Kidsmum

I've had this on my shelf a long time so will be interested to hear what you think of it Poolmonkey I'm reading Rivers of London at the moment & really enjoying it hope you like it too Bobbly & Fingersmith is my favourite Sarah Waters book not heard of The Loop though Hi Pixie How are you? Hope your 99p doesn't go to fund terrorism I so loved that book

What a relief Poppy i thought i was going to be the lone voice. I didn't dislike the book as such but i didn't love it like a lot of people seem to have. 1- Who was your favourite character? Mike & Tony were my favourite characters. I thought they were true & loyal friends , i admired the way they stuck by Denny when a lot of people would have dropped him like a hot brick after he was accused of child molestation. 2- Was there a particular part you enjoyed more than the rest The start of the book i guess i found it easy to get into & i thought i was going to enjoy it as much as i did Marley & Me. 3- Was this the first book you've read by this author.. has it encouraged you to read more? This was the first book i've read by Garth Stein & i wouldn't say i'll never read anything else by him but i wouldn't go out of my way to get any of his other books either 4- Were there any parts/ideas you struggled with? Well firstly let me say i'm not a dog owner so who am i to say but Enzo seemed to me to think way too much for a dog. The whole part about him imagining what the court case would be like & the voice synthesizer enabling him to give evidence i just found it too much & towards the end of the book he got more & more on my nerves. 5- Did you feel you were viewing the world through the eyes of a dog? No because Enzo was more human than dog 6- Are you a fan of motorsport? .. did you enjoy its incorporation into this story? I have no interest in motorsport at all but i did like the way the author worked it into the story & i thought that part of the book worked quite well. 7- What was your take on the evil toy zebra and why did Enzo rip Zoë's toys apart? I felt that Enzo was jealous of the Zebra as it was Zoe's favourite toy & maybe it also represented his fear & anger at being left home alone which was why he ripped all the toys apart but he couldn't accept that part of himself so he blamed it on the zebra. 8- Is Enzo anything like your dog/pet? .. do you believe that animals know more than we give them credit for? We don't have any pets so i'm not sure i can answer this question. 9- Overall was reading the book an enjoyable experience? Yes i didn't dislike the book & i got through it quite quickly so it did keep me interested & i wanted to find out what would happen to Denny. What i did struggle with was the over emotional writing the ending just made me want to barf & i couldn't help feeling that when the author was writing the story he was already thinking of it being turned into a movie. 10- Would you recommend the book and if so to whom? I would recommend this book to anyone who owns a dog in fact i already have a suitable friend lined up to pass my copy on to

Hi Frankie as the October thread is closed I thought i'd visit you on here. I did like The Art Of Racing but i didn't love it but i'll tell all on the reading circle thread

Hi Poppyshake, replying to you on here as the October thread is closed. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is a re read for me i read it when i was much younger but after Ruth read & enjoyed it so much i decided i wanted to visit it again. I never used to bother going back to books till i joined BCF & re read Vanity Fair for the book circle & discovered that i enjoyed it more second time around i think because i am older & have a better understanding of life & love than when i was a teenager. Anyway after all that waffle i know you'll enjoy Anne Bronte when you get round to reading her

I'm so annoyed as i've seen this book loads of times in different charity shops & jumped to the conclusion it was chick lit so didn't bother picking it up & now i find out its not & i want to read it it's disappeared into the literary ether. That'll teach me not to judge a book by it's cover next time i'll just have to buy all the books to be on the safe side

Imagine trying to get through high school with a name like Abishag

What a cool friend you have Poppy Looking forward to reading your reviews on the other books VF

I finished the Art Of Racing on the bus this morning. My next read is going to be Rivers Of London Ben Aaronovitch. I dropped a bag of stuff off at the charity shop & came out with Molesworth Geoffrey Willans & Ronald Searle Six Suspects Vikas Swarup Nicholas Nickleby The Tenant of Wildfell Hall Anne Bronte

I like the idea of joining a book group & often take up book recommendations from people on the forum but i have such a huge TBR mountain of my own that i feel i have to shrink it to a more manageable size before i sign up to something which might mean buying books that i dont want to read . But i look forward to hearing what you think of the other book choices Willoyd

So sorry you didn't have a good time in Hay on Wye Janet, when we were there we ate at Oscars which was pretty reasonable compared to some of the other restaurants but i guess it's a bit late telling you that now Dumbleton looks amazing imagine what it must have been like living there when it was a private residence & having the grounds all to yourself.

