Paul's Grand European Tour 20
This is a continuation of the topic Paul's Grand European Tour 19 .
This topic was continued by Paul's Grand European Tour 21.
Talk 75 Books Challenge for 2025
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1PaulCranswick
This month in the European Grand Tour we are wandering through that culinary and cultural focal point, France.
2PaulCranswick
The Opening Words
After my current read, I will turn my attention to Buckeye by Patrick Ryan which has received some good reviews across the site.
" Cal Jenkins was born in the spring of 1920 with one leg shorter than the other. Just two inches shorter, but that was enough to make plenty of things difficult. Balancing on a bicycle took twice as long for him to learn as it did for other kids. "
Interested...................?
After my current read, I will turn my attention to Buckeye by Patrick Ryan which has received some good reviews across the site.
" Cal Jenkins was born in the spring of 1920 with one leg shorter than the other. Just two inches shorter, but that was enough to make plenty of things difficult. Balancing on a bicycle took twice as long for him to learn as it did for other kids. "
Interested...................?
3PaulCranswick
Poetry
In UK public domain is calculated 50 years from an author's passing and therefore all poets who passed away on or before 1955 would not be in a position to prevent third party dissemination of their work if it had been published in the UK.
Wallace Stevens passed in 1955 and this is a typical poem of mid period where his language becomes slightly direct and discernible.
Poetry Is A Destructive Force
That's what misery is,
Nothing to have at heart.
It is to have or nothing.
It is a thing to have,
A lion, an ox in his breast,
To feel it breathing there.
Corazon, stout dog,
Young ox, bow-legged bear,
He tastes its blood, not spit.
He is like a man
In the body of a violent beast
Its muscles are his own...
The lion sleeps in the sun.
Its nose is on its paws.
It can kill a man.
In UK public domain is calculated 50 years from an author's passing and therefore all poets who passed away on or before 1955 would not be in a position to prevent third party dissemination of their work if it had been published in the UK.
Wallace Stevens passed in 1955 and this is a typical poem of mid period where his language becomes slightly direct and discernible.
Poetry Is A Destructive Force
That's what misery is,
Nothing to have at heart.
It is to have or nothing.
It is a thing to have,
A lion, an ox in his breast,
To feel it breathing there.
Corazon, stout dog,
Young ox, bow-legged bear,
He tastes its blood, not spit.
He is like a man
In the body of a violent beast
Its muscles are his own...
The lion sleeps in the sun.
Its nose is on its paws.
It can kill a man.
4PaulCranswick
BOOKS READ IN 2025 (1-75)
By the way my completed dates are using the British system of DD/MM/YY
1. Colonel Chabert by Honore de Balzac (1832) 101 pages Fiction from before the last decade. (Completed 1/1/25)
2. Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha (2024) 77 pages Poetry/Plays (completed 1/1/25)
3. Now Then by Rick Broadbent (2023) 433 pages Non-Fiction (Completed 2/1/25)
4. The Hunter by Tana French (2024) 467 pages Thriller (Completed 4/1/25)
5. Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood (2023) 293 pp Fiction from the last decade (completed 5/1/25)
6. The Great Fortune by Olivia Manning (1960) 318 pp Fiction before this decade (completed 7/1/25)
7. Stag's Leap by Sharon Olds (2012) 89 pp Poetry/Plays (completed 8/1/25)
8. The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane (2007) 321 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 12/1/25)
9. The Reborn by Lin Anderson (2010) 424 pp Thriller (Completed 25/1/25)
10. The Cold Millions by Jess Walter (2020) 337 pp Fiction from this Decade (Completed 28/1/25)
11. Lost Empires by J.B. Priestley (1965) 308 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 28/1/25)
12. After You Were, I Am by Camille Ralphs (2024) 71 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 28/1/25)
13. The Junior Officers' Reading Club by Patrick Hennessey (2009) 327 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 29/1/25)
14. Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths (2013) 390 pp Thriller (Completed 31/1/25)
15. Fen by Daisy Johnson (2016) 190 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 31/1/25)
16. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin (2009) 237 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 1/2/25)
17. The Power of Geography by Tim Marshall (2021) 356 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 2/2/25)
18. Macbeth by William Shakespeare (1606) 97 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 2/2/25)
19. Night Blind by Ragnar Jonasson (2015) 210 pp Thrillers(Completed 4/2/25)
20. Take it Back by Kia Abdullah (2020) 373 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 5/2/25)
21. Nagasaki by Eric Faye (2012) 109 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 6/2/25)
22. The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks (2015) 287 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 7/2/25)
23. Alphabet by Inger Christensen (1981) 77 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 8/2/25)
24. Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson (2012) 427 pp Sci-Fi/Fantasy (Completed 9/2/25)
25. The Half Moon by Mary Beth Keane (2023) 379 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 10/2/25)
26. Silence by Shusaku Endo (1966) 201 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 15/2/25)
27. In the Land of the Cyclops by Karl Ove Knausgaard (2018) 297 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 16/2/25)
28. God's Gift to Women by Don Paterson (1997) 56 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 16/2/25)
29. Our Fathers by Rebecca Wait (2020) 334 pp Thriller (Completed 16/2/25)
30. The Other Americans by Laila Lalami (2019) 301 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 20/2/25)
31. Dart by Alice Oswald (2002) 48 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 21/2/25)
32. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (2012) 294 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 22/2/25)
33. Afternoons with the Blinds Drawn by Brett Anderson (2019) 278 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 23/2/25)
34. Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson (1946) 203 pp (Completed 27/2/25)
35. Othello by William Shakespeare (1602) 145 pp (Completed 28/2/25)
36. Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell (2025) 382 pp (Completed 8/3/25)
37. Selected Poems 1969-2005 by David Harsent (2007) 133 pp (Completed 8/3/25)
38. Zero Days by Ruth Ware (2023) 339 pp (Completed 15/3/25)
39. The Pigeon Tunnel by John le Carre (2016) 342 pp (Completed 16/3/25)
40. The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden (2024) 258 pp (Completed 31/3/25)
41. Selected Poems by Zbigniew Herbert (2007) 249 pp (Completed 31/03/25)
42. Picture Her Dead by Lin Anderson (2011) 438 pp (Completed 4/4/25)
43. Poetry for and Other Chronic Conditions by A.K. Davidson (2024) 55 pp (Completed 5/4/25)
44. Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout (2024) 326 pp (Completed 14/4/25)
45. The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk (2008) 728 pp (Completed 19/4/25)
46. The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey (1975) 538 pp (Completed 20/4/25)
47. Richard II by William Shakespeare (1595) 109 pp (Completed 20/4/25)
48. Blaming by Elizabeth Taylor (1976) 168 pp (Completed 7/5/25)
49. The Blue Bird by Maurice Maeterlinck (1908) 287 pp (Completed 9/5/25)
50. Wild Grass by Ian Johnson (2004) 292 pp (Completed 12/5/25)
51. Original Sin by P.D. James (1994) 551 pp (Completed 13/5/25)
52. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (1977) 178 pp (Completed 16/5/25)
53. Swell by Maria Ferguson (2025) 81 pp (Completed 21/5/25)
54. Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq (2022) 212 pp (Completed 31/5/25)
55. October by China Mieville (2017) 329 pp (Completed 31/5/25)
56. All Our Yesterdays by Natalia Ginzburg (1952) 418 pp (Completed 7/6/25)
57. Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (1599) 104 pp (Completed 7/6/25)
58. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (2024) 279 pp (Completed 9/6/25)
59. Don't Skip Out On Me by Willy Vlautin (2019) 293 pp (Completed 11/6/25)
60. Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix (2023) 122 pp (Completed 17/6/25)
61. The Forward Book of Poetry 2025 edited by William Sieghart (2024) 121 pp (Completed 20/6/25)
62. The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan (1978) 133pp (Completed 23/6/25)
63. Crooked Seeds by Karen Jennings (2024) 190 pp (Completed 29/6/25)
64. The White Album by Joan Didion (1979) 223 pp (Completed 29/6/25)
65. Crow Lake by Mary Lawson (2002) 338 pp (Completed 4/7/25)
66. The Experience of Pain by Carlo Emilia Gadda (1963) 225pp (Completed 5/7/25)
67. Coriolanus by William Shakespeare (1608) 307 pp (Completed 6/7/25)
68. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls (1961) 282 pp (Completed 7/7/25)
69. The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois (2019) 194 pp (Completed 8/7/25)
70. House of Lords and Commons by Ishion Hutchinson (2017) 68 pp (Completed 9/7/25)
71. Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretser (2024) 183 pp (Completed 12/7/25)
72. The Seeker by S.G. MacLean (2015) 398 pp (Completed 16/7/25)
73. The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind (1988) 77 pp (Completed 27/7/25)
74. The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis (2014) 192 pp (Completed 30/7/25)
75. The Artist by Lucy Steeds (2025) 294 pp (Completed 31/7/25)
By the way my completed dates are using the British system of DD/MM/YY
1. Colonel Chabert by Honore de Balzac (1832) 101 pages Fiction from before the last decade. (Completed 1/1/25)
2. Forest of Noise by Mosab Abu Toha (2024) 77 pages Poetry/Plays (completed 1/1/25)
3. Now Then by Rick Broadbent (2023) 433 pages Non-Fiction (Completed 2/1/25)
4. The Hunter by Tana French (2024) 467 pages Thriller (Completed 4/1/25)
5. Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood (2023) 293 pp Fiction from the last decade (completed 5/1/25)
6. The Great Fortune by Olivia Manning (1960) 318 pp Fiction before this decade (completed 7/1/25)
7. Stag's Leap by Sharon Olds (2012) 89 pp Poetry/Plays (completed 8/1/25)
8. The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane (2007) 321 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 12/1/25)
9. The Reborn by Lin Anderson (2010) 424 pp Thriller (Completed 25/1/25)
10. The Cold Millions by Jess Walter (2020) 337 pp Fiction from this Decade (Completed 28/1/25)
11. Lost Empires by J.B. Priestley (1965) 308 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 28/1/25)
12. After You Were, I Am by Camille Ralphs (2024) 71 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 28/1/25)
13. The Junior Officers' Reading Club by Patrick Hennessey (2009) 327 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 29/1/25)
14. Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths (2013) 390 pp Thriller (Completed 31/1/25)
15. Fen by Daisy Johnson (2016) 190 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 31/1/25)
16. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin (2009) 237 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 1/2/25)
17. The Power of Geography by Tim Marshall (2021) 356 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 2/2/25)
18. Macbeth by William Shakespeare (1606) 97 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 2/2/25)
19. Night Blind by Ragnar Jonasson (2015) 210 pp Thrillers(Completed 4/2/25)
20. Take it Back by Kia Abdullah (2020) 373 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 5/2/25)
21. Nagasaki by Eric Faye (2012) 109 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 6/2/25)
22. The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks (2015) 287 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 7/2/25)
23. Alphabet by Inger Christensen (1981) 77 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 8/2/25)
24. Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson (2012) 427 pp Sci-Fi/Fantasy (Completed 9/2/25)
25. The Half Moon by Mary Beth Keane (2023) 379 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 10/2/25)
26. Silence by Shusaku Endo (1966) 201 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 15/2/25)
27. In the Land of the Cyclops by Karl Ove Knausgaard (2018) 297 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 16/2/25)
28. God's Gift to Women by Don Paterson (1997) 56 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 16/2/25)
29. Our Fathers by Rebecca Wait (2020) 334 pp Thriller (Completed 16/2/25)
30. The Other Americans by Laila Lalami (2019) 301 pp Fiction from the last decade (Completed 20/2/25)
31. Dart by Alice Oswald (2002) 48 pp Poetry/Plays (Completed 21/2/25)
32. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (2012) 294 pp Fiction before this decade (Completed 22/2/25)
33. Afternoons with the Blinds Drawn by Brett Anderson (2019) 278 pp Non-Fiction (Completed 23/2/25)
34. Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson (1946) 203 pp (Completed 27/2/25)
35. Othello by William Shakespeare (1602) 145 pp (Completed 28/2/25)
36. Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell (2025) 382 pp (Completed 8/3/25)
37. Selected Poems 1969-2005 by David Harsent (2007) 133 pp (Completed 8/3/25)
38. Zero Days by Ruth Ware (2023) 339 pp (Completed 15/3/25)
39. The Pigeon Tunnel by John le Carre (2016) 342 pp (Completed 16/3/25)
40. The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden (2024) 258 pp (Completed 31/3/25)
41. Selected Poems by Zbigniew Herbert (2007) 249 pp (Completed 31/03/25)
42. Picture Her Dead by Lin Anderson (2011) 438 pp (Completed 4/4/25)
43. Poetry for and Other Chronic Conditions by A.K. Davidson (2024) 55 pp (Completed 5/4/25)
44. Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout (2024) 326 pp (Completed 14/4/25)
45. The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk (2008) 728 pp (Completed 19/4/25)
46. The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey (1975) 538 pp (Completed 20/4/25)
47. Richard II by William Shakespeare (1595) 109 pp (Completed 20/4/25)
48. Blaming by Elizabeth Taylor (1976) 168 pp (Completed 7/5/25)
49. The Blue Bird by Maurice Maeterlinck (1908) 287 pp (Completed 9/5/25)
50. Wild Grass by Ian Johnson (2004) 292 pp (Completed 12/5/25)
51. Original Sin by P.D. James (1994) 551 pp (Completed 13/5/25)
52. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (1977) 178 pp (Completed 16/5/25)
53. Swell by Maria Ferguson (2025) 81 pp (Completed 21/5/25)
54. Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq (2022) 212 pp (Completed 31/5/25)
55. October by China Mieville (2017) 329 pp (Completed 31/5/25)
56. All Our Yesterdays by Natalia Ginzburg (1952) 418 pp (Completed 7/6/25)
57. Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (1599) 104 pp (Completed 7/6/25)
58. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (2024) 279 pp (Completed 9/6/25)
59. Don't Skip Out On Me by Willy Vlautin (2019) 293 pp (Completed 11/6/25)
60. Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix (2023) 122 pp (Completed 17/6/25)
61. The Forward Book of Poetry 2025 edited by William Sieghart (2024) 121 pp (Completed 20/6/25)
62. The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan (1978) 133pp (Completed 23/6/25)
63. Crooked Seeds by Karen Jennings (2024) 190 pp (Completed 29/6/25)
64. The White Album by Joan Didion (1979) 223 pp (Completed 29/6/25)
65. Crow Lake by Mary Lawson (2002) 338 pp (Completed 4/7/25)
66. The Experience of Pain by Carlo Emilia Gadda (1963) 225pp (Completed 5/7/25)
67. Coriolanus by William Shakespeare (1608) 307 pp (Completed 6/7/25)
68. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls (1961) 282 pp (Completed 7/7/25)
69. The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois (2019) 194 pp (Completed 8/7/25)
70. House of Lords and Commons by Ishion Hutchinson (2017) 68 pp (Completed 9/7/25)
71. Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretser (2024) 183 pp (Completed 12/7/25)
72. The Seeker by S.G. MacLean (2015) 398 pp (Completed 16/7/25)
73. The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind (1988) 77 pp (Completed 27/7/25)
74. The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis (2014) 192 pp (Completed 30/7/25)
75. The Artist by Lucy Steeds (2025) 294 pp (Completed 31/7/25)
5PaulCranswick
Books Read 76-
Completion dates are based on the British system of (DD/MM/YY)
July
76. The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann (2017) 180 pp (Completed 31/7/25)
August
77. Audition by Katie Kitamura (2025) 197 pp (Completed 2/8/25)
78. Girlhood by Julia Copus (2019) 73 pp (Completed 3/8/25)
79. Home Boys by Alex Wheatle (2018) 231 pp (Completed 3/8/25)
80. The South by Tash Aw (2025) 270 pp (Completed 4/8/25)
81. Safe as Houses by Simone van der Vlught (2012) 262 pp (4/8/25)
82. The Wrecking Light by Robin Robertson (2010) 90 pp (8/8/25)
83. Highway 13 by Fiona McFarlane (2024) 296 pp (8/8/25)
84. The Cafe With No Name by Robert Seethaler (2023) 220 pp (Completed 10/8/25)
85. The Heeding by Rob Cowen (2021) 118 pp (Completed 16/8/25)
86. Once the Deed is Done by Rachel Seiffert (2025) 455 pp (Completed 16/8/25)
87. Canoes by Maylis de Kerangal (2021) 152 pp (Completed 17/8/25)
88. The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller (2024) 371 pp (Completed 24/8/25)
89. The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien (1954) 407 pp (Completed 24/8/25)
90. Universality by Natasha Brown (2025) 156pp (Completed 31/8/25)
September
91. Misinterpretation by Ledia Xhoga (2024) 321 pp (Completed 5/9/25)
92. Woke Racism by John McWhorter (2021) 187 pp (Completed 5/9/25)
93. Lit Up Inside by Van Morrison (2014) 201 pp (Completed 7/9/25)
94. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (2020) 377 pp (Completed 7/9/25)
95. Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann (2017) 291 pp (Completed 11/9/25)
96. When We Flew Away by Alice Hoffman (2024) 282 pp (Completed 15/9/25)
97. Devotions by Mary Oliver (2017) 442 pp (Completed 15/9/25)
98. The Rest of Our Lives by Benjamin Markovitz (2025) (Completed 30/9/25)
October
99. Touch Wood: Poems and a Story by Dannie Abse (2002) 88 pp (Completed 2/10/25)
100. Tin Man by Sarah Winman (2017) 195 pp (Completed 5/10/25)
101. Judas 62 by Charles Cumming (2021) 499 pp (Completed 15/10/25)
102. The Blazing World by Jonathon Healey (2023) 598 pp (Completed 28/10/25)
103. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin (1967) 229 pp (Completed 30/10/25)
Completion dates are based on the British system of (DD/MM/YY)
July
76. The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann (2017) 180 pp (Completed 31/7/25)
August
77. Audition by Katie Kitamura (2025) 197 pp (Completed 2/8/25)
78. Girlhood by Julia Copus (2019) 73 pp (Completed 3/8/25)
79. Home Boys by Alex Wheatle (2018) 231 pp (Completed 3/8/25)
80. The South by Tash Aw (2025) 270 pp (Completed 4/8/25)
81. Safe as Houses by Simone van der Vlught (2012) 262 pp (4/8/25)
82. The Wrecking Light by Robin Robertson (2010) 90 pp (8/8/25)
83. Highway 13 by Fiona McFarlane (2024) 296 pp (8/8/25)
84. The Cafe With No Name by Robert Seethaler (2023) 220 pp (Completed 10/8/25)
85. The Heeding by Rob Cowen (2021) 118 pp (Completed 16/8/25)
86. Once the Deed is Done by Rachel Seiffert (2025) 455 pp (Completed 16/8/25)
87. Canoes by Maylis de Kerangal (2021) 152 pp (Completed 17/8/25)
88. The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller (2024) 371 pp (Completed 24/8/25)
89. The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien (1954) 407 pp (Completed 24/8/25)
90. Universality by Natasha Brown (2025) 156pp (Completed 31/8/25)
September
91. Misinterpretation by Ledia Xhoga (2024) 321 pp (Completed 5/9/25)
92. Woke Racism by John McWhorter (2021) 187 pp (Completed 5/9/25)
93. Lit Up Inside by Van Morrison (2014) 201 pp (Completed 7/9/25)
94. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman (2020) 377 pp (Completed 7/9/25)
95. Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann (2017) 291 pp (Completed 11/9/25)
96. When We Flew Away by Alice Hoffman (2024) 282 pp (Completed 15/9/25)
97. Devotions by Mary Oliver (2017) 442 pp (Completed 15/9/25)
98. The Rest of Our Lives by Benjamin Markovitz (2025) (Completed 30/9/25)
October
99. Touch Wood: Poems and a Story by Dannie Abse (2002) 88 pp (Completed 2/10/25)
100. Tin Man by Sarah Winman (2017) 195 pp (Completed 5/10/25)
101. Judas 62 by Charles Cumming (2021) 499 pp (Completed 15/10/25)
102. The Blazing World by Jonathon Healey (2023) 598 pp (Completed 28/10/25)
103. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin (1967) 229 pp (Completed 30/10/25)
6PaulCranswick
Currently Reading
7PaulCranswick
THE GRAND EUROPEAN BOOK TOUR
January : Prelude - 19th Century Europe : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367210 - Colonel Chabert by Balzac
February : Nordic Nations : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368107
1. Night Blind by Ragnar Jonasson (Iceland)
2. Alphabet by Inger Christensen (Denmark)
3. In the Land of the Cyclops by Knausgaard (Norway)
4. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (Sweden)
5. Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson (Finland)
March : Warsaw Pact : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368897
Selected Poems by Zbigniew Herbert
April : Ottoman Empire
The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk
May : Non-National Languages : https://www.librarything.com/topic/370571
June : Caesar to Meloni : https://www.librarything.com/topic/371345
All Our Yesterdays by Natalia Ginzburg
The Experience of Pain by Carlo Emilia Gaddo
July : The Germanic World :
1. The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind
2. The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann
3. The Cafe With No Name by Robert Seethaler
August : Anita Fameulstee Memorial Month (Benelux) :
https://www.librarything.com/topic/372858
1. The Blue Bird by Maurice Maeterlinck
2. Safe as Houses by Simone van der Vlught
September : Books About European Places : https://www.librarything.com/topic/373424#n8936462
1. When We Flew Away by Alice Hoffman (Amsterdam)
October : La Belle France
1. Nagasaki by Eric Faye
2. Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix
3. The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois
4. The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis
5. Canoes by Maylis Kerangal
November : Iberian Peninsula
December : Back to the Future : 21st Century in translation
January : Prelude - 19th Century Europe : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367210 - Colonel Chabert by Balzac
February : Nordic Nations : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368107
1. Night Blind by Ragnar Jonasson (Iceland)
2. Alphabet by Inger Christensen (Denmark)
3. In the Land of the Cyclops by Knausgaard (Norway)
4. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (Sweden)
5. Comet in Moominland by Tove Jansson (Finland)
March : Warsaw Pact : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368897
Selected Poems by Zbigniew Herbert
April : Ottoman Empire
The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk
May : Non-National Languages : https://www.librarything.com/topic/370571
June : Caesar to Meloni : https://www.librarything.com/topic/371345
All Our Yesterdays by Natalia Ginzburg
The Experience of Pain by Carlo Emilia Gaddo
July : The Germanic World :
1. The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind
2. The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann
3. The Cafe With No Name by Robert Seethaler
August : Anita Fameulstee Memorial Month (Benelux) :
https://www.librarything.com/topic/372858
1. The Blue Bird by Maurice Maeterlinck
2. Safe as Houses by Simone van der Vlught
September : Books About European Places : https://www.librarything.com/topic/373424#n8936462
1. When We Flew Away by Alice Hoffman (Amsterdam)
October : La Belle France
1. Nagasaki by Eric Faye
2. Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix
3. The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois
4. The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis
5. Canoes by Maylis Kerangal
November : Iberian Peninsula
December : Back to the Future : 21st Century in translation
8PaulCranswick
British Author Challenge (Hosted by my friend Amanda)
January - The stage : https://www.librarything.com/topic/366934#8710962
Lost Empires by J.B. Priestley
February - Kia Abdullah : Take it Back & Adrian Tchaikovsky
March - Norah Lofts & Gerald Durrell
April - PD James & Paul Bailey
Original Sin by PD James
May - Nancy Mitford & Paul Scott
June - Elizabethan & Jacobean : Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
July - Dodie Smith & Mervyn Peake
August - Emily Tesh & Alex Wheatle
Home Boys by Alex Wheatle.
