Nicole's 75 in 2014 - Joining the big league.

This year I have decided to join the big guns and try to read 75 books. In 2013 I managed 64 reads, ( I would have managed more if I had not of slacked off in August and November / December), which were, for the most part, fantastic.

Some of my favourties from 2013 are;

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Girl with a Pearl Earing by Tracy Chevalier
Lady of the Butterflies by Fiona Mountain
Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder
The Gallows Curse by Karen Maitland
Dodger by Sir Terry Pratchett
A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
The Magician's Guild by Trudi Canavan
Sisters of Mercy by Caroline Overington

In 2014 I plan to read more off my shelves, (I have 250 + books which are yet to be read), and hopefully limiting my purchases.

I am looking forward to this year's reading and hope I can reach my ultimate target of 75 books.

1. Dodger's Guide To London by Terry Pratchett 135 p.

A guide to Dickensian London by Jack Dodger. Jack Dodger is the main character from Terry Pratchett's YA title Dodger, which I read mid 2013. An interesting and quite amusing look at 19th century London through the eyes of a street rat, detailing some quite interesting facts some of which were quite gruesome. A nice companion book to Dodger and an interesting read for those who want to delve into a little bit of history.

I don't think I've run across this one before...

drneutron - Dodger's Guide to London is a fairly recent publication, I believe it was realeased in late November.

Welcome, Nicole!!!! I'm so glad you're here! :)

And you've already finished a book on day one!?!

Hi Tina, glad to see you here. Yes I did finish a book on day one but it was only 135 pages haha. Kind of a cheat really but it still counts in my book!

2. The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier 386 p.

The Last Runaway is set in 1850 and follows the story of a Quaker, Honor Bright, as she moves from Dorset, England to Ohio, America. Honor is opposed to slavery which divides America and finds her principals tested when she finds a slave on her new family's farm. A beautifully written story based on a period of American history I had previously known nothing about. This is not a fast paced book but this is more than made up for by the fantastic character development and the engaging story. Tracy Chevalier blows me out of the water every time I read her work and I highly recommend her if you enjoy historical fiction or even if you don't, I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

3. Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks 321 p.

Set in 1666 this is a story of the plague which follows Anna Firth who becomes an unlikely healer and heroine. This is the fictionalised story of English town Eyam who's residence chose to quarantine themselves within their village boundary. A very interesting story. Somewhat slow in terms of plot but the characters were engaging and Anna's development throughout the story is inspiring.

You're really making progress here, Nicole!! Your last two don't sound like very easy reads, but worthwhile.

Now, we just need to get you some visitors here! Have you been to the introduction thread?

:)

Hi,Tina thanks for checking in. No I haven't been to the introduction thread I didn't realise there was one. I will have to find it and say hello on there.

4. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare 442 p.

I have finally given in to the hype that is The Mortal Instruments series simply because my husband wants to watch the movie. I have to admit that I quite enjoyed this book despite the many reservations I had going in to it An easy read which kept me engaged right to the very end. I will be purchasing the rest of the series as I am interested to find out what happens next.

Found and starred you, Nicole. You are of to a great start.

Connie - hi, welcome and thankyou very much! :)

Hi! Welcome to the 75ers.

Two of your reads were on my list of possibles for last year. I never got around to picking up Year of Wonders but would love to read it some day. A Game of Thrones I did read, and loved and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series eventually.
Is The Pillars of the Earth as dense as Follett's 20th century saga? I tried reading Fall of Giants last year but couldn't get into it because I found it too long-winded and slow. I've been told his crime novels are less dense so I'm curious how this one compares.

I liked Year of Wonders too. Haven't read the Chevalier book yet. I got it as a present in the Christmas Swap just past and am looking forward to it. A lot.

Welcome to the group, Nicole..

Welcome, Nicole! I'm Mamie. I also read and loved Game of Thrones last year. And I quite liked the Mortal Instruments series. I came straight from Tina's thread - any friend of Tina's is a friend of mine!! Looking forward to following you this year - you are off to a great start. And Tina is so right - it is not about the numbers over here - whether you make it to 75 or not doesn't matter. What matters is that you have fun on the journey - this is a great group. We're a bit crazy but oh so lovable.

Hi, Nicole! Any friend of Tina's is a friend of mine — she's a pretty cool chick. :-) I really liked "Year of Wonders" when I read it a couple of years ago. Looking forward to following your reading adventures!

Tina ratted you out on her thread, so I suspect you'll see some traffic over here! :)

TINA MADE ME COME!
But I'm glad she did. :D The Last Runaway looks pretty good. Welcome to the group! Feel free to come talk to strangers. (Won't be strangers for long.)

Hi Nicole and welcome to the 75 group where you don't have to read 75 you just have to enjoy the ride. I'm Roberta and like everyone says, any friend of Tina's is a friend of mine.

PawsForThought- Thank you for the welcome! I haven’t read Follett's 20th century saga so unfortunately I cannot compare Pillars of the Earth to his other work. However, I would say that it was rather slow paced in terms of plot but the characters more than made up for this. I for one enjoy a long book, so it didn’t feel long winded at all.

Fourpawz2- Hi! Thank you for the welcome. I hope you enjoy The Last Runaway, it was a really great book. Have you read any of her other works?

Mamie- Hello! Thank you so much for the welcome to the 75 group. I will have to wander over to your thread and say hello.

Rosalita- Hi :) Thanks for dropping in and saying hello. I will have to find your thread and drop in on you.

drneutron - I wondered where all the extra traffic was coming from :) Tina is just too kind to me.

I missed some people that posted whilst I was typing :)

UnrulySun- Hi :) Thanks for dropping in. I had no idea Tina was going to do that! She is such a kind lady. I hope you wont be strangers for long :)

Roberta - Thank you for the welcome :) Enjoying the ride is what I intend to do, but to read 75 books would just be great :)

Hi Nicole, welcome aboard.

This is my third year with the 75'ers and I've yet to reach 75, don't let the number detract from your enjoyment of the group :)

Hi Nicole. I'm Diana, welcome to the group!

Welcome to the Group, Nicole, despite the rampant craziness, hope you like it here :)

Hello Nicole! Following the rest of the group over from Tina's thread. I'm Marianne, a newbie to the group as well. Welcome!

Look's as if you are off to a great start for the year! I'm a big fan of Year of Wonders and Geraldine Brooks in general. Have you explored any of her other books?

To answer your question, Nicole, I've read Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Lady and the Unicorn and .... wait a minute I'll be right back...

Hiya, Nicole. Just following the crowd over here! Glad to hear you liked The Last Runaway, as I received it as a Christmas gift last month.

Welcome to our friendly little group!

Falling Angels. I have Remarkable Creatures, The Last Runaway and Burning Bright still to read. I need to find a copy of The Virgin Blue still. I think of the Chevalier books that I've read, Falling Angels is my favorite, but then it's been quite a while since I read GwaPE.

Yay for Nicole's visitors!!!! Nic, I told you these folks are INCREDIBLE!!! You guys and gals just continue to amaze me! :)

Have fun trying to keep up with the chatty ones. LOL!!

Hi Nicole! Welcome to the Big Dogs!

I hope you find this to be a good place to track your reading. I'm sure Tina has warned you that you may get hit by some "blue bullets." This group can be dangerous if you have any book-buying tendencies. :-)

Reading and life update: I am currently about a quarter of the way through Plague Child by Peter Ransley and seem to be having trouble progressing. The book is okay, I am not sure if the lack of progress is due to the book or to the heat that we have been having. It is making me feel very lethargic. I am half tempted to go and buy the next book in The Mortal Instruments series with a gift card which I received for Christmas but I am trying to hold on until Sunday, when I have a day off from work. Today is a total fire ban in the state in which I live so it is looking like another hot and sticky day. Not sure how much reading I will get done before I have to go to work this evening but I will either make some progress on Plague Child or start another.

Individual responses:
Fairywings, Diana and PiyuchC, thank you for welcoming me to the 75 group, I am sure that I will enjoy the craziness, but I hope not to fall behind in keeping up with everyone’s threads.

Marianne, Hello. No I haven’t read any of Geraldine Brooks other work, but I do plan on it. Do you have any suggestions what I should get?

Fourpawz2,Burning bright is different from the other books of Tracy Chevalier's that I have read, but I really enjoyed it when I read it last year. I also have Remarkable Creatures sitting on my shelf ready to be read at some point in the very near future.

Katie, Hi, thank you for the welcome. I hope you enjoy The Last Runaway when you get to it.

Tina, yay for you, for without you I wouldn’t have any visitors, I am sure. I fear that I won’t be able to keep up with the chatty ones, but I will do my very best. I do not know how to express my thanks enough! I hope all is well on your side of the world :)

EBT1002, thank you for the warm welcome. You may have to explain to me what you mean by "blue bullets", and yes I do have book buying tendencies so I guess that I should be worried.

I should go and do some actual reading now, while I have the chance :)

Geraldine Brook's most recent book is Caleb's Crossing. That has been well reviewed here and elsewhere. I also liked very much People of the Book.

I loved People of the Book. The audiobook narrator was wonderful.

