Frankie reads 2012

[frankie]

The Public Confessions of a Middle-aged Woman Aged 55 3/4

by Sue Townsend

 

Amazon: Enter the world of Susan Lilian Townsend - sun-worshippers, work-shy writers, garden-centre lovers and those in search of a good time all welcome. Over the last decade, Sue Townsend has written a monthly column for "Sainsbury's Magazine", which covers everything from hosepipe bans and Spanish restaurants to writer's block and the posh middle-aged woman she once met who'd never heard of Winnie-the-Pooh. Collected together now for the first time, they form a set of pieces from one of Britain's most popular and acclaimed writers that is funny, perceptive and touching.

 

Thoughts: I'm going to be a darling and offer you two samples from the book!

 

 

Control Freak? Moi?

 

I'm sitting on a plane at Edinburgh airport watching the luggage handlers at work. I'm fascinated by one man in particular. He is tall and has only half a head of hair. He has the lugubrious face of a natural comedian. In between throwing luggage into the hold he is afflicted by several minor inconveniences. A loose thread from his clothing wafts about, touching his face. He tries to grab at the thread, but he is wearing padded industrial gloves and so the thread continues to elude him. Then a fly lands on his chest. He brushes it off, it lands on his arm, his shoulder, his neck. The man curses, I can see his lips moving. He then starts to sneeze. I can't hear the sneeze because I am cocooned inside the plane, but I can tell from the way his body is jack-knifing that the sneezes are violent and noisy. During a lull in the sneezing the man pushes out a handkerchief, it falls to the ground and is blown away across the runway. He turns the conveyor belt off and chases the handkerchief. While his back is turned a red sports bag throws itself off the conveyor and rolls under the conveyor. The man catches up with his handkerchief, blows his nose vigorously and returns to his work.

 

I look down at the red sports bag. I am anxious now. Will the man notice it? Should I report it to somebody? I know there is a Scottish international football referee on the plane. Is the bag his? Does it contain the vital tools of his trade? The luggage man continues with his work, batting occasionally at the thread, the fly and now his hair because the wind has stiffened and his remaining hair is being blown forwards into his eyes.

 

I am willing the man to look down and see the red sports bag, but his attention is elsewhere. A colleague has joined him and they are now sharing a joke. My man bends double with laughter, then has a coughing fit. His colleague strolls away and my man swats at the invisible thread, the fly which has returned and his intractable hair.

 

The pilot announces that final checks are being made and that we are due to depart within a few minutes. My man outside doesn't appear to know this. He has slowed down. He is rubbing the small of his back and grimacing. Now his bootlace has come undone, he stops the conveyor, puts his boot on the side and re-ties the lace. He takes his time and although the sports bag must be within his line of vision, he appears not to notice it. The pilot rambles on, talking about the weather in London. He tells us his nam, which I immediately forget, but I do know that it is a reassuring name, something like Peter Worthington, David Morgan or Chris Parker. Good, solid names.

 

I'd put good money on it that they don't let you into pilot training college if you have a flashy, unreliable sounding nam. And, personally, I'd rather not have a Spike De Maurier at the controls as we encounter turbulence over the Alps. I know this is illogical and unfair, but as the plane falls out of the sky I want a Peter, a David or a Chris to tell me that 'We'll soon be passing through this small spot of bother'.

 

My man outside is in pain, not metaphysical pain, but physical. Every time he picks up a suitcase, he looks to be in agony. I've got some strong painkillers in my bag and I long to leave the plane and give him a couple (and at the same time to point out the damned red sports bag).

 

This article was going to be about our holiday in Cyprus where, yes, despite swearing never to again, we ended up watching the wretched folk dancing and wandering around ruins in temperatures similar to that of a space craft re-entering the earth's atmosphere. We also went to see Aphrodite's pool, where the Goddess was reputed to conduct her ablutions. It was not breathtakingly beautiful being surrounded by empty fag packets and faded Coke cans.

 

However, enough of that. How's our man doing with the luggage? There are now only three bags to load and the red sports bag is still there, unnoticed, under the conveyor. Shall I knock on my porthole window and try to alert my man? Me? A control freak? Never.

