Steph's 1010 attempt

1010 Challenge




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I'm new to library thing and love the idea of this challenge. Hopefully this and the 75 challenge will keep me reading and help me with a few idea for broadening my tastes. Due to recent addition to the family, I'm not sure I'll manage the full ten in each category, so think I'll start by aiminig for 5 and see how I get on. So, my catagories are going to be as follow:

1) Other worlds
I've always liked sci fi / fantasy and I have a small pile waiting to be read, so I'll tackle this category most confidently

2) Who done it
I read through the Rebus books a few years ago following my mum's recommendation, and have also read a few on the C J Sansom Shardlake books. I love the fact I never have any idea who's done it, and so i just follow the twists and turns to the end. I'll probably try the rest of the Shardlake books, and perhaps start the Wallander series. Afterthat, it might be a trip to the libary and a random raid of the cime shelves unless someone could recommend a few gems.

3) Scandinavian Stuff
I was alway a fan of danish film, and as a student I spent a semester in Denmark and got to know the country a little, as well as a few fantastic people. I'd like more more into the world of Scandinavian books (translated as my Danish was never anything other than shocking) and see where it tRakes me - all suggestions welcome!

4) African Reads
I spent sometime in Mozambique a few years ago and really loved the place.

5) Runners up
When choosing books, the fact a book's won a prize (Orange / Booker etc) has always tipped me into making the purchase and reading the book. This year I though I'd try some of the runner's up instead.

6) Non fiction
I'll try and keep the grey cells ticking over while away from work.

7)LibraryThing recommendations
So many suggestions for reading material. I'll choose a few at random.

8)Young Adults
I loved reading as a teenager and regularly read though the whole teenage section in my local (very small) library. When I moved on the the adult shelves, I couldn't believe how poor so many of the books seemed in comparison. So, while I get a lot more out of adult books now, I still love a good teenage read

9) Baby books
Book to read with my 5 months old. A dead cheat I know, but this is my guilt free reading, and I want to give myself a fighting chance of doing the full ten!

10) Anything else?

Choosing the above has fueled my anticipation of the new year, and I can't wait to get started!

OTHER WORLDS

1 Storm Front by Jim Butcher
2 Fool Moon by Jim Butcher
3 Grave Peril by Jim Butcher
4 Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher
5 Small Favour by Jim Butcher
6 Summer Knight by Jim Butcher
6 Death Masks by Jim Butcher
7 Blood Rites by Jim Butcher
8 Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
9 Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman
10 May Contain Traces of Magic by Tom Holt

WHO DONE IT?

1 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
2 Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
3 The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
4 Have His Carcase by Dorothy L Sayers
5 Sparking Cynanide by Agatha Christie
6
7
8
9
10

SCANDINAVIAN STUFF
1 Let the Right One in by John Ajvide Lindqvist
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Other countries - (was AFRICAN READS)

1 The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
2 Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

RUNNERS UP

1 The Other Hand by Cleave Chris - shortlisted for Costa award
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

NON FICTION

1 365 Activities You and Your Baby Will Love by R C Leiderman
2 Direct Red by Gabriel Weston
3 Your Toddler; Month by Month by Tanya Byron - unfinished
4 Four British Fantasists by Charles Butler - unfinished
5 Among The Believers: An Islamic Journey by V S Naipaul - unfinished
6 Reclaiming The F Word by Catherine Redfern - unfinished
7 Between East and West; Across the Borderlands of Europe by Anne Applebaum unfinished and at inlaws house!
8
9
10

LIBRARYTHING RECCOMENDATIONS

1 Imajica by Clive Barker
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

YOUNG ADULTS

1 castle in the air by diana wynne jones
2 Johnny and the Bomb by Terry Pratchett
3 The Summoning by Kelly Armstrong
4 Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper
5 The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper
6 Greenwitch by Susan Cooper
7 The Grey King by Susan Cooper
8 Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper
9 Time of the Ghost by Diana Wynne Jones
10 Enchanted Glass by Diana Wynne Jones

BABY BOOKS

1 That's Not My Monster by Fiona Watt
2 Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell
3 My first picture book by Biro
4 Alphabet (Paula Wiseman Books) by Mathew Van Fleet
5 nursery rhymes picture book
6 That's Not My Teddy by Fiona Watt
7 That's Not My Penguin by Fiona Watt
8 Leo's Adventure by Francesca Ferri (published by The Book People Ltd
9 Baby's Very First Book of Toys Usborne
10 That's not my Kitten by Fiona Watt
11 Baby's Very First Book of Outside Usborne
12 Mr Bear's New Baby by Debi Gilori
13 That's not my Frog
14 Wow, What a body can do
15 Just Like Us
16 Happy Dog, Sad Dog by Sam Lloyd
17 Peek a Boo
18 Silly Suzy Goose by Petr Horacek

ANYTHING ELSE?

