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Frankie Reads 2011


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You should definitely look out for two Tim Parks books called Italian Neighbours and An Italian Education if you haven't already read them - two of my favourite books on living in Italy.

 

 

They sound interesting - I'm a lover of all things Italian too (or most, except perhaps for Mr Berlusconi :lol: ), so I'll definitely have a look at those. Thanks for the advice, chesilbeach.

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Yes, but there's that worry isn't there? that they'll think it's codswallop too and resent you for lumbering them with it :lol: I know, I know .. I'm being too super sensitive about it .. people are wise enough to make their own decisions.

 

You're just too kind and considerate :friends0:

 

 

I know, it's enormously difficult to find the exact books you want. I almost never find books, locally at any rate, from my wishlist .. the library is the only possibility. But then it's good not to be so regimented ... some of the best reads are books you come across by accident

 

Indeed, one's gotta mix it up a little every now and then. If I only did my shopping based on my wishlist, that would have to be online shopping, and as much as I like that, my biggest passion is browsing books in secondhand bookshops and charityshops, it's really my favorite way to pass time, besides reading and talking about books on the forum and with people :smile2: And it's true, there are so many books that I've randomly found and bought, and really liked!

 

 

I've only read Rebecca which I loved. I have a vague understanding of My Cousin Rachel and Jamaica Inn but must read them because I'm sure they'd be even better than the abridged readings I've heard of them.

 

Ahh it must have been the adaptation then, I will read it because you say so :D and also because I liked the sound of it.

 

I do recommend you read it, it was mighty good! Just the sort of book I've been wanting to find for a while, a sort of costume drama mixed with mystery and intrigue. :smile2: I'm so happy that I started with this one and had no expectations towards it, because I just got to enjoy it as it was and I now still have Rebecca to read, it's a book I've been wanting to read for a while and I've always thought I'll rather enjoy it, but now I think if it's anywhere as good as MCR, I'm going to love it!

 

What a treasure Lois Lowry is and what a lovely reply. I've not read any of her books but I will seek them out. Perhaps if you encouraged all BCF members to read them then the publishers might think again!

 

I think I can speak for myself and Kylie as well, when I recommend The Giver series by Lois Lowry, I've only read the first novel so far (have had problems finding the sequels) but it was really insightful and wonderful. The Anastasia Krupnik series is for younger audiences, it's one of my favorites from my childhood, but in my opinion they're still definitely readable at a more mature (lol!) age. I don't know if that's because I'm so familiar with them, it's a mixture of nostalgia and pure enjoyment for me, so maybe you could just borrow the first book in the series from the library and see how you like it. I'd definitely like to get an Anastasia Cult going on in here :lol: At some point in the future when I'm more stable moneywise, I'm going to invest in the Sam series, which is a series about Anastasia's genious little brother. He's a funny character!

 

Re: Hans Christian Andersen/Dickens: I lost respect for Dickens when I read about how he treated his wife I admire his novels tremendously but, the more I read about him, the more my opinion of him sinks

 

I already commented on this in Kylie's thread but I have to say again, I'm so disappointed. I've only ever read A Tale of Two Cities which is in my top 5 books ever, and I was hoping to have the most brilliant future reading all of Dickens's novels, but now it's all tainted by this new info I have on him. :(

 

 

You should definitely look out for two Tim Parks books called Italian Neighbours and An Italian Education if you haven't already read them - two of my favourite books on living in Italy.

 

Thanks chesilbeach, I'll definitely add those to my wishlist and will seek them out :smile2:

 

They sound interesting - I'm a lover of all things Italian too (or most, except perhaps for Mr Berlusconi), so I'll definitely have a look at those. Thanks for the advice, chesilbeach.

 

And don't forget Annie Hawes's books too, as they come highly recommended by chesilbeach, and I've been looking for those books as well :) I've studied cultural anthropology at the uni and this one time I had to read a study about Italy, I'll have to see what the book was called, it was really easily approachable, readable and intriguing.

 

Edit: Oh and while we're on the subject of Italy: I've read Maeve Binchy's The Evening Class twice, and while it's not all set in Italy, it's a really lovely read and you learn some Italian words and they do make a trip to Italy in the end. Very nice!