September - Leone Ross & Alan Moore
October - Sarah Moss & Christopher Isherwood
November -
December -
January - The stage : https://www.librarything.com/topic/366934#8710962
Lost Empires by J.B. Priestley
February - Kia Abdullah : Take it Back & Adrian Tchaikovsky
March - Norah Lofts & Gerald Durrell
April - PD James & Paul Bailey
Original Sin by PD James
May - Nancy Mitford & Paul Scott
June - Elizabethan & Jacobean : Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
July - Dodie Smith & Mervyn Peake
August - Emily Tesh & Alex Wheatle
Home Boys by Alex Wheatle.
September - Leone Ross & Alan Moore
October - Sarah Moss & Christopher Isherwood
November -
December -
9PaulCranswick
American Author Challenge (Hosted with occasional assistance this year by my friend Linda)
JANUARY - Pacific North West : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367006
The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
FEBRUARY - American Muslims (Guest Host) : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367970#n8746462
1. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
2. Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson
3. The Other Americans by Laila Lalami
MARCH - Stewart O'Nan (Guest Host; Katie)
APRIL - Appalachia - The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
MAY - Pulitzer History Prize Winners
JUNE - Willy Vlautin - Don't Skip Out on Me
JULY - Romance
AUGUST - True Crime - Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
SEPTEMBER - Alice Hoffman - When We Flew Away
OCTOBER - Westerns
NOVEMBER -
DECEMBER -
JANUARY - Pacific North West : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367006
The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
FEBRUARY - American Muslims (Guest Host) : https://www.librarything.com/topic/367970#n8746462
1. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
2. Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson
3. The Other Americans by Laila Lalami
MARCH - Stewart O'Nan (Guest Host; Katie)
APRIL - Appalachia - The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
MAY - Pulitzer History Prize Winners
JUNE - Willy Vlautin - Don't Skip Out on Me
JULY - Romance
AUGUST - True Crime - Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
SEPTEMBER - Alice Hoffman - When We Flew Away
OCTOBER - Westerns
NOVEMBER -
DECEMBER -
10PaulCranswick
NON-FICTION CHALLENGE
Hosted this year by my friend Benita. Challenge thread is here : https://www.librarything.com/topic/366835
January - Award Winners : The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane
February - Maps : The Power of Geography by Tim Marshall
March - Espionage : The Pigeon Tunnel by John le Carre
April - Revolutions : October by China Mieville
May - China : Wild Grass by Ian Johnson
June - Natural Disasters
July - Creatures of the Sea - The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois
August - The Movies -
September - Means of Transport
October - Bibliography -
Hosted this year by my friend Benita. Challenge thread is here : https://www.librarything.com/topic/366835
January - Award Winners : The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane
February - Maps : The Power of Geography by Tim Marshall
March - Espionage : The Pigeon Tunnel by John le Carre
April - Revolutions : October by China Mieville
May - China : Wild Grass by Ian Johnson
June - Natural Disasters
July - Creatures of the Sea - The Eloquence of the Sardine by Bill Francois
August - The Movies -
September - Means of Transport
October - Bibliography -
11PaulCranswick
50 Modern Classics of the last 50 years
1975 : The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
1976 : Blaming by Elizabeth Taylor
1977 : Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
1978 : The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan
1979 : The White Album by Joan Didion
1988 : The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind
2002 : Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
2008 : The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk
2009 : In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
2012 : Nagasaki by Eric Faye
2014 : The End of Eddy by Louis Eduoard
2017 : The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann
2019 : The Other Americans by Laila Lalami
2020 : The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
2021 : The Heeding by Rob Cowen
2022 : Heart Lamp Stories by Banu Mushtaq
2023 : Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
2024 : The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
2025 : Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell
1975 : The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
1976 : Blaming by Elizabeth Taylor
1977 : Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
1978 : The Cement Garden by Ian McEwan
1979 : The White Album by Joan Didion
1988 : The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind
2002 : Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
2008 : The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk
2009 : In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin
2012 : Nagasaki by Eric Faye
2014 : The End of Eddy by Louis Eduoard
2017 : The Pine Islands by Marion Poschmann
2019 : The Other Americans by Laila Lalami
2020 : The Cold Millions by Jess Walter
2021 : The Heeding by Rob Cowen
2022 : Heart Lamp Stories by Banu Mushtaq
2023 : Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
2024 : The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
2025 : Nesting by Roisin O'Donnell
12PaulCranswick
Big Book Challenge
Link to thread : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368910#n8778254
I am currently failing miserably with this challenge and it is almost an embarrassment putting it on my thread. Hopefully this month I can make it look a little more respectable.
March - Fyodor Dostoevsky or alternatives
April - Orhan Pamuk, Nikos Kazantzakis or much further back
The Museum of Innocence
May - Iberian Tomes : Cervantes, or alternatives
June - Victorian Ladies : George Eliot, or alternatives
July - Gunter Grass or alternatives
August - Harry Mulisch or alternatives
September - Americana - Larry McMurtry or alternatives
October - Non-Fiction Biggies
Link to thread : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368910#n8778254
I am currently failing miserably with this challenge and it is almost an embarrassment putting it on my thread. Hopefully this month I can make it look a little more respectable.
March - Fyodor Dostoevsky or alternatives
April - Orhan Pamuk, Nikos Kazantzakis or much further back
The Museum of Innocence
May - Iberian Tomes : Cervantes, or alternatives
June - Victorian Ladies : George Eliot, or alternatives
July - Gunter Grass or alternatives
August - Harry Mulisch or alternatives
September - Americana - Larry McMurtry or alternatives
October - Non-Fiction Biggies
13PaulCranswick
BOOKER SHORTLIST
THE BOOKER PRIZE shortlist has been announced:
Kiran Desai - The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny
Ben Markovits - The Rest of Our Lives - READ
Katie Kitamura - Audition - READ
Susan Choi - Flashlight - Owned
Andrew Miller - The Land in Winter - READ
David Szalay - Flesh - Owned
Current ranking:
1. Markovitz
2. Miller
3. Kitamura
THE BOOKER PRIZE shortlist has been announced:
Kiran Desai - The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny
Ben Markovits - The Rest of Our Lives - READ
Katie Kitamura - Audition - READ
Susan Choi - Flashlight - Owned
Andrew Miller - The Land in Winter - READ
David Szalay - Flesh - Owned
Current ranking:
1. Markovitz
2. Miller
3. Kitamura
14PaulCranswick
Incumbent Award Winners
Here are 85 active awards that I keep an eye on across the Anglosphere together with the incumbent winners. All are fiction of a sort - non-fiction awards will be subject of a separate post. I have not included foreign language awards from France, Germany, Scandinavia, Italy etc which again will be subject to a separate post
Given my background 44 of the awards are British, 20 are from the US, 9 from Australia, 4 from Canada, 4 from NZ and 2 from Ireland and 2 are international awards not tied to a particular country.
Genre wise 52 could be termed as literary awards
14 are crime and thriller awards
6 are SF and Fantasy awards
3 are YA awards
Here is the list for those interested
1 Stella Prize : Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretser, Australian Award READ
2 Miles Franklin : Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright, Australian Award Owned
3 Australian Book Industry Literary Fiction Winner : Dusk by Robbie Arnott, Australian Award
4 Australian Book Industry International Book : The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, Australian Award Owned
5 Prime Minister's Literary Awards : Anam by Andre Dao, Australian Award Owned
6 Giller Prize : Held by Anne Michaels, Canadian Award READ
7 Governor General's Prize : Empty Spaces by Jordan Abel, Canadian Award
8 Atwood Gibson Prize : Batshit Seven by Sheung-King Owned
9 International Dublin Literary Prize : The Adversary by Michael Crummey Owned
10 Kerry Irish Fiction Award : Time of the Child by Niall Williams, Irish Award Owned
11 Acorn Prize for Fiction : Delirious by Damien Wilkins NZ Award
12 Hubert Church Best First Fiction : Poorhara by Michelle Rahurahu NZ Award
13 Sir Walter Scott Prize : The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller UK Award Owned
14 British Book Awards Best Novel : James by Percival Everett, UK Award READ
15 British Book Awards Best Debut Novel : Butter by Asako Yazuki, UK Award Owned
16 Rubery International Book Award for Fiction : The Heron Catchers by David Joiner, UK Award
17 James Tait Black Prize : My Heavenly Favourite by Lucas Rijneveld, UK Award Owned
18 Jhalak Prize for Prose : Namesake by N.S, Nuseibeh Owned
19 The Dylan Thomas Prize : The Coin by Yasmin Zaher, UK Award Owned
20 Ondaatje Prize : Clear by Carys Davies, UK Award Owned
21 Orwell Fiction Prize : Heart, Be at Peace by Donal Ryan, UK Award Owned
22 Booker Prize : Orbital by Samantha Harvey, UK Award READ
23 International Booker Prize :Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, UK Award READ
24 Saltire Fiction Book of the Year : What Doesn't Kill Us by Ajay Close, UK Award
25 Rhys Davies Trust Fiction Award (Wales) : The Unbroken Beauty of Rosalind Bone by Alex McCarthy, UK Award
26 Goldsmith's Prize : Parade by Rachel Cusk, UK Award Owned
27 Hawthornden Prize : Orbital by Samantha Harvey, UK Award READ
28 Republic of Consciousness Prize : There's A Monster Behind the Door by Gaelle Belem, UK Award Owned
29 Writers Prize for Fiction : The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright, UK Award READ
30 Portico Prize : Toto Among the Murderers by Sally J Morgan, UK Award
31 Waterstone's Book of the Year: Butter by Asako Yazuki, UK Award Owned
32 Waterstone's Debut Novel : Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon, UK Award READ
33 Reader's Award for Fiction : You are Here by David Nicholls, UK Award Owned
34 Gordon Burn Prize : Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, Owned
35 Nota Bene Prize : Kala by Colin Walsh, UK Award Owned
36 Betty Trask Award : Winter Animals by Ashani Lewis, UK Award Owned
37 Author's Club Best First Novel : Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon, UK Award READ
38 Sunday Times Young Writer Award : Rural Hours by Harriet Baker Owned
39 Nero Fiction Award Lost in the Garden Adam S. Leslie UK LIT
40 Nero Debut Fiction Award : Wild Houses by Colin Barrett, UK Award Owned
41 Pulitzer : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
42 National Book Award : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
43 National Book Critics Circle Award : My Friends by Hisham Matar, USA Award Owned
44 LA Times Book Prize : Say Hello to My Little Friend by Jennine Capo Crucet, USA Award Owned
45 Andrew Carnegie Medal : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
46 Carol Shields Prize : Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin, USA Award Owned
47 Center for Fiction First Novel : God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer by Joseph Earl Thomas, USA Award Owned
48 Chautauqua Prize : Whale Fall by Elizabeth O'Connor USA Award Owned
49 Pen Hemingway Debut Fiction Early Sobrieties Michael Deagler USA LIT
50 Pen Faulkner Award : Small Rain by Garth Greenwell Owned
51 Kirkus Prize : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
52 LA Times Art Seidenbaum First Fiction Award Cinema Love Jiaming Tang USA LIT
53 Aurealis Best Fantasy Novel Thoroughly Disenchanted Alexandra Almond Aust SF
54 Aurora Book Award Valkyrie Kate Heartfield Canada SF
55 Arthur C Clarke Award : Annie Bot by Sarah Greer, UK Award Owned
56 Robert Holdstock British Fantasy Novel Talonsister Jenn Williams UK SF
57 Hugo Awards : Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh, USA award Owned
58 Nebula Award Someone You Can Build a Nest In John Wiswell USA SF
59 Ned Kelly Best Book : Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth, Australian Award Owned
60 Ned Kelly Best Debut Book Murder in the Pacific: Ifira Point Matt Francis Aust Thriller
61 Ned Kelly International Award : The Only Suspect by Louise Candlish, Australian Award Owned
62 Macavity Best Mystery Novel : All the Sinners Bleed by S.A.Cosby Owned
63 Macavity Best First Mystery Novel : The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry Owned
64 Ngaio Awards Best Novel Ritual of Fire D.V. Bishop NZ Thriller
65 Ngaio Awards Best Debut Novel Dice Claire Bayliss NZ Thriller
66 CWA Gold Dagger : The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola Owned
67 CWA John Creasey First Novel Dagger All Us Sinners Katie Massey UK Thriller
68 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Dark Ride Lou Berney UK Thriller
69 CWA Historical Dagger The Betrayal of Thomas True AJ West UK Thriller
70 CWA Crime Fiction in Translation : The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani Owned
71 CWA Twisted Dagger : Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra Owned
72 CWA Whodunnit Dagger The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl Lisa Hall UK Thriller
73 Sue Feder Award for Best Historical Mystery The Mistress of Bhatia House Sujata Massey UK Thriller
74 Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Book of the Year : In the Blink of an Eye by Jo Callaghan, UK award Owned
75 McIlvanney Prize for Best Scottish Crime Novel : The Cracked Mirror by Christopher Brookmyre, UK Award Owned
76 Bloody Scotland Debut Book of the Year The Silent House of Sleep Allan Gaw UK Thriller
77 British Book Awards Crime & Thriller Award : Hunted by Abir Mukherjee, UK Award Owned
78 Shirley Jackson Award : The Reformatory by Tananarive Due Owned
79 Edgar Best Novel Award : The In Crowd by Charlotte Vassell, USA Award Owned
80 Edgar Best First Novel by American Author : Holy City by Henry Wise, USA Award Owned
81 Anthony Award for Best Novel : All the Sinners Bleed by S.A.Cosby Owned
82 Anthony Award for Best First Novel : The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry Owned
83 Carnegie Medal for YA Fiction Glasgow Boys Margaret McDonald UK YA
84 Nero Children's Fiction Award The Twelve Liz Hyder UK YA
85 Newbery Medal Winner : The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly, USA Award Owned
Own or Read 59/85 award winners
Here are 85 active awards that I keep an eye on across the Anglosphere together with the incumbent winners. All are fiction of a sort - non-fiction awards will be subject of a separate post. I have not included foreign language awards from France, Germany, Scandinavia, Italy etc which again will be subject to a separate post
Given my background 44 of the awards are British, 20 are from the US, 9 from Australia, 4 from Canada, 4 from NZ and 2 from Ireland and 2 are international awards not tied to a particular country.