1 The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
2 The Hollow Hills by Mary Stewart
3 Wedding Season by Katie FForde
4 American Gods by Neil Gaiman
5 The Last Juror by John Grisham
6 The Power of Three by Diana Wynne Jones
7 The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold
8 The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart
9 The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold
10 Paladin of Souls by Lois mcMaster Bujold

I've just read that's not my monster to baby as his first New Year read. He actually touched the touchy-feely nits, and didn't just try to eat the book. Success!

>12 Steph78: Isn't reading with an infant wonderful? The worlds you're opening up for him!

Good luck on your challenge, and don't hesitate to change categories if you need to, or move them around between categories. I've done a lot of that already (my challenge began in Oct.).

Welcome! I like your categories (and your attitude!) a lot, and will surely check in here again. And oh, I'm Swedish, so if you just give some hints on what you like, I'd be more than happy to help out in the scandinavian department. There are a few of us in this challenge, actually :)

Hi Steph - found you!

Here are some suggestions for your chosen categories:

Other worlds: Imajica by Clive Barker could possibly be of interest? And if not already read Arthur C. Clarke's Odyssey series is a wonderful read - not always the greatest writing I'll admit but an amazing story! You might also like The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood - not entirely sci-fi but a sci-fi story is cleverly woven into the narrative, wonderfully done.

Who done it?: A definite twist on the traditional Whodunnit but try Carter beats the Devil by Glen David Gold. Fast-paced, different, fun and just generally a right rollocking read!

Scandinavian stuff: Try Let the right one in by John Ajvide Lindqvist. A beautiful vampire tale.

African reads: I totally adore The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver, highly recommend that book.

Anything else: I'll have a think!

Great ambition and love your categories, look forward to seeing how you get on, Jx

Hi GingerbreadMan and auntmarge64,

thanks for the encouragement! reading suggestions of Swedish novels would be particularly welcome!

Making the most of having my husband home for the holidays, I've been getting a break from childcare and sneaking in some quick reads. so far

Castle in the air by Diana Wynne Jones. This is the a book of majic set in a different world and sequel to Howls Moving Castle, which I read as a teenager and loved completely. As is often the case, I didn't really think the sequel matched the original. The new setting and characters had promise, but I found the pace a bit uneven and the character development fairly scare particularly when the old characters made an appearance. All in all I think it would have been a more interesting read if it hadn't been tied into the previous novel at all. However, that said, it was a good fun, light read, and I'll probably try a couple more of her books at a later date.

Johnny and the Bomb by Terry Pratchett. I really like the way the time is looked at in the book, especially the idea of how to move through it. Not a classic, but a slightly different way of doing a story with parallel universes. Love the bag lady.

Another day, another baby book. Today's was dear zoo. The baby doesn't really get flaps yet!

Yesterday as the last of my holiday reads, I whizzed through another young adult book, this time The Summoning by Kelly Armstrong. This was a random pick from the returned shelf at the library. The book is the first in a series and starts with a 15 girl being admitted to a group home following hallucinations, however, all is not what it seems. I enjoyed the the progression of the main character's perception of those around her through out the book and plot wise, the first part of the book where it was still unclear whether the hallucinations were real or not was most interesting. However, the main thrust of the story some moved onto more usual territory (ghosts, conspiricy etc) and I found it a bit less enjoyable. Not a bad teen read, but all in all I think It would have been a far more interesting read if the questions re illness etc had been explored more fully. Perhaps there's a book out there that does that which I'd enjoy more!

Today I read (showed?) baby his first picture book by Brio. I loved all the colours, textures and animals hiding under flaps. It's amazing that it tells a story in such a few simple pictures! Not too sure what the baby thought, but I think this one will be a regular.

As baby is now napping (having worn him self out having a good sit) I about about to start the post holiday reading with some adult books . Not sure which I'll chose to start with, perhaps A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson or The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart

Alphabet (Paula Wiseman Books) by Matthew Van Fleet. I've just read this gorgeous book, which was a Chistmas a pressie from the in-laws. Absolutely great - Baby is a bit small to fully appreciate it yet, but I love the combination of rhymes with touchy feely bits, flaps and tags. Best of all it's fair study too, so has a chance of lasting more than five mins!