Edited by frankie
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Day 4 ~ Favourite book of your favourite series

 

I've given this some thought, and have chosen The Coffin Dancer from the Lincoln Rhyme series by Jeffery Deaver. The series was recommended to me by dear Charm, and the first novel, The Bone Collector was amazing. I didn't really think Deaver could top that and was hesitant to start reading the second novel, TCD. When I did, it blew my mind. There were some literary twists and turns which I didn't think could be possible to invent, which makes Deaver a genious in my books. A truly enjoyable and thrilling read, and I guess now again I fear that Deaver can't top this. I'm sure he'll prove me wrong, again.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On to another book relating matter: Some of you know how I've been trying to lose weight, one of the motivators for me being that I can't buy any books until I've lost more weight (1 book per every lost half-a-kilo). I successfully lost some weight in the beginning of the year and got to buy some books. Then I fell off the wagon, haven't been losing any weight, but have been buying books like a ... manic book buyer. I've now decided to re-introduce the 1 book per 0,5 lost kilo system, so I will have to start working on my diet and exercise again. I'm just glad I've done a lot of book shopping this past few weeks. :giggle: Wish me luck!!

 

Edit: Book swapping doesn't count of course! And neither does finding books for free at the library book trolley :cool:

Edited by Janet
I had to remove some of your ~~~~s as they stretched the board! :-)
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Good luck Frankie :friends0: I wish that reading burnt off more calories and didn't go so well with tea and biscuits. Still, finding books usually means walking which is the best exercise of all (or almost :giggle: )

 

You've made me want to read Rebecca all over again, just to remind myself of it. I'm sure you'll love it too, though I don't know how it compares to My Cousin Rachel .. but I intend to find out :D

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Good luck Frankie :friends0: I wish that reading burnt off more calories and didn't go so well with tea and biscuits. Still, finding books usually means walking which is the best exercise of all (or almost :giggle: )

 

Thanks poppyshake! To be honest, I have thought about going for walks with a book. A light quick read, not the ones that will be hard to concentrate on, or ones that grab me in a way that I'll walk under a car or two. :giggle2:

You've made me want to read Rebecca all over again, just to remind myself of it. I'm sure you'll love it too, though I don't know how it compares to My Cousin Rachel .. but I intend to find out :D

 

I'm not surprised, I've made myself want to read Rebecca too :D

 

 

Yes, how convenient! :P

 

Good luck!

 

In addition, when I'm going to Helsinki in a couple of weeks to see Korn, I will be popping in to a secondhand bookshop or two, and I'm going to allow myself to go crazy if I wish. I've been planning on this trip ever since March, so I'm going to give myself this one free pass. :giggle:

 

I'm impressed, frankie. I couldn't even spell "cultural anthropology", let alone study it.

 

Well you just did, didn't you? Or did you copy+paste? :lol:

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Day 05 – A book that makes you happy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

This was a really difficult one, I don't seem to read that many books that make me happy :huh: Then I came across with the title The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows and knew that that has to be my choice. My thoughts on it in 2009 after reading the book:

 

"I just finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It was absolutely brilliant, a book that I wish to buy some day and reread it. Like I said in the GLPPPS thread, I usually don't like books that are in a letter form but I really didn't mind this time, the letters were wonderfully written. In these letters the authors of this book had managed to capture the personal style and character of each of the persons who were writing the letters.

 

What an amazing read, just the kind of book that I needed to read after The Trial. :blush: I highly recommend it! "

 

This book starts off with a rather random letter exchange between a couple of people and soon they form some kind of a friendship. Other friendships are made after that, and some tragic histories are uncovered. What made me happy about reading this book is how a random action on one's part can result in life-changing friendships, relationships and events. It now reminds me of this forum, how I registered on here with no expectations of making new friends, just anticipating to get to talk about books and find some great recommendations. And here I am now, almost 3 years later, having made great friends and having had wonderful conversations and some excellent witty banter :smile2: It just proves that no matter where the world seems to be going, there are still good people around, one just needs to know where to look for, and continue looking with an open mind and an open heart.

 

This book rocks, and so do the people on this forum :friends3:

 

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Thanks poppyshake! To be honest, I have thought about going for walks with a book. A light quick read, not the ones that will be hard to concentrate on, or ones that grab me in a way that I'll walk under a car or two. :giggle2:

 

I do a lot of walking and listening to books. I try and pick things which are fairly easy otherwise there is a danger of concentrating either too much (which is lethal when crossing roads) or not enough (mind wanders off and starts thinking about trees and flowers instead.) Most nights I go to sleep listening to some story or the other, the I-pod has a sleep timer so I just set it and off I go, it's usually a book I've heard before and at the moment it's 'Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell' .. I'm marvelling at it all over again.

