50 books for Impious in 2009

Well, like so many others, I've decided it might be fun to try to keep track of what I read over the course of the year, so here I am! I think I will keep a running list of books I've read, and books I would like to read. So - without further ado…

Books Read in 2009:

1. Stardust - Neil Gaiman (Started and finished on Jan 1st 2009!)
Yes, this was a quick and easy read. I'd seen the film already, and usually cannot stomach reading a book after I've watched the film, but in my quest for devouring more works by Gaiman, I decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did - it made the sweltering day (well, it seemed pretty hot to me!) more bearable and was a fantastic way to usher in the new year. Unfortunately, I couldn't shake the image of Michelle Pfeiffer as the witch, and was quite shocked at the ship captain and his insignificance after the De Niro character but overall, still very happy with it. Hey, maybe someone can tell me - what exactly was Dunstan Thorn's Hearts Desire anyway?

Books to Read in 2009:

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell - Susanna Clarke (recommended by a friend)
In the Night Garden - Catherynne M. Valente (recommended by a friend)
In the City of Coin and Spice - Catherynne M. Valente (recommended by a friend)
Phantom - Susan Kay (recommended by a friend)

Of course I'd love to hear comments and recommendations from fellow LibraryThingers, and I look forward to browsing everyone's lists!

2. Coraline - Neil Gaiman

The story is interesting, but not one of my favorites from Gaiman. I didn't find Coraline to be a very likable little girl, certainly nowhere near as endearing as Nobody Owens from The Graveyard Book. I also thought it might be a bit scary for the target audience - which I'd put at about 10-12 years of age. Maybe I was just a wimpy little child, but I would have been terrified by some of the bits in this book! Even now I might run screaming if I come across any dolls with button eyes! Overall though, an entertaining light read, and as always, it leaves me thinking how clever Gaiman is to come up with such unusual stories. I look forward to hearing about the film which I believe is in the works, or soon to be released.

And on to the next book! Perhaps something more grownup this time?

3. The Good Fairies of New York - Martian Millar

This is the first book my Millar that I've had the pleasure to read. I picked it up because I'm a big fan of Neil Gaiman and Gaiman recommends him. It's a hilarious story about the trouble caused by a small handful of well-meaning fairies. I enjoyed Millar's style - very witty and light-hearted, and the characters crack me up! They are all so likeable, even with their in-you-face flaws. He doesn't waste time with lots of wordy descriptions of things, leaving more to the imagination, which I greatly appreciate. Overall, it was a fast-paced and easy read. I will certainly look for more of his works for future reading enjoyment.

Welcome to the 50 book challenge, Impious. Would have to agree with your assessment of Coraline, though my daughter read it when she was 10, loved it, and insisted that I read it, which I did. My only Gamain, so far.

Again, welcome and see ya 'round.

Thanks for the welcome theaelizabet - I'm enjoying browsing through other's lists and adding to my 'to read' list as well.

I would say if Coraline is your first Gaiman, give him another go before you decide on him. So far my favorite kids' book by him is defintely The Graveyard Book (which doesn't work with touchstones for some reason), all the characters are very loveable and I bet there's a good chance your daughter would like it as well although it's a bit long - maybe good parent/child bonding time in reading it together.

As far as adult reads - I'm torn between Anansi Boys and American Gods - both well worth a read. Of course Good Omens is a lot of fun too - and felt much more 'Gaiman' than 'Pratchett' to me.

4. Making Money - Terry Pratchett

Moist von Lipwig is back again - I love that guy! Once again Pratchett has written a book full of laugh-out-loud moments, the only author I'm afraid of taking into a quite place for a read for fear of bursting out in giggles and disturbing the peace. It really is a mystery to me how one man can have so much clever comedy in his head. This story of Moist von Lipwig and his attempt to survive his appointment as fixer-upper of the Ankh Morepork bank is full of all the usual twists and hillarious situations that I've come to expect from Pratchett. I don't think there's any point of actually recommending this book to anyone - if a person is a Pratchett fan then (s)he's probably already got this, or read it, or is planning to. If a person isn't a Pratchett fan...there must be something wrong with him/her. :)

ETA: Wow - I'm moving pretty slowly here - better pick up the pace if I want to keep up with the rest of you!

I see it as being all about the journey, not the destination.