Genre wise 52 could be termed as literary awards
14 are crime and thriller awards
6 are SF and Fantasy awards
3 are YA awards
Here is the list for those interested
1 Stella Prize : Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretser, Australian Award READ
2 Miles Franklin : Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright, Australian Award Owned
3 Australian Book Industry Literary Fiction Winner : Dusk by Robbie Arnott, Australian Award
4 Australian Book Industry International Book : The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, Australian Award Owned
5 Prime Minister's Literary Awards : Anam by Andre Dao, Australian Award Owned
6 Giller Prize : Held by Anne Michaels, Canadian Award READ
7 Governor General's Prize : Empty Spaces by Jordan Abel, Canadian Award
8 Atwood Gibson Prize : Batshit Seven by Sheung-King Owned
9 International Dublin Literary Prize : The Adversary by Michael Crummey Owned
10 Kerry Irish Fiction Award : Time of the Child by Niall Williams, Irish Award Owned
11 Acorn Prize for Fiction : Delirious by Damien Wilkins NZ Award
12 Hubert Church Best First Fiction : Poorhara by Michelle Rahurahu NZ Award
13 Sir Walter Scott Prize : The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller UK Award Owned
14 British Book Awards Best Novel : James by Percival Everett, UK Award READ
15 British Book Awards Best Debut Novel : Butter by Asako Yazuki, UK Award Owned
16 Rubery International Book Award for Fiction : The Heron Catchers by David Joiner, UK Award
17 James Tait Black Prize : My Heavenly Favourite by Lucas Rijneveld, UK Award Owned
18 Jhalak Prize for Prose : Namesake by N.S, Nuseibeh Owned
19 The Dylan Thomas Prize : The Coin by Yasmin Zaher, UK Award Owned
20 Ondaatje Prize : Clear by Carys Davies, UK Award Owned
21 Orwell Fiction Prize : Heart, Be at Peace by Donal Ryan, UK Award Owned
22 Booker Prize : Orbital by Samantha Harvey, UK Award READ
23 International Booker Prize :Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq, UK Award READ
24 Saltire Fiction Book of the Year : What Doesn't Kill Us by Ajay Close, UK Award
25 Rhys Davies Trust Fiction Award (Wales) : The Unbroken Beauty of Rosalind Bone by Alex McCarthy, UK Award
26 Goldsmith's Prize : Parade by Rachel Cusk, UK Award Owned
27 Hawthornden Prize : Orbital by Samantha Harvey, UK Award READ
28 Republic of Consciousness Prize : There's A Monster Behind the Door by Gaelle Belem, UK Award Owned
29 Writers Prize for Fiction : The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright, UK Award READ
30 Portico Prize : Toto Among the Murderers by Sally J Morgan, UK Award
31 Waterstone's Book of the Year: Butter by Asako Yazuki, UK Award Owned
32 Waterstone's Debut Novel : Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon, UK Award READ
33 Reader's Award for Fiction : You are Here by David Nicholls, UK Award Owned
34 Gordon Burn Prize : Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, Owned
35 Nota Bene Prize : Kala by Colin Walsh, UK Award Owned
36 Betty Trask Award : Winter Animals by Ashani Lewis, UK Award Owned
37 Author's Club Best First Novel : Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon, UK Award READ
38 Sunday Times Young Writer Award : Rural Hours by Harriet Baker Owned
39 Nero Fiction Award Lost in the Garden Adam S. Leslie UK LIT
40 Nero Debut Fiction Award : Wild Houses by Colin Barrett, UK Award Owned
41 Pulitzer : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
42 National Book Award : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
43 National Book Critics Circle Award : My Friends by Hisham Matar, USA Award Owned
44 LA Times Book Prize : Say Hello to My Little Friend by Jennine Capo Crucet, USA Award Owned
45 Andrew Carnegie Medal : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
46 Carol Shields Prize : Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin, USA Award Owned
47 Center for Fiction First Novel : God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer by Joseph Earl Thomas, USA Award Owned
48 Chautauqua Prize : Whale Fall by Elizabeth O'Connor USA Award Owned
49 Pen Hemingway Debut Fiction Early Sobrieties Michael Deagler USA LIT
50 Pen Faulkner Award : Small Rain by Garth Greenwell Owned
51 Kirkus Prize : James by Percival Everett, USA Award READ
52 LA Times Art Seidenbaum First Fiction Award Cinema Love Jiaming Tang USA LIT
53 Aurealis Best Fantasy Novel Thoroughly Disenchanted Alexandra Almond Aust SF
54 Aurora Book Award Valkyrie Kate Heartfield Canada SF
55 Arthur C Clarke Award : Annie Bot by Sarah Greer, UK Award Owned
56 Robert Holdstock British Fantasy Novel Talonsister Jenn Williams UK SF
57 Hugo Awards : Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh, USA award Owned
58 Nebula Award Someone You Can Build a Nest In John Wiswell USA SF
59 Ned Kelly Best Book : Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth, Australian Award Owned
60 Ned Kelly Best Debut Book Murder in the Pacific: Ifira Point Matt Francis Aust Thriller
61 Ned Kelly International Award : The Only Suspect by Louise Candlish, Australian Award Owned
62 Macavity Best Mystery Novel : All the Sinners Bleed by S.A.Cosby Owned
63 Macavity Best First Mystery Novel : The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry Owned
64 Ngaio Awards Best Novel Ritual of Fire D.V. Bishop NZ Thriller
65 Ngaio Awards Best Debut Novel Dice Claire Bayliss NZ Thriller
66 CWA Gold Dagger : The Book of Secrets by Anna Mazzola Owned
67 CWA John Creasey First Novel Dagger All Us Sinners Katie Massey UK Thriller
68 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Dark Ride Lou Berney UK Thriller
69 CWA Historical Dagger The Betrayal of Thomas True AJ West UK Thriller
70 CWA Crime Fiction in Translation : The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani Owned
71 CWA Twisted Dagger : Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra Owned
72 CWA Whodunnit Dagger The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl Lisa Hall UK Thriller
73 Sue Feder Award for Best Historical Mystery The Mistress of Bhatia House Sujata Massey UK Thriller
74 Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Book of the Year : In the Blink of an Eye by Jo Callaghan, UK award Owned
75 McIlvanney Prize for Best Scottish Crime Novel : The Cracked Mirror by Christopher Brookmyre, UK Award Owned
76 Bloody Scotland Debut Book of the Year The Silent House of Sleep Allan Gaw UK Thriller
77 British Book Awards Crime & Thriller Award : Hunted by Abir Mukherjee, UK Award Owned
78 Shirley Jackson Award : The Reformatory by Tananarive Due Owned
79 Edgar Best Novel Award : The In Crowd by Charlotte Vassell, USA Award Owned
80 Edgar Best First Novel by American Author : Holy City by Henry Wise, USA Award Owned
81 Anthony Award for Best Novel : All the Sinners Bleed by S.A.Cosby Owned
82 Anthony Award for Best First Novel : The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry Owned
83 Carnegie Medal for YA Fiction Glasgow Boys Margaret McDonald UK YA
84 Nero Children's Fiction Award The Twelve Liz Hyder UK YA
85 Newbery Medal Winner : The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly, USA Award Owned
Own or Read 59/85 award winners
15PaulCranswick
Books Added in 2025
January & February Books 1-64 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368611#8767173
March & April Books 65-124 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/369865#8810025
May & June Books 125-210 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/371621#8881561
July & August Books 211-305 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/373093#8921718
September :
306. Limberlost by Robbie Arnott
307. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
308. Dark Like Under by Alice Chadwick
309. The Gold Bug Variations by Richard Powers
310. Native Nations by Kathleen Duval
311. Unruly by David Mitchell
312. The Blazing World by Jonathan Healey READ
313. Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden
314. Black Magic by Marjorie Bowen
315. The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
316. Covered With Night by Nicole Eustace
317. The Colonel and the Eunuch by Mai Jia
318. Fall Out by Tim Shipman
319. Highway Cottage by Ralf Webb
320. Aaron's Rod by D.H. Lawrence
321. Adrift on the Pacific by Edward S. Ellis
322. Dracula's Guest by Bram Stoker
323. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
324. Tar by Sherwood Anderson
325. Birds of Prey by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
326. Water at the Roots by Philip Britts READ
327. The Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper
328. Sketches by Boz by Charles Dickens
329. The Titan by Theodore Dreiser
330. Children of the Soil by Henrik Pontoppidan
331. Robinson by Muriel Spark
332. Alice Adams by Booth Tarkington
333. Away by Jane Urquhart
334. Michael Strogoff by Jules Verne
335. William the Silent by CV Wedgwood
336. The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll
337. How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz
338. The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt
339. The Harm Tree by Rose Edwards
340. The Tulip Touch by Anne Fine
341. Transcendent by Patrick Gallagher
342. The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke
343. Never Forget You by Jamila Gavin
344. The Rapture by Claire McGlasson
345. The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylvainen
346. The Doctor's Wife by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
347. Beside the Ocean of Time by George MacKay Brown
348. Every One Still Here by Liadan Ni Chuinn
349. Julius by Daphne du Maurier
350. Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
351. The Feeling of Iron by Giaime Alonge
352. Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth
353. Herscht 07769 by Laszlo Krasznahorkai
354. Cold Victory by Karl Marlantes
355. The White Bear by Henrik Pontoppidan
356. The Blood of Others by Simone de Beauvoir
357. Good Pop Bad Pop by Jarvis Cocker
358. Accidents in the Home by Tessa Hadley
359. In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden
360. Small Rain by Garth Greenwell
361. Helm by Sarah Hall
362. Creepy Crawly by Andrew Lowe
363. Watchmen by Alan Moore
364. Awaydays by Kevin Sampson
365. Not Waving but Drowning by Stevie Smith
366. Where the Line Bleeds by Jesmyn Ward
367. Seascraper by Benjamin Wood
368. Here Be Icebergs by Katya Adaui
369. Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
370. Kennedy 35 by Charles Cumming
371. Radical: A Life of My Own by Xiaolu Guo
372. Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yiyun Li
373. The Carrying by Ada Limon
374. Someone Like Us by Dinaw Mengestu
375. The Watermark by Sam Mills
376. All the Blood is Red by Leone Ross
377. Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare
378. Strange Pictures by Uketsu
379. The Monsters We Deserve by Marcus Sedgwick
October
380. A Life on Our Planet by David Attenborough
381. Final Exam by Julio Cortazar
382. Omensetter's Luck by William H. Gass
383. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin READ
384. Fellow Travelers by Thomas Mallon
385. Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy
386. The Racket by Conor Niland
387. A Bookshop of One's Own by Jane Cholmeley
388. Ootlin by Jenni Fagan
389. This is Not a Small Voice: Selected Poems by Sonia Sanchez
390. The Adversary by Michael Crummey
391. Rural Hours by Harriet Baker
392. The Great When by Alan Moore
393. Namesake by N.S. Nuseibeh
394. Ali and Nino by Kurban Said
395. Batshit Seven by Sheung-King
396. Watermark by Joseph Brodsky
397. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
398. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
399. Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte
400. Familiaris by David Wroblewski
401. Life, Love and the Archers by Wendy Cope
402. Supporting Cast by Kit de Waal
403. The Penny Dropping by Helen Farish
404. Choice by Neel Mukherjee
405. The Lamb by Lucy Rose
406. Nick of the Woods by Robert Montgomery Bird
407. Mary Derwent by Ann S. Stephens
408. At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honore de Balzac
409. Tales of the Alhambra by Washington Irving
410. Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoevsky
411. Mr. Midshipman Easy y Frederick Marryat
412. Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth
413. Pelham by Edward Bulwer Lytton
414. A Common Story by Ivan Goncharov
415. Taras Bulba by Nikolai Gogol
416. Carmen by Prosper Merimee
417. Hide and Seek by Wilkie Collins
418. The Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue
419. Consuelo by George Sand
420. Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock
421. The Misfortunes of Elphin by Thomas Love Peacock
422. Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
423. Patriot by Alexei Navalny
424. Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life by Jason Roberts
425. Memoirs of an Arab-Jew by Avi Shlaim
426. Three Wild Dogs by Markus Zusak
427. The Ordeal of Richard Feveral by George Meredith
428. Under Two Flags by Ouida
429. The Refugees by Arthur Conan-Doyle
430. Cashel Byron's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
431. The Red Room by August Strindberg
432. Footsteps of Fate by Louis Couperus
433. A Foregone Conclusion by William Dean Howells
434. The Young Fur Traders by RM Ballantyne
435. Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald
436. Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant
437. The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Gustave Flaubert
438. The Virginian by Owen Wister
439. A Hero of Our Time by Michael Lermontov
The Complete Works of Charles Reade
440. A Perilous Secret by Charles Reade
441. The Cloister and the Hearth by Charles Reade
442. A Simpleton by Charles Reade
443. White Lies by Charles Reade
444. Put Yourself in His Place by Charles Reade
445. Hard Cash by Charles Reade
446. The Woman-Hater by Charles Reade
447. Peg Woffington by Charles Reade
448. Christie Johnstone by Charles Reade
449. Foul Play by Charles Reade
450. It's Never Too Late to Mend by Charles Reade
451. Love Me Little, Love Me Long by Charles Reade
452. Griffith Gaunt by Charles Reade
453. A Terrible Temptation by Charles Reade
454. Water, Water: Poems by Billy Collins
455. Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin
456. Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams READ
457. I Lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin
458. The Terrible by Yrsa Daley-Ward
459. I am David by Anne Holm READ
460. The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis
461. The Third Realm by Karl-Ove Knausgaard
462. My Enemy, My Friend by Elizabeth Laird
463. Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
464. Playground by Richard Powers
465. House of Day, House of Night by Olga Tokarczuk
466. Fenny by Lettice Cooper
467. My Life by Golda Meir
468. Leo by Deon Meyer
469. By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle
470. On Savage Shores by Caroline Dodds Pennock
471. A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
472. The Romany Rye by George Borrow
473. Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
474. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger
475. Struggling Upwards by Horatio Alger
476. The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendahl
477. Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
478. Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu
479. We Gather Together by Wendy Pffefer READ
480. Songs of Blood and Sword by Fatima Bhutto
481. Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood by David Fisher READ
482. The End of Nature by Bill McKibben
483. Hear the Wind Sing by Haruki Murakami
484. Pinball, 1973
485. Pimp: The Story of My Life by Iceberg Slim
486. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
487. The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann
488. Lucy Carmichael by Margaret Kennedy
489. Pericles by William Shakespeare
490. Moral Injuries by Christie Watson
January & February Books 1-64 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/368611#8767173
March & April Books 65-124 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/369865#8810025
May & June Books 125-210 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/371621#8881561
July & August Books 211-305 : https://www.librarything.com/topic/373093#8921718
September :
306. Limberlost by Robbie Arnott
307. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
308. Dark Like Under by Alice Chadwick
309. The Gold Bug Variations by Richard Powers
310. Native Nations by Kathleen Duval
311. Unruly by David Mitchell
312. The Blazing World by Jonathan Healey READ
313. Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden
314. Black Magic by Marjorie Bowen
315. The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
316. Covered With Night by Nicole Eustace
317. The Colonel and the Eunuch by Mai Jia
318. Fall Out by Tim Shipman
319. Highway Cottage by Ralf Webb
320. Aaron's Rod by D.H. Lawrence
321. Adrift on the Pacific by Edward S. Ellis
322. Dracula's Guest by Bram Stoker
323. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
324. Tar by Sherwood Anderson
325. Birds of Prey by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
326. Water at the Roots by Philip Britts READ
327. The Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper
328. Sketches by Boz by Charles Dickens
329. The Titan by Theodore Dreiser
330. Children of the Soil by Henrik Pontoppidan
331. Robinson by Muriel Spark
332. Alice Adams by Booth Tarkington
333. Away by Jane Urquhart
334. Michael Strogoff by Jules Verne
335. William the Silent by CV Wedgwood
336. The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll
337. How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz
338. The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt
339. The Harm Tree by Rose Edwards
340. The Tulip Touch by Anne Fine
341. Transcendent by Patrick Gallagher
342. The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke
343. Never Forget You by Jamila Gavin
344. The Rapture by Claire McGlasson
345. The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylvainen
346. The Doctor's Wife by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
347. Beside the Ocean of Time by George MacKay Brown
348. Every One Still Here by Liadan Ni Chuinn
349. Julius by Daphne du Maurier
350. Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
351. The Feeling of Iron by Giaime Alonge
352. Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth
353. Herscht 07769 by Laszlo Krasznahorkai
354. Cold Victory by Karl Marlantes
355. The White Bear by Henrik Pontoppidan
356. The Blood of Others by Simone de Beauvoir
357. Good Pop Bad Pop by Jarvis Cocker
358. Accidents in the Home by Tessa Hadley
359. In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden
360. Small Rain by Garth Greenwell
361. Helm by Sarah Hall
362. Creepy Crawly by Andrew Lowe
363. Watchmen by Alan Moore
364. Awaydays by Kevin Sampson
365. Not Waving but Drowning by Stevie Smith
366. Where the Line Bleeds by Jesmyn Ward
367. Seascraper by Benjamin Wood
368. Here Be Icebergs by Katya Adaui
369. Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
370. Kennedy 35 by Charles Cumming
371. Radical: A Life of My Own by Xiaolu Guo
372. Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yiyun Li
373. The Carrying by Ada Limon
374. Someone Like Us by Dinaw Mengestu
375. The Watermark by Sam Mills
376. All the Blood is Red by Leone Ross
377. Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare
378. Strange Pictures by Uketsu
379. The Monsters We Deserve by Marcus Sedgwick
October
380. A Life on Our Planet by David Attenborough
381. Final Exam by Julio Cortazar
382. Omensetter's Luck by William H. Gass
383. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin READ
384. Fellow Travelers by Thomas Mallon
385. Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy
386. The Racket by Conor Niland
387. A Bookshop of One's Own by Jane Cholmeley
388. Ootlin by Jenni Fagan
389. This is Not a Small Voice: Selected Poems by Sonia Sanchez
390. The Adversary by Michael Crummey
391. Rural Hours by Harriet Baker
392. The Great When by Alan Moore
393. Namesake by N.S. Nuseibeh
394. Ali and Nino by Kurban Said
395. Batshit Seven by Sheung-King
396. Watermark by Joseph Brodsky
397. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
398. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
399. Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte
400. Familiaris by David Wroblewski
401. Life, Love and the Archers by Wendy Cope
402. Supporting Cast by Kit de Waal
403. The Penny Dropping by Helen Farish
404. Choice by Neel Mukherjee
405. The Lamb by Lucy Rose
406. Nick of the Woods by Robert Montgomery Bird
407. Mary Derwent by Ann S. Stephens
408. At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honore de Balzac
409. Tales of the Alhambra by Washington Irving
410. Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoevsky
411. Mr. Midshipman Easy y Frederick Marryat
412. Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth
413. Pelham by Edward Bulwer Lytton
414. A Common Story by Ivan Goncharov
415. Taras Bulba by Nikolai Gogol
416. Carmen by Prosper Merimee
417. Hide and Seek by Wilkie Collins
418. The Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue
419. Consuelo by George Sand
420. Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock
421. The Misfortunes of Elphin by Thomas Love Peacock
422. Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
423. Patriot by Alexei Navalny
424. Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life by Jason Roberts
425. Memoirs of an Arab-Jew by Avi Shlaim
426. Three Wild Dogs by Markus Zusak
427. The Ordeal of Richard Feveral by George Meredith
428. Under Two Flags by Ouida
429. The Refugees by Arthur Conan-Doyle
430. Cashel Byron's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
431. The Red Room by August Strindberg
432. Footsteps of Fate by Louis Couperus
433. A Foregone Conclusion by William Dean Howells
434. The Young Fur Traders by RM Ballantyne
435. Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald
436. Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant
437. The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Gustave Flaubert
438. The Virginian by Owen Wister
439. A Hero of Our Time by Michael Lermontov
The Complete Works of Charles Reade
440. A Perilous Secret by Charles Reade
441. The Cloister and the Hearth by Charles Reade
442. A Simpleton by Charles Reade
443. White Lies by Charles Reade
444. Put Yourself in His Place by Charles Reade
445. Hard Cash by Charles Reade
446. The Woman-Hater by Charles Reade
447. Peg Woffington by Charles Reade
448. Christie Johnstone by Charles Reade
449. Foul Play by Charles Reade
450. It's Never Too Late to Mend by Charles Reade
451. Love Me Little, Love Me Long by Charles Reade
452. Griffith Gaunt by Charles Reade
453. A Terrible Temptation by Charles Reade
454. Water, Water: Poems by Billy Collins
455. Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin
456. Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams READ
457. I Lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin
458. The Terrible by Yrsa Daley-Ward
459. I am David by Anne Holm READ
460. The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis
461. The Third Realm by Karl-Ove Knausgaard
462. My Enemy, My Friend by Elizabeth Laird
463. Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
464. Playground by Richard Powers
465. House of Day, House of Night by Olga Tokarczuk
466. Fenny by Lettice Cooper
467. My Life by Golda Meir
468. Leo by Deon Meyer
469. By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle
470. On Savage Shores by Caroline Dodds Pennock
471. A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
472. The Romany Rye by George Borrow
473. Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
474. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger
475. Struggling Upwards by Horatio Alger
476. The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendahl
477. Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
478. Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu
479. We Gather Together by Wendy Pffefer READ
480. Songs of Blood and Sword by Fatima Bhutto
481. Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood by David Fisher READ
482. The End of Nature by Bill McKibben
483. Hear the Wind Sing by Haruki Murakami
484. Pinball, 1973
485. Pimp: The Story of My Life by Iceberg Slim
486. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
487. The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann
488. Lucy Carmichael by Margaret Kennedy
489. Pericles by William Shakespeare
490. Moral Injuries by Christie Watson
16richardderus
New thread orisons, PC!
