Sugar

As I have this list in another forum, I thought I would copy it straight over here. I will try this "blog" thing, I've never had one before and this seems like a nice way to start! SUGAR'S READS 2006 December 117. Motor Mouth - Janet Evanovich *** 116. Hogfather - Terry Pratchett *** 115. Eldest - Christopher Paolini **** 114. Visions of Sugar Plums - Janet Evanovich *** 113. Double Fault - Lionel Shriver **** 112. Darkside - Tom Becker *** 111. Twelve Sharp - Janet Evanovich **** INSERT FINISHED BELL JAR HERE! (see July!) 110. Eleven On Top - Janet Evanovich **** 109. The Great American Mousical - Julie Andrews Edwards & Emma Walton Hamilton *** 108. Dirty Bertie: Worms - Alan MacDonald (ill. David Roberts) ** 107. Eragon - Christopher Paolini ***** November 106. Young Bond 3 - Charlie Higson *** 105. Perfect Match - Jodi Picoult **** 104. The Devil in Amber - Mark Gatiss *** 103. Ten Big Ones - Janet Evanovich **** 102. To The Nines - Janet Evanovich **** 101. Small Island - Andrea Levy **** 100. Hard Eight - Janet Evanovich **** 099. Seven Up - Janet Evanovich **** 098. Star-Crossed - Rachel Wing **** 097. The Black Book of Secrets - F E Higgins ***** 096. Hot Six - Janet Evanovich **** 095. Rainbow Bridge - Aubrey Flegg *** 094. Angel Isle - Peter Dickinson *** 093. High Five - Janet Evanovich **** October 92. Forged in the Fire - Ann Turnbull ***** 91. Cat Among the Pigeons - Julia Golding *** 90. Killing Orders - Sara Paretsky *** 89. Four to Score - Janet Evanovich **** 88. The Road of Bones - Anne Fine *** 87. Welcome to the Real World - Carole Matthews **** 86. Small Steps - Louis Sachar ***** 85. Kiss Me Quick - Julie Highmore **** 84. Damian Drooth Supersleuth: Spycatcher - Barbara Mitchelhill ** 83. Out of My Depth - Emily Barr ** 82. Oranges in No Man's Land - Elizabeth Laird **** 81. The Navigator - Eoin McNamee *** 80. Notes on a Scandal - Zoe Heller *** September 79. The Penalty - Mal Peet **** 78. I'm the King of the Castle - Susan Hill **** 77. Three to Get Deadly - Janet Evanovich **** 76. The Vesuvius Club - Mark Gatiss **** 75. Roar, Bull, Roar - Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters **** 74. Deja Dead - Kathy Reichs ** 73. Stuart: A life Backwards - Alexander Masters **** 72. Mr Dixon Disappears - Ian Sansom **** August 71. The Ecstasy Club - Douglas Rushkoff *** 70. Vampire Kisses - Ellen Schreiber ** 69. Just In Case - Meg Rosoff **** 68. Tilly and the Badgers - Joan Lingard *** 67. Tamar - Mal Peet **** 66. Empress Orchid - Anchee Min *** 65. Harvest - Tess Gerritsen *** 64. Anybody Out There? - Marian Keyes **** 63. Children of the Lamp: The Cobra of Kathmandu - P B Kerr *** 62. We Need to Talk about Kevin - Lionel Shriver ***** 61. Stray - David Belbin * July 60. Keeping Secrets - Andrew Rosenheim ***** 59. Cents and Sensibility - Maggie Alderson **** 58. Little Lady, Big Apple - Hester Browne *** 57. Kissing Toads - Jemma Harvey **** 56. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath ® ***** (See Dec for true finish point!) 55. Damage - Sue Mayfield **** 54. Endymion Springs - Matthew Skelton *** 53. Snowbone - Cat Weatherill ***** (and more!) 52. The Mephisto Club - Tess Gerritsen **** 51. The Fourth Bear - Jasper Fforde **** 50. Two for the Dough - Janet Evanovich **** 49. Deadlock - Sara Paretsky **** 48. Frogs and French-kisses - Sarah Mlynowski **** 47. Dying Light - Stuart MacBride **** June 46. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini *** 45. Buddies - Michaela Morgan ** 44. Cold Granite - Stuart MacBride **** 43. The Yellow Wallpaper - Charlotte Perkins Gilmore ***** ® 42. Danny Boy - Jo-Ann Goodwin *** 41. The Red Tent - Anita Diamant **** 40. Sugar Rush - Julie Burchill *** 39. Angels and Men - Catherine Fox **** 38. Holes - Louis Sachar ***** 37. Call After Midnight - Tess Gerritsen *** 36. Necessary Evil - Alex Kava **** May 35. Split Second - Alex Kava **** 34. The Accidental - Ali Smith *** 33. Fast Women: The Drivers Who Changed the Face of Motor Racing - John Bullock **** 32. A Perfect Evil - Alex Kava **** 31. Three Bags Full - Leonie Swann *** 30. Life Support - Tess Gerritsen **** 29. Mercy - Jodi Picoult **** 28. Girls - Nic Kelman *** April 27. The Diamond of Drury Lane - Julia Golding **** 26. The Siege - Helen Dunmore *** 25. Sweet Gum - Jo-Ann Goodwin ***** 24. The Bugatti Queen - Miranda Seymour ***** 23. Indemnity Only - Sara Paretsky **** 22. The Great Stink - Clare Clark **** 21. Smoke and Mirrors - Neil Gaiman *** 20. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - John Boyne ***** March 19. In the Country of Men - Hisham Matar **** 18. Ringroad - Ian Sansom *** 17. Parrot in the Pepper Tree - Chris Stewart **** 16. Killing Floor - Lee Child *** 15. Hotel Babylon - Imogen Edwards-Jones & Anon. ***** February 14. Beatniks - Toby Litt ***** 13. Oscar and the Lady in Pink - Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt ***** 12. I, Coriander - Sally Gardner **** 11. Scuba Dancing - Nicola Slade *** 10. Siberia - Anne Halam ***** ® 09. White Darkness - Grealdine McCaughrean ** 08. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood *** ® 07. Two-Way Split - Allan Guthrie *** 06. Secrets of the Fearless - Elizabeth Laird **** January 05. My Friend Leonard - James Frey *** 04. Timebomb - Nigel Hinton **** 03. The Mobile Library: Case of the Missing Books - Ian Sansome **** 02. Possession - AS Byatt **** 01. Inkspell - Cornelia Funke **** Five Star Books! ® = Re-read Shorter Books that didn't warrant counting! Another Night Before Christmas - Carol Ann Duffy Picture Books Pablo the Artist - Satoshi Kitamura (Reviewed for WriteAway) Look at You: A Baby Body Book - Kathy Henderson (Reviewed for WriteAway) Captain Abdul's Little Treasure - Colin McNaughton (Reviewed for WriteAway) The Most Precious Thing - Gill Lewis (Reviewed for CBUK) The Library - Sarah Stewart ((Reviewed for CBUK) Wolves - Emily Gravett (CKG 2005 award meeting) Night Pirates - Peter Harris (CKG 2005 award meeting) Death in a Nut - Eric Maddern (CKG 2005 award meeting) Russell the Sheep - Rob Scotton (CKG 2005 award meeting) Slam - Adam Stower (CKG 2005 award meeting) Lost and Found - Oliver Jeffers (CKG 2005 award meeting) Princess and the Pea - Lauren Child (CKG 2005 award meeting) Tiger - Nick Butterworth (CKG 2006 Meeting) Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon (CKG 2006 Meeting) Orange, Pear, Apple, Bear - Emily Gravett (CKG 2006 Meeting) Meerkat Mail - Emily Gravett (CKG 2006 Meeting) Fly, Pigeon, Fly - John Henderson (CKG 2006 Meeting) Augustus and His Smile - Catherine Rayner (CKG 2006 Meeting) Good Boy, Fergus - David Shannon (CKG 2006 Meeting) Mr and Mrs God in the Creation Kitchen - Nancy Wood (CKG 2006 Meeting) Pocket Penguins Cogs in the Great Machine - Eric Schlosser Otherwise Pandemonium - Nick Hornby

