Ruth

Oh I've lost count of the amount of times I've picked up A Game of Thrones, and then put it down. Fantasy isn't really my thing, but so many people have said that it's a great series that I know I shall succumb to it eventually! ....but that makes me feel a bit better about it - thanks I'm currently reading Except The Dying, by Maureen Jennings - the first in the Murdoch Mysteries series. The tv show is one of my very favourites, and the book is brilliant too!

Oh, totally agree. Keith's lifestyle - which in any event is much tamer these days - tends to overshadow his musical talent sometimes. He's such an amazing musician though. And he sure knows how to tell a good story! (For my money, Jagger and Richards were always a better songwriting duo than Lennon and McCartney, but obviously that's just personal opinion )

I went off crime novels for a bit, but my interest has been rejuvenated by Maureen Jennings books. They are set in Toronto at the end of the 1800s, and all feature Detective William Murdoch. I bought the books because I am a HUGE fan of the tv series Murdoch Mysteries, and that series is a kind of spin off from the books. I started the first book in the series last night, and am hooked already!

I would want to save my special edition of To Kill A Mockingbird, because my husband bought it for me, knowing it was one of my very favourite books. Other than that, I would probably just grab armfuls of books, and hope to rescue as many as I could.

Cassandra was a very charismatic and sweet narrator. I think the reason I liked the ending was I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had known about the change of tone, which as you say, is to be expected given the storyline. The first half ha me laughing and giggling constantly, and especially the bear hunt/mix up at the station, which was hilarious

That was my favourite part - brilliant comic writing! Book Lover, by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack Everyone has a way of dealing with problems or escaping from reality for a while – for some people it’s soap operas, for some it’s alcohol, for some it’s exercise….for Dora, it’s books. When she feels disappointed with life, or with herself, she holes up in her apartment for days on end, and reads book after book after book. And lately, Dora has been feeling very disappointed; she is separated from her second husband, she hasn’t worked for five years, she eats too much pizza and drinks too much wine. When she meets sexy, funny, clever Fred, who works at – where else? – the local bookstore, they start a relationship. But when he shows his true colours, she wonders whether he is really the man for her. I’m not sure what I expected from this book – I looked forward to reading about someone who adored books, as I thought I would be able to relate to her. This is actually more a chick-lit type read than I was expecting (which is not necessarily a bad thing). The story is told from Dora’s point of view, and I did feel that she was a very believable character. She wasn’t always easy to like – she could be prickly, and looked down on people a lot. I got actually quite annoyed with her when she described different types of readers and how they irritated her; people read for many different reasons, but most of those reasons weren’t good enough for Dora. However, she did redeem herself in the second half of the story, and I ended up liking her a lot. Fred’s mother Bea, and his niece Harper, as well as Dora’s sister Virginia, were all very likeable, but unfortunately Fred was one of the most annoying and self-satisfied characters I’ve read about for a while! The writing flowed well, and was always easy to read, even if some of the events seemed to serve no purpose in the story at all – such as when Dora and her friend Darlene rescue an injured deer. Overall, I quite enjoyed the book, but I’m not sure that I would be interested in reading anything further by these authors. (Note: This book was also released under the title ‘Literacy and Longing in L.A.’)

