Bout of Books 15: Saturday, Sunday, Wrap-Up

Apologies for the lack of any posting yesterday. I'd fully intended to write my last long-overdue post from last year on Friday to schedule for Saturday, but then Hamilton happened, and I was somewhat distracted. And yesterday I've been at work, which is getting nice and quiet again. While everyone else has been groaning about going back to school or work after their holidays, I've been thinking "hooray, it's the furthest point of the year from the pre-Christmas and post-Christmas madness!"

Saturday and Sunday's reading:

 

I've begun my reread of Pride and Prejudice. It's been a long time since I've read that. It could even be my least-read Jane Austen book because I know it so well from all the million and one adaptations and stories inspired by it, the quintessential rom-com. So coming back to it, I'm reminded anew why it is one of the best-loved books of all time. Despite being written 200 years ago, it's very modern in characterisation and in Jane Austen's sharp and spiky observations. I would not like to get on her wrong side!

But I'm also cheating on Pride and Prejudice with another rom-com, which I unpacked at work yesterday: Sofia Khan Is Not Obliged, which could and probably already has been described as "the Muslim Bridget Jones." I idly thumbed through that book and by the time I'd read about the titular heroine shouting at a racist about terrorists not wearing vintage shoes, I felt as though Sofia was standing right there with me. I could see her, I could hear her voice, and I wanted to know her better. It's a really refreshing read after the darkness of the two thrillers I've read this week, laugh-out-loud funny, and it's the first read of 2016 that I'm going to be pushing at everyone to read. On Thursday I had a customer come to me for "recommendations of romantic comedies," which I had trouble with because it's not really a genre I read very often. If only he'd come in just a few days later! So, mysterious stranger, if by some unlikely chance you're reading this: READ SOFIA KHAN! 

And on that note, I will go and continue doing likewise.

Wrap-Up (Monday 11th January)

I didn't quite manage to read the four books I'd aimed for, partly because of engrossing myself in Hamilton on Friday, and then last night I got caught up in "just one more episode" of Star Trek: Deep Space 9 instead of finishing my book. I followed a couple of new blogs, and said hello to a few of my old favourites, but overall, once I got back to work on Wednesday, I didn't spend so much time interacting with other bloggers or doing challenges or twitter chats as I would have liked. Something to work on for the next readathon, I think. On the plus side, I've written more blog posts in the past ten days than I did for the whole final quarter of 2015.

The final stats:

Books finished: Disclaimer, Silence is Goldfish, Career of Evil

Other books begun: Pride and Prejudice, Sofia Khan is Not Obliged

Total pages read: 1460 (averaging 208 and a half per day.)

Best reading day: Tuesday with 433 pages.

Worst reading day: Friday with 92 pages

Favourite book: Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, even though I haven't finished it yet. Look out for a fangirling review later this week.

Least favourite book: Disclaimer. 

Bout of Books 15: Wednesday-Friday

Hello all. I've been at work for a couple of days so decided not to write readathon updates in my free time, but devote the time to actually reading over my lunch breaks and evenings instead. My third book of choice was Career of Evil by "Robert Galbraith" (who I think we all know is J. K. Rowling.) I don't think it was quite as good as The Silkworm, which followed detective Cormoran Strike as he looked for clues to a murder within the victim's manuscript of a novel, but it still did not disappoint. Career of Evil is another really dark thriller, with moments of pitch-black humour which make way for an investigation into a trio of very, very unpleasant characters. Although the suspects in this novel were limited to three, Rowling - sorry, Galbraith - keeps you guessing right to the end, "It must be this one," "Nope, here's a clue that says it can't be..." and when at last Cormoran Strike reveals the incriminating evidence, we find that, once more, the clues were there if only I hadn't overlooked them. Clever. Meanwhile, all I could do was watch helplessly, as Robin Ellacott, Strike's assistant, made some of the biggest mistakes of her life...

After the darkness of Career of Evil and Disclaimer earlier this week, it's time for some comfort reading, and I fully intended to spend today re-reading Pride and Prejudice. But life had other plans, and instead I got somewhat distracted listening to the soundtrack of the Broadway musical Hamilton which nearly everyone on the internet has been raving about for the past few months. I'd been trying to resist the hype, not being a fan of hip-hop or US political history, but I succumbed and have spent most of the day listening to it instead of reading. I'm not going to become completely obsessed with the show, but I did enjoy the songs, became emotionally involved in the fates of the characters (some of which I knew a little about, most of which I did not) and have had the whole thing in my head ever since. It piqued my interest in Alexander Hamilton and the early years of the USA as a nation, gave me a hunger for more knowledge on the subject. A couple of bloggers I follow, Sarah and Alley are taking part in a readalong of Hamilton's biography, and although I've no plans to join in the reading, I'll certainly be stalking their #Hamalong posts, which may have played a part in persuading me to give the show a chance. I'm glad I did, even if it did disrupt my readathon.

Bout of Books 15: Tuesday

Today's Reading:

After the doom and gloom that was Disclaimer yesterday, today I'm reading a young adult novel from Annabel Pitcher, author of My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece, which I listened to as an audiobook and loved, and Ketchup Clouds, which I found disappointingly forgettable. Thankfully, Silence is Goldfish is impressing me so far, with lyrical prose and a bright, imaginative and passionate protagonist in Tess Turner. Tess is an outsider, and at least inside her mind she has a strong yet introverted personality. She knows what she likes, and yet she's under pressure to fit in at school. Being around people makes it harder to be yourself when you're an introvert, harder to be confident when the bullies are taunting you, and when her father keeps on giving her conflicting advice about whether she ought to fit in or stand out from the crowd, it is hard. But she tries, to please him, until the day she reads something he's written about her that brings everything she tried to be, everything she thought she was, crashing down around her.

Challenge: Would You Rather...? by Writing My Own Fairytale

Would you rather...

Lend books to someone who dog-ears pages or lend books to someone who reads with cheesy Cheetos fingers?

Dog-ears, but only paperbacks, and nothing specials.

Be able to meet one character of your choice or meet one author of your choice?

Well, I met Neil Gaiman in 2013, so that's accounted for. So I suppose the obvious answer would be to meet Anne Shirley and be kindred spirits with her in person as well as through the pages of her books.

Never be allowed in a book store again or never be allowed in a library again?

This is an evil question. I could never give up bookstores, so I'll have to say library, but that would also be a big gaping loss. You can take more chances on library books, because you don't lose anything if you don't like or don't read a book you borrowed. And yet... I just couldn't live without bookshops.

Have to choose one of your favourite characters to die in their book or have to pick one of your favourite couples to break up in their book?

Usually I find couples are more interesting when they're not actually together, so as long as they're both decent characters and both get to stick around, I don't really care if they break up (with a couple of exceptions.) Then again, if it's a really good death scene, it can be satisfying even with the loss of a favourite character. But yeah, I'm not that bothered by romance. It's usually a thing to be endured for the sake of the rest of the story.

