problem - Cixin Liu, Ken LiuThe Corrections - Jonathan FranzenNight Film - Marisha PesslThe Watchmaker of Filigree Street - Natasha PulleyFacing Up: A Remarkable Journey to the summit of Mount Everest - Bear GryllsComplications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science - Atul GawandeHow To Be Alone - Jonathan FranzenThis Thing of Darkness - Harry ThompsonThe Rotten Heart of Europe: Dirty War for Europe's Money - Bernard ConnollyHarry Potter: The Complete Collection - JK RowlingThe Revenant - Michael PunkeWhat You See Is What You Get - Alan SugarA Suitable Boy - Vikram SethNew York - Edward RutherfurdOutlander - Diane GabaldonThe Road - Cormac McCarthyThe Hitchiker's Guide To The Galaxy : The Trilogy of Five - Douglas AdamsAnathem - Neal StephensonParkland - Vincent BugliosiMy Year of Meats - Ruth OzekiKamikaze Kangaroos! - Tony James SlaterThe Godforsaken Daughter - Christine McKennaUs - David NichollsThe Snowden Files: The Inside Story of the World's Most Wanted Man - Luke HardingThe Last Runaway - Tracy ChevalierThe Little Book of Big History: The Story of Life, The Universe and Everything - Ian Crofton, Jeremy Black The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot - Robert McFarlane Introducing Psychology - Nigel Benson The Girl You Left Behind - JoJo Moyes The Painted Bridge - Wendy Wallace When God Was A Rabbit - Sarah Winman Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Secrethood - Rebecca Wells Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 Books Purchased in 2015 Forgotten Victory: The First World War: Myths and Realities - Gary Sheffield Extreme Sleeps: Adventures of a Wild Camper - Phoebe Smith Secret Lives - Diane Chamberlain Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut I Used To Know That: Stuff You Forgot From School - Caroline Taggart We - Yevgeny Zamyatin The Universe versus Alex Woods - Gavin Extence The Chronicles of St Mary's Boxset Vol 1 - Jodi Taylor Canoeing the Congo: The First Source-to-Sea Descent of the Congo River - Phil Harwood The Lies We Told - Diane Chamberlain Papillon - Henri Charriere Warship - Joshua Dalzelle The Proof of Love - Catherine Hall The Atlantis Plague - AG Riddle Stone Mattress: Nine Tales - Margaret Atwood Lost At Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries - Jon Ronson The Missionary Position: Mother Theresa in Theory and Practice - Christopher Hitchens The Shadow Wife - Diane Chamberlain The Journal of a Disappointed Man - Wilhelm Nero Pilate Barbellion The Bay at Midnight - Diane Chamberlain Shogun - James Clavell The Confession - John Grisham The Things We Have In Common - Tasha Kavanagh Enigma - Robert Harris Keeper of the Light - Diane Chamberlain The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet - David Mitchell Black Swan Green - David Mitchell Number9dream - David Mitchell The Courage Tree - Diane Chamberlain The Invention of Wings - Sue Monk Kidd The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury The Long Walk to Freedom - Nelson Mandela The Good Father - Noah Hawley Alone In Berlin - Hans Fallada The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters Wayfaring Stranger - James Lee Burke Death of a River Guide - Richard Flanagan The Windup Girl - Paolo Bacigalupi Watership Down - Richard Adams I Think You'll Find It's a Bit More Complicated Than That - Ben Goldacre Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death and Brain Surgery - Henry Marsh The Wild Places - Robert McFarlane The Grand Design - Stephen Hawking, Leonard Mlodinow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 Books Purchased in 2014 One Summer: America 1927 - Bill Bryson The Female Eunuch - Germaine Greer Twelve Years a Slave - Solomon Northup I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou The Good Father - Diane Chamberlain The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick Summer's Child - Diane Chamberlain The Default Line: The Inside Story of People, Banks and Entire Nations on Edge - Faisal Islam Wilderness Survival Guide: The Practical Skills you need for the great outdoors - Joe O'Leary The Thorn Birds - Colleen McCullough False Impression - Jeffrey Archer Exodus (Extinction Point, Book 2) - Paul Antony Jones Lucky Planet: Why Earth is Exceptional - And What that Means for Life in the Universe - David Waltham Stealing Phoenix - Joss Stirling Rejoice! Rejoice! Britain in the 1980s - Alwyn Turner Lifers - Jane Harvey-Berrick Mary Poppins: The Complete Collection - P.L. Travers The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot The Reapers Are the Angels - Alden Bell The Dinner - Herman Koch Gideon's Spies: The Inside Story of Israeli's Secret Service - Gordon Thomas The Dreaming Void - Peter F Hamilton The Complete Wizard of Oz Collection - L Frank Baum Not A Drop to Drink - Mindy McGinnis Love, Poverty and War: Journeys and Essays - Christopher Hitchens Pattern Recognition - William Gibson Every Living Thing - James Herriot The Secret Keeper - Kate Morton Catastrophe: Europe Goes to War 1914 - Max Hastings The 33 Strategies