Hello and a hearty welcome to you. As Tina no doubt mentioned this is a well-read, friendly, caring group. I've been a member since the inception of 2008, and I've not only expanded my reading genres, but found many good people along the way.

I'll star your thread so that it is easier to find you. Don't be overwhelmed by all the posts. We are very chatty. No one holds a rule that you must read 75 books, and there is a level of comfort in which we share personal things if we want to. It is safe and kind here and I look forward to learning about what you read.

Here is my thread

http://www.librarything.com/topic/162999

Again, welcome!

5. Spellcaster by Claudia Gray 389 p.



(YAY! I have worked out how to add an image to my posts)

This story follows a girl and her family who move from Chicago to a small town on Rhode Island. As the title suggests magic and witches are involved. Things happen. It was okay, and interesting enough to keep me reading it. However, the characters feel rather flat and I wasn't invested in them at all. At times I did find some of the characters quite annoying, but mostly these were the minor characters in the book. But I will be getting the next two books in the series at some point just to find out what happens, as I am curious. I have to admit that I bought this book purely on cover appeal. Which is something I do not normally do, and in this case wish I had of actually read the synopsis first.

michigantrumpet,thanks for suggest some books by Geraldine Brooks, I will have to look out for them when I am at the book store next. Although I think the world is conspiring againt me at the moment when to comes to buying books. Everywhere I go, they never have what I want, and walk out empty handed.

Rosalita, something I struggle with is audio books, I either tend to forget to pay attention to them, or get bored. But then again I haven't listened to many of them. The only positive experience I have had with one is listening to some of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society on the way to work, some years ago. It was on the radio of a Saturday morning. I do have the book sitting around, maybe I should pick that up next.

Whisper1, thank you for the kind welcome to this group. I have found people to be so kind and very helpful so far. I have had a quick peek at your thread and have it stared. Thank you for popping over to say hello.

#36 Yay for your experiment with images and Nay for the tepid read.

Nicole, I feel the same about audiobooks. I pretty much can only listen to them when I'm driving somewhere and since I no longer have an hour-long commute I've gotten away from them for the most part. I find if I try to listen at home, I get distracted by other things; if I try to just sit and listen I fall asleep.

I really liked Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society when I read it last year.

Yes, I did like it too. Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Yay!! Good for you Nic! You added a picture! Do you have any idea how long it took me to figure that out??? :) You're doing great!

Sorry the book wasn't fantastic -- I would have fallen for that cover too. It's pretty cool!

Hi, Nicole! Chiming in to add my praise for the Guernsey Literary Book - I listened to it, too, and loved the audio of it.

Happy Australia Day Nicole, hope your having a lovely day with family :)

Hi all, just a quick update. I have been busy this week with trying to prepare my home for the real estate agent to come and value it. Therefore I have had little time to read books or any LT threads. I will try to do individual responses tomorrow as I have the day off. Back to the grind stone for awhile, and then I may allow myself a few hours of reading time and a relaxing bath.

Good luck on selling your house, Nicole. And the reading and the bath, of course!

Good luck Nicole! I've just started here too, and Happy Straya day!

RT

Count me as another person who loved Caleb's Crossing. I've yet to read People of the Book, but should probably rectify that soon.

For some reason, so far, I find that I have to be doing something when listening to an audio book. Driving is best, but grocery shopping is also good for me - with the exception of Stiff one of my earlier 'reads'. There was just something so awful about looking at meat while the narrator was burbling on about cadavers. *urp!* Also, I can't seem to listen to a book when I go to bed - I cork off while listening and then I have a devil of a time trying to figure out where I was in the book before I went unconscious.

Hot and humid there, is it? Trade you some old crusty snow and a good blast of freeeeezing air. Deal?

PiyushC, nay for tepid reads indeed. They always seem to put me in a bit of a reading slump.

Rosalita and Scaifea, I have heard so many good things about The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. I still haven't got to it yet, but I plan on picking it up as soon as the mood strikes.

Tina, hello! It is a shame about Spellcaster, but never mind. I will just have to be more mindful when purchasing books in the future. Rather than judging solely on the cover. Hope all is well for you :)

Fairwings, happy Australia Day to you as well! Unfortunately I spent the day doing things around the home, my husband had to work, and it was nice none the less.

Connie x2 , thank you for the good luck, it may be needed. The bath and the reading was great. I did manage to do both :)

RT, thank you and a happy Straya Day to you too ;)

FourPawz2, ha-ha I think I would be sick listening to Stiff whilst browsing the meat section. I dipped into it last year and took it back to the library without finishing it. It was interesting but just not for me. Yes it is hot and humid and would do a very willing trade if it were at all possible. It is just too hot to move at the moment.

6. The Bone Magician by F. E. Higgins 306 p.



This is a middle grade Fantasy title which sits alongside F. E. Higgins other work, The Black Book of Secrets, The Eyeball Collector and The Lunatic's Curse the stories happening parallel to each other and they are also linked in terms of characters and the world in which they are set. (I have only read The Black Book of Secrets).

The Bone Magician follows the story of Pin, whose mother died two years ago and his father has disappeared. Pin meets a man who calls himself The Bone Magician - who can make the dead speak- and Pin finds himself in a world of magic and illusions.

This was an entertaining book. I enjoyed the characters and the world in which the story was set. However I feel that a lot of the story was left unresolved which always leaves me feeling wanting for more. I guess this is a tactic that authors used to make you buy the next book in a series, and in this case it has worked. I believe there are two more in this series and I intend on purchasing them at some point. An enjoyable and entertaining read to escape into for a little time.

Nicole nice to see you in the group and being just about on target for 75.
First time delurking here and I'm sure it won't be the last. xx

Stopping through and getting caught up in threads. I've been 'off the grid' for a little bit --long story, check my thread if truly curious--and have been slowly getting around to check on everyone.

Look at you! Adding book covers to your reviews! I've only just learned that myself. Gives one a sense of accomplishment.

>37 NicolePatrick: I envy you being able to get in and out of a bookstore empty handed. Can't think when I've done that. It's a sickness, really. ;-)

Hey Nicole! Sorry I missed wishing you a Happy Australia Day... Can I send you belated wishes for that holiday? :) My mom always says "holidays are movable in OUR family" because we rearrange things based on schedules and such!

Um, I've got Stiff waiting on a shelf around here somewhere (the print version)... I cannot imagine trying to listen to that while grocery shopping, Charlotte!!! :) I bet that was difficult! You couldn't finish it, Nicole? Was it just too descriptive for you?

You've had a visit from the famous Paul Cranswick now! That means you're official!! LOL

I love Mary Roach's humor, and I thought Stiff was fascinating but it is rather graphic. It made me think about donating my body to science. The medical school here at Iowa (probably other med schools do this, too) always has an annual event to thank the families of people who have donated their bodies over the past year.

Dang it, Julia. I have books to read and SO many in line and now you're making me want to go put Stiff in the front of the line!

Tina, sounds like my work here is done. I owed you for the Hounded hounding you've been giving me!

So...I haven’t visited here for three weeks now. Unfortunately I have been super busy with work (10 hrs + a day, six days a week), on top of that I have a home to run. And on top of all that uni starts up again next Monday, so I am going to be super busy and not get a lot of reading done, but I will plod along until the Easter and semester breaks, when I plan to catch up on the reading side of things.

Paul, thank you for lurking me. Sorry there isn't a lot of action on this thread, but at least it will be easy to keep up with. I probably won’t get on target with the reading until around June time, and then again at the end of the year. Hopefully I will make it to 75.

michigantrumpet, thanks for stopping by. I haven't got over to your thread yet, as just trying to catch up here first, but I will be headed over soon to read your long story. Unfortunately or fortunately, whichever way you look at it, I have managed to walk out of book stores with books since I last wrote to you. I think I have added about 10 or so books since then.

Tina, my friend, thank you for stopping by. I hope that the snow and storms have eased and that things are starting to return to normal for you. I will be stopping by on your thread to catch up. In the case of stiff, it wasn’t that it was overly descriptive I think I was just getting a bit bored of it. Maybe I should give it another read when I am more in the mood. I don't read much nonfiction, so it has to be extremely good if I am going to finish it. You sure can wish me a belated happy Australia day :)

Julia, hello :) Thanks for dropping in on me. I agree stiff was interesting, but unfortunately it couldn’t hold me. I think I would prefer to have my body used for organ donation rather than science, but to be honest it’s not something that I think about very often and probably should.

7. Red Hill by Jamie McGuire 372 p.



Set in an apocalyptic world, Red Hill follows the story of Scarlett, Nathan his daughter Zoe and Miranda, her sister and their boyfriend who are trying to survive after the outbreak of a deadly epidemic.

I do not really have much to say about this book. I enjoyed it for what it was, an easy, quick read. It was often very predictable but engaging enough to make me continue reading. I picked this book up in a whim, simply because I wanted something easy, quick and simple to read. This book ticked all of these boxes.

8. Paper Towns by John Green 358 p.



This is the third John Green book that I have had the pleasure of reading and it did not disappoint. Paper Towns is the story of Quentin, who is 18, and Margo Roth Spiegelman, who Quentin has always loved.
One night before graduation Quentin and Margo go on a night of mayhem. The following day Margo Disappears. Quentin and his friends follow a string of clues that Margo has left behind to try and find her.