Be required to read Twilight once a year for the rest of your life or The Scarlet Letter once a year for the rest of your life?

I've never actually read The Scarlet Letter, so I can't really answer that one. I have a lot of problems with Twilight but it is perfectly readable and I did enjoy it on my first reading, until I stopped to think about it critically. So that wouldn't be a major hardship, and I quite enjoy snarking about it.

Tuesday's Stats

Books read: Silence is Goldfish

Pages read: 363 so far

Running total for the week: 2 books finished, 651 pages.

Favourite read of the week so far: Silence is Goldfish

Today in six words: book hermit catching up on reviews

When I wasn't reading I was... sleeping in, scheduling reviews for when I'm at work from tomorrow.

Bout of Books 15: Monday

Much as I love the Christmas and New Year festivities, it's always good to get back to the calm and quiet of normality afterwards, and the Bout of Books readathon is a good cushion between the holiday (not that I had a holiday, I worked extra instead, but that's just part of working retail, and I'm used to it by now) and the rest of winter stretching out before me.

My Readathon Goals:

• To read a minimum of four books from my pile.
• To write update posts on the days I'm not working (Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Sunday) and to spend my free time on my working days not on the internet, but engrossed in my books. 
• To write and schedule my long-overdue review posts, so that I'll update the blog with something every day this week. (I've had a half-written review of A Little Life in my drafts folder for about two months now!)
• To spend time getting to know new blogging friends as well as the old ones. That's where I tend to fall down during readathons. 
• Unrelated to the book-pile, I also have a comic to read, Jen Campbell's  latest poetry booklet from her 100 poem weekend of last year, and to read over the first-draft-so-far of my novel-in-progress, which I want to get back to writing after the readathon. 

Monday's Reading:

I've kicked off the readathon with Disclaimer by Renee Knight, the big thriller of the moment. It's Waterstone's Fiction Book of the Month, WH Smith's Read of the Week, and is supposedly "the new Girl on the Train," (which in turn was the new Gone Girl, which was the new Before I Go To Sleep.) 

The book opens when Catherine, a successful film-maker, discovers that the book she's reading is based on her own life, on a dark secret from many years previously. But who could possibly know these things she's kept hidden all this time, and why publish it now?

Disclaimer has a fascinating premise, a good hook that keeps you turning the page, and yet I'm finding it somewhat frustrating that the author is clearly withholding information. Naturally, withholding information is a crucial element of a thriller, but in this case, the point-of-view characters know all the facts while the reader does not; you don't get to find things out with them. You watch the story unfold but are unable to fully experience it with the characters. It's still successful in making me want to read on, and know more, but I feel the hand of the author through it all.

6PM Update: It's difficult to talk about thrillers without giving details away, but I'll do my best. I'm now about two thirds of the way through Disclaimer and have spent about the last seventy five pages getting rather angry with the characters and also the book. When we finally get around to seeing the secrets revealed in the book-within-a-book, I felt cheated and rather disgusted. The Big Reveal was no revelation at all - Catherine's secret was disappointingly obvious. And yet. We have to remember that the book based on Catherine's life was a fictionalised account reconstructed by a third party. An even more unreliable narrator than the ones we've encountered so far. With a hundred pages left to go, I'm coming to realise that things are be as we've been led to believe after all, and that our protagonist is more sympathetic than I had thought.

8PM: In the end, I can't say that reading Disclaimer was an entirely enjoyable experience. The final twist was shocking, brutal in its description when at last we find out what really happened twenty years previously, but also did not come as a surprise. It was an uncomfortable read,throughout,  a raw examination of the damage done to relationships by pain and grief, festering secrets, lack of communication and trust. And the last revelation on the final page will bother me for a long time.

I'm not sure I can pick up another book straight away; I need time to ponder and digest what I've been reading today, so I think I'll spend my evening in the company of the fabulous Agent Carter in her search for justice.

Monday's Stats:

Books read: Disclaimer

Pages read: 288

Running total for the week: 1 book finished (288 pages)

Today in six words: Gripping but uncomfortable book of secrets.
When I wasn't reading I was... cleaning, and later watching Agent Carter.

Sunday Summary: Happy New Year

Wasn't it just last week that I was bemoaning the lack of hoverboards in "the future" of 2015? And now the future is in the past, and there are things that people will insist on calling hoverboards on sale in Maplins, and causing accidents everywhere and being banned from public places but they are not hoverboards! Give us the real thing or go home, will ya?

Anyway, 2015 is over now, for which I think we're all grateful. It was a pretty rubbish year all round I think. Personally, I think I'm in a better place mentally than I was a year ago; I survived turning 30, continued with my writing, and mostly quit whinging about my life and became content with what I've got, the people, the opportunities, the freedom (and the books.) So there's that to be said for 2015, anyway. But for the most part, I'm glad it's behind us and although I know it's just a date, it's good to have a day to say "the future hasn't been written yet, so make it a good one" once a year.

I haven't made any specific new year's resolutions this year, just to be kind and to continue with my writing, but I have started keeping not one but TWO journals: one is for Ali Edwards' "One Little Word" project - you choose a word and ponder and write/scrapbook/create things about how that word will be significant throughout the year. I chose "Peace." And I've also made a variation of the "happy jar" where you write down good things that have happened and put them into a jar - or in my case, onto my page-a-day colouring calendar, which I stick into another notebook. If at the end of the year I find myself thinking again "nothing's happened," I can look back over all the good things I've done or experienced through the year and prove the opposite. (In theory, anyway...)

Christmas was a good, but quiet one. My sister came home for about ten days, and although I was working all week (the joys of retail!) I still managed to find time in the evenings to relax, watch films, eat lots of food and spend time with family and friends.

My presents:

From my parents:
DVDs of Marvel's Agent Carter (which I have been wanting to see ever since I heard it existed, but circumstances conspired against me) and season two of Star Trek: Deep Space 9. 
Microwavable slippers! These work when nothing else will to banish cold feet forever!
(Not pictured: a new coat, laptop case, Thornton's chocolate Santa.)

From my sister:

Books: The Boy That Never Was by Karen Perry and The Geeky Chef Cookbook which has recipes for Butterbeer, Lembas, Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters and 1-Up mushroom cupcakes, among many other nerd-culture-inspired recipes. A fancy candle, and a Thunderbird 2 t-shirt. (When I was about 7 I really wanted to be Thunderbird 2 when I grew up. Not fly it. Be it.)

From Hanna:

Our little group of bloggers did a Secret Santa again this year, and Hanna sent me some amazing presents: the Tolkien's World colouring book, two YA novels: The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness and Silence is Goldfish by Annabel Pitcher, and an absolutely gorgeous infinity scarf/snood/whatever these joined-up scarves are called with a space pattern on it. I've been wearing that nearly every day since Christmas; I love it!