 

Yay!! I loved 'The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society' too :D .. good choice.

 

People on here do rock don't they .. and you do too .. you are the Queen of rock :yahoo:

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Poppyshake, thanks for popping in, I'll have to reply to your interesting post later! :smile2:

 

I'll have to warn you guys: I'm going to go and meet Liisa, my Joensuu book club friend, for the second time in a few hour's time, we're going to have our meeting outside this time because it's like +25 degrees and getting hotter all the time, we're going to go have a few ciders at the river bank and talk books. She expressed interest in My Cousin Rachel and Howards End so I'm taking those books to her, and I'm also going to offer her a copy of Middlesex and Notes from a Small Island (now that I have recently bought English editions to replace my Finnish ones). I went through my books yesterday and I have about 10 other books I could give her, but my bag is too small for that and I don't want to overwhelm her, I'll leave it til next time :D So be afraid, very afraid: I might come back with loads of great new recommendations, and I'll be sharing them with you :giggle2:

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I do a lot of walking and listening to books. I try and pick things which are fairly easy otherwise there is a danger of concentrating either too much (which is lethal when crossing roads) or not enough (mind wanders off and starts thinking about trees and flowers instead.) Most nights I go to sleep listening to some story or the other, the I-pod has a sleep timer so I just set it and off I go, it's usually a book I've heard before and at the moment it's 'Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell' .. I'm marvelling at it all over again.

 

Yes, the fine balance between being able to concentrate enough but not too much is tricky to find, I would imagine :D My mp3-player has been broken since forever and I don't have the money to invest in a new one, or an iPod or whatever, so I was actually thinking about going for a walk with an actual book. :blush:

 

Yay!! I loved 'The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society' too .. good choice.

 

People on here do rock don't they .. and you do too .. you are the Queen of rock

 

Thanks, it's really a great read and one that I'll re-read time and a time again :smile2: And thank you, you rock very hard too!! :lol::friends3:

 

I had my second meeting with Liisa last Friday. I was a bit nervous beforehand: We had a great time last time, but I wondered whether it was just a fluke and was based on our mutual wish to like each other, more than the fact that we got along. I'm always that way, the second time I meet a new person. But I had a really great time! We talked loads, and not just about books but our lives, which I think is a sign of us getting along because the conversation just flowed and soon we'd realise we'd been rambling about stuff not relating to books. We mostly talked about the books we'd read as children and compared our favorites and talked about how we've always been very avid readers. If I remember correctly, both her parents work in a uni library.

The last time I mentioned to Liisa that I'm a huge Gilmore Girls fan and that there's a reading list based on the show. Liisa told me her sister is also a huge fan and that Liisa has started to watch the show as well, whenever she can catch an episode on TV. On Friday I mentioned the GG again for some reason and she told me she'd mentioned I was a huge fan to her sister and she was impressed :D She'd also told her sister and her parents that I'd given her some books to read, and they'd all been a bit surprised and had thought 'are there really such people around?'. The whole family is definitely big on reading. This time we also discussed Twin Peaks, which is one of my favorite shows and I love The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer (the book) as well, and Liisa told me she's just recently started watching the show, coincidentally, and so has her sister. Liisa told me I'd get on with her sister really well, we seem to have a lot of things in common.

 

Like I said in my previous post, I took My Cousin Rachel and Howards End with me because I'd mentioned them to Liisa and she expressed an interest in reading them. I also took Notes from a Small Island and Middlesex with me and offered them to her, and when I was explaining to her what the books are about, she was really fascinated by Middlesex and she also really liked the sound of Notes from a Small Island, so she took those as well. I was only too happy, it shows she has good taste and will give everything a go :) In return, she gave me her copy of Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, which she was talking about the last time and which she had now finished: there was something about the book that intrigued her but she also felt that she'd been annoyed with the book. I can't wait to read it myself and see how I like it.