17avatiakh
Love the header image. I read a book a few years back that started off with a scene set at that library in Aix-en-Provence, possibly The Absolute Book.
18figsfromthistle
HAppy new one!
19PaulCranswick
Book Stats
20PaulCranswick
Family Photo
October is my son Kyran's month. He will be 26 years old on 18 October
October is my son Kyran's month. He will be 26 years old on 18 October
21PaulCranswick
Welcome to my 20th thread
22amanda4242
Happy new thread!
25vancouverdeb
Happy New 🧵, Paul!
26SilverWolf28
Happy New Thread!
27PaulCranswick
>16 richardderus: Thank you dear fellow. I got pulled away into an argument on how to measure delay in construction projects whilst setting up!
>17 avatiakh: It is striking, Kerry, isn't it? I was going to lead with a picture of my favourite place in France which is Port Vendres on the Spanish border.
>17 avatiakh: It is striking, Kerry, isn't it? I was going to lead with a picture of my favourite place in France which is Port Vendres on the Spanish border.
28PaulCranswick
>18 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita. Always a pleasure to see you in these parts.
>22 amanda4242: Thank you dear Amanda.
>22 amanda4242: Thank you dear Amanda.
29PaulCranswick
>23 Kristelh: The header is quite striking isn't it, Kristel. Thanks for dropping by, book twin.
>24 quondame: Thank you dear Susan. I need to stop by your place to check on you and drop my sadly belated birthday wishes. Life is a bit hectic at work just now.
>24 quondame: Thank you dear Susan. I need to stop by your place to check on you and drop my sadly belated birthday wishes. Life is a bit hectic at work just now.
30PaulCranswick
>25 vancouverdeb: Thanks Deb. Always a pleasure to see you spinning that yarn to my benefit xx
>26 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver. You have probably read two books whilst I have been setting up this this thread!
>26 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver. You have probably read two books whilst I have been setting up this this thread!
31quondame
>29 PaulCranswick: Belated bday wishes would be for last year. I'm still 76 for most of this year.
32PaulCranswick
>31 quondame: So very belated then! I am sure that I got a notification that it was your birthday a few days ago.
34PaulCranswick
>33 SirThomas: Thank you, dear Thomas
35booksaplenty1949
Ewww—-Le Petit Prince. Agreed a few years back, reluctantly, to re-read it with my reading group, the one where we read aloud, in turn, for an hour every week. At least I was assured that my response to my first reading, in childhood—😝—was spot on.
37alcottacre
>2 PaulCranswick: I am interested, I just cannot get my hands on the book at the moment.
Happy new thread, Paul!
Happy new thread, Paul!
39louisisaloafofbreb
Happy new thread!
40Matke
My goodness, congratulations on reaching 100 books read and on starting a new thread, Paul!
And from the last thread, thanks for the stats.
And from the last thread, thanks for the stats.
41PaulCranswick
>36 msf59: I do my best, Mark!
>37 alcottacre: That surprises me, Stasia, because the book seems to be everywhere at the moment.
>37 alcottacre: That surprises me, Stasia, because the book seems to be everywhere at the moment.
42PaulCranswick
>38 humouress: Thank you, Nina - it is a rare year indeed that I don't get to at least 100 books.
>39 louisisaloafofbreb: Thanks Lily.
>39 louisisaloafofbreb: Thanks Lily.
43PaulCranswick
>40 Matke: Thank you, Gail. I get a lot of fun from keeping the stats.
44hredwards
>1 PaulCranswick: Now there's a book that would hurt if you fell asleep reading it!!
46PaulCranswick
>44 hredwards: Yeah Harold that would damage your glasses for sure!
>45 hredwards: Thank you, dear fellow.
>45 hredwards: Thank you, dear fellow.
48PaulCranswick
>47 foggidawn: Thank you, Foggi. Always a pleasure to see you here.
49johnsimpson
Hi Paul, Happy New Thread mate. Hope all is well with you and the family, we are both fine although Fretty Flora (Karen) worries that i might have a fall while she is at work. This is because when i had a telephone appointment a couple of weeks ago, Lindsay Burrow (Rob's widow) said that the x-rays i had to determine whether the surgeon goes into my neck on right front or right rear, showed up more damage to my spinal column. She said i really needed to avoid a hard fall as worse case scenario was that it could damage my spinal cord leading to paralysis. Still waiting for a surgery date even though they have said it is a priority to get my neck sorted.
I got a letter last week that said Mr Corns would be fitting a cage and a metal plate to stabalise the spinal column and protect my spinal cord.
I got a letter last week that said Mr Corns would be fitting a cage and a metal plate to stabalise the spinal column and protect my spinal cord.
50PaulCranswick
>49 johnsimpson: Lovely to see you, John, but I wish you and Karen had less cause to be anxious. Take things steady mate and I am sure that eventually things will get done that makes your body less susceptible to trouble.
51Familyhistorian
Happy new thread, Paul. Number 20? No wonder I have a hard time keeping up!
52PaulCranswick
>51 Familyhistorian: Thanks Meg, me too!
53PaulCranswick
LASZLO KRASZNAHORKAI has won the Nobel Prize for Literature for 2025. He was mentioned in my longlist and my confident prediction that it would be a man this time.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/oct/09/laszlo-krasznahorkai-wins-the-nobe...
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/oct/09/laszlo-krasznahorkai-wins-the-nobe...
54PaulCranswick
This is what I said in my last thread about a European winner:
If Europe wins then maybe Javier Cercas has a chance for Spain, Cees Nooteboom may finally become the Dutch winner, Laszlo Krasznahorkai or even Andrey Kurkov could do it.
If Europe wins then maybe Javier Cercas has a chance for Spain, Cees Nooteboom may finally become the Dutch winner, Laszlo Krasznahorkai or even Andrey Kurkov could do it.
55booksaplenty1949
>54 PaulCranswick: Well called. But can you pronounce his name?
56booksaplenty1949
>20 PaulCranswick: I hope this is a contemplative moment in the Lake District rather than an escape over a dangerous mountain border. I am reading an Alan Furst novel full of such episodes, and this could be on the cover.
57PaulCranswick
>55 booksaplenty1949: Actually, I think that I can!
>56 booksaplenty1949: I believe that it was taken in New Zealand's lake filled South Island. He was in his brooding phase.
>56 booksaplenty1949: I believe that it was taken in New Zealand's lake filled South Island. He was in his brooding phase.
58booksaplenty1949
>57 PaulCranswick: I guess I’ve seen more challenging Hungarian names. Still a mouthful. Apparently his grandfather changed it from “Korin”—-perhaps a version of the Jewish surname “Coren” which he wished to change because of local prejudice.
59PaulCranswick
>58 booksaplenty1949: He is noted for being a very challenging author to read and especially his habit of writing novels of one sentence long over 400 or so pages.
60booksaplenty1949
>59 PaulCranswick: Descriptions of his work suggest that it is “heavy” in every sense of the word. I see you own four of his novels. Must say I love the title War and War.
61PaulCranswick
>60 booksaplenty1949: I realized that there was one book I hadn't catalogued as I actually own 5 of them which I have corrected. I must have realized that he would be lauded!
62Kristelh
I read Melancholy of Resistance in 2024. It was indeed a challenge and I had to take a break and then come back to it so it took months not days or even weeks.
63PaulCranswick
>62 Kristelh: I believe that the book I catalogued this morning but bought last year, The World Goes On is a collection of short stories which may be a little more easy to digest.
65SilverWolf28
Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/374573
66atozgrl
Another new thread and 65 posts already. It's so hard to keep up. But best wishes on the new thread, Paul!
67PaulCranswick
October Reading Plan
The main focus this month will be an attempted Take It Or Leave It Challenge (TIOLI) sweep. Whatever else I can add will be a bonus.
TIOLI #1 : Touch Wood: Poems and a Story by Dannie Abse COMPLETED
TIOLI #2 : Tin Man by Sarah Winman COMPLETED
TIOLI #3 : Judas 62 by Charles Cumming Reading
TIOLI #4 : Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
TIOLI #5 : The Blood of Others by Simone de Beauvoir
TIOLI #6 : Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
TIOLI #7 : Human Acts by Han Kang
TIOLI #8 : Disturbing the Peace by Richard Yeats
TIOLI #9 : The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke
TIOLI #10 : The Manningtree Witches by A.K. Blakemore
TIOLI #11 : Ripeness by Sarah Moss
TIOLI #12 : Good Pop, Bad Pop by Jarvis Cocker
TIOLI #13 : Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
TIOLI #14 : Radical by Xiaolu Guo
TIOLI #15 : The Blazing World by John Healey
TIOLI #16 : All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
TIOLI #17 : Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
Anything else a bonus but I definitely want to read Rosemary's Baby as a shared read.
The main focus this month will be an attempted Take It Or Leave It Challenge (TIOLI) sweep. Whatever else I can add will be a bonus.
TIOLI #1 : Touch Wood: Poems and a Story by Dannie Abse COMPLETED
TIOLI #2 : Tin Man by Sarah Winman COMPLETED
TIOLI #3 : Judas 62 by Charles Cumming Reading
TIOLI #4 : Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
TIOLI #5 : The Blood of Others by Simone de Beauvoir
TIOLI #6 : Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
TIOLI #7 : Human Acts by Han Kang
TIOLI #8 : Disturbing the Peace by Richard Yeats
TIOLI #9 : The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke
TIOLI #10 : The Manningtree Witches by A.K. Blakemore
TIOLI #11 : Ripeness by Sarah Moss
TIOLI #12 : Good Pop, Bad Pop by Jarvis Cocker
TIOLI #13 : Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
TIOLI #14 : Radical by Xiaolu Guo
TIOLI #15 : The Blazing World by John Healey
TIOLI #16 : All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
TIOLI #17 : Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
Anything else a bonus but I definitely want to read Rosemary's Baby as a shared read.
68avatiakh
Good luck with the sweep. I've only managed this two times and both this year. It helps to choose a couple of novellas.
70PaulCranswick
>66 atozgrl: Thank you, Irene. You keep up just fine!
>68 avatiakh: I think that I have managed only twice before too but not for a while, Kerry.
>68 avatiakh: I think that I have managed only twice before too but not for a while, Kerry.
71PaulCranswick
Friday Lunchtime Additions
396. Watermark by Joseph Brodsky
397. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
398. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
399. Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte
400. Familiaris by David Wroblewski
Some big books and some more bijou ones this week.
Brodsky's book was described by the Irish Times as "A love letter to Venice".
I have been eagerly awaiting Desai's Booker shortlisted book that Ann Patchett reckoned to be "A spectacular literary achievement."
The Flashman series is great fun and the author Kingsley Amis rated as "A first-rate historical novelist."
Tulathimutte was longlisted for the National Book Award for this book which Garth Greenwell thought to be "A book of mad, madcap genius."
Colm McCann said the Wroblewski's second novel is "An American tour de force."
396. Watermark by Joseph Brodsky
397. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
398. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord by George MacDonald Fraser
399. Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte
400. Familiaris by David Wroblewski
Some big books and some more bijou ones this week.
Brodsky's book was described by the Irish Times as "A love letter to Venice".
I have been eagerly awaiting Desai's Booker shortlisted book that Ann Patchett reckoned to be "A spectacular literary achievement."
The Flashman series is great fun and the author Kingsley Amis rated as "A first-rate historical novelist."
Tulathimutte was longlisted for the National Book Award for this book which Garth Greenwell thought to be "A book of mad, madcap genius."
Colm McCann said the Wroblewski's second novel is "An American tour de force."
72EllaTim
Happy new thread, Paul!
The jury has picked a very challenging writer. My husband Marc is a fan of the 7 hour movie Satantango, made after the book Satantango. Not for me.
But well spotted by you!
Happy new thread.
The jury has picked a very challenging writer. My husband Marc is a fan of the 7 hour movie Satantango, made after the book Satantango. Not for me.
But well spotted by you!
Happy new thread.
73PaulCranswick
>72 EllaTim: His books do look a real challenge, Ella. A seven hour movie?!
75booksaplenty1949
>74 avatiakh: I have read the first four Flashman books with great enjoyment.
76amanda4242
>71 PaulCranswick: There's a rumor going around that George MacDonald Fraser may feature in next year's BAC.
78PaulCranswick
>74 avatiakh: I love the Flashman books, Kerry. He is such an awfully lecherous and cowardly jape but somehow begrudgingly likeable for all that!
>75 booksaplenty1949: I have read most of them but am a bit lost at precisely which ones because my daughter gave most of them away to her school library by delivering the wrong box to them years ago.
>75 booksaplenty1949: I have read most of them but am a bit lost at precisely which ones because my daughter gave most of them away to her school library by delivering the wrong box to them years ago.
79PaulCranswick
>76 amanda4242: That would be great fun, Amanda. From Wodehouse to Mortimer's Rumpole books, Leslie Thomas and James Herriot the Brits do have a solid record on this type of writing.
>77 banjo123: Thank you, Rhonda. I am looking forward to calling the "boy" on his birthday and trying not to overhear the outlandish request he will make for a birthday present.
>77 banjo123: Thank you, Rhonda. I am looking forward to calling the "boy" on his birthday and trying not to overhear the outlandish request he will make for a birthday present.
80booksaplenty1949
>78 PaulCranswick: Well, your sad loss was definitely the school’s unexpected gain. Hope the librarian was open-minded enough to recognise the books’ educational value. Fraser did a lot of historical research to construct his plots.
81PaulCranswick
>80 booksaplenty1949: I don't think the sexual content is too gross and it does give a great background to some of the momentous world events during the Victorian age.
82Familyhistorian
>67 PaulCranswick: Good luck with your plans, Paul. I tend not to plan many things because something always comes along from out of left field and upsets everything.
83PaulCranswick
>82 Familyhistorian: Yes, I have found that too, Meg. Suddenly I will find myself drawn to something else. I love planning but I don't often execute as planned!
84PaulCranswick
The Kirkus Prizes were announced this week:
FICTION : The Slip by Lucas Schaefer
NON-FICTION : King of Kings by Scott Anderson
FICTION : The Slip by Lucas Schaefer
NON-FICTION : King of Kings by Scott Anderson
85booksaplenty1949
>81 PaulCranswick: There is a lot that is self-parodic in Flashie’s sexual descriptions, although perhaps one has to be a bit older to recognise it. His frequent boast about the speed with which he can get his clothes back on while on the run always amuses me.
86PaulCranswick
>85 booksaplenty1949: Yes Fraser never let the lecher be overly successful!
87PaulCranswick
BOOK #101
Judas 62 by Charles Cumming
Date of Publication : 2021
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 499 pp
The is the second in the Box 88 series. Thoroughly satisfying story of betrayal and revenge by the true heir of John Le Carre.
Well done.
Judas 62 by Charles Cumming
Date of Publication : 2021
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 499 pp
The is the second in the Box 88 series. Thoroughly satisfying story of betrayal and revenge by the true heir of John Le Carre.
Well done.
88PaulCranswick
More additions
401. Life, Love and the Archers by Wendy Cope
402. Supporting Cast by Kit de Waal
403. The Penny Dropping by Helen Farish
404. Choice by Neel Mukherjee
405. The Lamb by Lucy Rose
401. Life, Love and the Archers by Wendy Cope
402. Supporting Cast by Kit de Waal
403. The Penny Dropping by Helen Farish
404. Choice by Neel Mukherjee
405. The Lamb by Lucy Rose
89richardderus
>84 PaulCranswick: I really enjoyed The Slip, if you can find it there it's well worth a read.
Happy week-ahead's reads, PC.
Happy week-ahead's reads, PC.
90PaulCranswick
>89 richardderus: Not yet in the shops here, RD, but I will definitely track it down.
91PaulCranswick
I have stacked up 85 fiction prizes for works in English (or translated to English) and I am working on a similar list for non-fiction before going to foreign language prizes.
