willoyd Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 On 13/11/2019 at 4:13 AM, bookmonkey said: The Steve Richard's book sounds interesting Willoyd. I have an interest in political history so I'll have to see if my library has this. Reached the halfway point, and can still thoroughly recommend it: the chapter on Margaret Thatcher (surprisingly one of the shortest) I found particularly illuminating, maybe because she's the first prime minister of my adulthood, so am now into the time period I'm most aware of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 On 13/11/2019 at 8:30 PM, Raven said: I found The Hobbit to be a little Tolkien-lite, as you might say, when I tried to read it directly after LotR, and I put it down, but I went back to it several years later and didn't find it so bad (indeed, the last half of the book is quite a good read, but you have to get through the Dwarf singing in the first half first!) Those songs were my least favourite part! The second half was very good though. I'm currently reading Happy Fat by Sofie Hagen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian. Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 Almost finished with The Falcon of Sparta by Conn Iggulden. I’ve enjoyed it a lot but with work being busy this week I’ve not managed to read it as fast as I would have liked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Budgie Posted November 19, 2019 Author Share Posted November 19, 2019 I've just finished Notes From an Exhibition by Patrick Gale. Eh, it was fine, I enjoyed it, but I felt it dragged towards the end, and I wondered why the author chose to end the book in that particular way. It felt an odd place to leave it, and didn't close the narrative well enough for my liking. I seem to remember you thinking the same, @Madeleine? Anyway -- now on to a re-read of Dracula by Bram Stoker! The font is teeny-tiny. This is going to be squintalicious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted November 19, 2019 Share Posted November 19, 2019 Yes I did think the same about the Patrick Gale book, and that it felt unfinished, which spoilt it a bit. Glad we agree! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 23, 2019 Share Posted November 23, 2019 Finished Steve Richards's The Prime Ministers a couple of days ago: fascinating insights, 5/6. Steadily making progress through the absorbing Lonesome Dove (now up to 550 pages of the 850), but took a day off today to zip through Nicole Mowbray'sSweet Nothing, an account and discussion of cutting out sugar in her diet (something I've done for the past few months and will do for the foreseeable future). OK, but too much repetition and a few errors and anomalies; 2 /6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian. Posted November 25, 2019 Share Posted November 25, 2019 I've just finished Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. I got a few books for my birthday so I've got plenty to choose from but I'm still undecided as to what to read next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onion Budgie Posted November 27, 2019 Author Share Posted November 27, 2019 I'm halfway through Dracula. I'd forgotten how incomprehensible some of the dialects are -- Mr. Swales, I'm looking at you. It's a long-winded but wonderful book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 28, 2019 Share Posted November 28, 2019 (edited) Finished Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry yesterday -hugely long but magnificent read 5/6 (don't often give a book a full 6 without a short interim period to see what impact it has). Also reread a long-term favourite last night: The Harpole Report by JL Carr. Some of the humour is a little bit dated now - it's set in a primary school in the 1970s, and some aspects of education have changed a lot - but the core messsage remains absolutely nailed on. This was my 60th book of the year. Remains 6/6. Have now started Jenni Murray's History of Britain in 21 Women. Edited November 28, 2019 by willoyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted November 29, 2019 Share Posted November 29, 2019 On 19/11/2019 at 1:18 PM, Onion Budgie said: I've just finished Notes From an Exhibition by Patrick Gale. Eh, it was fine, I enjoyed it, but I felt it dragged towards the end, and I wondered why the author chose to end the book in that particular way. It felt an odd place to leave it, and didn't close the narrative well enough for my liking. I seem to remember you thinking the same, @Madeleine? I only managed a couple of chapters of Notes from an Exhibition when I tried it a few years ago, I'm glad I didn't keep reading to the end now! I just started reading Help the Witch by Tom Cox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bookmonkey Posted November 29, 2019 Share Posted November 29, 2019 Just finished The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter. One of the best books I've read this year. I couldn't put it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 Failed to get very far with Jenni Murray's History of Britain in 21 Women. Should have realised before but found it to to be rather superficial, and that I wasn't really learning anything much new or getting much out of it. Instead, read my first book of short stories for the year: The Journey Home and Other Stories by Malachi Whitaker, part of the Persephone range, and picked up in a local charity shop in pristine condition. The author was local to here, so of particular interest. Not normally a fan of short stories, but needed to read some for a reading challenge being run by my local library. A decent enough read, but can't say they had much impact on my general indifference to this format. 3/6. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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