bobblybear

Tomato and herb pasta with leftover chicken mixed in.

I finished Me Before You last night. So brilliant. It's amazing how a book can be so light-hearted in some parts and then so depressingly serious in others. One of the best books of this year I think. Now I'm onto Bill Bryson's Notes from a Small Island. I love reading his books. I'm usually chuckling throughout the whole thing.

I had a fried rice. Yum!

I'm about 55% through Me Before You. Such a great book; no wonder it got rave reviews.

Roast dinner tonight. I do look forward to them.

I'm chewing gum.

Thanks Kidsmum. I was scratching my head while reading it, but like you say, people have different tastes. I found the core of the story interesting (ie. the 'real' bits), it was just the fictionalised parts that bored me.

Oops, read this a while ago but forgot to respond. Yeah, in most cases it's the owners that are the problem, not the dogs! And they always have the same excuses 'Oh, he just wants to play.' or 'Oooh, he's never done that before!!' If you can't control your dog, keep him on the lead. Our previous dog was quite ill-tempered, so we never let him off the lead because we could never trust him, but so many people just don't seem to care. They just wander around the field not even keeping an eye on their dog, and it's us who has to be extra-vigilant to make sure nothing happens. We took him up to the field today, and he met three dogs and all were positive experiences, so I hope he gets his confidence up. He's quite a timid and submissive boy, so these experiences are all good for him. He's far more interested in playing with his ball though - once he has a quick sniff, he only has eyes for the ball-flinger. Here he is up at the local field today. I know I'm biased, but isn't he handsome?!

Finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, What a brilliant read. I don't think I've appreciated the detail in the stories and the talent of JK Rowling until reading the last one and seeing how it all fits together. I will re-read the books for sure to see if there are any bits that could be missed until you know the full story. I'm now reading Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. I'm really enjoying it. It's very full of uncomfortable honesty and I like the main character, Lou.

Chinese takeaway.

That's a shame. I'd heard of this book before, and made a mental note to read it at some point, but not sure if I should bother now. Like you say, horror novels need atmosphere; without it, it's just words on a page.

Great review, Ruth. I've heard this book raved about, but like Frankie, I was worried it would be full-on chick-lit. I know I shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but "chick-lit" was my first thought when I saw it. Anyway, I've just bought it (my first book purchase of October - I've done well this month ); I might make it my next read.

I have paid that (and probably more) for books that I really wanted to read as soon as they came out. It didn't bother me. I would pay that for the hardback or the e-book, if it's something I really wanted. I've never been bothered by the fact that you don't have a physical book, and don't really see the reasoning that an e-book should be that much cheaper than a paperbook. I always thought that the bulk of the cost of books is for royalties, and the printing was a very minor cost.

I only have about 50 pages left of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows. Talk about twists and turns. I'm gutted that it's ending - I really wish it could go on forever. I'm just running a bath at the moment, and then I'm going to pop in with my book and finish it.

Oh, I always thought it was pronounced quin-oh-ah. It's one of those foods that I've never tried, because I've never been quite sure what to do with it. I'll pick some up next time I go shopping and try a few things with it.

Cornish pasty with beans & sausages.

Twilight: Breaking Dawn (Part 1). So corny. Watched it all the way to the end though.

I had sausages with sauteed potatoes and onion (I burned the onion - put them in far too early ), and green beans.

I hated the newer version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. They made Willy Wonka creepy, rather than eccentric and quirky, yet still appealing. Yeah, I couldn't quite believe it - still can't!! It has however put me in the mood for reading the last book of the series. Well, I'm taking a tiny break and reading The BFG by Roald Dahl (that brings back sooooo many memories. I just loved that book as a child and read it over and over), and then it's on to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I'm dying to find out how it all ends, but at the same time I don't want to read it because then it won't end for me. That is a very difficult book to top. Glad you enjoyed it.

Great review, Laura. I do like Jodi Picoult's books; they certainly make you think and this one sounds like no exception.

Nearly finished Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Things are certainly happening at a fast pace.

Ours got through the teething stage without too much destruction (aside from toys). The only thing he wrecked was the corner of our wooden coffee table. Oh, and countless slippers and socks, but that's ok. This happened again today - completely the other owners fault. A very large German Shepherd cross that was off the lead came after Reuben and had a couple of little nips. We were shouting and trying to shoo the dog off, while the stupid owner was saying 'Oh, he only wants to play', and just couldn't call her dog off. This is the second time it's happened with that dog. She later tied him up and we could hear him going off at any other dog that walked past. It makes me so angry! She didn't even apologise, and maybe I overreacted but it shook me up a bit. I've been googling what to do in a dog on dog attack, and it's making me more edgy. Reuben is quite nervous on the lead around other dogs (he starts jumping and pulling and leaping about, almost trying to get away from them - never good when we are on the pavement alongside a road), but off the lead (in the local park) he's absolutely fine. Today he got to within about 6 feet of another dog (that was on the lead), and as soon as we called him he ignored it and came running back to us. He always ignores other dogs; it seems to be them that approach him (which is fine if they are friendly, but scary when they are not).

Mine too, such a great film.

I have that pic on my desktop at work, and it makes me chuckle everytime I see it. He does, he's such a sweet natured dog, always happy to see anyone and everyone. He's pretty well behaved even though at this age I think he should be going through is teenage rebellion or something? He loves to chew things and has pretty much destroyed all toys we've bought for him. But we recently bought him a deer antler (Stagbar), and he's going strong on that one. His recall is very good (which is the most important 'command' I think) even with distractions around - he always seems to be more interested in us and chasing his ball, than other dogs or people. He's very submissive around other dogs though, and often when they meet him, he gets 'bullied' a little (not actually bitten, but growled at and dominated ). I do get nervous when other dogs approach - that he will get hurt - and he can maybe pick up on that. Don't know how to get out of that mind-set though, and from talking to people at work (who are all dog-mad), they have the same feelings when they are out with their dogs. Thanks, emelee. Yeah, we were trying to get him to do the head-tilt, and got some very funny poses instead.

Yeah, I've been reading them over the last year or so and taking my time with them. I've made sure to not read any spoilers or even watch the movies unless I've read the book, so it's all new to me.