 

We also decided that we would read Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being and discuss it the next time we meet. Has anyone read the book, what are your thoughts on it? We will also be reading On Beauty by Zadie Smith in the future because we both have it on our TBR (I've e-mailed her my TBR list so she can compare her books to mine and we could find books we both want to read, it was easy to just e-mail it to her than to start trying to remember all the books I own or want to read), and Liisa also told me she'd love to try some Dostojevski, which I'm more than fine with.

 

 

 

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I'm glad you had a great time with your friend. :) Yay for getting Never Let Me Go! It's on my TBR pile and it's a dystopian to boot. I really want to read it but it never seems to end up on the top of my pile. :(

 

I have the Kundera on my TBR pile as well but haven't read anything by him yet. I became intrigued by Kundera when someone next to me on the train was chuckling like mad while reading his book one day. I snuck a peak but I've never worked out exactly which book he was reading because it was in another language (of course I can't even remember the foreign title) and some of Kundera's titles are a bit too similar for me to be sure. So now I have to read all of them. :)

 

Do you remember the Gilmore Girls reference to Kundera? I think it was in the very last episode when the Gilmores are at Yale and Kundera apparently was a very boring guest speaker. mocking.gif

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I haven't heard about the book or the person, but now I'm intrigued, since it's a true story and one you enjoyed reading as well. It will probably end up on my wishlist :giggle:

(Quote copied from my blog. :) )

 

I have decided to re-read Save Karyn (after the book I'm currently reading) and then I'd like to send it to you, if you'd like it? :)

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I'm glad you had a great time with your friend. Yay for getting Never Let Me Go! It's on my TBR pile and it's a dystopian to boot. I really want to read it but it never seems to end up on the top of my pile.

 

Oh I had no idea it's a dystopian read, yikes! Liisa did mention that there was some fantastic elements in it but it had escaped my memory. I think I'll like it anyways, I really enjoyed Ishiguro's A Pale View of Hills. If you're having problems placing the book on top up your to-read pile, maybe I can be of help? We could read it together some day if you wish :cool:

 

I have the Kundera on my TBR pile as well but haven't read anything by him yet. I became intrigued by Kundera when someone next to me on the train was chuckling like mad while reading his book one day. I snuck a peak but I've never worked out exactly which book he was reading because it was in another language (of course I can't even remember the foreign title) and some of Kundera's titles are a bit too similar for me to be sure. So now I have to read all of them.

 

:D Too bad the passenger was multi-lingual! But sounds like he really enjoyed it, now I'm awfully intrigued. I have no idea what Kundera's books are like, so I'm a bit intimidated. I noticed loads of novels by Kundera at the secondhand bookshop yesterday, but unfortunately there were no copies of The Unbearable Lightness of Being. I'm hoping to have more luck at the secondhand bookshops in Helsinki :giggle2:

 

Do you remember the Gilmore Girls reference to Kundera? I think it was in the very last episode when the Gilmores are at Yale and Kundera apparently was a very boring guest speaker.

 

Now that you mentioned it, yes I do remember! I think Emily (and Richard?) were the ones to mock him and wondering how Yale couldn't find a better public speaker. I sure hope he writes better than he speaks :lol:

 

(Quote copied from my blog. )

 

I have decided to re-read Save Karyn (after the book I'm currently reading) and then I'd like to send it to you, if you'd like it? :)

 

Jänet, that's so nice of you, but are you sure you want to part ways with the book? And could I please send you something in return? You can check out my book swap thread, but I'm afraid I don't have that many English titles to offer yet. Unless you're interested in The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas? I'm going to add that to the list, I got a copy of that from my friend yesterday, as a belated Birthday present, she'd gotten the copy for me in December but we haven't had a chance to meet until now and I'd already bought a copy of my own, so now I have two copies.