This story made me laugh so hard, on more than one occasion, the characters were fantastic, and Green's writing flows as smooth as silk. This was un-put-down-able. If you haven't read any of John Green's books you seriously need to!

Love the reviews, especially the one for Paper Towns.

I do need to read some John Green books, Nicole. I've been meaning to for ages, and you've given me another nudge.

I love John Green books!

Marianne, thankyou. Though I do feel that I am terrible are reviewing books I am happy to share my simple thoughts on them. I am never quite sure what to say about a book but I try.

Rosalita, I am glad that I have given you another nudge. I hope you enjoy his work as much as I do.

Connie, I am glad to hear it. I think his work, though aimed at a YA audience, is suitable for any age of reader. I think we can all take something from his books.

9. The Farm by Tom Rob Smith 353 p.



Synopsis taken from the book

If you refuse to believe me, I will no longer consider you my son...Daniel believed that his parents were enjoying a peaceful retirement on a remote farm in Sweden, the country of his mother's birth. But with a single phone call, everything changes. Your mother...she's not well, his father tells him. She's been imagining things - terrible, terrible things. In fact, she has been committed to a mental hospital. Before Daniel can board a plane to Sweden, his mother calls: Everything that man has told you is a lie. I'm not mad...I need the police...Meet me at Heathrow. Daniel is immediately caught between his parents - whom to believe, whom to trust? He becomes his mother's unwilling judge and jury. Presented with a horrific crime, a conspiracy that implicates his own father, Daniel must examine the evidence and decide for himself: who is telling the truth? And he has secrets of his own that for too long he has kept hidden...

I picked this book up on a whim, and I am glad that I did. The story was fascinating and faced paced. The characters were likeable and I felt sympathy for Daniel and his mother. The story was well written and flowed easily from the page. I had no idea what direction the story was going to take next, unlike most other crime novels, which was refreshing. The only thing that I didn’t enjoy about the book was the ending, simply because I felt as if I was left hanging from a cliff. I am unsure if there will be a follow up to this book, but I sincerely hope that there will be.

Wow, The Farm sounds amazing - wishlisted!

Scaifea, it was amazing. The more I think about that book the more I realise how well it was done. I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did when you do read it!

10. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie 368 p.



Synopsis from the book

Roger Ackroyd was a man who knew too much.

He knew the woman he loved had poisoned her first husband. He knew someone was blackmailing her - and now he kew she had taken her own life with a drug overdose.

Soon the evening post would let him know who the mystery blackmailer was. But Ackroyd was dead before he'd finished reading it - stabbed through the neck where he sat in his study . .

This is the fourth book in the Poirot mysteries, claimed to be Agatha Christie's masterpiece, this book was the first of hers to be published by Collins.
I enjoyed this book for what it was, a quick, fun and easy read. I have to admit I did not have any idea as to the direction the story was going to take and was quite shocked when the murderer was revealed. I look forward to continuing on with this series over the course of the year.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is one of my favourite Dame Christie novels, though I haven't read them all, probably 20 or so.

Oh, I'm a Christie fan, too! I've been (very) slowly working my way through her bibliography and enjoying ever book of it.

I need to re-read Roger Ackroyd. I read it when I was a teenager and I don't remember the big twist so it seems a natural to pick up again. Thank heavens for a lousy memory.

Thanks to those of you who have visited me since the end of Feb. I feel as if I have been AWOL for much longer than that. A lot has been happening here, working 6 days a week, doing uni and uni assignments and unfortunately there was the passing of a dear friend after a battle with liver cancer. So between all of that I haven’t had a great deal of time for reading. I did manage to read a book today and will post a very short review later on.

Hope all is well,
Nicole

11. The Cats of Tanglewood Forest by Charles de Lint illustrated by Charles Vess 285 p.



I bought this book after buying the companion book Seven Wild Sisters from a New and Used book seller off FaceBook (they have store in a city 3 hours from mine).

The story is beautifully written and so whimsical and enchanting. I fell into that pages and was deeply immersed in the land that de Lint created. The illustrations are some of the most breath takingly beautiful I have seen in some time, and I believe really makes the book all the more fantastical. I spent more time studying the illustrations than reading the book. The experience was so immersive and beautiful. I really have no words to describe how much I loved this reading experience.

I highly recommend taking a look at this book if you ever have the chance, even if folktales are not your cup of tea. The illustrations are worth it and the story is simply charming.

Sorry to hear about your friend and hope life is becoming a bit more manageable for you so you have more time to read and just be.

The illustrations for The Cats of Tanglewood Forest are fantastic! I'll have to get myself a copy!

So sorry about your friend, Nicole. It's good to see you round these parts again.

I'm a fan of Vess and his illustrations, still have to look for that one.

So sorry, Nicole. Losing a anyone to cancer is awful.

Glad you'r back!

I'm so sorry about your friend's passing, Nicole. I hate cancer! :(

I'm glad you are getting around a bit more...I know how hard it can be to try to balance everything, especially when you are sad and hurting. (((Nicole)))

Btw, your book bullet hit me with Paper Towns -- good aim!

Just in case you check in any time soon, I wanted to wish you a

I hope we will see you back soon, Nicole!

Stopping through to say a quick hello. I know you've been incredibly busy as well as sad for the loss of your friend. I do miss you and your lovely reviews. You hit me again with the latest Agatha Christie...

Thank you to those of you who have visited me during my time away from LT and the kind words you have all given. I will get to individual posts in a moment. Things here are starting to get better, I still miss my friend but that is always going to be. I said goodbye to two of my work colleagues today, I’ve been working with them for the last 2 years, (they come from Korea), that was very sad, but hopefully I will be able to catch up with one of them before they leave Australia in December, she will be living in Victoria (I live in Tasmania for those of you who are interested), where my brother is now living so it will be a dual visit. It is mother’s day on Sunday here in Aust, so looking forward to spoiling my mother, she is having surgery at the end of May for a breast re-construction after having a mastectomy about 7 years ago from breast cancer, so she definitely needs spoiling. In terms of reading it has been very slow. I'm part way through Clash of Kings, which I am enjoying but it is such a large book and will take time. I have just finished a book tonight so I will post up a review of it soon. Now on to the individual responses.

PawsforThought, thank you for your kind words. The Cats of Tanglewood Forest was fantastic and seriously recommend it.

Scaifea, thank you also for your kind words. I had never heard of Vess before, and cannot believe that I hadn't before now. His illustrations are just beautiful!

Connie x2, thank you for your condolences and for checking in on me. Yes cancer truly is awful. Unfortunately it has touched too many people in my life thus far. My mother, father, aunt, cousin, great aunt and family friends just to name a few, thankfully they are all still with us. Hopefully I will be around a bit more from now on.

Tina x2 , thankyou! I really needed all the hugs I could get back in march/april. I saw that it is your wedding anniversary, so HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, I know you will have many, many more, may the years be filled with love and laughter! Oh and a belated happy Easter to you too! Oh sorry about the book bullet, have you read Paper Towns yet?

Marianne, thankyou for stopping by, hopefully I will be around a bit more from here on in. Sorry about the book bullet but thank you for the compliment, I feel like my reviews are rubbish, but I guess at least if they are rubbish they are honest rubbish.

12. Seven Wild Sisters by Charles de Lint and illustrated by Charles Vess 260 p.



Seven Wild Sisters was originally published in 2002, I believe, with black and white illustrations by Charles Vess. This 2014 edition has beautiful colour illustrations 26 of which are new to this edition.

This story happens several decades after The Cats of Tanglewood Forest and follows Sarah Jane and her six sisters. The sisters become tangled in a feud between fairy clans and consequently have to find their way out of a tricky situation, with the help of some familiar characters.

As beautiful and enchanting as this book was I have to admit to not enjoying it as much as The Cats of Tanglewood Forest. I am not sure if it was because I started reading it and put it down for a month or so, finishing it off later, or because I was expecting it to be more beautiful than it was, whereas I was simply stunned by the beauty of The Cats of Tanglewood Forest. However, that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience and would highly recommend it to children young and old.

I'm glad to see you are back, Nicole. Have a great Mother's day with your mom!

Connie, thankyou! I sure will. I will have to pop over to your thread and say hello over there :)

I'm happy to see you back, Nicole! Take all the time you need to take care of you!

I'm glad you're spoiling your mom!!! Mothers' Day is Sunday in the US, so hopefully lots of folks are celebrating their mothers. Hold on to all your moments & have some silly times too! Love & hugs!

Thanks for the anniversary wishes & all your kind words!! I haven't gotten to Paper Towns yet; maybe I should go put it on my library list. That might help me get there sooner rather than later. :)

Nicole, thanks for coming by on my thread! Definitely show off your work here--we're all amateurs.

I need to get the deLint cat book--somehow that's one de Lint I've missed.

Tina, thank you for stopping by! Yes maybe you should do that with Paper Towns and add A fault in our Stars to your list also, if you haven't read it already. Yes hopefully lots of people are spoiling their mums. We ended up going to see my Mum on Saturday, she is coming over to our house today, then Mum and I are off to the beach to collect seaweed for her garden to use as mulch. Hope you are having a great weekend!