I've had Gaiman and Pratchett on the tbr list for years now, I even have a couple of their books, but I've STILL not got around to them...

#7 same here, still haven't gotten around to reading any of Pratchett's novels... there are just TOO MANY BOOKS OUT THERE!!! *bangs head on bookshelf in sheer desperation*

7 & 8: They are both well worth the time - you can do it! :)

5. The Colour of Magic - Terry Pratchett

Just a quick fun re-read after TwoFlower came up in a conversation. This is the first of the Discworld books and I don't think it's one of the best, but I do have a soft spot for TwoFlower and for the luggage of course.

Has anyone else noticed how Death seems to evolve quite a bit in this series? The first time I read this book was so long ago, and re-reading it revealed to me how much this character evolves through the series. I was surprised to get the feeling that he was more of an antagonist in this book, rather than later when he's just another loveable character.

Hey Impious! If I want to start reading Terry Pratchett, which I do, I do, I've heard so many good things about him, do you have any recommendations as to which one(s) I should start with?

I have yet to read Stardust (although it's been sitting on my bookshelf forever!) and The Graveyard Book but I so want to. I also have Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell on my shelf. It's such a big book, so I have to wait until I have a decent chunk of time to devote to it, hehe.

I agree with you about Death - to begin with, he's just the anthropomorphism (not sure that's how you spell it - to borrow a Pratchett-sim, I know how to start spelling it, but I'm not sure how to stop) of death, and quite cold, but as the series moves on he becomes a fully rounded out character, and very likeable. I found the same thing happened to the character of the Patrician - he started out as a stock character, but then he evolved.
Good luck with the challenge!

Hey stephxsu, thanks for the comments - Everyone seems to have their own opinions when it comes to which Pratchett books are the best. My husband is partial to the witches and the characters of the watch, whereas I just love Death. I think my favourites of his books are Soul Music, Small Gods, and Hogfather. Any of these would probably make a good introduction. Oh - also the Tiffany books are good light reading and as they're meant for kids they're a nice gentle intro to discworld. However you do it, I highly recommend you do - I just can't get enough of Pratchett.

Stardust was fun, and I think The Graveyard Book is one of my new favourites. I've yet to get my hands on a copy of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell but it's definitely one I'm hoping to get my hands on (second hand because I'm a poor uni student lol!)

tash99 - I didn't notice so much with the Patrician, but now that you mention it I have to agree. He never became a real favourite of mine as Death is, but he does fill out a bit as time goes on. Thanks for the good luck - I look a bit slack only on 5 books, but I'm reading 4 right now, which will probably all finish about the same time, then I should be back on track. So many books and so little time! :)

Thanks for the recommendations, Impious! If you lurk around and search for used bookstores/book sales, you might be able to find good deals on books you want to read. I got my copy of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell at a used book place for $2. (I love that place. Seriously.)

6. M is for Magic - Neil Gaiman

Well, this is only the 2nd ever book of short stories I've written, so I am altogether unfamiliar with this type of writing. Some of the stories I liked, some I wasn't so fond of. I am not a fan of poetry, and would have skipped over the poem - luckily I watched a clip on youtube or somewhere with Gaiman reciting it, which was fantastic. This is certainly not my favourite book of his, and hasn't really made me a fan of short stories, although I haven't anything negative to say about the collection. Short stories don't seem to really grab my attention. I had to go back to the TOC to remind myself about some of the stories I'd already forgotten. My favourite of the lot would be probably Chivalry and The Troll Bridge.

I used to avoid short stories like the plague but now, I love them. I think the trick is to find the right author, who really makes you appreciate how much can be conveyed in just a few pages. Alice Munro is my favourite short story author, but another one I really like (and whose style is quite different from Munro's) is Laurie Moore.

ETA: I noticed on your profile that you're interested in biology, so I'd also highly recommend Vincent Lamb's Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures. It's a collection of stories that follows 4 characters through their medical careers, from Med School right on to the end (for some). Really well written and quite interesting, I thought.

Thanks for the suggestions spacepotatoes, I will keep my eye out for Munro and Moore - this is a form of writing that intrugies me. Lamb's book sound interesting as well.

*just dropping by to second the recommendation for Munro, she's an amazing short story writer

I'll third Munro. If you get interested in the form, let me know. I enjoy good short stories and would love to share some authors with you. But you can't go wrong with Munro.