From other friends:

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - the illustrated edition, from Judith. I think most of my bookish friends have received copies of that this year. It's beautiful! She also got me some presents from the Literary Gift Company: a red tote bag with a quote about paradise being a library, some "Banned Books" matchbooks, a folding out "Gorjuss" photo box, and some amaretto-soaked sultanas from Hotel Chocolat. (These did not last long.) Sammy and her family bought me lots of bath and shower smellies, and two Funko Pop figures: Zoe Washburn from Firefly (taking on a dragon on my bookcase in the picture above) and a mini Eleventh Doctor on a keyring. From my uni friends I got several small things: a box of bookish pencils, a knitting brooch, some bookmarks and a little leaflet filled with writing prompts for coffee shops, which I've tucked into the back pocket of my handbag-notebook so I've got it with me wherever I go.

Bout of Books

Now that Christmas and New Year are over, the rest of winter is stretching out long and grey before us (at least, those of us in the Northern Hemisphere.) So, now that things are quietening down, what better than to snuggle up with a big mug of coffee (tea, hot chocolate or other beverage of choice) and a good book? And the Bout of Books readathon returns just in time for that tomorrow. Hurrah! I don't exactly need an excuse to be a book-dwelling hermit, but it's nice to have company (on the internet, not in the room) while doing it. So I'll be eagerly taking part and making my way through my January to-read pile. 4 books in a week is my usual readathon target, and the rest of the pile should take me through to the end of the month (although as always subject to what I feel like reading at the time.)

1. Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell - Susanna Clarke. I bought this for my dad years ago and have been meaning to borrow it back for ages. I thoroughly enjoyed the BBC adaptation last year, and it was very strange for me to be the only person in the room not to have read the book it was based on - especially when it was a particularly Katie story.
2. The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet - Becky Chambers
3. Upstairs at the Party - Linda Grant
4. The Drawing of the Three - Stephen King. I had a mini-splurge in Waterstone's a couple of days after Christmas. I read The Gunslinger, the first book in King's Dark Tower series. I had a bit of trouble with the first book, but enough people (especially Laura and Judith) rave about the series as a whole, and I know just enough about it, that I want to continue and see what all the fuss is about. Apparently it brings together all sorts of elements from King's entire canon, which is odd as it seems to take place in a different world (but with just enough specific details from ours to be confusing, such as "Hey Jude" in a setting reminiscent of America's Old West.)
5. Silence is Goldfish - Annabel Pitcher. I don't know much about this book except that it deals with either elective or selective mutism. I really loved Pitcher's first book, My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece, although I found Ketchup Clouds pretty forgettable. I have high
6. The Rest of Us Just Live Here - Patrick Ness.  What about the kids who aren't the Chosen Ones when Things Start To Happen?
7. Disclaimer - Renee Knight. I found this one in a charity shop and had been pondering it for a while. It was supposed to be "for people who liked The Girl on the Train, but I wasn't madly in love with that one; it was okay but I expected more, considering how massive it's been. (It's been out for a year and no sign of a paperback yet. And there won't be, while people are still prepared to pay for the hardcover.) But Disclaimer has an interesting premise: someone realises that the book she's reading is based upon her own life. But who knows enough about her secrets to turn them into a novel?
8. Career of Evil - "Robert Galbraith." J. K. Rowling's third pseudonymous crime novel about private detective Cormoran Strike and his assistant Robin. I had to get that in hardback to match the first two in the series. J. K. Rowling proves herself an expert weaver of plots in every genre she's turned her hand to, and I look forward to being ensnared in her web once more.
9. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen. I am long overdue a Jane Austen reread, and actually, because I know it so well through the many adaptations and variations, Pride and Prejudice is probably the book I've read least. 
10. Our Mutual Friend - Charles Dickens. My Grandma passed on her complete Dickens set to me a few years ago, when she moved out of her house into a flat, and again, it's been a while since I've read any of his work. (The complete works of Dickens don't really count as part of the to-read pile, as they will probably take decades to get through. But I do intend to get through them all eventually.)

Bout of Books 14

Monday 17th August

3.30PM: Well, here we are in the fourteenth Bout of Books readathon! For those of you who don't know me, my name is Katie, and I work part time in a bookshop on the Isle of Wight (a small island off the south coast of England.) When I'm not working, I write fiction (although I'm as yet unpublished,) and am currently writing the first draft of a geeky chick lit novel. Although right now, I seem to be finding all sorts of ways to avoid writing! I've set myself two more scenes to write today, but perhaps I'll find my brain works better if I take a break and read for a little while...

4PM: ...or maybe not. Instead of a reading update, allow me to present my Fictional World Travel challenge entry: the challenge is quite simple, to show off a selection of books set in different countries around the world (not your own.) I've also omitted the USA, because, let's face it, probably a good half of my books are set there, if not more.

The Fictional World Travel challenge was created by and hosted at
Between Library Shelves

The Book of Tomorrow - Cecelia Ahern (Republic of Ireland)

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and his Years of Pilgrimage - Haruki Murakami (Japan)

A Man Called Ove - Frederik Backman (Sweden)

The Miniaturist - Jessie Burton (The Netherlands)

Pink - Lili Wilkinson (Australia)

Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery (Canada)

To those of you who don't know me, let me say that Anne is one of my greatest loves, and so don't be surprised if you see her pop up again over this week.

I'm going to shut down my computer until 5, and see how much of A Man Called Ove I can get read by 5PM.

Monday's Stats:

Currently reading: A Man Called Ove Frederik Backman

Pages read today: 260

Books finished this week: 0

Quote of the day: "People said Ove saw the world in black and white. But she was colour. All the colour he had."

Tuesday 18th August 

Today already hasn't gone to plan. It's my last day before going back to work, and I was trying to have an early night and earlier morning to try to ease myself back into a workday routine - but I couldn't sleep. I used the time to finish off A Man Called Ove, which is a really lovely book. The titular Ove is a grumpy old curmudgeon, probably a Swedish relation of "Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells," who seems to live to complain. But as the book progresses, we see how Ove has come to be this way, and how underneath it all he's really a very kind, very lonely man. A Man Called Ove is in turns sad and funny, often both at the same time, with a wonderful cast of characters, a story about how one person has an effect on a community in many small ways. 

Today was going to be another writing day, but I'll save that for the evening, I think. I have less than one scene before I finish the chapter, hopefully a bit of humour after all the melancholy I wrote yesterday. I'll be having a beach barbecue with my friends this afternoon, but now I'm going to make myself a big mug of coffee and maybe some cake, and curl up with my next book: The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing. 

Tuesday's Stats:

Currently reading: The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing

Pages read today: 150

Books finished this week: 1

Quote of the day: "There is a female chivalry, woman for woman, as strong as any other kind of loyalty.Or perhaps it was we didn't want brought home to us the deficiencies of imagination in our own men."