These are some I am looking at right now with incumbent winners:
UK
Baillie Gifford Prize - Question 7 by Richard Owned
British Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction - Patriot by Alexei Navalny
Wolfson Prize - Shadows at Noon by Joy Chatterji Owned
The Orwell Prize - Looking at Women, Looking at War by Victoria Amelina
The Women's Prize for Non-Fiction - The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke Owned
Duff Cooper Prize - Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux
Nero Book Awards - Maurice and Maralyn by Sophie Elmhirst
Wainwright Prize - Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton READ
James Tait Black Award for Biography - Fassbinder by Ian Penman & Traces of Enayat by Iman Mersal
Hessell-Tiltman Prize - Three Worlds: Memoirs of an Arab Jew by Avi Shlaim
USA
National Book Awards for Non-Fiction Soldiers and Kings by Jason de Leon
Pulitzer Prize Award for Biography - Every Living Thing by Jason Roberts
Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction - To the Success of our Hopeless Cause by Benjamin Nathans
Pulitzer Prize for History - Native Nations by Kathleen Duval Owned & Combee by Edda L. Fields-Black
Francis Parkman Award - Wide Awake by John Grinspan
Robert M Utley Prize - Taking the Field by Amy Kohout & The Forgotten Diaspora by Travis Jeffres
EO Wilson Science Books Awards - California Against the Sea by Roseanne Xia
PEN Award for Biography - Charlie Hustle by Keith O'Brien
PEN JK Galbraith Award - In the Shadow of Liberty by Ana Raquel Minion
Kirkus Prize for Non-Fiction - King of Kings by Scott Anderson
National Book Critics Circle Non-Fiction Prize - Challenger by Adam Higginbottom
NBCC Memoir Prize - Patriot by Alexei Navalny
NBCC Biography Prize - Candy Darling by Cynthia Carr
NBCC Criticism Prize - There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib
LA Times Biography Prize - Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
LA Times Christopher Isherwood Prize : Health and Safety by Emily Witt
LA Times Current Issues Award : The Rent Collectors by Jesse Katz
LA Times History Prize - Ruin Their Crops on the Ground by Andrea Freeman
LA Times Science & Technology - Our Moon by Rebecca Boyle
Boston Globe Horn Award for Non-Fiction (YA) - Sunshine by Jarrett J Krosocka
American History Book Prize - A Place Called Yellowstone by Randall K. Wilson
Australia
Australian Industry Book Awards Biography - Wifedom by Anna Funder
AIBA Non-Fiction - The Voice to Parliament Handbook by Thomas Mayo
The Indies Award for Non-Fiction - Three Wild Dogs and the Truth by Markus Zusak
Prime Minister's Literary Award for Non-Fiction - Mean Streak by Rick Morton
Prime Minister's Literary Award for History - Critical Care by Geraldine Fela
New Zealand
Ockham General Non-Fiction Award - Hine Toa by Ngahuia Te Awekotuku
Okham Non-Fiction Debut - The Chthonic Cycle by Una Cruickshank
Canada
Cundill History Prize - Native Nations by Kathleen Duval Owned
The Governor General's Prize for Non-Fiction - Winipek by Niigaan Sinclair
Ireland
WH Smith Non-Fiction Prize - Missing Persons, Or My Grandmother's Secrets by Clair Wills
Hodges Figgis History Book Award - Atlas of the Irish Civil War by Helene O'Keefe
Dubray Biography Award - Nature Boy by Sean Ronayne
43 prizes
These are some I am looking at right now with incumbent winners:
UK
Baillie Gifford Prize - Question 7 by Richard Owned
British Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction - Patriot by Alexei Navalny
Wolfson Prize - Shadows at Noon by Joy Chatterji Owned
The Orwell Prize - Looking at Women, Looking at War by Victoria Amelina
The Women's Prize for Non-Fiction - The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke Owned
Duff Cooper Prize - Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux
Nero Book Awards - Maurice and Maralyn by Sophie Elmhirst
Wainwright Prize - Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton READ
James Tait Black Award for Biography - Fassbinder by Ian Penman & Traces of Enayat by Iman Mersal
Hessell-Tiltman Prize - Three Worlds: Memoirs of an Arab Jew by Avi Shlaim
USA
National Book Awards for Non-Fiction Soldiers and Kings by Jason de Leon
Pulitzer Prize Award for Biography - Every Living Thing by Jason Roberts
Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction - To the Success of our Hopeless Cause by Benjamin Nathans
Pulitzer Prize for History - Native Nations by Kathleen Duval Owned & Combee by Edda L. Fields-Black
Francis Parkman Award - Wide Awake by John Grinspan
Robert M Utley Prize - Taking the Field by Amy Kohout & The Forgotten Diaspora by Travis Jeffres
EO Wilson Science Books Awards - California Against the Sea by Roseanne Xia
PEN Award for Biography - Charlie Hustle by Keith O'Brien
PEN JK Galbraith Award - In the Shadow of Liberty by Ana Raquel Minion
Kirkus Prize for Non-Fiction - King of Kings by Scott Anderson
National Book Critics Circle Non-Fiction Prize - Challenger by Adam Higginbottom
NBCC Memoir Prize - Patriot by Alexei Navalny
NBCC Biography Prize - Candy Darling by Cynthia Carr
NBCC Criticism Prize - There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib
LA Times Biography Prize - Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
LA Times Christopher Isherwood Prize : Health and Safety by Emily Witt
LA Times Current Issues Award : The Rent Collectors by Jesse Katz
LA Times History Prize - Ruin Their Crops on the Ground by Andrea Freeman
LA Times Science & Technology - Our Moon by Rebecca Boyle
Boston Globe Horn Award for Non-Fiction (YA) - Sunshine by Jarrett J Krosocka
American History Book Prize - A Place Called Yellowstone by Randall K. Wilson
Australia
Australian Industry Book Awards Biography - Wifedom by Anna Funder
AIBA Non-Fiction - The Voice to Parliament Handbook by Thomas Mayo
The Indies Award for Non-Fiction - Three Wild Dogs and the Truth by Markus Zusak
Prime Minister's Literary Award for Non-Fiction - Mean Streak by Rick Morton
Prime Minister's Literary Award for History - Critical Care by Geraldine Fela
New Zealand
Ockham General Non-Fiction Award - Hine Toa by Ngahuia Te Awekotuku
Okham Non-Fiction Debut - The Chthonic Cycle by Una Cruickshank
Canada
Cundill History Prize - Native Nations by Kathleen Duval Owned
The Governor General's Prize for Non-Fiction - Winipek by Niigaan Sinclair
Ireland
WH Smith Non-Fiction Prize - Missing Persons, Or My Grandmother's Secrets by Clair Wills
Hodges Figgis History Book Award - Atlas of the Irish Civil War by Helene O'Keefe
Dubray Biography Award - Nature Boy by Sean Ronayne
43 prizes
92avatiakh
>91 PaulCranswick: A lot of prizes I'm unfamiliar with. I've never heard of the New Zealand books, though I only occasionally browse the NZ nonfiction shelves at the local bookshop. The only book on your list that I've read is Three Wild dogs and the truth.
93PaulCranswick
>92 avatiakh: And I have only read one too which is Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton but it was a favourite read of the year too. Okham is the sponsor of the New Zealand Book Awards.
94PaulCranswick
>91 PaulCranswick: I will concentrate this Friday on trying to add to my shelves books on that listing. I have identified that some of them at least are in the local bookstore that I make my temple on Fridays.
95LovingLit
Happy 100th book!! (and also for the 101st)
And I am, as always, in awe of your book challenges! Seriously, your lists and challenges are a sight to behold.
And I am, as always, in awe of your book challenges! Seriously, your lists and challenges are a sight to behold.
96PaulCranswick
>95 LovingLit: Lovely to see you, Megan. I would be a sight more impressed with myself if I ever managed to finish one of the challenges, but I do try!
97figsfromthistle
>71 PaulCranswick: I highly recommend Watermark. I read it earlier in the year and yes it can be seen as a love letter to Venice it is so much more. How identity is formed and lost within a city, how memory is produced and experienced in a place etc… I also found it interesting to compare with a particular work by Bertolt Brecht.
Hope you enjoy the read.
Hope you enjoy the read.
98PaulCranswick
>97 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita. I have read a collection of Brodsky's essays before and found him an interesting fellow.
100PaulCranswick
>99 Whisper1: Thank you Linda. I always feel I should do much better!
102booksaplenty1949
As a spin-off from two Alan Furst novels and Orwell’s Coming Up for Air I am reading Little Man, What Now?. All novels set in societies on the edge of catastrophe. Art does help us to rehearse our response to reality.
103PaulCranswick
>101 Whisper1: Thank you, Linda. I do get frustrated as my book piles keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger.
>102 booksaplenty1949: I will be interested in your views on that as Fallada is a writer I have wanted to get to for the longest time.
>102 booksaplenty1949: I will be interested in your views on that as Fallada is a writer I have wanted to get to for the longest time.
104PaulCranswick
I had a bit of an ebook blitz this morning. All books from the 1850s and before as I plan to have something of a new reading challenge.
406. Nick of the Woods by Robert Montgomery Bird
407. Mary Derwent by Ann S. Stephens
408. At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honore de Balzac
409. Tales of the Alhambra by Washington Irving
410. Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoevsky
411. Mr. Midshipman Easy y Frederick Marryat
412. Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth
413. Pelham by Edward Bulwer Lytton
414. A Common Story by Ivan Goncharov
415. Taras Bulba by Nikolai Gogol
416. Carmen by Prosper Merimee
417. Hide and Seek by Wilkie Collins
418. The Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue
419. Consuelo by George Sand
420. Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock
421. The Misfortunes of Elphin by Thomas Love Peacock
406. Nick of the Woods by Robert Montgomery Bird
407. Mary Derwent by Ann S. Stephens
408. At the Sign of the Cat and Racket by Honore de Balzac
409. Tales of the Alhambra by Washington Irving
410. Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoevsky
411. Mr. Midshipman Easy y Frederick Marryat
412. Rookwood by William Harrison Ainsworth
413. Pelham by Edward Bulwer Lytton
414. A Common Story by Ivan Goncharov
415. Taras Bulba by Nikolai Gogol
416. Carmen by Prosper Merimee
417. Hide and Seek by Wilkie Collins
418. The Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue
419. Consuelo by George Sand
420. Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock
421. The Misfortunes of Elphin by Thomas Love Peacock
105louisisaloafofbreb
-waves- hiya Paul!
106PaulCranswick
>105 louisisaloafofbreb: Nice to see you, Lily.
107vancouverdeb
Congratulations on reading over 100 books, Paul. That is quite an ebook blitz ! But I'd expect nothing less of you :-)
108louisisaloafofbreb
>106 PaulCranswick: How have you been? Its tots not almost 1am over here XD
109PaulCranswick
>107 vancouverdeb: I was looking to fill in blanks on unread books from each of the last 200 years and, as usual, I got carried away.
>108 louisisaloafofbreb: Don't follow you post entirely, Lily, but I am reasonably OK. Job is driving me crazy but I shouldn't complain!
>108 louisisaloafofbreb: Don't follow you post entirely, Lily, but I am reasonably OK. Job is driving me crazy but I shouldn't complain!
110louisisaloafofbreb
>109 PaulCranswick: Thats good, and haha that's almost the same for me and school, my English teacher sure does like us doing our essays, and its about 1:30am over here and I'm trying to get at least 500 words done off this essay
111PaulCranswick
>110 louisisaloafofbreb: Good luck!
112louisisaloafofbreb
>111 PaulCranswick: I got 1041 words :D
113PaulCranswick
>112 louisisaloafofbreb: Essays are more about quality than quantity though, Lily.
114louisisaloafofbreb
>113 PaulCranswick: Yeah, its also 100 formal assessment points
115amanda4242
>113 PaulCranswick: Not in US high schools, where you're expected to regurgitate three pages of whatever facile interpretation of the text the teacher decides is the "correct" reading.
116booksaplenty1949
>115 amanda4242: I’m surprised that in the age of AI take-home essays are still used as an assessment tool anywhere.
117EllaTim
>91 PaulCranswick: From your list I am reading Raising Hare. Loving it, so thanks for the BB.
118PaulCranswick
>114 louisisaloafofbreb: What is the subject of the essay, Lily?
>115 amanda4242: I don't recall the British system being a world better than that either, Amanda.
>115 amanda4242: I don't recall the British system being a world better than that either, Amanda.
119PaulCranswick
>116 booksaplenty1949: Isn't progress such a backward step at times!
>117 EllaTim: One of my absolute favourites too, Ella, this year. I don't really know why but it struck a chord with me.
>117 EllaTim: One of my absolute favourites too, Ella, this year. I don't really know why but it struck a chord with me.
120louisisaloafofbreb
>118 PaulCranswick: Its a narrative essay, about someone/something that like- changed you ig
121PaulCranswick
>120 louisisaloafofbreb: Oh, I see. ig?
122louisisaloafofbreb
>121 PaulCranswick: ya, I finished it a few hours ago I just hope I got a good grade haha
123SilverWolf28
Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/374695
124PaulCranswick
>122 louisisaloafofbreb: Your use of tense is interesting Lily. Don't you mean "I hope I will get a good grade"?
>123 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver x
>123 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver x
125louisisaloafofbreb
>124 PaulCranswick: It was due yesterday ^^ and I got a 100 :D
127louisisaloafofbreb
>126 PaulCranswick: Im really close to having an A in his class too, just gotta do Mastery Prep today then I have an A :)
128thornton37814
Checking in. Reading through your prize list up there, I saw Charlie Hustle was already in my "Cincinnati" wish list. I've added A Place Called Yellowstone to my regular wish list. It sounds interesting.
129PaulCranswick
>127 louisisaloafofbreb: I don't 100% follow - you got an A for the essay and hope to get an A in class? "The past was a foreign country we did things differently there"!
>128 thornton37814: I am enjoying reading a bit more non-fiction this year, Lori. I added 5 of the incumbent award winners today though sadly not the two you mention as they are not in the shops here as yet.
>128 thornton37814: I am enjoying reading a bit more non-fiction this year, Lori. I added 5 of the incumbent award winners today though sadly not the two you mention as they are not in the shops here as yet.
130louisisaloafofbreb
>129 PaulCranswick: Like I got an A on the essay, and once I do that assignment, i'll have an A in the class
131thornton37814
>129 PaulCranswick: I am in more of a non-fiction than fiction reading mood at the moment although I hardly have time for anything except audiobooks.
132PaulCranswick
Friday lunchtime additions
422. Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
423. Patriot by Alexei Navalny
424. Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life by Jason Roberts
425. Memoirs of an Arab-Jew by Avi Shlaim
426. Three Wild Dogs by Markus Zusak
All incumbent non-fiction prize winners. Pulitzer Prize for Biography (Roberts), British Book Awards Narrative Non-Fiction and National Book Critics Circle Award for Memoir (Navalny), LA Times Biography Award (Beers), Hessell-Tiltman Prize (Shlaim), Australian Indies Non-Fiction Award (Zusak).
422. Orwell's Ghosts by Laura Beers
423. Patriot by Alexei Navalny
424. Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life by Jason Roberts
425. Memoirs of an Arab-Jew by Avi Shlaim
426. Three Wild Dogs by Markus Zusak
All incumbent non-fiction prize winners. Pulitzer Prize for Biography (Roberts), British Book Awards Narrative Non-Fiction and National Book Critics Circle Award for Memoir (Navalny), LA Times Biography Award (Beers), Hessell-Tiltman Prize (Shlaim), Australian Indies Non-Fiction Award (Zusak).
133PaulCranswick
>130 louisisaloafofbreb: Maybe it has been a long day and my mind isn't working but isn't the essay the assignment?
>131 thornton37814: You will be good pals with Kyran (26 years old tomorrow) who swears by Audiobooks.
>131 thornton37814: You will be good pals with Kyran (26 years old tomorrow) who swears by Audiobooks.
134louisisaloafofbreb
>133 PaulCranswick: Yeah, but we are having another assignment today, and its in the gradebook already
135PaulCranswick
>134 louisisaloafofbreb: Our British system was so different - what on earth is a gradebook? Is the class you are taking some sort of humanities course?
136EllaTim
>119 PaulCranswick: It’s always hard to explain why something strikes that chord! I loved that her writing is so personal, I’m learning a lot about hares, but it’s never dry in any way. She is looking at the landscape differently, and that’s really interesting as well. From what I am reading it seems a really nice landscape too!
137louisisaloafofbreb
>135 PaulCranswick: Its English 11 or English for Juniors and a gradebook is just a site that they put the grades of the students into
138Matke
I think she means that she earned an A on her essay, and that will be entered with her other grades on other essays/quizzes/tests to be averaged out for her final grade in the overall class.
The Mastery is most likely the final exam for that class, to make sure that the students have indeed mastered the material covered in English for juniors (3rd year of high school).
The Mastery is most likely the final exam for that class, to make sure that the students have indeed mastered the material covered in English for juniors (3rd year of high school).
139louisisaloafofbreb
>138 Matke: Mastery Prep is a thing we do, like to practice for the SATs
141louisisaloafofbreb
Yeah, it was 25 classwork points, and he gave us 25 more extra credit points for about 50 points overall
143louisisaloafofbreb
Ohio, it kinda sucks
144PaulCranswick
>136 EllaTim: One thing that I had never mused much on was the difference between rabbits and hares. She has a way of making what could have been an extremely dull subject both intimate and vibrant.
>137 louisisaloafofbreb: I see. No internet when I was at school of course. I suppose it gives far more visibility on how you are progressing with your studies in real time.
>137 louisisaloafofbreb: I see. No internet when I was at school of course. I suppose it gives far more visibility on how you are progressing with your studies in real time.
145PaulCranswick
>138 Matke: That is very helpful, Gail.
>139 louisisaloafofbreb: And SATs are like your final overall exams?
>139 louisisaloafofbreb: And SATs are like your final overall exams?
146louisisaloafofbreb
>145 PaulCranswick: Yeah, its the exams to see if your college ready I think
147PaulCranswick
>140 Matke: I think that it is fascinating that it isn't all about the final exams nowadays. Things were just moving that way when I was leaving school in the UK and I think it is far less stressful on schoolkids not having their whole futures resting on one day in June!
>141 louisisaloafofbreb: I don't think that good teachers get nearly enough credit for the influence that they can bring upon impressionable minds, Lily. I was greatly helped and inspired by a number of teachers who brought subjects alive for me and who certainly paved my bookish future.
>141 louisisaloafofbreb: I don't think that good teachers get nearly enough credit for the influence that they can bring upon impressionable minds, Lily. I was greatly helped and inspired by a number of teachers who brought subjects alive for me and who certainly paved my bookish future.
148PaulCranswick
>142 Matke: The Buckeye state.
>143 louisisaloafofbreb: Ohio is interesting me at the moment because I am reading Buckeye by Patrick Ryan and it is describing a fairly homely small town life that doesn't seem to suck much at all!
>143 louisisaloafofbreb: Ohio is interesting me at the moment because I am reading Buckeye by Patrick Ryan and it is describing a fairly homely small town life that doesn't seem to suck much at all!
149PaulCranswick
>146 louisisaloafofbreb: I think that makes sense for me now, Lily.
150louisisaloafofbreb
>147 PaulCranswick: My english teacher is really nice actually, and honestly he makes me laugh for the things he says, and he also said I'm really good at writing, which I think is a good thing.
151louisisaloafofbreb
>148 PaulCranswick: My dad says Ohio is full of bigots, and yeah, maybe some towns in Ohio are cool just not Norwood
152PaulCranswick
>150 louisisaloafofbreb: Your poetry efforts that you have previously shared with us definitely indicates plenty of ability, Lily.
>151 louisisaloafofbreb: Ohio is not unique in that, Lily. We all have a roll in life to make things and places just that little bit better. I believe that bigotry comes from ignorance and with education comes tolerance & understanding.
>151 louisisaloafofbreb: Ohio is not unique in that, Lily. We all have a roll in life to make things and places just that little bit better. I believe that bigotry comes from ignorance and with education comes tolerance & understanding.
153louisisaloafofbreb
>152 PaulCranswick: yeah, the people in my town honestly aren't that smart with what they choose to speak about
154PaulCranswick
>153 louisisaloafofbreb: In the last census there were 19,043 people in Norwood so I don't think you can generalize about the lot of them, Lily!
155louisisaloafofbreb
>154 PaulCranswick: yeesh- Norwood seemed small last time I checked- and honestly not sure about everyone, but some people just kinda suck
156PaulCranswick
>155 louisisaloafofbreb: That is the same the world over, Lily.
158Matke
Even when I was in school, Paul, class assignments were graded and recorded in a physical record book. Periodic tests, too. I think class and homework assignments were 20% of our semester grade, periodic tests/quizzes were 30%, and the midterm and final exams were 25% each.
The teachers may have had some individual leeway with the formula, but I’m not sure.
My goodness, that was a long, long time ago.
