Poppy's Paperbacks 2012

[poppyshake]

Reading Goals for April 2012

 

Finish Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch/Un Lun Dun - China Mieville

Participate in the April reading circle (The Fifth Child - Doris Lessing)

World Book Night 2012 (Charlie & The Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl)

Science Fiction (Slaves of the Klau - Jack Vance)

Ok, April was a bit of a failure. I set myself less goals but didn't achieve them and worse than that I hardly wrote any reviews .. one I think .. which is an all time low. Mojo went missing and turned up in Cornwall .. not literally although I am just back from Looe but fictionally .. in the sublime storytelling of Daphne du Maurier but it didn't go missing because of bad reads .. I enjoyed all of my April books .. so it could abscond again any minute. I think it needs nurturing and that's something I'm going to try and do in May.

 

Reading Goals for May 2012

 

Make more time to read

Write some blooming reviews

[willoyd]

I was shocked when I spoke to my nephew and niece about reading recently and my nephew (14) said 'I read facebook .. does that count' and my niece (12) said she was still reading the same Jacqueline Wilson book she started at Christmas .. when I was their age I literally ate books .. well not literally but you know what I mean

I know exactly what you mean: my favourite place to read was one particular step on the stairs, and the rest of the family got fed up with constantly tripping over me! I loved reading with a passion!

As a primary teacher, I do worry about children reading today, but there are enough who go through my class with the same ability to eat books to keep me fairly optimistic. I even manage to convert some too (Michael Morpurgo has been the most successful at this, closely followed by Anthony Horowitz).

 

There wasn't the same distractions then though .. no computer obviously (I think we were still using abacuses ) and minimal TV

Children also have less natural downtime - so many of my children have their time structured for them with this activity and that activity, parents trying (I think) to compensate for the lack of outdoor play and time actually spent with their children (so many are so busy working that they spend their entire holidays worrying more about child care than anything else).

 

.. still, as I said before, to a certain extent I'm falling prey to these new Gods too .. the internet especially. I need to be more disciplined with it and at least limit my 'browsing' time.

Can only agree with you there - I spend far too much time browsing. That's may be why I read about half of what you do, although I do spend a lot of time on other things too!

Edited May 2, 2012 by willoyd

[chaliepud]

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As a primary teacher, I do worry about children reading today, but there are enough who go through my class with the same ability to eat books to keep me fairly optimistic. I even manage to convert some too (Michael Morpurgo has been the most successful at this, closely followed by Anthony Horowitz).

 

 

For some children it takes a lot of effort from teachers and parents alike to encourage a child's reading. We are fortunate that our primary school insists that children either bring a book of their own in every day or borrow one from their well stocked library. At home I nearly always buy my children's books as they seem to be keener to read those than library books and whilst it would save money to use the library ultimately I am more concerned with getting them reading than saving money. If I didn't encourage them and buy them books I truly believe they wouldn't bother reading. I also have a rule that they are not allowed to take electronic devices into their bedrooms so reading is about all they can do, and I don't nag about turning off lights if they are happy reading, within reason of course, they tend to fall asleep reading anyway! You're right about Morpurgo (my daughter has over 30 of his books ) and Horowitz, these books have definitely helped my two eldest 'get into' reading books. I'd also add Michael Grant's Gone series, Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl books and The Cherub series by Robert Muchamore to that list as they have been instrumental in my older sons love of reading. Now I just need to persuade my 7 year old that he can read about something other than Tornadoes and Volcanoes!!!

[chaliepud]

Children also have less natural downtime - so many of my children have their time structured for them with this activity and that activity, parents trying (I think) to compensate for the lack of outdoor play and time actually spent with their children (so many are so busy working that they spend their entire holidays worrying more about child care than anything else).

 

We are guilty of exactly that, partly to compensate for them not being able to play out as much as we did (although they will do that more in the summer) but also to allow them to try out new things and to help towards their physical and social development. My 3 children do Scouts, Guides and Beavers which is a great social and practical activity. My daughter plays the piano and badminton and climbs a few times a month, the boys both play football and badminton which keeps them very fit, and around that we squeeze homework, friends to play and the occasional family activity. My husband works away for weeks at a time and it can get very hectic but I constantly hope I am helping create well balanced young people people with good social skills and experiences. I guess I won't know if it's worked for a few years yet!

