what sort of books do you read

[eleanor2]

well being as its a new forum.we may as well start at the begining.my fave books are wilbur smith egyptian trylogy. sharon penmans historical classics and some of the classics.anyone else here avid readers.

[Ivy]

Well I am on the last pages of Hilary Clintons autobiography. It's a fascinating book : A bit conceited a times but very interesting.

[Oola]

I just finished Patti Boyd's biography - whilst I did enjoy it I find it a bit strange that she considers herself penniless, when she is living with a good few acres in Sussex and owns an island!

[eleanor2]

isn't it funny how we all find different books a good read. i was so chuffed i got village diary miss read from a car boot the other day,for 25p.it has gone on my pile. i'm going through a buying books era.

[jazzactivist]

I am an avid reader and book buyer both new and second hand - can't resist them. I love travel books, and literary novels - preferably written by women and set in different countries and eras. Toni Morrison is probably my favourite author, and Christina Garcia who writes about Cuba. I am also keen on music and culture biogs from the 50s, 60s and 70s - beats, hippies and flower power. When I do read historial novels I also like Sharon Penman, Eleanor2. I agree with you, Oola, that it is hard to imagine that Patti Boyd is penniless.

[sunflower]

I started this reply, went to answer the phone and found I was logged out. This has happened to me twice, but I guess it will be sorted.
Does anyone know of books relating to Victorian women travellers? Last night I was looking through the photos of two of my sons who have just returned from travelling. They have been riding on elephants and horses, tracked through jungles with exotic plantlife and monkeys, ate incredible food, as well as swimming in crystal clear seas filled with fish. It brought back a distant memory of a programme about women travellers in the 19thcent and got me thinking. It must have been amazing to leave the restrictions of England, where, the most exciting thing a middle class woman would do, would be to take a turn around the park. Then travel to far distant lands, leaving restricting practices AND corsets behind and experience such freedom. We take it all for granted now do'nt we? So, if anyone knows of titles or authors who write on this subject I'd be grateful.

[Oola]

hi sunflower, I'll look into the logging out problem for you and see if I can come up with a solution.

[gothfairy]

Well, that's not strictly true of course... I don't read rubbish, or badly written books, but then my perception of this may be different to yours. Favourite authors include Nicci Gerard, Maeve Binchy, Robin Pilcher, Erica James, Edith Wharton, Nora Roberts (her magick novels), Anita Shreve, Sue Miller, Adele Geras, Adriana Trigiani, Phillipa Gregory, Sebastian Faulks, Rosie Thomas, Margaret Forster.... the list is as long as the proverbial piece of string. I also like autobiographies, 'dipping into' books on gardening, garden history, art, photography, cookery, poetry, travel writing is another favourite and books like those written by Carol Drinkwater about Brits (usually) who have gone to live abroad and start a new and different life.
I read for about a couple of hours a day as a rule....how about the rest of you... do you have a favourite time or place for reading I wonder, does it vary according to the time/season of day and year?

[eleanor2]

the other day i picked up in hard back what i think is maeves new book.nights of rain and stars.now i like how she writes. the prologue is making me think this is going to be a good read.i paid £1.99 from a charity shop but it is like new.i like to read in the evening.if i start reading i forget all the days worries and relax.i like a glass of wine and log fire to accompany my reading in winter.mmmmmmmmm

[Oola]

Hello ladies.... just a little note here about posting!

If you click on the tiny icon in the corner of the post (it looks like a piece of paper and a quill pen), that will enable your 'quick reply'. Basically this means that there is always somewhere open to write a reply post at the end of each thread.

With the 'post reply' button (big green one on bottom left hand of post thread), you don't have to put a post title in if you don't want to (you'll see my posts don't have titles about what I'm posting). Of course, you can still put a post title in if you want to!

I'll delete this message from the thread a bit later on for continuity purposes...hope this helps xxxx

[sunflower]

At the moment, I am just coming to the end of Pilcher's September. I have enjoyed this book and usually I read late at night when the house is quiet!
Sometimes, as I come to the end of a book, I have a quiet panic! What will I read next? which Author shall I try this time? etc does anyone else get the same feeling? I'm lost without a book on the go.

[Oola]

I am thirsty for books. I always love getting to the end but really disappointed when I don't have anything else to read - I really enjoy the feeling of being engrossed in a book. It's great in the winter to sit by an open fire and just read for hours on end.

