Kylie

Yum! That's one of my very favourite meals, Icecream! Any leftovers?

Hello and Rainie!

No I haven't. I have seen The Notebook though. One of the saddest movies ever!

I have this one on my TBR pile. Is it sad like his others?

Imogen! I've heard a few good things about Diana Wynne Jones. I must look into her books one of these days.

I thought I'd keep a running tally via a monthly post showing where I'm up to with my various challenges. I read 7 books in January, which is pretty good by my standards, and when I put these books towards my reading challenges I end up with the following figures: CL: Classics Challenge (4/25) 1K: 1001 Books Challenge (2/20) RD: Reading through the Decades Challenge (5/11) BF: Book Club Forum Reading Circle Challenge (2/10) YA: Young Adults Challenge (1/10) SF: Sci Fi/Fantasy Challenge (2/8) AU: Australian Literature Challenge (1/6) DY: Dystopian Challenge (1/5) I managed to read something from each challenge during January (it helps that a lot of the books count towards multiple challenges). I think February will be a much slower month though if the beginning is anything to go by. I've been so busy and tired that I've been averaging about 10 pages a day; I need to lift my game! Most importantly, I only bought 6 new (or secondhand) books last month. For the first time in quite a few months my reading actually outstripped my buying! A very rare event indeed and one that I don't expect I'll be repeating too often this year.

I had a look at the Mobipocket Reader's website. It really looks like a good piece of software. My only gripe is that it doesn't support the Mac platform, which is unfortunately what I use 99% per cent of the time, and it's where I have all of my ebooks kept. Maybe one day they'll add support, but until then I'll just admire from afar Speaking of ebooks, in my rush to get my stuff out of the car and an umbrella over my head this morning, I left my current book on the floor of my car and didn't realise until I'd lugged my heavy bags all the way to the station. I was so annoyed because I didn't have any reading material for the train, but thankfully I was able to find an ebook version when I got to work, so I was able to read at my desk for morning tea and lunch, and I've downloaded it to my iPod so I can read it going home. Phew! Thank goodness for ebooks!

Hi Conor and welcome! I also love reading classics and I have so many sitting on my shelves waiting to be read that I wonder if I'll ever get through them . Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on what you read.

Hello and Jenni!

Thanks! I shall check them out

Yum! Oh how I love scones with jam and cream If we're eating out at breakfast I'll frequently order scones and not be able to get through them (usually only get two but they're so filling!) I would like to try making my own one day. I might use your recipe, Poppy, thanks!

A few books have recently come into my possession: ER Braithwaite: To Sir, With Love Anthony Burgess: 1985 Vladimir Nabokov: Nabokov's Dozen And a few more books have been added to my wish list (all are dystopians except for Hell's Angels): Patrick Califia: Doc and Fluff Andrew Keogh: Twentytwelve China Mieville: Perdido Street Station Hunter S Thompson: Hell's Angels Jack Womack: Elvissey

The Day of the Locust Nathanael West Rating: 7/10 Published: 1939 Number of pages: 215 Summary (taken from Amazon.com): Novel by Nathanael West about the savagery lurking beneath the Hollywood dream. Published in 1939, it is one of the most striking examples of the "Hollywood novel" in American fiction. Tod Hackett, a set designer, becomes involved in the lives of several individuals who have been warped by their proximity to the artificial world of Hollywood. Hackett's completion of his painting "The Burning of Los Angeles" coincides with the explosion of the other characters' unfulfilled dreams in a conflagration of riot and murder. Comments: This is an interesting story, full of vividly written archetypal Hollywood characters. There's the wannabe star with platinum hair, the vicious dwarf, the big-shot producer, the child star and his stage mother, etc. The characters, scenes and settings are all very nicely written: West does some lovely descriptive writing, and he takes his time in setting up each scene so that the reader has a clear image of it in their minds before he continues on with the story. There's not really much of a plot happening here; it's mostly a series of interactions involving one or more characters. There are several funny moments and the story builds up at the end into a frightening scene of mob hysteria...and then it ends very abruptly, leaving the reader curious as to the fate of several characters. It's not a book that I would necessarily recommend to everyone, but it's an interesting read nevertheless. My edition also came with a second, shorter story called The Dream Life of Balso Snell. I wasn't very impressed with this one - it was bizarre and difficult to follow. Lots of ramblings from random characters on religion, art and love. I didn't take this story into consideration when deciding my rating, otherwise the rating would have gone down a point or two! Started: 27 January 2008 Finished: 30 January 2008

The East India Company interests me. Is there any particular literature you would recommend if one wanted to find out more about its history? (Sorry to go off your original topic.)