Roni, not a problem. Thank you for looking in on me. I will have to take some photos of my recent items and pop them up on this thread at some point. Yes you do need to get the de Lint cat book. It is fantastic. I have a few more of his books on the way in the post, one of which is a nice illustrated thing. Hope you are well and having a great weekend!

13. Jack in The Green by Charles de Lint illustrated by Charles Vess 90 p.



Jack in the Green is a modern retelling of Robin Hood. The story makes reference to modern culture and drug crimes but still manages to keep the charm of the orginal story. A nice enjoyable quick read with interesting characters and sweet little illustrations throughout.

I purchased this book from a New and Used retailer, who I do quite a bit of business with, for $55 AUD, that being said it is a limited signed edition, which is why I purchased it in the first instance.

>86 NicolePatrick: What a gorgeous cover! Such rich sturated color. Some books are just such a joy to hold, eh?

>87 michigantrumpet: Yes! Such a beautiful, beautiful cover. I'd love to own that book just for the cover.

Stopping through. Hope you are having a lovely weekend and enjoying lots of good reading!

Popping in for a quick catch up, Nicole.

I just put Paper Towns on my library list. I actually have The Fault in Our Stars on a shelf, but I can't bring myself to get it out yet. I know it's going to be one of those that I sob the whole book through, so I am waiting. :)

Marianne, thanks for stopping by. Yes you are right, the colour is just beautiful. I really am in love with Charles Vess and his illustrations at the moment! Hope you are having a great weekend.

Tina, glad to hear you have put paper towns on your library list. In regards to The Fault in our Stars, all I can suggest is just do it :) its a great book and worth all of the tears. Hope you are having a great day.

I'm with Nicole on the Fault in our stars thing!

Connie, thanks for backing me up!

You're welcome, Nicole.

Hi all, I just thought I would update you on the book reading situation as it stands. I am currently reading three books Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks, The mystery of Grace by Charles de Lint and A clash of kings by George R. R. Martin. I am enjoying all of them but I am having trouble sticking to one book and finishing it at the moment. I was going to buy the first book in the Chronicles of St. Mary, as Marianne hit me with a book bullet, but my Kindle is so low in battery I cannot even turn it on. I haven't used it in months, I guess I need to keep charging it regarless of using it or no. I just submitted my last assignment for this semester, I have one exam to go, then two weeks off followed by two weeks of professional placement. I hope you use the two weeks off as time to catch up on my reading goal a little bit, I really have no hope of reaching 75 this year, but I will keep plugging away. Hope you all have a great weekend, I'm off to try and fix this Kindle issue.

As said in my last post, Marianne hit me with a book bullet, and man it hit hard.

14. Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor 334 p.


I could see from the off why Marianne enjoyed this book. The humor was fantastic and I found myself laughing out loud on many occasions. I was sucked into this book and I could not put it down, I even rudely read it at my parents place while Mum was cooking tea, then again after we had finished tea at the rest of the family were watching T.V. This book was non-stop action, humor and history and a really great read. I am already on to the the second book in the series and although I am only in the first chapter, I am loving it!

(Sorry about all the gushing, not a review really but this is the first book I have read in the space of 24 hrs in a long long time. I am hoping it has got me out of my funk!)

I downloaded a sample of Just One Damned thing After Another after seeing it one Marianne's thread, and after seeing your positive review as well I think I will get it. Looks a fun read.

Rhian, you will not be dissapointed if you do decide to buy it. I am 93% through the second book, I haven't been able to put it down all day! Hope your having a great weekend!

15. A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor 334 p.



I really have no word to do justice to this book/series of books. All I am going to say is that I am caught up in this world hook, line and sinker! Fantastic, witty, laugh out loud funny and I was unable to put it down.

In terms of chronological order the Novella comes before the thrid in the series, which I am off to download now. I may have to hold out on reading the third as has been discussed on Marianne's thread, the third book has a huge cliff hanger! But we will see how I feel after I have read the Novella!

I'm not sure who Richard got the bug from originally, but he is who we all owe gratitude to for the gem of these wonderful books!

He went warbling around to everyone's threads a few months back and I agree with every word you've said, Nicole! They are just fantastic! I stayed up WAYYYY late reading like I haven't done in YEARS. ON A WORK night no less! I couldn't stop reading. It was just that much fun!

That's the main reason I said on Marianne's thread that I don't want to read the third and be left in a huge cliff hanger waiting for a year on the fourth to come out. I'll just pine away!!! ;)

Hello there Nicole! WOW! You have been living the life of St. Mary's haven't you!

I think Richardderus is the original book warbler on this one -- his hearty recommendation got me going. Glad you are enjoying it. Tina is right, the third one does end on a major cliffhanger ...

I'm big fan of Geraldine Brooks -- Looking forwaard to your thoughts on Caleb's Crossing. Have you tried People of the Book or Year of Wonders?

Now I really want these St. Mary's books to be translated!

>99 NicolePatrick: I can see myself being dragged into this St. Mary's kerfuffle. I need another series like a hole in the head but willpower has never been my strongest suit.

Congratulations Nicole for passing so adroitly beyond 100 posts in your first full year in the group. Have a lovely Sunday.

Hi all, sorry it has taken me so long to get back and respond to all of your wonderful and unexpected posts. I have been studiously studying for an exam which I had to sit yesterday and I am not even sure how I feel about it on reflection. I may have just passed, but more likely I failed. It was not a topic that I was interested in, so it made it hard for any of the information to sink in.

Tina, I think I have decided, like you, to wait until the fourth St. Mary’s book comes out to read the third one. I did download it and read a few pages but decided I could not handle the wait time. I know last time I read a book with a huge cliff hanger and I had to wait over a year for the next book to be released was torture. I hope you are well. Will pop over to your thread at catch up best I can soon.

Marianne, thanks for stopping by. I sure have read Year of Wonders, I read it in January this year. And I loved it, I would say it has been one of my top books for this year. I have People of the book on my shelf longing to be read but I have to finish Caleb’s Crossing first, I have put it down for the time being, I am enjoying it but not as much as Year of Wonders. Hope you are well. As with Tina, I will pop over to your thread at some point to catch up.

Connie, yes you do! They are great! It is a shame they aren’t translated already. Who knows how long you will have to wait.

Paul, thank you for the very unexpected visit. You really should jump on the St. Mary’s bandwagon. I was in the same boat, I do not need any more series, or books, for that matter as I have too many to be getting on with, but like you willpower is not my strong point.
I would like to hope that I can reach 200 posts. Now that would be impressive for me. I’m not sure I could handle having multiple threads as you and many others have. I would never be able to keep up! Thanks for stopping by, hope you are well :)

16. When a Child is Born - A Christmas Short Story by Jodi Taylor 21 p.


I am a little bit reluctant to add this as a book that I have read as it is so short, but others have, so I will.

I am not going to talk about the story line, only to say that it is set in 1066 at the time of William the conqueror. This was a sweet little story; however I do not think it really adds much to the series. I can see why the author wrote it however, and I wish more authors would release small Novella's between books to tide us over until the next in the series is released.

I cannot wait to read the third book in the series closer to the release date of book number four!

Nicole, somehow your thread didn't get starred!?! I'm glad you came by today because it reminded me I hadn't seen it for ages. Now I've found it and have it starred as well.

Going back before my last visit in May, I'm so sorry to hear about your friend. My dad died of liver cancer as well.

I love the covers and illustrations for those de Lint books! Just had to say it again.

I hope you take some pictures of your work and post them now that school is out.

Hello there Nicole! Is school all done now? I also liked the little St. Mary's novella. Quite right you are about having a charming little bit to tide us through. Someone else on these pages has contacted the author, who assures Volume 4 is in the works. Wish she would get moving along on it! ;-P

My real life book club read Caleb's Crossing earlier this year. It was enjoyable -- espcially learning all about Harvard's early history. For some reason, I found that early puritan-era language style difficult to enjoy. Year of Wonders was also writtenin a type of dialect and I liked that one. Don't know why the dialect gave me more trouble in Caleb's Crossing. Like you Year of Wonders is one of my favorites, although People of the Book comes close.

Roni, thank you for stopping by. Yes March was a bit of a tough month for my family and I. Mum and I are going to create a nice garden which we will put a little fence around at his old home. This is where his ashes will be scattered. I miss him dearly but I am glad he no longer has to suffer. Sorry to hear that your father also passed away from this terrible thing.

I have to admit I start a lot of projects but never get around to finishing many of them, even though I have good intentions to do so. However I have found a choker necklace I finished in the not too distant past for you to cast your eye over. It is not brilliant in any sense but I enjoy doing it any way. Hope all is well :)

This is the beaded chocker made using only one continuous strand of beading line (fishing line). Sorry the image is a little blurry.


This is me wearing the necklace, just to prove that its actually one of my works and that it is complete (sorry about my face :P).


These are a pair of fingerless gloves which I have crocheted. Rather good for cold nights in front of the compter as they are easy to type in.


Marianne, I also wish she would get a move on with book four! Does she not realise we are all waiting and eager to read it?!

