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March Summary and Plans for April

March has been a frustrating month reading-wise. A lot of books failed to live up to expectations and only Calamity Leek managed to really impress me. Luckily I’ve ended the month with some books that have started really well – Honour by Elif Shafak  is especially good. Hopefully it will end as well as it began.

Book of the Month

The First Book of Calamity Leek

Books Reviewed in March:

The First Book of Calamity Leek by Paula Lichtarowicz 

Ignorance by Michèle Roberts 

One Last Thing Before I Go by Jonathan Tropper (Audio Book) 

Secrecy by Rupert Thomson 

The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell 

The Sunshine Years by Afsaneh Knight 

Big Ray by Michael Kimball 

Mateship with Birds by Carrie Tiffany 

Mr Mee by Andrew Crumey 

The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal stars21

Abandoned books: Alif the Unseen by G Willow Wilson, The Red Book by Deborah Copaken Kogan, John Saturnall’s Feast by Lawrence Norfolk,  and Hunger by Knut Hamsun

Plans for April

I’m hoping to finish the 2013 Women’s Fiction Prize Longlist before the shortlist is announced on 16th April. I only have 5 left to try so hopefully I’ll be able to manage it.

I then hope to finish all the books that I wanted to read in March, but didn’t get the chance to start:

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Magda by Meike Zervogel

The Russian Dreambook of Colour and Flight by Gina Ochsner

Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley

If I manage all those I’ll enjoy some random reading from my shelves!

For the next two weeks my boys are off school for the Easter holidays so I’ll be spending most of my time entertaining them. This means that my online presence maybe patchy, but hopefully I’ll be able to put together a post showing what we’ve been up to at the end of it all.

Have a wonderful Easter!

 

 

 

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February Summary and Plans for March

This month’s reading has been dominated by the amazing book, Far from the Tree. Its slow pace and the density of new knowledge lead me to crave lighter, faster paced books to read alongside it. This contributed to an increased number of average reads this month, but I don’t regret that – there is only so much brilliance you can take in one month!

Book of the Month

Far From The Tree: A Dozen Kinds of Love

Books Reviewed in February:

Far From the Tree by Andrew Solomon 

The Mussel Feast by Birgit Vanderbeke 

Moffie by André Carl Van Der Merwe 

The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence 

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Mercy by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Blooms of Darkness by Aharon Appelfeld 

The Good Father by Noah Hawley 

BBC Good Food Cookery Book Set 

Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan

Abandoned Books: The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis, Herzog by Saul Bellow

Plans for March

Tomorrow I’m going to a new book club for the first time. I’m very excited about the prospect of meeting a new group of book loving people and really hope that it works out. For our first meeting we’ve read The Hare With Amber Eyes. I’ll let you know my thoughts (and hopefully theirs) next week. Our second book is Cloud Atlas, so I’m looking forward to re-reading that and seeing if I still love it as much as I did on its release.

I also hope to read most of these:

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Mr Mee by Andrew Crumey

Magda by Meike Zervogel

Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver

The Russian Dreambook of Colour and Flight by Gina Ochsner

John Saturnall’s Feast by Lawrence Norfolk

Amity & Sorrow by Peggy Riley

The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell

Have you read any of these books?

I hope you have a wonderful March!

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December/January Summary and Plans for February

The last two months have flown by, with the majority of my reads being very good. The only one that stood out above the others was The First Century After Beatrice by Amin Maalouf, a scary insight into what might happen if parents could choose the sex of their child.

Book of the Month

The First Century After Beatrice

Books Reviewed in December and January:

The First Century After Beatrice by Amin Maalouf 

Doppler by Erlend Loe 

Jerusalem by Gonçalo Tavares 

War with the Newts by Karel Capek 

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami 

Lamb by Bonnie Nadzam 

Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb 

The Thief by Fuminori Nakamura 

Merivel by Rose Tremain

Consider the Fork by Bee Wilson 

A Trick I Learned From Dead Men by Kitty Alderidge 

Roseanna by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo 

Abandoned: A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway, Zoo City by Lauren Beukes, The Tale of Raw Head and Bloody Bones by Jack Wolf, Sarah Thornhill by Kate Grenville, Canada by Richard Ford, Parallel Stories by Peter Nádas

Plans for February

I have no firm plans for the next few weeks, but these books are calling to me strongly at the moment:

One Last Thing Before I Go by Jonathan Tropper

Hunger by Knut Hamsun

Far From The Tree by Andrew Solomon

Moffie by André Carl van der Merwe

The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons

Mercy by Jussi Adler-Olsen

The Good Father by Noah Hawley

I’m also continuing to make my way through A Suitable Boy, although it is proving a challenge at the moment. Hopefully I’ll fall back in love with it again soon.

I hope you have a wonderful month!

