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Posts posted by Janet
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Not bad!
It's only a fleeting reference to it, and I only remembered it because it made me think of my parents Bougainvillea plant!
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I'm studying Philip Pullman's Northern Lights for A level English.
In it, a person has a daemon - an animal that is a separate part of them but that can't move far away from their person - it's like a human's soul.
When young, a person's daemon can change form, but once a child passes puberty, the form settles into one animal and then can't change.
Whilst reading my book, I found that a character called "Ma Costa"'s daemon was a hawk on page 56, but by page 105 it's a wolf. I was going to mention this in my coursework essay but my tutor questioned it and when we checked her book, the daemon is a hawk on both those pages.
I'm guessing it was an oversight on Mr Pullman's part which was amended in later additions (which is a shame, because I can't refer to it in my essay now!).
Has anyone else found any mistakes in books - either rectified like this one, or not?
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Oooh, I love Joanne Harris' books. Different strokes for different folks, and all that.
Two chances for me too.
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I've just finished Mister Pip which I really enjoyed. I don't think at any time he specifically says Bougainville is the location, which is odd. But it obviously is Bougainville, both from the civil war and mining and papuan references, and (on checking an atlas) the town names.
It's mentioned on page 12.
Bouganville is one of the most fertile places on earth. -
Playing with the Moon Eliza Graham
Reeling from the death of their baby son in a car accident, Minna and her husband Tom take refuge in a lonely coastal village commandeered by the military in 1944 and only recently reopened to the public. Tom and Minna find the remains of a black American GI on a beach. He
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Great review, Michelle.
*Adds to Amazon Wishlist*
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Just address it to New Books Magazine.
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On the back of today's Guardian review is an advert for 'New Books' magazine. Aimed at readers and reading groups. Does anyone subscribe?
I subscribe, and have done for a couple of years now.
I love it - it's great.
They also offer cheap books with every edition. I recently bought The Welsh Girl by Peter Ho Davies for just the price of p&p - £2.95 delivered, iirc.
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Well, I'm not in the USA so obviously I wasn't looking on Amazon.com.
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I can't say I've heard of it - sorry. It seems to be out of print now - or at least, I can't find it on Amazon.
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We never seem to know what to do with butternut squash in our house!
It's lovely if you roast it.
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Who wrote Dark Water? Is it the short story collection by Koji Suzuki?
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From that list I've read - or have an interest in reading...
Early years
3. The Tiger Who Came To Tea by Judith Kerr
I read this to my children
5. The Tale of Samuel Whiskers by Beatrix Potter
Read this one to my niece (she used to call her Bixtree Potter awww) - mine never really liked BP.
7. Fungus the Bogeyman by Raymond Briggs
Someone bought me this when I was about 19!
9. Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
I got this for £1 on ‘World Book Day’ when my son was little
10. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
A classic!
11. The Cat in the Hat by Dr Seuss
I read these as a child. My children didn’t like these though. (The recentish film version is freaky - urgh!).
12. Charlotte's Web by EB White
I love this book - have read it to my children
13. The Story of Babar by Jean de Brunhoff
When Babar sees his mother shot he reacts as any modern child might: a few tears, then off on a shopping spree. Nice green suit, though.
Had to leave the Daily Telegraph’s comment in as it made me laugh. I read this as a child but I don’t remember it affecting me either - I guess I’m a modern child at heart too!
14. Winnie-the-Pooh by AA Milne, illustrated by EH Shepard
Aww - I still have my childhood copy
Middle Years
16. Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
I bought this a few weeks ago after seeing the BBC adaptation at Christmas. I didn’t read it as a child - more of an Enid Blyton girl!
18. Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
Have it in the loft but never read it
19. The Borrowers by Mary Norton
I read it as a child - can’t remember an awful lot about it though.
21. The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton
Another classic
31. The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear
Who doesn’t know this story?!
34. Peter Pan by JM Barrie
I read this as a child too. I recently bought it to reread, and its new sequel, Peter Pan in Scarlet
36. The Water Babies by Charles Kinglsey
I thought it was one of those ‘should read’ books - until I read Kell’s review LOL!
37. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Aww love it!
