Jump to content

Claire's Book List 2016


chesilbeach

Recommended Posts

Perijee and Me by Ross Montgomery

 

Synopsis: (from Amazon.co.uk)

When 11-year-old Caitlin discovers a shrimp-like alien creature on the shores of her island home, she takes responsibility for teaching it about the world. Mostly, this just involved stopping little Perijee from eating everything! Caitlin becomes increasingly close to her alien friend, treating him like a brother.

 

There's only one problem - Perijee won't stop growing.

 

Then the authorities try to hunt him down and through his fear, Perijee disappears and starts causing trouble. Caitlin must leave home and travel across the country to try and convince Perijee to stop destroying everything before it's too late.

 

Review:

It feels like I've been waiting for this book for years! It was originally due out early last year but the publication date got put back a few times, but I finally got my copy a few weeks ago. This is another fantastic book from Montgomery. He writes fantastical tales for children, but, they pack a punch with the themes. This latest book is perfect for our times, using an alien in order to give a view on outsiders (for this read immigrants or refugees) and the different viewpoints of how we interact with each other.

 

It's a brilliant way to allow children to familiarise themselves with this concept, with classic types of pitchfork wielding locals, bureaucratic agencies and media sensationalism among other things. There's plenty of humour and many thought provoking elements, but overall, as with both his previous books, there's just a cracking story that will captivate children, without any preaching or moralising. Great stuff. :)

Janet picked this up in Waterstones today - looks like we should have both picked up a copy! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 155
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

The Lady In The Van by Alan Bennett

 

Synopsis: (from amazon.co.uk)

In 1974, the homeless Miss Shepherd moved her broken down van into Alan Bennett's garden. Deeply eccentric and stubborn to her bones, Miss Shepherd was not an easy tenant. And Bennett, despite inviting her in the first place, was a reluctant landlord. And yet she lived there for fifteen years.

 

Review:

When you see Alan Bennett on the cover of a book, you know exactly what you are going to get.  What you read will be down to earth, touching, funny and wry look at humanity told in an almost deadpan style.  Every time I read one of his books, I hear his distinctive and comforting voice in my head, and this true recounting of a period in his life was no different.

 

It’s quite short, but a very rewarding read, and I don’t want to give anything away, but I love how Bennett found out about more her life towards the end of the book, and despite the aggravation that all of us would have suffered put in the same situation, his affection for people shines through as always.  A lovely, sometimes sad, story of a real person that makes you think about how lucky you are.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I remember enjoying The Virgin Suicides, but feeling a little underwhelmed. I think I had hyped it up a lot in my mind. It's been ages since I read the book or saw the movie, but I think the movie was a fairly good adaptation.

 

I wasn't at all interested in reading Middlesex, but I heard so many good things about it that I bought it anyway. It sat on my TBR pile for ages before I finally decided to give it a go. For me it was one of those 'OMG. Why didn't I read this sooner?!' books. It blew me away. Awesome book. And I know Frankie will back me up on that.  :D

 

These two reading experiences nicely explain my philosophy in life: 'If you don't get your hopes up, you won't be disappointed'. :D

 

I think it's yours, Frankie and Poppyshake's plugging of Middlesex that is behind my decision not to give up on him and try that book as well! :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman

 

Synopsis:

Librarian-spy Irene is working undercover in an alternative London when her assistant Kai goes missing. She discovers he's been kidnapped by the fae faction and the repercussions could be fatal. Not just for Kai, but for whole worlds.

 

Kai's dragon heritage means he has powerful allies, but also powerful enemies in the form of the fae. With this act of aggression, the fae are determined to trigger a war between their people - and the forces of order and chaos themselves.

 

Irene's mission to save Kai and avert Armageddon will take her to a dark, alternate Venice where it's always Carnival. Here Irene will be forced to blackmail, fast talk, and fight. Or face death.

 

Review:

I loved Cogman’s first book in this series, The Invisible Library so I was excited to return to the worlds of the library.  A fantastical, thrilling ride of a story which never lets up the pace and brings to life the many parallel worlds with their fae and dragons, culminating in a quest to find the kidnapped Kai in a Venice in the midst of the masquerade of the Carnivale.  I love Irene, she’s a wonderful heroine and I love the thought of a universe with books at the very core.