The teachers may have had some individual leeway with the formula, but I’m not sure.
My goodness, that was a long, long time ago.
159louisisaloafofbreb
Exams are like- 60% of our grade I think- then Homework is 10% and then Classwork is 30% I think of our semester grade
160EllaTim
>158 Matke: A long, long time ago. I sometimes dream I am back at school and have to do exams again. Something always goes wrong, but then I realize I have done all that, and I can just quit. What a relief.
>144 PaulCranswick: Well said, Paul! They are doing a dutch translation now. I’m planning on buying at least one as a present for a friend.
>144 PaulCranswick: Well said, Paul! They are doing a dutch translation now. I’m planning on buying at least one as a present for a friend.
161booksaplenty1949
>145 PaulCranswick: SATs are not specifically content-based exams. You could walk in and take them cold. They are given to students in every jurisdiction who are applying for admission to a post-secondary institution. The “A” originally stood for “aptitude.”
162PaulCranswick
>158 Matke: I do think it is a less stressful system on students that doesn't repose quite so much on a single day in summer to determine your entire life course.
>159 louisisaloafofbreb: Seems fairly well balanced, Lily. Probably 45/45/10 would be even fairer.
>159 louisisaloafofbreb: Seems fairly well balanced, Lily. Probably 45/45/10 would be even fairer.
163PaulCranswick
>160 EllaTim: I miss my school days and have blanked out most of the harder bits. Friends were made for life and I remember teachers and classes I adored, sports events and other such that I took part in, girls I kissed, but probably most of all the books that I was introduced to in school.
I bought the hardback copy of the book, Ella, and I am glad that I did so because it is a beautiful book, but I will not be giving it away.
>161 booksaplenty1949: Like a University entrance exam or a general paper we might have taken in the UK. I remember taking a general paper in my school mocks and the teacher thought I must have been cheating as I completely aced the paper. General knowledge was always a strong point.
I remember when I was dating Hani, I taught her the Kings and Queens of England in order of their reigns from William the Conqueror until QEII; i.e. from 1066 to 1995 (as was). I also used to test her on world capital cities. My only surprise is that she didn't run away and didn't do half bad either.
I would say; "what is the capital of Albania?"
She would say; "starts from?"
I would say; "T"
She would say; "is it Tirana?"
Little did she know that 30 years later she would visit Albania and Tirana and report back to me on her travels, the food, the people, its history and the scenery.
I bought the hardback copy of the book, Ella, and I am glad that I did so because it is a beautiful book, but I will not be giving it away.
>161 booksaplenty1949: Like a University entrance exam or a general paper we might have taken in the UK. I remember taking a general paper in my school mocks and the teacher thought I must have been cheating as I completely aced the paper. General knowledge was always a strong point.
I remember when I was dating Hani, I taught her the Kings and Queens of England in order of their reigns from William the Conqueror until QEII; i.e. from 1066 to 1995 (as was). I also used to test her on world capital cities. My only surprise is that she didn't run away and didn't do half bad either.
I would say; "what is the capital of Albania?"
She would say; "starts from?"
I would say; "T"
She would say; "is it Tirana?"
Little did she know that 30 years later she would visit Albania and Tirana and report back to me on her travels, the food, the people, its history and the scenery.
164louisisaloafofbreb
>162 PaulCranswick: That does seem fairly balanced
165PaulCranswick
>164 louisisaloafofbreb: I should have been an educator, haha.
Speaking of which my son, Kyran, who is now an educator celebrates his birthday today (18 October).
Speaking of which my son, Kyran, who is now an educator celebrates his birthday today (18 October).
166louisisaloafofbreb
>165 PaulCranswick: oooo happy birthday to him!
167PaulCranswick
>166 louisisaloafofbreb: Thanks Lily. I spoke to him this morning (midnight his time) and he was happily drinking with his housemates at home.
168booksaplenty1949
>163 PaulCranswick: Little factoids are on a different level from intellectual analysis, but they make great starting points for conversations which can often lead to deeper things. And on a personal level, someone who wouldn’t rather know something than not know it—why would I want to spend time with him/her?
169PaulCranswick
>168 booksaplenty1949: I loved the fact that Hani made an effort - not just to look good (which see certainly achieved) but to broaden her thinking. She has taught me so much about being a better person and I owe so much to her. All starting from the capital city of Albania!
170booksaplenty1949
>169 PaulCranswick: Of all places!
171PaulCranswick
>170 booksaplenty1949: And in those days it was very much a closed-off country. Hani really enjoyed her trip there last year and would recommend it for value for money, historical value and scenery.
172booksaplenty1949
>171 PaulCranswick: I volunteer with a weekly drop-in for people who want to practise speaking English. A regular visitor is an Albanian who assures us that his country is the cradle of all Western civilisation.
173PaulCranswick
>172 booksaplenty1949: I wouldn't quite say that was Hani's impression but she was quite impressed by the historic sites she was able to see as it was sort of the crossroads of civilizations. Where the Muslim and the Christian worlds sort of overlapped and changed hands several times.
174PaulCranswick
I have had another ebook splurge. I bought 14 titles but since this included the complete works of Charles Reade amongst them, I ended up with 28 books at less than $1.30 each.
I have the wild idea of starting a challenge to read a book from each of the last 200 years - a sort of time travel challenge. My usual restrictions on only choosing one book per author. I now have an option available for all but two of the last 200 years and for those years I can fill the blanks easily enough.
This is what I bought and some of the titles may be reasonably well known whilst others are pretty obscure:
427. The Ordeal of Richard Feveral by George Meredith
428. Under Two Flags by Ouida
429. The Refugees by Arthur Conan-Doyle
430. Cashel Byron's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
431. The Red Room by August Strindberg
432. Footsteps of Fate by Louis Couperus
433. A Foregone Conclusion by William Dean Howells
434. The Young Fur Traders by RM Ballantyne
435. Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald
436. Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant
437. The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Gustave Flaubert
438. The Virginian by Owen Wister
439. A Hero of Our Time by Michael Lermontov
The Complete Works of Charles Reade
440. A Perilous Secret by Charles Reade
441. The Cloister and the Hearth by Charles Reade
442. A Simpleton by Charles Reade
443. White Lies by Charles Reade
444. Put Yourself in His Place by Charles Reade
445. Hard Cash by Charles Reade
446. The Woman-Hater by Charles Reade
447. Peg Woffington by Charles Reade
448. Christie Johnstone by Charles Reade
449. Foul Play by Charles Reade
450. It's Never Too Late to Mend by Charles Reade
451. Love Me Little, Love Me Long by Charles Reade
452. Griffith Gaunt by Charles Reade
453. A Terrible Temptation by Charles Reade
I have the wild idea of starting a challenge to read a book from each of the last 200 years - a sort of time travel challenge. My usual restrictions on only choosing one book per author. I now have an option available for all but two of the last 200 years and for those years I can fill the blanks easily enough.
This is what I bought and some of the titles may be reasonably well known whilst others are pretty obscure:
427. The Ordeal of Richard Feveral by George Meredith
428. Under Two Flags by Ouida
429. The Refugees by Arthur Conan-Doyle
430. Cashel Byron's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
431. The Red Room by August Strindberg
432. Footsteps of Fate by Louis Couperus
433. A Foregone Conclusion by William Dean Howells
434. The Young Fur Traders by RM Ballantyne
435. Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald
436. Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant
437. The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Gustave Flaubert
438. The Virginian by Owen Wister
439. A Hero of Our Time by Michael Lermontov
The Complete Works of Charles Reade
440. A Perilous Secret by Charles Reade
441. The Cloister and the Hearth by Charles Reade
442. A Simpleton by Charles Reade
443. White Lies by Charles Reade
444. Put Yourself in His Place by Charles Reade
445. Hard Cash by Charles Reade
446. The Woman-Hater by Charles Reade
447. Peg Woffington by Charles Reade
448. Christie Johnstone by Charles Reade
449. Foul Play by Charles Reade
450. It's Never Too Late to Mend by Charles Reade
451. Love Me Little, Love Me Long by Charles Reade
452. Griffith Gaunt by Charles Reade
453. A Terrible Temptation by Charles Reade
175EllaTim
>174 PaulCranswick: Ah, a Couperus! I haven’t read this one, it is not a well known one.
Interesting idea, a book for every year. 200 years back, so starting in 1825? Have fun. (Off to do some investigating).
Interesting idea, a book for every year. 200 years back, so starting in 1825? Have fun. (Off to do some investigating).
176booksaplenty1949
>174 PaulCranswick: #441 is the only novel by Charles Reade I’ve heard of. Recall my father reading it and expressing his admiration. Some v favourable reviews on LT.
177PaulCranswick
>175 EllaTim: I saw quite a bit of admiration for Footsteps of Fate but you are of course right that, when I type in his major works it doesn't make the top half dozen.
I have my list ready for the first 80 years and for the rest I have plenty of options on the shelves.
>176 booksaplenty1949: That one is definitely the most well known of his novels. I have lined up #452 for my first read of his work.
I have my list ready for the first 80 years and for the rest I have plenty of options on the shelves.
>176 booksaplenty1949: That one is definitely the most well known of his novels. I have lined up #452 for my first read of his work.
178Kristelh
Greetings book twin. I am afraid with your recent accumulations we might cease to be twins. I don’t know hardly any of them. Happy Birthday to Karan. Is he an educator of a certain grade or subject? Is he living in the UK?
179PaulCranswick
>178 Kristelh: He is working with so called cast-offs Kristel. The students who have not gotten through their exams but want to try again.
180PaulCranswick
>178 Kristelh: I just checked by the way and I still have 53% of your books and I don't think that ratio is even close with any of my other pals.
181Kristelh
>179 PaulCranswick:, That is great Paul, what a service that is, to work with people who want an education! I am honored to be your book twin and you are an inspiration by the way! (ET correct grammar)
182PaulCranswick
>181 Kristelh: Aww that is so nice of you to say so, Kristel. I am keeping very good company myself. x
184booksaplenty1949
>177 PaulCranswick: “Psychology and sexuality of unconventional women” (LT description) does sound very promising.
186alcottacre
>132 PaulCranswick: I just posted my recent additions over on the 'This Just In' thread, Paul.
I am interested in reading at least 3 of those titles. . .
I am interested in reading at least 3 of those titles. . .
187PaulCranswick
>183 humouress: Thank you, Nina. He seemed a little more sober when I spoke to him much later in the day.
>184 booksaplenty1949: Yeah to be honest I couldn't pass up the chance to buy 14 novels in one go for only $2!
>184 booksaplenty1949: Yeah to be honest I couldn't pass up the chance to buy 14 novels in one go for only $2!
188PaulCranswick
>185 Matke: Much needed for me too as I believe that next month will be the first time that he will not need to have his living subsidized by his mother and I; although I will still be paying for his accommodation.
>186 alcottacre: Juana, I shall go over and check out what you have added.
>186 alcottacre: Juana, I shall go over and check out what you have added.
189PaulCranswick
Lovely breakfast this morning and then to the book store to pick up two books I had ordered:
454. Water, Water: Poems by Billy Collins
455. Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin
454. Water, Water: Poems by Billy Collins
455. Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin
190PaulCranswick
The Time Machine
My latest challenge will be to read a book from each of the last 200 years with only one book per author allowed.
1826 to 2025.
First book will be The Last Man by Mary Shelley published on 23 January 1826 by Henry Colburn.
Also published in 1826 was Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper and Stanzas by Alexander Pushkin.
Born in 1826 was Walter Bagehot and dying this year on Independence Day was Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.
In bookish events Ballantyne Printers fails sending Walter Scott into penury and Le Figaro prints its first edition. Edgar Allen Poe is forced to leave Virginia University when his foster parent refuses to pay his fees.
191Kristelh
Paul, I really enjoyed your review 1826. Interesting way to think about the book you’re reading in the time it was written. As I said, an inspiration!
192booksaplenty1949
>190 PaulCranswick: What a great project! I am going to begin with Woodstock, the novel Sir Walter Scott wrote to get himself out of the financial debacle you mention. I learned the hard way—by having Waverley fall apart as I read it—that my 1878 set of the Waverley novels is For Display Purposes Only. But Woodstock is available on Librivox and I discovered, listening to The Legend of Montrose for The War Room Challenge, that Sir Walter works well read aloud. That was the way many people experienced novels in the 19thC, after all.
193PaulCranswick
>191 Kristelh: The thing that sprung out to me was the second and third Presidents dying on exactly the same day and that day being the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
I cannot be an inspiration, Kristel, if I keep failing in my challenges!
>192 booksaplenty1949: Woodstock was one that I considered too but I did give preference, believe it or not to books I already had on the shelves. It will result in some offbeat choices for a number of authors so that I could juggle them in given my dictate of no repeat authors. Choices of Hardy, Zola, Balzac, Eliot, Trollope, Dickens, Collins, Gaskell, Gissing, etc are going to need a bit of planning.
I cannot be an inspiration, Kristel, if I keep failing in my challenges!
>192 booksaplenty1949: Woodstock was one that I considered too but I did give preference, believe it or not to books I already had on the shelves. It will result in some offbeat choices for a number of authors so that I could juggle them in given my dictate of no repeat authors. Choices of Hardy, Zola, Balzac, Eliot, Trollope, Dickens, Collins, Gaskell, Gissing, etc are going to need a bit of planning.
194booksaplenty1949
>193 PaulCranswick: Well, I do have Woodstock on my shelf. Unfortunately it has to stay there at all times.
195PaulCranswick
>194 booksaplenty1949: Why does it have to stay there at all times?
196booksaplenty1949
>195 PaulCranswick: Because Nimmo’s Popular Edition of the Waverley Novels (1878) apparently took some shortcuts with paper quality and binding. Now they’re all “look but don’t touch.”
197avatiakh
>190 PaulCranswick: Fun challenge.
One of the highlights of my brief visit to Scotland in 2023 was visiting Sir Walter Scott's home, Abbotsford, about an hours drive south of Edinburgh.
One of the highlights of my brief visit to Scotland in 2023 was visiting Sir Walter Scott's home, Abbotsford, about an hours drive south of Edinburgh.
198PaulCranswick
>196 booksaplenty1949: Hahah oh I see. So you'll find a different way to read it then.
>197 avatiakh: I must admit that I am a fan of Walter Scott's books - a bit sentimental, I suppose but the narrative drive is still there down the centuries. Isn't Scotland a wonderful place to visit?
>197 avatiakh: I must admit that I am a fan of Walter Scott's books - a bit sentimental, I suppose but the narrative drive is still there down the centuries. Isn't Scotland a wonderful place to visit?
199booksaplenty1949
>198 PaulCranswick: LibriVox. I’m on chapter 3.
201Whisper1
>103 PaulCranswick: I Understand Paul! I feel the same way. I'm running out of space, and actually have plastic containers of books under my bed.
>104 PaulCranswick: Congratulations on listening to so many good books!
>104 PaulCranswick: Congratulations on listening to so many good books!
202PaulCranswick
>201 Whisper1: They are ebooks, Linda not audio books - I cannot quite get along with audio books for some reason other than as a means to catch up on my sleep!
Lovely to see you as always dear lady
Lovely to see you as always dear lady
203booksaplenty1949
>202 PaulCranswick: I agree that simply sitting and listening to a book does not appeal to me—-it’s so slow compared to reading it oneself! But I can enjoy an audiobook when I am doing something that engages my hands but not my mind, like washing dishes. Also when driving the car, although I assure you my mind is also engaged in that task. But an audiobook is a lot more pleasant than listening to the news on the car radio.
204PaulCranswick
>203 booksaplenty1949: What an interesting explanation for the possible benefits of listening to books in certain circumstances.
205foggidawn
>203 booksaplenty1949: This is how I use audiobooks, as well. Though, sometimes when it gets near the end of the book, I will be so engrossed that I just sit and listen to the book.
206mahsdad
>203 booksaplenty1949: >204 PaulCranswick:. That's how I read so many audiobooks. About have my reading is audio. If I'm by myself doing something, chores, driving, daily walks, I am pretty much always listening to a book. Plus, I generally listen at 1.3 or 1.4x. With Libby (the app I use with my Library), it speeds it up, but it lowers the pitch at the same ratio, so you don't get Alvin and the Chipmunks reading your book. (Tho I'd imagine if you go 2x or higher you can't avoid that). Depending on the narrator, 1.3 sound about normal speaking speed to my ear. Anything less and its too slow.
I think the fastest I ever went was about 1.7 but that was at the end of Gravity's Rainbow and I was just trying to get it done. I refused to DNF it, its been on my bucket list for so long, I just had to get it done. ;)
I think the fastest I ever went was about 1.7 but that was at the end of Gravity's Rainbow and I was just trying to get it done. I refused to DNF it, its been on my bucket list for so long, I just had to get it done. ;)
207PaulCranswick
>205 foggidawn: I can just imagine that, Foggy. Suddenly getting gripped so much you drop everything. I suppose that it is akin to listening to a good radio play.
>206 mahsdad: That is funny, Jeff. I had no idea you could speed it up - I guess you would need a good baritone voice to end up with a soprano!
>206 mahsdad: That is funny, Jeff. I had no idea you could speed it up - I guess you would need a good baritone voice to end up with a soprano!
208mahsdad
>207 PaulCranswick: It does a pretty good job at keeping the tone of the voice the same, up to a point. For me it depends on the "quality" of the voice (and I don't mean that in a good or bad way). With accents sometimes I have to slow things closer to normal. For example, one of my last books was The Past is Red. The woman who read it had a very thick Scottish brogue, and it was hard to follow at 1.3, so I slowed that down.
My current book is The Illustrated Man. Scott Brick is reading. I like his voice a lot and 1.3x is perfect for him.
Plus, the books are done faster. An 8 hour book @ 1.3x gets it done in just over 6.
My current book is The Illustrated Man. Scott Brick is reading. I like his voice a lot and 1.3x is perfect for him.
Plus, the books are done faster. An 8 hour book @ 1.3x gets it done in just over 6.
209PaulCranswick
>208 mahsdad: I would have thought if you speed it up to 2 or 2.5 times then it could start impacting your blood pressure!
210mahsdad
>209 PaulCranswick: At 2 and above is where you start getting the higher pitches and you have to be much more of an active listener. I've seen videos of people that listen at that speed and above and that's just not fun. I read for enjoyment and I pump of the speed a bit just so it matches my "reading" pace. I'm sure we all speed read to one degree or another. This is the same.
One aspect of reading that I had an epiphany about recently, is that when we are reading books we (or at least I) generally don't read every single word, when reading with our eyes. I know I'll skim ahead, whether in a sentence, or paragraph or even a page, when I get the gist of what's going on. With an audiobook, the narrator is faithfully reading every single word, so sometimes you have to speed over the chaff to get to the grain. :)
One aspect of reading that I had an epiphany about recently, is that when we are reading books we (or at least I) generally don't read every single word, when reading with our eyes. I know I'll skim ahead, whether in a sentence, or paragraph or even a page, when I get the gist of what's going on. With an audiobook, the narrator is faithfully reading every single word, so sometimes you have to speed over the chaff to get to the grain. :)
211Kristelh
I listen to audiobooks at 1.5 generally. That fits my reading speed pretty well and if I have the book and the audio, I do them together. You can turn up the speed on u.tube too. It’s up in the right hand corner.