 

Sorry Poppy, I seem to have got carried away on your thread!

Edited May 3, 2012 by chaliepud

[Ruth]

WHAT you and me outside Ruth . I loved her as Elizabeth Bennett and much preferred that version to the bbc one.

 

anyway sorry for derailing great reviews Poppyshake I really must catch up on my own.

Yay .. my thoughts exactly on Keira .. I just cannot see the appeal. Because I disliked the story so much I can't see me wanting to watch Madame B .. I'm certainly not forking out money at the cinema for it but maybe when it comes to TV I'll give it a look. Mia as you say is a good actress and my expectations will be low so that might be an advantage. I loved Ruth Wilson as Jane ... exactly right I thought. I haven't seen Mia as Jane but my first thought is .. she's far too pretty.

 

Sorry Sally I'm with Ruth on this one .. and it wasn't just Keira that I thought was wrong for the part .. nearly everyone else was, imo, woefully miscast .. however I don't want to trash a favourite of yours and I definitely don't want you to call me outside .. you look like you mean business

 

Sorry ER - didn't mean to insult a film you love, but....I just don't like Keira Knightley in ANY film I've seen her in! I have nothing against her personally; she's probably a lovely person, but I just don't like watching her act. I have to agree wtih Poppy as well - I thought a lot of people in that particular version were miscast (Donald Sutherland????!!!!), BUT I like hearing different opinions...and if the film encouraged anyone to pick up the book, that can only be a good thing

 

I did love the BBC version, although I never got the hoo-ha over Colin Firth. Lovely man, great actor, but he doesn't do it for me in 'that' way.

 

As for Madame Bovary, I didnt like the book much, so doubt I will bother with the film. I would probably watch it if it came on the television in the fullness of time, but I wouldn't spend money going to see it.

 

Agree that Mia is probably too pretty for Jane Eyre. I remember seeing the Joan Fontaine/Orson Welles version (which, if you haven't seen it, I probably wouldn't recommend - it cuts the bit about Jane's cousins out completely). Fontaine was stunning - far too beautiful to play Jane. Ruth Wilson is very attractive in an unconventional way, which made her perfect for the part of Jane. And I adored Toby Stephens as Rochester (or in anything to be honest!)

 

Thanks Willoyd .. I've definitely put aside more time to read this week and it's been great. I was shocked when I spoke to my nephew and niece about reading recently and my nephew (14) said 'I read facebook .. does that count' and my niece (12) said she was still reading the same Jacqueline Wilson book she started at Christmas .. when I was their age I literally ate books .. well not literally but you know what I mean .. my Mum used to say I read myself into headaches. There wasn't the same distractions then though .. no computer obviously (I think we were still using abacuses ) and minimal TV .. still, as I said before, to a certain extent I'm falling prey to these new Gods too .. the internet especially. I need to be more disciplined with it and at least limit my 'browsing' time.

 

Same here. I read so much when I was that age that my parents could barely keep up. My mum used to take me to the library regularly, and buy books to keep us (my brothers and I) reading. I do agree though that there weren't the distractions which there are now. I didn't watch an awful lot of tv - still don't really - and of course, didn't have a computer, I try to limit the amount of time I spend on the computer now, especially in the evening at home.

[willoyd]

....partly to compensate for them not being able to play out as much as we did (although they will do that more in the summer) but also to allow them to try out new things and to help towards their physical and social development.

Yes, the positive side is that children do get that chance to try new things. The downside though is that we're finding more and more children have lost all the really important skills learned from playing on their own that apply in so many areas - they are more dependent, less creative, weaker in social skills (and that is not balanced out by activities where adults are in charge), and noticeably less physically co-ordinated (with, again, structured play and activities failing to sufficiently compensate): all in all the loss of so much unsupervised outdoor play is having huge repercussions that are very noticeable to all those working in primary schools. The loss of family meal-times is having the same effect on language and social skills too! To sum up, more and more children are noticeably increasingly dysfunctional. It's equally noticeable that where children do get these experiences, they stand out head and shoulders above their peers in the maturity they show in all areas.

