Claire's book list 2014

[chesilbeach]

I've just finished by first book of the year - Saplings by Noel Streatfeild.  There's not much of a story as such, it just follows a fairly well off middle class family through five years from just before the start of the second world war.

 

The saplings of the title are the four children of the Wiltshire family, and through their eyes, Streatfeild looks at the impact of war on the children.  The children go through evacuation to the country and their grandparents house, and after a devastating loss in the family, are then sent on to boarding schools.  As the children grow up, you witness the mistakes made by adults and the impact on the feelings of the children, and how they grow from a compact family group to become individual personalities, and how their coping mechanisms affect their development.

 

Now normally, I would struggle with this sort of book as I like a proper story and plot to keep me moving along, and while this is much more of a character study, there was enough of a narrative to keep me reading.  I loved that the children weren't perfect when the book opens, but that their father is aware of their particular issues and tries to help them develop, and that the older two children, Laurel and Tony, can see the selfish and manipulative nature the third child, Kit, is growing into, and are keen to try and suppress that side of him.  As the war begins, the family move away from each other, and the children lose the nurturing of their parents, it's fascinating to see how the loss of the family unit takes its toll on the youngsters, and I found it very moving to watch the disintegration of the family as a support unit for each other.  I found myself wanting to hug them at times, shake them at others, and knock the heads of the some of the adults together in the hope that they might have some sense of the mistakes they were making.  While they nearly all have what they think are the children's best interests at heart, they mostly end up causing more resentment and pain in the young minds of their charges.  If often seems like the staff have the most common sense, and the affection from the nanny and the governess has a steadying impact on their lives.

 

As there is little plot, the book does end on a bit of a whimper with no real conclusion or wrapping up of loose ends, and although you don't even get a glimpse of what happens to the children after the war ends and they grow up, there was certainly a sense of hopefulness that at least Laurel would be able to move on from the problems of adolescence, with the prospect of a brighter future.

 

I found the book engrossing to read.  It was fascinating to follow this period, with very little reference to the war itself, other than some description of the devastation of bombs dropping on London, and the results of rationing, but the dramatic impact on the lives of this family made for a compelling read.

[julie]

Claire

 Best wishes in the new year of reading. You have some nice lists there to work with

[chesilbeach]

Happy New Year and Happy Reading!

 

Looking forward to comparing notes on the English Counties! For the books I've read (Sherlock Holmes and Adrian Mole) I intend to substitute them for others that were discussed as options.

 

I'm really looking forward to the two Gaskells - especially as that's my neck of the woods!

Thanks Alexi! North and South is definitely moving towards the top of the TBR pile, and I don't think it'll be too long before I'm starting it.

[chesilbeach]

I wish you many good reading adventures in 2014 Claire!

 

 

Happy Reading this year Claire.

 

 

Thank you both!

[chesilbeach]

My Mum and I looked at A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar in Waterstone's today.  It sounds good. 

 

Happy reading in 2014, Claire. 

 

 

Thanks Janet.  I bought A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar on a Kindle Daily Deal earlier in the year, but there is someone else on the forum who has read it and recommended it (I think it was poppy) so I'm hoping I'll enjoy it.

[chesilbeach]

Claire

 Best wishes in the new year of reading. You have some nice lists there to work with

 

Thanks Julie.    Lists are all very well, but whether I'll make any headway on them this year is a totally different matter!

[poppyshake]

Thanks Julie.    Lists are all very well, but whether I'll make any headway on them this year is a totally different matter!

You will .. you are just about the most organised and well disciplined person I know   I seem to regard my TBR with the same suspicion as I regard Carter Beats the Devil   

[chesilbeach]

I bought Gemma Bovery by Posy Simmonds when I was on holiday last year, as I'd already read Tamara Drewe by the same author, and wanted to read more.  Both novels are graphic novels, but with plenty of text interspersed amongst the pictures.
 
Now, I have to say from the outset, I gave up on Madame Bovary about a third of the way in as I just wasn't getting on with it, so when I started out with Gemma Bovery, I assumed it had some sort of relationship with Flaubert's original classic novel.  Gemma marries Charlie Bovery, and fed up with Charlie's ex-wife and children, decides to upsticks and move them to Normandy using some money she has inherited.  Her neighbour and the local baker, Joubert, is intrigued as to whether Gemma bears any resemblance to the infamous heroine.  The story follows Joubert's increasing obsession with Gemma, and shows the parallels between the fiction and Joubert's reality (if you see what I mean, since he's fictional, so it's all fiction and no reality, but it's real to him as a character.  I'll stop waffling now).
 