38. I'm The King of the Castle by Susan Hill
On my Amazon ‘Wishlist’
41. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Another childhood read
43. The Firework-maker's Daughter by Philip Pullman
On my Amazon ‘Wishlist’
44. Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce
I love this one. Must reread it one day...
46. The Silver Sword by Ian Serrallier
I read this about two years ago and enjoyed it.
47. Cue for Treason by Geoffrey Trease
Love the sound of this one *Adds to Amazon Wishlist*
50. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling
Loved all these!
51. The Chronicles of Narnia Box Set by CS Lewis
Ditto - have reread TL, TW&TW and The Horse and His Boy recently and aim to read the rest of the set sometime soonish!
52. His Dark Materials Box Set by Philip Pullman
I’m currently studying the first one for my A level English Lit coursework - I will read the final two after June.
56. The Railway Children by E Nesbit
I adore this book.
The two film versions are probably my favourite ‘children’s film’ - the second (where Jenny Agutter plays the mother rather than Bobbie) is truer to the book - but the first film is the one I remember most fondly!
58. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
Read as a child
Early teens
63. Call of the Wild by Jack London
This one’s in the loft unread too!
64. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll Love these books - must reread soon
66. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Ugh - read this one in 2006 and hated it!
68. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Read 2007 and loved it!
69. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
On my Amazon Wishlist (am currently reading Mister Pip which is what prompted me to add it)
73. The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
Read January 2008 - about time too!
76. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
I enjoyed it but it didn’t inspire me to go on to the LoTR books!
77. War Horse by Michael Morpurgo
On my ‘to read’ pile
84. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Read this last year but found it rather dull.
87. Cider With Rosie by Laurie Lee
I really ought to read this
92. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
I’ve just read Huck Finn for English Lit - I might try this when my A Level is over.
94. Holes by Louis Sachar
Mater B loved this - I ought to read it
96. My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
Read this in 2006 - utterly charming
97. Coraline by Neil Gaiman
*Adds to Amazon Wishlist*
98. Carrie's War by Nina Bawden
Aww loved this one as a child -
Continued...
Early teens63. Call of the Wild by Jack London
Jack London introduced some dark themes into this story of Buck, a sled dog in the Yukon who rediscovers his wild nature when put to the test.
64. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
Never was mathematical and philosophical playfulness given such entertaining shape. Tenniel's line-drawings crown these classics.
65. The Outsiders by SE Hinton
This powerful novel about school gangs was published when SE Hinton was just 18. The Greasers and the Socs clash in typical teenage fashion - but then someone dies.
66. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Smith is better known for A Hundred and One Dalmatians, but although this, her first novel, is quieter, it shines brighter. Narrated in diary form by 17-year-old Cassandra, it documents the lives of her eccentric family.
67. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken
1832, and wolves have over-run a fictional kingdom of England. Orphans Sylvia and Bonnie fall into the hands of an evil Miss Slycarp and must use all their wits to escape. A mercilessly shadowy thriller.
68. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
A classic story of America's Deep South. Scout and Jem see their father, Atticus, defend Tom Robinson - an innocent black man - from the charge of rape. Atticus is inspiring without being priggish.
69. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
The rousing story of Pip's rise, fall and rise pips Oliver Twist as the best book with which to start reading Dickens, purely on account of his description of being in love.
70. The Owl Service by Alan Garner
Welsh myths, a portrait hidden behind a plaster skim, adolescent yearnings
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Continued...
Middle Years (Continued)
34. Peter Pan by JM Barrie
JM Barrie's Neverland adventures were first performed as a play, and later turned into a novel. Clap your hands if you believe.
35. Mr Majeika by Humphrey Carpenter
Mr Majeika, with his tuft of hair, is ever ready to cast spells on unruly pupils - most notably Hamish Bigmore, whose rudeness gets him changed into a frog. Charming and funny in equal measure.
36. The Water Babies by Charles Kinglsey
Tom the sweep drowns after being chased from a rich household and falls into a sub-aquatic purgatory. But once he proves his worth he is allowed wonderful adventures.
37. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Seven-year-old Sara Crewe is sent back from India to Miss Minchin's Seminary for Young Ladies in England, to discover she has lost her fortune to a swindler and her father to disease. A stirring tale.