 

As often happens with a second book, there was less scene setting and character introductions required, so the whole thing was a romp from start to finish, and most enjoyable it was too!  If you loved the first one, you’ll definitely like the second, and I’m looking forward to reading further adventures of the most exciting librarian I’ve ever read about! :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Rain: Four Walks in English Weather by Melissa Harrison

 

Delighted to see this review: very much my type of book, but the sort that doesn't often get covered. Confirmed that I want to read it.

 

I've just finished Anna Pavord's Landskipping which, reading your comments, sounds very much of the same ilk. I'll be reviewing it sometime soon on my thread, but can thoroughly recommend it: probably an initial 5 stars and wait to see if it attains a six.

Edited by willoyd
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Delighted to see this review: very much my type of book, but the sort that doesn't often get covered. Confirmed that I want to read it.

 

I've just finished Anna Pavord's Landskipping which, reading your comments, sounds very much of the same ilk. I'll be reviewing it sometime soon on my thread, but can thoroughly recommend it: probably an initial 5 stars and wait to see if it attains a six.

 

Seriously, I can't recommend Melissa Harrison enough.  I hope you enjoy Rain when you do come to read it, and if you do, please also consider her novels, Clay especially, as she incorporates beautiful nature writing within the structure of a novel.

 

I hadn't heard of Landskipping but I've just looked it up and it sounds right up my street.  I'll look forward to reading your review. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer

 

Synopsis:

When the eligible Earl of Rule offers for the hand of the Beauty of the Winwood Family, he has no notion of the distress he causes his intended.

 

For Miss Lizzie Winwood is promised to the excellent, but impoverished Mr Edward Heron. Disaster can only be averted by the delightful impetuosity of her youngest sister, Horatia, who conceives her own, distinctly original plans ...

 

Review:

I’ve been meaning to read more Heyer for a long time.  I first came across her on a documentary by Daisy Goodwin called Reader, I Married Him which was all about romantic fiction, and Heyer was one of her favourite go to romantic writers.  I have read one book a while back and enjoyed it, and have subsequently read a lot of M. C. Beaton’s historical romantic comedies, which I have a sneaking suspicion may have been influenced by Heyer’s writing.

 

When I saw The Convenient Marriage in a Kindle sale, I knew I had to try it.  Set in the Georgian period, it’s the story of a young girl who marries an earl in order to save her sister from an arranged marriage so that she may marry for love.  There’s a charm and wit to the writing, and a hero to die for!  What takes it above the average for me, was that it felt that she evoked the period very well with an attention to detail in all the descriptions of the houses, furniture, clothes, food, social events … everything felt right.

 

The story is great, with the young, inexperienced but headstrong Horry, the handsome and seemingly languid Rule, the devilish rival, the scheming ex-lover, the gambling brother, all building to a very satisfying conclusion.  I absolutely loved it, and the quality of the writing takes it up and above the ordinary and I will definitely be reading more of Heyer’s work … and there’s plenty to choose from!  A prolific author, writing more than 50 books over fifty years, with her first novel published at the age of just 19 in 1921 through to her final work published the year after she died in 1975.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

 

 

Having said all that, I will definitely be reading Middlesex, as this has also been recommended and I want to read another of Eugenides books before passing my own judgement.

 

Thank god!!

 

Honestly, it's not complex, but I would like someone to explain to me what I missed!  I haven't seen the film, and based on my experience of the book, I don't think it will be my cup of tea.  Like I said, I'm still planning to try Middlesex as the writing certainly hasn't put me off the author, and that is the book that my friend from the book group recommended.

 

Personally, I don't think you missed anything. I didn't like the book. I was so underwhelmed by it. I first read Middlesex (awesome book!) and had high hopes for Virgin Suicides. I watched the movie first and didn't like it at all... Then read the book and didn't like it either. And the narrative was definitely a big problem for me. It's like, there's a story there but how are we to know what motivated the decisions and events?? There's a story but you're not given it to us, Eugenides!!! 

 

I wasn't at all interested in reading Middlesex, but I heard so many good things about it that I bought it anyway. It sat on my TBR pile for ages before I finally decided to give it a go. For me it was one of those 'OMG. Why didn't I read this sooner?!' books. It blew me away. Awesome book. And I know Frankie will back me up on that.  :D

 

 

Yes, frankie's here to back you up :D I don't remember why I read Middlesex... Maybe it was because of the Rory Gilmore Book Challenge. I honestly can't remember. When I picked it up, I was immediately sucked in and loved it through and through. And I would've loved to keep on reading, even though it's a fairly long story... Wouldn't have minded it to be longer :D

 

I think it's yours, Frankie and Poppyshake's plugging of Middlesex that is behind my decision not to give up on him and try that book as well! :D

 

Wohooooo! :D (Marriage Plot was also a very decent read. I don't remember much about it, but Goodreads tells me I've given it 4/5. But never mind that... Read Middlesex!! :D )

Edited by frankie
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Seriously, I can't recommend Melissa Harrison enough.  I hope you enjoy Rain when you do come to read it, and if you do, please also consider her novels, Clay especially, as she incorporates beautiful nature writing within the structure of a novel.

