ladymacbeth

Hi people. I have not been on here since January and wanted to say hello again. I've not been reading much this year. This is because I have a 9 month old. Babies are the biggest time suckers in the universe. In a nice way luckily. However i usually like to read before falling asleep at night. This only takes 30 seconds when you still get woken at least twice a night so not much reading gets done But now I have had an early birthday present of a Kindle and am back online hunting out new books to try. Looking forward to finding out what everyone's been reading.

Well have just updated my booklog which didn't take much doing. Hmm, having kids is bad for reading. 8 books this year. Last year I managed that in one month! I just finished The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Total letdown. It felt like I was being given a lecture on deism. My hubby just put Fifty Shades of Grey on my new Kindle. Not sure it's my cup of tea. I'm struggling to know why it's so popular. Ah well, you win some and lose some.

Oh no - I have started a new book category in my book list - abandoned books. To be honest there were quite a few last year. I just have such a low tolerance nowadays for books I don't like. Maybe because I don't have much reading time I don't want to waste it. but even when I had heaps of time I just seemed to be quite easily upset when I was pregnant (hormones?) and it hasn't really gone away. Latest book - The Lady and the Unicorn I just found the characters quite unlikeable. A shame as I really enjoyed her book Remarkable Creatures.

I was not a fan of Wuthering Heights and found Jane Eyre okay but I do like your description of Agnes Grey. It may be that Anne is the Bronte sister I'm most in tune with. I will certainly keep this in mind for a future read.

That sounds excellent Kidsmum

Well I was aiming for one book a month this year given how little reading I got done after Baby Macbeth was born last October. However I've already read two this month. City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare is the fourth in the Mortal Instruments series. I thought it was a bit disappointing. It does seem the series was meant to be a trilogy but the author decided to keep it going after it became popular. The third book showed no indication the main storyline wasn't resolved so it all feels like an afterthought. Also there were a few too many different relationship dramas going on in it between various characters that I just found were full of teen angst rather than having any real challenges to overcome. Succubus Revealed by Richelle Mead - I love this author and I loved the series but she ran out of material for the book. Everyone who read the rest of the series would have known what was coming in this book and there were absolutely no surprises. A shame. Needed a twist to be thrown in there somewhere. The weak link in the series but I will still read everything Richelle writes as usually she is awesome.

I'm interested to see what you think of Coraline - it was so scary I'm amazed it's a children's book

Impressive TBR

Sorry to hear you've been dumped. Good luck with the reading.

TBR PILE Archer, Jeffrey - The Fourth Estate (2nd attempt) Atwood, Margaret - The Blind Assassin (2nd attempt) Bohjalian, Chris - Midwives (2nd attempt) Brooks, Terry - The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara. Vol 1. The Ilse Witch (2nd attempt) Brown, Dan - The Lost Symbol Clancy, Tom - Without Remorse(2nd attempt) Courtney, Bryce - The Persimmon Tree (2nd attempt) Dahl, Roald - My Uncle Oswald (2nd attempt) Eldredge, John - Wild at Heart Feist, Raymond - Magician (will be third attempt) Follett, Ken - A Dangerous Fortune Frost, Jo - Confident Baby Care Haddon, Mark - A Spot of Bother Hugo, Victor - Les Miserables (3rd attempt) Jones, Lloyd - Mister Pip Kazantzakis, Nikos - Zorba the Greek Lamb, Wally - I Know This Much is True Lewis, Georgina - The Winter Tree Revis, Beth - Across the Universe Rutherfurd, Edward - London Smith, Wilbur - The Triumph of the Sun Twain, Mark - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Twain, Mark - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Vujicic, Nick - Life Without Limits Yancey, Philip - What Good is God Total at Start of 2012 - 25 Total at End of 2012 -23 NEW BOOKS IN 2012

BOOKS READ IN 2012 Aim = One book a month. City Of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare 2.5/5 Succubus Revealed by Richelle Mead 3/5 Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 4/5 Angel's Blood by Nalini Singh 3/5 A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin 2.5/5 Hand Me Down by Michelle Holman 4/5 A Clash of Kings by George RR Martin 2.5/5 The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown 2.5/5 Fifty Shades of Grey by EL James 1/5 Fifty Shades Darker by EL James 1/5 The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead 4/5 Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness 2.5/5 Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury 2/5 Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 2/5 Second Glance by Jodi Picoult 4/5 A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin 4/5 A modern Witch by Debora Geary 4/5 A Hidden Witch by Debora Geary 4/5 Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer 2/5 House Rules by Jodi PIcoult 3.5/5 The Persimmon Tree by Bryce Courtenay 3/5 The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong 2/5 The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger 3/5 The Autobiography of Malcolm X - 3.5/5 The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay (reread) The Twilight Saga (all 4 books) by Stephenie Meyer (reread) The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath 2.5/5 Sleepers by Lorenzo Carcaterra 4.5/5 The Hills is Lonely by Lillian Beckwith 2/5 The No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley One Day by David Nicholls 2/5 Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris 3/5 Total = 35 ABANDONED BOOKS The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier.