38. I'm The King of the Castle by Susan Hill
A powerful and claustrophobic study of bullying, this has a real narrative grip and a frightening message. No reader remains untouched.
39. The Wave by Morton Rhue
Teacher Ben Ross doesn't think his students understand what it was like to live in Nazi Germany, so he devises an experiment. A powerful story about the risks of conformism.
40. Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
Pippi is impulsive, irrepressible, red-haired and so strong you won't believe it. Her bizzare adventures delight children and confound health and safety.
41. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Charlie Bucket's adventures in Willy Wonka's factory - the chocolate rivers, the minia-tuarisation room, the Oompa Loompas - will live for ever.
42. Bambert's Book of Missing Stories by Reinhardt Jung
Shy Bambert sends his half-written stories into the world attached to balloons for whoever finds them to finish. Stories come back from all over the world, and the final story is heartbreaking.
43. The Firework-maker's Daughter by Philip Pullman
Lila's father doesn't want her to follow his career in fireworks so she must prove herself on an epic quest that takes in dragons and pirates.
44. Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce
As Tom lies in bed preparing for the most boring holiday of his life, the clock strikes 13. Racing downstairs he sees daylight and a beautiful garden where there should be darkness. Incredibly exciting.
45. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
A bored young boy pushes his toy car through a toy tollbooth, and finds himself in the kingdom of Wisdom. Genius wordplay, slapstick and a real sense of fun.
46. The Silver Sword by Ian Serrallier
Just after the Second World War, a group of children navigate war-torn Europe armed with little more than a letter opener. Tense, demanding and adult.
47. Cue for Treason by Geoffrey Trease
After Peter Brownrigg chucks a stone at his landlord, he has to flee to London. Here he meets Shakespeare and uncovers a plot to kill Queen Elizabeth. Tudor derring-do.
48. The Sword in the Stone by TH White
The trials of Arthur have never been more amusingly described. Merlin is the archetype for all dotty wizards.
49. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K LeGuin
LeGuin's fantasy lands are scrupulously realised, but it is emotional complexity that makes her books so engrossing. Here a young wizard has to come to terms with the destructive power of his magic.
50. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling
The third book may be the best in JK Rowling's series. All the usual Potter tricks are here, but the highlight is the Dementors, the terrifying guards of Azkaban prison.
51. The Chronicles of Narnia Box Set by CS Lewis
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe isn't the only Narnia story worth reading. The Silver Chair is a powerful allegory of mental slavery; and Voyage of the Dawn Treader sees a talking mouse paddle over the edge of the world.
52. His Dark Materials Box Set by Philip Pullman
Pullman's riposte to CS Lewis is a trumpet-blast against dogma - but, above all else, a gripping adventure.
53. The BFG by Roald Dahl
At the witching hour, a giant blows sweet dreams into children's bedrooms. When orphan Sophie sees him one night, he takes her to his cave. Beware whizzpoppers!
54. Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome
Childcare used to be a bit less hands on ("Better drowned than duffers. If not duffers won't drown") and one cannot read the adventures of these four children in a lost Eden without a lump in the throat.
55. Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now by Lauren Child
At first glance one for the girls, but boys should read it too. Over the series Clarice has matured from an infant with a quirky vocabulary into a complex, engaging teenager.
56. The Railway Children by E Nesbit
When their father is accused of treason, Bobbie, Peter, Phyllis and their mother move to the country. They pass the time watching trains go by and proving their father innocent, which is nice.
57. The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde
Wilde's giant wants to keep children out of his garden so that he can have it to himself. But it stays shrouded in snow until one day, when the giant's hard heart is softened by one of the boys
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This list was published in The Daily Telegraph on 19th January but I forgot all about it! Better late than never.
Obviously this is only their view, but I like lists!
Early years1. The Twits by Roald Dahl
Mr and Mrs Twit pass the time playing nasty tricks on one another. They're both horrid. In his hairy beard, Mr Twit "was always able to find a tasty morsel to nibble on".
2. Burglar Bill by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
"I'll 'ave that," is the catchphrase of the rogue who stars in this engaging and beautifully illustrated tale. When Bill accidentally burglarises a baby, it turns out to be a blessing in a stolen basket. "Runfrit, Boglaboll!"