Baby book of the day- picture book of nursery rhymes. Lovely pictures and baby likes the rhymes.

Re adult books - the challenge is now underway!

First Adult book finished - Scandinavian Crime!

Having finished the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I have come away with rather mixed feelings. I greatly enjoyed the first third of the book where the scene was set and the characters introduced, however, as the pace picked up and the story became more gripping, I actually enjoyed it less and less. This was partly the grisliness of the violence against women (particularly the bits you imagined rather than the bits explicitly described) scenes, but also the fact that it became more predictable (not wishing to give away the plot, but how many serial killer novels / films etc are there!) The resolution of the book also seemed to drag itself out far more than necessary. That said, I'll almost certainly be reading the next two books though perhaps not immediately.- it will be interesting to see what happens next.

I think I've decided on my next read though - something a bit lighter - A friend is going to lend me a series about a magician detective - sounds fun :)

Here are some swedish titles for you! I tried (apart from the "available in english" thing, of course) to go for great reads from a broad scope of genres and flavours. Sadly, there's always the problem that a lot of the best titles never get translated...And that most of the authors getting translated into english seem to be male. Hope you find something you like!

Classics:
Anything by Hjalmar Söderberg, but perhaps especially Doctor Glas - thematically pretty similar to Crime and punishment, but an easier (and slimmer!) read. About a doctor who ponders killing a patient of his because he's being such a tyrant to his wife, whom Doctor Glas is in love with. Great book and a must read for swedes!
The queen's tiara by C.J.L Almqvist is a queer gem from the gothic/romantic era, about Tintomara who both men and women fall in love with, with many curves and twists to the story and stylistic tricks. Highly readable!
The dwarf by Pär Lagerkvist is more than a little bleak, an allegory over the evil of mankind represented by the scheming jester at a medevial Italian court. Not a happy book, but an intense read in a short format that lingers for a long time.

Contemporary(ish) fiction:
Captain Nemo's library is a historical tale from the north of Sweden about two boys born on the same day, that get swapped at birth. Until the truth is found out and they are forced to change families. My favourite book of Enquist's!
Sweetness by Torgny Lindgren is another story you won't quickly forget, about two old in houses on each side of a road, refusing to meet and speak, and the young woman who gets stuck there in a snow storm. A quick, fun read, that still carries a fair bit of depth.
For a more surreal humouristic book, Popular music from Vittula by Mikael Niemi about the first pop band in a small village way north of the polar circle is a tall tale that made me laugh out loud. My country never seemed so exotic.
I second mrsjwillowby's suggestion above. Let the right one in is the best vampire book I've read.

Crime:
As mentioned elsewhere, Blackwater by Kerstin Ekman is a great book. Not quite a standard crime novel, even though it deals with a brutal double murder, it's also a book about moving to a small community trying to fit in - amongst other things.
My favourite crime writer is Inger Frimansson. She usually has the perpetrator as the main character and creates some bone chilling thrillers. A few of them are available in english, I know.
Karin Alvtegen is also well worth checking out. I really liked Shadow, about dark secrets in the past of a nobel prize winner. In the end, only the reader sits with the full picture.

I really wish that Jerker Virdborg, Cilla Naumann, Mare Kandre, Inger Edelfeldt or Sara Lidman were available in english, but alas. Still, there's a start for you!

I second the recommendation for Imajica, but then Clive Barker is my favorite author. He also has a few YA books. I also second the Odyssey series by Arthur C. Clarke; that's the series that got me hooked on science fiction when I was 10 or 11 years old.

I also recommend anything by Lois McMaster Bujold, if you haven't read her books yet. Since you like the Darkover books, if you haven't read Anne McCaffrey's Pern books yet, that series is often compared to Darkover. Other SFF authors I enjoy are Catherine Asaro, Sharon Shinn, Joan D. Vinge, Tanya Huff, and Mercedes Lackey. For YA, I also recommend Megan Whalen Turner, Shinn's YA books, Robin McKinley, and Sherwood Smith.

I really liked the Johnny books by Terry Pratchett. The first one was the best, IMO, but they have all been good.