 

Interesting you mentioned Robert Muchamore's CHERUB series: I was talking only today with 2 boys in my class who are absolutely hooked on the series, and were working on me to get copies for the class library. I hadn't fully pickedup on these before, but they do look great!

 

I agree about buying books - we did much the same for our offspring (now just turned 20), and believe firmly that anything else wouldn't have worked. We had the same policy about lights out too - and it never once failed to work sensibly. He's no longer a fanatical reader - too many other things going on - but still reads fairly regularly forr pleasure, including classics as well as his mainstream lightweight stuff to, as he says, compensate for the really heavy physics reading he has to do for his uni work! He can still write a mean essay though!

 

(Hope I haven't been helping hijack your thread Poppy - it's not only chaliepud who can rant on this subject!).

Edited May 4, 2012 by willoyd

[poppyshake]

(Hope I haven't been helping hijack your thread Poppy - it's not only chaliepud who can rant on this subject!).

Not at all .. I love these sorts of conversations. It's sad though isn't it? ... the steady march of progress which seems to bring with it all sorts of changes which reduce our quality of life rather than enhance it. As parents (and teachers) you can only do your best and give your children encouragement and a good grounding which will hopefully see them through. Again it's getting the balance right but it's quite shocking how much homework little children get these days. At junior school I hardly used to have any .. now I hear they get far too much. It ends up stressing the child and the parents and probably has the reverse effect to the one intended and of course it gives them far less leisure time and after studying it's no wonder they don't feel much like picking up a book. J.K. Rowling is always credited with getting kids reading again and I guess to a large extent that's true ... and what with the Michael Morpurgo's/Philip Pullman's/Jacqueline Wilson's/Eoin Colfer's/David Walliams etc there are lots of great stories out there to spark a childs interest and I do think things have improved on that score compared to say the 1980's and early 90's .. certainly I know 'Octavia's' .. Cirencesters little independent children's bookshop .. is doing amazingly well all things considered and I imagine the Kindle is doing it's bit to make reading more attractive to teenagers etc.

 

I watched the two hungry (or is it greedy?) Italians the other week and they were shocked at the increase in childhood obesity and it was put down to bad diet (in Italy ) and a drop in physical activity. There are vending machines in Italian schools now .. full of crisps and chocolate .. and the kids there spend a lot of their free time on the computer playing games. I guess it's getting to be the same the world over .. or the Western world over anyway.

[willoyd]

Good point about the homework. I'm a year 5 teacher (9-10), in a school where regular homework is the required policy - and I hate setting it. It's one of very few things that I completely disagree with in school. Far too much 'academic' work and not enough real learning!

[julie]

Hi Poppy

Just a quick note in here regarding kids of today and their like or dislike of reading. My grandson is almost 10 ,very smart and gets good grades in school,but they work him to death. I always thought he'd love school since he was smart and very inquisitive about everything,but they pile on so much homework,it's sad. He has come here after school a few times and his mom has him trained to do homework first ,THEN he can do other stuff. He gets here about 10 after 3,and starts right in on the homework and is still on it at 5 or 5:30 ,sometimes later .

He's very fast at getting each page completed,so it's not that he is a slow student,it's that they bury them in schoolwork at night. It's a little bit overdone in my opinion. He used to LOVE books when he was smaller,but now ,they are a :"chore" to him,and just one more homework assignment. They actually make the kids read at least 15 minutes a night, on any type book other than homework. THAT also bothers me, because they are turning an enjoyment into a type of punishment ,or piling it in along with the rest of the homework.

It makes me sad that it's the new way of teaching here I guess. To me, reading as a kid was a treat, like watching a favorite tv show, or eating a favorite food,something you really enjoyed doing,but to most kids I know, reading is a chore, to be done quickly so you can move on to the next chore .

I do have other grandkids that I rarely see (probably because they live in another country ) ,who love reading .I don't know what their homework system is over there ,though,so maybe they have more free time that they do here .

I guess a lot depends on the kid too. I had only one sister ,who hated reading and complained all the time about me liking to read. She always said I was a lousy sister because I wanted to sit someplace and read instead of play with her . I also have parents who STILL don't understand why I like to read.

My dad actually asked me one day " What do you GET out of these things ?" ,when he picked up a book I was reading .

How do you answer THAT ? It'd take an essay to answer it I think .

