harvey.g reads in 2017

Books read in 2017

1. Jeeves and the Yule-tide Spirit and Other Stories by P. G. Wodehouse ★★★★
2. Blue Lightning by Ann Cleeves ★★★½
3. A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle that Shaped the Middle East by James Barr ★★★★★
4. Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie ★★★
5. Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner ★★★★½
6. The Shadow Project by Scott Mariani ★★★
7. A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov ★★★★½
8. The White Lioness by Henning Mankell ★★★½
9. Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need To Know About Global Politics by Tim Marshall ★★★★
10. The Beginning of Spring by Penelope Fitzgerald ★★★★★
11. The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths
12. Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka ★★★★½
13. Worth Dying For: The Power and Politics of Flags by Tim Marshall ★★★★
14. They Do It With Mirrors by Agatha Christie ★★★½
15. The Fifth Gospel by Ian Caldwell ★★★½
16. The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain ★★★★½
17. Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari ★★½
18. Aliens: Science Asks: Is There Anyone Out There? by Jim Al-Khalili ★★★★½
19. The President's Hat by Antoine Laurain ★★★★
20. The Monarchy: A Critique of Britain's Favourite Fetish by Christopher Hitchens ★★★½
21. The Sea Detective by Mark Douglas-Home ★★★★
22. Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene ★★★★★
23. Nothing is True and Everything is Possible: Adventures in Modern Russia by Peter Pomerantsev ★★★½
24. The Man Who Smiled by Henning Mankell ★★★★
25. The Lost Relic by Scott Mariani ★★★½
26. The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson ★★★★½
27. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson ★★★★½
28. Offshore by Penelope Fitzgerald ★★★★
29. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie ★★★★
30. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson ★★★★
31. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby ★★★★
32. I Think You'll Find It's a Bit More Complicated Than That by Ben Goldacre ★★★★
33. Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh ★★★★½
34. All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain’s Political Class by Tim Shipman ★★★★★
35. Reality Is Not What It Seems: The Journey to Quantum Gravity by Carlo Rovelli ★★★½
36. The Ashes of London by Andrew Taylor ★★★★
37. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson ★★★★★
38. Kind of Blue: A Political Memoir by Ken Clarke ★★★★½
39. The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths ★★★★
40. A Winter Book by Tove Jansson ★★★½
41. Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel ★★★★½
42. Dead Water by Ann Cleeves ★★★½
43. Sidetracked by Henning Mankell ★★★★
44. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury ★★★★
45. The Gathering by Anne Enright ★★★★½
46. Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson ★★★½

1. Jeeves and the Yule-tide Spirit and Other Stories by P. G. Wodehouse

★★★★

I started this book a few days ago but finished it today. It's a collection of thirteen short stories from across the world of Wodehouse, a few featuring Jeeves and Wooster and the rest featuring some of his lesser-known characters. I think it's a relatively new collection so some of the stories may appear elsewhere and, despite the cover and the title, only two of the stories are (loosely) connected to Christmas. As you might expect, some stories are better than others but they are all funny—most hilarious—and the prose is sublime throughout. A particular highlight for me was 'Uncle Fred Flits By' which introduced Lord Ickenham aka Uncle Fred and is a most brilliantly executed farce. A great book to start the year.

Happy reading in 2017, Harvey!

Hi, Harvey, and welcome to the organization. Read well.

>3 FAMeulstee: thanks, same to you!

>4 weird_O: thanks for welcome, looking forward to it.

Welcome back!

I am part of the group.
I love being part of the group.
I love the friendships bestowed upon my by dint of my membership of this wonderful fellowship.
I love that race and creed and gender and age and sexuality and nationality make absolutely no difference to our being a valued member of the group.

Thank you for also being part of the group.

Nice to see you Harvey - definitely our first group member residing in the Caymans.

Hi, Harvey, and welcome to the group!

>6 drneutron: thanks!

>7 PaulCranswick: thanks, Paul. Happy New Year to you too and thanks for the welcome. Definitely not surprised if I'm the only one posting from Cayman!

>8 scaifea: hi there, thanks for the welcome!

2. Blue Lightning by Ann Cleeves

★★★½

This is the fourth instalment in Cleeves's Shetland series and sees Inspector Jimmy Perez visiting his home island of Fair Isle with his fiancé, Fran. As the only policeman on the island, Perez is forced to investigate when the warden of the field centre is found murdered. This is a classic whodunnit with only the centre's staff and a small group of birdwatchers, who've come to Fair Isle for the migration season, as potential suspects. The remote location of the island adds to the tension which builds gradually towards a genuinely shocking, and rather tragic, climax. Cleeves describes the desolate Shetland landscape vividly but I wasn't as convinced with the killer's motives as I had been with the previous instalments. Still, I'm looking forward to the next in the series.