Hi Gingerbreadman anbd Quaisor,

Thanks so much for the recommendations. Having placed a few orders, I'm now just waiting for some of the books to arrive so I can start reading them. I'll be sure to put up reviews as I go.

Just finished the first two in Mary Stewart's trilogy retelling the story of Merlin and Arthur. I first read these in my early teens, and have re-read them many times before leaving home. This seemed like a nice place to start on my "other" category.

The Crystal Cave takes us from Merlin's childhood in post-Roman Wales, through to the conception of King Arthur. Merlin here is a doctor, an engineer, a singer and a prophet. My view may be coloured by fond remembrances from younger days, but IMO it's a wonderful story; full of adventure, well written and well paced. The take on the myth has some original twist and turns, and there is a strong sense of place and solid reality provides a vivid setting for the "history" that plays out. One of my favourite reads, which I will probably go back to again and again.

The Hollow Hills continued the story where the Crystal Cave leaves off, and continues until the crowning of King Arthur. While I still enjoyed the book, this one did not live up to my memories of it. The pace was not quite so smooth and while all the characters were well imagined, the development seemed to progress in fits and starts. I wasn't too keen on the cast on female characters either. All in all an enjoyable book though, and I'm looking forward to reading the final part.

Next book is Storm Front by Jim Butcher. Borrowed from a friend who loves the series, this is the first in a series about Dresden, a wizard PI in Chicago. A real genre crossover between fantasy and crime. IMO - nice concept, decent plotting; it's a shame the writing styles not quite up to it. All the same, it's a good fun light read - A nice alternative to watching the soaps!

After a fairly late night, and a couple of naps for baby, I've now read books two and three of the Dresden File which my friend lent me.

Fool Moon Magician PI tackles werewoles, but which type of the four? Good fun :)

Grave Peril Magician PI and vampires. This really was loads better than the first two books. I think I'm hooked and will borrow the rest of the series asap in the hope that they are similarly fun, pacey books!

The Other Hand by Chris Cleave. The first book for my runner up category, this the story of a girl who is a refugee from Nigeria and a middle class journalist from Surrey, tracing the repercussions of their meeting. Not a great book, not awful - the kind of book that's trying to say something meaningful, but is lacking in a feeling of authenticity and one I won't remember for long at all. The subject of immigration and the dreadful treatment some asylum seekers find in the UK is something there should be more books about, but this one really doesn't do the job justice.

Also been reading more books to my lovely boy.

That's Not My Teddy by Fiona Watt - the fluffy ears are fab!

That's Not My Penguin by Fiona Watt - nice soft baby penguin

Leo's Adventure by Francesca Ferri (published by The Book People Ltd. Sadly I can't find this in order to catalogue it. It's really a great book. Large and made of cloth is shows Leo (a lion) on the farm on a tractor, in the jungle in a helicopter, under the sea in a submarine, and at the North Pole with a sledge. Each adventure has a page where you can move the transport to and fro, and it cover's animal noises, animal size, colours and counting using flaps and velcro to bring it to life . Baby has no idea what it'sall about of course, but he loves playing with the flaps, chewing the pages etc. We read this nearly everyday and will probably do so for a long time to come. I'd love to have 10 more like it!

I've started to read Transition by Iain M Banks, but not got far yet. Due to a combination of baby's short naps and the many different, so far apparently disconnected, strands of the story, it's proving a bit difficult to get stuck in!

I've also been reading more baby book -

Usbourne's First Book of Toys, Usbourne's First Book of Outside and That's not my Kitten. The usbourne books are great, just a high contrast pictures and a sound to make with each. (I've also made up some movements to go with - a bit tragic, but keep his attention!) . Sadly That's Not My Kitten isn't a patch on That's not my monster or other books in the series though. Less captivating pictures and the touchy-feely sections aren't as interesting.

I've raided the local library again and have 2 more Jim Butcher's to read for my Other Worlds category, along with Murder on The Orient Express for Crime, 365 Activities you and Your Baby Will Love for Non Fiction and Sidetracked and an icelandic novel I've already forgottem the name of (actually called Last Rituals for Scandinavia. And then The File and Let the Right One In had arrived in the post when I got home.

Some fun reading time ahead :)

After a few days off line following a monitor failure, I'm now back on line. It's been a good week

I've not got any further with Transition as yet, and I think I'll put it aside until I have a bit more extended time with childcare - it was just a bit to tricky to get stuck in given regular interuptions.