 

Just finished it - not exactly a big read!  I loved her writing, and each individual essay.  As a book, though, I wanted it to be a bit meatier.  She talks about it being a year long investigation into rain, but then we get just 4 experiences, and the book is over almost before it's really got going.  The potential, especially given her obvious writing skills, is enormous. 

 

My favourite essay is the first one: I feel she packed in more there than the other three put together.  Having said that, they'd all probably reward rereading.

 

Looking forward to trying her fiction out.

Edited by willoyd
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the year long investigation was because she covered one essay per season (although at the moment it feels like we only have one of those so she could have got away with one essay! :D), but you're right it was a short book.

 

As well as her novels, she's also curating a series of books on the seasons for The Wildlife Trusts where she's collections prose and poetry, new and old, on the topic of the seasons.  Spring came out a couple of months ago, and I think the other seasons will follow at three month intervals.  I'm going to have a look at Spring in the bookshop as I'm don't read poetry, so if it's too heavy with verse I'll probably give it a miss.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been trying to come up with a reading list for the summer, and I came across the long listed books for the Wainwright Prize 2016 - it's a prize for travel and nature non-fiction writing about the UK countryside.  Some of the books were already on my wish list, so I'm thinking of reading all twelve as they all interest me.  The list is:

 

Being a Beast by Charles Foster (Profile Books)

Coastlines: The Story of Our Shore by Patrick Barkham (Granta)

Common Ground by Rob Cowen (Penguin Random House)

Landmarks by Robert Macfarlane (Penguin Random House)

Landskipping by Anna Pavord (Bloomsbury)

Rain by Melissa Harrison (Faber & Faber)

Raptor: A Journey Through Birds by James Macdonald Lockhart (HarperCollins)

The Fish Ladder by Katharine Norbury (Bloomsbury)

The Moth Snowstorm by Michael McCarthy (John Murray)

The Outrun by Amy Liptrot (Canongate)

The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks (Penguin Random House)

Weatherland: Writers & Artists Under English Skies by Alexandra Harris (Thames & Hudson)

 

The shortlist will be announced at the end of June and the winner revealed in August, so I've got a little while to read them all, and I don't think I've ever read all the nominated books for an award before it was announced so I think it'll be a nice little challenge for the summer.

 

I've already read Rain by Melissa Harrison, and although I don't normally rate books on here (as I often change my mind over time) I might rate these just so that I can put them in some sort of order before the winner is revealed, and to compare my short list to the one that the judges come up with!

 

The first book I'll read from the remaining eleven is going to be Common Ground by Rob Cowen, as it was near the top of my wish list anyway. :D

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For some reason, I've not heard of this one before, but that list looks fascinating - thanks for posting a link to here on my thread after my reviews on Rain and Landskipping. I think the fact that they can shortlist twelve books says something about the current healthy state of nature/travel writing.

I've got quite a few of these not just on a wishlist, but bought and ready to read, so will be particularly interested in your reviews (non-fiction reviews are all too uncommon).  Aside from the two already read above, OH and I went to see Rob Cowen and Alexandra Harris at the Ilkley Literature Festival last year, where I bought their books, especially interesting in Rob Cowen's instance as the patch of land he describes is only a few miles from here on the edge of Harrogate - I've run over it several times. Having said that, Alexandra Harris was the more interesting speaker.  I'm saving The Outrun, as it's my book group's choice for December, but will tackle both Raptor and Landmarks (both on my tbr shelves) before then. In fact, it's really only the Charles Foster book that I'm not that bothered about, so will probably obtain the rest in the not too distant future! I must keep my eyes open for future Wainwright lists.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd never heard of it before either, but looking at the website (http://wainwrightprize.com) it looks like it's only a few years old.  I might well go back and look at the previous years shortlists at some point.