Edited May 5, 2012 by julie

[chaliepud]

Our Junior (ages 7-11) school isn't too bad for homework, my 11 year old daughter gets set 3 pieces a week as a rule, each with at least 2 days to complete it and they are told that they must not spend more than an hour doing it (It's normally more like half an hour) and then a parent can sign it and back in the school bag it goes. Generally it's one for English, one for Maths and one for Science or project work, not too bad I think. My 7 year old is just finishing infant school and probably gets half to one hour a week and the school no longer does traditional spellings as they have now implemented a new daily Phonics programme which helps the children with their spelling far better than the traditional look, cover and write method of the past, the children's reading levels have shot up since starting it.

 

I won't comment about my elder son's secondary school homework, I'll just say there is definitely no pattern to it!!!!

[poppyshake]

 

Waterstone's Synopsis: Grace is fascinated by the wolves in the woods behind her house; one yellow-eyed wolf in particular. Every winter, she watches him but every summer, he disappears. Sam leads two lives. In winter, he stays in the frozen woods, with the protection of the pack. In summer, he has a few precious months to be human ...until the cold makes him shift back again. When Grace and Sam finally meet, they realize they can't bear to be apart. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human - or risk losing himself, and Grace, for ever

 

Review: It seems I'm still finding out what I do and don't like in books and it turns out I DON'T LIKE THIS!!

 

Now I know I'm flying in the face of popular opinion here and definitely in the minority but I have to be honest, apart from the first few chapters (which I really rather liked), I hated it. There are all sorts of reasons why. I'm not a big fan of the high school teen romance thing .. I don't usually read it or watch it and ... though I've never read Twilight ... something has always told me that I wouldn't like the whole vampire/werewolf/human love thing and it turns out, if this is anything to go by, that my instincts were right. I'm probably just too old and cynical. I found myself mentally saying 'oh purleeze' nearly every five minutes and found that, as the story warmed up, I had to use the same amount of suspended disbelief as I did when I watched a tracheotomy being carried out on a kitchen table in 'Neighbours' .. more than I have in the tank in other words.

 

I think I've said before that if there is to be vampires and werewolves in fiction .. I like them to act accordingly or at least I don't want them to curb their instincts because they are in love One of the things I liked about Professor Lupin was that ... when he was in werewolf form ... he wanted to rip everyone's head off

 

Although things can hardly have said to have been going swimmingly I was really upset by the ending

which is where they decide to infect Sam & Jack with the meningitis virus in order to induce a fever which might keep them human .. or in Sam's case .. return him to being human. When I was eighteen one of my closest friends died of meningitis .. it was one of the lowest times of my life and I just didn't appreciate it being written into the story for such a spurious reason. And it was all a bit obvious. I mean, despite his disappearance shortly after being injected, was there anyone who actually believed that Sam was dead? ... or anyone who didn't know that when he eventually turned up he would be in human form? ... it was about as surprising as last Monday's cheese on toast.

 

Really!! I believed in Frankenstein's creature more than I believed in Sam .. and goodness how I hated his song lyrics (Sam's not the creature's .. I'm not aware he wrote lyrics but then his grasp on the English language was such that it could only have been a matter of time before Lloyd Webber was on the phone .. oh! don't start me off!!!!)

 

Many, many apologies to all the fans of this book. All I can say is that .. like one of those bad shellfish reactions you didn't know you had .. I've just found out that I'm violently allergic to this kind of storyline. It's not that it's bad .. it isn't .. it's just not for me and it has got a lot to do with my age most probably .. I may well have loved it when I was a teenager. I'm sad in a way because I do count myself as a bit of a romantic but this just didn't tug at any of my strings. It actually made me cringe in places which is probably not the effect she was after.

 

I don't think my reaction is at all typical .. in fact I know it's not .. it's an incredibly popular book. I couldn't wait for it to end though ... I wanted to abandon but still have some ridiculous prejudices against doing so so suffered on. I think I may well be alone in my 'I hate Shiver' suport group .. the monthly meetings will be unpleasant .. all on my todd with only the howling outside of disgruntled fans for company but I can't pretend what I don't feel (well I can actually .. I once told my friend's Mum that her pie was lovely .. though I had found a dead fly in it ) and anyway I'm pretty sure that Maggie will get along fine with or without my good opinion.