Despite my initial reluctance to even try a graphic novel (I always associate them with superheroes and Japanese children!), I have thoroughly enjoyed both of the Posy Simmonds books I've now read.  I love the depth and colour - as in the descriptive term rather than the illustrative term, since my paperback copy was only in black and white - of the characters that Simmonds creates with words, and the illustrations bring it even more to life than if you were watching it as a film.  I really felt like a part of the story, and could almost imagine myself in the boulangerie or the marché.  But in spite of the illustrations, I still felt that Simmonds is excellent at characterisation, and brings them to life, and that's what makes her novels so successful - full of characters you care about.
 
There's only one minor complaint I have, and that's that I would have preferred to have a colour edition, although I'm not sure one exists!  I was lucky enough to find my copy of Tamara Drewe in colour, and I think I've been a bit spoilt by it.  Simmonds illustrations are so engaging, and the colour would have added that extra dimension.
 
I would definitely recommend others like me who are put off the thought of graphic novels to try one of Posy Simmonds books, as I've been completely won over by them, and will continue to look for more!

Edited January 10, 2014 by chesilbeach

[poppyshake]

Sounds great Claire  .... I'll look out for it .. though it's association with Madame Bov would normally make me want to run a mile (though it's the wrong time of year for that anyway  .. perhaps in the Spring! ) I like Posy's illustrations. I once saw an illustration she did for Dylan Thomas's A Child's Christmas in Wales and longed to have the book but I've never been able to find it .. I don't know that it exists (I think the illustration I saw was a one-off piece for a diary I had .. possibly the Folio Society's .. or something like that.) I live in hope that it'll be published one day.

 

Have you ever seen the animated short Famous Fred? That was based on a book Posy wrote called Fred and uses her illustrations. Very funny too  (though meant for littlies .. still .. I enjoyed it ) 

[chesilbeach]

You're welcome to borrow my copies of her books if you'd like, Kay.  I'm think you like them, and you'll probably end up wanting your own copies too!

 

I haven't seen Famous Fred, but I've just found it on 4OD and do like the sound of it, and I'm not adverse to littlies book and television, so I'm sure I'd love it.  Something to watch over the weekend.

[poppyshake]

Thanks Claire  ... that's very kind of you (and yes .. I bet you're right and I'll want my own copies. I do love illustrated books anyway and you can't get more illustrated than a graphic novel )

 

Hope you enjoy Famous Fred .. it's quirky but lots of fun  

[Athena]

I'm glad to hear you had a great experience with the graphic novel . I think I'd like to read it too, it may have to go on my wishlist ! I have some other graphic novels based on classic literature but I haven't read them yet (great idea, I shall put one on my read-a-thon pile).

[chesilbeach]

I've been mulling over The Turn Of The Screw by Henry James for a few days, and I still don't know what to say about it.  I know not everyone gets on with his writing style, but this is the second of his books I've read, and I haven't had a problem, I've just had to make sure I concentrate, as there are plenty of long sentences to contend with.  It started really well, and I loved the little set up so that the actual ghost story would be a reading from a real story written by someone who had experienced it first hand.  
 
I don't know if this makes sense, but I enjoyed the reading of the book, more than the story itself!  The problem was, I'm not sure I really understood the plot.  That might actually be my fault, as I often struggle with ghost stories, and this was one I found didn't quite work.  It all seemed very rushed, with the narrator falling in love with the gentleman who hires her to be a governess for his charges, then she seems to fall in love with the children almost immediately too, and forms a strong friendship with the housekeeping in no time at all.  I didn't know what the intent of the ghosts was, and I couldn't work out if they were controlling the children, or what the children hoped to gain from the ghosts?  Who were they threatening?  A fairly confused reader here.
 
As far as the choice of this book in the English Counties challenge, I didn't really feel that there was any sense of place in the story.  I don't know if I missed that part in the narrative, but it could have been set anywhere in the country as far as I could tell.
 
All this sounds very negative, but like I said earlier, I have enjoyed reading both books I've read by Henry James, but for this one, I just didn't think it worked for me.  Maybe I don't read enough ghost stories to appreciate them, or maybe I wasn't concentrating as much as I thought, but not a book I could recommend, although I would still like to read more James, but I think I need to tackle another full novel next, and I think The Wings of the Dove would be my next attempt at his work.

[poppyshake]

Glad you got on with Henry's reading style Claire  I couldn't but if the story had been better I probably would have (this time .. I hated everything about The Ambassadors though) .. I was enjoying it until the plot got so improbable that it started to irritate. I couldn't believe in any of the relationships ... as you say they were all formed practically overnight and were ridiculously over the top (or so it seemed to me.) The ghosts in the story were so ambiguous .. I never worked out if they were all in the governess' head or really there. To me ... it didn't work as a ghost story.