3. The Tiger Who Came To Tea by Judith Kerr
Newsnight's Emily Maitlis has a theory that this book is an allegory about sex. Most children understand it as the story of a tiger that eats its hosts out of house and home. Debate continues.
4. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
When Max engages in mischief, he is sent to bed without his supper. That's just the start. Sendak's paintings sing, and the text is a joy.
5. The Tale of Samuel Whiskers by Beatrix Potter
Tom Kitten learnt nothing from his parents about the consequences of curiosity. Abducted by a psychotic rat, he comes within a whisker of being turned into a pudding. Nightmares guaranteed.
6. Yertle the Turtle by Dr Seuss
Theodor Geisel's response to Hitler was more oblique than Stauffenberg's, but as effective. Yertle, king of the pond, commands all the turtles to stack themselves up so he can be top of the heap. Someone's riding for a fall.
7. Fungus the Bogeyman by Raymond Briggs
What boy won't thrill to the world of the Bogeymen, all snot, armpits and boils? This gave Raymond Briggs's green crayon the workout of its life.
8. The Story of the Little Mole Who Knew It Was None Of His Business by Werner Holzwarth and Wolf Erlbruch
Someone's dropping lands on poor mole's head. Who's the culprit? A farmyard investigation is conducted with Germanic seriousness. Mole's revenge is sweet.
9. Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
Punchier than The Gruffalo, this has children chanting along as a witch and her animal friends see off a dragon in search of "witch and chips".
10. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
"In the light of the moon, a little egg lay on a leaf…" so begins this classic board book, its pages drilled with holes as the caterpillar eats his way through the week.
11. The Cat in the Hat by Dr Seuss
"Look at me! Look at me! Look at me now!" The cat's a big show-off, but he knows how to have fun, and his chaotic antics delight.
12. Charlotte's Web by EB White
White's 1952 masterpiece describes the friendship between a lonely pig and a talented spider. This poignant tale teaches lessons about love, death and differing life expectancies.
13. The Story of Babar by Jean de Brunhoff
When Babar sees his mother shot he reacts as any modern child might: a few tears, then off on a shopping spree. Nice green suit, though.
14. Winnie-the-Pooh by AA Milne, illustrated by EH Shepard
Visit Hundred Acre Wood, and meet Pooh, Piglet and Christopher Robin, based on AA Milne's son. This classic story hasn't aged, and EH Shepard's understated illustrations remain the best.
Middle Years
15. Stig of the Dump by Clive King
When Barney falls down a dump the last thing he expects is to meet a cave boy. Stig was an eco-warrior before the term was invented. Sprightly, comic, classic.
16. Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
Adopted sisters Posy, Pauline and Petrova Fossil train as a dancer, an actor and an aeroplane pilot. A bally treat.
17. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
The Witch of Waste puts Sophie under a spell. To break it, she must brave the castle of the Wizard Howl. Imaginative and terribly funny.
18. Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
Learn how the leopard got his spots and the camel his hump. And remember "The Elephant's Child" - whose "satiable suriosity" turns his "bulgy nose" into a trunk?
19. The Borrowers by Mary Norton
First published in 1953, this remains a deserved favourite. The Clock family live beneath a floorboard, making do with what "human beans" drop, until one day one of them allows herself to be seen…
20. Struwwelpeter by Heinrich Hoffman
These pungent 1840 morality tales are not to be taken literally: in one, a boy gets his thumbs chopped off.
21. The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton
Jo, Bessie and Fanny climb to the top of a magical tree, above which are endlessly circulating worlds: the Land of Birthdays, or, more unluckily, of Dame Slap.
22. Danny, the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl
Danny and his hard-up father bond over poaching pheasants from nasty Mr Hazell's land - before moral dues are paid.
23. George's Marvellous Medicine by Roald Dahl
To cure his grumpy grandmother, George Kranky concocts a medicine from shaving foam, sheep dip, engine oil and brown paint. Granny grows huge. The ending is dark even for Dahl.
24. Underwater Adventure by Willard Price
Willard Price invented zoologist brothers Hal and Roger Hunt to get children interested in nature. Underwater Adventure takes them into shark-infested seas. Some sharks are human.
