rosegarden

Do you mean Notes from a Small Island? If so, yes it's very funny in parts. What tickled me was the way he talked about how enthusiastic we are when offered a cup of tea . And it's so true......or is that just me Carole

Gone for Good (Audiobook) by Harlan Coben Read by Tim Machin Amazon ISBN Number 0752849123 Synopsis Will Klein lost the love of his life and his brother in the same moment..... On October 17, eleven years ago, Julie Miller was found brutally strangled in the basement of her house in the township of Livingston, New Jersey. On that day, Will's brother, Ken Klein, became the subject of an international manhunt accused of the crime. He has not been seen since. Will has tried to get on with his life in the intervening years. He has a beautiful new girlfriend, Sheila, and a job working with the homeless. But when his mother reveals, on her deathbed, that Ken is still alive, and shortly afterwards Sheila disappears, the cracks start to show in his landscape again. But it is only when he finds that Sheila herself is wanted for a savage double-murder that his life actually starts to fall apart... My Review of this Audiobook This is the 2nd Harlan Coben book (the 1st was One False Move) that I've listened to and this one is also wonderfully read by Tim Machin who brings the characters so much to life. I was completely enthralled from start to finish. I loved the many twists and turns and surprises that I never saw coming! I cared about the main characters and it has you wondering whether the bad guys are really bad and if the good guys really are good. If you enjoy crime thrillers with a rollercoaster of a read then I definitely recommend Gone for Good. There is some graphic violence about halfway through. I'm looking forward to reading (or listening to) more of Harlan Coben's books. 9/10 Carole

I listened to The Visitor last year and really enjoyed it. Lots of twists and turns and unpredictability. Carole

I've just finished listening to Perfume by Patrick Suskind. It's one of those books that has stayed with me for a few days, I keep going over the ending, the incredible life of the main character and the wonderful narration by Sean Barratt whose dark and rich tones were perfect for this engrossing, brutal and very unnusual story. Not for the squeamish After that, I need some light reading so I've just started The Beachcomber by Josephine Cox. Carole

Oh that is a shame........I hope that won't put you off listening to other books though. Nearly all the audio books I've had have only the one narrator. Carole

I've just finished listening to Hidden Talents by Erica James (read very well by Jenny Agutter) and enjoyed it very much. It's the story of a newly-formed creative writing class, about the lives and loves of the members, of how their lives intertwine with each other, and how their friendships change and develop. When crises (is that how it's spelt? ) occur everyone rallies round. All their lives are changed in some way. Overall, I thought it was a lovely feel-good easy to read (or listen to) story. Carole

I listened to a very abridged version of The Diary of Samuel Pepys and found it fascinating. Would definitely recommend it. Carole

One of the first audio books I listened to was The Road to Nab End by William Woodruff which is an autobiography of the author's early life in Blackburn (where I live) in the early 20th century. It was very interesting trying to picture the places he talked about and the streets where he lived (some of which are still there today!). It made the story come alive more somehow knowing the area. Also, Josephine Cox was born and brought up in Blackburn and her books all mention various places and streets in Blackburn. I've never read any of them but I do have The Beachcomber on my 'to be listened to' pile. Carole

You're welcome Carole

Have you looked at http://www.librivox.org? You can download the books for free on there. I downloaded The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I haven't got round to listening to it yet. The books are read by volunteers and they are all in the public domain so they're mostly the classic books not modern ones. I'd be interested to know if other local libraries have many audio books and how much they are. Carole

I downloaded The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett from http://www.librivox.org. I haven't listened to it yet so can't recommend it or otherwise. All the books, poems and short stories on there are read by volunteers and are in the public domain so they are mostly the classic books. Carole

I have only just started listening to Perfume but my first thoughts are favourable . I'm enjoying the narration by Sean Barrett (I've never heard of him but he is, apparently, an actor). He's very clear and doesn't speak too fast. Carole

I've only been listening to audio books for about a year. I've listened to about 35 books so far since I started. I spend a lot of my day staring at a computer screen which can make my eyes ache, so listening to an audio book gives my eyes a rest. I've downloaded books onto my computer and my ipod (last summer in Spain I was relaxing on my sunbed listening to Jim Dale reading Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone! Wonderful. ) There's also a great digital radio station (Oneword) www.oneword.co.uk which serialises lots of different books every day, (from classic books like Frankenstein to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time....both starting this month) which I then record and listen to at my leisure. At the moment, there are about 13 different books being serialised every day. I also borrow a lot of audio books from my local library....only 60p for cassettes and 90p for cd's for 3 weeks...which I think is great value. They have a good and varied selection. Charity Shops and Car Boots are also good and cheap sources. I think they're perfect for listening to while doing those mundane tasks like washing up, ironing etc. And also for long train/bus journeys...they do help to pass the time. Carole

