chaliepud

Sorry to hear of your bad experience frankie. How about The Secret Life of Bees next, I noticed you have it on your TBR list? I wouldn't call it a light topic matter but it is a very easy read and so lovely too.. Memoirs of A Geisha is another fabulous read that you will be so glad you have read once you finish it.

So sorry to hear about Clyde Chrissy, it's do devastating to lose them isn't it? Every day I wake up and my oldies are still here and happy I feel blessed.

Crazy - Aerosmith

Crazy For You - Madonna

100 pages in to Half of the Human Race (Anthony Quinn), not quite sure where it's heading but I'm liking it a lot so far...

Welcome Tre!

Welcome Xander!

Have recorded it, may watch it with the kids tomorrow, it was on at 8pm so hopefully it's okay for them!

Wow Ben, that's a lotta reading!!! Sorry to hear about to 'little accident', what a shame, and what a waste of money, but as you say a lesson learnt. My friend lost her Kindle yesterday as a stewardess on her flight spilt a little water on it, apparently it doesn't take a lot to ruin a Kindle so at least it was the paper books you had in there!

Good luck with your challenge, I've set one for myself for the first time this year and I'm logging my progress on Goodreads which tell me how I'm doing percentage wise and how many books I am ahead/behind. it's really helping to keep me motivated! How did you find Sanctus? It's on my TBR shelf..

Finished The Woman He Loved Before (Dorothy Koomson), her best book since The Ice Cream Girls I think. Starting Half of the Human Race (Anthony Quinn). Ordered The Last Echo: Violet Ambrose is the Body Finder (Kimberley Derting) (That's 17 books so far this year which makes means I've read 34% towards by target of books this year already!)

Great review, another one for the wish list!

My absolute favourite show is Blood Brothers and I've been fortunate to see some great actors in the cast including Kiki Dee, Barbara Dickson, and Con O'Neil. There is something just so so powerful and emotional about this show and it still hits me hard every time :-)

I know I'm repeating myself but Birdsong is a fabulous read (though I'm glad I read it before all the hype). Human Traces is even better in my opinion though, some of it is set during the war but it's not about the war. I'll be interested to hear what you think about A Week in December as it is one I've not tried though I think I have it somewhere in my MIRIOD (maybe I'll read it one day drawer)!

The Ice Cream Girls was the first of hers I read, and it's definitely more edgy than the others, so far at least..

Thank you, I am so happy that I read it and I have added a number of other 'doggy' books to my wish list on the strength ot it, I hope they live up to Enzo! I'm sure you'll love it Karen, do let us know when you've read it..

So sorry to hear about your doggy Devi, I'll be thinking of you x

Well you are! I would challenge you to a race seeing as our 'scores' are so close, but I know you read much quicker than I do so I'll not set myself up for failure! I was however looking at the shelf earlier and there are a few books there that I'm not sure I will ever read so I may well perform a small cull in the near future...

Marshmallows for Breakfast - Dorothy Koomson Amazon synopsis - When Kendra Tamale returns to England from Australia she rents a room from Kyle, a divorced father of two, and begins a new job. She's looking forward to a fresh start and simple life. Kyle's five-year-old twins, Summer and Jaxon, have other ideas and quickly adopt Kendra as their new mother - mainly because she lets them eat marshmallows for breakfast. Kendra eventually becomes a part of their lives, even though she's hiding a painful secret that makes her keep everyone - especially children - at arm's length. Then Kendra bumps into the man who shares her awful secret, and things fall apart: she can't sleep, she can't eat, she's suspended from work, and the kids are taken away by their mother. The only way to fix things is to confess to the terrible mistake she made all those years ago. But that's something she swore never to do . . . Not the best Koomson I have read, that would be The Ice Cream Girls or My Best Friend's Girl, it was a nice easy read which I needed to give my mojo a bit of a rest but it failed to engage me fully.. The story wasn't very believable, the reader was led to believe that Kendra had a terrible secret and that she had done something awful in her past (I had imagined all sorts of things!) but it was a bit of a damp squib when it actually happened. In fact the whole story was a bit far fetched but it was an easy read and it did give my mojo a bit of a break and it can't have been too bad as I am now reading another of her books, The Woman He Loved Before, which has much better reviews and will continue (hopefully) to help my mojo chill out a bit. 3.5/5

13. A Certain Slant of Light - Laura Whitcomb Amazon synopsis - In the class of the high school English teacher she has been haunting, Helen feels them: for the first time in 130 years, human eyes are looking at her. They belong to a boy, a boy who has not seemed remarkable until now. And Helen—terrified, but intrigued—is drawn to him. The fact that he is in a body and she is not presents this unlikely couple with their first challenge. But as the lovers struggle to find a way to be together, they begin to discover the secrets of their former lives and of the young people they come to possess. An extraordinary book, not strictly a ghost story, it was more about how Helen coped with her status as a ghost and the different forms it took, and also a love story, and about coming to terms with and accepting your past so you are able to move on. It was one of those books that I am so pleased I have finally read, thank you again to the recommendations on here! 4.25/5

12. The Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein Amazon synopsis - A heart-warming and inspirational tale in which Enzo, a loyal family dog, tells the story of his human family, how they nearly fell apart, and what he did to bring them back together. Enzo knows he is different from other dogs: he thinks and feels in nearly human ways. He has educated himself by watching extensive television, and by listening very closely to the words of his master, Denny Swift, an up-and-coming race car driver. Through Denny, Enzo realizes that racing is a metaphor: that by applying the techniques a driver would apply on the race track, one can successfully navigate the ordeals and travails one encounters in life. Enzo relates the story of his human family, sharing their tragedies and triumphs. In the end, despite what he sees as his own limitations as a dog, Enzo comes through heroically to preserve the Swift family. The Art of Racing in the Rain is a testament to a man's life, given by his dog. But it is also a testament to the dog, himself. Though Enzo cannot speak, he understands everything that happens around him as he bears witness to his master's problems. His enforced muteness only refines his listening ability, and allows him to understand many of life's nuances that are lost on most humans. With humour, sharp observation, and a courageous heart, Enzo guides the reader to the bittersweet yet ultimately satisfying conclusion: there are no limitations to what we can achieve, if we truly know where we want to be. What a great book! Big thanks to frankie and Bobblybear for recommending it. It was fascinating reading the story from Enzo's point of view, he was a great character and he did the most amazing things to look after and protect his family and had a wonderful understanding of what they needed and how that could be achieved. There were some hilariously funny moments and some dreadfully sad ones too, but they were sensitively written and I was able to read them without falling apart completely. I found it a little hard to read as I have elderly dogs and I know that 'moment' will be with us all too soon but Enzo actually helped me realise that it is something that we shouldn't feel bad about and that we do it because we love them as members of our extended family. Being a dog owner the book made me look at my dogs in a new light, definitely with more humour and understanding and probably a little more sensitively too. The only downside of the book for me were the references to motor racing, except when they involved Enzo of course! 4.5/5

I'm taking my daughter and her 6 BFF's to see it next Friday as a belated birthday party, I think I'm looking forward to it more than she is though, she's just thinking about the chocolate cake we're having after!

Try this Milo.... http://www.literature-map.com/ It's not a perfect tool but it may help.

I'm now on my 15th book of the year, The Woman He Loved Before by Dorothy Koomson, I'm trying to keep it light as my mojo is wavering!!

Down to 43, am feeling inspired by Chesil, though I don't want it below 20 or so as I always like a selection of books to choose from! I'm trying to read the books that have either been there longest or that I have been given by friends first. It's going well at the moment...