 

I've downloaded Common Ground now, so I'll probably read it next week, but there's nothing on the list that's off-putting so I'm going to try all twelve.  I'll be certain to check your reviews as you read them. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins

 

Synopsis: (from Amazon.co.uk)

"There in the middle of the broad, bright high-road-there, as if it had that moment sprung out of the earth or dropped from the heaven-stood the figure of a solitary woman, dressed from head to foot in white garments." Thus young Walter Hartright first meets the mysterious woman in white in what soon became one of the most popular novels of the nineteenth century. Secrets, mistaken identities, surprise revelations, amnesia, locked rooms and locked asylums, and an unorthodox villain made this mystery thriller an instant success when it first appeared in 1860, and it has continued to enthral readers ever since. From the hero's foreboding before his arrival at Limmeridge House to the nefarious plot concerning the beautiful Laura, the breathtaking tension of Collins' narrative created a new literary genre of suspense fiction, which profoundly shaped the course of English popular writing.

 

Review:

I've attempted The Woman In White a few times before, but have always struggled with it, but as it was on the English Counties list, I thought it was about time I tackled it again. I decided to listen to it as an audiobook, and as the narrative is told in sections by different characters, the book is read by a few different people too, which certainly helped as you're not listening to the same voice for the full 28 hours!

 

This is probably the most intricately detailed mystery story I've ever read. There are twist and turns throughout, keeping the reader guessing what might happen next, and in the end, it's quite an ingenious story with a believable conclusion. There are characters to root for, characters to boo, and even some characters which might be sidelined in other novels are given a starring role for their part in the story. For the most part, it's an enjoyable romp that keeps you intrigued in what will become of the virtuous and the dastardly both.

 

The style of the narrative is that individual characters give their own accounts of the events, some written as journal entries, some as recorded statements, and this drives the story on. However, this also leads to some points where the same event is told from different points of view - particularly towards the end of the story - and you feel you've read every single one of those 728 pages, and by the end it was almost exhausting to listen to.

 

That said, I'm not sure I would have wanted it to be shorter. There seems a justification in the completeness to have so much detail and so many perspectives to understand the full story, but I can't deny, I think if it hadn't been for the challenge, I probably would have given up again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sense and Sensibility by Joanna Trollope
 
Synopsis:
The beloved and bestselling novelist Joanna Trollope’s contemporary reworking of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility launches The Austen Project and is already one of the most talked about books of the year.
 
When sisters Elinor and Marianne lose their father and their beloved home, Norland Park, all in a matter of weeks, the shock impacts them in very different ways. As young architect student Elinor holds the family together, Marianne resists the change they must endure with all of her might.
 
Thrust into a tiny cottage in Devon, the two sisters are soon united by one thing, dilemmas of the heart. But where Marianne proclaims her love, Elinor holds her tongue. And in a world that turns on an axis of money, sex and power, what will prevail: following one’s head or one’s heart?
 
Review:
Oh dear.  I really wanted to like this book, but I know the retellings in this series have so far been hit and miss, and this one really was a miss.  So much of it felt like it was just lifting the story from the pages of the original and rewriting them in modern language and setting.  It just didn’t work for me.
 
There’s not much more I can say about it, other than I did read to the end, so it wasn’t awful, but it was just a disappointment after Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld
 
Synopsis:
The Bennet sisters have been summoned from New York City.
 
Liz and Jane are good daughters. They’ve come home to suburban Cincinnati to get their mother to stop feeding their father steak as he recovers from heart surgery, to tidy up the crumbling Tudor-style family home, and to wrench their three sisters from their various states of arrested development.
 
Once they are under the same roof, old patterns return fast. Soon enough they are being berated for their single status, their only respite the early morning runs they escape on together. For two successful women in their late thirties, it really is too much to bear. That is, until the Lucas family’s BBQ throws them in the way of some eligible single men . . .
 
Chip Bingley is not only a charming doctor, he’s a reality TV star too. But Chip's friend, haughty neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy, can barely stomach Cincinnati or its inhabitants. Jane is entranced by Chip; Liz, sceptical of Darcy. As Liz is consumed by her father’s mounting medical bills, her wayward sisters and Cousin Willie trying to stick his tongue down her throat, it isn’t only the local chilli that will leave a bad aftertaste.
 
But where there are hearts that beat and mothers that push, the mysterious course of love will resolve itself in the most entertaining and unlikely of ways. And from the hand of Curtis Sittenfeld, Pride & Prejudice is catapulted into our modern world singing out with hilarity and truth.
 