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Farm Lane Book Awards 2012

I’ve already listed the best books published in 2012 and my favourite reads of the last year, but there were many other books that stood out for different reasons. Here are the other books that deserve a special mention:

Lost Memory of Skin

Best treatment of a difficult subject: The Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks
This book looks at the way sex offenders are treated in American society. It is eye opening and thought provoking. Just a shame the ending wasn’t very good.

Author I’m most excited about discovering: Melvyn Bragg

Most Memorable Scene: The one with the cat and the piano in Care of Wooden Floors by Will Wiles

Birdsong

Most surprising book: Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
I thought this book would be really dull, but it captivated me.

Best premise: The First Century After Beatrice by Amin Maalouf

Best ending: The Cook by Wayne Macauley

Tell the Wolves I'm Home

Most memorable character: June from Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

Best audio book: Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Green

Worst book: Lionel Asbo by Martin Amis

Best writing: A Death in the Family by Karl Ove Knausgaard

HHhHThe Street Sweeper

Most thought provoking book: It’s a tie! The Street Sweeper by Elliot Perlman and HHhH by Laurent Binet
These books both deal with a similar subject matter. Both will make you think about the way history is recorded and what it is important to remember. They are my favourite books of the year and I highly recommend them.

Most gruesome scenes: The Cow by Beat Sterchi

Book which has improved the most since reading:  The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng
I wasn’t that impressed with this book when I was reading it, but on completion everything slotted into place and it went up in my estimation. Several months down the line my appreciation of this book continues to grow.

HHhH

Book of the year: HHhH by Laurent Binet

HHhH is one of those rare, faultless books. It is thought provoking, ground breaking and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Do you agree with my choices?

Would you like to suggest any more categories for me to place books in?

This will be my last post of the year as I’m taking a short blogging break to celebrate Christmas/New Year.

Have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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My Favourite 2012 Reads

I’ve read lots of amazing books this year. I’ve already posted my list of favourite books published in 2012, but what about the older ones?

Here are the back-list titles that impressed me the most:

Native Son (Vintage classics)

Native Son by Richard Wright 

An American classic that deserves more attention. This gripping story is one of the most insightful books about racism I’ve ever read.

People Who Eat Darkness: Love, Grief and a Journey into Japan's Shadows

People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry 

True crime doesn’t get better than this.

Nothing to Envy: Real Lives in North Korea

Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick 

North Korea is a fascinating country. This book reveals the shocking truth about what life is like for the residents of this oppressed nation.

The First Century After Beatrice 

The First Century After Beatrice by Amin Maalouf 

What would happen if women became rare? This frightening vision of the future deserves to be more widely known.

Astonishing Splashes Of Colour :

Astonishing Splashes of Colour by Clare Morrall 

Morrall has created some of the best dysfunctional characters in literature. This wonderful story is packed with emotion.

The Death of Grass (Penguin Modern Classics)

The Death of Grass by John Christopher 

What would happen if all the grass died? This scary concept comes to life in this modern classic.

The Half Brother

The Half Brother by Lars Saaybye Christensen 

This wonderful Norwegian epic is packed with vivid characters. People who ignore literature in translation are missing out on a fantastic read.

Birdsong

Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks 

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this modern classic. I’m looking forward to trying more Faulks in 2013.

Zeitoun

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers 

This shocking story about one man’s ordeal during Hurricane Katrina is gripping. I really hope the police have learnt lessons from these horrific events.

In Defence of Dogs: Why Dogs Need Our Understanding

In Defence of Dogs by John Bradshaw 

A fascinating insight into the canine mind. Essential reading for all dog owners.

Have you enjoyed any of these books?

Are you tempted to give any a try?

Come back later in the week to see my 2012 book awards!

….including the book with the best ending, the book that surprised me the most, and the worst book of the year!

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November Summary and Plans for December

November has been a fantastic reading month for me. I read a string of fantastic books and have been enjoying a diverse range of subject matters. Variety really is the spice of life and I’m going to continue to seek out stranger books in the future.

Book of the Month

People Who Eat Darkness: Love, Grief and a Journey into Japan's Shadows

In any other month these two books would have been ‘Book of the Month’; so I’ll highlight them here too:

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Memoirs Of An Imaginary Friend The Cook

Books Reviewed in November

People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry 

The Cook by Wayne Macauley 

Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Green (audio book) 

The Human Part by Kari Hotakainen 

The Cow by Beat Sterchi 

Just My Typo compiled by Drummond Moir 

The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson 

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 

Jamilia by Chingiz Aïtmatov 

The Finno-Ugrian Vampire by Noémi Szécsi 

Plans for December

For some reason I’m being drawn towards chunksters at the moment. The long, dark nights are encouraging me to settle down with increasingly weighty tomes and so I don’t plan to read many books in December.

My short list of long books are:

Parallel Stories by Peter Nádas
The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
Canada by Richard Ford

I’ll probably mix things up with a few shorter books, but I haven’t decided what they’ll be yet. Luckily I’ve finished most of the books in my sidebar so I still have lots of books to tell you about.

Have a wonderful December!