chesilbeach

Cheaper By The Dozen

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Bright Young Things

Started Bonjour Tristesse by Fran

A strange melancholy pervades me to which I hesitate to give the grave and beautiful name of sadness. Bonjour Tristesse by Fran

Read The First Person by Ali Smith today. My continuing excursions into the world of short stories resulted in a wonderfully satisfying read of this collection by an author I already love for her novels. A great reading day

I read Ali Smith's collection of short stories The First Person today. Wow. I just love this writer. I've been impressed with every book of hers I've read, and this was my first read of her short stories, and they were at times lovely, funny, sad, unsettling, with occasional forays into the surreal. An absolutely wonderful read.

Hi Iain!

Hello!

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

I've always intended to read some of the Jeeves and Wooster books, but I never seem to get around to it! I can see two omnibus editions on the top shelf in the bookcase in front of me that belong to OH and I always think I must read those ... you've convinced me they're worth the effort, Janet, so I'm moving them to my TBR shelves now!

I haven't read The Virgin Blue yet either, but I've read nearly all her others I think. My personal favourite hasn't been mentioned yet - Falling Angels which I just loved.

We also read this in our book group last year, and one of the few books of this genre I've read. There's some interesting background about how and why she wrote it on her website here

"There were two men in the caf

I'm currently reading The First Person by Ali Smith and this line really struck me: That kiss up against the building site fills the inside of my head again as if someone had opened a lid at the top of my skull, poured in a jug of warm water mixed with flower food, then arranged a bunch of spring flowers in me - cheerfulness, daffodils - using me as the vase.

I finished The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith this evening - the latest in his Isabel Dalhousie series. Isabel is the editor of a philosophy and ethics journal, and the book continues to follow her life in Edinburgh, but the most enjoyable thing I find about these books is when she considers the moral and philosophical dilemmas that anyone can face in their day to day lives. The drama is the drama of the everyday, bound together with the slightly more sensational story of of her encounters with an old adversary, Minty Auchterlonie. I'm always impressed with how well McCall Smith writes in a woman's voice, and Isabel is my favourite of all his characters. I've found all the books very uplifting and inspiring, and Isabel is the type of person I aspire to be - intelligent, caring, moral, considerate and generous - but she's far from perfect and makes mistakes but part of the joy is how she deals with those mistakes. These books are not for everyone. They are gentle and meandering at times, and there is very little drama or conflict, but what there is, is simply but eloquent, and it's one of my highlights of each year looking forward to the next book in the series.

Good choice! I'm sure you'll love it Charm

A Night At The Opera

The Living Daylights

I finished The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith today. I love the Isabel Dalhousie books, they're very gentle, but contemplative and full of those philosophical, moral dilemmas that I feel perhaps I should consider more myself in my everyday life. Going to start The First Person by Ali Smith next which is a collection of short stories. I've read a couple of her novels and loved them, and since I'm trying to read more short stories, this seemed a perfect choice from the library.

Hello Reeney!

Hello!

Five on a Treasure Island - Enid Blyton. There was a period when I was little when all I read was Enid Blyton, and the Famous Five were my favourites for a long time.

I read this a few years ago when it was Richard & Judy read. I enjoyed it a lot, but I'm not sure the author got the sense of period right the whole way through - at times it felt too modern for the period it was supposed to be. But, a good read. I keep meaning to look out for this author to see if she's written anything else, but I usually forget!

Hi Jess!