I Capture the Castle, by Dodie Smith Cassandra Mortmain, the narrator of this story, lives in a crumbling old castle with her beautiful but self-centred sister Rose, her younger brother Thomas, her remote (and frankly very unlikeable) father, her eccentric but hugely likeable stepmother Topaz, and Stephen, a young man who lives with the family and looks after the castle for them. They are penniless, and often struggle even to eat half-decent meals; all their decent furniture has been sold, and things don’t look likely to get any better. Nonetheless, they somehow rub along together and seem happy enough. Their quiet little life changes completely with the arrival of American brothers Simon and Neil – suddenly there seems to be a way out of poverty, but things are never quite as simple as they appear. And everything that happens is faithfully recorded by Cassandra in her journal, which forms this novel. I have mixed feelings about this book. I really really enjoyed the first half, and thought that it may well turn into an all-time favourite. Cassandra was witty and funny – clearly an intelligent narrator, but still charmingly naive. The way she described certain events made me laugh out loud, and it was very easy to picture what she was writing about. In the second half of the book, things took a slightly more angst turn. I’m not about to give away any spoilers, but suffice to say that Cassandra went through a lot of emotions, and all of them are described here – sometimes it felt like they were described time and time again! At this point, the humour took something of a back seat. The characters were all very well depicted, and for the most part were likeable. Certainly Cassandra herself was very endearing, and I also warmed to Topaz and Thomas. However, the father of the house was not just remote with his family, but sometimes downright horrible to them – I desperately wanted his wife Topaz to kick him into touch, but sadly most of his behaviour was tolerated – almost to the point of encouragement – by his family. What is worth mentioning though is the ending. Without telling what happens, I will say that I thought I knew exactly where this book was going, and when I did reach the end, I was genuinely surprised, and very pleased as the ending I had imagined was not one I would have liked. Overall, I would say that there is plenty to enjoy here, but most of the giggles are definitely to be found in the first half of the book. I’m not sure I would ever read it again, but I’m certainly not disappointed that I picked it up in the first place.

Finished reading I Capture The Castle, by Dodie Smith. I enjoyed the first half immensely, but it became less funny and more angsty in the second half, which I didn't enjoy quite as much. It was definitely still worth reading though. I really really want to read one of my Murdoch Mysteries books (by Maureen Jennings), but I MUST read some of the books which have been on my tbr shelf for literally years first. So after a pathetic amount of pithering over what book to read next, I have gone for Book Lover, by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack.

I finished reading The Miracle Inspector, and enjoyed it a lot. Then I started reading I Capture the Castle, and what I want to know is....WHY haven't I read this before? So far, it is just wonderful

Thanks Kylie I wish I had read it earlier - I will definitely be reading it again! You're welcome I hope you enjoy it. I've put it on my 'keeper' shelf, because I know I will read it again too The Miracle Inspector, by Helen Smith This story is set in London in the near future; it’s a London that in some ways feels very familiar, but in some ways is scarily different from the London of today. Counties have been partitioned off, and Londoners are effectively trapped in their city. To escape, they have to literally go underground, and risk their lives. Women are not allowed to work – indeed, are not even allowed outside their house unless they are covered with a veil. The fear of paedophilia is so immense that men are frightened of spending time with any child who is not their own, and even then, only with their wife present. Theatre and books are banned, and any kind of culture is considered anarchic, and therefore punishable by the authorities. Living in the middle of all this are young couple Lucas and Angela. Lucas works for the sinister Ministry, as a Miracle Inspector – his days are spent visiting people who claim to have discovered a genuine miracle, but so far every ‘miracle’ has been a fraud, or the wishful thinking of the claimant. Lucas and Angela make plans to leave London, but it turns out to be much harder than anyone could imagine. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Dystopia is one of my favourite genres, and fans of such books as Nineteen Eighty-Four and The Handmaid’s Tale, would almost certainly enjoy this novel. I found it scarily believable; a world that was all too easy to imagine, where fear of paedophilia and terrorism has curtailed people’s freedom to an extreme level. It is not spoilerish to say that at one part, Angela finds herself outside London, as a refugee, and the story drew parallels with how asylum seekers are treated in the real world, with mistrust and fear. The writing is very ‘clean’ – no words are wasted here – and it flows beautifully. The different subplots tie together nicely and despite the subject, there is genuine humour here as well. Overall, I definitely enjoyed this book, and will be seeking out Helen Smith’s other books. Definitely recommended, especially to fans of dystopian fiction.

Thanks Brian

The marathon. I'd have no chance of winning, because I can run for ages and ages, but not very fast. I would love to be good at gymnastics, but I don't think I would ever be able to match the dizzy heights of excellence I have witnessed during the Olympics!