Surprisingly between weaning the baby, visiting prospective nurseries and sorting out gardeners / decorator etc prior to putting our house on the market, I have managed to complete some books.

Proven Guilty and Small Favour by Jim Butcher. I find it impossible to describe this book without writing spoilers. So I'll just say I really enjoyed them, and Small Favour contains what has to be the most imaginative appearance of the three bill goats gruff ever seen in print.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. Having seen the television adaptations of many of the Poirot books, I was pleasantly surprised with how fresh this book seemed. The structure of the book was engaging, encouraging you to try and work out what was going on far more than any film. While the prose and social setting is most definitely dated, there were surprising elements to the story and the perpetrator was not immediately obvious. I especially enjoyed the asides, for example where M Poirot suggests his companions exercise their little grey cells as he does likewise, and we see the train of their thoughts - so true to life! I will definitely read more!

I've also been flicking through 365 Activities you and your baby will love. This book contains lots of idea for play, ordered by age. Many of the ideas are things I've already done, but there are a few new ones, and is adding a bit more variety to playtime with the little one. I think I'll hang on to this copy for a while, rather than returning it straight to the library.

I have also just started an Icelandic Crime book called Last Rituals, which I'm not far into it to yet. So far the voice of the main protagonist is appealing. I'll post more on completion.

Another book delivery means I now have The Queen's Tiara and An Islamic Journey: Among the Believers by V S Naipul on the TBR pile. Further loans from friends (Thanks Thomas) mean the rest of the Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher is sitting on my shelf, tempting me in for a quick read.

Hi, I have An Islamic Journey: Among the Believers by V S Naipu on my tbr list, If you get to it before me I wil be interested to see what you think.

I keep toying with idea of getting Transition too, but Iain Banks can be just so hit & miss. I still have Matter to read too but it's just soo large! :)

Glad you enjoyed Murder on the Orient Express. Along with And Then There Were None it's consider one of her best. I'm also partial to Endless Night, A Murder is Announced and A Pocketful of Rye.

34 - Hi. I've just started Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey and so far finding it both engaging and informative.

35 - thanks for the comment MsTrust. I think I'll try And Then There were None if I can track down a copy at the library :)

Over the last couple of days I've been reading the Dresden Series like there's no tomorrow. They're fun books with novel ideas, plenty of pace and enough plot turns to keep you interested. I've now finished Summer Night, Death Masks and am part way through Blood Rites. I'm glad I have a friend with the whole series so far :)

I've also introduced 5 mins of story telling for the little one, between bath and bed. So far he's had Mr Bear's New Baby read to him 3 times and it's been a real hit. He's clam and likes listening, and I enjoy the telling, though I'm not sure I've got the hang yet. It's really different than reading books with him during the day, where looking at the pictures and playing with textures and flaps is the name of the game. Definitely something I'll keep on with. Perhaps I'll need to find a few more short picture story books!

Dead Beat by Jim Butcher completed. Another quick fun read. This time the subject is necromancy, enter zombies, ghosts and the usual threat to the world order that only Wizard Dresden can stop.

Struggling to read at all now the little one appears to be teething. Any suggestions for fitting in quick reads when you never get more than five/ten mins peace in a row?

Teething babies seems like a million years ago for me, but I do remember and you have my sympathy. Maybe you could try audio books, which would free your hands for holding babies and icing gums.

Or you could do what my daughter did, bring the babies to Nana because she needed a "Me" day!

Good luck.

Having a much better week, and in addition to celebrating a birthday, I've finished the Dresden Files series. White Night I really enjoyed, Turn Coat a little less. Now i've have to wait for a new instalment to be written!

I've also started Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman. I'm hoping that as a collection of short stories, it'll be easier to cope with the inevitable interruptions in reading. If successful, I may go on the hunt for some more short story collections and put some of my recent additions to my TBR pile into storage until I'm back at work and commuting again.

Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper. Having re read this for the first time in very many years, I was pleasantly surprised by how well IT stood up to my memory of it. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the sequence, as this was one of those books that gave me nightmares childhood, partly because of the scary cover on my sister's copy!

The Dark is Rising, Greenwitch and The Grey King all read and enjoyed. I chose these as I needed some lightweight reading for a tough few weeks and I've not read these since I was a kid. I found they still had real charm and really enjoyed the read. I'm looking forward to reading the final part of the sequence

I've also read Direct Red by Gabriel Weston, which is an insiders take on a surgeon working withing the NHS. This was picked up on a whim to leaf though while I was having coffee in a bookshop, and was such a gripping read it came home with me despite an ever growing LibraryThing inspired TBR pile. I would recommend it to anyone as an engaging peek into a woman's professional life, with some honest critiques of the system she works within.