>2 harvey.g: Oooh, pretty cover! I've never read that author, which might make me a rarity around this group :)
Welcome.

Good luck with your first year in the group Harvey. Some varied reading there to start your stats off.

>11 LovingLit: thanks for the welcome. I have to admit to being a sucker for a good cover! You should give Wodehouse a try, he is one of life's pleasures.

>12 charl08: thanks, Charlotte. I always have a few books on the go so it ends up being pretty varied!

3. A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle that Shaped the Middle East by James Barr

★★★★★

This was an excellent read. It documents the struggle between Britain and France for power in the Middle East during the period from the end of the the First World War up until Israeli independence in 1948. The lengths the two powers went to to maintain dominance in the region are extraordinary to a modern reader and the fact that the initial carve-up was decided by drawing a line with a pencil on a map (the "line in the sand" of the title) is evidence of both sides' sense of entitlement. This hasty division would have long-lasting and devastating consequences for the region.

There's no doubt France comes across the worse of the two, particularly de Gaulle who is portrayed as anti-British and relentless in his pursuit to reestablish France as a major power. There was deep mutual mistrust between the two sides which increased following the liberation of France and resulted in the British supporting independence for Syria and Lebanon, effectively forcing France out. I was quite shocked to learn of the subsequent French involvement in funding and supporting the Zionist terrorist groups intent on establishing a Jewish state in Palestine despite British and Arab opposition. The book is extremely well researched and uses a lot of recently declassified government documents and personal correspondence to add depth to the story and the characters, resulting in a complex but entertaining and readable history. Highly recommended, especially to anyone interested in the history of the Middle East.

4. Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie

★★★

I started reading the Poirot mysteries last year and this collection of eleven short stories is the third book in the series. It was a fun read but, on the whole, a bit disappointing. The structure of the stories is fairly repetitive and Poirot's ability to seemingly pluck the solution out of thin air sometimes stretches credibility too far; he solves one case based purely on information telegraphed to him by Captain Hastings, without even leaving his bed. Enjoyable puzzles, but the short story format doesn't quite work here.

>14 harvey.g: Very good review, Harvey, thanks for sharing your thoughts on this.
The Middle East would probably be in much better state if the Brittish and the French hadn't been there after the collaps of the Tukish Empire...

>16 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita.

It's certainly possible and it's interesting to look back at that period given the current state of the Middle East. Interestingly, by the late forties the colonial powers, under increasing pressure from the U.S., were beginning to question what rights they had to interfere in the running of other countries at all. Unfortunately, by then, a lot of damage had already been done.

5. Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner

★★★★½

I'm slowly working my way through all the Booker Prize winners and this short novel won in 1984. It's the story of Edith Hope, an English romance novelist who has come to stay at the Hotel du Lac in Switzerland following some embarrassing incident, the nature of which is only revealed towards the end of the book. Nothing much happens in terms of plot and the focus is on the interactions between Edith and the few other residents, most of whom are women and all of whom seem to belong to a bygone era. Apparently there was mild outrage when this novel won the Booker as it beat some other notable, more 'literary' works. But I thought the characters were superbly drawn and, despite its simple plot and somewhat detached setting, it was a pleasure to read.

>14 harvey.g: Good review of a book that was strongly recommended to me by a friend in the last few weeks and which I will look for when I get back to the UK as it isn't in the shops yet here.

How many of the Booker winners have you read so far Harvey? Which ones do you rate highest?

I have done 24 so far and probably put Midnight's Children at the top of the heap.

>19 PaulCranswick: I would definitely recommend it as it's an excellent account of the period.

I've read probably half as many as you Paul and enjoyed them all but I thought J. M. Coetzee's Disgrace was excellent.

>20 harvey.g: I haven't done that one yet, but will put it right this year for sure.

6. The Shadow Project by Scott Mariani

★★★

The fifth book in the Ben Hope series sees our hero on the hunt for a group of neo-Nazis following their failed attempt to kidnap a Swiss billionaire. Cue non-stop action, implausible dialogue and ludicrous plot twists. This isn't going to win any literary prizes but it was a fun read and a nice distraction from a busy week at work.