 

*Newsflash* I won't be reading the sequel

 

5/10

[vodkafan]

Good review Poppy I don't think I would like it either. So I will come to the meetings and we can have some cake

[Karsa Orlong]

I don't think my reaction is at all typical .. in fact I know it's not .. it's an incredibly popular book.

 

5/10

[rant mode: on]Well there are a lot of things that are popular that are, in fact, a load of shite. Britain's Got Talent. Twilight. Cheryl Cole. My current bugbear: The Hunger Games. I even despair that George RR Martin is suddenly flavour of the fantasy month because there's a successful tv series adapted from his books - both of which I am a fan of, but why do some people need to see things on a screen before they'll pick up a book? Are they unable to imagine someone/thing without a tv show/movie to tell them what he/she/it looks like?? [/rant mode: off]

 

I think you were being generous giving it a 5, by the sounds of it

[poppyshake]

Good review Poppy I don't think I would like it either. So I will come to the meetings and we can have some cake

Yay .. thanks VF .. I do love company .. I don't like eating alone

[rant mode: on]Well there are a lot of things that are popular that are, in fact, a load of shite. Britain's Got Talent. Twilight. Cheryl Cole. My current bugbear: The Hunger Games. I even despair that George RR Martin is suddenly flavour of the fantasy month because there's a successful tv series adapted from his books - both of which I am a fan of, but why do some people need to see things on a screen before they'll pick up a book? Are they unable to imagine someone/thing without a tv show/movie to tell them what he/she/it looks like?? [/rant mode: off]

People need it all explained these days .. not us lot of course .. we're super clever but you know .. the others It's because of them that we have to have voiceover man telling us that 'Sheila is packing her bags' whilst they show us Sheila packing her bags The popularity of Cheryl Cole is really the eighth wonder of the world .. I'm still puzzling over it anyway. Britain's Got Talent!! .. has it? why are they trying to prove the opposite then

I haven't read/seen The Hunger Games .. I listened to a sample on Audible and thought no .. I don't think it's for me. I am surprisingly susceptible to hype though and keep thinking I should give it a try but then my heart quails (can my heart do that? .. I'm not sure now I've written it .. it sounds vaguely avian) at the thought of a trilogy.

I think you were being generous giving it a 5, by the sounds of it

Do you know I've never thought of myself as benevolent before but you're right that was good of me All of that 5 came before the love story kicked in .. I was thinking it was quite an 8 at that point ... then I started deducting points. Given the way Sam's lyrics were going I'm surprised it didn't end up in minus figures

 

I'm being mean .. hopefully someone will come on here and give a more balanced account of it.

[Karsa Orlong]

People need it all explained these days .. not us lot of course .. we're super clever but you know .. the others

Aha! So I can start pestering you to give Erikson another try

[Janet]

I am surprisingly susceptible to hype though and keep thinking I should give it a try but then my heart quails (can my heart do that? .. I'm not sure now I've written it .. it sounds vaguely avian) at the thought of a trilogy.

You are perfectly correct - quail in this context means to cower or shrink back in fear.

 

Who wrote Shiver? My poor eyes can't read the cover! I think I'll be giving it as miss anyway.

 

Oh, and Steve - I totally agree about Cheryl Cole and Britain's Got Talent and for those who don't we'll demoralise you and be really obnoxious and X-Factor!

[Karsa Orlong]

Oh, and Steve - I totally agree about Cheryl Cole and Britain's Got Talent and for those who don't we'll demoralise you and be really obnoxious and X-Factor!

 

I blame the gossip mags and the tabloids

 

Let's start a revolution

[Kylie]

Quick, Poppyshake! While you're still in a ranting mood, go and re-read How I Live Now! I'm convinced you'll now hate it as much as I did! For the love of good books, hurry!

 

 

 

What are you still doing here reading my post? Skedaddle! *pushes Poppyshake out of the thread (in a nice, friendly way)*

[poppyshake]

Aha! So I can start pestering you to give Erikson another try

Ermmm ... let's just say it's a possibility. I haven't ruled out giving him another go but you know .. on your head be it (for instance where there's blame there's a claim Steve .. so I'd be worried if I were you )

You are perfectly correct - quail in this context means to cower or shrink back in fear.