Wow - thanks everyone, ok, three strong recommendations, that's it, she's officially added to my TBR spreadsheet!

Let us know what you think when you get around to one of her collections!

7. The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

Wow - this book took me quite some time to get through, but not, as one might assume, because it was a difficult or uninteresting read - but quite the opposite! I don't think I've ever found any non-fiction work to be such a page turner, and I was reading more slowly than normal because I was just devouring every word! Pollan's style is great - he is instantly likeable, easy to follow, honest, interesting and humble. This was the first I've read by him, and I look forward to getting my hands on others by him - in particular, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto.

Beware - I don't think I've ever read a more life-changing book than this - it isn't for the faint of heart. It demands a fair amount of soul-searching (stomach-searching?) and for me at least - required a dramatic change in my food-shopping and eating.

Basically, this is the story of three meals - tracing each meal back to its origins. In doing so we learn a bit about business, farming, politics, animal rights, gardening, hunting, gathering, and cooking - among other things. The extent of the harm processed and mass-produced foods cause is shocking, and I can't help feeling that people like the Salatin family at Polyface Farm are true heroes after reading about their amazing set-up. This book will make you look at your food like you never have before!

I highly recommend this book to EVERYONE. I will personally be buying four or five copies to give out to certain individuals I know will enjoy it, but I can't help thinking the world would be a better place if everyone read it and put some thought into what is really going into their mouths.

Read this book!

Great review of Michael Pollan - I loved In Defence of Food and Botany of Desire, and I think I'll have to give this one a go now, too. You're right, he really does make you think about the way you live, and inspires you to make changes.

I second tash99. Michael Pollan is brilliant. I read a short piece by him for class and was tempted to pick up his other works. Now, thanks to your review, I think I just might do that even more!

Great review, Impious! This reminded me a bit of Barbara Kingsolver's book Animal Vegetable Miracle. It describes a year of her family's life as they move to a farm in Appalachia and try to consume only what they can grow themselves or what was grown locally on nearby farms. It was a really interesting read and also changed my perspective on how our food gets to the table.

Thanks for the comments tash, steph, & space! I was in a bit of a reading book with three books left unread - so what a breath of fresh air that one was - and now I feel like a Pollan disciple lol! People will soon tire of me recommending and handing out that book.

I will have a look for Kinsolver's book as well, I dream of being in a position to grow my own food - difficult in a rented townhouse though! Something to keep in mind for the future anyhow, and at least I've got my basil and rosemary out on the patio!

8. Nation - Terry Pratchett

Another page-turner, although this one went much quicker as a young adult read should do. This is the first non-Discworld Pratchett I'd read, and although I wasn't quite sure how I'd go - I must say I really enjoyed it.

The story is wrapped around one boy's journey toward becoming a man and chief of his homeland after a terrible tragedy takes away all the people he knows, and presents him with an ever-growing new community to look after. It takes place in a universe parallel (and in the end even better {IMHO} than) our own in the late 19th century. The good guys are very loveable, and the bad guys get what the deserve, which makes this a satisfying, light-hearted read. Of course, like all other Pratchett books I've read it is full of underlying wisdom about how our world might be a better place - in particular by extolling the virtues of asking questions and seeking answers rather than accepting blind faith as the answer to everything.

9. The Foodtaster - Peter Elbling

This is the story of a peasant man that finds himself the foodtaster to a rather frightening and horrible duke in 16th century Italy. Elbling does a fantastic job of conveying the hardships of that period. The story is interesting from the first page, and kept me entertained until the very last. The characters are believable - full of flaws and contradictions and I couldn't help feeling for them all - even the baddies! A lovely piece of historical fiction and a rather easy read - very enjoyable all around. I was pleased to have found such a gem in a $2.00 bin at a market!

I also found it in the Bargain Books section of my local Chapters recently and have been really looking forward to it. Glad to know it's a good one!

10. The Forest House - Marion Zimmer Bradley

I didn't realise before I started this that it was a prequel to another, more popular book Mists of Avalon, which I've not read. Perhaps my opinoin of this one might be different if I'd read that one first. I found that although the first few chapters were promising with characters that seemed to be developing nicely, the rest of the book developed them into horrid wretched characters I couldn't like. There never seemed to be a big heroic climax in the story - just a sad crumbling of the characters and their world and in the end I was glad to be finished with the lot.

