proserpina Posted August 20, 2007 Share Posted August 20, 2007 I have so far read 51 books in 2007. I had hoped to get to 100 but if I am going to do that I am going to have to read like a demon and I don't think it'll be possible. Maybe I'll go for 75....... Currently reading Veronika Decides to Die - Paulo Coelho Stalin's Ghost - Martin Cruz Smith Immediate TBR Blood Sisters - Barbara & Stephanie Keating Cancer Ward - Alexandre Solzhenitsyn For Whom The Bell Tolls - Earnest Hemingway The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame Little Women - Louisa M Alcott Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe Frankenstein - Mary Shelley Four Letters of Love - Niall Williams The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett Everyman's Rules for Scientific Living - Carrie Tiffany Nineteen Seventy-Seven - David Peace Surfacing - Margaret Atwood The Red Queen - Margaret Drabble Dead Air - Iain Banks Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Andrea~ Posted August 20, 2007 Share Posted August 20, 2007 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell I fancy a few of those myself. Have often toyed with the idea of Iain Banks too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kell Posted August 21, 2007 Share Posted August 21, 2007 I have a few of those in mind myself (you have several on there that are listed in the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die) - I'll look forward to hearing what you think of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 18, 2007 Author Share Posted October 18, 2007 I'm afraid I have been rather lax about keeping up with my book blog. I have clearly been reading far more than writing, seeing I have read 44 books since I posted this little under 2 months ago. I still haven't finished this list though, I have been tempted by too many other books first. Oops. Anyway, very quickly, this is what I thought of what I have read: Veronika Decides to Die - Paulo Coelho I always want to enjoy Coelho's books more than I actually do. This is a very straight forward read if you don't look too deeply into it but I don't think it was ever intended to be read that way. It certainly made me think about a thing or two. Cancer Ward - Alexandre Solzhenitsyn This was heavy going, I think I would call it dense. It did have a strangely enjoying narrative however, especially once I had got my head round the Russian names and patronyms. The subject matter is a tad depressing but does offer an insightful glance into a world we should be glad we never had to inhabit. Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe I didn't enjoy this at all, I did really try but it left me cold. I just wasn't drawn to the protagonist or the tale her had to tell. I was very glad it was only a short book and I didn't have to waste precious time on it. Four Letters of Love - Niall Williams I have had this on my book shelf for forever and never read it. It was a love story with plenty to say about fate and things that can't be explained. It made me think. Everyman's Rules for Scientific Living - Carrie Tiffany This book must have been completely unmemorable because I can barely remember a thing about it. I think it drifted along pleasantly enough but never actually gripped me enough to care, sadly. Nineteen Seventy-Seven - David Peace I don't usually read crime books and I only picked this up because it was on the "1001 Books" list. I am glad I did. I really enjoyed it. Surfacing - Margaret Atwood Dull. Dull. Dull. This is the first Atwood book I have read and I do hope the rest of her books aren't like this one. The Red Queen - Margaret Drabble I put off reading this for as long as possible, I don't know why but I think I decided that I wouldn't enjoy it. I was pleasantly surprised. The ancient narrative of the Queen was less interesting to me than the modern-day element of the story but insightful nonetheless. Dead Air - Iain Banks This rolled along quite nicely and I thought it a pleasant and fun way to spend a few hours. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell I am so glad I persevered with this book. I very nearly put it down after 20 pages but flicked through the rest of the book and it got increasingly more enjoyable and engaging as the stories developed. I was very impressed at the clever way all the tales were linked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 18, 2007 Author Share Posted October 18, 2007 Currently my TBR pile is looking a little low. I am currently two-thirds of the way through The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw which I am really enjoying. It is primarily a really interesting story, told from three different perspectives, which helps keep the narrative fresh, I think. Then I think I am going to read Blood Sisters by Barbara & Stephanie Keating, which I have been wanting to read for a while. After that I am not sure, I have plenty of books I haven't yet read but I am not feeling particularly inspired by them so I think I shall be taking another trip to the library soon in an attempt to find something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 Wow Lauren, does that mean you've read 95 books so far this year? I wish I could read that fast - it would help to keep my TBR pile down! Maybe I should do a course in speedreading. I've only read one of Coelho's works, The Alchemist and I hated it. Nothing would induce me to pick up any more of his books! The only Margaret Atwood I've read so far is The Handmaid's Tale, which I enjoyed quite a lot. Other members have enjoyed The Blind Assassin and Alias Grace as well. I think Atwood's writing style differs widely across books so maybe you'd like to try another one in future I also enjoyed the way the stories were linked together in Cloud Atlas but I did struggle through some of them. I thought it was an OK read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haniirani Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 I'd be interested to know why you hated The Alchemist Kylie? Veronika Decides to Die is a book I hope to read in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 I thought it was a predictable story that was poorly told, and didn't have anything in it that can't be found in other fables. I was disappointed after all the hype. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 29, 2007 Author Share Posted October 29, 2007 I am currently half way through Blood Sisters by Barbara and Stephanie Keating. The story is plodding along nicely and is interesting enough but I can't say I'm feeling particularly overwhelmed by the story or the setting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 29, 2007 Author Share Posted October 29, 2007 I took out a haul of library books last week which I'm starting to plough through. The Interpretation of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld The Line of Beauty - Alan Hollinghurst The Sea - John Banville (1001 Book Challenge) Love in the Present Tense - Catherine Ryan Hyde Alentejo Blue - Monica Ali (Olympic Challenge - Bangladesh) The Translator - Leila Aboulela (Olympic Challenge - Sudan) The Ringmaster's Daughter - Justein Gaardner (Olympic Challenge - Norway) The Testament of Gideon Mack - James Robertson Bitter Sweets - Roopa Farooki (Olympic Challenge - Pakistan) Solibo Magnificent - Patrick Chamoiseau (Olympic Challenge - Martinique) Geographies of Home - Loida Maritza Perez (Olympic Challenge - Dominican Republic) The Abortionist's Daughter - Elisabeth Hyde The Book of Lost Things - John Connolly The Curriculum Vitae of Aurora Ortiz - Almudena Solana (Olympic Challenge - Spain) Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre I particularly enjoyed The Line of Beauty, which was nothing like I expected it to be but nonetheless a cracking read. It seemed to capture the tale of Thatcher's Britain in the 1980s; a heady mix of sex, drugs and politics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted October 29, 2007 Share Posted October 29, 2007 Wow, those are quite the reading selections. You took all those from the library? In Canada I think there is like a four book maximum. They sound interesting though. Good luck with your books Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 29, 2007 Author Share Posted October 29, 2007 My local library allows 20 books to be taken out at a time, I usually take them back in batches as I read them, I have an ever-revolving TBR pile! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 30, 2007 Share Posted October 30, 2007 Wow, you must live in a town of fast readers! Or are you allowed to borrow for a couple of months at a time or something? I'll be interested to hear what you think of DBC Pierre. I haven't read any of his work but I've been curious about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 30, 2007 Author Share Posted October 30, 2007 Books can be taken out for 3 weeks initially and renewed up to 3 times (as long as nobody else has reserved them) so potentially the books can be mine for 3 months. They never usually are in practice, as I am currently reading about 3-4 books a week...... I do think the allowance is very generous. Thank you Lancashire libraries. I just wish I could finish Blood Sisters now, I'm getting more than a little fed up with having been reading the same book for so long (I was away for work last week and then went to see my boyfriend so I have been reading it since about Wednesday, ages for me!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Icecream Posted October 30, 2007 Share Posted October 30, 2007 I am in Lancashire too. I couldn't borrow 20 books at once though.I wish I still had the luxury of time to read. It is a great help to my mental health! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudyB Posted October 30, 2007 Share Posted October 30, 2007 My local library allows 20 books to be taken out at a time, I usually take them back in batches as I read them, I have an ever-revolving TBR pile! We allow 15 but only 10 in one visit - most people comment that they couldn't carry that many at once! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted October 30, 2007 Share Posted October 30, 2007 In Kent we are allowed 12 books for adults and 8 for children. I tend to get out 7-8 at a time, the kids 4 each. Thats as much as DH can carry in the rucksack!! He's a strong boy!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted October 31, 2007 Author Share Posted October 31, 2007 I am mainly been able to read so much this year because I have been on a career break since March: travelling and volunteering so have had much more spare time than I would otherwise have and IA have really re-discovered my love of books. I have a new job starting in a month, however, so I think my reading will be very much more limited then. I usually go to the library every week, when I can, and return what I have read in that time, so I don't have to carry 20 at once. I had been away for a few weeks recently so had 18 books to return in one sitting (at least half of them were hardbacks too!) I managed to cram them in a huge bag but I think one arm was longer than the other by the time I had finished lugging it about! I finally finished Blood Sisters last night and started my 100th book this morning. I decided to read something quick and easy and picked up Adriana Trigiani's Milk Glass Moon. I had never read anything by her before but read a couple this year (Lucia Lucia and Queen of the Big Time). I loved them, finding them both to be so comforting and satisfying to read. So far Milk Glass Moon is proving itself to be no exception. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proserpina Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 I have finished a couple of slightly obscure books for the Olympic Challenge this week: The Curriculum Vitae of Aurora Ortiz by Almudena Solana, which was a very quick read, only 150 pages and I am so glad, I don't think I could have coped with any more! I thought it was a rather strange story about a woman in Madrid who wrote long, rambling letters to a recruitment agency because she wanted to become a caretaker in a residential building. It was positively surreal. The Translator by Leila Aboulela, which I really enjoyed. Set in Aberdeen and Khartoum, this book was essentially a love story with a happy ending. I like those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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