Isn't that funny .. it looked all wrong on the page but my brain was working after all thanks Janet

Who wrote Shiver? My poor eyes can't read the cover! I think I'll be giving it as miss anyway.

Sorry Janet I should have written the author's name down .. I used to do that sort of thing when I was a more responsible reviewer. Anyhow it's Maggie Stiefvater. It might be your cup of tea .. it's a lot of people's cup of tea ... not mine though .. I'd rather drink a bucketful of Bath spa water

Let's start a revolution

Yay!! I think the person to target first is Simon Cowell .. now all we need is a weapon .. something that destroys mirrors possibly

Quick, Poppyshake! While you're still in a ranting mood, go and re-read How I Live Now! I'm convinced you'll now hate it as much as I did! For the love of good books, hurry!

What are you still doing here reading my post? Skedaddle! *pushes Poppyshake out of the thread (in a nice, friendly way)*

You're too late Kylie I finished Dirk Bogarde's memoir last night and it put me in a much better frame of mind .. I'm in the mood to love all books again. Probably even Madame B would look enticing if I could see her but thankfully she's packed away in a box .. I'm not falling for that old one

I can still remember your review of HILN .. I could feel the steam coming off the page

[Karsa Orlong]

Ermmm ... let's just say it's a possibility. I haven't ruled out giving him another go but you know .. on your head be it (for instance where there's blame there's a claim Steve .. so I'd be worried if I were you )

Ha! Well you've just told us you're super clever, so I'm not worried

 

Besides, you've got me here now to answer your questions

 

Yay!! I think the person to target first is Simon Cowell .. now all we need is a weapon .. something that destroys mirrors possibly

I'll just set the actual Karsa on him. It'd be over in less than a second

[frankie]

Awww Frankie. thank goodness I am no longer a voice in the wilderness

 

No, it’s two voices now in the wilderness Stereo! And I think Andrea would also like to join us.

 

Frankenstein is a dreadful and a boring book!!' - I should have just written that .. no spoiler tags needed and to the point I think

 

Oh you know that would never do! People love reading your reviews

 

I loved the dialogue .. most romantic ever .. even when they were slinging insults

 

That was a part of the attraction, the fact that they could say the meanest things and it would be said with love and affection, and they wouldn’t flinch at the rudest remark.

 

Yes, Alan would be quite shocked too .. we'd best not tell him. I'm glad I did my homework first .. even though it was the worst kind of homework ever. I found out what I liked and what I didn't. Clever people probably get it right first time which is to be recommended because otherwise there's a whole lot of sh*t to contend with but it's never too late to strike gold

 

I agree, I think it’s best to keep quiet about the atrocious ex partners Doing your homework while (unknowingly) waiting for the future Mr Right sucks at the time, but when you’ve done it and have ‘graduated’ so to speak (), it really pays off. I hated it that me and ex didn’t make it in the end, because when I started going out with him I thought I’d marry this person. However, I know what where the deal breakers in our relationship and I will definitely benefit from that in the future.

 

The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne

Frankie: I can’t wait to see what you make of it, I got a copy of my own last year.

I have no idea why but I'm a bit frightened of this one ... so very brave of me to buy it .. well done me!

That’s kinda funny, or weird. Having read the blurb, it doesn’t seem too intimidating (meaning, that it would be a difficult read in the sense that the story is not clear cut or it’s over-the-head philosophical etc.), and it’s quite a short read, too!

 

 

 

What a wonderful review! This is going on my wishlist

 

Review: Absolutely fascinating. This is Oscar's 50,000 word letter to Bosie (and my 50,000 word review of it) .. written whilst in Reading prison on paper that was apparently rationed out at one sheet per day.

 

That made absolutely no sense to me, because my mind overlooked the capital R in Reading What a lovely prison it must be, though. Reading prison!

 

Quick, Poppyshake! While you're still in a ranting mood, go and re-read How I Live Now! I'm convinced you'll now hate it as much as I did! For the love of good books, hurry!