School is kind of done, I have this week to prepare for my professional placement, then two weeks of Professional placement, and one week off before the start of semester two. I really do not get much of a break unfortunatly.

The language of Caleb’s Crossing, for me at least, is fine. I think the problem is with me. I cannot settle on anything at the moment. I am looking even more forward to People of the book now that you say it is up there with Year of Wonders. Hope that you are well :)

>108 NicolePatrick: I like the necklace / choker, Nicole! BAD girl for the face comment! :P I think the gloves are lovely too. I can't do anything crafty like that, so I'm quite envious...

I'm just about to bust to read #3 so I think I might do as you have done and just give in to When a Child is Born and hope that holds me over a while longer!! ;)

I like the choker, but I love the gloves! I want that pattern!!

>108 NicolePatrick: Great photos, Nicole! I love the beadwork and the fingerless gloves.

I can only *imagine* the lather we will all work up if/when Book #4 issues. If she's bothered with too many chores to get writing, I'm happy to step in and help: grocery shopping, laundry, running by the bank, *proofreading* ... No, really! happy to helpo out (especially on the last task!)

Oh, I love the necklace and the gloves! Excellent job!

Where's Nicole???? :)

Ok, so now I sound like a stalker.... but we miss you!

Hi all, sorry I've been AWOL for awhile. I've been in a bit of a reading slump, and if I'm honest a bit of a life slump. I will reply individually at some point on the near future and review the one book I have managed to read.

In true procrastinating university student style I am going to do something other than read the 177 pages on Society and Environment which I have been allocated to read this week. It doesn't sound like that much really, but it is such a drag and not what I want to be doing at the moment.

17. Bad Teacher: Hilarious Tales of Staff Misbehaving by Jenny Crompton 189 p.



I picked this book up purely because I am a pre-service teacher. It sounded funny; it was not a funny as it sounded. This book tells random stories of teachers who "misbehave", teachers who do random things during exams, teachers who write the truth in a harsh manner on student’s reports, teachers who are just strange, do you get the drift? The book was amusing enough, not laugh out loud funny, but it did cause half a smirk even now and then. Would I recommend it? Probably not, unless you are a teacher or pre-service teacher who wants to read about the goings on of some other teachers.

>116 NicolePatrick: Love the cover! And it sounds as if it beats "Society and Environment" hands down ...

Happy weekend! Glad to see you back on the threads!

Nicole, do you have a pattern for those gloves?

Marianne, thanks for poping by. I guess you are right it did beat Society and Envirnment, I am SILL trying to get that reading done, a huge week at work and lack of motivation make it hopeless to try and study.

Roni, Hi! sorry I havent made it over to your thread yet! I will get there either today or tomorrow (Sunday) and try to get caught up. I don't have a pattern for the gloves its just something I done after looking at patterns on the net, here is a rough guide to what I did.

Cuff
Chain 11
Row 1: Single Crochet (SC) in second chain from hook, then countinue SC accross the chain, chain 1 and turn.
I then contunied this until the cuff was long enought to go around my wrist (this will depend on crochet hook size, yarn and how big your hands are, make it kind of tight becuase the stretch), and slip stiched it together to make a cuff.

Glove
The beginnig of your rounds will be where you slip stiched the cuff together
Row 1: I SC around the cuff at the end of each row, and join in first SC with a slip stitch
I then did about 5 rounds in Half -Double Crochet (HDC)
After this I would increase every second round by one stich (so the 6, 8, 10th etc), until I got to the point where I needed to make the thumb hole.
To make the thumb hole I HDC half way around the round, chain 4, skip 6 stitched, the HDC around the remainder of the round.
The round following this I HDC around as normal, when I got to the chain 4, I just HDC across those as well.
After this I begain to de-crease by one stitch every round until I got to a point where they were long enough and finished off by SC the last round.

Hopefully you can make some sense of that Roni, if not just let me know and I will see if I can help you out.

So glad to see you back, Nic! I'm sorry you're feeling in a slump lately. Take your time here. There's no rush to get around to threads. We all understand! :)

You should read some St. Mary's Chronicles. That would make you smile. ;)

When you are doing your single chains on the cuff, did you do it in the back stitch to get those ridges? The texture definitely isn't the same as that on the glove proper, which is a regular hdd through the top of the previous row.

Tina, hello :) Thank you for dropping in. Starting to make my way out of that slump slowly. Mostly managed to catch up on threads and as for St. Marys I have to hold off on that because I KNOW the wait for the next book will be terrible. Im reading The Book Thief at the moment and really enjoying it, much to my surprise. Hope all is well :)

Roni, yes you are right, the cuff is just worked in that back stitch, sorry I should have mentioned that. I am working on a cowl, (you know those scaves that are just like a big loop), in the same way, its easy and the ridges give it a bit of texture and stretch. I'm hoping to get that done either tonight or tomorrow.

I was given an unexpected day off today. My boss rang me yesterday evening after I got home from work and informed me of the good news (he knows I like days off, rather than days on). The bad news is that today’s weather is the worst we have seen all winter, the wind is howling and the rain is lashing at the windows. The bottom of my driveway is beginning to resemble a pool. My poor husband had to drive to work, (we work for the same company), in all of this weather at 4:45 am this morning, I woke to tell him to drive safe, I always worry over things like that, but he got to work fine. The police have now issued a severe weather warning and it is advisable that people say off the road if they don't have to be anywhere. My plan of attack today is to try and finish up this week’s Uni work and get on to reading my book, that is if the power doesn’t go out, if it does I'll just be forced to read all day, what a shame!

I am feeling sorry for the sheep in our paddock who have to stand out the this weather, (image taken from my kitchen window this morning during a break in the weather).

Yikes! Sounds like nasty weather indeed. Glad everybody's safe.

>124 drneutron: Yes terrible weather. I will be happier when hubby arrives home safe and sound and I know where he is! I'm not looking forward to going out in it later on. It is meant to be like this until Friday.

On another note, YAY I worked out how to do the linky thing thanks to the help of the basic HTML wiki.

Hope the weather doesn't cause problems for you all or the sheep, Nicole!

18. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 584 p.


Synopsis from the Random House website

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

I was given this book for my birthday by my Aunt. Previous to this I had seen the book and heard about well before the movie had been talked about, but I had written it off as something that wasn't for me. I could not have been more wrong.

I do not have the words to describe exactly how I feel upon completion of this book. This story was heartbreaking yet at times quite humorous, I sobbed and I laughed. There is nothing I can say which I am sure has not already been said so all I will say is this; if you have not read this book, please do, I am sure you will not regret it.

On that note, read A Wild Sheep Chase and Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep?, great works, both of them.

>123 NicolePatrick: Great photo. The sheep in the dead center seems top be looking at you with a "Hey, what are we doing out here?" look on its face.

Hope you managed to stay nice and toasty, read many books and the weather is now calmed.

>126 ronincats:Hi, Roni. No problems here thankfully. The weather is still very wild and lots of people are without power nad are having trees fall on cars and houses. We have been lucky.

>128 PiyushC:Thanks! I will have to chase up those books at some point. I have heard that Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep? was quite good from other people also. Just another couple of books to add to the never ending TBR :)

>129 michigantrumpet:Marianne, thank you. I noticed that sheep looking after I took the photo. Poor thing. They aren't our sheep, but are living on our property for a little while. If they were mind I think I would have them huddled up in a big barn somewhere nice and warm. I feel sorry for them. As for the weather it is still wild. It is meant to last for atleast another two days. Unfortunatley I cannot stay at home and read all day in bed with a cup of tea, much to my disgust I have to go to work.

I heard from LT that I have managed to score an Early Review copy of I, Morgana, which I am excitied to get to.
On Monday I managed to spend about $70 on books from my favourite New and Used book store. The owner is very good and seeing things I might like and suggesting that I buy them, and I usually do. Hopefully he will send them up to me tomorrow. On Monday night I then managed to spend about $55 on 9 books from an online seller, which is cheap for Australia, and they will be arriving either tomorrow or Monday. Today I had to go into the book store and buy The Treasure Box by Margret Wild, which is a childrens book, I need this for an assignment. I decided to use a gift voucher I had at the same store to buy a beautiful copy of The Secret Garden and March by Geraldine Brooks (see photos below).





I am aboout 30% through book 3 in the St Mary's Chronicles and really enjoying it! I cannot wait to find out what this massive cliff hanger is!

Congrats on your massive book hauls! I'm impressed. :)

Those poor sheep. I hope they are all hanging in there (and that you & your hubby are hanging in through the weather too).

Can't wait to see your reaction to book 3.

>131 TinaV95:Tina, oh my word! Book 3 - that ending! I am so glad I have book 4 to be getting on with right now.

<127...Great review of one of my favorite books!

>133 Whisper1:I loved that book, and I think it is going to be one of my favorites for a long time to come :)

19.A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor 292 p.


The third book in The Chronicles of St Mary's. I loved delving back into this series. Fantastic! (I cannot say too much more than otherwise I will undoubtedly spoil it for others).