212booksaplenty1949
>206 mahsdad: I listened to Gravity’s Rainbow on 36 CDs. Let it wash over me like music.
213booksaplenty1949
>208 mahsdad: I have noticed that different readers on LibriVox get through chapters of Woodstock at different speeds. Presumably the chapters are not exactly the same length but I suspect some readers are naturally quicker than others. Southern accents are somewhat relaxed.
214PaulCranswick
>210 mahsdad: Sorry, Jeff, I was being a bit tongue-in-cheek. I guess you are right that we tend not to read every single word in a book and occasionally skim a little.
>211 Kristelh: I had a quick look on YouTube but couldn't see any button to speed it up. Putting the news channels into fast forward does appeal.
>211 Kristelh: I had a quick look on YouTube but couldn't see any button to speed it up. Putting the news channels into fast forward does appeal.
215PaulCranswick
>212 booksaplenty1949: 36CDs! Well it is a bit of a door-stopper, I guess.
>213 booksaplenty1949: I guess my Yorkshire accent would have the habit of speeding this up too, as we have the habit of chopping up words a bit. For example "to the" would be pronounced "t't"
>213 booksaplenty1949: I guess my Yorkshire accent would have the habit of speeding this up too, as we have the habit of chopping up words a bit. For example "to the" would be pronounced "t't"
216Kristelh
>214 PaulCranswick:. After you select your choice, then on that screen in the right upper corner, you have to touch the screen area and the gear for settings should appear. And then select payback speed. Hope that makes sense, Paul.
217mahsdad
>214 PaulCranswick: Its so hard to interpret tone in text only posts. No harm, no foul, my friend.
>212 booksaplenty1949: >215 PaulCranswick: Yeah, it got that point with me on Libby as well. It got to the point where I was just along for the ride. Yeah Paul, ie was 37+ hours on Libby, I didn't want to have to put it back on hold so I kept speeding it up so I could finish in one borrow cycle. Took me 21 days, just under the wire. But that's not my longest audio experience. James Michener's Alaska was 57+ hours. Took me 38 days
>212 booksaplenty1949: >215 PaulCranswick: Yeah, it got that point with me on Libby as well. It got to the point where I was just along for the ride. Yeah Paul, ie was 37+ hours on Libby, I didn't want to have to put it back on hold so I kept speeding it up so I could finish in one borrow cycle. Took me 21 days, just under the wire. But that's not my longest audio experience. James Michener's Alaska was 57+ hours. Took me 38 days
218PaulCranswick
>216 Kristelh: Ah I found it, Kristel, thank you.
>217 mahsdad: Wow Jeff 57 hours!? I normally read at a speed of 40 pages per hour (depending on font size and style of writing). A pulsing narrative like Michener, 40 pages would be doable for sure. That would equate to 2,280 pages!
>217 mahsdad: Wow Jeff 57 hours!? I normally read at a speed of 40 pages per hour (depending on font size and style of writing). A pulsing narrative like Michener, 40 pages would be doable for sure. That would equate to 2,280 pages!
219PaulCranswick
The Goldsmith Prize for fiction shortlist has been announced and carries the great tag "fiction at its most novel".
These are the selections"
We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown
The Catch by Yrsa Daley-Ward
Helm by Sarah Hall
The Expansion Project by Ben Pester
Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
We Live Here Now by C.D. Rose
https://www.gold.ac.uk/goldsmiths-prize/
These are the selections"
We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown
The Catch by Yrsa Daley-Ward
Helm by Sarah Hall
The Expansion Project by Ben Pester
Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
We Live Here Now by C.D. Rose
https://www.gold.ac.uk/goldsmiths-prize/
221PaulCranswick
>220 mahsdad: Hahaha I cannot think why!!!
Apparently aside from the name of a thoroughly good guy from the American Golden State, it is also the name of a wind in Northern England.
Apparently aside from the name of a thoroughly good guy from the American Golden State, it is also the name of a wind in Northern England.
222booksaplenty1949
>214 PaulCranswick: Normal reading always involves looking ahead. We need to see the words in context to get their meaning. Doesn’t necessarily mean we’re skipping anything.
223PaulCranswick
>222 booksaplenty1949: That is true but I do occasionally find myself skimming at bits that don't quite grab my attention.
224booksaplenty1949
>223 PaulCranswick: I don’t see a problem with skimming a work whose main attraction is “information.” Fiction, however, is meant to be an immersive experience. If a work is not delivering that, probably time consign the book to the DNF pile.
225PaulCranswick
>224 booksaplenty1949: Yes you are right in theory but in practice I will sometimes skim across a paragraph or so whilst reading which hasn't fully grabbed me.
226EllaTim
>225 PaulCranswick: Don’t we all skim a bit? Super lengthy landscape descriptions? And I confess to skimming the fighting orc scenes in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I hope you don’t mind..
227PaulCranswick
>226 EllaTim: Sparing wallowing in the Orcs suffering another undignified defeat? Not at all, Ella. Some books want a wee bit of editing anyway!
228booksaplenty1949
>227 PaulCranswick: Can’t relate to this experience. With me, it’s all, or nothing, as the song goes. In the case of Tolkien, the latter.
229PaulCranswick
>228 booksaplenty1949: Hahaha, poor old JRR. I must say that I am really enjoying The Last Man although the language is thick and dense but exceptional nonetheless. It is one of six books I have currently on the go despite promising myself that I would not keep doing this.
230Familyhistorian
I’ve never timed how fast I read. That could prove interesting to measure.
231PaulCranswick
>230 Familyhistorian: I am fairly sure that I am of the average, Meg. We must have some real speed readers amongst us - Suz, Stasia, Silver, Susan, Amanda being fairly obvious examples.
232Owltherian
Hello Paul!
233PaulCranswick
>232 Owltherian: Hi Lily, nice to see you as always
234PaulCranswick
Dastardly double posting as is increasingly happening these days.
Into the last quarter and what are my best reads of the year so far:
New Fiction : The Artist by Lucy Steeds
Non Fiction : Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton
Poetry : The Heeding by Rob Cowen
Thriller : The Hunter by Tana French
Older Fiction : Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Drama : MacBeth by William Shakespeare
Rereads not included.
Into the last quarter and what are my best reads of the year so far:
New Fiction : The Artist by Lucy Steeds
Non Fiction : Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton
Poetry : The Heeding by Rob Cowen
Thriller : The Hunter by Tana French
Older Fiction : Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
Drama : MacBeth by William Shakespeare
Rereads not included.
235booksaplenty1949
>231 PaulCranswick: Reading speed depends on how quickly you recognise words. Education and reading experience thus play a large role. People typically read fiction faster than non-fiction because the latter has more words which are longer and/or relatively unfamiliar. Average reading speed is about 240 words per minute. Because of the eye movement involved there is an upper limit , no matter how many “speed-reading” courses you pursue.
236figsfromthistle
Yes speed reading is great but what’s more important is what you retain. My dad is a slow reader and it’s annoying when I am waiting for his newspaper section but he can also tell me everything word per word starting at any point in the article 🤷♀️
237booksaplenty1949
>236 figsfromthistle: There is no necessary correlation between reading speed and retention, however
238Owltherian
>233 PaulCranswick: my other account got banned for some reason, so I'll have to use this one
239Caroline_McElwee
>174 PaulCranswick: Years since I read that Couperus. I plan to reread his quartet, The Book of Small Souls over the Winter Paul.
240Kristelh
@PaulCranswick. I started Rosemary's Baby yesterday and I should finish up today. Interesting book to look at its date of publication.
241PaulCranswick
>235 booksaplenty1949: I don't think I would go on a speed reading course as I am fairly happy with my reading pace at the moment and it is about enjoyment in the end.
>236 figsfromthistle: That is absolutely true, Anita. I have always been a Contracts man and I have always prided myself on being able to retain the important clauses of a contract and to know where to look. I think that without that ability I would be quite ineffective at my job because in correspondence it is crucial to be able to place what the other party is saying in its proper contractual context.
>236 figsfromthistle: That is absolutely true, Anita. I have always been a Contracts man and I have always prided myself on being able to retain the important clauses of a contract and to know where to look. I think that without that ability I would be quite ineffective at my job because in correspondence it is crucial to be able to place what the other party is saying in its proper contractual context.
242PaulCranswick
>237 booksaplenty1949: Although I do think that there is a difference between careful and careless.
>238 Owltherian: I am guessing but I would have thought that you can ask why one of your accounts is suddenly inactive, Lily.
>238 Owltherian: I am guessing but I would have thought that you can ask why one of your accounts is suddenly inactive, Lily.
243PaulCranswick
>239 Caroline_McElwee: I have never read his, Caroline, but I do need to read more fiction from the Benelux nations generally as it is something of a blind spot in my reading to date.
>240 Kristelh: April 13, 1967? I will start it tomorrow, Kristel, as I have a couple of books close to being finished.
>240 Kristelh: April 13, 1967? I will start it tomorrow, Kristel, as I have a couple of books close to being finished.
244booksaplenty1949
>242 PaulCranswick: “Removed as spam”—-“unusual activity.”
245Owltherian
>242 PaulCranswick: Yeah, so now everything I had in this group is gone, and I bet I was falsely reported.
246PaulCranswick
>244 booksaplenty1949: Wow, my activity is, according to wife and children usually extremely unusual, but still, here I am.
>245 Owltherian: Maybe you should concentrate on maintain only one account, Lily, as I certainly don't see - in this group - that you have done anything objectionable.
>245 Owltherian: Maybe you should concentrate on maintain only one account, Lily, as I certainly don't see - in this group - that you have done anything objectionable.
247booksaplenty1949
Finished Little Man, What Now? A powerful political undertone, but also an extremely moving human story. Acquired Every Man Dies Alone but think I’ll take a break from Nazi Germany for a bit.
248amanda4242
>245 Owltherian: Contact staff about your other account. At the very least they'll tell you why it was suspended, and if it was wrongly suspended they'll reinstate it.
249SilverWolf28
Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/374911
250Owltherian
>248 amanda4242: I did that a few hours ago, when I realized it was banned
>246 PaulCranswick: I changed accounts because I don't really like the name of this one, that's why I made the other one
>246 PaulCranswick: I changed accounts because I don't really like the name of this one, that's why I made the other one
251PaulCranswick
>247 booksaplenty1949: I also heard that Anna Seghers books are good on the period.
I must get to Hans Fallada soon.
>248 amanda4242: Yes, I think you should do that, Lily.
I must get to Hans Fallada soon.
>248 amanda4242: Yes, I think you should do that, Lily.
252PaulCranswick
>249 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver.
>250 Owltherian: I stuck with my own name Lily, because I know I can't easily change that and I am reasonably happy who I am. I also have no real reason to hide my identity which I know is a genuine concern for some in the group.
>250 Owltherian: I stuck with my own name Lily, because I know I can't easily change that and I am reasonably happy who I am. I also have no real reason to hide my identity which I know is a genuine concern for some in the group.
253Owltherian
>252 PaulCranswick: My dad said to "not share anything online" but its not like I shared much- and my profile doesn't show much either
254amanda4242
>250 Owltherian: That's good.
You don't have to create a new account for a new name; you can go into your account settings and request a name change from there.
You don't have to create a new account for a new name; you can go into your account settings and request a name change from there.
255Owltherian
>254 amanda4242: Oh yeah- whoops I may do that tomorow
256PaulCranswick
>253 Owltherian: Your dad is probably right as there does seem to be quite a few oddballs out there. Not so many in Malaysia and I don't keep any personal records at all on my laptop.
>254 amanda4242: Another thing I didn't know.
>254 amanda4242: Another thing I didn't know.
257PaulCranswick
>255 Owltherian: I think that the only thing with choosing a name is so that people can recognize you - I wouldn't advise you to keep changing your name as people may not realize it is you contacting them.
258amanda4242
>256 PaulCranswick: The name change option is kind of buried. I guess LT doesn't want people changing their usernames all the time.
259PaulCranswick
>258 amanda4242: I do find it a bit confusing honestly, Amanda. A few of my pals have changed names for whatever reason and it took me a bit of time to get into sync with the new them!
260Owltherian
>257 PaulCranswick: I may change it to the other thing I had before, just changed a lil bit
>256 PaulCranswick: yeah, there are a few oddballs out there
>256 PaulCranswick: yeah, there are a few oddballs out there
261PaulCranswick
>260 Owltherian: Increasingly so, I would say.
262Owltherian
>261 PaulCranswick: Thats for sure
263PaulCranswick
Lunchtime Additions
456. Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams
457. I Lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin
458. The Terrible by Yrsa Daley-Ward
459. I am David by Anne Holm
460. The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis
461. The Third Realm by Karl-Ove Knausgaard
462. My Enemy, My Friend by Elizabeth Laird
463. Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
464. Playground by Richard Powers
465. House of Day, House of Night by Olga Tokarczuk
456. Tales from Watership Down by Richard Adams
457. I Lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin
458. The Terrible by Yrsa Daley-Ward
459. I am David by Anne Holm
460. The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis
461. The Third Realm by Karl-Ove Knausgaard
462. My Enemy, My Friend by Elizabeth Laird
463. Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter
464. Playground by Richard Powers
465. House of Day, House of Night by Olga Tokarczuk
264booksaplenty1949
I read several books by Henry Miller in my teen years but felt somehow that I outgrew him, although I did read The Colossus of Maroussi (originally purchased for the cover art) a few years ago, with enjoyment. But after encountering a list of “The Hundred Books That Influenced Me Most” from Miller’s The Books in My Life that piqued my interest I have started reading the book, and my goodness—-every paragraph is quotable. A wonderful exploration of the reading experience. I borrowed the book from the library but have now ordered my own copy, as I know I will want to revisit it.
265PaulCranswick
I have some Henry Miller on the shelves but not much and I haven't got to him yet. You make me think I should change that soon.
266booksaplenty1949
>265 PaulCranswick: You never in your boyhood found a copy of, say, Tropic of Cancer that fell open at the dirty bits?
267Kristelh
I recently read The Tropic of Capricorn and did not like it but The Books of My Life is intriguing.
268PaulCranswick
>266 booksaplenty1949: Alas, alas! I was more Virgin Soldiers by Leslie Thomas for the naughty stuff and the Nick Carter books.
>267 Kristelh: I haven't read either of Tropic of Cancer or Tropic of Capricorn but I finished up in the tropics anyway!
>267 Kristelh: I haven't read either of Tropic of Cancer or Tropic of Capricorn but I finished up in the tropics anyway!
269avatiakh
>263 PaulCranswick: I am David is an oldie. I've read the Butterfly Hill book, it was quite good from memory though fairly lengthy for a children's book.
Hope you are getting some reading in this weekend.
Hope you are getting some reading in this weekend.
270PaulCranswick
>269 avatiakh: Unfortunately, Kerry, I had some urgent work this weekend reviewing a new Data Centre Project contract documents and producing something like an idiot sheet for the prospective site team so my reading was largely interrupted.
271booksaplenty1949
Re the 200 Year Challenge, I am forging ahead in Woodstock and, for 1827, reading John Keble’s The Christian Year one week at a time. 1828 looks like a bit of a challenge. Suggestions welcome.
272PaulCranswick
>271 booksaplenty1949: I should finish The Last Man by the month end. I do think that one book per week is probably doable and a good idea.
I will follow with The Betrothed by Manzoni for 1826 and have added Pelham by Bulwer Lytton for 1828. I considered Rachel Dyer by John Neal too as it was an early exploration of the Salem Witch Trials and apparently influenced Hawthorne to write The Scarlet Letter.
I will follow with The Betrothed by Manzoni for 1826 and have added Pelham by Bulwer Lytton for 1828. I considered Rachel Dyer by John Neal too as it was an early exploration of the Salem Witch Trials and apparently influenced Hawthorne to write The Scarlet Letter.
273atozgrl
>272 PaulCranswick: Well, how odd. I just read this post, while I have a program on the Salem Witch Trials on TV. Strange coincidence.
274PaulCranswick
>273 atozgrl: Isn't it strange how life is full of those sorts of coincidences.
275PaulCranswick
Yesterday I did manage to add a few books after taking breakfast:
466. Fenny by Lettice Cooper
467. My Life by Golda Meir
468. Leo by Deon Meyer
469. By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle
470. On Savage Shores by Caroline Dodds Pennock
466. Fenny by Lettice Cooper
467. My Life by Golda Meir
468. Leo by Deon Meyer
469. By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle
470. On Savage Shores by Caroline Dodds Pennock
276atozgrl
>274 PaulCranswick: That is very true!
277PaulCranswick
Another strange coincidence was that I was posting over at Mark's thread responding to your post whilst you were over here posting on my thread.
278booksaplenty1949
>272 PaulCranswick: Read The Betrothed earlier this year. Rewarding. Apropos of a visit to Pompeii some years ago I read B-L’s The Last Days of Pompeii and found it pretty dire. Picked up a beautiful old 2 vol copy of What Will He Do with It? because the title appeals to my adolescent sense of humour but could not actually contemplate reading another Bulwer-Lytton novel.
280booksaplenty1949
>279 PaulCranswick: Leave it there.
281PaulCranswick
>280 booksaplenty1949: Hahaha, it does prop up one shelf quite nicely!
282amanda4242
>279 PaulCranswick: I've read two books that begin with "It was a dark and stormy night": Paul Clifford and A Wrinkle in Time. I preferred Paul Clifford.
283booksaplenty1949
>282 amanda4242: The two top-ranked LT reviews of The Last Days of Pompeii are quite entertaining on the subject of Bulwer-Lytton’s prose.
284amanda4242
>283 booksaplenty1949: Paul Clifford was not the greatest book, but I reaaaalllly don't like A Wrinkle in Time.
285PaulCranswick
>282 amanda4242: I must admit that I didn't much like A Wrinkle in Time either.
>283 booksaplenty1949: I will go and read them now.
>283 booksaplenty1949: I will go and read them now.
286PaulCranswick
>284 amanda4242: Oh dear I am nervous now about the book I chose!
287amanda4242
>286 PaulCranswick: I honestly don't remember much about Paul Clifford, but I know I didn't dislike it. I mostly remember it being overlong and overwritten, but mildly entertaining.
288PaulCranswick
>287 amanda4242: I do aim to read everything I own - preposterously so as I won't live long enough surely to get to all of them. At some stage I will need to make a sizeable cull I guess so let's see whether Paul Clifford stays with me.
289amanda4242
>288 PaulCranswick: I've gotten better about giving up on books: I give it twenty percent to hook me and if I'm not sure about it after that, I'll skip ahead a bit and skim to see if there's anything that piques my interest. If I'm still not impressed, then it goes into the donation bag!
290avatiakh
>289 amanda4242: I'm a bit the same especially with library books. I'm currently looking through the books I own and making a pile to donate even though I haven't read them.
Paul, you'll be pleased to know that I've added a heap of books to my LT finally, though the number of our 'books in common' hasn't really changed.
Paul, you'll be pleased to know that I've added a heap of books to my LT finally, though the number of our 'books in common' hasn't really changed.
291booksaplenty1949
>287 amanda4242: I’m afraid that “mildly entertaining” would be insufficient compensation for “overlong and overwritten.” There are a lot of books out there.
292amanda4242
>291 booksaplenty1949: I read it for the third BAC, when it was on a list with such gems as The Mysteries of Udolpho and Reflections on the Revolution in France—mildly entertaining was a step up that month!