 

Which book is this, and why can’t I remember why you hated it so much? =(

[poppyshake]

Ha! Well you've just told us you're super clever, so I'm not worried

I may have exaggerated .. just the teensiest bit

Besides, you've got me here now to answer your questions

Awww .. thanks (boy will you regret saying that )

I'll just set the actual Karsa on him. It'd be over in less than a second

Can I watch?

[poppyshake]

However, I know what where the deal breakers in our relationship and I will definitely benefit from that in the future.

You will indeed. I mean there is always compromise in every relationship (I'm very bad at it though and a terrible digger in of heels ) .. but I really don't believe in all that 'opposites attracting' b******t .. that is heading for troublesville in my opinion. I think you need to be three quarters the same or similar .. and a quarter at most different. I mean Wallace loved everything about Wendolene and they seemed perfect but then he found out she didn't like cheese .. and for him that was enough (are you following me? ) I mean it's perfectly ok for you to like porridge for breakfast and him to like scrambled eggs but you're getting into a two saucepan scenario then first thing in the morning and that's not to be taken on lightly (hope I'm helping )

That made absolutely no sense to me, because my mind overlooked the capital R in Reading What a lovely prison it must be, though. Reading prison!

Lol ... it's hard for me to read it any other way because I spent most of my adolescence there (or very near it) and Alan was born there. It was a bit like a prison actually .. we were glad to escape. Oscar did do a lot of reading in Reading prison though .. mostly the Bible I think which made him very reflective. I wouldn't go so far as to say that he compared himself with Christ but he definitely identified with him.

Which book is this, and why can’t I remember why you hated it so much? =(

It's How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff .. Kylie hated it with a vengeance but I liked it Kylie can tell you why (hope my public liability insurance is up to date .. she nearly blew a gasket when she reviewed it last time )

[chaliepud]

 

It's How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff .. Kylie hated it with a vengeance but I liked it Kylie can tell you why (hope my public liability insurance is up to date .. she nearly blew a gasket when she reviewed it last time )

 

Hmm, I have this on my TBR shelf, will I like it or will I not?................

[frankie]

You will indeed. I mean there is always compromise in every relationship (I'm very bad at it though and a terrible digger in of heels) .. but I really don't believe in all that 'opposites attracting' b******t .. that is heading for troublesville in my opinion.

 

I do agree with that. Ex was the complete opposite of me, and as much as that was refreshing in the beginning, and as much as I learnt from him (I really do owe him, a lot!), it just couldn't have worked out in the end.

 

I think you need to be three quarters the same or similar .. and a quarter at most different. I mean Wallace loved everything about Wendolene and they seemed perfect but then he found out she didn't like cheese .. and for him that was enough (are you following me?) I mean it's perfectly ok for you to like porridge for breakfast and him to like scrambled eggs but you're getting into a two saucepan scenario then first thing in the morning and that's not to be taken on lightly (hope I'm helping )

 

I'm following, because a person who doesn't like cheese must be a bit perverse and not in a good way However, I really have no idea who this Wallace dude is and who Wendolene is I am pulling out the 'I'm a foreigner!' -card in my defense

 

Okay, one pan breakfast is a must, hm, check.... *scribbles down*

 

Lol ... it's hard for me to read it any other way because I spent most of my adolescence there (or very near it) and Alan was born there. It was a bit like a prison actually .. we were glad to escape. Oscar did do a lot of reading in Reading prison though .. mostly the Bible I think which made him very reflective. I wouldn't go so far as to say that he compared himself with Christ but he definitely identified with him.

 

Hahaha, I couldn't help but read that as in you spending your adolescence in Reading prison Hm, interesting stuff about Oscar identifying with Christ. Although I kinda do understand, in the most basic way one can take it; Christ was not 'cool' and was crucified, Wilde was gay and was imprisoned.

 

Which reminds me: I have a biography on Wilde. Now, do you think it makes any difference if I read De Profundis first and then the biography? Or...?

 

 

It's How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff .. Kylie hated it with a vengeance but I liked it. Kylie can tell you why (hope my public liability insurance is up to date .. she nearly blew a gasket when she reviewed it last time)

 

Sorry, I meant I knew the title but what sort of book was it. Because I just can't, at the moment, remember a book Kylie would've really, utterly loathed. I hope she has spare gasket, hehe!

 

Sorry for butchering your PM to rid of all emoticons but you know how it is!