20. A Trail Through Time by Jodi Taylor 287 p.



I read this right after book three, as there was a massive cliff hanger, and I am so glad that I did not have to wait to read it.
Again it was fantastic and often went in directions that I did not expect. If you havent jumped on the train to St. Mary's I suggest you do yourself a favour and do it :)

Does anyone know if there is to be a fifth book in this series?

I'M SO glad you finally got to read 3 & 4!!!!

YES, there is a book 5!! I only know this because I was so let down after book 4 was over (okay, so I was wanting book 5 right away if you want to know the honest truth) that I went googling Jodi Taylor immediately after I finished reading it.

I couldn't find anything like news of book 5 on her website, BUT when I found her on Facebook I saw after she posted something about book 4, she said "Now onto book 5." So, that's when I knew I could rest easy knowing she was going to write another! :)

So, I've just been on ANOTHER book buying spree. I had some money from my birthday back in March so this is what I purchased:
The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
A Dance With Dragons 1: Dreams and Dust by George R. R. Martin
A Dance With Dragons 2: After the Feast by George R. R. Martin
Wreck This Journal by Keri Smith
Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
Northen Lights by Philip Pullman

For some reason I am unable to access my University webpage to do my uni work so I think I will spend the day reading. I have a lot of good reading ahead of me :)

>137 TinaV95:Tina, thank goodness for that! I was wanting book 5 right away as well. I just want to know what happens next! I did look on her website as well and it looks like it hasn't been updated in some time, I didn't think to look on FB. Good thinking :)

21. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett 239 p.

When spoiled rich girl, Mary Lennox, is orphaned, she is shipped from India to live in her uncle's enormous manor in faraway England, where all is not quite as it seems. Before long, the lonely Mary finds a key to a secret garden that has been left untouched for ten years, and a whole new world of enchantment opens up to her. For the first time she learns to make friends - with the talented animalcharmer, Dickon, and her sickly cousin, Colin - and between them, the three children truly flourish as the garden reveals its haunting secrets

As a child I loved watching The Secret Garden movie, it was one of my all time favourites. I had not realised it was a book at the time and wish I had of had the opportunity to read it as a child. The story was written so beautifully and I found the imagery to be so vivid in my mind. The illustrations by Robert Ingpen really added to the story and a spent quite a bit of time looking over them. This story was thoroughly enjoyable and heart warming.

Nice book spree, Nicole!!! You are really starting to get the feel of being a true 75er! ;) Keep hanging out here and you'll have stuffed shelves galore all over your house!

The Secret Garden looks very sweet. I've never seen the movie or read the book, so I will have to check it out!

>140 NicolePatrick: I'm so glad you liked The Secret Garden! It's one of my all-time favourite children's books, and has been ever since I read it at around age nine. I identified SO strongly with Mary. And the movie is really good!

>141 TinaV95:Hi, Tina. I think I was already over loaded with books before joining this group, I have three book shelves which are over crowded with books and I have approx 300 unread books. Yes do check out The Secret Garden it is just so sweet.

>142 PawsforThought:Hi, Paws. I can understand why The Secret Garden it one of your all time favourties. There is just something magical about it. It has to be one of the best children's books i've read to date.

I recieved the parcel of books I purchased online yesterday. Still waiting on one more parcel. Hopefully these won't be sitting around unread for too long.

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch I did try to read this last year I believe, I had got it out from the library. I want to give it another crack as I've heard that is pretty good.
Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch
Secret Breakers: Orphan of the Flames by H. L. Dennis I read the first in this series last year, which was quite enjoyable.
Lost Souls by Poppy Z. Brite I read this about 10 years ago and really enjoyed it, looking forward to having it on my shelf to revisit.
The Dark Monk by Oliver Potzsch Sounded interesting and is a beautiful book, which also helps.
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
A Brief History of Henry VIII by Derek Wilson I have a bit of a facination with Henry VIII, so I am looking forward to reading more about his life.
The Book of Knights by L. A. Williams This is a big illustrated hard back on non-fictional and fictional knights. I am looking forward to delving into this one. (This was damaged during transit, will have to contact the book store to see if they will replace it)
Crochet Now!: 29 projects for Baby, Home, Gifts and More by Candi Jensen A crochet pattern book which includes a DVD, hopefully I will be able to make something out of it.

Nicole

Great book haul. I'm trying to control my book buying, and I've been pretty good this past month. Also, I need to stop bringing home library books and focus on reading those I have.

By the way, anything that Derek Wilson writes (in my opinion) is wonderful.

>145 Whisper1:Hi, Linda. Thanks for stopping by. I find it hard to control my book buying. I have decided just recently that I would put my purchased books in my thread so that I can be more accountable. But my Husband does not mind me spending money on books, I do not smoke or drink alcohol, so it is my only vice. Good luck with reading all that you have, I wish I could get to a place where I was up to date with all of the books on my shelves, but that would take years.

Thank you for the input on Derek Wilson, I have not come across anything he has written before. I am so looking forward to reading that book. Henry VIII was an interesting character, but I am as interested in his wives just as much.

Nice haul, Nic! You know I enjoy Aaronovich, so I'm pleased to see you've added some of his work!

Do let me know how you like Orlando, please... I started it once upon a time. I was on the beach and it just didn't work as a beach book. I was bored after a few pages and put it aside for something more "beachy" and escapist and never picked it back up. We have very similar tastes so if you like it, I might try it again. :)

22. Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks 418 p.

Bethia Mayfield is a restless and curious young woman growing up in Martha's vineyard in the 1660s amid a small band of pioneering English Puritans. At age twelve, she meets Caleb, the young son of a chieftain, and the two forge a secret bond that draws each into the alien world of the other. Bethia's father is a Calvinist minister who seeks to convert the native Wampanoag, and Caleb becomes a prize in the contest between old ways and new, eventually becoming the first Native American graduate of Harvard College. Inspired by a true story and narrated by the irresistible Bethia, Caleb’s Crossing brilliantly captures the triumphs and turmoil of two brave, openhearted spirits who risk everything in a search for knowledge at a time of superstition and ignorance.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, however I have to admit that I did not enjoy it quite as much as Year of Wonders. This book was interesting and thought provoking and reminded me of the way in which white settlers came to Australia and tried to force Aboriginal Australians to become like them, having no tolerance of their culture and their way of living. I would have liked if the story was told from not only the view point of Bethia but Caleb also. At times I found myself wanting to know what he thought of the situation, rather than just the one sided view I was offered. I always think it is nice when books at written based on facts, so that was another positive for me. All in all a nice historical fiction.

Not much has been happening in the way of reading here this weekend, except for text books and journal articles, in a bid to find supporting literature for my assignments.
Today my husband and I partook in our first beginner’s lesson in archery. I had grave fears that I was not going to be able to pull back the bow string, or I would not make the distance to the target. However these fears were quite unfounded and I was able to hit the target nicely and get a semblance of a grouping of my arrows. It was a very enjoyable two hours and we are both really looking forward to next Sunday. When we have finished the beginner’s course in three weeks we can then move on to becoming members of the club. My husband is quite competitive and will be trying to get on to the national ranking. For me it is more for enjoyment at this stage, after all its only week one.

>147 TinaV95:Tina, I will let you know my thoughts when I eventually get to Orlando, I seem to have quite a few of Woolf's works, but have only read Mrs. Dalloway.

I have managed to buy more books, so the list . . .

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman - This is a signed first edition, so I couldn't say no.
American Gods by Neil Gaimen - First edition.
The Onion Girl by Charles de Lint - My husband thinks the title of this book is so funny, as currently I am sorting onions at work.
The Road to Lisdoonvarna by Charles de Lint - Limited signed first edition, again how could I say no.
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - One of those books I've alwasy been meaning to get.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - After watching the movie this weekend I thought I would give it a try, as I quite enjoyed the movie.
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - I am wanting to read this before I see the next movie, I have until next weekend apparently (my husband has given me a deadline).
Divergent by Veronica Roth - I started this lat year but had to return it to the library, I want to get this read before we see the movie.
Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Allegiant by Veronica Roth

23. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins 458 p.



Synopsis from Collins Booksellers:

Set in a dark vision of the near future, a terrifying reality TV show is taking place. Twelve boys and twelve girls are forced to appear in a live event called The Hunger Games. There is only one rule: kill or be killed. When sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen steps forward to take her younger sister's place in the games, she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is second nature.

After viewing the movie on Firday night with my husband, I decided that I needed to read the books in this series (for some reason I had previously decided I wouldnt like them). I enjoyed the book much more than the movie. When I was watching the movie I felt like things were missing, but just couldn't pin point what exactly. Even though I knew what was going to happen during the book I still had a sense of excitement and a connection to the characters. The book was so much darker than the movie, which for me was a good thing. I am glad that I decided to pick the book up and I cannot wait to read the next book in the series.

Nice review of Caleb's Crossing. I'm a big fan of Geraldine Brooks. I see that you just picked up her book, March. That's one I haven't read as yet, so I'll be interested in what you think.

The Hunger Games books had me up reading well into the night, which hasn't happened to me in a long time, honestly. I'm glad you enjoyed the first one, and I suspect the others won't disappoint you.

>152 michigantrumpet:Hi, Marianne. I picked up March without reading the back, so I have no idea what it is even about, ha ha. I have People of the Book also waiting to be read. Hopefully I will get to them sooner, rather than later.