I've read two other books by Marion Zimmer Bradley - Hawkmistress and Stormqueen and couldn't help feeling with both that the stories were very dated with their 'woman's lib' feel. This story was the same for me, just too much preaching the empowerment of women theme which feels stale and antiquated and a non-issue to me as a woman now. I can imagine that this is a book my mother's generation would have enjoyed reading as young women - if they were interested in wretched characters that is. I have heard many people rave about Mists of Avalon, so if I find a cheap copy somewhere I might pick it up and save it for a rainy day, but I won't be running out to try any more works by this author.

11. Interworld - Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves

I don't normally go for SciFi reads, being more of a fantasy sort of girl, but the back cover of this one was irresistible - something about science and magic and multiple dimensions and castles and space ships and all sorts of fun things! It felt strangely un-Gaimanish to me, but as it was a collaboration I suppose that's to be expected. This book has an interesting premise, likeable unlikely hero, and was a rather quick read. It was rather short, and ended in a way that would leave it open for many more adventures for the main character Joey and his team, and left me wanting more - but in a good way! My only complaint would be that it seemed almost a bit rushed and unfinished - not quite as developed as I'd have liked. The characters were a bit shallow and one dimensional, which is unfortunate in a story of many dimensions!

12. Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt

Wow. What a depressing story. It took me a few pages to warm up to this one - at first I didn't like McCourt's style of writing, but by halfway through the book I was just hoping that it would end in a happy ending for poor little Frankie. It's a story of the poverty stricken lives in Ireland during the depression. When the book starts and McCourt says there is no suffering in the world like for the Irish during that time. At first I was offended for all the other great sufferers in the world, but as the book came to a close I started to think he might not be too far off.

What struck me most in this story is not so much the horrible poverty and hunger that existed, but more so the horrible ignorance and (religious) superstition that plagued the time. I kept thinking surely people were never so stupid (and what a better world this would be sans-religion!) - that wasn't even that long ago! Of course they weren't stupid, but uneducated, and I am just thanking my lucky stars that I am living in the time when I am.

I loved Angela's Ashes. Are you planning to read any of the follow-ups, 'Tis and Teacher Man? They are both very good as well, though neither quite measure up to Angela's Ashes. I really enjoyed Teacher Man, it rehashes some of the same things that came up in Angela's Ashes and 'Tis, but it's the one book where you really get to see just how deeply Frank's early experiences affected his ability to function as a man/husband/brother/father in NYC.

Frank's brother Malachy also has a memoir out (A Monk Swimming), though I personally like Frank's style much better.

Hey Spacepotatoes - I hadn't realised there were follow-ups to the book, but I will certianly keep my eye out for them. I didn't love the story, and won't go out of my way to track down the other books (although I would be curious to read Malachy's book just to compare sibling writing styles), but if I come across them 2nd hand somewhere I'll be sure to grab them.

13. The Secret World of Wombats - Jackie French

I have read this book more times than I can count, and I just love it to bits. Whenever I want a fun pick-me-up I tend to go for this one. Now, this is probably in part because I am such an animal lover, and wombats top the list as far as I'm concerned, but also just because French has such a fun way of writing for children. I would love a chance to read this book to a child some day, it is full of fun little stories about the wombats French has had the pleasure of knowing. Anyone who works with wildlife - or perhaps with any animals, can find something to relate to in this book and have a good chuckle over.

14. The Sum of All Men - David Farland (Dave Wolverton?)

I've been putting off starting this book for a while now as it's the start of a longish series that I believe isn't actually completed yet. I hate having to wait and wait for the last book in a series, forgetting everything that has happened in earlier books and having to start over when the last one finally comes. But, I was feeling in the mood for a bit of an epic adventure, and had Farland highly recommended to me quite some time ago, so I gave in.

This is a very interesting and unique fantasy world in which people are able to receive endowments of skills and abilities from others - increasing the ability within themselves, and draining it away completely from the giver.

One small complaint on this series - why do the names of people and places have to be so strange that they're hard to work out/read/pronounce? Perhaps it's just me, but I find the names in this book horrible. I can only imagine how difficult it must be to come up with new and interesting fantasy character names, but urgh - Gaborn, Binnesman and Myrrima... in my opinion the names are horrible. Luckily the characters are lovely and make up for their somewhat lacklustre names.

