Brida

Haha the ''I will Booker my TBRs'' sentence sounds so cool ! And I've just noticed I wrote when I meant to say we...I've excluded myself!

Excellent! Thanks Chrissy for the post, it's great to see what you thought of the books. I was thinking, and in case we don't agree on reading the same book at the same time, it might be a good idea just to pop in the thread and say if the next book you intend to read is from the list (and of course, which book). That way in case someone else is about to read it, you can agree in pairs or smaller groups to read it at the same time. How does that sound?

So far, from the list I've read only 2 books. Let's hope it changes soon! 2002 Life of Pi by Yann Martel 2007 The Gathering by Anne Enright EDIT: Hi there Ooshie! Well I think it would be interesting if we chose a book to read at the same time, but I guess that would depend on how many people would like to be involved (meaning, anyone else other than myself ). As far as I'm concerned, sounds good If others agree with Ooshies suggestion, please post it here so we can ''set the rules'' lol.

There was a part in Le Testament Français involving the death of an animal, which was only...I dunno, half of a page long, and it made me cry. And that's not even the main part of the book, just one event out of a whole bunch of stories! Life of Pi is also one that really made an impact, and did make me cry at times, not only at sad, but also happy things. And come to think of it now, the story The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios (also) by Yann Martel was very moving too.

Hello fellow BCF members http://www.bookclubforum.co.uk/community/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/smile.gif This is a reading challenge I want to take part in myself, and if anyone else wants to participate - feel free! There's an attachement in this post, containing the list of all the Man Booker Prize winners from 1969. to 2009. The challenge is, of course, to read all the books from the list http://www.bookclubforum.co.uk/community/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/biggrin.gif Many of you have probably read many books from the list, but you might want to reread them or share a few thoughts about them. So, in this thread you can keep other members posted on how you're coming along with the challenge, give advice on the books from the list, mention the ones you've already read (and what you thought of them)...generally, discuss the challenge! Happy reading, and hope to see you around this thread! http://www.bookclubforum.co.uk/community/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/smile.gif MAN BOOKER PRIZE-Whos_who_2009.pdf EDIT - List of winners from 1969 to 2014 on goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/award/show/13-man-booker-prize EDIT: There's a list of titles and authors from the pdf^^ posted in post #10, as well as a link to the MBP website where you can read the info on the books (synopsis, author bio...). EDIT #2 : Reading : 1978 The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch

It's My Life - Talk Talk

REVIEW *Le testament français by Andreï Makine* Synopsis: Locked behind the Iron Curtain, a young boy grows up bewitched by his French grandmother's memories of Paris before the Great War. Yet despite what he also learns of her suffering in the Soviet Union under Stalin and during the Second World War, as an adolescent he finds himself proud to be a Russian. Torn between the two cultures, he eventually makes a choice - which has a wholly unexpected outcome. Capturing the powerful allure of illusion, this unforgettable novel traces a sentimental and intellectual journey that embraces the dramatic history of the twentieth century. This is one good book! When I started reading it, the first thing I thought was ''Proust!''. The writing style reminded me of Proust's, because it was descriptive, but in not so many words as Proust might have used It really is beautifully written. The story is about a Russian boy who visits his grandmother (who is French), at first with his sister, later on alone. He seems to have connected with Charlotte (the grandmother) much more that his sister, which happened gradually. At first, when they were kids, Charlotte was a mistery to them both, and it seemed that she was distant from them (and being a Frenchwoman in Russia, a foreigner, distant from almost everyone else). Then one time they started to get to know Charlotte; she had a suitcase filled with random (it seemed) items: pictures, precious stones, articles from newspapers, poems etc, which were all precious to her, and later on to the boy too. She began telling them stories every night on the balcony of her appartement, about the items from the case. She was telling them about life in France, before her time, as well as the France of her days but more importantly, telling them stories about her life. The boy became inchanted with what he had heard of this ''Atlantis'' as he calls it, and started daydreaming about the people from the stories his grandmother was telling him. This is also a story about growing up. As the boy grows up, he becomes dissapointed with the daydreaming, because he realises that it's not enough. It's not real. And he's a real person, who, instead of getting involved in real life, tries creating a nonexistant world, which gives him comfort, but also alienates him from the real world. And so, he doesn't quite know how to deal with certain things in his life, because he's not used to it. Le testament is like a fairytale sometimes. The stories of the grandmother are told in such a way, dealing with real events, but in such a fantastic, surreal way. It's also a real pleasure to read, because of the style. I'll need to reread it because there's so many good things about it you can't take notice of them all at once I decided to finish the review with a few quotes. ''No one would have dared to confront Pashka in a lone confrontation. But the crowd has a courage of its own. Snorts of indignation came in response.'' ''...letting the bottomless silence of the steppe intervene between two verses of her recitation.'' ''...the translator of prose is the slave of the author and the translator of poetry is his rival.''