I don't 'read' books very often - I mostly listen to audio books, either on my ipod when I'm travelling or walking to work or I download them to my laptop and listen to them while in the house, washing up or doing similar boring jobs. It does make the time pass Books I have either LISTENED to or READ so far this year 1. Janet Evanovich - One For The Money 9/10 2. Helen Dunne - Trixie Trader 7/10 3. Erica James - Hidden Talents 7/10 4. Daniel Defoe - Robinson Crusoe 6/10 5. Patrick Suskind - Perfume 8/10 6. Josephine Cox - The Beachcomber 4/10 7. John Grisham - A Time to Kill 8/10 8. Harlan Coben - Gone For Good 9/10 9. Joanna Trollope - Girl From The South 4/10 10. Frances Hodgson Burnett - The Secret Garden 7/10 11. Rebecca Shaw - A Country Affair 6/10 12. Sue Monk Kidd - The Secret Life of Bees 9/10 13. Tony Hawks - Round Ireland with a Fridge 7/10 14. Kathy Reichs - Deja Dead 7/10 15. Barbara Comyns - The Vet's Daughter 7/10 16. Brian Sibley - Shadowlands: The True Story of C.S. Lewis & Joy Davidman 6/10 17. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - The Hound of the Baskervilles 6/10 18. Marina Lewycka - A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian 7/10 19. Salley Vickers - Miss Garnett's Angel 7/10 20. Anchee Min - Empress Orchid 9/10 *BOOK* 21. Felicity Kendal - White Cargo 8/10 22. Janet Evanovich - Two for the Dough 8/10 23. JK Rowling - Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban 8/10 24. Maeve Binchy - Circle of Friends 6/10 25. Cecilia Ahern - P.S. I Love You 8/10 *BOOK* 26. Carlos Ruiz Zafon - The Shadow of the Wind 6/10 27. Bernard Cornwell - Stonehenge 7/10 28. Victoria Hislop - The Island 8/10 *BOOK* 29. Salley Vickers - Mr Golightly's Holiday 7/10 30. Willy Russell - The Wrong Boy 0/10 *DIDN'T FINISH IT* 31. Allison Pearson - I don't know how she does it 7/10 32. John Connolly - The Book of Lost Things 8/10 33. Audrey Niffenegger - The Time-Travellers Wife 7/10 34. Catherine Aird - Amendment of Life 8/10 35. Michael J. Fox - Lucky Man 7/10 36. Sue Grafton - A is for Alibi 7/10 37. Mark Haddon - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time 7/10 38. Ken Follett - The Pillars of the Earth 9/10 *BOOK* 39. Irene Dische - Between Two Seasons of Happiness 8/10 *BOOK* 40. Louis Sachar - Holes 8/10 41. Maureen Lee - Lime Street Blues 8/10 42. Kerry Jamieson - The Golden Door 8/10 43. John Grisham - The Pelican Brief 8/10 44. Margaret Atwood - The Blind Assassin 8/10 45. Graham Swift - Last Orders 6/10 46. Kate Moss - Labyrinth BOOKS I AM CURRENTLY LISTENING TO Marion Keyes - Sushi for Beginners Philip Pullman - Northern Lights BOOK I AM CURRENTLY READING Kate Mosse - Labyrinth Books on my to be Listened To/Read List Janet Evanovich - Three To Get Deadly Ian McEwan - Amsterdam James Patterson - Kiss The Girls Allison Dubois - Don't Kiss Them Goodbye Leo Tolstoy - War and Peace (abridged) Martina Cole - Dangerous Lady Sue Grafton - B is for Burglar Zadie Smith - On Beauty Eoin Colfer - Artemis Fowl Karen Joy Fowler - The Jane Austen Book Club Charles Dickens - A Tale of Two Cities Jodi Picoult - Perfect Match Jodi Picoult - My Sister's Keeper Diane Setterfield - The Thirteenth Tale Jonathan Kellerman - Gone Jed Rubenfeld - The Interpretation of Murder *BOOK* Lee Child - Die Trying *BOOK* Heather Graham - The Island Margaret Atwood - Oryx and Crake Khaled Hosseini - The Kite Runner *BOOK* MC Beaton - Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House *BOOK* Harlan Coben - No Second Chance *BOOK* Pete McCarthy - McCarthy's Bar *BOOK* Pete McCarthy - The Road to McCarthy Nora Roberts - Dance Upon The Air JD Robb - Naked in Death Jesse Kellerman - Sunstroke Theresa Monsour - Dark House Michelle Lovric - The Remedy *BOOK* David Mitchell - Cloud Atlas Val McDermid - The Grave Tattoo Zoe Heller - Notes On A Scandal *BOOK* Carole