Yes, it's your fault for writing so eloquently and covering everything I wanted to say Next time I'll just blatantly plagiarise your answer without giving you credit and hope that you don't notice (Kidding, of course!) Nice! I like having a complete set of books that are all the same edition (unlike my Lord of the Rings books: by the time I read the first one and went to buy the second, my edition had become obsolete )

1. What do you think of inheritance arrangements and how do they affect the various characters? How does this compare to how wills are orchestrated nowadays? What does this say about how women as descendents were viewed by society at the time? What Echo said . 2. How do men and women interact? Which interactions in particular did you find interesting and why? How do these relationships and interactions compare to engagements and marriages today? Obviously their behaviour towards each other is much more conservative than our behaviour today is (I often wonder what Jane Austen would think of today's society - then I get depressed for her sake and stop wondering). Relationships tend to move along much more quickly these days (and end almost as quickly!) 3. Are the characters in Sense and Sensibility conventional in their thoughts and actions according to the time in which the novel is set? In what ways do they conform (or not) to conventions? What is expected of them and how do they react to those expectations? I think Elinor was a very conventional person (very much suited for the time) whereas Marianne was more of a 'free spirit'. Their society seem so restrained sometimes that I wonder that Marianne didn't get into more trouble or have more people gossiping about her. Marianne didn't really seem to give two hoots about what people thought of her behaviour, whereas Elinor was much more conscious. Of course Marianne quieted down and grew up somewhat by the end. 4. Who was your favourite character and why? Hmm, this is a tougher one to answer than for Austen's other books. Probably the sensible and level-headed Elinor. 5. Was there a particular part you enjoyed/disliked more than the rest? I enjoyed finding out who Lucy had really married, although I wished Elinor and Edward's following conversation (after she had run out of the room) wasn't glossed over. It would have been nice to read it. 6. Was this the first book you've read in this genre/by this author, has it encouraged you to read more? No, this was my first Austen after previously reading Pride and Prejudice and Emma and I can't wait to read the others! 7. Were there any parts/ideas you struggled with? Other than Marianne being a big drama queen, not really! 8. Overall, was reading the book an enjoyable experience? Absolutely! 9. In your opinion, does Sense and Sensibility have a happy ending? Ultimately I think it does. It seemed for a while that none of the characters would be happy but I think it was wrapped up nicely.

Rod! I'm a fan of Hunter S Thompson too. I've been trying to track down Hell's Angels in bookstores but haven't been having much luck. I also love HG Wells and have only recently started reading Richard Matheson, Terry Pratchett and Stephen King. And I have a lovely big volume of The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe to get stuck into. Looking forward to discussing them all with you!

I also hate blurbs that contain too many quotes from other people (and when they have several pages of them at the beginning of the book!) My edition of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility has a quote by Helen Fielding on the front cover saying that Jane Austen is one of her favourite authors. I don't have anything against Helen Fielding but why are they using her to sell Jane Austen (one of the greatest authors of all time)?! There is no comparison! I glared at that quote every single time I saw it. And it doesn't exactly add anything to the book I think all of my Jane Austen's have similar pointless quotes on the front cover. I do like to have a bit of detail to a blurb but obviously not enough to give the plot away. I think some books toe the line a bit in that respect. Occasionally I'll go back and re-read a blurb after having read the book only to think 'What? How'd they get that blurb out of the story?' Sometimes you wonder if the person who wrote the blurb has actually read the book or they're just going on hearsay.

