Kylie

Bought four brand-new books cheaply yesterday. Aldous Huxley: The Grey Eminence Aldous Huxley: Those Barren Leaves Donovan Leitch: The Hurdy Gurdy Man (Autobiography) Geoff Tibballs: No-Balls and Googlies: A Cricket Companion Saw a couple of others that I might go back and get too. One was another 'insider's account' of someone's time with The Beatles (can never have too many of those!). And the other was a big (huge!) book of maps. I adore looking at ancient maps, and this one has gorgeous full-page reproductions. I think it weighs about a ton (at a conservative estimate), so I might have to pick this one up on the way home from work one day - the book shop is near the train station so I won't have to lug it too far. Oh, and there were a handful of cheap Wordsworth editions of various classics, such as War and Peace, that looked mighty tempting

Reading order sounds good to me! I can't wait to get stuck into it It'll be great to compare the heroines of the different novels - to see what similarites and differences exist between them and other characters.

Me too Adam! I was looking through my beloved IKEA catalogue last night for solutions and thought I'd found it: some nice boxes to slide under my bed. Then I looked at the gap under my bed and realised I'd overestimated how big it is! Back to the drawing board! Maybe I'll buy a new bed. One that's high off the ground so I can put drawers or something under it. Man, this is turning into an expensive hobby

Aw, what a lovely post GSH! Very nicely written

1. Favourite Main Meal - Roast chicken and vegies or sausages and mashes potato with onion gravy 2. Favourite Starter - Herb bread 3. Favourite Dessert - Mudcake and sticky date pudding 4. Favourite Pizza Topping - Meatlovers 5. Favourite Bread - White 6. Favourite Vegetable - Tomato 7. Favourite Fruit - Tomato 8. Favourite Cheese - I HATE cheese! 9. Favourite Takeaway - Satay chicken and rice (my little takeaway shop does the nicest you'll ever eat!) 10. Favourite Chocolate Bar - I'll take any! I'll take a leaf out of Janet's book and say that Chunky Caramel Kit-Kats are pretty good! 11. Favourite Sandwich - Club sandwich I'm sooo hungry now!

Wow, is it Christmas already because I'm feeling like all my Christmases have come at once! What an excellent idea Kell! I love Jane Austen and would love to devote next year to reading the four books that I haven't read yet (and I'm sure my arm could be twisted to do some re-reading!)

I'm doing this with my current book. I try not to open it wide so sometimes I have trouble reading the words near the inner margins It's irritating but ultimately worth it, I think. I hate cracked spines, although a bigger problem for me is the bottom corner of the front cover. No matter how careful I try to be, the corner always gets a little turned up by the time I've finished, and it looks terrible. Hear, hear! I was recently trying desperately to remember the name of a book I read at school when I was young, but having no success. When I was browsing the children's section of a second-hand bookshop on the weekend, there it was! And it's not a very well known book so you wouldn't expect to find it so easily!

A Spot Of Bother Mark Haddon Rating: 7/10 Published: 2006 Number of pages: 390 ISBN: 0224080466 Summary (taken from blurb): George Hall doesn't understand the modern obsession with talking about everything. 'The secret of contentment, George felt, lay in ignoring many things completely.' Some things in life, however, cannot be ignored. At fifty-seven, George is settling down to a comfortable retirement, building a shed in his garden, reading historical novels, listening to a bit of light jazz. Then Katie, his tempestuous daughter, announces that she is getting remarried, to Ray. Her family is not pleased - as her brother Jamie observes, Ray has 'strangler's hands'. Katie can't decide if she loves Ray, or loves the wonderful way he has with her son Jacob, and her mother Jean is a bit put out by all the planning and arguing the wedding has occasioned, which get in the way of her quite fulfilling late-life affair with one of her husband's former colleagues. And the tidy and pleasant life Jamie has created crumbles when he fails to invite his lover, Tony, to the dreaded nuptials. Unnoticed in the uproar, George discovers a sinister lesion on his hip, and quietly begins to lose his mind. The way these damaged people fall apart - and come together - as a family is the true subject of Mark Haddon's disturbing yet very funny portrait of a dignified man trying to go insane politely. Comments: This is not usually the type of book I would go for but I quite enjoyed it, even if some parts read as something I've seen a million times on a soapie (not very original ideas). I noticed that Mark Haddon has a penchant for similes, which I found slightly irritating at one stage when he wrote two in as many sentences, but I got used to them later on (well, either I got used to them or he stopped using so many!). I found it hard to get to know the characters properly (and I had trouble keeping all their names straight for some reason!). It's written in a slightly dry manner: rather than actual dialogue, Haddon would write a conversation as 'he said this and then she said that', which I don't think helped with my character identification. I felt quite sorry for George and I don't understand why Ray was the least popular character through most of the book when he was clearly the nicest, most normal one of the lot! I don't think the reader is given good enough reasons why George, Jean and Jamie would dislike Ray so much, and having him throw a bin in a one-off tantrum just didn't cut it! I enjoyed Haddon's various observations on life and overall I found it a good read. I would like to read more by Mark Haddon. Recommended. Started: 15 October 2007 Finished: 18 October 2007 A Spot Of Bother (at librarything.com)

I've seen the movie once and wasn't overly impressed with it. Maybe I should do what you did, Liz, and read the book (which I already have on my wish list), then watch the movie a few more times. I'd like to see what everyone else sees in it.