 

 

 

Janet and John

 

I was eight years old before I could read. My teacher was a despot. I will call her Mrs X. (She died long ago, but I am still afraid of her.) Her method of teaching reading was to give every child in the class a copy of Janet and John and have us point to each word, then chant it aloud. The stories in Janet and John were not exactly riveting. Daddy would go off in the morning, wearing his trilby, overcoat and gloves, carrying a strange bag which I now know to be a briefcase. Daddy always wore the same clothes, even in summer. Mummy would wave him goodbye. She usually wore a pretty frock, frilly apron and high heels. If she went shopping in the village she changed into a nifty suit, a felt hat and gloves, of course.

 

Janet and John seemed to live in the garden. They got on remarkably well, unlike most brothers and sisters I know. They had a nice, cheeky-faced dog called Spot, and they spent a lot of time shouting, 'Look, Spot, look! Look at the ball! Fetch the ball!'

 

When Daddy came home from work he would take off his overcoat and hat, stick a pipe between his manly teeth, sit down in a big square armchair and read the newspaper. Through the open kitchen door Mummy could be seen, smiling serenely as she prepared tea. She would then go to the kitchen door and shout, 'Come here, Janet! Come here, John!' And Janet and John would climb down the tree, or get out of the boat (they seemed to have a river at the bottom of their garden) and Mummy and Daddy and Janet and John would have their scrumptious tea: sandwhiches, jam tarts and jelly.

 

The table was draped with a white tablecloth, and sometimes Spot could be seen grinning cheekily from beneath it. Mummy and Daddy occasionally went into the garden, where the sun always shone, and the flowers behaved themselves and grew in perfect rows. Daddy would push the lawnmower and Mummy would hang out the washing. There was never underwear on Mummy's clothes line, but there was always a good drying wind that made the wet clothes billow and flap. Daddy's hair was never ruffled by the wind; he was a devotee of Brilliantine. In the evening, when Janet and John were in bed, Mummy and Daddy sat in a pool of light under their respective standard lamps. Mummy darned socks and Daddy smoked his pipe and did the crossword.

 

There is a good chance that John Major was taught to read from the Janet and John books. I strongly suspect that when he introduced the phrase 'Back to basics' it was their ideal ordered world he had at the back of his mind. But I have found an uncensored copy of Janet and John and it makes distressing reading.

 

Janet and John Go into Care. Daddy is getting ready for work. 'Where are my gloves, Mummy?' he asks. 'Look, Daddy, look, there are your gloves,' snaps Mummy, 'though why you should want to wear gloves in August defeats me!'

 

Spot runs in and knocks Daddy's briefcase over. A copy of Health and Efficiency slithers out and falls open at a picture of nudists playing tennis. John runs in, 'Look, Janet, look!' Daddy hits John on the head with his pipe, kicks Spot and leaves for work. Mummy dries her tears and walks to the village shop. She is still upset by the row with Daddy and she slips a tin of corned beef into her wicker basket.

 

Mummy is arrested for shoplifting. When Janet and John arrive home from school, Mummy isn't there. The front door is locked; they sit on the doorstep and wait. It starts to rain. 'Look, John, look!' says Janet eventually. 'There is Mummy.' John looks up and sees Mummy in the back of a police car.

 

John and Janet put Mummy to bed; she asks them to prepare their own tea. They put the kettle on the stove, then go out to play in their boat on the river. It is getting dark when they return.

 

'Look, Janet, look!' John is pointing to a red glow in the sky. A social worker is on the river bank. She breaks the news gently. The house has burnt down, their father has run away with a woman who owns a glove shop, and their mother has been taken to the cottage hospital with shock. 'Look, Janet, look!' says John. 'We're back to basics.'