Wednesday 19th August

I think today is not going to be a reading day. I went back to work after a ten-day holiday today. It wasn't terrible, but it has marked the end of summer for me, and autumn in retail brings its own particular struggles. Perhaps I'll have an early night, and read a bit of a Discworld book in bed. I'm enjoying The Golden Notebook, but it's perhaps not a book designed for speeding through on a readathon; it's full of politics and feminism and big ideas about the compartmentalisation of life and personality. The protagonist keeps a series of journals on a variety of themes: politics, writing, and personal life, and the novel features segments from each. But right now I don't feel much like reading it, instead flicking about on the internet. I'm feeling the urge to settle down to rewatching some youtube videos instead - maybe rewatch some of Green Gables Fables in preparation for the new season covering Anne of the Island in a modern-day university, which is coming very soon. 

Thursday 20th August

7PM: Maybe it wasn't the best of ideas to take part in a readathon in the week I was due to go back to work for the autumn. Yesterday's reading was a grand total of about seventeen pages. The evening was spent faffing around online, watching Green Gables Fables and colouring. Today, although the back-to-work blues are still hanging around a bit, I'm feeling a bit happier and more relaxed, so I'll push on with a bit more of The Golden Notebook. You do really need to sit down for a long stretch of time and get stuck into that book; it's not very good for reading just a few pages over lunch break. I've just got in from work, and on my way I accidentally picked up a cute and funny little "Happiness Is..." book from the gift section at TK Maxx, and another "colouring therapy" book from the supermarket. I'm going to make a toastie and some soup for my dinner, and read a while, then, later, I might do a readathon challenge, and watch more of Green Gables Fables. 

Thursday Stats

Currently reading: The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing

Also read: Happiness Is...

Pages read today: 117, plus approx 250 in Happiness Is... (the latter had about 2-10 words on each page so doesn't really count.)

Friday 21st August

3.30PM: Friday is my Saturday, as I'll be working tomorrow, so I spent the morning doing chores: tidying, cleaning, two loads of laundry. I'm now settling down with some more of The Golden Notebook, which I'm finding very interesting as I can relate so well to Anna, with her many notebooks and journals. I have so many notebooks, each with their own purposes: about the novel-writing process, book review notes, and one just for favourite quotations. Then there's the different versions of me I present online - I do not sync my Facebook and Twitter accounts, for instance, but choose what to write for which audience, even in a simple status update. But I might switch to a different book later on.

Friday Stats:

Currently reading: The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing

Pages read today: 244

Saturday 22nd August

Work again today - but it was decidedly quiet for a Saturday, especially one in the summer holidays. It was really hot and sunny when I ventured out at lunch time, so I suppose most people were on the beach or in their gardens, making the most of the good weather. A couple of days ago I was sure autumn had arrived, and I've been wearing sweaters and fluffy slipper boots already. But summer was apparently not as over as we'd thought. (I've seen the weather forecast for next week, though. Sigh.) I made the most of the peace and quiet to start clearing some space in the stock room for the autumn new releases and Christmas gift books, which could start arriving at any time. We've already got a few annuals in! I swear it gets earlier every year. I also had the chance to sit down and talk to my manager about something that had been weighing very heavily on my mind - part of the reason that my reading's been so difficult the last couple of days. I find it very difficult to admit when I'm struggling, but I knew I couldn't carry on bottling things up, and now I feel a lot better after talking things over with her. 

I finally finished The Golden Notebook, which I've really enjoyed reading - it's a very different sort of novel, a kind of examination of everything that goes into the writing of a book, all the things behind the scenes that might not make it onto the final draft, but which contribute nonetheless. However, I'm glad to have reached the end of it, and am moving on to one of the few Discworld books I've never read - Thief of Time. The final book in the series is released next Thursday. I still can't believe it's ending, though Sir Terry has been gone for nearly six months now. 

Saturday Stats:

Currently reading: Thief of Time - Terry Pratchett.

Also read: The Golden Notebook

Pages read today: 120

Books finished this week: 2 (or 3 if you count Happiness Is...)

Sunday 23rd August 

5.30PM: Okay, so I haven't actually read anything today, or done any of the jobs I'd planned. I got up quite early for a Sunday, but unfortunately migraine struck. I've had a nap, and the pain's mostly gone, but the visual part has remained so everything looks shadowy - not good for concentrating on a book. Probably sitting at a laptop isn't doing it any good either, so I'll put that away for now. I'll try to read a bit after dinner.

11.30PM: The worst of the migraine's gone now, and I've read a bit more of Thief of Time. I didn't realise that this was a book featuring Susan, Death's granddaughter, in a prominent role! Yes, there was a book about some of my favourite characters which I hadn't read or known about! What a lovely surprise. It's wonderful to lose myself in the Discworld, with Terry Pratchett's trademark wit and wordplay, and it looks as though it'll be a worthy sequel to Hogfather in some ways. 

Sunday Stats:

Currently reading: Thief of Time - Terry Pratchett

Pages read today - 65 so far

Books finished this week: 2 (or 3 if you count Happiness Is...)

Quote of the day: "When you look into the abyss, it's not supposed to wave back."

Sunday Summary (16/8/15)

Five things that made me happy this week (with special thanks to Ellie the Lit Nerd.)

1. Having a week off work. It's been fairly crummy weather, although there were a couple of gorgeous sunny days, and last Sunday I went to Ventnor beach with my family, swam in the sea twice, and then had hot chocolate from my favourite beachside cafe, Lady Scarlet's. They also do lovely ice cream and sundaes gluten-free cakes, and if you have coffee, they give you milk in one of those old-fashioned 1/3rd pint glass bottles.

2. Writing. Despite not working, I seem to find my natural writing time is late into the night. I find it's easier to get into a routine when I have several days off at a time, rather than just one day, and I've finished one chapter of my work in progress this week, and am aiming to get another one done before I go back to work on Wednesday.

3. There were, however, a couple of days when I didn't manage to get any writing done at all, and on Friday, I switched on my laptop to find it wouldn't boot up past the "welcome" page, before turning to black. I've had that computer a long time, and had a lot of work done to it, so I decided it was tuime to treat myself to a new laptop. I bought a very petite, blue one - it looks a bit like a "my first laptop" toy. I do intend to get my old one fixed, if I can, though.

4. Last week was also Cowes Week, the big sailing regatta, when lots of posh and boat-obsessed people come to the Isle of Wight. We're not so interested in the boats, but there was lots of street food, and a falconry display in Northwood Park, where we watched a bird called Swoop doing some very impressive flying and diving - to the song "Danger Zone" from Top Gun! And on Friday it was the annual fireworks event, which is a bigger deal on the Island than November 5th! The weather was a bit drizzly, but it was better than last year, and my friends and I congregated on Cowes Green for the evening to watch the fireworks.

