Poppyshake's Reading Year 2013

[Janet]

Newes from the Dead by Mary Hooper

I'm so glad you enjoyed this, Kay.  Mary Hooper is definitely one of my favourite YA authors (possibly my favourite contemporary one?).  This is slightly different from her other historical books - definitely darker - but she knows how to tell a good story.

 

She writes modern YA books as well as historical ones, but I am yet to try one of those - they don't really hold the same appeal.

[poppyshake]

I'm so glad you enjoyed this, Kay.  Mary Hooper is definitely one of my favourite YA authors (possibly my favourite contemporary one?).  This is slightly different from her other historical books - definitely darker - but she knows how to tell a good story.

 

She writes modern YA books as well as historical ones, but I am yet to try one of those - they don't really hold the same appeal.

I'm definitely going to look out for her (any particular recommendations Janet?)

[poppyshake]

The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
 

Amazon Synopsis: Dorothy thinks she is lost forever when a terrifying tornado crashes through Kansas and whisks her and her dog, Toto, far away to the magical land of Oz. To get home Dorothy must follow the yellow brick road to Emerald City and find the wonderfully mysterious Wizard of Oz. Together with her companions the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion whom she meets on the way, Dorothy embarks on a strange and enchanting adventure.

Review: This was another Mary Poppins experience. You think you know the story pretty well from the film and then you read the book and realise that the two differ quite considerably. The bones are the same but the flesh is a little different. I had already heard about the ruby slippers not being ruby at all but silver and so at least that was one thing less to be upset about. Also, though Dorothy meets the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion in much the same way, their adventures are slightly different and the characters themselves are not manifestations of the local townsfolk (which also goes for Oz and the Wicked Witch of the West.) The two witches aren't in the story as much and the ending is somewhat changed ..

the film making it seem more like a dream Dorothy had whilst unconscious but the book playing it for real

As with Mary Poppins, I liked both in their different ways but the film is somewhat of a favourite .. mainly because of Judy and her sublime singing ... so I didn't quite feel the same connection with the story. L. Frank Baum says that this is a book 'solely to please children of today' but I think any modern child and indeed any modern adult would be charmed by Dorothy's adventures. Still, I did miss the singing  3/5

[julie]

 

Miss Poppy

I was wondering if you have ever read the complete set of Oz books ? I've only read the one, but recently purchased the above for the Kindle ,which was really a bargain price .I think there are lots more characters and a different twist on the story somehow . Not sure when I will get around to it ,but at least I have it when the mood strikes .

[Athena]

Great review of The Wizard of Oz. I own this on the Kindle (I think I own the complete volume), I've also only seen a film or musicals but I haven't actually ever read the book. It's on my TBR. Great review .

[pontalba]

Great review of Oz!  I loved them as a kid, read a bunch.....only other title I remember though is Grandpa in Oz.  I had my Uncle's book, wish I knew what happened to it!  gak

[poppyshake]

Thanks girls  I may well read more Oz stories in the future. I saw a beautifully illustrated version of The Wizard of Oz recently and was so tempted (though Lord!! what has The Scarecrow been eating? ) I do love illustrated books and have a nice collection but I must try and concentrate on books that are already on my wishlist or I'll never get to read all the stories I want to      

[Janet]

That blue thing is meant to be a scarecrow?!?!

 

ETA: it *is* a gorgeous cover though!

[poppyshake]

Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake

Waterstone's Synopsis: As the first novel opens, Titus, heir to Lord Sepulchrave, has just been born, he stands to inherit the miles of rambling stone and mortar that stand for Gormenghast Castle. Inside, all events are predetermined by a complex ritual, lost in history, understood only by Sourdust, Lord of the Library. There are tears and strange laughter; fierce births and deaths beneath umbrageous ceilings; dreams and violence and disenchantment contained within a labyrinth of stone.

Review: I was very happy when this was chosen for the November RC as it's a book I've long been wanting to read but felt a little afraid of. I saw bits of the drama when it was televised but only enough to a) make an impression and b) boggle me with its weirdness so that alone made me feel that it was going to be a struggle and .. for this first installment .. a 500 page struggle (and I've been struggling with 20 pages so .. not good!) The first few sentences were a bit perplexing but most of that was fear .. my own head was telling me I wouldn't grasp it, but as soon as I had familiarised myself with Peake's world, I loved it and savoured every word.

It's not particularly plot driven .. there are long passages where nothing much happens at all .. though there are one or two set pieces which are absolutely breathtaking and very visual. I was absolutely amazed that I could read 500 pages so quickly without any pain as it were and was just mentally clapping myself on the back for ever suggesting this might be a good book to choose for the RC etc when I fell off my pedestal with a bang. Not everyone enjoyed it and not all could get through it  .. oh dear .. it's a Marmite book   Consequently I am quite at a loss to explain what appealed to me so much about it. I do like weirdness .. and am very at home with Pratchett etc but this is far less fast paced and more ponderous than Pratchett. The characters, for the most part, act in a way that nobody actually does in real life but then Peake hasn't set out to write a realistic story .. he's filled his gothic tale full of absurd, nightmarish caricatures who are just plain curious and odd but, for the most part, they do become more real to you as the story progresses. 