>153 scaifea:Hi! Thank you for dropping in. You are right, I have been putting off starting an assignment, which is due next Friday, to finish off Catching Fire. Oh my lordy. I have no words. I had to pick my jaw up off the floor several times throughout the book. I need to get my hands on Mockingjay like yesterday.

24. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins 472 p.



There is no way I can begin to review this book without spoiling either it or The Hunger Games. All I can say is I had to pick up my jaw off the floor several times throughout the book and I could not put it down. I cannot wait for my husband to watch the movie to see his reaction.

The Hunger Games series is one of my all time favorites! You will love Mockingjay too, I predict!

Let me know when you get to The Bell Jar. I read it 100 years ago when I was in college, but want to re-read it. I'd like to read it around the same time you're planning to read it if you'd be up for it so we can discuss.

And you found a signed first edition of a Gaiman?? Nice going!

>156 TinaV95: Hi, Tina. Hopefully I will love Mockingjay. I conned my husband into taking me to the shop to buy it, and he got to have pizza for tea. I have started it, but only a few pages in.

Not really sure when I will get to The Bell Jar. I am not really sure if it is the type of book I should be reading at the moment. Im in a bit of a state and I am not sure if it would help or hinder. But I am all up for discussing it when we do get around to reading it.

As for the Gaiman, I didn't realise that it was a first edition when I had it offered to me, I only paied $20 for it, which is cheap for a hardback even if its not signed. The condition is not bad either. The guy in the book shop is begining to know what I like and so hangs on to things for me that he thinks I might like, before putting them on the shelves, which is good but bad for my bank balance.

Hope you are having a great weekend, Tina x

>157 NicolePatrick: -- Maybe bad for one's bank account, but good for the reader! What a good person to have in one's life who holds onto interesting books!

Hang on to that book store! I would love to have a person in a book store holding "finds" for me! Lisa would have a duck, though. I'm bad enough with recommendations from here. :)

Hope you are doing well, Nic!

Glad to see you are enjoying The Hunger Games trilogy. I didn't much care for The Bell Jar, maybe for you it would be different.

>158 michigantrumpet: Hi, Marianne. Thanks for popping by. I agree, I enjoy finding out what he has on hold for me, and always look forward to recieving the parcles in the post. By the time I get to paying for them, I have forgotten what I got, so its a nice surprise.

>159 TinaV95: Hi, Tina! I will be hanging on to that book store for sure. It is such a shame that it is so far away, otherwise I would be in there often I am sure of it. I am lucky that my husband doesn't mind my book buying habbit. Things are looking a bit brighter here, thankyou :)

>160 PiyushC: Hello there :) thank you for stopping in. I have put Mockingjay down for now. I will get back to it before the movie is released to DVD though. I have heard mixed things about The Bell Jar, so I hope I like it. Time will tell.

25. The Ocean at the end of the Lane by Neil Gaiman 255 p.



Synopsis from the book:

This is what he remembers, a he sits by the ocean at the end of the lane:

A dead man on the back seat of the car, and warm milk at the farmhouse; An ancient little girl, and an old woman who saw the moon being made; A beautiful housekeeper with a monstrous smile; And dark forces woken that were best left undisturbed.

They are memories hard to believe, waiting at the edges of things. The recollections of a man who thought he was lost but is now, perhaps, remebering a time when he was saved . . .

This book is a beautifully written insight into the mind of a seven year old child. I really enjoyed this book, more than I thought I would. Gaiman was able to recreate my childhood, in a sense, the make believe, my head stuck in a book for hours, fighting with my younger brother, it was all there.

The more I reflect on this story, the more I grow to admire Gaiman's ability to turn words into something beautiful and unique. I will definitely be re-reading this at some point.

Nice insights into The Ocean at the End of the Lane!

Thanks, Tina. After reading that, and enjoying it so much, has got me wanting to read Anansi Boys so I might pick that up next. :)

I'm so glad that you liked the Gaiman book! I loved it, too.

> I did too!

>165 scaifea:Hi there, thanks for stopping by. So glad you love the Gaiman book. I want to go back and read it already! I am about 1/4 of the way through Anansi Boys and quite enjoying that also.

>166 connie53:Hi there, Connie. Glad you also liked The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Hope you are well :)

I had a good start to my Saturday then it all went south so don't bother reading if you don't want to read a ranty post. We went shopping and I purchased a little device I can wear on my wrist like a watch to track my steps. We came home and went for a big walk, about 5 km. After lunch I said to my husband that he should call his Father (it was Fathers day last Sunday), to make sure he got his gift ( a card and $100). Bad news is he hasn't got it, but the post service says its been delivered. No doubt they have delivered it to the wrong place, so pi**ed off right now, $100 down the drain. We are trying to get my Father in-law over here for christams and that money really would have helped :(, just hoping it magically turns up next week. I hate wasting money, especially in a stupid manner like this! My Husband has made an offical complaint, but I guess there is nothing to be done until Monday morning. We will just have to wait and see.

Well, dang. It stinks when something like that happens and of course the post office is more than happy not to take responsibility unless you've paid an exorbitant amount to insure the package. Gah. Hoping along with you that it shows up soon!

>169 scaifea: It sure does stink. We heard back from the post office and apparently it was delivered on the 09/09 at 3:30pm. They then went on to say that sending money is prohibited! Since when I do not know, I have never heard of this. So some lucky person has got themselves $100. Lesson learnt. We will be depositing the money right into his back account next time. i would have like to have thought that if someone had recieved mail that was not theirs they would have handed it back to the post office. I guess not everyone is honest!

Oh, no! That's just awful! I'm sorry - I know how frustrating that can be.

That is awful, Nicole! I'm so sorry for that happening to you. :(

People really stink sometimes. I'm sure that person's karma is going to be messed up something awful for not doing the right thing. Boo.

:(

>171 scaifea:>172 TinaV95: Nevermind. It has happened now. You are right, Tina, some people do stink!

On another note my husband and I drove 3.5 hours to our capital city and purchased ourselves a bow and arrows each. We spent quite a lot of time in the shop and the person was very helpful. Can not wait to test them out at the range tomorrow.
I popped into the book shop that I buy most of my books from online. However the owner was not in, which I was dissapointed about as we have not met in person yet. I did pick up some books, two of which he had already put away for me.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness - I am not sure if I will like this but it did not cost me much, so I will 'give it a go', as they say.
Hyddenworld: Spring by William Horwood - This is an uncorrected proof which is a limited edition and signed.
Mothers Grimm by Danielle Wood - I heard about this book on the radio. It is the authors take on some of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, however she focues on the mother characters within the fairy tales.
The Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm translated by Matthew P. Price - This is a cloth bound hardback published by Taschen, and is quite beautiful.

I also picked up a DVD, Monster Live. It is stand up comedy of Dylan Moran. If you have seen the BBC TV show Black Books, you will know the guy. Hands down one of my favourite comedians.

Edit: I managed to find all 10 of the treasure chests for the Talk Like a Pirate Day thingy. It was fun and I wasted about 2 hours of my life :P

Bows, huh. Archery's something I'd like to learn someday.

>174 drneutron: You really should give archery a go. It is very enjoyable and there is nothing better than shooting a nice arrow!

I liked Allerzielen by Deborah Harkness a lot. So maybe you will like it too.

Sorry for the loss of the money!

I've wanted to try the Harkness... I think I have the first one somewhere. Egads, my TBR shelves need some serious work! Anyway, let me know if you like it or if you want to read it together!

Love that you are an archery diva!

>176 connie53:Hi, Connie. Thanks for the feedback on the Harkness book. I hope that I will like it, I want to like it, so maybe I will :) Hope all is well for you.

>177 TinaV95:Hi, Tina! Yes, I would be happy to read it together, anytime after the 18th of October is good for me. I have two Uni assignments to finish before then. After that I have finished Uni for the year, YAY!

All of my shelves need serious work. I have made the decision to rehome most of the crime fiction on my shelves, they have been there for 10 years or so unread and I don't read much crime fiction these days. I have three book shelves full and have run out of space!

I am not sure that I am an archery diva, I think I am too much of a tomboy to be that :P
Hope you are well :)

I just love the idea of an 'Archery Diva'!

Hope all's well with you and you are enjoying your weekend!

>179 michigantrumpet:Hi, Marianne. Thanks, the weekend wasnt too bad, spent a day working on my assignment and a day doing archery. Hope you had a good weekend :)

When I think of you and archery, I have Katniss Everdeen in mind! She is kickass!!! So my idea of archery diva is her! :)

So, let me see if I can even locate my copy of the Harkness before I tell you I'll read it in October. lol

Congrats on almost being done with Uni for the year!! Just a few more days / assignments!

>179 michigantrumpet: Thanks, Marianne!

