Ben

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Favourite novel of all time, richly rewarding even after multiple reads, and I'd never get fed up of it.

Really cold but no snow or rain, so can't complain as of yet..

Miami Heat vs. Clevland Cavaliers. Basketball for those of you who don't know, and Heat's insane winning run looks like it's about to come crumbling down (55-34 down at HT).

Last few seconds and the Doctor's little declaration gave me chills.. excited for the return.

Hi Emily, nice to 'meet' you, welcome to BCF. I'm sure you'll fit in here perfectly.

I'm not sure I was here four years ago, but I used to see your name on discussions on old threads that had been bumped up, so there's some faint recollection. In any case, it's nice to see you back. There's a fair few people that have just drifted away that I'd like to see back, so it's good to see you've returned. So, anyway, welcome back.. Edit: Turns out I've been here since July '08. As I started posting properly in December '08, it's probable that you were still just around when I was here. Good grief, doesn't time fly..

We've just had red hot sunshine, a blizzard, sunshine again, and now a steady trickle of light snow.. all in the space of ten minutes. Typical.

I watched Life As We Know It the other day which I forgot to mention. Didn't expect much but it was surprisingly very funny at times, and definitely enjoyable.

Watched LOTR: The Return of the King last night, all 192 glorious minutes. Still great.

England vs. New Zealand first test match, and it's not making for enjoyable watching.. Ah well, just waiting on the basketball, that'll be much more fun.

Reminded me a lot of Alex Connor's fiction work which I absolutely love - might take a look at this in town tomorrow.

Which one did you not win?

For Bradford the games against Wigan, Arsenal and Aston Villa were their cup-finals. It may have been a disappointing end but the remarkable achievement of getting their will live long in the memory of the fans (not to mention the financial benefits that have come from it too). I made the trip down to Wembley and I have to say it was absolutely incredible, regardless of the results. I don't know if it was easy to see on television but the Bradford fans sang their hearts out for 90mins (even while getting progressively behind), and the Swansea fans seemed quiet and disappointing to me - but perhaps I'm biased. Nevertheless they deserved and I was happy anyway - they really do play some attractive football, and of course they have their own little fairytale in going all the way and achieving European football. Congratulations to them and to Bradford for both playing their parts.

Got 1, 4, 5; the first and last I found the easiest. Others I had no clue.

Excellent review. I've been meaning to read some Murakami for ages now, but always manage to put it off. I'm a big fan of both Rushdie and Marquez so it's positive to see those comparisons. Once again nice review, and hopefully I'll get around to the The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle soon.

Did well this week, got 8/10. Thankfully decent questions.

Got 8, couple of guesses. Realised I was wrong on one just as I pressed it. Thanks for posting this, Claire.

Watched Django Unchained and Zero Dark Thirty; the former was amazing, the latter enjoyable with some good performances, but seen as though I'm writing about it alongside Tarantino's it understandably just doesn't hold up.

Going to make a start on A Passage to India by E. M. Forster because Beloved seems to be coming along rather slowly and I want to keep my reading moving. Synopsis: When Adela Quested and her elderly companion Mrs Moore arrive in the Indian town of Chandrapore, they quickly feel trapped by its insular and prejudiced 'Anglo-Indian' community. Determined to escape the parochial English enclave and explore the 'real India', they seek the guidance of the charming and mercurial Dr Aziz, a cultivated Indian Muslim. But a mysterious incident occurs while they are exploring the Marabar caves with Aziz, and the well-respected doctor soon finds himself at the centre of a scandal that rouses violent passions among both the British and their Indian subjects. Read A Room with a View last year and really enjoyed it, so looking forward to this one.

Certainly would. Well, got my ticket for Bradford and Swansea next month sorted. Wembley here I come.