Good Morning and a Happy New Year to all.
Well here it is on this new year's day, the brand new 50 book challenge and hope that all our regular posters will continue to contribute and anyone new who enjoys their books will consider joining us.
For the benefit of anyone who isn't familiar with this thread, I will run through my introductory spiel. Firstly I would like to point out that if you are someone who thinks that you wouldn't read 50 books in a year but would still be interested in joining in, don't let that number put you off, do come here and join us anyway, particularly if you think you would enjoy ongoing discussions about books which is the essence of this book challenge. This is a thread that I filched from MN, over there they have two threads running concurrently, one for 50 books a year and one for 25. Our reading community here on GN is relatively small so I think it's preferable to keep us as one group allowing for the fact that we all read at different rates, given time constraints or whatever else we have going on in our lives.
The choice of books you opt for is entirely up to you, anything is permissible, fiction, non fiction and I would particularly like to stress your reading material doesn't have to be a novel if you want to opt for something factual, biographies, memoirs, even a children's book if you want to revisit a childhood favourite maybe, audio/Audible. Again how you post is down to you, merely list your books, maybe a brief description, or feel free to waffle on, I do, particularly if I've been enthused about a book I've read. Sometimes we interject and comment on other posters choices, more often than not agreeing with their opinions, and taking up recommendations, occasionally interjecting with our own dislike of maybe one they have favoured, but always with a view of agreeing to disagree. Books as with most other forms of entertainment are subjective and will of course divide opinions as well.
I hope I have outlined all the relevant points for anyone who is contemplating joining us and I would like to wish everyone a happy year's reading and all the best for 2024.
Book 73, Wartime for the Chocolate Girls, Annie Murray again. Another pleasant read.
Dear Sister by Judith Summers
An tale of two Jewish sisters who escape from a Jewish ghetto in Ukrainian Russia in the early 1900s.
There were a lot of characters which was sometimes confusing and it did skip around rather. On the whole enjoyable and an interesting insight into difficulties faced by Jewish people over the years.
Book 18. - A Keeper by Graham Norton. This is a Book Group choice but just isn’t my kind of book.
Book 17. - Calling the Shots by Sue Barker.
No 13. City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert. I’m sorry to say, this is a DNF. The story just didn’t seem to go anywhere and in the end I decided to ditch it and read something else.
Digging Doris I have an ancient copy of The Loving Spirit that I acquired in my teens. I loved that book too and now I feel I want to read it again! Unfortunately most of my books are boxed up atm but when I get them out again I’ll reread it.
Book 72, Secrets of the Chocolate Girls, by Annie Murray. Set in Bournville at the start of WW2. A nice, pleasant read.
Just seen on Facebook,
“I was going to clean the house, but this book isn’t going to read itself”. 
#30. Never To Return by Jack Cartwright.
Book 49 Easter Parade by Richard Yates. The story of two sisters over the decades. The elder sister marries and leads a frustrated life in her home town the younger leaves home with hopes of becoming an intellectual. Very absorbing, true to life and sad. It had echoes of Arnold Bennet’s The Old Wive’s Tale with its tale of two sisters and their different yet entwined fates.
I have been lazy about posting but have enjoyed reading others posts. Here are my latest batch:
#6 The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See. I loved this though it dragged in places - I found it best to read a good sized chunk to get in the flow of the writing. It is about the lives of a community of women who free dive to collect edible items to sell. The descriptions of the sea and the community life are wonderful.