5. One of my family friends, Lois, threw an Alice in Wonderland themed tea party yesterday afternoon, and my mum, dad and I were among several of the guests who went in costume (I was the Mad Hatter.) Lois has recently retired from working as a librarian, and threw the party in celebration of the novel's 150th anniversary.

Bout of Books: 

I've also decided to sign up once more for the Bout of Books readathon, which begins tomorrow, although I'll have to share my reading time with my writing. Still, I'd like to get my current book finished (A Man Called Ove) and read three more from my to-read shelf. These may or may not include The Rook by Daniel O'Malley, Goodnight Beautiful by Dorothy Koomson, Doris Lessing's The Golden Notebook, and/or Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 17th and runs through Sunday, August 23rd in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 14 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. 

- From the Bout of Books team

Will you be taking part? If so, what books are on your pile - or do you prefer to just read whatever takes your fancy at the time?

 

Mini Reviews: Terra, The Miniaturist, That's Not A Feeling

Terra: Mitch Benn

On a routine expedition to Rrth, Llbp discovers what seems to be an abandoned, unloved child, so he does what any decent being would do: takes her home to his own planet and raises her as his own daughter. Terra grows up knowing that she is an alien, but is accepted by her peers. But when she starts school, she has to confront the differences between herself and the people of Fnrr, as well as their similarities.

I found Terra to be a really lovely science fiction novel, easy to read (once you get used to all the names that look like keysmashes) and refreshingly optimistic for the genre. If the story's conflicts were a little too easily resolved, that is a small criticism. The world of Fnrr is a society evolved quite apart from ours, even perhaps a utopia, but one which reflects so much that is to be celebrated about people (whether human or not.) I came away from Terra smiling.

Shelve next to: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Key Quotes:

"I guess I'm just wondering if everybody hates the G'grk because they're so angry and violent, or whether they're so angry and violent because everybody hates them."

"There's no point knowing something if you don't know WHY you know it."

"A bad scientist tries to prove himself right. A good scientist tries to prove himself wrong, and only when he fails does he conclude he's right."

"The cleverest of the scientists and astronomers admitted - privately at least - that any really intelligent life would be smart enough never to allow its presence to be detected by the human race. It wouldn't have cheered these scientists and astronomers up one bit to now that they were right."

The Miniaturist: Jessie Burton


Amsterdam, 1686. Nella Oortman arrives at her new husband's house to find a frosty welcome. Her sister-in-law and servants seem to have made up their mind to dislike her, while her husband Johannes wants nothing to do with her. On one of his rare attentive occasions, Johannes buys Nella a lavish wedding gift of a doll's house cabinet, and when Nella decides to furnish it, the miniaturist sends unsolicited and disturbing additions: items and characters which show too much knowledge of Nella's family, home - and future.

The Miniaturist explores the role of a woman in the seventeenth century, the expectations of a merchant's wife, and Nella's quest to make a place for herself in this unfamiliar new world. Set against the backdrop of the sugar trade, The Miniaturist takes the part of those who do not conform to the expectations of an oppressive society, that even the privileged classes find their own prisons. The cabinet plot is eerie and full of foreboding; there is a sense of a fate neither escapable nor quite understandable until it is too late. I grew emotionally invested in the family and ached for a happy ending, but tragedy is a foregone conclusion from the very first chapter. An extraordinary debut (and a beautiful cover.)

Shelve next to: The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

Key Quotes:

"It is not a man she has married, but a world."

"Growing older, Nella realises, does not seem to make you more certain. It simply presents you with more reasons for doubt."

"Everything about this cabinet was indeed distracting. So much happened while I was looking the other way. I was sure I'd been standing still, yet look how far I've come."

 

That's Not A Feeling: Dan Josefson

That's Not A Feeling shows a year in the life of Roaring Orchards School for Troubled Teens, seen through the eyes of newcomer Benjamin, who was abandoned there by his parents after attempting suicide. The novel has an air of surreality from the start, which could perhaps be attributable to Benjamin's fragile mental state. I have read other books that gave me the same distorted view of the world, but at no point could I actually believe in Roaring Orchards. The creation of a man with unique ideas about the treatment of "troubled" children, there was a troubling lack of distinction about whether it should be viewed as a psychiatric institution or a reform school. There was a regular administering of medication, but no medical staff unless you count the school nurse and counsellor, mentioned only in passing. The school's regime is full of ridiculous jargon, useless and sometimes abusive therapies, staff with no idea of boundaries, and, as the title suggests, the students/patients/inmates are never listened to, only told what the staff want to hear. That's Not A Feeling reads as a parody of alternative therapies, or teaching, or reform schools, but the lack of depth or understanding of the mental health issues touched upon meant that I could not fully engage with the text. Disappointing.

Key Quotes:

"Seeing us as objects of fun let the faculty imagine we were somehow protected, I thin, as comic figures are able to survive all kinds of harm."

"I didn't like the feeling of separating myself in two: the Benjamin who was doing the thinking and the Benjamin that was being thought about."

Bout of Books 11: Friday to Sunday and Wrap-Up

Apologies for the lack of an online presence during the last two days. Life got in the way, as it has an inconvenient habit of doing.

Friday

I worked a four-hour shift across the lunchtime period on Friday, meaning I got a bit of a lie-in and some quality reading time over breakfast. I'd begun Terra on Thursday, and could have read the whole book in a day, but by the evening my attention had started to wander - not through any fault of the book, which is excellent, but due to internet distractions and a bit of DVD-watching.

I spent most of my shift giving the department a very thorough clean, and spent the rest of the day sneezing. After work I met a friend for coffee and cake, and then went around to the other bookshops to browse, and in my case, to see if I could find any other titles to go onto my birthday list. In the evening my parents and I had dinner at a very nice riverside pub, The Bargeman's Rest. When I got home, very full and sleepy, I finished off Terra, which is a really lovely, feel-good science fiction story which leaves you with good feelings about people, read a bit of the Deadpool comic and had an early night.

Friday Stats

Books read today: Terra - Mitch Benn

Deadpool Max: Second Cut - David Lapham

Pages read today: 188

Books finished so far: 4

Quote of the day: "The cleverest of the scientists and astronomers admitted - privately at least - that any really intelligent life would be smart enough never to allow its presence to be detected by the human race. It wouldn't have cheered these scientists and astronomers up one bit to know that they were right."

Saturday

Well, Saturday was a tiring day. Nothing really awful happened, but it was dull, the jobs I had to do, though necessary, seemed to render the previous week's work pointless, and I had a steady stream of mildly irksome customers. At lunchtime, after spending half the hour on errands, I made a start on Joe Hill's Horns - possibly not the best book to follow on from Terra. Terra left me feeling really good about people - whether human or not - whereas Horns shows the worst in everyone. 