I have the version in 3 volumes. Much easier to hold! That said, I haven't actually started it yet, and I have had it at least 9 months!

I read the first one when I was 13 and it had not long been published. I then had an agonising wait until I was sitting my A levels when the second one was published. Followed by another agonising wait until the 3rd was published, just as I was revising for my 2nd year exams at university. I think my exams may have suffered....

I am a huge HUGE fan! So much so that I got Jasper to come and give a talk in the library I work in! I've read them all, and while I prefer the Thursday Next series listed above - I also really enjoyed the first Jack Spratt book "The Big Over Easy". The sequel to that is due out in a month or so, called "The Fourth Bear". Jasper is currently writing a new Thursday Next book, which will tell the story of the Samuel Pepys fiasco.

I am reading The Kite Runner at the moment, and as it is set in Afghanistan, I googled the author. From http://www.khaledhosseini.com - "Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan in 1965." Sorted!

My friends and I really like Rivercrest - the white and the rose that they do (drink a lot of rose, we do!). Its Australian (I think!), although if there is no Rivercrest I will tend to choose a German wine (Mosel region brings back good holiday memories!) or Californian. Rivercrest is often in the 3 bottles for

The bean one sounds nice - but I wouldn't want to share the same room as you as you digested it!

Fond, fond guiding memories!

There's definitely a lot of food for thought here (eugh! 'scuse the pun, couldn't resist!). Thanks a lot guys - I've got a couple of weeks to think about it, I'll let you know what I decide in the end! (I might have to practice those peaches this weekend though!) A big thanks to Acescare for all your trouble - I'll have a closer look at those websites later!