 

~~~~~~~ by Sue Townsend ~~~~~~~~

 

(all possible typos are mine!)

 

Is that funny or what! Some of the stories are mainly okayish but I found most of them enjoyable.

 

4/5

[frankie]

Literary Trivia - Over 300 Curious Lists for Bookworms

by Aubrey Malone

 

This book doesn't need any introductions, it is what it says in the title. It's all about wonderful lists full of all kinds of trivia about books, authors, publishers, editors, and the like. Fascinating stuff, I'd fully recommend it to any booklover who loves lists and fun trivia Thanks Kylie for the copy!

 

It would be difficult to pick the best and most interesting lists and type them here, so I'm going to just see what comes up when I open the book and do a bit of selecting. Surely you'd like some samples, am I right?

 

The Mourning After the Knot Before ~ 10 Unusual Marriages

Al Alvarez: Alvarez realized that his marriage might be in trouble when, the morning after the first night with his new bride, he brought her her breakfast in bed and she looked at it in dismay saying, "The crusts. You didn't cut off the crusts."

 

(That was totally something poppyshake might find interesting )

 

August Strindberg: On his wedding night, Strindberg tried to strangle his wife. After she struggled free, he explained to her that he had had a nightmare and imagined she was his previous wife.

 

99% Perspiration ~ 10 Authors' Inspirations

Raymond Chandler: Was best inspired to write by watching his wife doing the housework in the nude.

 

Gore Vidal: "First coffee, then a bowel movement, and then the muse joins me."

 

Graham Greene: Said he wrote primarily because he didn't like himself and his characters provided an escape from his own identity.

 

Queer Remarks ~ 10 Unintentional Double-Entendres from the Classics

"Mrs. Glegg had doubtless the glossiest and crispest brown curls in her drawers, as well as curls in various degrees of fuzzy laxness." (George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss)

 

"Mrs. Goddard was the mistress of a school ... where young ladies for enormous pay might be screwed out of health and into vanity." (Jane Austen, Emma)

 

"'Oh I can't explain,' cried Roderick impatiently, returning to his work. 'I've only one way of expressing my deepest feelings - it's this.' And he swung his tool." (Henry James, Roderick Hudson)

 

Arrested Developments ~ 5 Writers Who Were Arrested

R. B. Sheridan: was drunk and disorderly on the opening night of A School for Scandal in 1777.

 

Truman Capote: Arrested for driving while drunk and having no license in 1983. He appeared in court dressed in shorts and sandals.

 

Herman Melville: Arrested and briefly jailed in Tahiti as a member of the mutinous crew of an Australian whaling ship.

 

Shuffling Off ~ 30 Authors' Famous Last Words

Francois Rabelais: "I am going to seek the Great Perhaps."

 

W. Somerset Maugham: "Dying is a dull, dreary affair. My advice to you is to have nothing whatsoever to do with it."

 

Noel Coward: "Goodnight my darlings, I'll see you tomorrow."

 

Lytton Strachey: "If this is dying, I don't think much of it."

 

Henry James: "So it has come at last, the distinguished thing."

 

Dylan Thomas: "I've had 18 straight whiskeys. I think that's the record."

 

D. H. Lawrence: "I'm getting better."

 

Henrik Ibsen: "On the contrary." (After his wife suggested he was looking better)

 

(and quite oddly, there is another quote from D. H. Lawrence: "It's time for morphine.")

 

H. L. Mencken: "Tell my friends I'm in a hell of a mess."

 

Oscar Wilde: "Either that wallpaper goes or I do."

 

Frank O'Connor: "I hope you don't expect me to entertain you."

 

5/5 and mightily recommended!

[frankie]

You have told about Elling before Frankie. I wish that the first novel was available in English. They sound hilarious.

Sister and The Ladies Of Missalonghi sound good though.

 

I almost missed this! Yep, I remember you and I have talked about Elling. I suppose you haven't had any luck in finding the movie? I, too, wish that all the books were translated to English and Finnish. I have no idea why only some of them have been I'd definitely want to read them all. But you could always by that one book that's been translated into English, the books can be read as stand alone novels.

 

I definitely recommend Sister to anyone who's into mysteries and thrillers. The Ladies of Missalonghi is pretty light, and perhaps women would find it more intriguing than men, but it's good fun and if you like that sort, you should go for it

[frankie]

The Queen and I

by Sue Townsend

 

Amazon:

 

THE MONARCHY HAS BEEN DISMANTLED

 

When a Republican party wins the General Election, their first act in power is to strip the royal family of their assets and titles and send them to live on a housing estate in the Midlands.

Exchanging Buckingham Palace for a two-bedroomed semi in Hell Close (as the locals dub it), caviar for boiled eggs, servants for a social worker named Trish, the Queen and her family learn what it means to be poor among the great unwashed. But is their breeding sufficient to allow them to rise above their changed circumstance or deep down are they really just like everyone else?

 

