willoyd

Reading Update It's amazing how time can slip away: it's exactly a month since I last updated my reading, and it only feels like a couple of days ago. Term time always seems to slip quickly through the fingers, and this time of year it does more so than at most others. Most years, my lowest point tends to be the start of the academic year in September, but for some reason this year has seen that dip shift back to October-November. It's still not been bad in terms of number of books (4 in each month), but the reading itself has all been tucked away into odd corners, such as bedtimes and quick reads on trains - there has been little sense of rhythm or continuity, which has in turn had a knock-on effect I suspect on my opinions of the books themselves. December, on the other hand, is usually my biggest month of the year as I tend to crash into books over the Christmas period, often reading at the rate of one a day, sometimes more if they are on the short side; a couple of years ago I actually managed 15 books in the last 11 days of the year! I'm therefore hopeful that things will pick up from here on in. In the meantime, this month has been a bit stuttery, with, as said, just four books completed. Continuing the trend of the past few months, rather than trying to complete full blown reviews and falling even further behind, I've written a set of mini-reviews instead. Dracula by Bram Stoker *** This was a reread as part of the English Counties Challenge. I had good memories of what has become the standard by which a whole genre is measured, and it was certainly as easy a read as I remember. I've always enjoyed epistolary novels, although, as this was more based on purportive journal entries, it didn't have quite the sideways looking flavour that is what I particularly enjoy with this format. The first half or so lived up to expectations, but this time it felt as if there was a bit of a hiatus in the third quarter which sagged a bit, before the final gallop to a forgotten but satisfying and abruptly finished off denouement. All in all, this remained a rewarding read, if not quite so much the second time around, although I have to confess that Professor Helsing's cod English grew increasingly irritating, and is the cause of the loss of at least one star. In terms of the Counties Challenge, this was one of two books so far which have left me somewhat in doubt about their position on the list, the other being The Day of the Triffids as the one for Isle of Wight. The Whitby episode may well be well known, but it's brief and the role of Whitby isn't that critical; the vast majority of the book is set in London and Eastern Europe. If there was a next time, particularly as there are a couple of ready alternatives, I'd choose James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small (already a listed alternative) or, perhaps even better, Anne Bronte's Agnes Grey. (The Isle of Wight would be trickier - there's really not that much set there). Claxton by Mark Cocker **** A collection of articles taken from Mark Cocker's Guardian column, reflecting on the natural history of the landscape around the village where he lives in Norfolk, with one or two others from further afield added in. The articles have been set out as if to recount the passage of a single year, although they have been collected together from several. As a technique it worked beautifully, providing a surprisingly coherent picture of the passing seasons; I read this alongside an Ordnance Survey map of the area which helped my appreciation enormously. I'm an enormous fan of Mark Cocker's writing (his Crow Country is a particular favourite), and this did not disappoint. Perhaps not quite the structure and rhythm of a continuous narrative, as in Crow Country or John Lewis-Stempel's The Running Hare, but a book I will certainly return to, especially when I next visit East Anglia (a part of the world that fascinates me). The Good, The Bad and The Multiplex by Mark Kermode *** Mark Kermode's reflections on the state of the cinema industry today, particularly on the development of the multiplex and 3-D movies. Kermode writes in a very chatty, entertaining way, so much like the way he presents on TV and elsewhere that I could almost hear his voice through the words, so this was a distinctly easy read. I also empathise with so much of what he writes about, particularly the stultifying effect that the corporate multiplex industry has had on cinema. However, that chattiness could have done with some considerable editing; so much of what he said could have been said in about a third of the space. He also has a thoroughly annoying habit of diverting off on lengthy and convoluted asides (actually the worst example is in another book I dipped into, Hatchet Job, where he continually diverts off a story about an irate subject of one of his reviews, only for the story itself to fizzle out fairly pointlessly tens of pages later). I think I prefer his journalism; I certainly enjoy his TV work. The Shadow Puppet by Georges Simenon **** Another wonderfully atmospheric Maigret story, Simenon being the master of less is more. As I've said before, these are so much stronger in their cumulative effect. Few, if any, individual stories stand out, and the first one or two could leave one asking quite what is so special about them, but as a body of work they are completely addictive. Almost universally short, these are best read in a minimum of sittings (one preferably!) to fully savour the mid-twentieth century, murky French ambience - they read as richly textured as the best of black and white films. I'm just shocked that I've left it as long as I have since the last one. I must spend some time over Christmas catching up on a few.