Have a great weekend, Harvey.

7. A Country Doctor's Notebook by Mikhail Bulgakov

★★★★½

This collection of short stories is a partly fictionalised account of Bulgakov's own experiences working as a doctor in the remote backwoods of north-west Russia in the early twentieth century. Only recently graduated, the 24-year-old is put in charge of a country hospital and left to manage it as best he can. The descriptions of the isolated hospital, a sanctuary against the relentless, biting weather outside, are haunting and the realistic depictions of the seemingly desperate cases which the young doctor comes up against are often excruciating to read. But at the same time, there's a dry humour running through the book, especially when Bulgakov describes his despair at the ignorance of the peasant patients who line up to see him each day. The account of a failed tooth extraction in 'The Vanishing Eye' was particularly enjoyable, both gruesome and hilarious. An incredible book which I will certainly turn to again in the future.

>23 PaulCranswick: thanks, Paul. Hope you're enjoying your week.

8. The White Lioness by Henning Mankell

★★★½

This is the third book in Mankell's Wallander series featuring the eponymous Swedish detective. When a local estate agent disappears Wallander begins to investigate. But something doesn't quite add up and the circumstances surrounding her disappearance begin to suggest something bigger is at play. Soon Wallander finds himself embroiled in a South African political conspiracy involving a group of far-right Afrikaners and an ex-KGB agent. This is a well-paced, compelling thriller but I enjoyed it less than The Dogs of Riga, the previous instalment, mainly because the chapters set in South Africa, which don't feature Wallander at all, just didn't hold my interest. Enjoyable but not one his best.

>26 harvey.g: Good review, Harvey, I liked The white lioness a bit better than the previous ones.

9. Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need To Know About Global Politics by Tim Marshall

★★★★

This book on geopolitics is arranged into ten chapters covering covering Russia, China, the USA, Western Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India and Pakistan, Japan and Korea, Latin America and the Arctic. Marshall deals with each in turn, explaining how the geographical features of each region have influenced its politics. It's well-written and I enjoyed it. Due to its wide scope, it's fairly lightweight on each subject and occassionally oversimplifies particular political situations. Nonetheless, it makes an interesting introduction to the subject.

>28 harvey.g: Hmmm. That one sounds interesting. I'll have to see if I can find it.

>29 drneutron: you should give it a go, Jim. It's a short book but definitely adds an interesting perspective on a number of global political issues.

10. The Beginning of Spring by Penelope Fitzgerald

★★★★★

With 2017 being the centenary of the Russian Revolution I am making an effort to read more books about Russian life and history. This superb novel is set in the period just prior to the First World War, in what was then Tsarist Russia. The story spans just a few weeks of 1913 and follows Frank Reid, an Englishman born and raised in Moscow, who runs a local printing press and whose wife has inexplicably run off back to England, leaving him with their three children. A revolutionary air hangs above the central storyline which provides a fascinating backdrop against which Fitzgerald expertly, in understated but lyrical prose, describes the everyday lives of her characters. The plot is deceptively simple and it is in the details that the subtle beauty of the novel resides. I thought the peculiarities and traits of the Russian and English characters were brilliantly drawn and from a relatively small cast Fitzgerald manages to convey a real sense of the whole time and place.

>31 harvey.g: That is a good idea, Harvey. I must read something on the Russian Revolution myself - maybe read Reed.

Have a good weekend.

>32 PaulCranswick: thanks, Paul. I picked up A People's Tragedy recently which I'm looking forward to reading.

11. The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths

★★★★

This is the second book in the Dr Ruth Galloway series. The story centres on the discovery of a child's bones in a former children's home and the subsequent attempts by the forensic archaeologist, alongside DCI Harry Nelson, to unravel the mystery behind them. Like the first book in the series, there's a fair amount of mythology and history in the background which makes it interesting. An enjoyable read.

12. Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka

★★★★½

This collection includes the Metamorphosis alongside a some of Kafka's short stories including two previously published collections, A Country Doctor and A Hunger Artist, as well as numerous other stories and aphorisms several of which were new to me. Some stories are superb and most were at least intriguing and I generally found as much enjoyment in trying to interpret the stories as in the narratives themselves. The introduction also provided some useful insight into some of the subtle hidden meanings in Kafka's prose.

What happened Harvey, you seem no longer a LT member?
I hope that it is a mistake and you will return.