 

I was so naughty yesterday! I met my friend over a coffee and we decided to check the secondhand bookshop, which we shouldn't have, because I'm not allowed to buy books at the moment. My friend found three very old and beautiful hardback copies of Charlotte Brontë's novels, and The Book Thief (which I recommended to her), Evening Class by Maeve Binchy (ditto), a biography of Walt Disney (she's a huge fan), and some other books. I was trying to behave and only got three books:

 

- Eija Wager: Tupaantuliaiset Italiassa (a book about a Finnish journalist (?) who lives in Milan, buying a piece of land in a small mountain village near lake Como and settling there)

- Walter Mosley: Devil in a Blue Dress

- Haruki Murakami: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (I couldn't believe my luck when I found this! It's a little annoying that it's a Finnish copy but since Murakami writes in Japanese, I thought I shouldn't wait to find an English copy)

- Philip Gonzalez & Leonore Fleischer: The Dog Who Rescues Cats (my friend bought this for me, she knows what a huge dog enthusiast I am. Here's what amazon has to say about the book:

"This poignant canine memoir recounts the story of Ginny, a Long Island dog with a remarkable ability to seek out and rescue homeless cats. Simple but delightful, the story is narrated from the perspective of Ginny's owner, Philip Gonzalez. Badly disabled in an industrial accident, Gonzalez quickly fell into a downward spiral of despair. His saving grace arrived in the form of a small, scruffy grey dog. Ginny quickly provided Philip with a focus in life: cats--hundreds of them. Each chapter recounts Ginny's amazing rescues of helpless felines. Particularly heartwarming is the image of Ginny running across broken glass to reach a kitten in distress. As Ginny saved cats, Philip housed them, and soon his life was taken over by the creatures--many disabled or disfigured. The Dog Who Rescues Cats is packed with touching photographs of Ginny and her feline family."

 

Then we went to the library and I found Anne Tyler's Breathing Lessons at the free book trolley, wohoo! I also took a look at the books the library was selling for 20 cents, and bought me these:

 

- Roddy Doyle: The Woman Who Walked into Doors

- Ford Madox Ford: The Good Soldier (a 1001 book, and in English too!)

- Susan Hill: The Bird of the Night

- Kirsten Thorup: Himmel och helvete (this was a book on our Nordic literature class but I never read it, I thought I'd do it now. Supposed to be a great but difficult read)

- Kurt Vonnegut: Palm Sunday & Welcome to the Monkeyhouse

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Emotional Geology

by Linda Gillard

 

Blurb:

 

Blurb: 'I talk to the island. I don't speak, but my thoughts are directed towards it. Sometimes it replies. Never in words of course. I miss trees. You don't notice at first that there are hardly any trees here, just that the landscape is very flat, as if God had taken away all the hills and mountains and dumped them on neighbouring Skye. But eventually you realise it's trees that you miss. Trees talk back.'

 

Rose Leonard is on the run from her life.

 

Taking refuge in a remote island community, she cocoons herself in work, silence and solitude in a house by the sea. But she is haunted by her past, by memories and desires she'd hoped were long dead.

 

Rose must decide whether she has in fact chosen a new life or just a different kind of death. Life and love are offered by new friends, her lonely daughter, and most of all Calum, a fragile younger man who has his own demons to exorcise.

 

But does Rose, with her tenuous hold on life and sanity, have the courage to say yes to life and put her past behind her?

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Thoughts: A lot of people here on the forum have been raving about this novel for a long time, and about Linda Gillard's novels in general. I read the blurb some time ago and added the title to my wishlist, I liked the premise of the novel and as it came with many wholehearted recommendations, what was I supposed to do but to eventually read the book? :D

 

I loved the novel. There are so many aspects in the book that I loved and enjoyed, and it's making the writing of this review very difficult, because I just want to jump in here and there to praise all the different things, making a cohesive report an impossibility!

 

- I enjoyed the fact that the main character was a more mature woman, one with faults as well as good qualities, it made her seem more real. Her mental problems also brought depth to the story and made me sympathize with her, me having had my own share of mental problems in the past. It was something I could relate to, eventhough our problems and diagnoses are very different. Calum was also a great character, one whom I wished was a real person :blush:

 

- The location was also a great attraction for me. I haven't read many, if any, books set in the British Isles. It was also very intriguing to see how Rose would fit in in a small, secluded community, how she would fair with the people there, and how she could cope with her new, hermit-like life.

 

- I loved Gillard's style of writing. It's been a while since I'd last read a book that gripped me so, I couldn't stop reading unless I was forced to by interfering circumstances, and while I was reading the book, I could totally picture myself being there at the scenes. I didn't feel like I was a fly on the walls, watching what was happening below me, I rather felt like I was a mute friend of the town who was invited to follow the lives of the people on a daily basis. I felt like I was Chief in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, seeing everything, hearing everything, and being a part in the story.