I'm a bit brassic at the moment so I haven't been able to buy lots of books and my local libraries are rubbish for fiction! I've asked for the complete harry potter set for my birthday (second hand, I'm not bothered if they're thumbed), and never seem to find any good books in charity shops...I will keep my eyes peeled though.

[eleanor2]

i wonder if i'm storing up books to read.like squirrels store up nuts for winter.

[CountryLady]

I read allsorts too. I have total panic if I don't have a book to read.
Love autobiographies. Someone bought me Gordon Ramsey's Humble Pie for my birthday which I finished yesterday. I didn't like the bloke much before I read it, now I think he's a total prat and I'm glad I didn't part with my money for the book if some of it goes in his pocket.

[Crocus]

Hi, I've just read a lovely book "In a Good Light" by Clare Chambers. Quite an interesting storyline. I also like Katie Fforde. "Restoring Grace" (I think). I don't actually like love stories very much. I've also read quite a lot about King Henry, his many wives, (Catherine, Anne Boleyn etc). Then of course, anything I can lay my hands on about the UK! "In bed with an elephant" by Ludovic Kennedy is a journey through Scotland's Past and Present. Timpson's England (A look beyond the obvious). England's Thousand Best Houses" by Simon Jenkins, "The Holy Kingdom" by Adrian Gilbert - Quest for the real King Arthur. So many facts, I need another 2 brains to remember it all!!!

[Pippa]

I have just read 'The Farm' by Richard Benson, this is a true story of a family loosing the battle for their family farm in Yorkshire. I have 'Toast' by Nigel Slater to read, his biography, I think he has more integrity than most 'celebrity' chefs these days. Now reading 'A short history of Tractors in Ukrainian' Marina Lewycka - supposed to be funny but I did not find it so. Has anyone read any of these?

[Redstart]

Yes I read The Farm but being married into a farming family it made me rather sad as it's a bit too close to home. In fact I told my husband not to read it or he'd be upset as he remebers the heartbreak of his Dad selling up. (But before they left the farm, the tractors, trailers, cows and sheep miraculously returned to the farm - and people say Yorkshire people are mean.;).

[CountryLady]

I too read "The Farm" The village is very close to where I live.

[Crocus]

I'm crazy about the Yorkshire Dales, so hopefully I will be able to find this book "The Farm" in our local library. Going to have a look tomorrow!

[SummerSkye]

I too am an avid reader. I will try anything once. I do love any psychological thriller or murder mystery. Faye & Jonathon Kellerman, Michael Connelly, Patricia Cornwell to name a few. The queen of them all is still Agatha Christie, I have her entire collection. I also love cookery books, not for the recipes just the anecdotes and ideas. History and autobiographies are another favourite. A rainy day, a good book and a warm fire is heaven.

[eleanor2]

jenni i have watched most of agatha christies stories as films i have never read one of her books.except her biography.do you reckon the books are a lot better than the films.

[SummerSkye]

Hi Eleanor, that is a hard one to answer. Her books are brilliant and more in depth I suppose but the ones I have seen made into a film have been very well done. My main complaint with the films is that a lot is left out; only the necessary parts are in there and sometimes all the little "red herrings" are missing. Try reading one and you will see what I mean. The Poirot series seemed to be as good as the books.

[eleanor2]

i have most of those on d.v.d. i love watching them as much for the costumes and atmosphere of the times as for the story. they are my fave.david suchet plays the part brill doesn't he.

[dinger]

I always read every night in bed no matter what time it may be .I enjoy books from any period as long as they are a true to life theme .I especially like the upstairs down stairs type of thing .Don't think I could survive without a book and always make sure I have plenty in hand .

[Crocus]

I can't go to sleep if I don't read! Even if very late at night. Hubby snores away,(!) boys' asleep, Pinky (doggie dog) asleep in her little bed underneath my bedside table. That's when I relax.

[keepersdaughter]

Eleanor, I read on CL about how much you enjoyed this book. Is it like Diary of an Edwardian Lady? (Ithink that's what it was called). I'm thinking of getting it. I love books about history and this one, from the title anyway, sounds like an interesting insight into a gentler time.

[eleanor2]

hi keepers d i'v heard its good and it had a good write up on c.l. but i havn't actually read it. i did a review on wuthering heights.which i thoroughly enjoyed.going to do a review on persuasion soon as i can get it.