#7 The Stone Angel by Margaret Lawrence. Set in Manitoba, Canada, it is told in the present as main character, Hagar, struggles with ageing and the ‘threat’ of being ‘put’ in a nursing home by her son and DiL, and the past, as Hagar reviews her life and the decisions she took. It was published in 1964 and is regarded as a Canadian classic. There is a film made in 2007. I enjoyed this and was absorbed by Hagar’s story, now, and then. It is ultimately positive but there are a number of tragic events and regrets in her life
#8 Cursed Bread by Sophie Mackintosh. This was my book club read and I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it having read another by the same author, recommended by DD2. I found it interesting - the story has as its background, the story of a mass poisoning event in a French village in the early 1950s. This may have been due to a fungus present in the wheat used by a local baker. It is a story of power and the abuse of power, and obsession. The characters feel strangely distant though it is well written. I am glad I read it as I like to be taken out of my comfort zone, and fortunately it was short, as was book
*#7 Assembly by Natasha Brown. This was another that challenged me though it was a short and easy enough read. The main character is a young black woman who has achieved a good position in finance. But she is ground down by the struggle against casual racism and misogyny. Her boyfriend is from a wealthy, white middle class family and the main event in the book is a family party at his parent’s country home. Again, she feels the awareness of the attitudes that the family cannot hide although they are well-meaning ‘liberals’. A cancer diagnosis leads her to question the point of the struggle that she feels her life has been.
#8 Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent. This is my May book group read and is a story, described by several reviewers as ‘Room’ crossed with ‘Eleanor Oliphant’. It is a gripping read and very well-written but with a downbeat ending (unless you are reading the US version, which has an extra chapter added at the request of the publisher, to make it end more positively). I can’t say much more without spoilers! It is quite disturbing but also funny in the earlier parts. Recommended.
#9 A Boy Made of Blocks by Keith Stuart. This is a fictional story based on the author’s experience as the father of an autistic son. Dad and boy relate through building worlds with Minecraft on the computer. This is a heartwarming story. It is intertwined with several other story threads - the breakdown in the marriage of the father, the relationship with a sister, temporarily back from travelling, a close male friendship and an unresolved grief and guilt from a long ago tragedy. This made one or two too many threads for me and I had already abandoned this book once but I decided to finish reading it before passing it on to my daughter and I’m glad I did. If you have an autistic person in your family you will relate to the Minecraft obsessed boy!
27-The Loving Spirit-Daphne du Maurier. What a beautifully written book. I'm a fan of 'Rebecca' so when I saw this in the swap kiosk I thought I'd put it on my shelf. Then I saw something on TV about the writer and decided to start this one. I was not disappointed, and quite surprised that as her first novel, how great it was. It's a story of four generations, set on the Cornish coast, and I loved the way the characters are portrayed.
Book 21
Nine Perfect Strangers - Liane Moriarty
As the title suggests, nine strangers book into a luxurious health resort, run by the eccentric and charismatic Masha.
But her methods are unorthodox and illegal, resulting in a very unpleasant experience for the guests.
It’s a good read, not entirely realistic, but would recommend if you’re looking for a quick light read.
Book 22
Dirt Town - Hayley Scrivenor
Her debut novel I think, and compared quite a lot with Jane Harper.
A dying Australian town, a missing girl, an assortment of sad people leading hopeless lives.
It was a good read, but lacking in the atmosphere Jane Harper brings to her books.
I tended to muddle up the characters a bit, but that’s probably my problem, I will definitely look out for her next novel.
Book 71, Diamond Promises, 3rd in a series by Anna Jacobs, set in 1895. A pleasant read.
#25 was Black and Blue by Anna Quindlen. Fran is the wife of a New York policeman who regularly beats her. The story begins with her running to a place of safety with her 10 year old son, in fear that they will be found and that this time he will kill her. It’s well written and compelling, I read it in a day. It was written in 1998 and was much better than the last book I read by this author. 8/10
Book 70, The Woman Who Lied, by Claire Douglas.
Sparklefizz, my favourite Anne Tyler, loved it
Just finished a re-read of Digging for America by Anne Tyler. I first read it more than 10 years ago and enjoyed it just as much second time round.
It's a terrific book for those of us who are grandparents as we will relate to many of the emotions and descriptions. The story is of 2 tiny Korean babies adopted by 2 very different American families who all meet for the first time at the airport to welcome their babes.