She doesn't eat fish, but they do sound rather nice! She's not so fussy that she doesn't mind being around people eating meat - and will even buy it to cook for others, but she will not let them be prepared on the same surfaces so if we want real meat too, we would have to barbeque all the veggie stuff first and then all the meat stuff after. I like the idea of veggie skewers though - that could be a go-er! Thanks!

I'm going to call on you for help, as I saw there were so many great suggestions when other people asked. I'm planning on having a barbie with a few friends in a couple of weeks time. However, one of the people is vegetarian. I would like to offer something more exciting than salad for her, and although I know there are veggie versions of burgers etc my garden is very small, and there is no spare room for an extra barbeque (even a disposable one). Ideally it needs to be something that I can make the day before, but still be a bit special. Any ideas?

I see that you have some Michael Morpurgo on your list, Tiger. Have you read the Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips? It's a really good book about a girl and her pet cat. It's set in the second world war, but it's not a war book and has a really interesting twist in it. From what you have read, and what I've seen said, I think you would enjoy it.

Ah, the innocence! :angel:

Big fan of Eoin Colfer, although I slightly prefer some of his older work, "The Wish List" is my favourite. In Artemis, my favourite character is Mulch Diggums. Does that just prove my childish mind?!

We had a farm on my school - they had pigs, sheep, chickens, geese etc. Most of the time, they would be sent off for slaughter, but at Christmas we would have turkeys. The school farmer would wring their necks and I spent many a lunch time helping pluck them! The year my family got their turkey from there though, I couldn't eat it! The chickens eggs were beautiful though - and cheap at

The stuff to collect is quite exciting this year - instead of just having 6 sheets of stickers, there are some puzzle things, and it's a secret agent pack rather than a sticker folder! There will still be a medal too! For a bit of sneak preview stuff, have a look at the website - http://www.readingmission.co.uk/. There is an image of the promo characters.

Yup - it was the Reading Voyage last year (I took a suitcase into my assemblies and got the kids to help me pack it!), the Reading Rollercoaster the year before (we all pretended we were on a rollercoaster!), and before that in no particular order we have had the Reading Maze, the Reading Planet, and the Reading Carnival. There have been more but they were before my time!

The Reading Mission Bagpuss refers to is the National Summer Reading Game organised by The Reading Agency (http://www.readingagency.org.uk/). Something like 90% of library services across England and Wales sign up for it. The Reading Agency produce all the publicity material and the awards to give to the children (for a cost, of course!). The government have recently set targets for % of population taking part and stuff, and these count towards your councils achievement stats. I will mostly be spending July in school assemblies encouraging the children to come along and take part. I also have to up the number of children in my area who actually manage to finish this year. not sure how though..... We are running it from 15th July through till 9th September, so it's not just August. Go oooon, take part!!!

I agree - if I am getting hooked on an author I will work my way through their back list. Often my next read is determined for me though - as other people pass things on that I need to get read by a certain time (eg book club reads, somehing that someone else has requested after me from the library, something I'm expected to read for work). It's always nice to have the freedom to browse my "to be read" heap.

Personally, I see Curious Incident as a Young Adult Novel - certainly not for anyone younger than about 13, but with no real upper age limit. It has a lot that a younger reader would not understand, and although it is not written as an adult book, it addresses a very serious theme in a very accessible way. In comparison to a lot of his other younger fiction, Mark Haddon has shown that he really has developed as an author, and I think he will have other great works to come.

I read the first one, and I'm going to buck the trend. I really didn't enjoy the experience. I actually found the style was incredibly patronising - particularly the use of long words with a definition in brackets afterwards (which means...). Wild horses couldn't have dragged me to watch the film, and there is no way I would read another. There are too many other *good* books out there waiting for me! I can appreciate that they are really popular and that they are developing vocabulary and that ever elusive love of reading in a previously hard to reach group, but they are certainly not for me.

If you enjoyed the film , you certainly should read the book. It's one of my top 20 reads ever! From the first sentance you are carried along by the writing and the imagery.

We had to read this at primary school, I must have read it 3 times as a child, and watched the film at least that too. It never failed to make me cry. A bit out of fashion now, I think, but a wonderful book.

Hi, as I'm new I'm late to this, but thought I would add that there are a few around. Eva Ibbotson has been mentioned elsewhere. She writes old fashioned adventure stories that appeal to the childrens fiction market, but aren't the easiest to read. What about Cornelia Funke or Cat Weatherill as well? They would fit this gap in the market of longer, more challenging childrens fiction.

For my job, I read a lot of children's books. It is sooooo hard to know where the lines are. We often class something by the age of the narrator - but that doesn't always work - Spies by Frayn is written from the point of view of a 12 year old, but clearly an adult book! One of my recent reads was Holes by Louis Sacher. This was really clever with the way that the stories came together - but certainly aimed at the 11-13 market, while still being enjoyable by older people too. I think that a childrens book is on that explores ideas that feel particularly important to a certain younger age group, and is written in a way that will appeal to that age group too.