13. Worth Dying For: The Power and Politics of Flags by Tim Marshall

★★★★

Having read Marshall's book on geopolitics, Prisoners of Geography, earlier this year, I was looking forward to reading his take on the history of flags, and it didn't disappoint. In seven chapters covering the national flags of the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, Arabia, Asia and Latin America as well as two chapters covering the flags of terrorist organisations and international bodies respectively, Marshall weaves politics, symbolism and trivia into a fascinating history of use of flags around the world. I hadn't appreciated that the Scandinavian cross is actually the Christian cross, or that Ethiopia was the only African country not to be colonised hence why most African countries' flags incorporate the yellow, red and green colours of the Ethiopian flag to some extent. Interesting stuff.

>36 FAMeulstee: hi Anita, not sure what happened there but yes, I am still here!

Glad to see you post, Harvey, when I went to your profile last week it was removed... Now it is back :-)

>37 harvey.g: Interesting on flags, Harvey.

If the Scots had their way we would have to change our own.

Have a great weekend.

>39 FAMeulstee: maybe they're trying to get rid of me! :)

>40 PaulCranswick: hi Paul, yes that gets a mention in the book along with the argument about why the cross of St. Andrew is surmounted by the cross of St. George and not vice versa. Enjoy your weekend.

14. They Do It With Mirrors by Agatha Christie

★★★½

The sixth book in the Miss Marple series sees the amateur sleuth investigating a murder at a country mansion which has been converted into a reform centre for juvenile delinquents. As always, there's plenty of suspects, motives and red herrings which make it an enjoyable read, even if not a particularly ingenious mystery.

15. The Fifth Gospel by Ian Caldwell

★★★½

This was a pretty enjoyable thriller set in the Vatican during Pope John Paul II's final months and centred on a conspiracy involving the Turin Shroud and the Diatessaron (the "fifth gospel" of the title). Following the murder of a Vatican curator, two brothers, both priests, become embroiled in the investigation to discover the truth. There's a lot of close reading of the four canonical gospels and I learnt a fair amount about the history of the Catholic Church and its "schism" with the Eastern Orthodox Church. The characters were generally believable other than Peter, the hypersensitive four-year-old son of the narrator, who was just annoying. A fun read.

>43 harvey.g: I wonder why authors try to spoil an otherwise good book by introducing into the tale annoying characters that lend little to the plot and certainly not to your enjoyment of the whole thing.

>44 PaulCranswick: agreed, Paul. Enjoy the weekend.

16. The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain

★★★★½

This is an excellent, whimsical short novel following Laurent Letellier, a Parisian bookseller who stumbles upon a handbag which, unbeknownst to him, had been stolen the previous day in a mugging. The bag belongs to a woman named Laure and Laurent sets about trying to track her down with only her first name and a few belongings, among them a red notebook and a Modiano novel signed by the author himself, to go on. It's a lighthearted tale but well written and literary nonetheless. In a way I wish I read it in French as there is some subtle wordplay (Laure is a gilder, for example, working with l'or) which is either missed or gets a heavy handed explanation in the translation. But the translation overall is brilliant and, as my fiancé is French, I appreciated all the quirks of French character and culture that I recognise well including the obsession with food; entrecôte de bœuf avec sauce béarnaise, pot-au-feu, ris de veau, beurre blanc and café crème all get a mention. It also made me want to read Modiano as both Laure and Laurent are big fans of his and he even makes a brief appearance in the novel. Really a very enjoyable read.

>46 harvey.g: That does like a winner, Harvey.

Have a great weekend.

17. Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari

★★½

Finally finished this book, and it was a struggle. Focusing mainly on narcotics prohibition in the U.S. since the 1930s, it's a history of the "war on drugs" and how it has failed miserably. I'm very sympathetic to the libertarian, financial and health arguments for decriminalising drug use, so to an extent the author was preaching to the converted. But this books fails to deliver on so many levels that it left me very disappointed. The narrative style, firstly, is beyond dull. Every single anecdote is written in exactly the same dreary format, starting with some revelation Hari supposedly had about the drug war, followed by the story of one of the many characters which make up the book, in the style of a teenager attempting a creative writing assignment. Hari's occasional attempts to portray a balanced picture fall short, and those opposed to decriminalisation are too often portrayed as either ignorant or evil. This black and white approach no doubt appeals to liberals (the endorsements from Noam Chomsky, Stephen Fry, Russell Brand and Elton John seem to confirm this) but it is unlikely to win over any supporters of prohibition. Overall, a long slog with very little reward.