Yes, congratulations to the Brownlee brothers, and all the other medalists. So nice to see some positive role models in the media for a change. I watched the men's gymnastics pommel horse final the other day. I was just mesmerised by it - incredible.

Read Animal Farm yesterday, and loved it. This morning I started The Miracle Inspector, by Helen Smith - it's a dystopian novel, somewhat reminiscent of The Handmaid's Tale (which I loved). Really enjoying it so far

Animal Farm, by George Orwell Animal Farm is George Orwell’s famous allegorical tale; a satirical tale about communism and the Russian Revolution. After the animals on Manor Farm revolt and chase away their tyrannical master, Jones, they decide that from now on, they will work for themselves, and won’t serve any human master. All animals are deemed equal, and each will work according to his capacity, for a just reward. The animals are led by the pig Napoleon (who represents Joseph Stalin), and all are initially happy with their new lives. However, it is not long before the power goes to Napoleon’s head, and things go awry. It’s a classic for good reason – this book is just brilliant. It’s funny, but carries a stark message about how power can corrupt. It can be read simply as a story about a group of animals who try to take control of their lives, but Orwell’s intent and meaning is very clear for all to read. It also warns of the danger of a lack of education and understanding, and the inability to perceive what is happening. This book comes in at less than 100 pages, and only takes a couple of hours to read. And it is definitely worth a couple of hours of anyone’s life. Just brilliant, and one of those rare books which I would recommend to everybody.

The Coroner's Lunch, by Colin Cotterill This book is the first in a series featuring Dr Siri Paiboun. It is set in 1976, in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, which has just been taken over by the communist party. Dr Siri would dearly love to retire, but instead he finds himself reluctantly given the post of coroner, despite having no experience in that job at all. Along with his two assistants, the feisty and eager Dtui and the nervous Geung, who suffers from Down Syndrome, Siri has to learn the job while he’s doing it. When the wife of a prominent party member dies suddenly, Siri suspects that there is more to it than the husband’s claim that a bad diet killed her. Things get really complicated when three Vietnamese men turn up dead, and appearing to have been tortured. As Siri investigates it becomes clear that some people don’t want him to discover the truth. I have slightly mixed feelings about this book, but overall I would say I enjoyed it. The writing is wry and amusing, and for such a macabre subject, the book is fairly light-hearted. For me, the character made the story. I really liked Siri, and his two assistants, and also his friend Civilai, whose connections prove useful to Siri. However, the plot seemed to be unnecessarily complicated. The murder of the party member’s wife, and the mystery surrounding the three Vietnamese men would both have made interesting subjects for novels in their own right, but to have them both feature in one novel, made the storyline convoluted. There was also a third storyline wher Siri travels to the Hmong region, in order to discover the truth behind some more mysterious deaths, and here the novel takes a supernatural turn, which did not personally appeal to me. Overall, I would say the book was enjoyable, due to the very likeable main characters; the mysteries which Siri tries to solve are of secondary importance. I probably would read more books in this series.

Well, I think all bets are off for 2012's Sports Personality of the Year!

Finished Heat Wave, by Richard Castle - a tie-in to the tv show - and it was good fun, not too demanding. Great bit of escapism (like the show itself ). Have started The Coroner's Lunch, by Colin Cotterill. I wouldn't have picked this up, except that it is this month's book for the local reading group - and I'm glad it is, because so far I am enjoying it a lot!