[mrsj]

Hi all
I'll read pretty much anything! It has to be a very bad book before I put it down. I love crime mysteries but prefer those set in the UK for some reason. When I was unwell at the start of the summer I read loads of my old Agatha Christies (for a while I just couldn't read anything, that was when my husband got really worried). I also love Rebus and the Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth books. My other favourites are anything by Jane Austen, Charles Dickens or Thomas Hardy. Or anything! I love reading and it's part of the reason why I decided to become an English teacher.

[dinger]

I enjoy most books as long as they tell a good down to earth story.I am at present reading Annie Groves and have read several others of hers .Have found them very good.

[lily]

Not much time to read in the day, but always a chapter or two before sleep. Not too keen on thrillers or who dunnits, but books that make me think after I've finished them. A lovely recent read was All this is Mine by Ray French. It's set in South Wales in 50s and remeinded me of my childhood in Newport.

[eleanor2]

i just got to say i am so thrilled .today i got wilbur smiths the quest for 99p .it only came out at christmas.hardback £12.99.i have been looking for weeks.there it was in the hospice shop .

[baab95]

Like many of you I too need the comfort of a few chapters before sleep. I enjoy crime/mystery novels ( Val Mcdermid, Patricia Cornwell, Agatha Christie Tami Hoeg, Harlan Coban etc), and anything that has some historical foundation. I really loved Geraldine Brooks novel about the plague (Years of Wonder - I think).

[Crocus]

I also need to read before I go to sleep, even if only a page! I prefer something with a historic background, or nowadays mostly non-fiction. I've just finished a book by Rosie Thomas about mountaineering K2 and Mount Everest. She herself does mountaineering and of course could give a very well impression of what it is like up there, the sruggle to get from one base camp to the next, what it involves, the pain and heartache also of those who die up there. The book's name is "White".

[souter girl]

Spurred on by Angela Huth's "Land Girls" I moved on to "They fought in the fields" and "Debs at War" - fascinating accounts of life in WW2 for women and how it actually liberated many girls and led to them having careers. How life has changed since our grandmothers' days! But for a brilliant read, does anybody else love "Revenge of the Middle-aged Woman " (Elizabeth Buchan) as much as I do? I re-read it at least once a year!

[Clunkshift]

This almost random posting is because I rambled off topic on the Friends Support thread and
I mentioned that my latest read is Dostoyevsky’s “The Idiot” and Sandybay commented:
Just a thought, if Dostoevsky wrote 'The Idiot' now would he have to call it
'Male/Female/Transgender with Individual/Special Needs' because of political correctness?

I like to read historical books and not always non-fiction as Jean Plaidy’s account of the Battle of Waterloo in her book about the Duchess of Richmond’s Ball, is probably the best account of that battle that I have read.
I recently read 1812: Napoleon's Fatal March on Moscow by Adam Zamoyski and found it quite riveting as it dealt with the human side of the conflict and the appalling retreat through the -40 °C winter.

I like some travel books too; Eric Newby is my favourite and I have read Something Wholesale, The Last Grain Race, Love and War in the Apennines, Slowly Down the Ganges and A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush.
I read V.S. Naipaul books before working in India and I love the books by Annie Hawes – Extra Virgin, Ripe for the picking and Journey to the South.
I always read the latest Michael Crichton books and I’ve probably read all of his books.
I love Discworld books by Terry Pratchett too but between the lightweight and amusing books, I try and read something cultural so I have read nearly all of George Orwell’s books and since I live within five miles of Jane Austen’s house in Chawton, I have read all of her books.

Last year I read Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. It was tough going but very interesting as his descriptions are wonderfully detailed. I am now reading The Idiot which I believe is partially autobiographical as the central character, the “idiot” is epileptic and that was what Dostoyevsky suffered from. I like the Russian setting because pre-revolution Russia was truly feudal and a wedding dowry among the landed gentry would include “serfs”. I find the thought of buying and selling workers like slaves quite appalling but Russia was always an oddity. I always thought the Jane Austen era was odd in that middle aged men would marry quite young women but again, Russia exceeds in this area too with 55 year old men asking to marry 25 year old women; but then I suppose some of Charles Dickens books tell a similar story of that era.

Unfortunately my love of history sometimes drives me to distraction when lightweight TV presenters get things wrong; on TV recently a presenter spoke of the WW2 execution of a spy and showed the chair he was executed in with some of it shot away. Then she said that "seven bullets hit him and one soldier missed"; I was bellowing at the TV saying "That's because one of the rifles was always loaded with a blank you idiot!"