of War - Robert Greene Requiem for a Dream - Hubert Selby Jnr Introducing Quantum Theory: A Graphic Guide - JP McEvoy, Oscar Zarate Robopocalypse - Daniel H Wilson A Prisoner of Birth - Jeffrey Archer Judas Unchained - Peter F Hamilton The Men Who Stare At Goats - Jon Ronson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) Books Purchased in 2013 The Happiness Trap: Stop Struggling, Start Living - Russ HarrisThe Reality Dysfunction - Peter F. Hamilton Incoming! Or Why We Should Stop Worrying and learn to Love the Meteorite - Ted NieldSworn Secret - Amanda Jennings1493: How the Ecological Collision of Europe and the Americas Gave Rise to the Modern World - Charles C. Mann White Fang - Jack LondonDeceived Wisdom: Why What You Thought Was Right Is Wrong - David BradleyUncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe Great Apes - Will Self Boneshaker - Cherie Priest The Phoenix Conspiracy - Richard Sanders The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why it Matters - Richard Rumelt You Are Not So Smart: Why Your Memory is Mostly Fiction, Why You Have Too Many Friends On Facebook, and 46 Other Ways You're Deluding Yourself - David McRaney The Distant Hours - Kate Morton On Books and the Housing of Them - W E Gladstone Born Liars: Why We Can't Live Without Deceit - Ian Leslie The Korean War - Max Hastings The Beach - Alex Garland Kiss River - Diane Chamberlain Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson Au Revoir, Europe: What If Britain Left The EU? - David Charter Bang! The Complete History of the Universe - Patrick Moore, Brian May, Chris Lintott The Undercover Economist - Tim Harford And Still I Rise - Doreen Lawrence The Great Tax Robbery: How Britain Became a Tax Haven for Fat Cats and Big Business - Richard Brooks QI The Book of the Dead - John Mitchinson, John Lloyd How Do We Fix This Mess? - Robert Peston The Complete Soldier Son Trilogy - Robin Hobb The Glass Guardian - Linda Gillard Great Expectations - Charles Dickens Stuffed and Starved: From Farm to Fork - Raj Patel All Hell Let Loose: The World at War: 1939 - 1945 - Max Hastings Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Them: Adventures with Extremists - Jon Ronson Edited January 19, 2019 by bobblybear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 Books Purchased in 2012 Supersense - Bruce HoodWhat's Wrong With Eating People - Peter CaveThe Little Friend - Donna TarttWritten In Stone - Brian SwitekQI: The Book of General Ignorance - The Noticeably Stouter Edition - John Lloyd and John Mitchinson Quantum - Manjit KumarThe Moonstone - Wilkie CollinsFire and Ice (Liam Campbell #1) - Dana StabenowCompromised - Derek KeyteQI: The Second Book of General Ignorance - John Lloyd and John MitchinsonMirage Men - Mark Pilkington The Book of Human Skin - Michelle LovricThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change - Stephen CoveyThe Complete Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas AdamsThe Elephant Whisperer - Graham Spence and Anthony LawrenceThe Girl On The Wall - Jean BaggottHow to Raise the Perfect Dog: Through puppyhood and beyond - Cesar MillanThe Key To Rebecca - Ken FollettAre We Nearly There Yet?: A Family's 8000 Miles Around Britain in a Vauxhall Astra - Ben Hatch Farmer Buckley's Exploding Trousers : And other odd events on the way to scientific discovery - Stephanie PainAre You Smart Enough to Work at Google? - William PoundstoneThe Making of Modern Britain - Andrew MarrAs The Crow Flies - Jeffrey ArcherThe Happiness Equation: The Surprising Economics of Our Most Valuable Asset - Nick PowdthaveeAround the World in 80 Days Junior Edition - Jules Verne An Atlas of Impossible Longing - Anuradha RoyDaddy-Long-Legs - Jean Webster Inflight Science: A Guide to the World from your Airplane Window - Brian Clegg The World's Greatest Idea - John FarndonThe Etymologicon: A Circular Scroll through the Hidden Connections of the English Language - Mark ForsythOne Million Tiny Plays About Britain - Craig TaylorThe Eleventh Commandment - Jeffrey Archer Only Time Will Tell - Jeffrey Archer Ash - James HerbertSarah Thornhill - Kate GrenvilleVIII - H M CastorWinter of the World - Ken Follet Yesterday's Gone: Season Two - Sean Platt and David WrightTimes Echo - Pamela HartshorneTrojan Horse - Mark RussinovichHow Not To Worry: The Remarkable Truth of How a Small Change Can Help You Stress Less and Enjoy Life More - Paul McGee The Dead Women of Juarez - Sam Hawken Les Miserables - Victor Hugo The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett The Horologicon: A Day's Jaunt Through The Lost Words of the English Language - Mark ForsythThe History of the World In Bite-Sized Chunks - Emma Marriott The Millenium Trilogy - Stieg Larsson A History of 20th Century Britain - Andrew MarrThe Mess We're In: Why Politicians Can't Fix Financial Crises - Guy Fraser-SampsonYesterday's Country Customs: A History of English Folk Traditions - Hentry Buckton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted December 31, 2018 Author Share Posted December 31, 2018 