Look forward to seeing how you get on with him next time  

Edited January 11, 2014 by poppyshake

[willoyd]

It all seemed very rushed, with the narrator falling in love with the gentleman who hires her to be a governess for his charges, then she seems to fall in love with the children almost immediately too, and forms a strong friendship with the housekeeping in no time at all.  I didn't know what the intent of the ghosts was, and I couldn't work out if they were controlling the children, or what the children hoped to gain from the ghosts?  Who were they threatening?  A fairly confused reader here.

SPOILER ALERT

I read this over Christmas, so it's still fresh in my mind. I think the uncertainty is deliberate and the speed that the governess forms relationships, at least in her mind, is deliberate - were they real, were they in reality reciprocated? as Kay touches on, one of the questions that James is raising is, were these ghosts real, or where they simply creations in the governess's mind? After all, nobody else appears to have seen the ghosts.

 

As a result, we don't know what was going on between the ghosts and the children as we do only see it all from the governess's perspective. I think there's a fairly strong suggestion of abuse when the ghosts were alive.

 

I'm not sure why the children would expect to gain anything from the ghosts. I don't really understand what you mean by this. As to the threat - well you know what happens at the end!

Edited January 11, 2014 by willoyd

[chesilbeach]

I'm not sure why the children would expect to gain anything from the ghosts. I don't really understand what you mean by this. As to the threat - well you know what happens at the end!

I didn't word it very well, did I?

 

I guess what I mean is that I either read it that she thought the children and the ghosts were in league together, and that she was being manipulated by all four of them, or that the children were using the idea of ghosts to manipulate her. But was this because they wanted to get rid of her? Was she supposed to be mentally unstable, and paranoid that they were trying to send her away, and therefore the clue to this was that she did fall in love with them all so quickly, as to show that she was not quite the sensible woman you would expect someone to hire as a governess?

 

I've been thinking about this for a week now, trying to get around it in my head to write a review, and all it does is throw up more questions. Maybe that was the point. I certainly won't forget it in a hurry! 

[chesilbeach]

I was dead chuffed to find one of the English Counties challenges books in the Oxfam book shop yesterday - My Uncle Silas by H. E. Bates.  I've got a list of the ones not available on Kindle, so that I can keep an eye out for them, and fortunately, this particular book shop had a great selection.  They split out modern fiction and literature, and their literature section was chocker block with the old Penguin books, and they even had a big window display of them all too.  I wondered if someone had donated them all in one go, as I don't remember them ever having had so many before.  Fortunately, my OH spotted this one in the window display, so I was able to pluck it out and nab it for myself!  I couldn't resist starting it later on, despite the fact I'd already just started All Creatures Great and Small for the same challenge!  

[Kidsmum]

Good luck with your reading this year Claire, i hope you have more 5* books than last year   I can recommend The Harpole Report having just finished it , very amusing & one that i know i'll read again.

 

Interesting reading everyone's thoughts on The Turn Of The Screw ,i'm quite tempted to pick it up myself now just to see what i think, like Kay i loathed the Ambassadors but as you've read & enjoyed other Henry James novels perhaps i should give him another chance.

 

The Bates book was a great find, well done to your OH for spotting it, my hubby would have been too busy looking at the music section to notice anything else. I find Oxfam a bit pricey when it comes to books & only buy from them when i see something i really want. There's a branch not too far from us in Headingley that sells just books but some of the prices are ridiculous i'm sure they'd be cheaper to buy new online.

[chesilbeach]

Thanks.    I am going to try and search out the books I think have potential rather than going for the easy option, but I have to say, it does take a lot to get 5/5 from me!  Even on a good year, it doesn't usually hit double figures, usually around 5% of the books I read, but I would like to get more 4/5's as well, which is still a great score from me - I'm notoriously picky!

 

I had a look at Henry James on Fantastic Fiction yesterday, and I had no idea he was so prolific!  There's plenty to choose from, so perhaps The Ambassadors was one of his more demanding ones?  I definitely want to try The Wings of the Dove as I saw the film many years ago, and absolutely loved it, so I'm hoping some knowledge of the story will help with this one too.

 

Oxfam can be pricey compared to other charity shops, particularly in their dedicated book shops, but at £2.49, it was still reasonably cheap especially as it's not available as an ebook, the new paperbacks I've seen online are about £9, and even if you buy second hand online, when you add the amount you pay for postage then it's still a very reasonable price, and I always think that at least the money has gone to a good cause.  I'm more than happy to lend it to anyone else doing the challenge after I've read it, as it might be a tricky one to find.