The book opens with Rottcodd, the curator of The Hall of Bright Carvings, flicking his duster around at the exhibits and we don't see him again until the last chapter .. which is the sort of nonsense I like. The title character, Titus, has just been born and he remains a baby for the whole of this particular story so we don't hear anything (coherent) from him. The story mainly concerns the exploits of kitchen hand, Steerpike, who escapes from the kitchens and manages to insinuate himself into a position of trust and responsibility within the castle. I'm not quite sure where all this scheming will take him but he definitely has his eye on the main chance. The characters are bizarre .. some are ridiculous and some grotesque. My particular favourite was Fuchsia .. daughter of the house (but sadly considered .. as the estate is entailed away from the female line .. unimportant.) She is definitely away with the fairies .. she scrawls on her walls and lugs lichen covered stones home from the forest to decorate her room. Though fifteen, she is both childlike and childish but she is also, I think, one of the characters the reader can empathise with and we do this more and more as the story unfolds (or .. I should say .. I did ) I was glad to find myself liking her because it's important to me to find somebody to champion in a story and I was scrabbling around a bit after my first champion, Steerpike, not only disappointed but downright disgusted me. Fuchsia is looking for love in her life. Her father - Lord Sepulchrave - is too ground down and absorbed in castle ritual to take much notice, her mother - Countess Gertrude - would rather shower affection on her menagerie of cats and birds and her nannie - Nannie Slagg  is altogether too aggravating for words. Fuchsia is attracted to Steerpike who, in her mind, has the potential at least, to be her knight in shining armour. As a reader, I'm wanting to put a hypothetical fireguard around him, and a notice about not getting too close for fear of being badly burnt, but no doubt Fuchsia would ignore it anyway and just go plunging in.

This is not much helping  .. I'll just say that the comparisons to Dickens is justified in my opinion .. there is so much detail here and a great deal of absurdity (which I do believe is one of the things I liked and probably also one of the things that others didn't.) It is a book that you have to have a feel for and if it's not floating your boat then .. as has been seen .. you're going to get weary of it all pretty quickly. Though Rottcodd has little impact on the story .. one read of the first chapter will tell you whether you're going to fall into the love or loathe camp because Peake sets his stall out right from the beginning.

It's very wordy which I also enjoyed ( ) quite claustrophobic as the action (or lack of it) takes place, almost entirely, within the walls of Gormenghast Castle and it's invariably gloomy .. there's not much here, if anything, to make your heart sing except the writing (and that opinion, of course, is subjective ) It is one of my best, if not the best reading experience I've had this year though so I'm very, very, happy to have picked it up   It captured my imagination and I'm looking forward to reading on and finding out what happens and where Steerpike's scheming takes him. It is odd though (but by no means unusual ) to find myself in the minority .. you can't help trying to work out why you liked it so much when others didn't   If it wasn't that Kidsmum also liked it, I would just draw my usual conclusion (you're odd )
 More thoughts (and angry explosions ) can be read on the November RC .. but as usual beware the spoilers. 5/5

 

Here's a pic of the extraordinarily beautiful Jonathan Rhys Myers playing (against the writers description) Steerpike .. I do believe this is one of the reasons I was pre-disposed towards him

 

Edited November 12, 2013 by poppyshake

[poppyshake]

That blue thing is meant to be a scarecrow?!?!

I spent ages trying to work out who was who  .. I just didn't know who the blue blob could be   

ETA: it *is* a gorgeous cover though!

Yes it is .. the poppies make it extra beautiful  

[poppyshake]

Now .. Bimbo wants me to say a few words before I show you his pic. First of all, compared to most bears, he has had a very, very, hard life .. in that he has been awfully loved (literally) .. so much so that he hasn't a proper nose and his ear has been wonkily re-attached. He is a mite grubby  .. he spent a lot of his early years in the garden and was left overnight occasionally and was rained/sleeted/snowed/drizzled on and so lost both his looks and his growl  His head is sadly stuffed with sawdust and as such .. not that I would ever contemplate such a horror  .. he cannot be put in the washing machine and water is an enemy. He has lost some of the sawdust too so his muzzle has gone (though do koala's have muzzles?) Secondly the person designing him had never seen a koala so it's not Bimbo's fault if he is insulting the species .. he would never do that intentionally. Thirdly .. back in his day .. Bimbo didn't mean airhead  His pet named him that because her father, being a fan of Jim Reeves, used to sing her a song about a 'Bimbo' going down the road to see his little girlio. Bimbo wishes the song had been called 'Charles' or 'Edward' or something distinguished .. not least of all because he hasn't been able to live up to his namesake by going down the road to see anybody .. let alone a girlio. Lastly he wanted me to thank you because his pet actually knitted him a jumper all of his own in order to take this pic. For the past thirty years at least he's had to wear Snoopy's dressing gown which, though orange (Bimbo's fave colour) had a big 'S' on the front and so was a constant source of embarrassment.