I'm a bit late for this but Your favourite read of the year? Too close to call between The City and the City by China Mieville and Perfume by Patrick Suskind. Your favourite author of the year? Richelle Mead Your most read author of the year? JK Rowling because I re-read Harry Potter Your favourite book cover of the year? ? Can't remember any? The book you abandoned (if there was more than one, the one you read least of)? So many - The book that most disappointed you? Messenger by Lois Lowry - the other two books in the series were great but this one left me feeling dismal. The funniest book of the year? None really - I do find Harry potter hilarious. Your favourite literary character this year? Rose Hathaway from the Vampire Academy books Your favourite children's book this year? Dr Dog by Babette Cole - highly recommend this to anyone with children. Your favourite classic of the year? None - I started and aba\ndoned two Your favourite non-fiction book this year? Mindhunter by John Douglas and Mark Olshaker Your favourite biography this year? N/A Only read one and it was rubbish Your favourite illustrated book of the year? Walter the Farting Dog

I have only read 2.5 books since my bub was born 11 weeks ago. Next year will likely be a very slow reading year. But my baby is looking the picture of health. He had his nasogastric tube out after 8 weeks and by that stage had strengthened enough to swallow without everything going down the wrong hole. He is still pretty difficult to feed as any fast flow overwhelms him but he is otherwise such an easy baby. Love him.

Hi everyone. My baby boy arrived on 8th October, 10 days late weighing 6 pounds 15 ounces. Unfortunately on the third day of his life he got really sick and went to the special care baby unit at our hospital. He has a problem with swallowing and had aspirated his milk and got pneumonia. We spent 19 days in hospital and now he is home on nasogastric feeding. We are hoping the swallowing issues are something developmental which he will grow out of. He goes back to hospital in 2.5 weeks to have another swallowing study. Otherwise he is a perfect little boy and the apple of our eye. He is 4 weeks old today - how time flies!

I totally agree with your comments on male and female dialogue. I hadn't thought about it before but it's so true. In real life, when I met a guy I could have a good conversation with, I married him!

You can't beat Harry Potter for a feel-good read.

I'd love to know how you get on with The Year of Magical Thinking. I was wondering whether it was actually suitable to recommend to people who have lost a loved one recently.

The Long Hard Road Out of Hell by Marilyn Manson with Neil Strauss This is an autobiography of shock rocker Marilyn Manson written in the 1990s from his childhood up to the period following the release of his album Antichrist Superstar. To be honest I am not a fan of his music and am not even sure what it sounds like however I have seen various clips of interviews with him and thought he was an interesting man. He seemed to have interesting views on society. In particular I enjoyed watching his interview with Michael Moore in the movie "Bowling for Columbine" after his influence was blamed for the school shooting in Columbine. Unfortunately, having read his book, I now find him alot less interesting. The account of his childhood was fascinating, in particular his response to finding his grandfather's porn stash and other unsavoury items. But once he starts getting into the music scene the book turns into one endless account of drug and alcohol fueled parties where his band and fans egg each other into more and more revolting sexual acts. I couldn't tell you what any of them were as I actually got bored with it and they all blurred into one. I guess some people would find these accounts thrilling but I just couldn't drum up any interest at all. I kept hoping the book would become more interesting and Manson would elaborate more on his viewpoints on society. But he didn't. Maybe he saves that for his songs. 2 out of 5

My unborn child already has a shelf full of books and I can't wait to be able to start reading them to him/her. It's one of the things I most look forward to as a parent because my childhood memories of books and being read to are so good.

Baby Macbeth is now overdue. Little ratbag. The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer Synopsis from Fantastic Fiction: When the redoubtable Sir Horace Stanton-Lacy is ordered to South America on business, he leaves his only daughter Sophy with his sister in Berkeley Square. But Sophy's cousins are in a sad state, and she's arrived just in time to save them all. My thoughts: This is the first Georgette Heyer book I have ever read. It is a social comedy set in Victorian England and features an extremely assertive main character Sophy who proceeds to sort out her cousins love lives. I thought it was extremely funny and it reminded me of Jane Austen's works but this was probably just the time period and setting. It was an ideal book for me right now as it is a positive (happy) book without being simpering or boring. Great for a very preggers lady who has gone off her usual supernatural favourites. 4 out of 5 I've no idea what to read next. I started Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot and decided the main character was an idiot. I started The Butterfly Tattoo by Phillip Pullman and decided it was creepy. I read one page of The Persimmon Tree by Bryce Courtenay but because I already had one attempt at reading it I couldn't be bothered getting through the first couple chapters again. Am now reading Marilyn Manson's autobiography which is just a bit disturbing. He is an interesting man. Would prefer to be reading something a bit more pleasant. Does anyone have suggestions?

Thanks for reminding me about this book Bad Science. I have been meaning to read it.