Having read War and Peace, Wolf Hall, Orlando and the Crimson Petal and White, I can thoroughly recommend them all - they are all outstanding reads (the first two are in my top 20 all-time list, whilst the latter two were both 5 out of 6 stars). Hope you all manage to get down to these. As this is the top 5 (or 10) thread, I'll nominate 5 books/sets, but if I manage two (one!) I'll be delighted. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo Landscape and Memory - Simon Schama Pax Britannica trilogy - Jan Morris Don Quixote - Cervantes Catch-22 - Joseph Heller I''ve also got Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire on my shelves yet to be read, but that might be taking wishful thinking a bit too far! Later nominations to make up the 10!: A Place of Greater Safety - Hilary Mantel (the Wolf Hall entries reminded me!) The Old Curiosity Shop - Charles Dickens English Music - Peter Ackroyd The Invisible Woman - Claire Tomalin Paradise Lost - John Milton

I haven't updated this thread for a while now, but have, since the last update, finished two more volumes in the challenge: Set in Stone - Robert Goddard (Rutland) *** Dracula - Bram Stoker (North Yorkshire) *** As can be seen from the gradings, neither really set my world alight, although they were perfectly decent reads. I didn't expect much more from the former, but was surprised at the latter, given that it was a reread and I remember rating it more highly last time round. This time, though, it rattled along well enough for the first two-thirds, but then seemed to stumble somewhat during the scenes in London, with far too much unnecessary dialogue and padding, before picking up pace again as it moved towards a suitably satisfying climax. Having said that, it joins The Day of the Triffids in being, at least for me, the most questionable county books to date. At least there were some pages set in North Yorkshire (around thirty), but th county's presence was both brief and not particularly central to the novel. Another time, I'd opt for All Creatures Great and Small. With these read, I've now completed 42 of the 48 books.

Which I finished late last night. It was an easy read,and Kermode makes some valide points, but in the end he did rather take his time to get there - too many diversions and too much chatty fill for this to rate more than a 3/6. With work being the ghastly slog it is at the moment, this took rather longer than I expected - just over a week. Have now moved on to Simenon's The Shadow Puppet, another in the Maigret series (my first this year). Should be a quicker read.

I'd agree - Dickens, and indeed most Victorian writers - need time. They don't always fit in with our modern lifestyle, but I find them all the more rewarding when given that time, especially Dickens himself. Copperfield took me a few goes to get going, but I finally knuckled down when we chose him as a book group choice a couple of years, and it turned out to be one of my all-time favourites. I've just finished Mark Cocker's Claxton - a collection of articles from his Guardian column over several years, giving a year round view of the natural history (primarily birds, as that's his main thing) around his home village in the Yare Valley in Norfolk. Excellent read. I don't think I got the most out of it, as work kept intruding, but it's one I'm likely to return to; Cocker is one of my favourite nature writers (I adored his Crow Country), with an involving poetic touch. Have moved on to Mark Kermode's The Good, The Bad and The Multiplex, which appears (after about 100 pages) to be a thoroughly entertaining diatribe on the state of modern cinema (his early description of a visit to his local multiplex with his teenage daughter is all too horribly familiar!).

Yes we did. In fact, England, England was my suggestion originally. It's had mixed reviews. Another well-known book that features (briefly) the Isle of Wight is Moonfleet.

Day of the Triffids may only have a fairly tenous link to Isle of Wight, but I found it a really good book and was glad to have read it - and there's not much else that gets highly rated. Possibly Graham Swift's Wish You Were Here ?