After work I fell asleep, but was awake in time to watch Peter Capaldi's first episode as Doctor Who. I like him in the role - grumpy and a bit rude, but with an unexpected vulnerability too. And I adore the brand-new credits sequence, it's really beautiful.

I still felt a bit too tired and fidgetty to settle down with a full novel or even a short story in the evening, but I finished off Saturday with Deadpool. I've now, for the first time ever, reached and exceeded my readathon target, if you count comic books. 

Saturday Stats:

Books read today: Horns - Joe Hill

Deadpool Max: Second Cut - David Lapham

Pages read today: 117

Books finished so far: 5

Sunday

Thankfully I've got today and tomorrow off work - I've been almost enjoying my job recently, but yesterday and the day before I've been quite restless and not wanting to be there at all. Some of that mood's followed me into today. I've read over a hundred pages of Horns before lunch, but right now I'm just mooching around not wanting to settle down to anything. I wonder if it's the book, which is a challenging one. The main character wakes up one morning to find that not only has he got a pair of horns growing out of his head, but people are telling him all their darkest secrets. We've gone into flashback mode now, but it's difficult to like any of the characters when we know some pretty awful things about them. It's interesting and thought-provoking, but not an easy read.

10.30PM

This evening I took a break from not-reading to show my parents Frozen, which they'd never seen before. We all enjoyed it, but I was horrified to find myself shedding a few tears through "Do you wanna build a snowman?" Since then I've done a bit of knitting, dithered around on the internet for a while and fell down the TV Tropes black hole, which has got me desperately wanting to reread my favourite Terry Pratchett novel, Night Watch. Although I'm concentrating on the unread Discworld books as my light reading, I expect I'll pick up some of my favourites when I get to that part in the series, but Night Watch is quite a way off yet.

I think there's no chance of me getting much more reading done as long as this computer stays on, so I shall shut it down now and get some more chapters of Horns read before I go to bed. I'd have liked to have ended the readathon on another finished novel for tidiness' sake, but am quite happy with my overall progress. I'll write up some mini-reviews of the books I've read during the week, and will add up my total page count at the same time.

Goodnight.

Sunday Stats:

Books read today: Horns - Joe Hill

Pages read today: 262

Books finished so far: 5

Wrap-Up (Monday)

Well, Bout of Books is already over. How did the week go so quickly? Here in the UK it's a bank holiday, and it has kept reliably to the tradition of marking the end of summer by pouring down with rain.

But how did Bout of Books go overall?

The Stats:

Total books finished: 5 (one more than target) : That's Not A Feeling
The Miniaturist
Hawkeye: Little Hits
Terra
Deadpool Max: Second Cut
Additional books read from: 2: The Elephant Vanishes 
Horns
Total pages read: 1764
Favourite book: A tie between The Miniaturist and
Favourite challenge: As I only took part in one challenge, on the first day, it has to be the Book Monsters' Scavenger Hunt
Favourite new blog discovered: Romancing the Laser Pistol
Best reading day: Wednesday (my first day not working)
Worst reading day: Saturday (Last day working.)

Thank you to Amanda and Kelly for organising this readathon, and to everyone who took part to make it awesome! I've had a great time and it's helped me to get my to-read pile down a bit - although today I broke my self-inflicted book ban and bought three more books from the Ryde Bookshop to replace those I've read last week. Oops.

Bout of Books 11: Wednesday and Thursday

Today is my first day off work for Bout of Books and it's so nice to have more than half of my working week behind me this early on in the week! I slept in late, although not as late as I'd have liked because the workmen had chosen today to resurface our road. One of our great landmarks is gone! Farewell to the Great Crater of -- Road! I won't miss being splashed by passing cars on rainy days, and the road is shiny and new, quite a notable occasion for an Isle of Wight road, especially a little side road.

I read two Murakami short stories before even getting out of bed: one bizarre and somewhat creeptacular love letter to a stranger, and the other the account of a woman who suddenly stopped being able to sleep and lived a whole other life when the world had gone to sleep. (She mostly filled her hours with reading books and getting drawn into the fictional worlds, so this was a very appropriate story to be reading for Bout of Books.

I spent the rest of the morning cleaning, as a tidy room makes a readathon so much more pleasant, and then settled down with The Miniaturist. It's an atmospheric novel, set in 17th century Amsterdam, about Nella, a young bride who moves to live with her husband and his sister, to find an unfriendly reception. The sister-in-law seems determined to dislike Nella, and while her husband seems a good companion when he notices her, but he rejects her advances and seems barely to notice her. But he gave Nella a wedding gift: a lavish doll's house in a cabinet, made up to resemble their own home. Nella orders a few items to furnish the house from a local miniaturist, but is unprepared for the extra items which indicate too much knowledge on the miniaturist's behalf of Nella's life, home and marriage.

At about 3PM yesterday's migraine put in another appearance, so I put down the book and walked into town to get some fresh air and Ibuprofen. Along the way I picked up two comic books from the library - a Deadpool and a Hawkeye - and a cinnamon bun. My headache's more or less died down for now, and I intend to spend the rest of the day in The Miniaturist, although I could dip into one of the comics as well.

Wednesday's Stats:

Books read today: The Miniaturist - Jessie Burton

The Elephant Vanishes - Haruki Murakami: "On seeing the 100% perfect girl one beautiful April Morning", "Sleep", "The fall of the Roman Empire, The 1881 Indian uprising, Hitler's invasion of Poland, and the realm of raging winds." 

Pages read today: 483

Books finished (total): 2

Quote of the day: "Growing older, Nella realises, does not seem to make you more certain. It simply presents you with more reasons for doubt."

Thursday

Another day off, and again I started the day reading a couple of short stories from The Elephant Vanishes. Although I enjoy Murakami's writing, I'm finding that reading a lot of short stories all at once, I notice recurring patterns and quirks which start to feel just a little bit repetitive. I guess that's the same with many authors, though: they have their own particular style. 

Spent the morning reading the Hawkeye comic I got out of the library, and discovered that in fact there seem to be two Hawkeyes - Clint Barton, who even the comic book novices like myself know from the Avengers movie (although not well as he spent most of the film under mind control) and his apprentice Kate Bishop. Hawkeye (Barton) seems to spend most of his time getting beaten up - perhaps attributable to the self-loathing that his girlfriend accuses him of, so he goes looking for trouble. It was a fun comic to read, and a character I've enjoyed spending time with, "the normal guy" of the Avengers without any superpowers. The final issue of the volume was told from his dog's point of view - very little text and many simple diagrams, an interesting and unusual viewpoint.

Thursday's Stats:

Books read today: Hawkeye: Little Hits - Matt Fraction and David Aja

The Elephant Vanishes - Haruki Murakami: "Lederhosen", "Barn Burning" and "The Little Green Monster."
Terra -  Mitch Benn

Pages read today: 311

Books finished (total): 3
Quote of the day: "There's no point knowing something if you don't even know WHY you know it."