Lucy was such an awful character wasn't she? I also noticed the similarities between P&P and S&S. My only advice would be to take your time to absorb the writing. It definitely takes some getting used to and it's difficult when the sentences are so long and go off on different tangents. It's hard to keep track of what's being said. I often had to re-read a sentence to make sure I was still following it properly. Maybe that would help you? And if this is your first Jane Austen, here's a tip: when the text refers to 'Miss Dashwood', it's referring to Elinor, not Marianne. The eldest daughter is always given the title of 'Miss'. It confused me quite a bit when I first read P&P because I couldn't work out which daughter the 'Miss Bennett' was referring to (there are 5 sisters in that novel!)

I was just looking at the website and apparently we're only up to Cycle 6. There are 4 girls left. I hope Joanie wins - I always go for the one that seems the nicest I don't like Jade much. I liked the girl that won Cycle 5 (can't remember her name).

Welcome Sarah! I hope your reading picks up soon!

Snugglepot and Cuddlepie May Gibbs Rating: 7/10 Published: 1918 Number of pages: 220 Summary (taken from blurb): May Gibbs' enchanting bush world, peopled with gumnut heroes and heroines, solid friends like Mr Lizard and Mrs Bear, and, of course, the villainous Banksia men, has played as important a part in the imaginative background of Australian children as The Wind in the Willows or Alice in Wonderland...It includes most of the original illustrations, which contribute as much as the stories to the charm, humour and character of May Gibbs' classic. Comments: Along with Norman Lindsay's The Magic Pudding, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie is one of the greatest children's novels in Australian literature. My hardback copy consists of the complete adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, Little Ragged Blossom, and Little Obelia, and comes complete with the original gorgeous black and white illustrations. I loved this book as a kid and this has been the first time in many years that I've read it (I rashly decided to give away most of my childhood books years ago, but this was one of the few I kept). As a discerning adult, I can now spot obvious flaws that I never noticed before. There are gaping plot holes and unbelievable coincidences that are never satisfactorily explained, but ultimately it's a charming and fast-paced story of the adventures of the engaging Snugglepot and Cuddlepie and all of their friends. The illustrations are plentiful and gorgeous (examples can be seen here). May Gibbs has created a beautiful world full of bush creatures inspired by Australia's flora and fauna, and she displays her passion for them by sprinkling subtle messages throughout the book about being kind to all plants and animals. Well worth a look, if only for the beautiful illustrations. Started: 26 January 2008 Finished: 27 January 2008

Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen Rating: 9/10 Published: 1811 Number of pages: 407 Summary (taken from blurb): Sisters Marianne and Elinor couldn't be more different. Marianne is desperately romantic and longing to meet the man of her dreams, while Elinor takes a far more cautious approach to love. When the two of them move to the country with their family, miles away from London, there is little prospect of them finding anyone at all. But then they meet their new neighbours - including kind Edward Ferrers and the good-looking, dangerous Willoughby - and it seems happiness may be just round the corner after all. Things aren't always as they appear to be, though. Soon, both sisters will need to decide who to trust in their search for love: their family, their new friends, their heads - or their hearts? Comments: Another beautiful work by Jane Austen. No-one can capture romance and heartache quite like she can and, as always, her writing is a joy to read. I didn't find myself particularly liking Elinor and Marianne until near the end of the book, which is unusual for me when reading Austen because I usually love all of her heroines (even Emma, with all of her flaws!). That didn't detract from the enjoyment of the book though. There are also some great quotes in there reminding us that some issues are timeless. I prefer Pride and Prejudice and Emma, but Sense and Sensibility is still a very enjoyable read. Highly recommended. Started: 17 January 2008 Finished: 25 January 2008

Welcome Helen! It's great to have you here

I've added the following books to my wish list. I've been wanting some of them for a while now but just hadn't formally added them to the list. Dante Alighieri: The Divine Comedy Richard Bach: Jonathan Livingston Seagull Geoffrey Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales Michael Crichton: Jurassic Park Jared Diamond: Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed Jared Diamond: Guns, Germs, and Steel Umberto Eco: Foucault's Pendulum Umberto Eco: The Island of the Day Before Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose Homer: The Iliad Homer: The Odyssey Aldous Huxley: The Doors of Perception Erik Larson: The Devil in the White City Ovid: Metamorphoses Dorothy Parker: The Portable Dorothy Parker Shel Silverstein: The Light in the Attic Shel Silverstein: Where the Sidewalk Ends Like I really need all these extra books (Actually I do need them. They keep me happy! )