REVIEW *Finishing Touches by Deanna Kizis* Synopsis: When aspiring L.A. interior designer Jesse Holtz loses her dearest friend, Cecile, in a car accident, shes sideswiped by grief. Cecile was always the most beguiling girl in the room, the kind of girl Jesse always wished she could be. With no manual for how to mourn when you're a 29-year-old with an eye for flea market finds but terrible taste in men, Jesse turns to the only person who understands : Ceciles widower, Zach. Then, life takes an unexpected turn: Is Jesse's friendship with Zach starting to feel like the beginning of a romance? Or is Jesse just losing perspective as she juggles her feelings and her condescending boss? And what if she and Zach got together, would she lose all her other friends in the process? For Jesse, the questions keep piling up, with answers nowhere in sight. A tragic comedy that makes for a breathtakingly optimistic read, FINISHING TOUCHES is the story of a woman who just might learn that life, like any good interior, can always use a little rearranging. Yup, chick-lit An easy read my mojo was in need of. Pretty enjoyable, if you're into this kind of thing. A bit of romance, a bit of grief, a few laughs...You know, chick - lit

To Lose My Life - White Lies

Hi Alison, welcome to the BCF!

Hello skiper, welcome to the Forum!

Hello and welcome to the BCF!

Really?I'm so glad to hear that, because it happens so rarely You should deffo check out their other stuff, you might like it! OT: Conversation 16 - The National

^^I believe you're thinking of the right tune peacefield Fifty on Our Foreheads - White Lies

Hello Claire, welcome to the BCF!

Hi Lynne, welcome to the BCF!

Congrats Andrea on the kitty, and great news Kyle about your cat! Wouldn't it be great if you got one just before Christmas, and had a furry little friend to spend it with? And lol, Quinn's pose reminds me of my dog's pose Also a non-ladylike lady

To China With Love - Mando Diao

Welcome to the BCF Matthew! Lol I had to google Am - Dram, didn't have a clue what that was

World In My Eyes - Depeche Mode

I hope you'll enjoy Life of Pi, it's one of my favourite books ever. EDIT: I'm doing my best to finish Le testament, (which has been great so far) so I can continue with the fresh pile I've brought from the library yesterday, and of course, I need to squeeze A Spot of Bother in there too! It's going to be a busy September...

Hello Wendy, welcome to the forum! You'll feel right at home here methinks

REVIEW *The Gathering by Anne Enright* Synopsis: The nine surviving children of the Hegarty clan gather in Dublin for the wake of their wayward brother Liam. It wasn't the drink that killed him - although that certainly helped - it was what happened to him as a boy in his grandmother's house, in the winter of 1968. "The Gathering" is a novel about love and disappointment, about thwarted lust and limitless desire, and how our fate is written in the body, not in the stars. To be completely honest, when I finished this book, it left me feeling nothing. Literally. And I hate it when that happens. I felt as if I had just read the newspaper and I'm about to get on with my work now However, when I had just started reading the book I enjoyed it very much, so I decided to write the review anyway. Anne Enright won the Man Booker Prize in 2007. for this book, which is one of the reasons I decided to read it (Yann Martel also won the MBP for Life of Pi, which I enjoyed immensely, so I thought it a good sign ). What I loved about this book is the narration. It was simple, but very emotional, and dark. An easy read text-wise, although the subject is pretty difficult. The story is told by Veronica, one of the 9 (originally 12) Hegarty children, and the one who was closest to Liam. It's set in the present, but is interwined with Veronica's memories from the past; the time spent with her brother when they were kids, spending the holidays at their grandmother's, and later on when they were at uni. She mentiones how she isn't sure if her memories are actual memories, or if she simply made up some things instead of the details she forgot. She also mentions how she sometimes liked to invent events from her grandmother's (or parents',or her own) past to explain somethings unknown to her. Another interesting subject from the book is the relationship between Veronica and her brother. She really loved him. Not like one of her siblings, but actually loved him, Liam. And he did love her too, but he caused her pain, just like he caused pain to the entire family. He started drinking, but what's more important than that is his own personality. He was self centered, cared only about indulging his own needs, and when he was tired of someone, he'd just take off. In it's essence, this relationship isn't quite unusual. There's always someone (or maybe it's everyone?) you love despite them hurting you. Especially if they're hurting you by hurting themself... The book deals not only with the subject of relationships between siblings, but between people in general (between parents, parents and children, people you've just met, or never met at all...), also with the problems in big families and more. It's well written, simply, but because of that carried a lot of weight. I'm thinking of reading What Are You Like by the same author, as I have enjoyed the writing style, and the story does sound interesting, so I guess it was worth reading it.

Analogue (All I Want) - A-Ha

Say What You Want - Texas