There are some warm and hilarious moments of family life with some wonderful character drawing. It's a novel about belonging and togetherness, trying to fit in, young love and unexpected old love, and about the misunderstandings as we go through life.
TerriBull I have enjoyed many of Patrick Gale's books. He's written quite a few and I'm sure you'll have fun discovering them.
#24 was The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams.
Set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and based around the creation of the first volumes of the Oxford English Dictionary. It’s focused on the women, the roles and their language, much of which wasn’t included in the dictionary. The book covers the period of the women’s suffrage movement and WW1. There was much more to this book than I expected and I loved it, despite a slightly slow start. 9/10
TerriBull I have read a lot of Patrick Gale’s books and generally enjoyed them.
#29. The Vanishing Box by Elly Griffiths.
Book 69, Lion and Lamb, by James Patterson and Duane Swierczynski. OK, but not the best thriller I`ve read. I like a bit of humour in a book, but think it was overdone in this case.
22 A Perfectly Good Man Patrick Gale
I'm having a great run of excellent books since the beginning of the year and this one is no exception, a definite 5* from me.
I've only read one of this author's books before, Notes from an Exhibition which I also enjoyed, Like that one, this is set in Cornwall. The book opens with the suicide of teenager Lenny who is left a paraplegic from a rugby scrum, deciding he cannot face the rest of his life in a wheelchair he takes an overdose, not before contacting Father Barnaby who Lenny requests at his side for his final moments, so his priest can administer the last rites. Barnaby Johnson is a much loved vicar of a rural Cornwall parish, this isn't the Cornwall of wealthy second home owners, but hard up people who have lived on this land for generations, trying to make ends meet when tin mines, a major source of employment are under threat. The story is related through glimpses of Barnaby's middle class but fairly impoverished upbringing the family money and large pile of a house that has been in the family since Tudor times having been spent and lost by an extravagant by nevertheless well liked uncle. Flipping forward into past and present, as well as those of this family, his wife Dot raised on a farm who he meets in his youthful ignorance when they fall for each other, realising as he progresses through life that they are poles apart. Nevertheless she is a good woman, practical, supportive, beset by the tragedies of numerous miscarriages and a still births. A dedicated linchpin to Barnaby, their two children and a stalwart of the parishes he administers. The intricacies of their lives as they unfold and the tragedies that befall both them and their children are an imperative part of the book. There are other characters that are more peripheral but gradually become integral as the plot moves along. Like Notes From An Exhibition, which I'm going to have to read again, because I've forgotten a lot of it, but what I do remember The Quaker movement played a part in that. Similarly, there is also a strong religious theme to this book, certainly about the main character's unshaken belief and how that is tested at times. Ultimately very moving, I shed a tear or two towards the end. Patrick Gale is a writer worth reading, I'll definitely be looking out for some more of his books.
#15 was Letters from the Past by Erica James. It involves poison pen letters and the effects that they have on their recipients. I enjoyed it because I enjoy all her books, but it was not one of her best.
I read The Foundling a while ago. I enjoyed it, but there were too many coincidences and some anachronisms for me. The girl was mentioned as having piano lessons in 1750. The piano had only just been invented and very few people, particularly middle class people, would have had one for several decades. The great age of the piano was the nineteenth century. She would have been far more likely to have had a clavichord, which was the most common keyboard instrument in domestic settings at this time.
Nonny
Book 21: The Foundling by Stacey Halls - I have really enjoyed this book set in 18th centuary London. I couldn't put it down but I was a bit disappointed by the ending which finished with a happy conclusion which I found a bit improbable!
I enjoyed Mrs England by Stacey Halls. I'll have to add The Foundling to my ever growing list of books to be read.
I enjoyed The Foundling too, Nonny and agree with you about the ending.
Book 21: The Foundling by Stacey Halls - I have really enjoyed this book set in 18th centuary London. I couldn't put it down but I was a bit disappointed by the ending which finished with a happy conclusion which I found a bit improbable!
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