Books Purchased Pre - 2012 The Fire Gospel (Myths) - Michel Faber Kidnapped - Robert Louis StevensonCK - 12 Biology 1 - HonorsCK - 12 Earth Science Honors for Middle SchoolThe Legend of Sleepy Hollow - Washington IrvingGrimm's Fairy Stories - Jacob and Wilhelm GrimmGulliver's Travels - Jonathan SwiftThe Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan DoyleWojtek the Bear: Polish War Hero - Aileen OrrKilling the Messenger - Christopher WallaceA Carpet Ride to Khiva: Seven Years on the Silk Road - Christopher Aslan AlexanderGuiness World Records: 2012The Epigenetics Revolution: How Modern Biology is Rewriting our Understanding of Genetics, Disease and Inheritance - Nessa CareyIntroducing Neurolinguistic Programming - Neil ShahDo Polar Bears Get Lonely? - New ScientistSapper Martin - Richard van EmdenHeart of Darkness - Joseph ConradThe Last Man - Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly50 Facts That Should Change The World - Jessica WilliamsThe Lord of the Rings - JRR TolkienExtraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds - Charles Mackay The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre DumasThe Reluctant Traveler - Bill LumleyDiary of a Nobody - George Grossmith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 3, 2019 Author Share Posted January 3, 2019 I've finished my first audiobook of the year - Killers of the Flower Moon. I can't remember why I bought it - if it just caught my eye, or it had very favourable reviews - as I didn't know anything about it before I started listening. In the 1920s, the Osage Indians (who were among the richest group of people in the world) were being murdered one by one. These people had been relocated to Oklahoma, on what later turned out to be some of the most fruitful oil fields in the country. They were given the full land rights over this oil (but unbelievably were all required by law to have guardians to manage their wealth) much to the resentment of a lot of the 'white' population around them. After some very half-hearted local investigation into these murders the case was eventually turned over to the newly formed Bureau of Investigation (soon to be called the FBI). The book is told in three main sections. The first part is from the perspective of Mollie Burkhart, who was one of the Osage Indians and who's family members were among the first to be murdered. The second section is told from the perspective of Tom White, the federal agent who was assigned to the case. The final section is the author's view on the case, after carrying out his research nearly a century after the crimes were committed. It was an absolutely fascinating case, with so many twists and turns that you'd think it was fiction! And when the culprits were identified....well it was pretty shocking! The audiobook was only about 9 hours long, but it covered so much information. Because it was told from different perspectives and different timelines, you got to hear how these crimes affected everyone involved and in some cases were still affecting them several generations later. Highly recommended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted January 6, 2019 Share Posted January 6, 2019 Is it okay to post in here? I wish you a very happy reading year in 2019 ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 6, 2019 Author Share Posted January 6, 2019 Yes, ok to post. Happy reading year to you too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 26, 2019 Author Share Posted January 26, 2019 I don't often purchase physical books anymore, but picked up these gems today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 The Almanac is such a pretty book isn't it? I was looking at it in Waterstones recently and was very tempted, there are just so many great books out this year! Hard Boiled Wonderland at the End of the World looks really interesting too. It sounds pretty crazy and I usually like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 27, 2019 Author Share Posted January 27, 2019 Yeah, I loved the look of The Almanac. I could have bought it on Kindle (as it was the Daily Deal a couple of days ago) but it's the kind of book that is definitely worth getting a physical copy of. Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World does sound a bit strange but then again, all of Murakami's books are pretty 'out there'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 Such pretty books! I hope you like all three of them . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted February 2, 2019 Author Share Posted February 2, 2019 Thank you. It's not often that I buy physical books but I couldn't resist. And they are fairly light so will be easy to read in bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted June 23, 2019 Author Share Posted June 23, 2019 Ugh - 5 months since I have updated this! I've now updated my 2019 purchases list as well as my reads, but have yet to put a little bit of commentary against books I've finished. Hopefully I will get to that in a couple of days. On the plus side, I'm still reading a lot of books....I just have lost my 'review-mojo'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 That's going to be a lot of reviews! Maybe you could just list them with a quick 'liked it' or 'didn't like it' instead, it's quite a task otherwise! Glad you're enjoying reading this year though have your books for the last five months mainly been good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 25, 2019 Share Posted June 25, 2019 Hi BB, it's good to see you again on the forum . I agree with Hayley, maybe just write a short sentence of something, on each of the books, otherwise it's such a daunting task! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 Hi Hayley and Gaia! Yes, I think that's what I'm going to have to do. I have read so many, but probably don't remember enough to write more than a very short comment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 Here we go: The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris I've read this a couple of times, and I think of it as 'old-school', in that there are no real twists and turns and you're not left trying to figure out what is going on. It's a good straight-forward thriller and was enjoyable to read it again. The Salt Path - Raynor Winn Didn't enjoy this as much as I hoped. It has received so much praise but I do think the author and her husband were pretty irresponsible to go out and do what they did, with his health being the way it was. Having said that, his health did seem to improve and I know they didn't have a huge number of options given that they were broke and homeless. I wish they'd eaten more sensibly as well. Loading up on chips and fudge is not the best thing to do when you are attempting to cover hundreds of miles on foot. The Reality Dysfunction - Peter F Hamilton Very long, and I struggled with it. Too many characters and I think there were more characters than there was plot and it felt like the book could have been halved in size (but then it wouldn't be a Peter F Hamilton book). I have the next two on my Kindle, but I think I will also download the audiobooks so I can swap between the two. With The End in Mind - Kathryn Mannix Palliative care nurse who has assisted hundreds (maybe thousands) of people at their final stages of their lives. I'm fascinated by the subject matter so I thoroughly enjoyed it. Her compassion shines through and I can see how she was such a help to friends and family of the dying person. His Bloody Project - Graeme Burnet Short but enjoyable. Based on research the author was doing about his ancestors and he came across this story from 1869. Told from various points of view, and so of course hard to know which version was the truth. Them - John Ronson Journalists search for the New World Order....the secret group that run the world. Was humorous (intentionally so) and interesting. A quick read, didn't overstay it's welcome and didn't take itself too seriously. Noughts and Crosses - Malorie Blackman Couldn't really get on with it, but not a massive fan of YA. Noughts and Crosses are the names given to the two groups of people - dark-skinned and light-skinned, who are separated by privilege and power and position in society. Kind of a commentary on today's (recent history) society and if it were flipped on it's head. The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters Pretty good read. Told through the eyes of a doctor who befriends the members of a household, and slowly gets drawn into a mystery that seems to be affecting each of the household members. Is the house haunted, or not? A Captain's Duty - Richard Phillips The author's ship was hijacked by Somalian pirates in 2009, and this is his account of the experiences. Captain Phillips, starring Tom Hanks, is based on this and is a brilliant movie. The book was excellent too. Hard Boiled Wonderland and The End of the World - Haruki Murakami Ahh, Murakami.....what can I say? You have to be open minded and willing to be taken on his journey, wherever he takes you. Hugely enjoyable read....typically bizarre. Can't even think how to summarise it...it's like two alternating stories, which are linked, but in parallel worlds. Not to be missed if you are a fan. All That Remains - Sue Black Another morbid read; author is a forensic anthropologist and has spent many years investigating causes of death, what happens to bodies after death. She takes us into crime scenes, into her lab in a very no-nonsense manner. Fascinating stuff. Let Me Lie - Claire MacKintosh I really liked this book, and it's inspired by a fairly recent news story (I won't say which one, as it will give it away). Her books are always exciting to read because you know there will be a few unexpected twists and turns. I wouldn't say it's my favourite of hers, but I enjoyed it a lot. The Heart's Invisible Furies - John Boyne How much did I love this book? A huge amount! It's my first book by this author, and I wasn't sure what to expect, but I am so glad I picked this one to start with. I love the title! The main