293booksaplenty1949
>292 amanda4242: Well, by contrast with those of Bulwer-Lytton’s novel the top-ranked LT reviews of The Mysteries of Udolpho are rather intriguing. I do own a copy so perhaps I should give it a go.
294PaulCranswick
>289 amanda4242: If I am really struggling with a book I do put it aside but with the intention of coming back to it again at a later date. If I judge something to be really terrible I will deem it "expendable" and on my next cull list.
>290 avatiakh: I do miss the luxury of library picks because our relationship with them is fleeting and I wouldn't have the same qualms about rejecting it!
I will go and have a look, Kerry. I do think that my increasing regard for YA books which tell a story will raise the proportion that we share.
>290 avatiakh: I do miss the luxury of library picks because our relationship with them is fleeting and I wouldn't have the same qualms about rejecting it!
I will go and have a look, Kerry. I do think that my increasing regard for YA books which tell a story will raise the proportion that we share.
295PaulCranswick
>291 booksaplenty1949: Yes, true, but it does depend how mild the entertainment is - as it would normally mean that I would simply read it more slowly and alongside something else. Castle Richmond was certainly one such example for me.
>292 amanda4242: What the heck is wrong with Edmund Burke? Hahaha, I'll bet even the readers on the late 18th century would have struggled with that one. I read it at university.
>292 amanda4242: What the heck is wrong with Edmund Burke? Hahaha, I'll bet even the readers on the late 18th century would have struggled with that one. I read it at university.
297amanda4242
>294 PaulCranswick: I'll also set books aside for later if it's my mood rather than the writing that's bogging me down.
>293 booksaplenty1949: The Mysteries of Udolpho sounds like a much better book than it is. I'd suggest a drinking game of taking a shot whenever the heroine faints, but I fear it would lead to severe alcohol poisoning.
>293 booksaplenty1949: The Mysteries of Udolpho sounds like a much better book than it is. I'd suggest a drinking game of taking a shot whenever the heroine faints, but I fear it would lead to severe alcohol poisoning.
298PaulCranswick
>297 amanda4242: Now that is a game I would probably be up for!
299amanda4242
>295 PaulCranswick: If you had asked me immediately after I read him, I probably could have given you a long list of what was wrong with Burke; fortunately, I have repressed the memory of Reflections on the Revolution in France so I no longer have him taking up any space in my brain.
300amanda4242
>298 PaulCranswick: Don't! You could cause yourself serious harm!
301ChrisG1
>285 PaulCranswick: I seem to be in the minority here, as A Wrinkle in Time was a favorite read for me in my youth.
302PaulCranswick
>299 amanda4242: I can still remember! There were some really excellent sentences so the book is very quotable but as a whole it was mind numbingly dull.
>300 amanda4242: I remember going to a party where they were having a shots competition and I won hands down with a ridiculous 35 shots (I won by seven shots) and woke up a day later in my friends house rather confused as to where I was.
>300 amanda4242: I remember going to a party where they were having a shots competition and I won hands down with a ridiculous 35 shots (I won by seven shots) and woke up a day later in my friends house rather confused as to where I was.
303PaulCranswick
>301 ChrisG1: Each to their own Chris. It doesn't make you wrong or me right or vice versa which is the beauty of reading isn't it?
304amanda4242
>302 PaulCranswick: 35 shots?! I'm surprised you woke up at all!
305PaulCranswick
>304 amanda4242: Those days are largely over, Amanda, but I was a bit of a beast back in my younger days!
306msf59
Thanks for stopping by my thread and sharing your insights. They are always welcome and they usually give me more to digest and ponder on. Funny- I have a birding friend named Paul Clifford- so when I see the name I smile.
35 shots? Wow. Glad you are still with us. Didn't John Bonham die after doing this number of shots? 😜
35 shots? Wow. Glad you are still with us. Didn't John Bonham die after doing this number of shots? 😜
307PaulCranswick
>306 msf59: It is funny, Mark, I am actually very much to the left in politics, but find myself often defending positions that were natural to the left short years ago. Whilst I have the utmost sympathy for the suffering of the innocents in Gaza, I do get rather annoyed when liberals (and I don't mean you, Mark) defend Hamas. As possibly the only Muslim in our wonderful group I do feel the need to call out those heinous terrorists for what they are and for the damage they are doing to the perception of my religion.
35 shots. I must admit I didn't know where the hell I was when I first awoke but I was pretty proud to say that I vomited none of it!
35 shots. I must admit I didn't know where the hell I was when I first awoke but I was pretty proud to say that I vomited none of it!
308ArlieS
>301 ChrisG1: I also liked that a lot. Though when I went back to it later, I couldn't see why I'd loved it.
309SqueakyChu
>307 PaulCranswick: Thank you, Paul. I found great happiness in times when Israel and other Arab/Muslim nations have entered peace agreements, and my Israeli and Jewish friends and relatives were able to visit those nations with calmness and joy. I was truly and utterly devastated by 7 October...which did not need to happen...ever.
310PaulCranswick
>308 ArlieS: It is funny because I cannot remember why I didn't like it, Arlie!
>309 SqueakyChu: Lovely to see you, Madeline. I was an ardent supporter of Israel long before 7 October, but how one goes from that catastrophic and evil moment to blame the Jewish state for the war is beyond reasonable comprehension. I pray that the peoples can live alongside each other in peace but with players like Hamas still there, I am not overly optimistic.
>309 SqueakyChu: Lovely to see you, Madeline. I was an ardent supporter of Israel long before 7 October, but how one goes from that catastrophic and evil moment to blame the Jewish state for the war is beyond reasonable comprehension. I pray that the peoples can live alongside each other in peace but with players like Hamas still there, I am not overly optimistic.
311PaulCranswick
Book # 102
The Blazing World: A New History of Revolutionary England, 1603-1689 by Jonathan Healey
Date of Publication : 2023
Origin of Author : UK
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 598 pp
This has the distinction of being the first book I have read on my e-book tablet from start to finish and I picked a winner.
The history of the tumultuous seventeenth century told with brilliance and engagingly so by John Healey. An age of the Stuarts, of Civil War, Cromwell and his military dominance and harshness, the winning and losing of a Commonwealth, of regicide and then the Restoration, of religious fervour and divides of Hobbes, Milton and John Locke.
This is peppered with the familiar and sweetened by the obscure.
This is how history should be written.
The Blazing World: A New History of Revolutionary England, 1603-1689 by Jonathan Healey
Date of Publication : 2023
Origin of Author : UK
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 598 pp
This has the distinction of being the first book I have read on my e-book tablet from start to finish and I picked a winner.
The history of the tumultuous seventeenth century told with brilliance and engagingly so by John Healey. An age of the Stuarts, of Civil War, Cromwell and his military dominance and harshness, the winning and losing of a Commonwealth, of regicide and then the Restoration, of religious fervour and divides of Hobbes, Milton and John Locke.
This is peppered with the familiar and sweetened by the obscure.
This is how history should be written.
312Familyhistorian
>279 PaulCranswick: I had Paul Clifford on my shelves for ages too. Took it off, started it and realized it wasn't for me. It's no longer taking up room on my shelves but many other books have moved in to take its place. You know how that goes!
313PaulCranswick
>312 Familyhistorian: Yes, Meg, I am pretty familiar with that state of being!
314humouress
>310 PaulCranswick: The Jewish state - no; the Israeli government - yes. Maybe some people don't stop and think to make the distinction?
315PaulCranswick
>314 humouress: That is perfectly true, Nina, but I would extend that far wider to the Jewish people. That is why they are being attacked in London and Manchester and why Jewish students needed to barricade themselves into classrooms for safety.
317PaulCranswick
>316 amanda4242: I have read so many Doctor Who books, Amanda. They are what I grew up reading. I have a couple of more recent ones on the shelves that I will get to next month
318amanda4242
>317 PaulCranswick: I was kind of aware of Doctor Who growing up, but the show wasn't in production at that time so I didn't get to see it until I was an adult and could get it on DVD. I have made up for lost time, though!
319PaulCranswick
>318 amanda4242: It was a huge feature of my childhood in the Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker incarnations (3rd and 4th Doctor). I used to buy one of the Target edition books every week when I went with my Grandmother into town from the local Woolworth's stand before we would alight to the nearest public house where we would have a meal (maybe steak and kidney pudding), I would have a glass of dandelion and burdock and my Gran a glass of single malt.
320mdoris
>319 PaulCranswick: Sweet memories Paul!
321amanda4242
>319 PaulCranswick: Dandelion and burdock? Can you translate for those of us from the US? (Single malt I know. And enjoy. ;)
322PaulCranswick
>320 mdoris: Thanks Mary. They were indeed, I miss my Gran every day.
>321 amanda4242: It was a sort of British equivalent of Coca-Cola.
It has a sweet sort of licorice flavour.
>321 amanda4242: It was a sort of British equivalent of Coca-Cola.
It has a sweet sort of licorice flavour.
323vancouverdeb
I preferred the Desai to the Miller from the longlist, Paul, but I did enjoy both. I hope / plan to read The Rest of Our Lives but it is still on order at the library. I have a hold on it.
>322 PaulCranswick: Oh yuck - a sweet licorice flavour! My dad was a fan of licorice. He liked the black nibs, the black babies, twizellers - any black licorice. From the time I could remember he was a big licorice fan. I did eat it too if he had it . I don't purchase it myself though. I think he enjoyed a licorice flavoured liqueur , the name of which escapes me. Shudder at the liqueur.
>322 PaulCranswick: Oh yuck - a sweet licorice flavour! My dad was a fan of licorice. He liked the black nibs, the black babies, twizellers - any black licorice. From the time I could remember he was a big licorice fan. I did eat it too if he had it . I don't purchase it myself though. I think he enjoyed a licorice flavoured liqueur , the name of which escapes me. Shudder at the liqueur.
324PaulCranswick
>323 vancouverdeb: Only sort of Deb, it is extracted from the roots of both plants and is actually very palatable.
325Kristelh
>322 PaulCranswick:. Oh, I would like to try that. I like licorice or anise flavor.
326booksaplenty1949
>325 Kristelh: Strange how taste preferences are not universal—-evolved to keep us away from poisons—-or even completely social. It’s true that people raised in cultures where hot spicy food is the norm enjoy and expect it, while those who come to it only as adults may take one bite and let out a shriek, but why would one person in a family enjoy the taste of licorice and another think it yucky?
327PaulCranswick
>325 Kristelh: It is actually not bad, Kristel. Got me yearning for some to be honest!
>326 booksaplenty1949: That is true but thankfully so don't you think? But awful if we all liked the same things.
>326 booksaplenty1949: That is true but thankfully so don't you think? But awful if we all liked the same things.
328booksaplenty1949
>327 PaulCranswick: We have made this point before, but somehow with preferences in books or movies or vacation spots there seems to be a connection to one’s personality as a whole. Many factors are at work. But taste seems entirely physical. Even smell is more complex.
329hredwards
>319 PaulCranswick: Loved Tom Baker as the Dr.
He was the first one I saw here in the US. But the show wasn't regularly shown back then so it was hard to come by.
I have always planned to go back and make up for that now. As I'm not getting any younger, I guess I'd better hurry.
He was the first one I saw here in the US. But the show wasn't regularly shown back then so it was hard to come by.
I have always planned to go back and make up for that now. As I'm not getting any younger, I guess I'd better hurry.
330booksaplenty1949
>272 PaulCranswick: Halfway through the LibriVox recording of Woodstock and continuing my program of reading one poem from The Christian Year every Sunday or feast day. Given the length of Scott’s novel I am thinking of something short for 1828.
331PaulCranswick
>328 booksaplenty1949: Not surprising then that my scatterbrain, magpie personality would choose a fairly mixed bag for his favourite six films:
In no particular order:
1. The Searchers
2. The Witness
3. Get Carter
4. Life is Beautiful
5. Snatch
6. Jean de Florette / Manon des Sources
>329 hredwards: I like both Pertwee and Baker, Harold and I don't think anyone else has come even close to them.
In no particular order:
1. The Searchers
2. The Witness
3. Get Carter
4. Life is Beautiful
5. Snatch
6. Jean de Florette / Manon des Sources
>329 hredwards: I like both Pertwee and Baker, Harold and I don't think anyone else has come even close to them.
332PaulCranswick
>330 booksaplenty1949: I am close to the end of The Last Man but clinging to the hope that my November will get me back to better reading speed again.
333ArlieS
>323 vancouverdeb: Count me as another licorice fan.
334ArlieS
>328 booksaplenty1949: There are some genetic components. IIRC, there's a gene that makes certain foods taste unpleasantly bitter. About half my family has it; I don't, so I enjoy the foods affected - brassicas IIRC. Presumably this is the result of only one of our parents having that particular variant of the gene, or both having one copy in the tastes-bitter variant and the other in my what's-the-fuss-about variant.
335booksaplenty1949
>334 ArlieS: Yes, I’ve heard about that variant, now that I think of it. And I know that cats can’t taste “sweet,” full stop, because of some broken gene that wasn’t eliminated because it made no difference to a cat’s survival.
336PaulCranswick
>333 ArlieS: I'm not even so sure anymore it tastes exactly like licorice but I do recall a faint trace of it.
>334 ArlieS: I think that our likes and dislikes in food can be strange. For example I like octopus but don't eat squid. My wife is adamant that they taste the same but I don't agree at all.
>334 ArlieS: I think that our likes and dislikes in food can be strange. For example I like octopus but don't eat squid. My wife is adamant that they taste the same but I don't agree at all.
338SilverWolf28
Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/375051
339PaulCranswick
>338 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver
340PaulCranswick
I collected a book ordered from a local store yesterday
471. A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
And I added the following ebooks
472. The Romany Rye by George Borrow
473. Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
474. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger
475. Struggling Upwards by Horatio Alger
476. The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendahl
477. Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
478. Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu
479. We Gather Together by Wendy Pffefer
471. A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
And I added the following ebooks
472. The Romany Rye by George Borrow
473. Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy
474. Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger
475. Struggling Upwards by Horatio Alger
476. The Charterhouse of Parma by Stendahl
477. Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott
478. Uncle Silas by Sheridan Le Fanu
479. We Gather Together by Wendy Pffefer
341PaulCranswick
BOOK #103
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Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Date of Publication : 1967
Origin of Author : USA
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 229 pp
Creepingly terrifying.
Would you love you baby no matter what? Slightly a creature of its time but no worse for that.
This was an enjoyable read.
Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Date of Publication : 1967
Origin of Author : USA
Gender of Author : Male
Pages : 229 pp
Creepingly terrifying.
Would you love you baby no matter what? Slightly a creature of its time but no worse for that.
This was an enjoyable read.
342PaulCranswick
Last October lunchtime additions
480. Songs of Blood and Sword by Fatima Bhutto
481. Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood by David Fisher
482. The End of Nature by Bill McKibben
483. Hear the Wind Sing by Haruki Murakami
484. Pinball, 1973
485. Pimp: The Story of My Life by Iceberg Slim
486. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
487. The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann
488. Lucy Carmichael by Margaret Kennedy
489. Pericles by William Shakespeare
490. Moral Injuries by Christie Watson
480. Songs of Blood and Sword by Fatima Bhutto
481. Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood by David Fisher
482. The End of Nature by Bill McKibben
483. Hear the Wind Sing by Haruki Murakami
484. Pinball, 1973
485. Pimp: The Story of My Life by Iceberg Slim
486. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
487. The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann
488. Lucy Carmichael by Margaret Kennedy
489. Pericles by William Shakespeare
490. Moral Injuries by Christie Watson
343louisisaloafofbreb
hiya Paul
344EllaTim
Hi Paul! Interesting discussion on taste. I like licorice as well, most of us dutch do. But there is such a thing as acquired taste. I used to absolutely hate olives, until one very late night in a bar where olives were the only thing left to eat. (Apart from lots of drinks) And when my husband Marc was doing chemo he couldn’t eat any spices anymore, they were all too strong.
Have a nice day.
Have a nice day.
345PaulCranswick
>343 louisisaloafofbreb: Hello, Lily
>344 EllaTim: Funny because I have had a similar experience with olives!
>344 EllaTim: Funny because I have had a similar experience with olives!
346louisisaloafofbreb
>345 PaulCranswick: How are you? I honestly don't really like olives- if I'm being completely honest
347PaulCranswick
>346 louisisaloafofbreb: At your age I would surely have agreed with you, but in the last years they have become favourite things of mine.
348booksaplenty1949
>347 PaulCranswick: Mine too, especially when swimming in a dry martini.
349quondame
Olives from the Italian deli were one of my father's rationed treats, along with those little nougat boxes. We called the wrinkled dry black ones that he favored Greek olives, but I think they are properly called Sicilian olives. Because they were special, I developed a taste for them before I was 10. Nowadays I prefer good Kalamata olives to those, and most. There's a farmers' market booth that carries excellent brine cured ones, almost as good as the best imports I've had. Those aren't the only ones I like though.
350louisisaloafofbreb
>347 PaulCranswick: I really don't like em that much and I just got home from trick or treating :D
351PaulCranswick
>348 booksaplenty1949: Hahaha would that be shaken, not stirred?
>349 quondame: I am not quite sure which type I like the best and I am really only sophisticated enough to discern between green and black, Susan! Depends on my mood and what I am eating them with, I suppose.
>349 quondame: I am not quite sure which type I like the best and I am really only sophisticated enough to discern between green and black, Susan! Depends on my mood and what I am eating them with, I suppose.
352PaulCranswick
>350 louisisaloafofbreb: So I do hope that you got candy instead of olives.
353louisisaloafofbreb
>352 PaulCranswick: Yup! I even got a half a backpack worth of candy, and made a new friend (its a toddler who lives down the street)
354PaulCranswick
>353 louisisaloafofbreb: Half a backpack worth of candy will probably mean a few visits to the dentist.
355louisisaloafofbreb
>354 PaulCranswick: Haha, yup
356humouress
>344 EllaTim: I dislike olives but a few years ago I had olives preserved in olive oil and realised that what I disliked was the taste of brine. Olives themselves are really nice though extremely hard to find them without brine. I did find some on our recent visit to Spain.
357PaulCranswick
>356 humouress: I am able to get them here, Nina.
358Tess_W
>211 Kristelh: Just wow! I have to turn the speed down to 90 to be able to understand most readers. I also do the book and the audio. I discovered that I read much much faster than I am able to process the audio. So, audio books take me longer than just plain reading the book! However, I always have an audio book going so I can listen while I clean house, drive, etc.
359humouress
>357 PaulCranswick: Hmm. Okay, maybe a trip to KL is due. CNY good for you? (I'm not desperate for them.)
360booksaplenty1949
>358 Tess_W: Do you have this problem when live people are speaking to you?
361PaulCranswick
>358 Tess_W: I tried speeding up the You Tube to 1.3 and thought it was dreadful!
>359 humouress: I am possibly in the UK but March I will be back. I will find a way to get to you in Singapore soon.
>359 humouress: I am possibly in the UK but March I will be back. I will find a way to get to you in Singapore soon.
362PaulCranswick
>360 booksaplenty1949: I can get it if you want to understand everything you slow it a little but doesn't it sound abnormal.
363humouress
>361 PaulCranswick: Hah! I knew if I gave you too much notice you'd abscond ;0)
This topic was continued by Paul's Grand European Tour 21.