Ooooh I've listened to the first two Harry Potter books read by Jim Dale - I think he's a wonderful storyteller I've got the others on my tbr pile. Carole

Hi Louise I'm glad I'm not the only one who listens to audio books Do you borrow them from the library? At our library they are 90p for CD's for 3 weeks and 60p for cassettes, which I think is great value. Carole

I've nearly finished the first book in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich 'One For The Money' and I have to say that I'm really enjoying it. Quite a few people recommended these books to me but I've avoided reading them for a long time as I didn't think they were my type of book........how wrong I was! Stephanie Plum lost her job, had to sell her car and most of her possessions to pay the rent when she was persuaded to ask her cousin Vinny for a job and ends up being a bounty hunter! I know it sounds far-fetched and, to be honest, it is but Stephanie Plum is a girl with guts and imagination. In parts it is very very funny but it can also be quite scary, especially when she attracts the attention of a psycopathic boxer! She finds herself in a few scrapes (like being handcuffed naked to her shower rail by the man she is looking for!) but she always manages to extracate herself.....with a little help from her friends. I noticed that my local library has most of the series on their shelves, I'm really looking forward to reading them all. Carole

Hiya It always makes me smile when I hear the book title 'Howls Moving Castle'.......for some reaon I just find it a funny name. Anyway, pleased you enjoyed it. What's it about? I read Chocolat by Joanne Harris a while ago and really loved it. I've also read another one by her called Blackberry Wine which I enjoyed as well. Carole

Hi, I wondered if anyone had read Stonehenge yet? I see that Oneword radio are starting serialising it from next week (in 41 parts! must be a long book!) so would be interested in anyones views on it. It looks quite good Carole

Hi there I remember reading Sophie's Choice many years ago when my 2 boys were about the same age as the children in the book and, even now, I'm still haunted by the choice that Sophie was forced to make. I still think about it from time and time and wonder how I would have coped. It's a very depressing book and not one I would recommend, especially if you're a parent. I believe they made a film of it with Meryl Streep (an actress that I normally like to watch in a film) but I couldn't ever relive the sad parts. Carole

I've just finished reading Chocolat and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I've also read Blackberry Wine and agree with you, Kell, that at first I didn't like the idea of a bottle of wine telling the story, and it did take me a long time to get into it. It also took me a while to care about the people in Chocolat, I think Joanne Harris is a wonderful story teller and she brings her characters to life in a very slow and deliberate way. I thought also it was interesting that she told the story not only from Vianne's perspective but from the Priest as well, giving us different sides of the unfolding tale. I haven't seen the film but I can just imagine Judi Dench playing the part of the no nonsense but likeable Armande who shares a spiritual connection with Vianne. It was a lovely feel good book that I didn't want to end. Carole

I've nearly finished reading Angels & Demons and I'm really enjoying it now. About halfway through I was flagging, I very nearly gave up on it but I'm glad I persevered now as there's so much happening. This is the only Dan Brown book I've read, not sure if I'll read any more. I think it would make a great film too, the character Robert Langdon is sooooooooo like my favourite character of Indiana Jones. Carole

Thanks everyone for all your help. Notes from a Small Island it is! I'm looking forward to reading it. Carole

Thanks Michelle, I hadn't seen this thread before. I love audio books as well. I'm on and off a computer all day so I like to listen to an audiobook last thing at night before I go to bed to rest my eyes. They also make washing up, ironing, and all those other jobs that I hate doing around the house less boring. I usually borrow mine from the local library, buy them at car boots, charity shops etc., or record them on Sky+ from One Word Radio. Carole

Hi everyone, I've got quite a few Bill Bryson books to read (never read anything by him before) and I was wondering which one I should read first....or does it not matter? Carole