Heat Wave, by Richard Castle This book is a tie-in to the ABC tv series ‘Castle’ – but not your usual kind of tie-in. In that show, celebrity author Richard Castle tails NYPD Detective Kate Beckett and her team, in order to research his latest crime series. He bases his character Nikki Heat on Beckett, and releases a number of Nikki Heat books. This book is the first one in that series, so in effect it is a book written by a fictional character! (The identity of the actual author of the books is a closely guarded secret.) The way it’s done is very clever, complete with an author photo of Richard Castle (actually Nathan Fillion, who portrays him on the show), and in his acknowledgements he thanks both the fictional characters and the actors on the show. The story of the book revolves around the death of property mogul Matthew Starr. There are no shortage of suspects as Nikki and her colleagues, including Jameson Rook (the character which Castle bases on himself) investigate the murder, and Nikki finds herself in danger as she works to uncover the truth. It’s hard to review this book without connecting it to the tv series. It could be read as a straightforward crime thriller, even if the reader had never seen the show. However, I think fans of the show (and I count myself among their number) will probably get more out of it, as the characters in the show all have counterparts in the book, and I found myself hearing their voices in my head as I read the story. I definitely enjoyed the book. It moves along at a rapid pace, and certainly captures the atmosphere of New York City. I was kept guessing right until the end, and there were enough twists and turns to make it difficult to predict what was going to happen. And for fans of the show – the much-referred to sex scene between Heat and Rook is in the book, and does indeed happen on page 105, just as stated in the show! Overall, an enjoyable read – I will definitely read the subsequent books in the series.

I loved loved loved Gone With the Wind. Haven't read the sequel, but believe that it does not match up to the first one. If it is as others have said, that you have the original GWTW split into two editions, then I would definitely go for that. Definitely. Otherwise - Memoirs of a Geisha is a brilliant book too

Without question, my favourite TV show ever is The Wire. Others I like are: Homicide: Life on the Street Murdoch Mysteries Arrested Development Community Psych

I loved Ella Minnow Pea. It is just brilliant Hope you love it too!

After my last read, I am amending my list to include it My best books of the year are: Gene Kelly: A Biography, by Clive Hirschhorn Shakespeare On Toast: Getting a Taste For the Bard, by Ben Crystal The Legend of Colton H Bryant, by Alexandra Fuller Starmaker, by Jay Bernstein The Six Wives of Henry VIII, by Alison Weir Paul Newman: A Life, by Shawn Levy I notice that all of my best reads are non-fiction (The Legend of Colton H Bryant is a fictionalised account of a real story), which I find quite interesting, because until about two years ago, I hardly ever read non-fiction.

Paul Newman: A Life, by Shawn Levy Paul Newman was mainly known to the world as a movie star – an icon, really – with a beautiful face, mesmerising blue eyes, and a air of rascality about him. His long marriage to Joanne Woodward was revered in a profession where marriages often seem to break up almost as soon as the vows are read. This book is a journey through Newman’s life, from his happy childhood as the son of the owner of a successful sporting goods business, to the start of his acting career, and of course, his Hollywood stardom. However, just as interesting are the details of Paul’s passion for motor racing, his political activism, and his philanthropy. The book also covers darker periods of his life, such as the tragic death of his son Scott, and a period when he and Joanne briefly separated. The book was written in a respectful, but not fawning fashion, and painted a picture of a man who was sometimes uncomfortable with his stardom, who was almost obsessive about details regarding his characters and the settings of films, and whose greatest love in life was his wife. Shawn Levy has taken a huge number of interviews that Paul Newman gave, and put them into chronological order; in this way, although Newman did not participate in any way with the writing of this book, we are still able to see his thoughts on certain times in his life, certain films that he made, etc. The book does not portray Newman as a saint, but he is treated with the warmth and respect that such a man would deserve. One of the most fascinating parts of the book for me was when Newman set up the Hole In The Wall camps – places where sick children could go to simply have fun, play games, forget about their illnesses for a while. Newman was determined that no child’s family should have to pay for their child to go to the camp, and importantly, as well as giving his money to the project, he also gave his time – he would often pop into the camps on spec, and play games or chat with the children. I knew that Newman was a generous man, but I was surprised to learn of some of the things that he did, at no benfit to himself. The book is very readable, and not at all dry – it’s a fascinating read from start to finish. I actually found myself with a lump in my throat at the end, when reading about the death of this mercurial, precise, rogueish, handsome, kind, intelligent and funny man. I would urge fans of Paul Newman to read this book.

Just finished reading Paul Newman: A Life, by Shawn Levy. Excellent biography of a wonderful man:) Now about to start Heat Wave, by Richard Castle.