You have been busy, busy91

Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner Synopsis from Fantastic Fiction: For twenty-eight years, things have been tripping along nicely for Cannie Shapiro. Sure, her mother has come charging out of the closet, and her father has long since dropped out of her world. But she loves her friends, her rat terrier, Nifkin, and her job as pop culture reporter for The Philadelphia Examiner. She's even made a tenuous peace with her plus-size body. But the day she opens up a national women's magazine and sees the words "Loving a Larger Woman" above her ex-boyfriend's byline, Cannie is plunged into misery...and the most amazing year of her life. From Philadelphia to Hollywood and back home again, she charts a new course for herself: mourning her losses, facing her past, and figuring out who she is and who she can become. My thoughts: Initially I thought this book was going to be a self-indulgent tale of how difficult it is to be a chubby woman in today's society. There definitely was a bit of that. I used to be quite alot fatter than I am now and I do wonder if I would have enjoyed it more 10 years ago. I almost abandoned the book in the first 100 pages because of this issue however I persisted on and the story improved. It became a bit more about the main character's personality rather than her weight issues. The second half of the book the storyline became quite unrealistic and was very much an aspirational chick-lit book where all the things you might dream about happening actually come true. But it was reasonably enjoyable and I read the second half quite quickly. I wouldn't bother with the same author again though. 2.5 out of 5 Charlotte Gray by Sebastian Faulks Synopsis from Fantastic Fiction: In 1942, Charlotte Gray, a young Scottish woman, heads for Occupied France on a dual mission - officially, to run an apparently simple errand for a British special operations group and unofficially to search for her lover, an English airman missing in action.As the people in the small town of Lavaurette prepare to meet their terrible destiny, the harrowing truth of what took place in 'the dark years' is finally revealed. My thoughts: A very interesting plotline about a young Scottish woman who joins the French resistance in WWII. I learned alot about what France was like under Nazi occupation and it has sparked a real interest in reading more about Nancy Wake, probably the most famous servicewoman working undercover in France. The book is said to partly inspired by her and she was born in New Zealand which adds interest for me. Overall, I enjoyed the book but it was a slow read. My main complaint with it was the chracterisation. I found I didn't engage with the characters 100% - I'm not sure what it is about the writing style that does this but I found the same thing when I read Birdsong. In particular, occasionally a character would go off on a philosophical thought tangent and I would lose interest. I would read more books by Sebastian Faulks but I won't be expecting a page-turner if I do. 3 out of 5 Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl This is the wonderful story of Danny and his single father and the adventures they have together. In particular, it is about how Danny and his father go pheasant poaching. I have had a hankering for a while to read this book. It is probably my favourite Roald Dahl book of my childhood and I finally own it as part of a 15 book Roald Dahl set. I was stunned to discover my husband did not actually know any books Roald Dahl had written (shock horror) and have given him Danny to read now I've finished. Telling him it was about a father who takes his son poaching sparked his interest. The language in this novel is pure nostalgia. Dahl really has the gift for making his characters come alive. I love his physical descriptions eg "beady eyes"etc that illuminate the baddies and goodies. And with this book not only is there a plot that sucks you in and keeps you turning pages but I find the story of the father-son relationship incredibly inspiring. 5 out of 5 Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier Synopsis from Fantastic Fiction: In the year of the 150th anniversary of Origin of Species, set in a town where Jane Austen was a frequent visitor, Tracy Chevalier once again shows her uncanny sense for the topical. In the early nineteenth century, a windswept beach along the English coast brims with fossils for those with the eye! From the moment she's struck by lightning as a baby, it is clear Mary Anning is marked for greatness. When she uncovers unknown dinosaur fossils in the cliffs near her home, she sets the scientific world alight, challenging ideas about the world's creation and stimulating debate over our origins. In an arena dominated by men, however, Mary is soon reduced to a serving role, facing prejudice from the academic community, vicious gossip from neighbours, and the heartbreak of forbidden love. Even nature is a threat, throwing bitter cold, storms, and landslips at her. Luckily Mary finds an unlikely champion in prickly, intelligent Elizabeth Philpot, a middle-class spinster who is also fossil-obsessed. Their relationship strikes a delicate balance between fierce loyalty and barely suppressed envy. Despite their differences in age and background, Mary and Elizabeth discover that, in struggling for recognition, friendship is their strongest weapon. Remarkable Creatures is Tracy Chevalier's stunning new novel of how one woman's gift transcends class and gender to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century. Above all, it is a revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of female friendship. My thoughts: Another cracking recommendation from Bobblybear! I would never have normally picked up this book but was looking for positive storylines outside my usual favoured reading genres. This was a very engaging read. The book has peaked my interest in learning more about early fossil discoveries and how this challenged previous thinking of the church and society in general. I empathised with the struggles of Mary Anning, who was a poor single woman and went largely unrecognised for her scientific discoveries due to her gender. A fascinating book which has left me happy and enthusiastic in learning more about the subject matter. I have been wikipedia-ing the subject matter - that is always a good sign. 4.5 out of 5.

Oooh coincidentally I am about 200 pages into this and enjoying it. I keep drifting off to sleep while reading but might be to do with being 9 months pregnant lol.