 

- I'm not a very visual person and it's usually hard for me to try and visualise certain things in novels, and one of them is art in particular. However, when I was reading Emotional Geology I had no such problems: Rose's textile artwork came to life for me, I could picture it very vividly, the colours, the look of it, and even the feel of the fabrics. All the stones, all the textiles, the colors... I could picture Rose's house very well, the austere and serene look of it, and even the atmosphere seemed to come in colors while reading this book. When Rose was at her neighbor's, I could feel the warmth of the fireplace and hear the wood crackling.

 

- The book has a varied narrative structure: we have Rose as the narrator and at times there is this omnipresent narrator. There are poems and letters. To me it felt like the story itself, both visually and narration-wise read like a quilt work, which was amazing because quilt works and textile fabrics and paintings were one of the subject matters in the story. I had a very powerful reaction to this one particular nightmare of Rose's that was written in the form of a poem:

 

Gavin

falling

somersaulting

like a string-cut marionette

limbs flailing

ropes flying

a dance of death

accompanied by jingling karabiners at your waist

til

you

hit the rocks

and bounce

then hit some more

and split

your helmet open

like an egg

and your blood spills out

sticky and red

mixed with sharp white fragments of bone

grey gobbets of brain

oozing on wsun-warmed rock. ...

 

When I look at the poem on the page of the book, it kind of reminds me of a mountain itself. And when I was reading these lines (til / you / hit the rocks / and bounce / then hit some more/) I could actually visualise Gavin hitting the surface of the mountain at the end of each line, me moving on the the next and Gavin hitting another surface below, and on, and on. It felt quite surreal!

 

- As for the actual story in the book: there were two twists to the story that I really did not see coming at all:

 

 

Calum having known Gavin and having witnessed his corpse, and Megan having had sex with Gavin. The latter one especially blew my mind, I had to stop reading for a while because I was so stunned. Initially I'd only gotten the impression that Rose and Megan were having some normal mother-daughter issues, but when Rose reacted so strongly to Megan being interested in Calum, I did wonder whether Rose is not perhaps the best mother there is and I was disappointed in her character. The revelation about M&G certainly explained it!

 

 

I was very happy reading the book just as it was, I was really enjoying it, and wasn't expecting anything like that, but it certainly took the whole book to another level after that! Excellent.

 

- One of my favorite parts in the novel was when Rose went to Calum's school to talk to the kids about her artwork. The interaction with the kids was very funny and authentic. And my most favorite bit in that part was when Calum and his students were explaining to Rose about their writing exercises. It was very informative and intriguing, and it made me wonder whether it's an exercise Gillard has picked up herself in some writing shop she might have attended.

 

All in all, I really enjoyed the novel, it's a gem, and I'm so grateful to all the people on here who've read it and recommended it. I will definitely order all the other books by Linda Gillard online.

 

5/5

Edited by frankie
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If you're having problems placing the book on top up your to-read pile, maybe I can be of help? We could read it together some day if you wish :cool:

 

That sounds great. :) But I'm a much slower reader than you. :(

 

- Haruki Murakami: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (I couldn't believe my luck when I found this! It's a little annoying that it's a Finnish copy but since Murakami writes in Japanese, I thought I shouldn't wait to find an English copy)

- Roddy Doyle: The Woman Who Walked into Doors

- Ford Madox Ford: The Good Soldier (a 1001 book, and in English too!)

- Susan Hill: The Bird of the Night

- Kurt Vonnegut: Palm Sunday & Welcome to the Monkeyhouse

 

Great haul! And not bad for someone who isn't supposed to be buying any books. giggle.gif

 

I can imagine how excited you were to find the Murakami. :D Great find! I reckon that one will be an interesting read because I believe it's autobiographical.

 

I have one of Roddy Doyle's books on my TBR pile but I haven't heard of this one. Have you read anything by him before?

 

I bought The Good Soldier earlier this year too. I hope we both enjoy it. :) Woohoo for Susan Hill and Kurt Vonnegut! Great authors. :)

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I've read The Woman Who Walked into Doors, and quite enjoyed it...ditto for the 'sequel' Paula Spencer....I have two more Roddy Doyle's on my shelf Paddy Clark and The Deportees...unread still

 

I read and enjoyed The Woman Who Walked into Doors and I have read the follow up Paula Spencer and didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much I felt it didn't have the same kind of emotion to it.