[chesilbeach]

The President's Hat by Antoine Laurain is set in the 1980s, and tells the story of the eponymous hat of French president François Mitterand, and after being forgotten at a restaurant, it passes through a variety of owners by forgetfulness, being given away and even theft.  But as each new person wears the hat, they each undergo a transformation that enhances their personality, leading to a life changing experience.

 

A tale of coincidence and fate, this was a lovely little read for the weekend, definitely one to relax with.  It's a gentle, upbeat story with a variety of characters, that doesn't challenge or tax the reader, but envelopes you up in a charming story with engaging characters who are all a little better off after having come into contact with the hat.  If I had a complaint, the ending is a bit too convenient and rather far fetched, but I can forgive it that, as it was still an entertaining read.

[poppyshake]

That sounds good Claire I like an un-taxing and relaxing book .. there should be more of them

 

Oxfam can be a bit pricey like you say but then I like the way they organise books etc and usually find little gems in our local one (because .. not that I'm being snobby or anything  .. I always think that book lovers take their cast offs there .. I certainly do .. but then I only ever give them the ones I don't like ) and like you say £2.49 is still extremely reasonable and you're helping people too so big pats on the back all round  

[Kidsmum]

 

I had a look at Henry James on Fantastic Fiction yesterday, and I had no idea he was so prolific!  There's plenty to choose from, so perhaps The Ambassadors was one of his more demanding ones?  I definitely want to try The Wings of the Dove as I saw the film many years ago, and absolutely loved it, so I'm hoping some knowledge of the story will help with this one too.

 

Oxfam can be pricey compared to other charity shops, particularly in their dedicated book shops, but at £2.49, it was still reasonably cheap especially as it's not available as an ebook, the new paperbacks I've seen online are about £9, and even if you buy second hand online, when you add the amount you pay for postage then it's still a very reasonable price, and I always think that at least the money has gone to a good cause.  I'm more than happy to lend it to anyone else doing the challenge after I've read it, as it might be a tricky one to find.

 

Yes you could be right about The Ambassadors although i'm sure i remember hearing somewhere that he thought it was his best work. Have you read The Golden Bowl as i still have that on my TBR pile ?

I think £2.49 is a good price for a book you want & i'd be happy to pay that especially if it was in good condition but i think your more likely to spend more if the books are cheaper as your more likely to take a chance on a book that your not sure about, there's a St. Gemma's near where my Dad was living that had all paperbacks for 49p i'd regularly come out with a stack of books whereas if the price was higher i'd be more selective in my choices..... which of  course is how i've ended up with such a huge TBR mountain...... i can't resist a bargain when it comes to books 

I shall take you up on your offer of lend of the book Claire, thanks, as i know it's not available on the library site 

[willoyd]

I haven't read any of them yet, but those last three biggies of his, The Wings of the Dove, The Ambassadors, and The Golden Bowl, are generally reckoned to be his most challenging (i.e. difficult!) reads.

 

Claire - I think that's a prety decent summary, including the confusion!  Yes, I'm sure it's all about the questions!

[chesilbeach]

I've been reading the same book for a couple of weeks now, which is unheard of for me!  Not only am I doing my sewing classes, but work has also taken up rather more time than I'd hoped, so it's sort of understandable.  The book is The Rook and I am enjoying it, and I've only got a couple of chapters left to read, so hoping to finish it tomorrow, but I do have to finish my patchwork block first, otherwise I won't have time before the class on Wednesday.  Anyway, back to the books, and here's my status update as at the end of January:

 

As at the start of 2014

 

TBR: 34 books

Jane Austen reading list: 18/24 books read = 75% complete

J. L. Carr reading list: 3/8 books read = 38% complete

E. H. Young reading list: 0/13 books read = 0% complete

Persephone reading list: 6/104 books read = 6% complete

English Counties Challenge: 7/48 books read = 15% complete

 

 

Current status as at the end of January

 

Books purchased: 1

Books read: 8

Abandoned books: 0

TBR: 30 books

Jane Austen reading list: 18/24 books read = 75% complete

J. L. Carr reading list: 3/8 books read = 38% complete

E. H. Young reading list: 0/13 books read = 0% complete

Persephone reading list: 7/104 books read = 7% complete

English Counties Challenge: 11/48 books read = 23% complete

 

[Athena]

Great statistics ! I hope you'll get more time for reading at some point.