After a long haul of almost three weeks, finished Dracula today. It's a better read than that might sound, even if the dialogue tends to the over-blown, but it's been a tough few weeks work-wise. Only being able to read it in short spurts hasn't helped - I read the last fifty or so pages in one go this morning, and the story flowed so much better as a result, helped by a solidly climactic ending. This is one of the North Yorkshire options for the English Counties Challenge. I have to say that if I was choosing again, I'd go for the other choice, All Creatures Great and Small, not because it's a better book (I actually think I enjoyed Dracula more of the two, if marginally), but because the role of North Yorkshire, through the use of Whitby for the setting of Dracula's arrival in England, is fairly trivial to the book: it's well known, and briefly of the place, but it's a relatively minor setting, and Stoker could have pretty much used anywhere on the coast. Aside from perhaps The Day of the Triffids, for me this has been the most 'unrepresentative' book for a county so far (and whilst the Isle of Wight barely appears in TDOTT, it does have an important role as an island and goal).

No, it's a reread as part of the English Counties Challenge. I must admit, I'm finding it dragging a bit. No problem on readability - I read classics fairly regularly - rather more, I suspect, the fact that I haven't had time to sit down and give it a good go for any length of time, more like 15 mins here, 15 mins there, and it's now spread over something more than a fortnight.. Even so, it's lacking a bit compared to how I remember it. On the other hand, it may be just that my expectations have changed.

Reading Update Reading has been stuttering along the last three to four weeks as the plot finds itself distinctly lost at work: schools are complete madhouses nowadays, and it seems that it can only get worse (which is why I'm packing in full-time teaching at the end of the year). Now into my second week of reading Dracula, and just over half way through, it's a book that deserves more time and consideration than I can currently give it. I did manage a quick Saturday morning raid on a couple of local charity/seconds shops last week, which included mainly non-fiction, but also The Art of Fielding and The Secret Life of Bees. Both books in my United States Challenge, I'll probably tackle them early next year, when I'm looking forward to really getting my teeth into this list. Hope to clear the work decks a bit for the next few days as the Leeds International Film Festival beckons enticingly. This started last week, and I managed one on Friday night (Schneider vs Bax, a sub-titled Dutch black comedy - thoroughly entertaining), but there are several really appealing films to see over the next ten days or so - so reading may not improve after all!

That's probably why we have different impressions: most of my circle have read her. Talking to one or two, they similarly came to her when covering at school (I did too), but were turned on rather than off. Several of my favourites stem from my studies at school (as well as one or two personal clunkers!). I don't know whether it is relevant, but we're mostly in our fifties and sixties.

Do you really think so? I always thought that, on balance, she's had quite a good reputation, and remains very popular; she's certainly far more accessible than most/many other classic authors, and her books are regularly rated near the top of favourites lists (eg 3 in the top 40 of the BBC Big Read - including P&P at 2nd, although that may well have been influenced by the BBC serial!).

Somebody on this forum was working their way through her books, but I can't remember who off hand, but whoever it was got me interested as well. Spark is the sort of writer whose book I will reach the end of and then mutter "Is that it?". Later, I find it has actually got right under my skin - many of them still stand out in the memory, which for me says a lot about how good they actually are. A couple I can recommend if you enjoyed A Far Cry: The Ballad of Peckham Rye, and The Girls of Slender Means. Both also London-based, the latter set during the last throes of the war, the former rather later). Having said that, I can still see why The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie remains her best known - it's still the best of hers that I've read so far.

Good summary, Janet. Pretty much my feelings too.

Glad it prompted you to pick up a book you enjoyed. Have to say, I really enjoyed both the other books you mention as recent/current reading (Dickens, Spark) as well - so happy reading! You remind me - I must watch the film too.