I will read almost anything that is well written (so I don't read many American authors).
I think my tastes are either eclectic or non-existent, I’m just not sure which!

[Cheryl]

I am a complete book junkie. I can't even pass a book store without making a purchase.
As it stands now, I probably won't live long enough to read everything that I own. Today I bought James Joyce's Dubliners. Last week it was Joanne Harris' The Lollipop Shoes (a continuation of Chocolat) and Looking for ANNE which is a book on how LM Montgomery came up with the story of Anne of Green Gables. I think the last book that completely engrossed me was Eat, Pray, Love. It was in all the bookstores around here at Christmas...has anyone read it??
c.

[eleanor2]

no cheryl not heard of it what was it about.

[Cheryl]

...it's a memoir of a woman who after a nasty divorce, spends a year travelling Italy, Indonesia and India...it's about the people she meets, the food, the landscape all which help her to find out what is really important in her life..

certainly not part of the canon of classic literature, but definately lighthearted and engaging.

[ditzydaizy]

Hi Cheryl... Yes, I read 'Eat, Pray, Love' too and also enjoyed it. You might also enjoy 'Au Revoir - Running Away at Fifty' by Mary Moody. She is an Australian, hadn't gone through a divorce or anything, but just felt the need for time by herself, to reevaluate her life.... something I suspect we fifty-somethings might be able to recognise within ourselves at some point.

Some brilliant reads of late have been 'The Good Mayor' by Andrew Nicholl, 'The Beach House' by Jane Green, 'The Love of My Life' by Louise Douglas, 'Garden Spells' by Sarah Addison Allen (brilliant if you like a bit of magick in your stories) and 'Oystercatchers' by Susan Green (who wrote Eve Fletcher, one of the books everyone talked about a year or so ago).

And like you, I cannot pass a book shop without buying a book, but these days, I try to be more restrained... I read reviews in book club magazines, look on the internet, and am training myself to be more selective about what I buy. I have about six or seven hundred of my own books (this doesn't include 'our' books or my husbands collection) in my workroom, and I have read each at least once, some several times, and aim to read all of them at least once.

[Cheryl]

Ditzy: Thanks for the heads up on the Mary Moody book. I read a blurb online and it does appeal to my 50 something taste. Unfortunately, it looks like it is unavailable (from all my usual sources) around here. Seems that all we can get are some of her gardening books. Well I'll keep my eyes open and I'm also carrying around a list of your other recommendations...just in case...

c.

[ditzydaizy]

Cheryl... she has also written another book, I think about her time in Toulouse. Another you might like is NO FIXED ADDRESS by Jackie Hartnell. Do you like books about women/families who have moved abroad to start a new life, the Carol Drinkwater and her olive farm type of book? I could recommend a few of those if you like.

[Cheryl]

Ditzy ( or anyone else for that matter): All reading suggestions are welcomed. I walk around with a book journal in my purse where I keep a list of all the books I want to read...thanks alot.

c.

[ditzydaizy]

Oh, I have a book journal, or two...... one is a small one with the books in it I want to read, the other is a record of what I read. But the other books I thought of for you in the NF line are...

'The Singing Line' b y Alice Thomson
Any by ANNIE HAWES, CHRIS STEWART
''Instructions for Visitors' by Helen Stevenson
'Life in a Postcard' by Rosemary Bailey
'Vanilla Beans and Brodo' by Isabella Dusi
'On Persephone's Island'' by Mary Taylor Simeli
'I and Cladius - Travels with my cat' by Clare de Vries
'On Rue Tatin' by Susan Loomis
'Getting to Manana' by Miranda Innes
'The Ripening Sun' by Patricia Atkinson
'Living With The Laird' by Belinda Rathbone
and 'Cave in the Snow' by Vickie McKenzie... something completely different to the above, about Tenzin Palmo, born in the east end of London in the forties, who became one of the first westerneres to be ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1964. Then in 1970 she embarked on eighteen years of solitary retreat, up a mountain, 13,200 feet up in the Himalayas. Now that really is getting away from it all.. but it's quite inspirational.
There, that should keep you going!!

[Cheryl]

OMG...what a wonderful list...can't wait to get started on tracking down these titles...I have already looked online for plot summaries and all of these titles are EXACTLY something that I would read...thank you so very much for your suggestions!!!!

c.