Nollaig

Finished my first book of 2009! Couldn't put it down A Certain Slant Of Light (2005) Genre: Young Adult/Supernatural Synopsis: 'After benignly haunting a series of people for over a century, Helen meets a teenage boy who can see her and together they unlock the mysteries of their paths.' General Ramble: I stumbled quite accidentally on this book - and am delighted that I did. Don't let the fact that its a Young Adult book deter you; its not childish, just a universally understandable exploration of, among other metaphysical concepts, spirituality and love. Its not overly adventurous and exciting; it's more poetic than anything. It is written in almost an old English style which clashes with the harrowing contemporary situations the characters find themselves in. The surreal execution of the novel will keep you thinking throughout but leave you feeling wholly content and maybe just a little bit hopeful. Rating: 8.5/10 ********************************** You can read my full ramble here.

Very nice review! I want to read this book now! Its going on my 09 reading list. I know elsewhere you asked about your approach to reviews - I don't think this is too long, its detailed but doesn't give away a thing, it tells me exactly what I'm dealing with but I still don't know the plot. Its a very clear and unbiased review, with a nice little touch in the question at the end. I'm reviewing your review. Anyway, mission accomplished - you got my interest

So will I, I'm in my last year of college, and English Lit is only half my course. I'm gonna integrate the 8-10 books I'm doing this year I think, into my reading list.... if thats not cheating

Wahey! Like I said, it's long winded at times, but it is SO FUNNY! Arabella is TOTALLY convinced real life is one big romance story and men should be practically fighting dragons for her! The ending is a bit dodgy, but its a great read. Neil Gaiman! *approves*

Haha you're on - the winner gets......... well, nothing I'm afraid, but the pride that comes from a fair victory

I forgot about this thread! Five new facts about me: 1. Watching all three LOTR movies is my personal Christmas Tradition. 2. I adore gaming, as do my parents, between them, my brother and I we have: NES, Super NES, Nintendo 64, PSone, gamecube, Wii, two playstation 2's and two playstation 3's and two DS lites. One Ds lite is mine, the rest are my brothers and mums. 3. I adore John Hannah. Hes on tv right now. Nom, nom, nom. 4. I used to be a pretty talented skateboarder. 5. I'm still pretty good at art. I nearly went to art college. But I stuck to personalising my skateboards and went studying Philosophy instead.

I've now added the following countries and books, just thought I'd note it here so people can see the new additions. Greece - ["The Last Temptation of Christ "] - Nikos Kazantzakis South Africa - ["Disgrace" - J. M. Coetzee] China - ["Chinese Cinderella" - Adeline Yen Mah] France - ["Madame Bovary" - Gustave Flaubert] Russia - ["Lolita" - Vladimir Nabokov] ["Crime and Punishment" - Fyodor Dostoevsky] Norway - ["Growth of the Soil" - Knut Hamsun] (nobel prize winning book) Germany - ["The Glass Bead Game" - Hermann Hesse]

Awh bless, I know the feeling! I read about 6 books last year and less than 10 the year before. Trust me, 50 is wishful thinking G'wan Landevale, put us all to shame

Best of luck! I'm only aiming for 50 this year

I'll add them to the list. Welcome aboard!

I've never liked Roald Dahl. Brilliant writer, his stories are great, I just never liked them.

Sliding Doors! I love the way some Scots say 'James' Its like 'Jay-ems' - two syllables rather than one. Some Northerners here do it too. My Belfast friend was called James. I used to mimic his accent lol.

Well I can tell you right now I won't finish this challenge anytime soon lol, I'll be too busy with college this year and life in general after that to read 198 books in any hurry. My main priority is my A-Z list for 2009. Its a challenge I intend to complete over the next few years, once I've compiled a list based on the thread we've made for it.

Wahey, I've updated the list with Chimera's suggestions and added a second Japanese book myself

They're very good movies! I'm not a fan of werewolves but somehow the age old war between vampires and werewolves always interests me!

Ah I don't dislike it, I had a friend years ago from Belfast and I loved his accent. I think the reason I prefer the scottish is because its more distinct from Irish accents than the Northern accents. Like I love other Irish accents (dublin and so on) but they're still Irish, so I prefer Scottish. Scottish IS my favourite accent. I have a serious thing about Scottish men XD I adore the actor John Hannah hahaha.

Do these sites work with the Republic though?

Ooooh very good!! Thanks guys!

Yay ^______^

Thats a brilliant book. Read it last year and once you ignore all the long-winded references to heroic characters, the actual story is hilarious.

I just bought this book =/ Its small though, so I don't mind if it doesn't turn out to be very good.