Sunday Summary: Adventures in and out of books

It's a gorgeous Sunday afternoon as I write this. The sweltering heat seems to have died down a little, but if it can stay at this warm sunny level for the next week, I would be most grateful, thank you very much. I've been working long hours at work but now I'm on my summer holiday - hurrah! Tomorrow my friend and I are finally going on a holiday we've been planning for what seems like years: camping by Lake Windermere. I grew up having my mum read me the Swallows and Amazons books by Arthur Ransome, adventure stories for children from the days before health-and-safety, and now we're off to that part of the country for our own adventures - though on a National Trust campsite rather than an island, and we'll have to make do with barbecues because campfires are not allowed. I've been rereading Swallowdale, the second book in the series, in which the children are shipwrecked and have to make do without their beloved boat Swallow, as "research" for the holiday. I've warned Judith to expect me to talk in the language of the books while we're away.

I haven't done much reading lately. Looking back over July it seems I've only read 7 books - usually I manage 8-10 - and three of them were Discworld books. I'm blaming the heat. I'm not one to complain that it's "too hot" - I grumble enough during the winter not to tempt fate that way - but I did find myself lacking in energy or inclination to do very much mentally or physically. I've got a whole list of reviews I still mean to write, but some of them may end up on a combined mini-review post if they're ever to be written.

But Bout of Books 11 is coming up in two weeks' time. My love of books, never very far away, has returned and I mean to make up for lost time. I'm only working three days on the week of the readathon, and if it's still summery weather I expect I'll be doing a lot of my reading in the garden or on the beach. I'll aim for my usual target of 4 books, though I'll decide nearer the time which ones those will be. I'll probably make a shortlist and choose from those.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 18th and runs through Sunday, August 24th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 11 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog.

- From the Bout of Books team

Bout of Books: Days 5-7

Friday 16th May

2.25PM

I didn't read any more after finishing Blood and Chocolate last night. It's my own fault. The problem with my laptop screen seems to have righted itself, at least for the moment, and I ended up spending the rest of Thursday internetting the night away.

I got my lie-in this morning, although I didn't sleep all that late, considering. I've been sleeping with the curtains open, and I woke up quite naturally - no alarm today, hurrah! I spent a little time over breakfast/brunch reading through other bloggers' posts, then headed out into the garden to spend some time on the lounger with From A Buick 8 by Stephen King. It's got a classic ghost story feel to it, narrated by Sandy an old cop, telling his story of what happened with this mysterious, impossible car that turned up at the filling station one day many years ago. Not only is it written as though spoken, but there is a story within a story, the framing device of Sandy telling us about telling another character, Ned, the car's weird history, and we take our cues from Ned's reactions. I'm not a quarter of the way in, and I'm not sure how a creepy car can fill up another 360 pages, but I'll read on and see.

Friday's stats

Number of books started: 3

Number of books finished: 2

Books read today: From a Buick 8

Number of pages read today:  170
Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Quotes of the day: "It's earthquake country in there."

"They see it and don't see it at the same time," he said, "Young people are such wonderful idiots."

Update

I didn't get as much reading done on Friday as I'd hoped; I spent a lot of that day just pottering, and in the evening I finally finished watching Buffy which I began back in January. I'll post a season 7 review in the next few days, and perhaps a post recapping the highlights of the entire series. I'm not convinced that season 7 was as good as any of the previous seasons, but it ended on an epic finale.

Saturday I was back at work, which was far more tolerable than the previous few days, probably because I'd had a lie-in and a rest. I did, however, lose a battle with my inner snarker that I've been fighting for the six years I've been in this job:

Customer, approaching me while I'm shelving books: Are you on the till?
Me: Actually, I'm right here. I can go to the till if you like.

I fear I have inherited my father's pedantry.

Not much reading happened yesterday, as in the evening my friend and I went to see a local theatre production of Much Ado About Nothing. (That was the play I auditioned for back in January.) It was a cosy play, in a small venue, set in 1920s Paris, and partly staged at the tables where the audience were sitting. I think that Benedick had been at least partially influenced by David Tennant's portrayal; certainly he had a similar sort of charm and humour in the role. I could identify the Beatrice as soon as I saw her, just from her posture and attitude. And in this one, even the minor roles, the sidekicks of supporting characters who I barely noticed in other productions, were memorable and brilliant, particularly the drunken Borachio.

Friday's stats

Number of books started: 3

Number of books finished: 2

Books read today: From a Buick 8

Number of pages read today:  40
Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Sunday was another day off, and a gorgeously sunny day, without a cloud in the sky. I sat in the garden before lunch, debating whether or not I could be bothered to take the bus to the beach. I felt too lazy, but the sea won. I joined Judith at Yaverland, read for a while and did not fall asleep (and yes, I wore sunscreen.) I even went for a swim in the sea. The verdict: not comfortable, but bearable, a little less cold than last time, but not recommended to those of sound mind. Then when I got back to the beach I realised I'd forgotten to bring a skirt, meaning I had to travel home in soggy shorts - a little embarrassing. I've almost finished From A Buick 8, which is not one of Stephen King's greatest novels, but it's quite readable - not really about an impossible car, so much as the lives affected by the creepy Buick over the years. I plan to review that fully this week as well. Dear bloggers, please nag me if I've posted no reviews this time next week. I've still got a Star Trek film review to write too, though I expect that's more for my own satisfaction than anyone else's.

Sunday stats

Number of books started: 3

Number of books finished: 2

Books read today: From a Buick 8

Number of pages read today:  232
Favourite book so far: The Charioteer
Quote of the day: "It's funny how close the past is, sometimes. Sometimes it seems as if you cold almost reach out and touch it. Only...
Only who really wants to?"

Bout of Books 10: Days 3 and 4

Wednesday was another long day at work, slow and quiet, with not a lot of jobs to keep me occupied. I came home tired and grumpy, to which my dad responded by handing me all sorts of cake and chocolate. I think he has the same way of comforting people that I do: someone's upset... give them cake! It certainly helped my mood, and I've felt that bit more able to cope with today, even though I woke in a panic at about 5AM convinced I'd slept through my alarm. (I really hadn't.) This happens on a regular basis when I'm stressed or working long hours. Thankfully I have tomorrow off, which I have booked for reading From a Buick 8 by Stephen King, and generally ignoring the world. (Also chores.)

What I've been reading

I finished The Charioteer last night. Have any of you read it? For the most part, I felt that it was a fairly positive read; Yes, Laurie had his inner battles with secrecy and identity and integrity, but I felt that he was a person who could fight these conflicts and win. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for all of his associates, and I'm not sure what to make of the ending. The last couple of chapters filled me with dread, and at one point I was actually shouting at the book. Thanks to Renault's poetic style that told the story through hints and insinuations, the ending seemed quite open, and I'm not sure whether catastrophe was averted or not. If you read it, what do you think?