25. Tintin in Tibet by Hergé
After Tintin reads of a plane crash in the Himalayas, he dreams his friend Chang has survived. Uniquely, there are no villains - just a tender yeti and acres of snow.
26. The Complete Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales
Sourced from medieval German folktales by Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm in the 19th century, these sanguinary stories deal with abduction, cannibalism and worse.
27. Erik the Viking by Terry Jones, illustrated by Michael Foreman
Erik tells his wife that he must go to "the land where the sun goes at night"; off he travels on an atmospheric adventure, terrifically illustrated.
28. When the Wind Blows by Raymond Briggs
Jim and Hilda Bloggs's preparation for a nuclear attack remains enthralling. First comic, then moving.
29. Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by TS Eliot
This delightful collection of verse sees cat-loving Eliot capering about with his trousers rolled. A perfect introduction to the pleasures of poetry for children.
30. The Iron Man by Ted Hughes
Since it appeared in 1968, the late Poet Laureate's children's book has become a classic. Benign iron bloke falls from sky, battles space-bat-angel-dragon, saves world. Bliss.
31. The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear
Edward Lear's bizarre story of inter-species elopement and gastronomic adventure still charms and diverts. Runcible.
32. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
"Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats." But reading about Mole, Ratty, Toad and Badger runs it a close second.
33. The Worst Witch Collection by Jill Murphy
Before Harry Potter there was Mildred Hubble, the worst witch at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches. A tale of flying broomsticks, rivalries and magical pedagogy.
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Well said everyone. Kylie - I couldn't have put my points any better than you have.
I don't think reading will ever die out. There will always be people who love books.
Seldom do films live up to expectations.
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There is no release date for the DVD as yet, I believe. If you are an Amazon user, they'll email you when the date is announced if you click on 'notify me...'.
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I ought to chop off the rating things really - I copy/paste my reviews from my Live Journal - I tend to base them on other books I've read. So for example, I gave The Kite Runner a 10/10. I also gave Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris a 10/10 because I couldn't put either book down.
I did enjoy this, but I found it rather a plodding read because the diary was repetative and I'm reading it as an adult whereas Anne was a teenager (and from a different generation to boot).
I wondered whether perhaps I should score out of 5 rather than 10 to keep things a bit tighter and anyway, I feel that ratings are rather subjective.
I just felt that for me, I wouldn't say "oh wow - you must read this book" and yet I was glad I had.
Does that make any sort of sense?!
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Anyone else looking forward to this? I am, although I'm not sure how it will live up to Life on Mars.
I'm going into it with an open mind.
Pity it's on Thursday.
I was hoping they'd stick with the Monday slot that LoM was in - I have college on a Thursday so I'll have to record it and be very careful to avoid spoilers.
Philip Glenister - mmmmm!
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I read The Rector's Wife many years ago and I think I enjoyed it! (My memory is not what it was!). My mother-in-law loves her books though so she will be happy to know a new one is on the horizon.
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Resist, resist, resist!
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I finished Water for Elephants yesterday.
Another brilliant book. 9½/10.
2008 is shaping up to be an excellent year book-wise.
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I thought this had been reviewed already but I've searched and I can't see one. This is only a short review, I'm afraid!
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The ‘Blurb’
When Jacob Jankowski, recently orphaned and suddenly adrift, jumps onto a passing train, he enters a world of freaks, grifters and misfits – the Benzini brothers Most Spectacular show on Earth – a second-rate travelling circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression, making one-night stands in town after endless town.
Jacob, a veterinary student who almost earned his degree, is put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. It is there that he meets Marlena, the beautiful young star of the equestrian act, who is married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. He also meets Rosie, an elephant who seems untrainable until he discovers a way to reach her.
Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.
Jacob Jankowski lives in a nursing home and is 90. Or is he 93? He can’t quite remember. However, he can remember a time in the 1930s where he ran away and joined the circus and all the adventure that followed as though it was yesterday.
Narrated by Jacob in flashback form, this book is unlike anything I’ve read before but I really enjoyed it. I was captivated by the characters from the start and the story is enthralling.
2008 is shaping up to be an excellent year book-wise!
The paperback is 331 pages long and is published by Hodder. The ISBN number is 978-0340935460.
9/10
(Read January 2008)
Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
in General Fiction
Posted
It