 

Paddy Clark is my favourite Roddy Doyle and Deportees is not bad at all for a book of short stories.

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So glad you had a good time with Liisa Frankie :) It's interesting to read her thoughts on Never Let Me Go .. I think it reflects most people's opinion. The book is so riveting, but at the same time very frustrating. I'm so interested to find out what you'll make of it. It's dystopian with a small d .. ie: it's not complicated :lol:

 

Emotional Geology sounds fantastic, great review Frankie :) I will put it on my wishlist directly.

 

I quite like Roddy Doyle, he has his own style. I've never read The Woman who Walked into Doors but it has an excellent reputation. I liked his Barrytown trilogy ... The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van .. hilariously funny.

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That sounds great. But I'm a much slower reader than you.

 

Aww, don't worry about that! If you want I'll give you a day or two's headstart :)

 

Great haul! And not bad for someone who isn't supposed to be buying any books.

 

giggle.gif Shush now, Kylie!

I can imagine how excited you were to find the Murakami. Great find! I reckon that one will be an interesting read because I believe it's autobiographical.

 

I was ecstatic, it's the one Murakami I've been wanting to find the most for such a long time! It's autobiographical, and it's about running. I'm hoping to discover my inner runner again, while reading the book :D

 

I have one of Roddy Doyle's books on my TBR pile but I haven't heard of this one. Have you read anything by him before?

 

It's my first Roddy Doyle. I don't know anything about him, but I do know the premise of the novel and that's what drew me into it, I've had it on my wishlist for a while now.

 

I bought The Good Soldier earlier this year too. I hope we both enjoy it. Woohoo for Susan Hill and Kurt Vonnegut! Great authors.

 

I hope so too! I remember reading somewhere how some other author was dissing Ford, so I really want to read a book by him myself and see how I like his style.

 

I've read The Woman Who Walked into Doors, and quite enjoyed it...ditto for the 'sequel' Paula Spencer....I have two more Roddy Doyle's on my shelf Paddy Clark and The Deportees...unread still

 

I read and enjoyed The Woman Who Walked into Doors and I have read the follow up Paula Spencer and didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much I felt it didn't have the same kind of emotion to it.

 

Paddy Clark is my favourite Roddy Doyle and Deportees is not bad at all for a book of short stories.

 

I quite like Roddy Doyle, he has his own style. I've never read The Woman who Walked into Doors but it has an excellent reputation. I liked his Barrytown trilogy ... The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van .. hilariously funny.

 

Apparently Roddy Doyle has some admirers on here, good thing! :smile2:

 

So glad you had a good time with Liisa Frankie It's interesting to read her thoughts on Never Let Me Go .. I think it reflects most people's opinion. The book is so riveting, but at the same time very frustrating. I'm so interested to find out what you'll make of it. It's dystopian with a small d .. ie: it's not complicated

 

Phew, I'm glad to hear NLMG isn't a difficult read, I was beginning to worry about that. I'll have you to blame if I struggle with it :D

 

Emotional Geology sounds fantastic, great review Frankie I will put it on my wishlist directly.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it :)

 

I've been a bad girl again, I went to a bookshop today, when I had to kill some time, and made some great finds. I bought Chelsea Cain's Sweetheart, now I have all the novels in that series. I also bought a Finnish book called Haarautuvan rakkauden talo, I hope it's good, it was even made into a film. And lastly, I found Ernesto 'Che' Guevara's The Motorcycle Diaries! And only for 2 euros, and it was an English edition! Kylie, I swear I searched through the whole shop to find another copy to send to you, and even asked the shopkeeper if they had other copies, but they were all out :(

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Aww, don't worry about that! If you want I'll give you a day or two's headstart :)

 

Tempting! :friends0: But not very fair. I just have to be discplined and devote more time to reading.

 

And lastly, I found Ernesto 'Che' Guevara's The Motorcycle Diaries! And only for 2 euros, and it was an English edition! Kylie, I swear I searched through the whole shop to find another copy to send to you, and even asked the shopkeeper if they had other copies, but they were all out :(

 

Aww, that's lovely of you to think of me, but I think you've confused my TBR pile with my wish list because I already own a copy of The Motorcycle Diaries. :) I actually never had it on my wish list; it was just one of those spur-of-the-moment purchases. It's a good thing the shopkeeper didn't have any extra copies!

