Rosie

great read,fireball - Susan Hill has a new ghost story out called 'The Man in the Picture' - wonder if it is as scary as 'The Woman in Black'?

I can resist, it's hard, but I can do it. Mainly I don't have the money to buy the books I would like so I just like to browse. I really love book shops, like being in them looking at the books on the shelves and imagining what I would buy if I could afford it; if they have a coffee shop to sit in even better. I make a note of what I really want to read and then order from the library - but then, I love libraries too:D

All over the place:lol: Two bookcases in the sitting room full of mine and husband's non fiction books. More books in the little bedroom where the computers are. My fiction books are in the spare bedroom where there is shelf unit on the wall and a free standing bookcase as well and that is after taking loads to a charity shop and selling some at a car boot sale. There is also a pile of waiting to be read ones at the side of the bed.

Silent Witness QI Who do you think you are Great British Journeys Stuart Maconie's TV towns Michael Palin's New Europe History Detectives Looking forward to Rebus starting next week:)

As it is one of my very favourite books I would recommend A Month in the Country by J. L. Carr

This has been difficult but here are mine in no particular order:- Sydney Carton

I love it when it is warm enough to sit out in the garden and read - not done that so much this summer, also I like to sit in a chair near the window where there is plenty of light and I read in bed for half an hour or so before going to sleep:)

I think because most of Dickens's books are fairly wordy and lengthy that they would be more suitable for adults than children - many of them were serialised as stories in newspapers I think - maybe someone else can verify this - so were probably aimed at an adult readership at the time. Having said that I remember reading both A Tale of Two Cities and Oliver Twist at secondary school when I was 11 or 12. I don't think it matters what age you are when you read them - welcome to the site:)

This is very difficult but my personal choice from the ones I have read are:- If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things by Jon McGregor Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller The Hours by Michael Cunningham Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

Know what you mean - I've enjoyed books like 'The Food of Love' by Anthony Capella, 'On Rue Tatin' by Susan Loomis and 'Chocolat' by Joanne Harris. I also love reading Nigel Slater - I enjoyed 'Toast' and I like dipping into his 'Kitchen Diaries':)

P.D. James is a wonderful writer. I love her Adam Dalgleish novels. I enjoyed her last one 'The Light House' but agree with you that 'Death in Holy Orders' is one of her best:)

The Hundred and Ninety-Nine Steps Michel Faber Cannongate Books Ltd. P/back 2002 ISBN 1 84195 328 8 Synopsis 'Tired of nightmares in which she meets a grisly end, Sian decides she needs to get out more, so she joins an archaeological dig at Whitby Abbey. What she finds is a mystery involving a long-hidden murder, a man with big hands and a fragile manuscript in a bottle. Faber

Not people, mostly outdoors - gardens, flowers, trees or buildings or parts of them like doorways, windows or roofscapes. I like colours and textures too. Your photos are great I particularly like the textured object and the bowl of peppers:)

As well as reading I enjoy - walking, researching my family history, writing short stories and poems (haven't done that for a while), visiting museums, blogging and I love taking photos:)

Sounds interesting - I can't wait to start 199 Steps by Michel Faber the next book on my TBR pile after the one I'm reading now - then I may look out for The Crimson Petal and the White. PDR - you may be interested to know that there is a '5 minute interview' with Michel Faber in today's Independent - I enjoyed reading it:)

Two books I've left unfinished over the last few months are The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova and The Virgo Club by Susanna Power and I don't think I'd ever go back to them especially the latter. I did put aside Untold Stories by Alan Bennett but I will return to it later because I was enjoying it and it is the sort of book you can dip into often rather than reading it from beginning to end.

When I'm looking for books to read the genres I tend to avoid are Science Fiction, Fantasy and anything with Vampires in it. Not keen on anything about war if it is about battles and the technical side of warfare but if it is about how people are affected by and cope with war e.g. Birdsong or The Night Watch then I will read and enjoy it. I never even think to look at Westerns or Mills & Boon type romantic fiction. I've just realised I'm probably stuck in a rut with my reading habits because I tend to choose what I like and what I feel comfortable with.

I like to take a couple of books a light easy read one and one I can get my teeth into. I also like to look in bookshops whilst I'm on holiday so may pick up others whilst there - I can't bear the thought of not having a book to read:)

Ssh...... Rebecca Shaw, Judy Astley and Jilly Cooper:roll:

I have a favourite chair near a window where there is plenty of light so my eyes don't feel strained- like most people I tend to sit with the book on my left hand and turn the pages with my right hand. I can't sit for too long in one position though as my legs start to ache - especially if I have a cat as well as a book on my lap:) I've noticed that I also sit with my head slightly to one side and when I straighten up my neck it has started to 'clunk' - which is slightly worrying - getting old I guess:lol:

Such a long time ago now:blush: and I can't remember what we read in junior school - just what I read at home but I do remember the first couple of years at grammar school reading 'Tiger in the Smoke' 'Jane Eyre' and 'A Tale of Two Cities' - I also remember one year doing 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and I think we also did 'Merchant of Venice':)

Oh, thanks for telling me. That could be the explanation then:D

I have a treasured copy of Westward Ho! which belonged to my grandfather. It was a present from his younger brother and it has both their names, ages and addresses inside. Very useful for family history purposes:) I also have books that have been given to me as presents which have been written inside with a few words like 'On your birthday...etc'. When I was a child we always used to put our names inside books with the date. The only times I've annotated books was for study purposes when I've used pencil to highlight meanings in poetry, plays etc. If I want to remember anything I usually stick a scrap of paper in the relevant pages. I've quite often noticed when I borrow books from the library there is someone, who seems to have the same taste in books as me, who rings the page number. I've not worked out whether it is to mark the page they got to when they finished reading or to mark the page to go back to again to make a note of something:)

Depends how sleepy I feel:blush: I usually take half to three quarters of an hour mid-afternoon just to sit and read and then I read for half an hour or so at night in bed. If a book is keeping me interested I can read quite quickly but if it is hard going I find I can read the same sentence two or three times and sometimes I fall asleep over it. The last book I read and the one I'm reading now are keeping me awake and interested:lol:

I only collected this book from the library on Tuesday and I finished it last night. I was hooked into the interweaving story lines right from the start and I just couldn't put it down. I found it easy to read and once I became familiar with the three main characters I could easily following the character/time changes and they worked smoothly for me. I think I guessed fairly early on the various 'revelations' but it didn't spoil it for me and although the end was surprising it was somehow acceptable. This morning my mind was still full of the story and I think I may have to wait a day or two before I can begin to read another book. I shall certainly look for other books by Maggie O'Farrell:)