Thoughts: Being a huge fan of the Adrian Mole diaries and having read Rebuilding Coventry and The Public Confessions of a Middle-Aged Woman, I couldn't pass the opportunity of buying this book when I found a secondhand copy. However, I've never really understood or appreciated monarchies, if you will, and I've never been interested in the lives of the royal and therefore I didn't expect much from the novel. Truth be told, I'm very unfamiliar with the royal family of the UK. I'm not sure if Queen Elizabeth is still alive. I know Charles is, but I'm very confused about his siblings, who they are and what they are doing. And who they are married to. And okay, I think Charles is with Camilla now, but who is Sarah Ferguson? I always thought they were the same person

 

I hope that hasn't offended any of my British friends! UK is a great country and I very much like you guys, I just have a republic background and I have republic ideals.

 

Okay, onto the novel. When I read it, I didn't find it particularly exciting or interesting, but I did find it funny and humorous. It was wonderful to see the royals communicating with the commoners, each of them in their very different ways. Some of them coped well and made friends, some of them were very awkward and uncomfortable. I think this is one of those books that didn't feel that particularly good at the time when I was reading it, but looking back there were some very hilarious ideas and events. I think it might improve on a second reading, I might actually have to save my copy for later use.

 

3/5

[vodkafan]

Sent you an email Frankie

[frankie]

The Uncommon Reader

by Alan Bennett (re-read)

 

Amazon: A deliciously funny novella that celebrates the pleasure of reading. When the Queen in pursuit of her wandering corgis stumbles upon a mobile library she feels duty bound to borrow a book. Aided by Norman, a young man from the palace kitchen who frequents the library, Bennett describes the Queen's transformation as she discovers the liberating pleasures of the written word. With the poignant and mischievous wit of The History Boys, England's best loved author revels in the power of literature to change even the most uncommon reader's life.

 

Thoughts: I've read this book once before, I don't remember much from that experience other than that I didn't find it very good. This time around it was different for me.

 

Having just read The Queen and I, I had an urge to get more acquainted with the Queen Mother and I remembered the Bennett book and I wanted to give it another go. It's been some years since the last read and during this time I've obviously read more novels and know a lot more authors and books. This made a difference in the reading, because this time I could recognise many more of the titles mentioned in the book.

 

What was more amazing was how I could relate to the Queen's progress in her literary hobby this time. At first she is kind of forced to borrow a book, out of politeness, and after she's read the title she borrows a few more books. She meets Norman, who reads books and who can recommend her some titles. It felt like Norman was all you people here on BCF, and I was the queen. Pretty soon the reading takes over from her other hobbies and even work, and she starts to write down names of books she'd like to or should read - very much like here on BCF. And then she starts making notes of the books she reads, and can't actually read a book without having a notepad by her side. I'm not that diligent, but I do have a notebook for all book-related things I want to write down.

 

it was also very familiar how her immediate environment was puzzled by this sudden passion for books. Since I joined this forum, I've never really had any negative comments made about my constant reading of books or spending time on the forum, which I am grateful for, but I feel that might be down to me having somewhat reduced the number of people I associate with (meaning, I no longer agree to spend time with people who I really don't care about and what's more, who don't really care about me). The ones who've stuck are all good people who wouldn't dream of judging me for such a great hobby, and some of them are even keen readers themselves.

 

It kind of hit home and made me go down the memory lane and think about how I joined the forum and how much I've taken onboard since being here. I'm grateful for this place

 

4/5

 

Sent you an email Frankie

 

Alright, shall go and read Thanks mate!

[chesilbeach]

You are a book reviewing machine today frankie!

 

Some interesting books, and a couple have made it on to my wishlist.

[frankie]

Marathon Man

by William Goldman (RG-b)

 

My loose and quickly put together translation from the Finnish blurb of my copy: Thomas Babington Levy looks funny when he's running around Central Park in his baggy running outfit and track shoes. He's equally comical when he tries to chat up a pretty girl: his palms are sweating and he starts to stutter. But you'll see: one day he will be a famous scientist and a marathon runner admired by all the ladies, just like the legendary Finn, Paavo Nurmi. Then strange things start to happen: first Babe is able to catch the attention of a really gorgeous girl. Then one night his brother Doc, a successful businessman, staggers to his door with his guts cut open. After that everything turns into a nightmare. Babe is attacked, he's been chased after like wild game. He finds himself in the middle of a power struggle of the underworld. The only way to survive is to run a marathon - but it will be his last...

 

