What are you currently reading?

[Kephas4]

John Berendt's 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'.

[khitajrah]

Just finished Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy. Quite enjoyed that and I felt a little pang of sadness when it was all finished. Was hoping that the first book in Val McDermid's Tony Hill series would have arrived in today's post, but alas, it hasn't. Stephen King's It and E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News are in the book queue, to be read after McDermid's, so for reading tonight I've been forced to raid the eldest's bookshelf in a bid to cross off some more titles from the BBC Big Read Top 200. Why on earth Roald Dahl is on that list is beyond me. I just finished George's Marvellous Medicine (an 8 year old tries to poison his granny) and am about to begin Fantastic Mr. Fox - this will be my third Roald Dahl book and I'm not looking forward to it. I think perhaps I should have read them when I was a child.

[TeeAyBee]

Still struggling with Stephen King's "Under the Dome". 2/3 of the way through and I don't care if any of them make it.

[sassermaet]

Just finished Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy. Quite enjoyed that and I felt a little pang of sadness when it was all finished. Was hoping that the first book in Val McDermid's Tony Hill series would have arrived in today's post, but alas, it hasn't. Stephen King's It and E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News are in the book queue, to be read after McDermid's, so for reading tonight I've been forced to raid the eldest's bookshelf in a bid to cross off some more titles from the BBC Big Read Top 200. Why on earth Roald Dahl is on that list is beyond me. I just finished George's Marvellous Medicine (an 8 year old tries to poison his granny) and am about to begin Fantastic Mr. Fox - this will be my third Roald Dahl book and I'm not looking forward to it. I think perhaps I should have read them when I was a child.

 

I can't believe you're not a Roald Dahl fan, Khit! I loved his books as a child, and sometimes I still like to dig them out for a read. I think I've read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory about four times in my whole life now.

 

And I couldn't get into the His Dark Materials books - too dense and dry.

[MJ]

To all Roald Dahl fans have you tried "you're a bad man mr gum" by andy stanton.

Read it aloud to my one and discovered everyone in the house giggling along.

 

maybe that's it khit, I found fantastic mr fox a great companion reader (where you read one page, child reads next) the bairn was hooked. try reading it to middle child, maybe it'll help you see the book through a childs eyes.

 

Other children's series to watch out in children's book shelf - Artemis Fowl, Percy Jackson, Keys to the Kingdom & The Old Kingdom.

[Ally]

Picked up Will Self's book "The The Quantity Theory of Insanity" from the library.

 

I was really enjoying it, but a 3rd of the way through I thought the narrative had gone off on a bizarre tangent and that the introduction of new characters with each chapter was a bit too rapid...

 

...Then it dawned on me that these weren't new chapters at all and were, in fact, 6 completely independent stories compiled into one paperback collection... Fail.

 

 

 

[Fjool]

^ I've tried a few of Self's books. A couple were good but, on the whole, found him deeply pretentious and unsatisfying.

[sassermaet]

I'm still trying to get through 'The Book of Dave' - it's hard going.

[Fjool]

Very hard going. One of his better ones though.

[Medziotojas]

To all Roald Dahl fans have you tried "you're a bad man mr gum" by andy stanton.

Read it aloud to my one and discovered everyone in the house giggling along.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I got this from the library today and have just finished reading it to the bairns. Great book for bairns and adults alike.

[Trow87]

Bernard Cornwell's "The Burning Land", the fifth wan in his Alfred series. Very good so far! Am been totally gripped wi dis series, and aye look forward ta da next een comin oot!

[MJ]

thought I'd just add in another bairn's book series.

The Bairn while looking for a book to read found Terry Pratchett's "Johnny and the Dead" and quite happily set into it with big smile on face.

She was quite surprised it said on the back about being suitable for children over 10 as I 1st read them to her when she was 6.

Starting with "Only You Can Save Mankind" - written during the "1st Gulf War", it's seems even more apt now.

"Johnny and the Dead" was one of my favourites to read out loud as the characters are so alive - well dead, but hopefully you know what I mean.

Even "Johnny and the Bomb" is worth a read and nowhere near as boring as the BBC TV series (why can the beeb do fantastic radio adaptations of children's books but still destroy them when putting them on TV?)

[Ally]

^ I've tried a few of Self's books. A couple were good but, on the whole, found him deeply pretentious and unsatisfying.

 

I've only this collection of short stories and another novel about 5 years ago which i never finished for precisely the reasons you state. However. I thought I'd give him another try and can now recommend this collection of short stories, even though they are very abstract and often bewildering.

[mainlander]

I had originally bought Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant because I was looking forward to The TV Book Club on Channel 4; unfortunately, I thoroughly disliked the programme and only watched about 10 minutes of the first episode, but I have to be grateful to them for bringing this book to my attention!

 

The blurb on the back of the book describes it so:

 

"1570 in the Italian city of Ferrara. Sixteen-year-old Serafina is ripped by her family from an illicit love affair and forced into the convent of Santa Caterina, renowned for its superb music. Serafina's one weapon is her glorious voice, but she refuses to sing. Madonna Chiara, an abbess as fluent in politics as she is in prayer, finds her new charge has unleashed a power play - rebellion, ecstasies and hysterias - within the convent. However, watching over Serafina is Zuana, the sister in charge of the infirmary, who understands and might even challenge her incarceration."

 

I have enjoyed everything about the book - the writing style, the way the characters were brought to life, the storyline, and the descriptions of life in a 16th century convent. There is a reasonably long bibliography at the back, so I like to think that the historical details will be fairly accurate.

[Njugle]

I need a book to read. Any recommendations:

 

Not a romance (not a slushy one anyway), no war, no murder, no wizards, no fantasy world (hobbity-type), no celeb biog, something "different", a page-turner.

 

Anything?