 

You're wonderful for thinking of me. :friends3:

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Aww, that's lovely of you to think of me, but I think you've confused my TBR pile with my wish list because I already own a copy of The Motorcycle Diaries. :) I actually never had it on my wish list; it was just one of those spur-of-the-moment purchases. It's a good thing the shopkeeper didn't have any extra copies!

 

You're wonderful for thinking of me. :friends3:

 

Ah, phew! Now I don't feel bad about owning a copy :D I saw TMD in your list on the Collected Letters -thread, and that reminded me that I want to find the book for myself and coincidentally there was a copy at the bookshop yesterday. However, like you said, I just didn't realise that you'd listed it in the thread as a TBR book, not a wishlist book. I wouldn't have had any problems with an extra copy had I found it, it was hella cheap and I knew Valtteri would be interested in reading it, I could've just given it to him :)

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The Group

by Mary McCarthy

From Amazon: "Mary McCarthy's The Group is a sharply-pointed satire of upper-class New England society which follows the post-college lives of eight Vassar graduates, class of '33. Helena was registered for Vassar at birth; Pokey forged her mother's signature on her college application in defiance of the family tradition of "being dim-witted and vain of it." Out in the "real" world, Dottie loses her virginity to a "bad sort" but discovers that she enjoys sex, while Kay subsumes her own talent to the artistic "genius" of her egocentric and philandering husband. Libby writes book reviews that are almost as long as the original material and Polly works as a nurse, while Priss is forced by her pediatrician-husband to go against "tradition" and her inclinations and breastfeed her baby, as proof of his theories. Elinor "Lakey" Eastlake, the sleek, rich leader of the group, travels about Europe and ultimately returns, full of surprises. Adopting the non-stop, generally well-intentioned, but hopelessly narrow-minded voice that typifies the worst of the group, Mary McCarthy filets Ivy League society, socialism, 1930s child-rearing practices, sexual double-standards, psychoanalysis, and men in general."

Thoughts: This was a Rory Books Challenge read for me. I was expecting a lot from this novel, and I'm afraid I was therefore pretty disappointed in it. I loved reading all the social commentary and getting to know what it was like to be a young woman of the time, but otherwise the novel was pretty much a drag. It seemed like McCarthy had listed all the different social difficulties of the 1930s she could come up with, and then forced them on the characters and the plot. It wasn't done for the sake of a good and interesting reading experience, but for the sake of social awareness and that bothered me immensely.

 

I couldn't relate to any of the characters, I don't think McCarthy succeeded in making them in any way agreeable or easily approachable. Right from the start there were so many of them and I kept being confused about who's who and what's their role in the group. I didn't even feel that they were a group as such, I didn't see why these people were friends in the first place and what made them enjoy each other's company and stick together.

 

I read the book some time ago and I see that I've rated it at 4/5, which now seems like a bit too much, but it was what I felt at the time. Go figure :)

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Frankie, I am completely blown away by your post! A lot of readers have loved EMOTIONAL GEOLOGY but you have "got" this book in an incredible way! This is so moving and exciting for me as an author. You never know when you write a book whether readers will see what you see, feel what you feel. Your long post has confirmed that this is possible. (Stephen King says writing is telepathy!)I am thrilled that EMO GEO spoke to you so clearly and vividly. :D

 

In answer to your queries... Calum's writing lesson was the sort of thing I used to do when I was a teacher and ran a Creative Writing club after school. The Timed Writing exercise is one that I learned from books about creative writing by the Buddhist Natalie Goldberg (WILD MIND and WRITING DOWN THE BONES.) I teach this exercise in writing workshops now and it goes down well with all ages and all abilities.

 

As for the revelations... When my (then) teenage daughter was reading the book and she got to the bit you describe concerning Megan, she burst into tears with shock! So I do know what you mean. ;-)

 

The e-book of EMOTIONAL GEOLOGY was published yesterday. (Kindle £1.90/$2.99) The pb has been out of print for a long time, so I've published it myself. I'm thrilled to think EG will now find a new lot of readers.

 

Many, many thanks for your great review. Authors often hear what readers didn't like and which bits of a book didn't work. It's so much harder to explain why a book does work. You have analysed this really clearly and it's incredibly useful for me as an author to know what worked for you and why. :D

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