I love buying secondhand books, but like others I get put off if it's not in very good condition. That said, I've given in a few times and have some pretty bad copies of books at home. I bought a copy of The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne on the weekend. When I got it home and opened it, I found this written inside: 'Don't read the first 46 pages, it's boring' Turns out that the first 46 pages make up the introduction, so it looks like I'll be skipping that. Thank you anonymous person!

Welcome Pierced Musie! I'm not that great at expressing my thoughts on books either, but I keep doing it just the same! So feel free to jump in and tell us whatever you like about what you're reading.

Trixie Belden And The Marshland Mystery Kathryn Kenny Rating: 6/10 Published: 1962 Number of pages: 212 ISBN: 0307215784 Summary (taken from blurb): Trixie gripped Honey's arm and held her back. "Look at the window!" she said in a strange voice. Honey looked and felt a little shiver go down her spine. A bony hand was gesturing from between the curtains of the window next to the door. And, quite unmistakably, the hand was warning them to go. Comments: First, a bit of background on the Trixie Belden series. Trixie Belden is a 13-year-old girl detective, and this series is much in the same vein as Nancy Drew, only aimed at a slightly younger readership (which, of course, doesn't discourage me from reading them!) There were 39 books published between 1948 and 1986, and while they're all attributed to Kathryn Kenny, this is actually a pseudonym. The first 6 books were written by Julie Campbell, and the rest were written by various other writers (some unknown). I have almost the entire series (I'm missing #19 and #35-#39 - the last five are reasonably rare and very expensive to buy). I bought quite a few books to fill some gaps last year, so I decided to start re-reading the series and incorporate the new books along the way. I read the first 9 last year and I'll try to read a couple more before the end of this year. The books are light and enjoyable reads, following the exploits of Trixie and her friends and siblings as they solve various mysteries. I have to say, though, that this one (#10) is the first Trixie Belden book I've been a little disappointed in. The humour seemed a little forced and 'try-hard' and, in actual fact, there was no real mystery to solve at all and very little concerning the marsh. It was more about the unhappiness of a child prodigy. There were quite a few references by characters to the myth that Captain Kidd hid treasure in the marsh, but it was always dismissed quickly and nothing came of it. I think treasure in the marshland would have made for a much better story here. Oh well, it was still a good read! Started: 12 October 2007 Finished: 14 October 2007 Trixie Belden #10 (at librarything.com)

Great Expectations Charles Dickens Rating: 9/10 Published: 1860-1861 Number of pages: 556 ISBN: 0141023538 Summary (taken from blurb): Pip doesn't expect much from life. His sister makes it clear that her orphaned little brother is nothing but a burden on her. But suddenly things begin to change. Pip's narrow existence is blown apart when he finds an escaped criminal, is summoned to visit a mysterious old woman and meets the icy beauty Estella. Most astoundingly of all, an anonymous person gives him money to begin a new life in London. Are these events as random as they seem? Or does Pip's fate hang on a series of coincidences he could never have expected? Comments: A brilliant read and another tear-jerker! This is the second work of Dickens that I have read since beginning with A Tale of Two Cities last year. I found the style of writing much easier to get into this time, and I loved it from the start. The characters and scenery are beautifully painted and very haunting (Miss Havisham and the marshes come to mind). I love Dickens' descriptive writing and the humour he imbues in his writing. I was expecting to love the character of Pip, but I mostly ended up disappointed by him again and again, until near the very end. Of course, this is no reflection on Dickens; he wrote an unlikable character extremely well. And I thought Pip's recollections made the transition between childhood and adulthood quite smoothly. Very highly recommended. Started: 20 September 2007 Finished: 10 October 2007 Great Expectations (at librarything.com)

Went into a secondhand bookshop today and came out with the following: Judy Bernard-Waite: The Riddle of the Trumpalar Ray Bradbury: I Sing the Body Electric! Ray Bradbury: Long After Midnight Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter I read The Riddle of the Trumpalar for school many years ago, and just recently I started thinking about it, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was called! I even googled it but couldn't find it (I was searching for 'templars' for starters), so I was quite excited to see it in a bookshop today! Looking forward to reading it again. The two Bradbury novels are collections of short stories.