I spent a fruitless 2 hours prowling my local used book stores (four of them) for other books in this series to no avail. I will certainly keep my eye open for the rest as I really enjoyed this one.

The Secret World of Wombats sounds incredibly cute! I've never heard of Jackie French, I wonder if it will be hard to track the book down?

Girlunderglass - It would probably be easier to come by here in Oz, but Amazon does show a handful of used copies available. Her picture book Diary of a Wombat is also fantastic - although not much reading to it as its for the really young ones. Definitely grab a copy if you like to read about wildlife/animals.

15. Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett

A truly epic story of life in England in the early-mid 12th century, this book is heart-breaking and tragic and frustrating, but a really wonderful read! It's quite long (around 1100 pages, I think - haven't got it with me atm.), but the story never lags, and I was sad to see the end of it.

The story focuses on the lives of a few exceptional characters, Tom Builder - a mason, Prior Phillip, a monk, Aliena - the daughter of an Earl, and Jack - the son of a 'witch'.

I am not normally very happy about technical/descriptive text in stories, and this book does tend to be a bit heavy-handed when it comes to discussing/describing architecture and the building process, but for some reason it didn't bother me much at all. If anything, it made the story more believable and real to me.

The story starts with a hanging, and ends with a hanging, and there is quite a lot of death and injustice inbetween - making it a rather tragic and depressing book at times, but I felt that Follett stayed true to the era, whilst still ending on a hopeful note. I'll definitely keep this one on the bookshelf to reread at a later date.

Wonderful review! This is on my tbr right now!
--BJ

Thanks BJ for compliments on my review, and I would say it's certianly worth bumping up toward the top of the TBR list for sure!

16. Inkheart - Cornelia Funke

Oops - this actually should have been number 15 but I forgot to post it earlier. No matter. I found this book in a 2nd hand shop and thought I'd grab it and have a read before the movie gets here. I enjoyed reading it at the time but now a few weeks later it seems rather forgettable. This is the story of Mo and Meggie, father and daughter book lovers with a magical ability to draw characters and items in and out of books. It is the first of a triology, and the ending does leave the reader wanting to know what will happen next. I think I would have really enjoyed this book if I'd read it when I was younger and have a young person living with me that just loved the book to bits when she read it the first time as an early teen.

17. The Reindeer People - Megan Lindholm

I just can't get enough of these prehistoric/early North American/Siberian books. Like the Clan of the Cave Bear series, this book follows the struggle for life of early humans in a world that seems so removed from the world we live in today. This book focuses on Tillu, a healer, and her unusual (perhaps autistic?) son Kerlew. Tillu and Kerlew live as outcasts due to Kerlew's strangeness and Tillu's reluctance to let anyone that would wish her son harm get close. The local shaman takes Kerlew on as an apprentice and would take Tillu as his wife but she doesn't wish that fate for either of them and leaves with her son in the night to find a new life.

There is a second book in this story,(The Wolf's Brother) which is good as this one leaves much untold. I will look forward to getting my hands on a copy. I truly enjoyed this book, and was pleasantly surprised to find out that Megan Lindholm is actually Robin Hobb (can't seem to get the touchstone working), whom I thoroughly enjoy.

18. The Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux

Well, this was a bit of a cheat as I didn't read the book, but listened to it via Librivox. I don't feel the need to say much about this book as it is a classic and has already had plenty said about it, as well is this is not my first encounter with it, so I need not make notes to remind myself of the story.

I will take a moment to praise the volunteers that read for Librivox though, and to recommend it to people whom might not know of it. It is a website containing free audio recordings of a large number of books in the public domain. Of course, as volunteers, some of the readers do not do the best job at it, and sometimes the quality of the recording is not stellar, but it is always understandable and best of all - free (I would also encourage those with lovely voices and reading-aloud skills to check out the collection and volunteer themselves!)! In this case, there were a number of excellent readers, and just one or two that I didn't find pleasing to listen to. Still though, I thoroughly enjoy listening to a book while doing mindless tasks on the computer or around my office and home (folding laundry!), and just flew through this wonderful story in audio format.

19. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain

This is a book I've been meaning to read for a while now, and finally gave in and listened to it as an audiobook instead. I read this in school (as so many American students do) but as often happens with required readings, didn't enjoy it much, or even remember much about it. Being forced to read it and write about it as a 15 year old took all the fun out of it for me, and I could hardly even remember the story when I started it again a few days ago.

This is another one that it would be pointless for me to try to review as it's all been said by reviewers much better than myself before. I will comment that although I really enjoyed being shocked and dismayed by the story, the rescue of Jim really dragged for me - feels like the book was just sailing along until I got to that part and then the rescue went on for three or four chapters longer than was necessary to get the story out. I found myself glazing over the ridiculous things the boys were doing and the dialog between them to be getting very repetitive, but, all in all - a wonderful book, and the reader for this one was just fantastic!

20. Seven Little Australians - Ethel Turner

What a sweet and fun little book this was! This is a beautiful (and sad) story of a family of Australians living in the Sydney area in the 1880s. I was laughing from the very beginning. This is a large family with seven children, and the reader is warned ' not one of the seven are very good, for the very excellent reason that Australian children seldom are.'

I found the characters believable, and all fairly likeable, except for the father, whom I found it very difficult to like at all. I haven't read much Australian literature before, and I truly enjoyed reading a book set in this period that wasn't about the UK or Europe or the US for a change.

The ending is horrible and unexpected. I was sure we would receive a 'happily ever after' at the end of the story but it wasn't so, and it was a real shock. This is keeping in line with the story being a story about 'real' Australian children, and not a beautiful idealised story, but it was still a disappointment.

Altogether a beautiful book that I am pleased to have come across and would gladly recommend.

21. Anthem - Ayn Rand

For some reason I skipped over this tiny little book when going through my Ayn Rand phase, starting with The Fountainhead and then moving onto Atlas Shrugged and We the Living. Of these, We the Living is by far the best for my money, for the simple reason that it doesn't feel as if she is bashing the reader over the head with her philosophy. It actually reads like a real story and can be enjoyed as just a story.

Anthem was a quick and easy read, rather painless, but not particularly interesting or heart-warming. It is an interesting idea, the story takes place some time in the future, after perhaps some sort of apocalyptic event in which humanity has fallen into another 'dark age'. Individualism has been deemed sinful and wrong, and the word 'I' has been lost from the vocabulary. They speak in a collective 'we' and think and act as a collective. Well, everyone except for the protagonist and his select few friends that is. The story is somewhat predictable, and the ending is down-right painful to get through. The mercy is that it is a short story and in the end the characters finally get real names, which is nice because trying to remember the designations given to the individuals by the council was down-right painful!

For my money, you can't beat We the Living as the most likeable of Ayn Rand's books. Of course, if you are interested more in the philosophy and less in a good read, then any of the others would do, but I find the philosophy tiresome and Rand's books generally too heavy-handed with it.

I'm feeling rather lazy right now, but don't want to forget the books I've read recently so will just note them down and come back to comment properly later.

22. Tristan and Iseult - Joseph Bedier

(comments to be edited in)

23. The Wee Free Men - Terry Pratchett

(comments to be edited in)

24. Dirty Little Angels Chris Tusa

(my first Member Giveaway book! working on a proper review - will edit in link)

25. 1st draft of a friend's unpublished novel - (hey, it's a book's worth of reading and if the friend is lucky it will be a book some day, so I'm counting it.)

I would definitely count that, too. And good luck to your friend on getting published!!
--BJ

25. Hat Full of Sky - Terry Pratchett

My halfway book! Yay! I've still got some serious reading to do though, as assuming I am offered a place in the post-grad course of my choice my book reading will drop dramatically with all my reading time being spent on peer-reviewed journals and such.

Lovely book - The main character Tiffany Aching is really loveable, the Nac Mac Feegles are adoreable, and this 2nd story about them is really lovely to read. It's full of inspiring, important messages on self-worth and bravery and all other things for which young adults need reinforcement, but full of al the wit and sarcasm that makes me love Pratchett so much.

26. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell - Susanna Clarke

Wow - am I glad I'm done with this book! But, it's not like it sounds - the book was truly fantastic! It is just such a massive tome that it was somewhat inconvenient to carry around and to hold up when reading in bed! For those considering purchasing this book - I would highly recommend the 2-volume version, rather than the single large book.