Thoughts: I don't remember why this had been on my wishlist for so long. I've never read anything by William Goldman before, and the fact that it's on the Rory Gilmore list can't be the only reason. I guess I've read the blurb somewhere and found it interesting. Maybe it was in those days when I did a bit of jogging myself, lol.

 

However. I started reading the book with an open mind and was totally sucked into the story from the first page onward. I really had no idea where the book was going, I wasn't able to connect the dots and I didn't really even know what the book would eventually be about. But I couldn't put it down, I was hooked. Then slowly, some of the mysteries start to unravel and I got a better picture of what was going on and I was all the more hooked. Wow.

 

I don't really want to say more about it. But for me, so far this year, this book was a real surpriser, probably the best so far, in relation to how I wasn't expecting all that much from it. I'd recommend it to anyone who's into thrillers and/or spy novels. Good stuff!

 

5/5

[frankie]

You are a book reviewing machine today frankie!

 

Some interesting books, and a couple have made it on to my wishlist.

 

I have to try, otherwise the books to be reviewed would just pile up even more and I'd be DOOMED!

 

Don't be a tease Which ones did you like the sound of? Oh and have you already finished Running With Scissors?!

[frankie]

In Cold Blood

by Truman Capote (1001, RG-b)

 

Amazon: On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues.

As Truman Capote reconstructs the murder and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, he generates both mesmerizing suspense and astonishing empathy. In Cold Blood is a work that transcends its moment, yielding poignant insights into the nature of American violence.

 

Thoughts: I love a good true crime book, and I loved Breakfast at Tiffany's by Capote, but I really struggled to get into this book. Capote describes the scenery and the summer weather in so much detail I wanted to shake him and tell him to get on with the story. I really had to strain myself from putting the book down (I'd already done that once before, a few years ago). However, I got slowly used to it and started to enjoy what I read. As weird as that sounds when you are reading of a true account of people being murdered. And later on I was actually glad Capote had put so much thought, work and detail into the book. It was very well written, in the end.

 

One thing I was disappointed with, besides the slow start: I knew beforehand that Capote had met and interviewed the killers many times and even befriended them, or at least Perry Smith. Therefore I had automatically assumed he would write about his meetings with them and add a little personal voice in the book. Well, that was not to be. Luckily I found a copy of a Capote biography earlier this year and I hope that the friendship between Capote and Smith and his work with the murderers is covered in that, at least to some extent.

 

In my opinion, not the easiest true crime book to tackle, but it was a rewarding read nonetheless.

 

4/5

[chesilbeach]

I haven't read any Sue Townsend since I read the first Adrian Mole book back when it was first published (yes, I'm that old!), but I like the two samples from The Public Confessions of a Middle-aged Woman Aged 55 3/4, so that's gone on my wishlist, as well as Literary Trivia - Over 300 Curious Lists for Bookworms which is just the sort of book I like to dip in and out of.

 

Yes, I have finished Running With Scissors already, but it was such an easy style of writing to read, and you get so caught up in his story that I just couldn't put it down (although it did take it out of me a bit, and I had a little catnap after I finished )

 

[frankie]

Matilda

by Roald Dahl

 

Amazon: For most kids, The Trunchbull is pure terror, but for Matilda, she's a sitting duck.

 

Who put superglue in Dad's hat? Was it really a ghost that made Mom tear out of the house? Matilda is a genius with idiot parents—and she's having a great time driving them crazy. But at school things are different. At school there's Miss Trunchbull, two hundred menacing pounds of kid-hating headmistress. Get rid of The Trunchbull and Matilda would be a hero. But that would take a superhuman genius, wouldn't it?

 

Thoughts: I'm really annoyed that I'd seen the movie before reading the book. The movie was so great in my opinion, and it had some added events that I was expecting to read in the book, that it definitely took away something from the experience of reading the book. However, I still enjoyed the novel very much. I loved it that Matilda is such a huge bookworm. And I'm utterly jealous she's managed to read Moby Dick already, something I want to do, but fear I might never get around to doing. But it was still freakishly exhilarating to see which books she was reading and to wonder which books she might read next.

 