Definitely the Tomorrow series by John Marsden. From Wikipedia (page contains spoilers): I cannot recommend these books highly enough. John Marsden makes the situations and events seem unbelievably real and possible, and his ability to accurately portray the minds and relationships of teenagers is uncanny. I would love to see these books made into movies. They're just unbelievable, and I re-read the series (10 books) at least once every 2 years. Just as enjoyable for adults as they are for younger readers.

I prefer paperback because they're easier to hold and carry around, although if I'm really into a series of books, I'll buy them in hardback as soon as they come out. I've done this with the Harry Potter series and the Tomorrow series by John Marsden. I came to both series late so got the first few books in paperback and the rest in hardback - there's no way I was going to wait for paperback versions of the rest of the books! I don't love having the inconsistency between paperback/hardback but it doesn't bother me too much. I have a friend at work who waits until the paperback versions of Harry Potter come out before reading them. I'm pretty sure she said she has to wait 18 months for it! (although that's probably only Australia, knowing our delays in getting everything!)

I thought it was a predictable story that was poorly told, and didn't have anything in it that can't be found in other fables. I was disappointed after all the hype.

Medic, can you please stop posting the same message all over the forums? Your original post will be read by others and replied to if they feel like it. There's no point following other online users around and posting your repetitive message in inappropriate threads after someone else has recently posted. Please see this thread for forum rules and etiquette. If you would like to be a long-term contributing member to the BCF, feel free to make an introductory post and tell us what you like to read. And now that I've also thoroughly disturbed Phil's introduction, please allow me to give you a big hearty WELCOME! I look forward to discussing books with you Phil. Do you have any particular favourite authors or books? [Admin Edit: Kell removed the posts in question.. just in case anyone is confused! Michelle]

Wow Lauren, does that mean you've read 95 books so far this year? I wish I could read that fast - it would help to keep my TBR pile down! Maybe I should do a course in speedreading. I've only read one of Coelho's works, The Alchemist and I hated it. Nothing would induce me to pick up any more of his books! The only Margaret Atwood I've read so far is The Handmaid's Tale, which I enjoyed quite a lot. Other members have enjoyed The Blind Assassin and Alias Grace as well. I think Atwood's writing style differs widely across books so maybe you'd like to try another one in future I also enjoyed the way the stories were linked together in Cloud Atlas but I did struggle through some of them. I thought it was an OK read.

Well said Echo! It's comforting to know that I'm not some sort of outsider - that there are other people with the same anxieties and fears as myself. Also, I lead a pretty trouble-free life so reading about the dramas and problems of other people (even if fictionalised) gives me a greater appreciation for my own life. And not only are they universal, but they're timeless as well. All of these examples are books that were published well over 100 years ago. The world has changed so much since then, but that does nothing to diminish the powerful observations of human nature contained in these classics. The fact that they haven't dated shows how truly wonderful these books are. Their messages are timeless.

Nice review Andy I saw this book at a fair recently and debated getting it, but didn't for some reason. Now I regret that I didn't pick it up! Sounds like an intriguing read and one that I will definitely add to my wish list. I've never known much about Malcolm X really; as you said, he's kind of just been a name to me, which sounds terrible, I know

I think I would have to go with a re-read of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It's such a beautiful story.

Excellent review Kenny! I think I'll add this one to my wish list, although it sounds like it mightn't be very easy to track down! I love sci-fi but sadly I haven't yet read a wide range of authors. Thanks for broadening my horizons

I might go with some Edgar Allen Poe too. I bought a book of his complete tales and poems earlier this year but I haven't gotten around to reading any of it yet, despite taking it off my shelf fairly regularly and looking longingly through the pages Other books keep getting in the way, but now is as good a time as any to get stuck into it! Do you have any particular favourites that you could recommend to me Kitty? I've pretty much only read The Raven so far (about a million times!)

I started this book yesterday and have been making good progress. It's not usually the type of book I would go for but I'm enjoying it pretty well, even if some parts read as something I've seen a million times on a soapie. Has anyone else noticed that Mark Haddon has a penchant for similes? I found it slightly irritating at one stage when he wrote two in as many sentences, but I've gotten used to them now (well, either I'm used to them or he's not using them as often!). I don't feel as though I'm getting to know the characters very well (and I'm having trouble keeping all their names straight for some reason! I have to keep pausing and thinking, 'now which one is Graham again?'). It seems to be written in a slightly dry manner, which I don't think is helping my character identification. Overall, though, I'm finding it a good read so far and I'm feeling quite sorry for George. I also like Haddon's observations on life - I've found myself thinking a few times 'Yes! That's what I've always thought!'. You know the type of observations on human nature that you think only you have noticed, and then you're amazed when you see it written on the page in front of you? I wish I had an example to give but I can't remember any off-hand.