18. Aliens: Science Asks: Is There Anyone Out There? by Jim Al-Khalili

★★★★½

This is a brilliant collection of nineteen essays on all things aliens, each essay written by a prominent scientist in a particular field, collated and edited by Jim Al-Khalili. The book covers the search for aliens including where and if they might be found in the universe, what they might be like and how we might find them. There's also a couple of essays on portrayals of aliens in science fiction and film. It's a fascinating read and, even though each chapter is written by a different expert, the collection flows nicely and clearly a lot of effort went into editing it.

19. The President's Hat by Antoine Laurain

★★★★

Having really great enjoyed The Red Notebook I decided to read another of Laurain's books and it was another great read. This novel, set in the eighties, begins when Daniel Mercier, dining in a Parisien brasserie one evening, finds himself seated next to the then President, François Mitterrand. When, at the end of the meal, the President leaves his hat behind, Daniel makes the decision to take the hat and, in doing so, begins a chain of events which ultimately changes his life and the lives of a number of other characters who come into contact with the President's hat. A charming tale, utterly French and a pleasure to read.

20. The Monarchy: A Critique of Britain's Favourite Fetish by Christopher Hitchens

★★★½

In this short book, first published in 1990, Hitchens provides, in his usual brilliant prose, a fierce and unforgiving criticism of the British Monarchy and the British public's apparent obsession with it. I can't say I agree with all his points but Hitchens makes a very convincing case for abolition, which feels just as relevant today, and it made me reconsider some conceptions I had of the Royal Family.

21. The Sea Detective by Mark Douglas-Home

★★★★

This was a really interesting and enjoyable mystery following Cal McGill, an oceanographer who studies ocean currents and prevailing winds around Scotland in order to assist in the investigation of certain crimes. There are a few separate storylines which all revolve, to some extent, around Cal and which run concurrently through the book. The threads are plausible and neatly woven together. It's also very well written relative to most other books in the genre and I'll definitely be reading the next in the series.

22. Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene

★★★★★

This is a brilliant satirical spy novel set in Havana during the last years of the Batista regime. Jim Wormold, a struggling vacuum cleaner salesman living with his daughter in the city, is recruited out of the blue by the British Secret Intelligence Service to become their "man in Havana". What follows is a hilarious farce as Wormold begins to invent absurd fictitious reports for his bosses. He is forced to confront the effects when the reports are believed and events soon spiral out of control as his imaginary sub-agents become all too real. Having been to Cuba last year the descriptions of the place really connected with me and it was interesting to read about the country on the cusp of the communist revolution. Havana in the novel is a place of decadence which contrasts strongly with its current image, but the open bars serving Havana Club daiquiris all day long are still there and the atmosphere remains.

23. Nothing is True and Everything is Possible: Adventures in Modern Russia by Peter Pomerantsev

★★★½

This was an interesting look at post-Soviet Russia through the eyes of a U.K. born Russian TV producer who arrived in the country in the early 2000s just as the boom in western style reality TV was beginning. Pomerantsev describes Moscow vividly and focuses his narrative on a number on bizarre characters he came across in his time spent working in Russian TV including a gangster-turned-film director, a prostitute, and a self-styled lifestyle coach preying on naive Russian models. Whilst their stories were interesting, I didn't feel that the book gave me much of an understanding of the country itself or the politics that have shaped it.

>53 harvey.g: I agree with you Harvey - Our Man in Havana is Greene close to his best.

Have a great weekend.

24. The Man Who Smiled by Henning Mankell

★★★★

The fourth book in the Wallander series sees the Ystad police force investigating the double murder of two solicitors, father and son, and the mysterious business dealings that seem to surround them. This was a definite improvement on the previous entry, with better developed characters and a convincing plot. An enjoyable read.

>55 PaulCranswick: definitely, one of his best. Good weekend to you too, Paul.

>56 harvey.g: That is a great series, Harvey. I have read all of them and they started my interest in Scandi.

>56 harvey.g: I enjoy the Wallander books too, Harvey. I just finished book 5 a few days ago.

25. The Lost Relic by Scott Mariani

★★★½

This is the sixth book in the Ben Hope series and another entertaining, if ludicrous, story. Ben gets caught up in the attempted robbery of an Italian art gallery. But the thieves are only interested in a seemingly worthless Goya sketch and Ben, wrongly accused of murder, sets out to unravel the mystery behind the picture, whilst trying to outrun the police. Good fun.

>58 PaulCranswick: good to know, Paul. I am definitely enjoying them more and more as I read through the series.