I'm finding it difficult to write a review on this, I can't be sure which parts that I remember about it came from the book or the movie. Oh dear! So it's best left unwritten. A great book anyways And I have to say I loved it how she didn't just sit back and take everything quietly and without a fight: she got her revenge, but in a clever way. Injustices should not be approved and done nothing about!

 

4/5

[Kidsmum]

I love Roald Dahl I've read most of his books to my youngest DD & we're both big fans imo he's the best children's author as he gets just the right balance between silliness & scariness (not sure if that's a proper word) I know what you mean about seeing the movie first, when I was reading Matilda I couldn't help but see Danny De Vito as the father. I think my favourite character was Miss Honey I would have loved to have a person like that in my life when I was a child not that my parents were like Matilda's but they weren't big readers either

[frankie]

I haven't read any Sue Townsend since I read the first Adrian Mole book back when it was first published (yes, I'm that old!), but I like the two samples from The Public Confessions of a Middle-aged Woman Aged 55 3/4, so that's gone on my wishlist, as well as Literary Trivia - Over 300 Curious Lists for Bookworms which is just the sort of book I like to dip in and out of.

 

No way! I always thought you were my age, give or take a year or two Well, never mind the physical years because you've definitely stayed young at heart

 

Literary Trivia is a good choice and it'll be interesting to see what you think of the Townsend book, as you haven't read more than one book of hers. Did you not like Adrian Mole? I know not everyone has read the books, but I don't think I've ever come across with a person who didn't like them. I think I'm off to a check in the AM thread, I'm now curious to see if there are any anti-Adrian people over there Oh and excuse my follow-up questions

 

Yes, I have finished Running With Scissors already, but it was such an easy style of writing to read, and you get so caught up in his story that I just couldn't put it down (although it did take it out of me a bit, and I had a little catnap after I finished )

 

It's definitely easy to read and follow, and it's really funny to read, which sometimes made me forget that the stuff really happened and that they are actually very serious stuff, some of them, that really shouldn't be laughed at. But I don't want to say anymore on that over here, I don't want you to 'spill all your beans' when you haven't written your review yet (as far as I know). I'll try and wait til you post your review

 

I love Roald Dahl I've read most of his books to my youngest DD & we're both big fans imo he's the best children's author as he gets just the right balance between silliness & scariness (not sure if that's a proper word) I know what you mean about seeing the movie first, when I was reading Matilda I couldn't help but see Danny De Vito as the father. I think my favourite character was Miss Honey I would have loved to have a person like that in my life when I was a child not that my parents were like Matilda's but they weren't big readers either

 

I couldn't help but see Danny de Vito either, and it was weird because in the book I think the father was short and thin, and there were illustrations of him, and it went against what I'd seen in the movie. I didn't mind seeing Mara Wilson as Matilda, though, I think she was perfect for the role. The actor who played Miss Honey was a funny choice for me, the first movie/TV-series I ever saw her in was Bridget Jones's Diary and she played the nasty little ..... who was Darcy's GF. She played the part so convincingly that I'm always taken back when she is cast in a 'goody' role.

 

Miss Honey as a character was definitely really nice and a good role model I just think that she could do with a bit of sense of humour and a little bit of mischief.

 

I could definitely read more books by Roald Dahl, I'll have to see what the library has to offer.

[frankie]

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

by Edward Albee (RG-b)

 

Amazon:

 

Martha: Look, sweetheart, I can drink you under any goddamn table you want...so don't worry about me!

George: Martha, I gave you the prize years ago...There isn't an abomination award going that you...

Martha: I swear...if you existed I'd divorce you...

 

When middle-aged Martha and her husband George are joined by the younger Nick and Honey for late-night drinks after a party, the stage is set for a night of drunken recriminations and revelations. Battle-lines are drawn as Martha and George drag their guests into their own private hell of a marriage.

 

Thoughts: Thanks to poppyshake and willoyd, I'm no longer too afraid of Virginia Woolf, but I was afraid of tackling this play! I didn't know beforehand what it was going to be about, but the title had me think it was going to be very high brow, sophisticated, philosophical and out of my league. I only picked it up because it's on the Rory Gilmore booklist.

 