I also reread Blood and Chocolate for the first time since I was in my teens. I'd almost entirely forgotten the story, except for one scene which had stuck vividly in my head and turned out to be a combination of two different incidents and significantly tamer than I'd remembered. It's a pre-Twilight paranormal romance, told from the point of view of Vivian, the werewolf, who falls in love with a human.  Vivian is a refreshingly bold and forward YA heroine, who knows what she wants and goes after it. As part of the werewolf pack, she doesn't see her kind as cursed; instead it is the humans who are freaks, incomplete people, stuck in one shape.

Wednesday's stats

Number of books started: 2

Number of books finished: 1

Books read today: The Charioteer, Blood and Chocolate

Number of pages read today:  205

Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Quote of the day: "He was a human after all, a meat-boy, scantily furred, an incomplete creature who had only one form." - Blood and Chocolate

Thursday's stats

Number of books started: 2

Number of books finished: 2

Books read today: Blood and Chocolate

Number of pages read today:  109

Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Next up: From a Buick 8 - Stephen King

Bout of Books 10: Days 1 and 2

Day 1: Monday 12th May

It's been a while since I've taken part in a readathon - in fact, it's been a while since I've blogged at all. I've been reading and watching plenty, but been in a bit of a reviewing slump and haven't been able to think about much to say about my books. Hopefully, writing a little bit about my reading each day for the readathon will help me get into that frame of mind again. But it will be only a little bit, for two reasons: firstly, I'm working full-time this week. (This is a good thing: I am only on a part-time contract, and overtime has been scarce in the past few months. But why did it have to be this week?) Secondly, Ruby, my faithful red laptop, has developed a screen condition and due to the aforementioned long week, I shan't be able to see my computer-doctor cousin Jeremy until Friday at the earliest, so will have to rely on borrowed computers for all blogging purposes. Still, this has its benefits in that most of my readathon time will be spent, well, reading, rather than internetting the day away.

My Books

I've selected a range of books to choose from this week and do not expect or intend to read all of them. My target is 3 or 4.

1. Blood and Chocolate - Annette Curtis Klause

This will be a reread. I first read Blood and Chocolate about ten years ago, when I developed a soft spot for werewolves (for which we can probably thank Remus Lupin.) This predates the current version of human/non-human romances, and the protagonist is the female werewolf who falls in love with a human boy. I don't remember a lot about this one. I bought this copy from Ellie's shop last year.

2. The Lies of Locke Lamora - Scott Lynch

This has been on my radar since its first publication, and last year a lot of my blogger friends started raving about it, pushing it right up my wish list. Around the same time, it turned up in The Works on a 3 for £5 offer. It was a no-brainer.

3. From A Buick 8 - Stephen King.

This is a King I have no foreknowledge or preconceptions about, except that presumably it involves a car. Another The Works find.

4. The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks.

I tried the first of Banks's "M" novels about the Culture during a Bout of Books last year, and to be honest I struggled somewhat with it. I've since found out that The Player of Games is generally considered a better introduction to the series, and so I'll give him a second chance. (I also have one of his "M-less" novels on my to-read pile, though that has not made the readathon shortlist.)

5. The Charioteer - Mary Renault

I'd never heard of this one before its striking cover caught my eye earlier this year. Apparently yellow covers are the way to go! The story of a gay soldier during World War 2, apparently this was quite a daring and groundbreaking novel when it was published in 1953. I'm really looking forward to this one.

6. Goodnight, Beautiful - Dorothy Koomson

I love Dorothy Koomson. Her books are marketed in edible-looking pastel covers, but they prove that feminine does not mean fluffy, and they can be hard-hitting and thought-provoking. The Rose Petal Beach was a thriller on a par with Gone Girl. Read Koomson, but don't expect a "light" read.

7. The Cuckoo's Calling - "Robert Galbraith."

Interesting how, when the first Cormoran Strike book was believed to be penned by an unknown, its RRP was £16.99, and now it is known to be written by J.K. Rowling, the publishers have put a price of £20 on the sequel. Huh. I bought this on special offer after "Mr Galbraith's" true identity was revealed (incidentally, on the same week as the paperback of her Casual Vacancy) but did not want to read it at the same time as my Harry Potter reread. It's been kind of forgotten since then. Maybe I'll correct that this week.

9PM: What I've been reading

It made sense for me to start the readathon with the book I was most excited to read, The Charioteer. The hero, Laurie Odell, is a decent, good-natured and slightly eccentric young man, who we meet first as a small child and then as a schoolboy, before launching into the main plot which commences after he has been wounded at Dunkirk. He befriends Andrew, a conscientious objector working at the hospital where Laurie is convalescing, and the narrative is brimming with tension as they grow closer, not daring to speak of or act upon their feelings for fear that they have misinterpreted the other's. The Charioteer is proving to be a thoughtful, intelligent and compassionate work of art that is way ahead of its time, and I'm enjoying spending this time with Laurie.

Monday's stats:

Number of books started: 1.

Number of books finished: 0.

Books read today: The Charioteer

Number of pages read today:  202

Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Quote of the day: "When you feel less superior it seems you feel more lonely." - Laurie, page 85.

Day 2: Tuesday 13th May

Today has not been a good day. My very first customer at work was a woman who on her last visit made such a nuisance of herself that I ended up close to having a panic attack, and in a voice like poisoned honey, she referred back to that incident, not buying anything, apparently coming in for the express purpose of reminding my supervisor and myself of how unpleasant she was. My second customer wasn't much better...

I've only had one day off in the last week, and it's two more days until the next one. I am tired, and when I get tired, that's why I let my defences down and the negative, destructive thoughts creep in. Why can't they make way for something more positive; a silly crush or ridiculous daydreams, for a change? Why are positive emotions so much more hard work than the negative ones? It was my ex's birthday last week, and getting in touch with him again, even just to say "happy birthday" via Facebook reminded me of all the things that even five years on have power over me. Memories - good and bad - still pop up out to jab at my brain and hurt me as if they were brand-new. I should be long over it by now.

At least I have my book. I'm aiming to finish The Charioteer this evening, although it feels like a book I really ought to take my time over. Still, I've no doubt it's a keeper. Our hero Laurie is finding himself caught between two worlds; not a love triangle precisely, but he is divided between the close friendship with the innocent Andrew, who is still on the verge of figuring out the potential of their relationship, and the older, more worldly Ralph Lanyon, who had been a prefect at Laurie's public school, and a bit of a hero to him. I really hope this story has a happy ending.

Tuesday's stats

Number of books started: 1.

Number of books finished: 0

Books read today: The Charioteer

Number of pages read today:  180 

Favourite book so far: The Charioteer

Quote of the day: "I'm not prepared to accept a standard which puts the whole of my emotional life on the plane of immorality." - Alec