Exactly my feelings on reading it around the time of said Booker awards. Personally, I've just finished Anne de Courcy's The Fishing Fleet, review on my blog thread. Overall a solid enough read, but room for improvement, so awarded 3 stars out of 6. Now turning to my book group's next read, and my next English Counties book, Dracula, after which I really need to get back to Lorna Doone at some stage.

The Fishing Fleet by Anne de Courcy *** What with the Ilkley Literature Festival, workloads etc etc, this is the longest it's taken me to read any single book this year, just over three weeks. That's no reflection on the book though, which is an eminently readable history of the eponymous women who, during the years of the Raj, headed out to India, where the shortage of women meant that husband hunting, and thus the maintenance of one's status in Victorian and early twentieth century society, was so much easier. That didn't mean that life was necessarily easy though! I was fairly rapidly absorbed in the book, which was divided into largely thematic chapters. Having one branch of my family established in India for almost a hundred years (my grandfather was the last generation, born and initially brought up there befor returning to Wales just before WW1), this felt particularly relevant, and several place names and anecdotes resonated from my family history. Even so, I still had my eyes opened on occasion: Indian Raj society was certainly 'different' to what we know today! After a while though, I did start to find it beginning to pall a bit. Perhaps as a result of the overlaps between themes, the writing became a little repetitive in places, with various aspects explained on more than one occasion. Women appeared for short bursts, then disappeared only for some to reappear later, or even at intervals, their stories only partially told at any one time, and hard to track; two sisters appeared at opposite ends of the book. After a while I grew a bit tired of reaching for the index to see whether and if so whether somebody had appeared before, and in what context. Exacerbating this, in an effort perhaps to be comprehensive, some of the women spotlighted weren't actually members of the fishing fleet, the book appearing more and more to extend beyond its initial target. This was emphasised by the three chapters which, rather than following the themed route, each focused on one individual. These proved to be far more satisfying to read, and suggested that the author's best course would have been to initially focus on indiviual stories, and then perhaps spent a few later chapters on drawing out threads from their histories, and illuminating those with examples from other women's lives, maybe those for whom she might not have been able to stitch together complete pictures. In the end, this prove a worthwhile and interesting read, leaving me full of respect for the women concerned - India and its heavily patriarchal and repressive society was no soft touch! - but it needed a tighter focus and a greater emphasis on the lives of the women themselves from which themes could then have been drawn, rather than trying to fit them into a thematic framework from the word go. This is after a history of lives led, and needed to focus on the threads of those lives first and foremost. One thing that did surprise me though: how little Indian women were mentioned. I appreciate that white women will have had little, if any, social contact with Indian women, but even female servants are barely mentioned. Almost every mention of Indians, even of servants, was of men. I suspect that says even more about the rigidity of the latter-day Raj social structure; the gap was certainly glaring.

And the amount of Nicholas Nickleby set in County Durham is far more than the amount of the Isle of Wight in The Day of the Triffids ! Having said that, for me the county link in NN isn't just the amount of the book set in the county, but the fact that the main reason Dickens wrote the book was to attack the horrors of the northern boarding schools, so the link is for me much stronger than might first appear. (I was very grateful though for Triffids being on the list for the Isle of Wight, as I loved the book). Ironically, given my contributions to the North Yorkshire discussion, I've just started reading Dracula as my book for the county (also as the next book for my book group).

I think I remember there being quite a challenge finding books actually set in the City. There are obviously any number of Dickens; Great Expectations, Bleak House and Dombey and Son jump to mind, although not all the others have settings in the City itself. Trollope's The Way We Live Now has a solid base in the City. A few other random books, pretty light, I've enjoyed that feature the City: Rumpole of the Bailey (Mortimer), London Bridges (Jane Stevenson), Mary Poppins (Travers), At the Sign of the Sugared Plum (Hooper). Susanna Gregory (Thomas Chaloner) and CJ Sansom (Shardlake) have also set some of their books in the City.

It's a fortnight long. I think it's one of the biggest, if not the biggest, in the North of England. Hay, Cheltenham and Edinburgh are better known and probably more substantial, but I think that's about it in the UK.