>59 FAMeulstee: I'm looking forward to reading that one next, Anita!

26. The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson

★★★★½

The first time I've read one of Jansson's novels and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's the story of a young woman, Katri, living in a small Swedish hamlet with her younger brother, Mats. Katri begins to involve herself in the life of a local elderly artist and eventually decides to fake a burglary at the artist's home in order to convince her to bring in Katri and her brother as lodgers. A slow-burning psychological drama unfolds and the theme of deception is constant to the point that the reader is never quite sure who is deceiving whom. Jansson effortlessly describes the haunting winter atmosphere in simple, stark prose, which I found captivating. I have a couple of Jansson's other books on my Kindle so I'm looking forward to reading more by the author.

27. The Summer Book by Tove Jansson

★★★★½

I decided to read another of Jansson's novels and it was another wonderful read. This book tells the story of Sophia, a young girl living during the summer months with her father and grandmother on a tiny island in the Gulf of Finland. Each chapter presents a beautifully crafted vignette focusing on the relationship between Sophia and her grandmother as they pass the time, the only inhabitants of the small island. Sophia's father is always present, but in the background; his first recorded words appear only in the final chapter. It's a charming story but also a thought-provoking book about love, life and death and, like The True Deceiver, is written in magnificent, understated prose.

28. Offshore by Penelope Fitzgerald

★★★★

Winner of the 1979 Booker Prize, this novel is about a small group of people living on Thames barges in the early sixties. The central character is a Canadian woman, Nenna, who has two daughters and is married to an Englishman who has run off and refuses to live on a boat. There is a small cast of other characters brought expertly to life by Fitzgerald's characteristic subtle observations. Overall I think I preferred The Beginning of Spring which I read earlier this year as I felt the story itself had more depth. But this was another enjoyable read and I managed to finish it in one sitting. It was also very interesting to read the descriptions of Battersea and the surrounding area which has changed so much since the book was written that it's hard to believe it's the same place.

29. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

★★★★

The fourth book in the Poirot series sees the Belgian detective investigating the murder of Roger Ackroyd after he's found stabbed in his study. There's the usual plethora of suspects and the narrator role previously played by Captain Hastings is this time taken up by the local doctor. I thought this was an excellent entry in the series and I have to say the twist came totally out of the blue for me.

>65 harvey.g: I think that is my absolute favourite of her books, Harvey.

30. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

★★★★

Despite its being a classic, I had never read this which I think made it both an enjoyable and a surprising read. Of course, I knew the basic outline but none of the detail. The book follows the crew of the Hispaniola as they set out from Bristol in search of Treasure Island and its buried gold. It's a great adventure story of pirates, mutiny and, of course, the legendary Long John Silver. I have to say, it didn't strike me particularly as a children's book as it's quite dark with a lot of death and violence, but I guess it's a product of its time.

>66 PaulCranswick: definitely the best I've read of hers so far, Paul.

>67 harvey.g: I think the many retellings and abridged versions made it into a childrens book.
I should read the original one day, as I only read an abridged childrens version in my youth.

31. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

★★★★

This classic mid-nineties novel tells the story of Rob Fleming, a record store owner whose life hasn't quite turned out how he'd expected. The book still feels very relevant today as Rob struggles from one relationship to another with a fear of commitment and responsibility hindering his chances at ever settling down. There's also a level of emotional intelligence in the novel which most other books in the genre lack. It’s a great, funny read about love, life and music and I really enjoyed it.

32. I Think You'll Find It's a Bit More Complicated Than That by Ben Goldacre

★★★★

This is a collection of Goldacre's writings, primarily from his 'Bad Science' column but also from some other sources, all of which were new to me as I don't read the Guardian. It was a good book to dip in and out of as each article is only a few pages long and very interesting to read about the plethora of ways in which science can be misrepresented and misinterpreted.

>71 harvey.g: Ah, I have to get that book. Ben Goldacre writes some very interesting stuff.

>72 sirfurboy: yeah it's good stuff. Some of it is naturally repeated in his other books but it's worth a read!

33. Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh

★★★★½

This biting social satire was published in the 1920s and caused quite a sensation at the time. Whilst the shock factor has diminished in the decades since, it is still a funny and revelatory novel. The story follows Paul Pennyfeather who, having been unfairly sent down from Oxford, gets a job as as schoolmaster at a private boys' school in Wales. What follows is a hilarious mixture of farce and misadventure as Paul comes in to contact with a variety of weird and wonderful characters. It has its flaws, of course, but it's still an impressive book for what was Waugh's debut novel.