I'd forgotten how much fun it was to read a play! This was definitely a good way to ease my way into play reading again, the play having only four characters who are easy to remember. I think it's also the first modern play I have read, previously I've only read classic plays like Macbeth, A School for Scandal, The Recruiting Officer and so on (for my English drama classes in uni).

 

It was still a bit of a brainer, some of the things said by Martha and George (or, well, most of the things they said) are so vile that I was often thinking I must be missing something, these people cannot be that rude and coarse. Oh but they are! Nobody is saved from the wrath and bitterness. This is one heck of a late-night party I hope I will never have to attend to as a guest, but oh the joys of flies in the ceiling who have front row seats to the scenes!

 

4/5

[frankie]

Observations

by Jane Harris

 

The blurb on my copy: Scotland, 1863. In an attempt to escape her past, Bessy Buckley takes a job working as a maid in a big country house. But when Arabella, her beautiful mistress, asks her to undertake a series of bizarre tasks, Bessy begins to realise that she hasn't quite landed on her feet. In one of the most acclaimed debuts of recent years, Jane Harris has created a heroine who will make you laugh and cry as she narrates this unforgettable story about secrets and suspicions and the redemptive power of love and friendship.

 

'The Observations has all the necessary ingredients for a Rebecca-like absorption. There's a bright young Irish maid for a heroine, with a mysterious past; a beautiful mistress with her own set of secrets; and a rambling old house complete with creaking attic... there are enough twists and turns to keep a cynical adult reader up half the night.' Eleanor Birne, LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS

 

Thoughts: I know it was only some weeks ago when I read this book, but it's amazing how much I've forgotten of the plot That is not the book's fault, but my own: I read in several sittings and the time from the day I began to the day I finished was long enough for me to be a bit confused on some points. And there were so many twists and turns that I sometimes had to go back and re-read some of the pages when I picked up the book again. That is not to say that the book was tough to follow, again the fault lies with me. I think I was starting to loose my mojo around this time.

 

I would recommend the book to anyone who enjoyes historical fiction with mystery. The main character was such a dear for trying to make things right, I loved her loyalty. And she was really funny at times, too. Although, I have to say that the way she

kept saying 'titties' stopped being funny after the first five times, after that I kept thinking she must be fixated on those things

. That is, however, no major flaw.

 

It was thoroughly intriguing to little by little discover what was the secret behind the actions of the mistress, and it was equally intriguing when the past of Becky was unveiled. It made an enjoyable read, overall. If it's of any comparison with Rebecca, I cannot unfortunately say because I haven't read that book yet

 

I will most certainly be looking out for other novels by Jane Harris.

 

4/5

[frankie]

The Birds and Other Stories

by Daphne du Maurier

 

It's no use of looking for a product description on Amazon for this because my copies contains five different stories, some of which are on the Amazon description for 'The Birds and Other Stories', but some of which that are not. I've no idea why this is. Are there different English copies by the same title, that have different short stories? Or is it that the Finnish version only is made up of other stories? And why wouldn't they just go with the stories that are selected in the original English copy? Odd.

 

So, I'll just say that my copy contains five short stories by Daphne du Maurier: The Birds, The Apple Tree, The Little Photographer, The Alibi and A Border Line Case. (When I was looking for the English titles to these stories, I found out that these came from three different English publications:The Apple Tree, The Breaking Point, and Not After Midnight. So annoying!)

 

I enjoyed all of the stories in different ways. The Birds being the title story of this book, I expected quite a lot from it (I've never seen the movie but know of it), but to my surprise I found it the most weakest. And now that I look at the order in which the stories are placed, I see that they get better and better and the best is saved til last. Weird. What was left in me of the book after finishing, and even thinking about it now, is a wave of anxiety, having to face a terror of the unimaginable, and a varied bunch of ruthless people. I feel uncomfortable even thinking about the book, and while that is not a pleasant feeling, I think that is what Daphne du Maurier set out to do in the first place. Therefore the book has done it's job and was a success. *shrudders*

 

4/5

 

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

 