When I last read the dark is rising sequence as a child, the silver on the tree was my least favourite of the books. Rereading this now, I think it may actually be my favourite. Many of the scene and settings are incredibly vividly realised, and the tension in the book builds with ever increasing speed and intensity as the story progressed. Wonderful

Just finished Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman. A great collection. With such a good mix of ghost stories, sci fi, mthyology & horror, each story is a distinct, vivid & many are just great. The Sunbird, Closing time, instructions, and the Monach of the Glen were probably my favourites, while some were a bit to unpleasant for enjoyment (eg Other People), but even so, nearly all had a spark or an idea that made them an interesting read. What an imagination and what skill. I'm so envious of the talent!

The reading is going _really_ slow at the momment, now that the little one in crawling about at speed and climbing the furniture at every opportunity. I've continued with the baby books, and have read the following with my boy
That's Not my Frog
Wow what a body can do
Just Like Us
Happy Do, Sad Dog
Peek-a-boo

I've finished Let the right one in. This one is just a bit too nasty in places for me to have thorougly enjoyed at the moment, but I'll definately be hanging on to it, and going back to it when I'm in a slightly better frame of mind.

I'm continuing to read bits of Among the Believers, and Between East and West, and enjoying both despite the baby brain.

I read Over Sea, Under Stone for the first time this year. I don't know why I didn't read these sooner, but I enjoyed it. I haven't read anymore yet though.

I'm glad you enjoyed it. When you're reading something you loved as a child / YA, it's always really hard to tell how much you like it for itself, and how much for the effect it had on you then. IT doesn't have the fear factor that it had when I was little and, re reading it now I can see it's dated, I still love the series.

Yesterday was a trip to the library, and i've now got two more books read.

Silly Suzy Goose was an enchantingly illustrated book I read with the little one. The story is a goose who wants to be different. Lovely.The lion in action is especially great. My little one was really engaged with the book and has been crawling around after the book, trying to turn the pages.

The other was May Contain Traces of Magic by Tom Holt. The first book of his I've read, I found it enjoyable despite the massively convoluted plot and I'll think about picking up another in future.

Wedding Season by Katie Fforde - a nice light cheerful bit of chick lit fluff. just what I was in the mood for.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman. The editor preferred version. I was inspired to read this as have loved Good Omens Since I first read it, and have read both Anansi Boys and Fragile Things in the last year. I enjoyed the book in parts, but found the others I've read much more entertaining where and Anansi and Shadow were much more engaging . I may track down the original edition of the book to see if that's more to my taste.

The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler

I've been finding that I've enjoyed the crime category less than I anticipated, so thought I'd try a different type of crime novel. I've never read Chandler before, and picked this up from my local library without any real expectations of finding a book I would really enjoy, and I was totally blown away by the first 3rd of the book.

I love the prose, the characters, the dialogue, the way it talks about corruption, ethics and honour - really interesting, with a page turning plot which kept me reading. The plot does get very convoluted as it continues and the female charcaters seem somewhat one dimensional, but i'll definitely be going back for more. Maybe I should have know it would be a winner given my love of film noir, but I would never have picked it up without this groups existense - thanks to the 1010 challange!

I would never have picked it up without this groups existense - thanks to the 1010 challange!

I think that's one of the big draws of this group. It gives you opportunities outside of your normal reading comfort zone. It was certainly one of the reasons I joined anyway. Glad you found a winner.

I love Roaymond Chandler I really dont think any author captures noir quite as well Farewell, My Lovely is my favourite of his.

I might well have a look at farewell my lovely once my tbr pile has gone down a bit.

Today i've just finished another for my crime category. This time i've also gone for an older book with a view to missing the nastiness of so modern crime books. This time it was Dorothy L Sayers and Have His Carcasse, a Peter Wimsey Novel. All in all I though it was a good read - nice and humorous for the first part of the book and all tied up by the end, although I did get a bit bogged down through the rather convoluted twists and turns of alibis, etc. Entertaining though.