>74 harvey.g: This is right up my alley, harvey.g. I'll check it out.

>75 brodiew2: definitely recommended!

>74 harvey.g: I remember enjoying Decline and Fall myself, Harvey.

Have a great weekend.

34. All Out War: The Full Story of How Brexit Sank Britain’s Political Class by Tim Shipman

★★★★★

I've been dipping in and out of this book for a couple of months and finally finished it. It's a brilliantly researched and entertaining telling of the story of Brexit with an immense number of inside sources which give different perspectives on the referendum than you would otherwise have got from the media. I think Shipman does well to stay relatively neutral in his analysis. Michael Gove and his wife Sarah Vine come across pretty badly as does Jeremy Corbyn for his lacklustre campaigning and it was interesting to read this after the recent general election again changed the political landscape. Shipman's analysis of Cameron is balanced, with the prime minister portrayed as an incredibly talented politician who, when push came to shove, put his party before the best interests of the country. A fascinating book, essential reading for anyone interested in why we voted to leave the EU.

35. Reality Is Not What It Seems: The Journey to Quantum Gravity by Carlo Rovelli

★★★½

Having thoroughly enjoyed Rovelli's Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, which I read last year, I was looking forward to this book, an exploration of the world of quantum gravity. Rovelli takes the reader through the history of quantum physics, from the early atomic theories of Lucretius, through to Newton, Einstein and finally the modern theories of quantum gravity fields. It's definitely an intellectually challenging read and at times a bit dry, especially the more technical chapters on quantum loop theory which I had to force myself to plough on through. But overall it's still an interesting and informative read.

36. The Ashes of London by Andrew Taylor

★★★★

This is a very enjoyable historical mystery set in 1666, in the aftermath of the Great Fire of London. The novel revolves around a number of murders which take place in the hours and days following the fire and is narrated in part by Marwood, a young man who unexpectedly finds himself investigating the murders on the orders of the government. The other narrative in the book follows Cat, an heiress, whose father has a dark secret and who is forced to go on the run from her uncle and his family following a terrible incident. The two stories link together nicely towards the end of the book and the language works well; neither too modern nor too old fashioned. Cat ends up involved in the work of one of Christopher Wren's draftsmen who's designing a new St Paul's Cathedral. It did seem a bit convenient that she just happened to have received training in architectural design from an aunt when she was young, but this was still an interesting minor storyline. The other major focus of the novel is the ongoing hunt by Charles II to bring the regicides who killed his father to justice and it made me want to read Killers of the King: The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I, which I've had on my Kindle for a while. Overall, a very decent read.

37. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

★★★★★

This masterpiece of gothic fiction is narrated by eighteen-year-old Mary Katherine 'Merricat' Blackwood, a sharp, repressed girl who lives in a old manor house with her sister Constance. We learn from page one that their entire family is dead but the precise circumstances in which this happened are only gradually revealed throughout the remainder of the book. Superbly written, brilliantly suspenseful and a great read.

>78 harvey.g: If it was fiction it would have been deemed too unbelievable, Harvey, I am sure.

Have a great Sunday.

38. Kind of Blue: A Political Memoir by Ken Clarke

★★★★½

This is a thoroughly absorbing autobiography by the veteran Tory MP charting his rise through the ranks of the Conservative parliamentary party. Clarke is clear from the outset that the book won't delve too far into his personal life, preferring to stick to the (far more interesting) world of British politics. It's a fascinating read covering his first forays into parliament as MP for Rushcliffe, through his decades in the Thatcher and Major governments, and ending with the Brexit referendum in 2016. Clarke is never overtly self-aggrandising but does go into detail about the significant impact his policies had on the various offices he worked in, including the Departments of Education and Transport, the Home Office, the Treasury, and finally the Ministry of Justice. Whilst he was never Prime Minister he did, directly or indirectly, have an enormous impact on British society during his time in office. My political views are very similar to his in many areas so I may be biased, but I do think it's a shame that there are very few politicians nowadays from any of the parties with either the bravery or the foresight to make truly radical policy decisions in the way that Clarke did. An excellent memoir.

Helllo harvey.g! I hope all is well with you.

>81 harvey.g: Gothic is usually not my cuppa, but your review is compelling. I will see if I can find it.