That said, what a great story! I have read that many people found it hard to get through this one, but I just flew through it (except when I had to put it down due to arm fatigue...)! It had the feel of a Jane Austin novel - all the charm of early 19th century England with gentlemen behaving (for the most part) like gentlemen and ladies behaving like ladies. The language was wonderful, the characters were beautifully flawed and realistic. The history was woven into this story so nicely that it really does read like an historic fiction piece - which I suppose it is, although an historic fiction for an alternate England where magic is alive and well.

The plethora of footnotes took a while to get used to, but the extra colour the added to the story made the inconvenience of peeking back and forth between story and footnote completely worth it.

I was pleasantly surprised with the ending and can only hope we might hear more about these characters in a future novel.

27. Wintersmith - Terry Pratchett

Tiffany is a bit older and starting to think about things adolescent girls think about (boys!). She gets into an unusual situation after being unable to resist the urge to dance the winter Morris Dance and the story follows her actions after realising that the Wintersmith has fallen in love with her and is making a big mess of things in his effort to obtain her.

I was somewhat disappointed with this last book of the Tiffany Aching/Nac Mac Feegles. It was full of all the fun and the lovely characters that are in the others, but it just didn't have the sharpness that I'm used to in Pratchett's work. It may be in part due to the fact that this is a YA book, but the other two of this series were fantastic, so perhaps that wasn't the reason. It was still an enjoyable and quick read, and by the third book the reader is rather attached to Tiffany and her little blue guardians, so it is fun just to read more about their world. Of course having Granny Weatherwax and Nany Ogg in the story is also a bonus - I just love those witches! So, overall, not my favorite, but not a bad read.

Thanks for your review of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell! I have trouble keeping focus for such a long novel, but I might bring it with me when I go on an Internet-less vacation in January now. Again, thanks!

Hey steph - if you can make the space for it in the luggage - it should make a fantastic holiday book! Enjoy!

28. The Mists of Avalon - Marion Bradley

Finally! A book by this author that I really enjoyed! I've tried others by her and felt them very dated and preachy with her womans' lib stance (fair enough - she was born in the 30's I believe - but it's not for me). Everyone I've discussed her with though, said that this book was really fantastic and a must-read and wow - they were right!

This is the story of Camelot as told by Morgaine, focusing on the lives of the women of the time and how they influenced the events. The book gives the feeling of a very intimate relationship with the characters and I was brought to tears more than once whilst reading it. The characters felt very realistic and I grew rather attached to some and wished others would just die painfully, which is how it should be with a great work of fiction.

Also, (surprisingly,) the whole woman's lib movement which was obviously so important to the author doesn't scream out through the pages of the book. It is still the obvious underlying message, but it doesn't bash the reader over the head as her later books tend to do. I never once felt that I was being preached to, which is very pleasing after her other works.

29. The Baker's Boy - J.V. Jones

The first in a fantasy trilogy. There are quite a few important characters in the story, the main protagonists being Trawl, a knight on a quest for glory and absolution from his past; Jack, the baker's boy - an orphan with an unknown past and mysterious abilities; Melli - the daughter of a wealthy lord, and Nabber - a street urchin that takes up with Trawl. These characters are caught up in a web of intrigue and strife caused by a number of powerful men - an archbishop, the king's chancellor, Melli's father, and a wiseman named Belvin.

It is an entertaining book, although I can't find anything exceptional in it. The story is good, but nothing really original. I enjoy the humorous (well, I hope it was intended to be humorous), and halfway through the book fairly predictable, exchanges between one of the main baddies - the Archbishop Tavalisk and his assistant.

It is a good light read, although I can't imagine it will stick out in my mind amongst all the other thousands of fantasy novels out there. I was lucky enough to find the entire set in a 2nd hand shop and as it is such a rarity to find complete sets in a 2nd hand shop I swooped on it. I probably won't rush out to find more books by this author.

30. A Man Betrayed - J.V. Jones

31. Master and Fool - J. V. Jones

32. A Shadow on the Glass - Ian Irvine

33. The Tower on the Rift - Ian Irvine

34. Dark is the Moon - Ian Irvine

35. The Way Between the Worlds - Ian Irvine

The last in the first set of books for Irvine's Three Worlds. I really enjoyed the series, in particular the way that there wasn't any one real 'bad guy' or 'good guy'. These books give the story of a number of different human 'species' struggling to survive, with representatives from each species doing atrocious things to others in an effort to preserve their own species. The PoV changes throught the book so those that the protagonists and antagonists are constantly swapping roles throughout the series.

