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A very quick round up of just some of what I've read since last clocking in properly: Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd is vintage Boyd, this story about a reluctant spy in the early 1960s iss an absolute gem. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton Chloe Dalton found a very young leveret and raised it without much hope it would survive. It did and I found the book fascinating, in particular because she took great care to raise Hare as a wild animal in great contrast to my own family where my mother raised a badger from a few hours old who most definitely became a house badger and a pet. Sadly it seems from the ending that The Shadows of Men by Abir Mukherjee is going to be the last in the series, this one was just s good as the previous ones We Solve Murders by Richard Osman is sadly just not as good as his his Thursday Murder Club books but still readable. Out of Time by Jodi Taylor is the sixth in her Time Police series and like the rest very funny. The Last Word by Elly Griffiths is frankly unmemorable. For all those who were worried about Ben Aaronovitch running out of steam, the good news is that in Stone and Sky, Peter Grant's latest outing; he most definitely hasn't.

Just a few ideas: Mick Herron - both series Anne Cleeves Robert Galbraith Abir Mukherjee Peter Lovesey Chris Hammer Peter James

I read this year and loved it.

Moby Dick? As mentioned, I read James Herriot as a teen and he had me laughing out loud. Animal Farm? Nature, Ralph Waldo Emerson?

I read this about 15 years ago and remember it as being superb. I don't know why I always have to be prodded to read Maugham because I love his writing when I do.

Can I suggest Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (which I read before this topic started). It's a wonderful account of how the author found a very young leveret and raised it, always aware that it was a wild animal and should not be a pet. It's one of those books that stays with you.

Leave me alone - Michael Jackson

Autumn Leaves - Nat King Cole (this is a really nice song) And the biggest selling piano recording of all time

I can't think of anything for this category either.

Forever Autumn - Justin Hayward

a secure station like

Now and Forever - Richard Marx

14. The Painted Veil - Somerset Maugham - 4.5/5 -Same as what luna said about this book. 😀 I really, really enjoyed the writing.

for safe keeping into

Another suggestion is My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell or one of his other animal books.

Hold Me Now ~ Thompson Twins

Why not? I have a Tarka the Otter omnibus and a James Herriot omnibus that I have my eye on - and no, that’s not why I chose the category 🙂 I read James Herriot as a teenager. They will have to go some to beat The Wind in the Willows, though. I am also considering Watership Down.

I'm struggling to think of what to read for this one! I might go for The Mercies, which I believe is based on the true story of a terrible storm and its consequences.

It might not actually be a children's mass at the other church. I have to admit, I don't know much about the United Reformed Church, but the catholic church we go to is really friendly towards kids. On Sundays there's a children's liturgy, where they can go over to an attached room and do fun activities like colouring (the school-age ones, anyway). If you have a young child being really noisy, there's an area you can stand in that has speakers, so you can still hear what the priest is saying, but the baby noise isn't stopping other people from being able to hear. The mass is a normal one though, not an actual children's mass.

Hold back the River - James Bay

Moon River - Andy Williams

Heartstone by C J Sansom “Politics is like dice: the better the player, the worse the man.” This is the fifth in the series of Shardlake novels set in the reign of Henry VIII. This time we are in 1545 and England is on the brink of war with France. The action moves between London, Portsmouth and rural Hampshire. There are some recurring characters. Barak is still Shardlake’s sidekick. Sir Richard Rich is suitably villainous as ever and Guy the physician also continues to be a part of the story. The plot this time has a couple of focuses. The Court of Wards is one of them dealing with the wardship of orphaned children. The other is a continuation from a previous book and deals withy a resident of Bedlam. As ever there are plenty of twists and turns. There are always some predictabilities. Shardlake inevitably gets threatened and taken captive. He is always in the middle of whatever historical event is going on. During the build up I thought to myself, surely he’s not going to stick the poor chap on the Mary Rose when it sinks? Well, wait and see!! There is another interesting story line in the form of a transgender character and Sansom handles this pretty well without resorting to formulaic solutions. Ideal comfort reading (for me anyway). 7 and a half out of 10 Starting Death under a little Sky by Stig Abell

Harvest Moon - Neil Young

the police took her

now so widespread, that