39. The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths

★★★★

The third book in the Dr. Ruth Galloway sees the archeologist helping to investigate the mystery of six bodies discovered on a Norfolk beach. It's an interesting plot involving the Home Guard of a small village during World War II and their connections to the present day inhabitants of the village. A decent entry in the series.

>84 brodiew2: very well thanks! Definitely recommended, it's a brilliant book. I don't read much gothic fiction myself but I loved it.

40. A Winter Book by Tove Jansson

★★★½

This is a collection of some of Jansson's short stories. The stories are grouped into different categories and I really enjoyed the semi-autobiographical works which make up the first half of the book. The second half I found a bit harder going although still enjoyable. As always with Jansson, there is something simultaneously calming and riveting about her sparse, careful prose and the familiar island landscape is wonderfully evoked.

41. Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel

★★★★½

I’d heard good things about this book, so when it appeared on a Kindle sale I snapped it up. It certainly didn’t disappoint. The book tells the story of the quest to discover a practical and reliable method for determining longitude at sea. This was a serious problem throughout the 17th and 18th centuries as miscalculations of longitude could, and did, result in disasters which claimed the lives of thousands of sailors. As a result, a King’s ransom of £20,000 was offered to whomever could find a viable solution. Enter John Harrison and his sea clocks and watches which would, eventually, solve the longitude problem, but not until he’d suffered through innumerable trials and tribulations. It’s a brilliantly written and clear account of what was the great problem of the age. Excellent.

42. Dead Water by Ann Cleeves

★★★½

This is the fifth book in Cleeves’s Shetland series. When the body of a local journalist is discovered in a boat near the home of the Shetland procurator fiscal, Detective Inspector Willow Reeves is brought in from Aberdeen to investigate, working alongside Jimmy Perez who is gradually coming back to work after the events of the previous book. It’s a decent story and descriptions of the island setting are vivid and atmospheric. Overall, though, a less satisfactory ending than the earlier entries in in the series.

43. Sidetracked by Henning Mankell

★★★★

This is the fifth book in the Wallander series and opens with the suicide of a young girl on a nearby farm and the brutal murder of a former politician. Wallander is soon hunting for a serial killer who scalps his victims and simultaneously attempting to unravel the story behind the mysterious girl. Another solid entry in this series which I’m really enjoying.

44. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

★★★★

Bradbury’s dystopian classic is set in a future world where books are illegal. The protagonist, Guy Montag, is a fireman whose job it is to burn the forbidden books when they’re discovered. But Montag’s chance meeting with a young girl forces him to recognise his own unhappiness and gradually his own doubts about books begin to surface. This novel was written in the fifties and there are similarities to Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four in the descriptions of the post-literate dystopian world. I think the thing that most resounds with the modern reader is Bradbury’s prophetic insight into the dangers of advances in technology. A short read but a good one.

45. The Gathering by Anne Enright

★★★★½

The protagonist of this 2007 Booker Prize-winning novel, Veronica Hegarty, is forced to confront her past and the uncomfortable history of her family, following the death of her alcoholic brother Liam. The story flips back and forth between the present day preparations for Liam’s funeral and past events from their childhoods and prior which build towards an explanation of sorts for why their lives have turned out as they have. It’s a book about family, love, lust, betrayal and trauma. Veronica begins to neglect her present life as she becomes intent on recreating the scenes which led ultimately to Liam’s death. She is a somewhat unreliable narrator in that she misremembers or imagines events and the reader is constantly having to reconsider aspects of the story as she herself becomes aware of her embellishment of the past. The prose makes this novel; it is understated, at times sharp and often beautiful. A great read.

This is a time of year when I as a non-American ponder over what I am thankful for.

I am thankful for this group and its ability to keep me sane during topsy-turvy times.

I am thankful that you are part of this group.

I am thankful for this opportunity to say thank you.

46. Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson

★★★½

This is the first in the Dark Iceland series which follows Ari Thór Arason, a policeman in the small town of Siglufjörður in northern Iceland. When a woman is found bleeding to death in the snow shortly after the suspicious death of a local novelist, Ari Thor is dragged straight into a murder investigation in his new hometown. This was a decent enough read and I enjoyed the claustrophobic setting of Iceland in a winter storm. It definitely read like a first novel and I hope the storylines become deeper as the series progresses.

I put this one on the wishlist the other day. I see there’s a second out - are you planning to read it?

>95 drneutron: I have already bought the next two in the series so definitely going to read them. From reading the reviews I’m confident they will improve as the series progresses.

Have a great Sunday, Harvey.

Wishing you all good things this holiday season and beyond.