Reading Heart Liberals

[Kenickie]

I know the conversation has moved on now, but I was interested to check and only 1 of 39 of my books this year has been by a man (Richard Osman).

[Pippedydeadeye]

It took me ages to finish Swimming Home, I wasn’t as into it as Hot Milk. I think I might read it again though at some point.

Now I’m continuing my non-fiction pile and going to read You Are Not A Before Picture by Alex Light. I’m hoping it will be as transformative in thinking as it promises.

[sally maclennane]

It took me ages to finish Swimming Home, I wasn’t as into it as Hot Milk. I think I might read it again though at some point.

Now I’m continuing my non-fiction pile and going to read You Are Not A Before Picture by Alex Light. I’m hoping it will be as transformative in thinking as it promises.

Oh I'd be interested in that, Pip. I love Alex Light, I follow her on Instagram.

I'm not great with non fiction books though, I should probably try them as audiobooks as I like podcasts.

[wendy james]

I’ve finished the Beartown trilogy over the past couple of days and moved on to the new Sally Page.

[Pippedydeadeye]

Oh I'd be interested in that, Pip. I love Alex Light, I follow her on Instagram.

I'm not great with non fiction books though, I should probably try them as audiobooks as I like podcasts.

Right, I’m not quite finished, but it is really good & you need to read it in whatever format suits you.

I’m taking a recommendation from Chris Brookmyre (I fully love him now I’ve met him, he’s so great!), and I’m going to read the Doug Johnstone Skelfs books.

[wendy james]

I’ve added A Dark Matter to my list, thanks Pip.

The Sally Page was ok but not as good as her first, IMO. I needed something less feelings-y after that and the Beartown books so read an awful thriller called Please Tell Me. It was probably a freebie or First Reads and I wouldn’t recommend. :lol:

I’ve now started Happy is on Hiatus. I’m not sure where it came from - it’s one of the older Kindle books in my library - but I’m giving it a go.

My local book group has changed the date of December’s meeting, so I can now make it. It’s a Jenny Eclair book, which isn’t something I’d usually be drawn to.

[sally maclennane]

Oh I'd be interested in that, Pip. I love Alex Light, I follow her on Instagram.

I'm not great with non fiction books though, I should probably try them as audiobooks as I like podcasts.

Right, I’m not quite finished, but it is really good & you need to read it in whatever format suits you.

Ooh good, I'll get it, thanks!

[Dutchie]

Currently reading the Storyteller of Casablanca which is a bit twee but an interesting read nonetheless. I had no idea a lot of French Jews were refugees in Morocco during WW2.

[Flora Poste]

I have mixed feelings about Jenny Eclair, mainly because she lives not far from me and had a column in one of those free glossy magazines that used to come through the door which were sponsored by estate agents, and she was quite annoying in that.

Recent reads here I've liked have been The Bee Sting (Paul Murray) and The House of Doors (Tan Twan Eng). I've also read and been quite bored by Zadie Smith's new book, The Fraud and Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad which I mostly enjoyed, but definitely trailed off by the end.

Oh, and the new Richard Osman which I enjoyed for what it was.

[Lily]

FINALLY I finished The Mercies.It was good but hard to read. I've been scarcely reading of late but demolished several chapters of Toni Morrison's Beloved this morning.

I also tried A M Shine's The Creeper but it did not hold my attention at all and was really irritating so I didn't finish it.

[Pippedydeadeye]

I raced through A Dark Matter in just hours. It was really good! Chris Brookmyre said he goes through them like popcorn, and he wasn’t wrong. My sister has got the rest of the series in paperback for me, but the first was out of print so I went Kindle.

[Bat Macdui]

I have also added Dark Matter to my list, and am racing through the first Beartown, which I am assuming I managed to pick up from wendy on Goodreads. It was a good book to break me out of my rereading Stephen King moment, though there's always a place for rereading Stephen King. I spent the first bit of Beartown thinking 'this is interesting' and the next bit thinking 'this is going to end badly'. I am a bit in love with Benji, though.

I don't think I'm going to crack 100 on my reading challenge this year, but I might be looking at a good, solid 80 or so.

[Pippedydeadeye]

I’m two away from my 52 target. I’ve just started A Thiusand Ships by Natalie Haynes. Ste was good on the Women’s Prize podcast.

[Duophonic]

My recent reads are:

Holly: Stephen King - I love this character, there's a few plot holes but I'm always willing to see past them
The Last Devil: Richard Osman - Again love these books
The Private Life of Spies: Alexander McCall Smith - my first book of his and will probably be the last, didn't get on with the whimsical tone.
The Twisted Tree: Rachel Burge - this is a YA book I think, picked it up on a whim it had all the elements I love, based on Norse mythology.
The Wolf Den: Elodie Harper - saw it recommended on here and absolutely loved it. Beautifully written and I was totally absorbed from the first couple of pages.

Currently reading:
How the Scots Invented the Modern World: Arthur Herman
Fault Lines: Doug Johnstone
I who have never known men: Jaqueline Harpman

I'm three books behind my target of 104 books for the year so I have some catching up to do.

[Lily]

I’m two away from my 52 target. I’ve just started A Thiusand Ships by Natalie Haynes. Ste was good on the Women’s Prize podcast.

She did a fantastic podcast where she Stands Up for the Classics - you can get it on BBC Sounds. I'm a massive fan!

[lazzbo]

So glad you liked the Wolf Den, Duo. The third instalment is out now and is on my Christmas list.

[Duophonic]

I have the 2nd installment reserved at the library.

I read and thoroughly enjoyed Natalie Haynes' Pandora's Jar

[wendy james]

The Last Goodbye was probably a freebie, one of a series about somebody who finds missing persons. I got through it, but am not inclined to seek out the rest.

I just discovered this was written by an alumnus of Sproglette’s school. :lol:

[Bat Macdui]

Reading Holly is what sent me on my Stephen King reread. :)) I went back to all the Bill Hodges books after I'd read it.

I'm on Them and Us, the second in the Beartown trilogy now, and thinking I should have had a break between as I've found there's limit to how much hockey I can take. :))

[wendy james]

I had a break between 1 and 2, but managed to read 2 and 3 consecutively. There's always hockey but lots less playing of it as times goes on.