 

Being as his head is full of sawdust he's never ever learnt to read but he has been read to plenty and advocates all the great bear literature .. he didn't like The Sound and the Fury one bit though and doesn't think any of you would either       

 

 

[bobblybear]

Love Bimbo and the sweater!!   Is he really 30+ years old?

[chaliepud]

Ah Bimbo is lovely, I do have a fondness for well loved teddies! I have Snowy, a small well loved bear that was left on our doorstep the day my Mum brought me home from the hospital, we've been inseparable ever since! My Mum has pics of me with him when I was little too.

[poppyshake]

Love Bimbo and the sweater!!   Is he really 30+ years old?

He is more than forty years old  ... he wore his birthday suit for the first ten years though    

[poppyshake]

Ah Bimbo is lovely, I do have a fondness for well loved teddies! I have Snowy, a small well loved bear that was left on our doorstep the day my Mum brought me home from the hospital, we've been inseparable ever since! My Mum has pics of me with him when I was little too.

Aww Snowy .. that's a lovely name  

Alan keeps saying we should take Bimbo to the bear hospital (though .. strictly speaking .. he would have to go to the marsupial hospital ) to have him fixed up .. but what would I do without him?      

[Devi]

I have a bear that i sadly can't remember the name of, and a stuffed kitten that i named biannca - she has a bell in her tail that still works.

[Karsa Orlong]

Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake

 

Nannie Slagg  is altogether too aggravating for words. She is attracted to Steerpike who, in her mind, has the potential at least, to be her knight in shining armour.

 

I thought it was Prunesquallor's sister (Irma?) who was attracted to Steerpike?    Or have I managed to erase it from my memory already  

 

5/5 

 

I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, Kay.  Great review, as usual 

[poppyshake]

I thought it was Prunesquallor's sister (Irma?) who was attracted to Steerpike?    Or have I managed to erase it from my memory already

I seem to have indicated that Nannie was attracted to Steerpike when I meant Fuchsia  (I will go and edit.) Yes Irma was more than a bit smitten and, of course, the twins, though they were more attracted by his vision of their future.

I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, Kay.  Great review, as usual 

Thanks Steve  .. I'm very sorry you found it ...    ... tedious

[poppyshake]

I have a bear that i sadly can't remember the name of, and a stuffed kitten that i named biannca - she has a bell in her tail that still works.

Aww poor nameless bear .. we will honour him just the same  Biannca is an exotic name .. what made you think of it Deborah?

[Athena]

That's a beautiful cover of the book! 

 

Great review of Titus Groan, very detailed !

 

Bimbo is so cute and beautiful ! I've got a lot of plushies (or however you call them in English.. I prefer our Dutch word! Knuffel, which is the same word we use for 'hug'). Some are in my room, some are upstairs. I love my knuffels. It's great to see and hear about yours .

[Devi]

Aww poor nameless bear .. we will honour him just the same  Biannca is an exotic name .. what made you think of it Deborah?

I'm not sure, but I will ask my mum if she knows.

[poppyshake]

Inspired by other members who've already had a count up .. I painstakingly  added up all my reads this year and was surprised to see I've read 98 so far which is ..   well   .. several more than last year  It's particularly surprising as for two months at least I didn't read anything (but then read plenty when convalescent as couldn't do much but read.) 12 of those reads have been audio which is 4 more than last year but I'm happy that I've stopped the rot as it were as my reading totals were decreasing with each year and being a poky old woman with only an ancient cat for company (oh .. and a husband ) I couldn't even blame it on my hectic family life and social engagements.

 

Anyway the tea and buns are on me again  or perhaps not .. I must have consideration for your sugar intake  Help yourself to a drink from the tap and if you look hard enough you might find a banana .. don't be put off by its appearance .. it'll be fine once you take its coat off  (only wish I could say the same )

 

It's not beyond the realms of possibility that I will reach 100!! Though I don't want to jinx anything  

[Janet]

Wow - 98 is amazing!     I've never read that many in a year!

 

I'll grab a bun, but I'll pass on the tea, thanks!

[willoyd]

Wow - 98 is amazing!     I've never read that many in a year!

 

I agree!  My best year to date (since I started keeping a count) is 60, and most years I don't even achieve half of what you have managed so far Kay - I'm in awe!  Are you a fast reader (I didn't think I was slow), or do you read every moment, or what?  I suppose I might manage 100 if I only read slim books, but I know you don't, and anyway there are far too many good chunky books out that that need reading.

[Kidsmum]

Congrats Poppyshake your a record breaker, Roy Castle would be proud of you, i'll definitely join you for a celebratory cup of tea & Janet can have my bun