Finally I'm done with all my reviews, the slate's clean and I can start afresh This is a fabulous feeling! I can't even remember how many reviews I had in line waiting to be written when I started them on Friday. And Saturday was spent almost entirely on them. It was enjoyable though. I felt like Golding's Marathon Man at some point

[lauraloves]

Great reviews Frankie, your a reviewing machine today . I do need to stop reading them though, as my wishlist always grows a lot through them!

[frankie]

Aww, thanks Laura for your kinds words I know what you mean, and I actually now have physical evidence of it! Apparently my wishlist is so darn long, that the post has run out of bolding facilities and some of the titles at the bottom of the post have to be left the normal way because I can't get them bold So I've been doing some re-arranging and removing of some titles, to make it all good again.

[Alexi]

I never had a written wish list before I joined here - I keep it in my iPhone notes so I can access it when I go to the library - and it's now massive! I keep wanting to buy things off it but I think my TBR pile is now approaching double figures so I'm trying to reduce my pile of "tree" books before I move so I can cart them to a charity shop rather than carting them to the new place!

 

Your reviews have also made my wish list grow Frankie!

[frankie]

I never had a written wish list before I joined here - I keep it in my iPhone notes so I can access it when I go to the library - and it's now massive! I keep wanting to buy things off it but I think my TBR pile is now approaching double figures so I'm trying to reduce my pile of "tree" books before I move so I can cart them to a charity shop rather than carting them to the new place!

 

Your reviews have also made my wish list grow Frankie!

 

I think I had a teeny tiny wishlist on some notebook, but it was really nothing compared to the monstrous wishlist I now have. And it's particularly awful when one already has a monstrous TBR pile, as well, and those books really ought to be read first before buying any new books So yes, this forum is pretty much to be blamed for all those problems! Hehe

 

It makes sense that you tackle your tree books now, since you are about to move to another apartment. I hope your new place has loads of space for bookcases so you can celebrate your new apartment with a few bookish purchases

[Alexi]

I meant triple figures for the TBR pile... Approaching double is a dream I suspect I shall never achieve!!

 

Well the second bedroom is meant as an office for my OH...but given all he needs is a desk for his two computer monitors (men ) that surely leaves the rest of the room for my books, yes?

[frankie]

I meant triple figures for the TBR pile... Approaching double is a dream I suspect I shall never achieve!!

 

Yeah when I was replying to that I did a double take on that and was like, 'well... 9 book TBR is dreamlike, do you really think it would be too much of a hassle to move 9 books to another apartment?' I figured you had to have meant triple figures but didn't want to post and nitpick

 

Well the second bedroom is meant as an office for my OH...but given all he needs is a desk for his two computer monitors (men ) that surely leaves the rest of the room for my books, yes?

 

Yes! *nodding vigorously* If you are not getting your own office room or recreational room but he is, then he must share

[lauraloves]

Aww, thanks Laura for your kinds words I know what you mean, and I actually now have physical evidence of it! Apparently my wishlist is so darn long, that the post has run out of bolding facilities and some of the titles at the bottom of the post have to be left the normal way because I can't get them bold So I've been doing some re-arranging and removing of some titles, to make it all good again.

 

My wishlist spans over three different posts now on my reading thread, and it just keeps on growing! Good on you for sorting yours out though I never used to have a wishlist before BCF and now its massive, I just don't know when I'm going to get round to them all, or reduce my TBR!

[frankie]

My wishlist spans over three different posts now on my reading thread, and it just keeps on growing! Good on you for sorting yours out though I never used to have a wishlist before BCF and now its massive, I just don't know when I'm going to get round to them all, or reduce my TBR!

 

Three different posts? Wow you are a dedicated collecter It's a good idea though, the more I'm trying to organize my books, the more I've started to think I should have two different posts for fiction and non-fiction. But there are too many sub-genres in non-fiction. For example, I've started a sub-section for (auto)biographies, but it's problematic when I want to keep all books/authors/libraries-related stuff in one place. So I'll have biogs in two different place. And I want to keep my true crime books in one place, but then I want to put all my Australia-related books in one place. It's just too much to handle and I never should've started re-organizing

 

It would be very interesting to see how many people used to have no wishlists before joining, and how many books they have accumulated on their wishlist since joining the forum. It's might be a pretty scary thread