Review:
I make no secret of the fact that I love Curtis Sittenfeld’s work.  I’ve read all but one of her earlier novels, and loved them all.  I couldn’t believe my luck when she was announced as the next author for the Borough Press project to rewrite the Austen novels in a contemporary style, and it feels like forever that I’d been waiting for it to be published.  I even paid full price for the hardback edition as I couldn’t wait for the paperback to come out to read it.  So what did I think of it … I loved it!
 
Sittenfeld has really thought about how the Bennet household could be transported to the modern day, and how the girls marital predicaments could be made relevant today, and I think she does a great job.  The Bennet daughters are much older than their original counterparts, but that’s what was needed to make the marriage/relationship issues relevant today, but also adds maturity to their characters who are much more independent women than they were in the nineteenth century.
 
With regards to the other characters, Chip Bingley is possibly the weakest reinvention of the book, and his story line is a bit unbelievable, but it does help the story come together in more ways than one, so I can understand why it was done.  Meanwhile, Wickham is split into two characters, so you get the same resolution, but allows Darcy’s story to work in the modern setting.
 
I’ve seen some complaints that Liz is not the same heroine that we know and love from Austen, but I think it would be impossible to achieve that, and the way she has been reimagined worked for me.  I loved reading it, took my time and spread it out over a few days to savour it, and was extremely happy with the result.  It’s not Pride and Prejudice, but then it could never be, but what it does is make it relevant to a contemporary American setting and I loved it.  I’m not sure it will be everyone’s cup of tea, particularly Austen fans (I know purists will hate it!), but one of my favourites of the series so far.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Spectacles by Sue Perkins
 
Synopsis:
Spectacles is the hilarious, creative and incredibly moving memoir from much loved comedian, writer and presenter Sue Perkins.
 
When I began writing this book, I went home to see if my mum had kept some of my stuff. What I found was that she hadn't kept some of it. She had kept all of it - every bus ticket, postcard, school report - from the moment I was born to the moment I finally had the confidence to turn round and say 'Why is our house full of this shhhhhhh?'
 
Sadly, a recycling 'incident' destroyed the bulk of this archive. This has meant two things: firstly, Dear Reader, you will never get to see countless drawings of wizards, read a poem about corn on the cob, or marvel at the kilos of brown flowers I so lovingly pressed as a child. Secondly, it's left me with no choice but to actually write this thing myself.
 
This, my first ever book, will answer questions such as 'Is Mary Berry real?', 'Is it true you wear a surgical truss?' and 'Is a non-spherically symmetric gravitational pull from outside the observable universe responsible for some of the observed motion of large objects such as galactic clusters in the universe?'
Most of this book is true. I have, of course, amplified my more positive characteristics in an effort to make you like me.
 
Thank you for reading.
 
Review:
I’ve been a fan of Sue since Light Lunch with Mel and Sue which I used to record during the day and watch when I got home in the evening, and I don’t think Great British Bake Off would be as successful as it is without Mel and Sue presenting.  I was delighted when Kay lent me Sue’s memoir, and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.  At only a couple of years older than me, we have the same points of reference from our childhood experiences, so I had a serious case of nostalgia reading this book.
 
Her humour jumps off the page at you, but there are also some very poignant moments, occasionally bringing a tear to my eye.  Stories of home life, school life and the path of her career are all there, and I thought it was a real page turner, and hated putting it down each time I had to stop reading.  As with most memoirs, I think you need to have an interest in the person in the first place before reading their book, but if you like Sue, I think you’ll love her book.  Hugely entertaining.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great reviews. I have heard a lot about The Woman In White but I never realised it was such a hefty size. Last night I was reading about Gillespie and I (which I have just finished) and many reviews said it was similar to The Woman In White, in terms of mystery and twist and turns. It's free on Kindle so I may get it at some point. :smile:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks bobbly. :)  I think I've picked up Gillespie and I in the shop before and I'm sure Kay really liked it too, but have been a bit put off by the thickness of it.  I might give it a go - perhaps on audiobook, as my new credit is available today. :D
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did like Gillespie and I .. but it was very slow to get going if I recall. It somehow managed to be both riveting and boring (though not at the same time obviously :D) This is always a trial with thick books as it plays on your mind that you've got a long way to go .. but it eventually gathered pace and got very unnerving .. but in a good way :D You're welcome to borrow it Claire if you do decide to read rather than listen :) xx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...