>181 TinaV95:I am not so sure I am like Katniss, she is kick ass for sure! I hope you are well, Tina :)

This week as been a kind of a mess of emotions. We had to take the stray cat which was dumped here some 6 months ago to the RSPCA. We found her in our shed, after she had been missing for a month or so, she had given birth to four babies. We couldnt have her inside as our old cat hates her so we had to take her. It was very sad, but in her best interest.
At the same time to took in one of the kittens she had when she was orginally dumped here. We though it was a boy and our old cat seemed to be getting on with it okay, even cleaning it and letting it sleep in his bed with him. On thursday our new boy kitten, turned into a girl. I stayed up until 1:30 am helping her give birth to four kittens. It was beautiful, the way she was so calm. We have decided to keep the kittens and Mummy in our laundry so that our old cat cannot get to them and kill the babies. When they are tweleve weeks old we will take them to a local vets who will vacinate and desex them and will then sell them on to good homes. We will keep the Mummy cat and get her desexed also. I will put a few pictures up some time in the next week for those cat loving people like myself.

26. Divergent by Veronica Roth 487 p.



I picked this up for the same reason I picked up The Hunger Games, I wanted to watch the movie. However now that I have read the book and watched the movie trailer, I feel that the main characters are not portrayed quite right in the movie, I imagined Tris to be more waif like and scrawny and Four to be taller and broader.

I had heard a lot of good things about it when it first came out, but for some reason had not picked it up. I guess I there is not a lot I can say which has not already been said. I found the book very enjoyable but quite predictable, in terms of plot lines and character development.

I am looking forward to the next two books, simply because I want to know why the ending of Allegiant has caused such a stir.

I have picked up a few books over the last two weeks.

Magisterium: The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare.
Sabriel by Garth Nix
Magician by Raymond E. Feist
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
When did you see her last? by Lemony Snicket
Shouldn't you be in school? by Lemony Snicket

Ooh, pictures! Waiting...

Sabriel is great. Which Magician? Apprentice or Master or both.

Roni, the wait is over. This is the best I could do without disturbing them all. I will pick them all up over the next day or so to show you their beautiful markings.

I spent the day organising my book shelves (when I wasn't getting sunburnt at archery) and have managed to let myself part with 50 + books. I just have to remove them from LT now. Hopefully I can sell them on as most of them are in very good to good condition as I havent read most of them.

My shelves were a complete mess and now they are a bit more organised, not really in any particular order, mostly just grouping authors together.



This book case is in our bedroom and houses classics, historical fiction and a few other bits and peices.



This is my main bookcase which houses most of my middle grade/YA/Fantasy books, there are also some horror and crime thrillers at the bottom. Cooking and Gardening books at the top.



This small book case was my great grandfathers and it houses fantasy and historical fiction mostly.

Look at you, getting all organized. I'm impressed. Wish my bookcases looked as orderly.

Such cute little kittens. Wish I weren't so allergic ...

Hi, Marianne! I assure you the book cases were nowhere near as organised before. They were a complete mess!

It must be terrible to be allergic to kitties :( my brother has an allergy to cats though fortunately it's not too extreme, just itchy eyes and runny nose.

Woo hoo! Neat pictures of the kittens AND the bookcases!

Thanks, Roni. The kittens are just adorable, I have just been giving them all a little cuddle. Hopefully their eyes open up in the next few days.

27. Insurgent by Veronica Roth 525 p.



I feel Insurgent was more enjoyable than Divergent as it was less predictable and more action packed. A little bit confused by the ending, so I cannot wait to dive into Allegiant to find out what is going on and read that controversial ending.

I guess I should do the housework I have been putting off to finish this book before picking up the next, otherwise nothing will get done :)

Oh!!!! The kittening going on here!!! :)

I'm smiling like a fool now! Yay! They are adorable, Nicole... I see why you had to keep them for now!

Can't wait to see what you think of Allegiant!

28. Allegiant by Veronica Roth 526 p.



I cannot talk about this book without spoilers, so if you want to know what I think without spoilers, I thoroughly enjoyed it, otherwise click below to find out more.

The way Roth changed to writing with two POV's for Allegiant really threw me for the first 50-100 pages, and initially could not see the reasoning behind it. I feel the plot of this last book was much more interesting than the first two, and I have to say it was not predictable in the way the first book was.

As for the ending, I am happy that for the most part Tris and Four stayed true to their character traits. For Tris to have let her brother sacrifice himself and for the ending to be perfect and happy would have been disappointing. I am glad that Roth did not follow the YA trope of happy endings, it was really refreshing. Following Tris' death I could see why the two POV's were necessary, as the story would not have worked without it.

I think this last book was my favourite by far, I wish I had given into the hype surrounding the Divergent series earlier but glad that I finally did.

Eyes open at about 10 days of age. After that, I think daily pictures are mandatory until they are 8 weeks old!

Hi Roni. All eyes are open :) they are very cute I will have to add some new photos soon. They are all feeding at the moment.

Lovely kitten pictures!

How cute!!

Thanks, Rhain. I seem to have lost your thread I will have to find it again soon, hope that all is well.

Thank you, Connie.

I have a bit of sad news on the kitten front. One of the kittens passed away yesterday. We have no idea what happened, my husband found it in the morning in the middle of the lounge room, it looks like the mother had taken it from the basket after it had died. Another of the kittens seems to be doing poorly and seems to have lost its appetite. I'm not really sure what do to for it apart from make it comfortable.

In book news, I took 11 books to the local sell and swap, and swapped for four books.
The Rouge by Trudi Canavan
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Booky Wook 2: This Time It's Personal by Russell Brand - I am not really a fan of his, but I had heard that his books a quite good and that he has some good opinions on things.

I also picked up some books from a couple of local book shops and my bookshop contact in Hobart.

Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth - Currently reading
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials and Death Cure by James Dashner
1984 by George Orwell
Little Women and Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
The Light Between Oceans by M L Stedman
Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb - This is a double up, in the new editions as I cannot purchase all of the books in her series in the old editions (UK 1996).
The Armageddon Rag and Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin
The World of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin

I think I may need to stop purchasing books for a little while now.

More sad kitten news. After I posted yesterday my husband called the vet and we took the poorly kitten in to be looked at. It was dehydrated and had a respiratory problem. After a lot of discussion with the vet we decided the most humane thing was the have the kitten put the sleep. Although it was sad, it was the most humane thing to do, I didn't like to see the poor thing suffering. Hopefully that will be the last of the bad news for a long time to come.
The vet said they would take the remaining kittens when they are weaned and will have them adopted out, without charging us a fee as we are going to get the mother cat (Tess) de-sexed at the same time. This has been a bit of a saga through no fault of our own and I will be glad when we wont have to worry over kittens and cats getting pregnant.

Off to get ready for work, might even try to squeeze in a bit of reading :)

Ahh, that's really sad. But you did right, Nicole.

Thanks, Connie. Unfortunately we lost another kitten last night, and the one that is left does not look like it will last the day. Being Sunday there are no vets available so we will just have to try and make it comfortable. I guess that is the problem when kittens have kittens, things don't go right.

29. Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth 285 p.

A few short stories told from four's perspective. A nice light read.

So sad, but I have had one cat who gave birth to just one very, very, very little kitten. That's exceptional so we took both of them to the vet, just in case some kittens were stuck inside. But that was not the case. The kitten was born to early and it did not survive. So I know the feeling.

Sorry to hear about that, Connie. Sometimes mother nature can be cruel. Unfortunately we lost the last kitten, we were kind of expecting it after the loss of the other three. The mother cat seems okay, although I did wake up to her meowing this morning.

I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me about some text features of a book I am reading. The book is For the Term of His Natural Life by Marcus Clarke. With in the text it has things such as -th and -he. I think the - (dashes) are indicating that it is a word that they did not print in text back in the day. But I am trying to work out what the words may be. The only other example I have seen of something similar was the word bastard, which looked like b--------d, or something similar.

I'm sorry but I can't help you here.

Could you give a sentence as an example? That might help to find the word you are missing.

So sorry about the kittens, Nicole. In my experience, most kittens die shortly after birth, within a day or so, if it's going to happen. I wonder if some virus took them down, since they had seemed to flourish at first. And I imagine poor mama is crying--all that milk production without any outlet has to be uncomfortable. I wonder if there are any abandoned kittens in the area that need milk.

So sorry about the kittens. They seem such tiny vulnerable things when they are just born.

How sad about your kittens. Hope the kitty mama is doing better.

Oh, Nicole! I'm so sorry to hear about the kittens!! :( I know you must be so very sad...

On a happier note, I'm glad you enjoyed Allegiant and didn't let my opinion deter you from reading it since you enjoyed it so much! It just goes to show that we can't all love the same books, or life would get boring!

My love and hugs coming your way!

A very Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year, Nicole!

Nicole, it's Chrismas Eve's eve, and so I am starting the rounds of wishing my 75er friends the merriest of Christmases or whatever the solstice celebration of their choice is.

Happy Christmas, Nicole!

Happy Christmas Nicole!

Happy Holidays!

Connie, Roni, Scaifea, SandDune and Jayde1599 . Thankyou all very much for the Christmas wishes. I hope that you all had a fantastic Christmas and wish you all a Happy New Year.

Tina , thankyou for your condolences in regards to the kittens. I was and am sad but I had to move on from that. Otherwise I would be moping around. I hope you and Lisa had a fantastic Christmas :) x

Happy New Year to all. You can find my new 2015 thread here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/185340

See you on the other side, Nicole!