I also enjoyed catching the aussies slang and saying that crept into the books every once in a while. :D

The first half of this book was the least enjoyable of the whole series for me. It left me feeling nearly as tired as the characters were with all the running away involved. The chase scenes lasted much too long, getting repetitive and boring. But, once settled down past the first 150 pages or so the story takes off again, focusing on the resolution of the series, and so many surprises in the end!

I look forward to starting into the next series for this world.

36. THe Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Couldn't put this one down! This is perhaps the best YA book I've ever read - better than the Harry Potter series even. My only complaint is that it was over so quickly and left as such a cliff-hanger that I hate having to wait for the next book. Katniss is the protagonist of this story, a teenage girl that finds herself a participant in the annual death match hosted by her government in a future post-apocalyptic USA. The book was such an easy read - simple language, but the characters and their surroundings felt very real. I really felt for Katniss and her partner/competition in the game, Peeta. Yet another young adult book that translates well to an adult audience.

37. Anansi Boys - Neil Gaiman

I've read this one before, and this time actually listened to it in audio-book format. The book was read by Lenny Henry and wow - he really brought the story to life! A book that I quite enjoyed when I read it the first time I just loved to bits when Henry read it to me! His use of accents and voices for the characters - just fantastic! Gaiman's witty writing and Henry's expressive voice = pure magic!

Best Book i have ever read!! In the beginning i did not quite understand it but when i got to the middle i could not stop putting it down. I read it all night when i was sick. Then i bought it the next day and reread it.

Love love loved The Hunger Games! And I have Anansi Boys on my TBR shelf so I'm glad you enjoyed it. :)

38. The Time-Traveller's Wife - Audrey Nifenegger

A beautiful and tragic love story. I listened to this one rather than read it and found some of the shuffling back and forth through time a bit confusing, but not distractingly so, and I think it was written to be that way - so we might feel a bit of the turmoil that the characters experienced. I was sobbing like a baby through the last chapter or so (not such a good thing when doing long-distance driving!) but thoroughly enjoyed it. It kept me guessing until the very end, made me love the characters, and most importantly made my drives just fly by!

39. A Zoo in my Luggage - Gerald Durrell

Durrell talks about his adventures in acquiring animals for his own personal zoo. I was shocked over how zoo collecting is done and had to resist the temptation to be furious about the 'it's a rare animals so I'll try to get some and transport it overseas and keep it in a cage' mentality. When remembering (and accepting) that it was a different time with a different mentality as far as conservation of species is concerned, it was actually a very enjoyable book. The best part about it would be the way he describes the interactions with the people that he worked with in Africa - a beautiful insight into another way of life.

40. Twilight - Stephanie Meyer

Meh - not bad, not great. I didn't especially like Bella and found her impossibly and unbelieviably mature for her age, but I didn't mind the book and was interested enough to pick up the next in the series.

41. A Dark Curse - Christine Feehan

Sex scenes were too long, and not particularly interesting. I didn't realise when I picked this one up that it was #20 or so in a series. That being said, it read as a complete story, so although there was history with the characters in the book, it survived as a stand-alone without the support of previous books. I wouldn't go out of my way to pick these up but if I came across more in a 2nd hand bookstore I'd grab them to keep on the shelf for a rainy day. Nice light reading material.

42. Dogs and Goddesses - Jennifer Crusie, Anne Stuart, Lani Diane Rich

Chic-lit. Not great, but as an audio book this one saved me from many boring hour-long commutes.

43. Undead and Unworthy - MaryJanice Davidson

Yet another audio-book experience. And this one was painful. This is one that I actually stopped a number of times and only turned back on when I was very bored. Too much stupid meaningless aggression between characters, unbelievable dialogue, and a very unlike-able heroine.

44. New Moon - Stephanie Meyer

Like so many others, at first I groaned 'oh no...vampires AND werewolves?!?' But, nicely done, Bella grew on me, and I quite enjoyed this book. One thing I wasn't thrilled about - it took half of the book before anything actually happened. That was a bit frustrating and all the 1st half of the book felt like it was just repeating the same short scene over and over. But, toward the middle it picked up and I quite enjoyed it. Looking forward to the next one.