Reading Update Not a great week's reading; whilst I'm thoroughly enjoying The Fishing Fleet, not a lot of time for reading means I haven't made a lot of progress, and am only about a third of the way through what is a relatively slim book (308 pages). Went to three more talks at the Ilkley Literature Festival this weekend. Yesterday saw us with Jenni Murray on her History of Britain in 21 Women's Lives, followed by Mary-Anne Ochota on Hidden Landscapes. Both very interesting and entertaining in their respective, different, ways; I particularly enjoyed the latter's total passion for her subject, which was thoroughly infectious. However, perhaps the very best was left till last: Adam Rutherford talking genetics and ancestry, based on his book A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived - fascinating, erudite and funny; I could have listened to him all evening. Overall, I think the two scientists topped the polls (Rutherford, and Wilkinson last week), with Ochota and Peter Wilson (Holy Roman Empire) close behind. Came to the end of the festival having bought five books, even if not all of them from there. I mentioned Matt Wilkinson's book, Restless Creatures, previously but have also acquired the Adam Rutherford, the Mary-Anne Ochota, Grumbling for Yorkshire (JB Priestley essays), and Wilson's huge tome. Now I need to read them!

Thank you both! Had a brilliant couple of days, Friday night especially, when went out for a superb meal at Hansa's in Leeds with offspring and OH. Bit of a landmark in the parental stakes, as this was the first meal that offspring paid for, which was lovely. Went to a talk on Victorian women writers yesterday at the festival. TBH it was really disappointing. For someone who has a PhD in the subject, she seemed to lack any real knowledge of the subject outside a couple of writers (one of whom, Harriet Martineau, she confessed to never having been able to finish!!!). Fortunately there were a few people in the audience who seemed much more up to speed, and I had a very productive conversation with them afterwards, so have a few names to explore now (which was the object of my mission!). OH went to a much better talk by Sarah Baxter on The History of the World in 500 Walks. She (OH) said it was quite inspirational. Murphy's rule: there were 3 talks that coincided that I was interested in, and it looks as if I chose the worst. Ah well - Matt Wilkinson on Restless Creatures this afternoon, so onwards and hopefully upwards! BTW, have put Lorna Doone on hold at present - think it needs some proper reading space and haven't got the time at present to give it that, so am reading Anne de Courcy's The Fishing Fleet which is proving a distinctly rewarding read. Later Edit: Matt Wilkinson was brilliant - and I bought the book instantly!

I think I've actually got it sorted out now:

Reading Update After a fairly busy start to the week reading-wise, it quietened down in the second half. As noted before, completed my third book of the month in three days on Monday, with The Midwich Cuckoos, the last book in the Popsugar Year-long challenge; a good read if not quite as enjoyable as The Day of the Triffids. After that, have struggled to settle, but have now started Anne de Courcy's The Fishing Fleet, wich certainly seems to suit my mood. Birthday this week has resulted in a fair number of books as presents. Top of the list has to go The Birds of Spurn, an amazing 704 page book on the huge range of species spotted at Spurn Head (the highest total of any mainland site in the UK), a monumental labour of love by the author, Andy Roanhead, who has since died from an illness he coped with throughout the making of his book. A spectacular and fascinating volume. Other books acquired at birthday time: The Waiting Time - Gerald Seymour Golden Hill - Frances Spufford Olive Kitteridge - Elizabeth Strout English Voices - Ferdinand Mount Christmas and the British - Martin Johnes Rosalind Franklin - Brenda Maddox Also off to the second weekend of the Ilkley Literature Festival this weekend - a quiet one with just two sessions booked. Lined up is a talk on lesser known Victorian women writers by Laurie Garrison, and Restless Creatures by Matt Wilkinson.

Finished The Midwich Cuckoos tonight, which is the final book in my Popsugar challenge: 40 different categories of books in the year, this one being the science fiction novel. Wyndham is definitely one of my discoveries this year, and am looking forward to more of his work.