Hubbie's back from a trip away and so I got a couple of hours in bed to read this morning. Bliss! I got to finish off the latest book for my young adults category - The Time of the Ghost by Diana Wynne Jones. I really enjoyed this creeepy ghost story, another LibraryThinger has described it as follows and I completely agree

'The ghost is in a state of confusion and panic - she doesn't remember who she is, where she is, or what has happened to her - only that there has been an accident. As she explores her surroundings some things come back to her - she is one of the Melford sisters, the children of neglectful parents. Only one of them is missing from their home - Sally - and she assumes she is Sally, and that she's dead. But when Sally turns up alive, the ghost realises that she's wrong, and in the past. Which sister is she? And how can she stop her death? One of my favourite Diana Wynne Jones - semi-autobiographical. The confusion of the ghost, the disinterest bordering on brutality of her parents all feel very real.'

Lovely.

Enchanted Glass by Diana Wynne Jones. Nice book, but not one of my favourites.

We've been moving house, settling the little one into nursery and getting ready for the return to work, but have manage to fit in some reading, though not much LibraryThinging. So here's a little update -

Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie A nice page turning read, although it was a bit obvious who dun it.

The Last Juror by John Grisham My first John Grisham and I was pleasantly surprised. I've never been a huge fan of the film adaptations and found the personalities more engaging that I expected.

The Power of Three by Diana Wynne Jones. This is the last one from a bulk buy I was tempted to earlier in the year. Lovely book, very enjoyable.

The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold. This was picked up on the basis that I read The Vor Game years and years and years ago, and really enjoyed it. This book was a totally different genre, romantic fantasy through and through rather than a bit of space opera, but it was a good read. The first 10 or so pages took a bit of getting through, but once the main character was introduces and the basic scene was set, the intricate plotting came into it's own, with the main character falling for the one person he shouldn't while coming to terms with who he really was, and trying to unravel who is plotting against him. The romance was predicable and not very convincing, but the world building was interesting, the plotting and paranoia all good. I will be reading more of this author.

The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart. I've certainly enjoyed re-reading this Trilogy. This last installment was probably the one I remembered least, so I'm especially glad to have read it. It didn't have quite the spellbinding effect of The Hollow Hills or The Crystal Cave for me, but I enjoyed her telling of the Arthurian legend overall.

I'm sure I've missed a few books off, but maybe they'll come to me later. And of course I've been reading with the little one more and more, but I've stopped adding these as a matter of course and I'll probably only bother reviewing the really favorites (his or mine) in future.

All in all I'm really happy with how the challenge is going. I might be slightly under half way through my target numbers, and some categories may be woefully empty, but I've been reading books I would never have picked up without the challenge, have increase my TBR pile with all sorts of lovelies to be picked up in future, and have been motivated to make time for myself to do something I love - read. Result :)

It's good to see you back again. I'm glad the moving bits are behind you and the settling-in stage is underway.

And not posting because you've been reading actual books is a wonderful excuse!

I've just whizzed through The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga. Described as as brilliantly savage, it tells the story of a man from rural India wants to escape the life he was born to. A critique of a corrupt and cruel world,
this is a dark angry novel where the people are unsympathetic and there aren't any rose tinted spectacles anywhere in sight. Brillant, but depressing. Worth a read, but I think perhaps I'd like a happier, more optomistic book next.

Imajica by Clive Barker. Thanks for those of you who recommended this. It was a real fantasy epic. Not like anything else I've read. Great.

The Curse of Chalion
Paladin of Souls
Sacred Hearts

Imajica is just behind Weaveworld as my favorite book by Clive Barker. And Lois McMaster Bujold is my co-favorite author with Clive Barker. ;)

Hi Quaisior,

What's your favourit Lois McMaster Bujold? I think I'll be reading some more of these sooner or later? Any other fantasy Author you really like? I remember you are a bit of a MZB fan :)

Killing Orders by Sara Paretsky. Not one of my favourites

Sorry it's taken so long to respond, health issues...

My absolute favorite Bujold book is Mirror Dance, but it's a more recent Vorkosigan book. I love almost everything she has written though.

I could go on all day about favorite fantasy authors. :-D I love Sharon Shinn, Tanya Huff, Megan Whalen Turner, Juliet Marillier, Sherwood Smith, Michelle Sagara West, Jane S. Fancher, Patricia A. McKillip, Terry Pratchett, Robin McKinley's older books, Pauline J. Alama's The Eye of Night (her only novel, so far), Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books and her first two Fairy Godmother books... As far as MZB goes, I'm sort of a newbie to her books and I love her most feminist books, but the rest have been worth reading once, but aren't keepers.