Belated birthday wishes Chrissy , i usually start thinking of myself as the next year up about six months before my birthday so it gives me time to get used to it but i've now decided to stop celebrating my birthday so i can stay 45 for ever

Sounds hilarious It's years since i read any James Herbert, after reading your review i don't think i'll be picking up any of his books anytime soon. I wonder what the rest of your book group will think of it & if they all liked it will you go back ?

I read the BFG to my little girl & it's definitely one of my favourites we've got a Roald Dahl Recipe book which has snozzcumbers in as well

I finished Ethan Frome this afternoon my first Edith Wharton but definitely want to read more of her books. I've made a start on The Art Of Racing..... & i'm liking it already it's very easy to get into.

I finished The Little Stranger Sarah Waters a few days ago a really good read & am currently reading Ethan Frome Edith Wharton , it's only 132 pages long so should finish it today in time to start on The Art Of Racing In The Rain

She is a lovely sister & as we have similar tastes we always have a big pile of books to swap when she comes to visit

I'm good thanks Weave but very busy as usual running round after the family ..... It's a great title i've given hubby my Christmas wishlist so i'm expecting to find it in my Xmas stocking

I really liked Soames & had a lot of sympathy for him, his better qualities come out as you read more of the saga So glad you enjoyed it

That's why i didn't bother with a books bought list on my reading log this year it just made me feel guilty every time i added to it although i've now got an overflow pile next to my first overflow pile next to my bookshelves so i know i haven't mended my ways since last year I liked your review of Pure, Bobbly i didn't enjoy it either & couldn't understand how it won an award but some people seem to have enjoyed it so i guess it's just a matter of different tastes.

My sister came over from Holland for a visit & brought me a pile of books she'd finished with, they are Restless House Emile Zola Kipps H.G. Wells The Moon & Sixpence Somerset Maugham The Silver Sword Ian Serrailer Ramage & The Dido Dudley Pope One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez Solar Ian McEwan Red Lights & Green Lizards A Cambodia Adventure Liz Anderson Theirs Was The Kingdom R. F. Delderfield Mr Sponge's Sporting Tour R.S. Surtees The Silver Sword was more for the children but i'm going to read it myself first. The Maugham & Wells were given to her by a friend, they belonged to her father who's now gone into a home they're orange & white penguin covers & are in pristine condition so when i've finished with them i shall keep them as i don't like the thought of them getting all grubbed up at the charity shop.

So glad your enjoying The Forsyte Saga VF i can only say that they get better & better as the series goes on. I know i felt bereft when i got to the end knowing there would be no more I'm halfway through The Little Stranger & really enjoying it .

I have The Golden Bowl on my shelves & that's where it's likely to stay after suffering The Ambassadors i'm in no hurry to start another of his.

I love the sound of the 100 year old man........ i,ve added it to my wishlist for Christmas. He sounds quite a sprightly old chap most of the people in the home my fathers in have trouble making it to the toilet on their own let alone climbing out of a window unaided Did you choose the book because of its title or did someone recommend it to you Weave ?

Hi Willoyd, Belated Birthday Wishes I haven't read any Durrell but vaguely remember seeing a tv series in my dim & distant youth.By the way we were in Ilkley at the tail end of the literature festival so didn't get to see any of it but i did have a browse in the Grove bookstore & saw the display of the visiting authors. I'm hoping to be more organised next year & take the children to see some of the childrens events.

Halfway through The Little Stranger & really enjoying it