character, Cyril Avery is born an illegitimate baby, and this is basically a story of the whole of his life, and trying to find his place in the world even though he doesn't fully feel in step with it all. My favourite book of the year, and possibly one of my favourite books of all time. The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle - Stuart Turton (abandoned) Gave up on this. Didn't know what on earth was going on, got annoyed with it and abandoned. Blood Meridian - Cormac McCarthy Based on the making of the American frontier in the 1800s around the American/Mexican border. Violent and graphically so. I ended up skimming it as it didn't grab me like it has done for others. Not a huge fan of his writing style either. Feral - George Monbiot A book on how we have transformed the natural landscape through farming, agriculture and modern life. The author calls for a return to a more natural 'feral' surroundings. Interesting, well worth a read. American Assassin - Vincent Flynn (abandoned) Gave up on it....the kind of story that I would love in movie format, but the book was kind of 'meh'. Alone on the Wall - Alex Honnold This is one of the best knows free-solo climbers....the movie Free Solo was about his climbing El Capitan several years ago. Even though I don't have any personal interest in climbing, I find him fascinating and this was an interesting read. Why We Sleep - Matt Walker On the importance of sleep and how our brains and bodies function on the right amount, compared to the deprived amount. Has made me very conscious of trying to get 8+ hours of sleep a night, and not feel guilty about it! Interesting read. Crippen - John Boyne I know this is Frankie's favourite book! Enjoyable but not as enjoyable as The Heart's Invisible Furies so I am glad that I didn't start with this one. It's a bit of a murder mystery but also a study of human psychology. Hired - James Bloodworth Low-wage jobs in Britain. Examples of what it is like work in an Amazon warehouse, or gig-working. Very, very fascinating, and makes me think twice about complaining about my job! To be continued..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 Next lot, my July to current reads: The Thing of Darkness - Harry Thompson Loved this one! It's a very detailed (fictionalised where necessary) account of Charles Darwin's infamous Beagle voyage, and his relationship with Captain Robert Fitzroy. Actually, it covers more than just that voyage....it covers Fitzroy's prior voyages and then their fractious relationship post-Beagle. Fitzroy and Darwin get equal 'book-time', in fact Fitzroy may actually get more than Darwin, so it's not a book about Charles Darwin. It's main focus is not on Darwin's theories, but rather on the relationship between the two and the conflict that their different backgrounds brought out in the pair. The Trouble With Goats and Sheep - Joanna Cannon Ultimately forgettable....I know this, because I have forgotten what it's about. I do recall reading it when I had a lot of other things on my mind, which is never a good idea. A woman has vanished, and two children from the neighbourhood set out to solve the mystery of what has happened. It is coming back to me now....there are a few twists and turns, but it's not what would be classed as a thriller or anything like that. It's very similar in 'feel' to her other book: Three Things About Elsie. The Yorkshire Vet - Peter Wright I love animals, so I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this vet's experiences in his current Yorkshire practice. He was trained under 'James Herriot' so has many interesting stories about that time. It's also a TV series, which is about to start Season 9 (I think). Luckily all prior seasons are still on '5 on Demand' so I have been catching up on those. Pandemic - A G Riddle I like a good 'end-of-the-world' story, and this started off promisingly, but then deteriorated into utter ridiculousness. There were so many twists and turns and unbelievable coincidences, that by the end I was just skimming it to finish it. I have a feeling I have the next 2 books on my Kindle, but I can't see when I will ever get around to reading them. Flight Risk - Stephanie Green The author was the resident doctor at Heathrow Airport for over 7 years, and writes about her experiences. I had no idea that there were doctors permanently at the airport and that was their full time job. I just assumed that doctors were called when required (via 999 etc), but on thinking about it, it makes sense that they would require someone there 24/7. Her job was to screen for potentially contagious illnesses (TB, SARS, swine flu etc), deal with people who were' acting strange' (usually turned out to be importing drugs in their body), and the occasional death on the plane. Interesting read. The Light Between Oceans - M L Stedman Heard about this one for long time, but was unsure about it. As it turns out, I enjoyed it a lot. Tom is a lighthouse keeper on a remote island off the coast of Australia. He lives in isolation with his wife Izzy. One day, a small boat washes up which contains a crying baby and a deceased man. Tom and Izzy have to decide what they should do with this baby - keep it or try to find out the story behind her washing up on the island. Very good read...I want to watch the movie too. The Time of My Life - Patrick Swayze Quick read. Patrick Swayze's autobiography, written while he was still battling pancreatic cancer. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would, as he has had a much more interesting life than I was aware of. It was particularly interesting to read about his experiences breaking in to Hollywood. Lone Wolf - Jodi Picoult Luke has always felt a bond with wolves, and has all but abandoned his family and civilisation in order to live a life with wolves. However, he is involved in a car accident and lies in a coma. His estranged family all join at his bedside and a debate ensues about whether life support should be switched off. Not bad....I wouldn't say it was my favourite Picoult, but it was easily readable. My Lovely Wife - Mark Lukach Non-fiction account by the author of his wife's mental illness, her breakdowns and how they have managed to keep their family going despite all this. It was very harrowing, and scary to see how she did 'lose her mind' and what she was like when this was happening. Props to the author for managing to stay as the bedrock in their family, as I think a lot of people would not have been able to. A Year in the Life of the Yorkshire Shepherdess - Amanda Owen This is her second book, and as the title suggests, she is a shepherdess in Yorkshire. It's pretty much the same as the first book, but this time the sections are broken down into the months of the years and she describes how farming changes as the year progresses. She has another book which has been recently released and I look forward to reading that as well. Loved it. Almost Love - Louise O'Neill A story of desperate and obsessive love (or the need to be needed) for someone who really couldn't care less. I thought it was very well written, very believable and quite cringeworthy to see the main character spiralling downwards in this pit of desperation, in which she has completely lost all sense of self. Probably my favourite book of O'Neill's after Only Ever Yours. The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster A quick read....I wanted to read this, as I heard so much about it. Milo is a child, who is not very excited about anything. Then he discovers a package in his bedroom, which contains a tollbooth to take him off to other fantastical places (full of strange characters, and many puns). It was an illustrated version so I read it on my tablet, rather than my Kindle. It was ok, but not really my scene. I would have enjoyed it as a child, but not so much as an adult. The Confession - John Grisham I haven't read Grisham in a while. It was nice to revisit him. A week or so before the execution of Donte Drumm, a man who is terminally ill from a brain tumour comes forward to his local preacher to confess to the crime. The preacher then must make the decision as to whether he is telling the truth, and then race across several states to prevent this execution. This was mostly good, but it did overstay it's welcome by about 50 pages at the end. Grisham just seemed to go off on a tangent and he didn't want to end the book, so he kept spouting off about all sorts. Aside from that, I enjoyed it. Snap - Belinda Bauer A fast paced thriller about a woman who went missing from the hard shoulder of the M5, and the impact this has had on her young children several years on. Her murderer was never found, and her eldest son has somewhat come off the rails, but then he stumbles across something which he believes could solve her murder. This was pretty good....better than Rubbernecker. However, for a thriller it didn't have a lot of depth and is most likely to be a book that you read once and then just forget about. Elevation - Stephen King Very short story, about a man who keeps losing weight even though his body still remains the same size. It wasn't bad....it was very short; I think I read it in an hour or so. A strange book. Milkman - Anna Burns (abandoned) Winner of the Man Booker Prize in 2018. Set in Ireland during the times of The Troubles. The story is told through the eyes of 18 year old Middle Sister (none of the characters have proper names), and her trying to deal with Milkman's fascination with her. Obviously there's more to it than that, but I wouldn't know as I gave up pretty early on. I couldn't get on with the style of the narrative. It was long uninterrupted blocks of text that sometimes went on for over a page without a break (margin-to-margin text). I found this very difficult to read (was reading paperback rather than Kindle) and absorb, and found myself frustrated with the style rather than being able to enjoy the story. Obviously it impressed someone, but not me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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