Hello everyone! I'm going to start by saying, quite frankly, that mystery and horror isn't usually my thing. Yes, I enjoy a detective story once in a while - a bit of Sherlock Holmes, or an Agatha Christie's Poirot, or 'The Moonstone' by Wilkie Collins - and I remember I used to love the 'Mariella Mystery' books by Kate Pankhurst when I was younger, but...at the end of the day, it's not really my cup of tea. That's why I was so surprised when I really liked this book. I was looking on the Story Museum website - it's a fantastic museum in Oxford celebrating children's stories....here's the link: https://www.storymuseum.org.uk/ - and I read that there was going to be a visit from an author I'd never heard of before, come to talk about her newest book. This must've been ages ago...maybe a year or two? Anyway, I remember looking on it and I couldn't make the talk, but I scribbled down the name to look up later: Frances Hardinge. A few months later, I brought some of her books, and popped them on the 'To-read-whenever-I-get-a-moment's-peace' pile...and that's where many of them stayed for a long while. However, I picked up 'Fly by Night' and skimmed through the blurb, thinking, 'OK, so this isn't my normally my first choice, but let's give it a go.' I was fully prepared to give up half way through if it didn't catch my interest from the start. I was delighted with the Prelude, with the widowed historian Quilliam Mye talking to his baby daughter. He was looking at her and realised with embarrassment that he needed to talk to her. He said, almost to himself, ' "Well, I suppose if you are to be of any use to me, then I had better start putting sense into your head before foolishness can blot the page." ' I thought that had a wonderful balance of humour and awkwardness, which brought Mye's nervousness out brilliantly, and captivated me from the start. He goes on to tell his daughter the story of the world they live in, a historical recount he feels secure in relating, and we begin to get a feeling that this is a distorted, twisted version of our own world, a familiar yet imaginative interweaving of things we know and things we believe. The characters were instantly struck and you felt as though you knew them already, and the strange, distorted world of the setting - with its dark myths and vaguely historical turmoil - comes alive from the beginning, as the forefront of the book's plot. I also loved the disclaimer at the end of the book, too, where the author had written: 'This is not a historical novel. It is a yarn. Although the Realm is based roughly on England at the start of the eighteenth century, I have taken appalling liberties with historical authenticity and, when I felt like it, the laws of physics.' I think that's pure genius. It didn't take me long to read, and I don't think that I could really describe to anyone the events in the book, but the feeling of it stayed with me: that murderous, secretive, furtive world, with the intrigues and culture wonderfully creative and somehow a little known, as if you has seen some of those things before. It had what all good mystery stories do: an atmosphere. So, overall, this wasn't my favourite genre, and I wasn't overly keen on the book at first glance, but I really did find an author - a style - a world - which I really enjoyed. I think I'm going to read the second one - 'Twilight Robbery' - and I think I can say, once again quite frankly, that I really have discovered a book which I enjoy, but which I wouldn't necessarily have read, if I hadn't swallowed my prejudices and given it a go. But that's enough from me - what about you? What have you read? Was it scary, creepy, mysterious, spooky? Have you given a new type of book a go? I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to fantasy books next week!
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Hello everyone! Comic/graphic novel, or a funny book, is what we're looking at this week, and I've been excited for this because - really - who doesn't like a good laugh once in a while? I read a book once where, at the end of the series, one of the characters talks about a time when they were younger and thought that everyone else around him had a sixth sense which he didn't have. He said it was the sense that helped them make friends, and have a good time, and, at the end of the day, made them human. Then he said that now he was older he knew what that sixth sense was: it was a sense of humour. I think that's so true, and it's so important to just sit down and find a book that makes you laugh out loud - they're so feel-good and, well, funny. I've always found that, as you get older, funny books are harder to find. I look on my shelf and there are very few teenage/young adult books that really make you laugh. I think an exception of this is the Jeeves and Wooster Omnibus that I read a few months ago, by P.G. Wodehouse, which I thought was literally hilarious. By the end of it I wanted a 'Jeeves' of my own. But I thought, for this week, why not try something new? Something different? I'm not great with books which are set in the real-world in modern-ish times - for me, they are sometimes a bit repetitive, not only because they cover topics which we as people face in our day-to-day lives all the time, but also because there are so many of them, and it can be hard to stand out with a unique idea. But, despite this, I thought I'd give a book like this a go, one which I never would have read had my mum not insisted it was the funniest thing ever: The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole by Sue Townsend. Somewhat cautiously, I opened the page and started reading..... TWO DAYS LATER. Well, where to start? Firstly, this book was a lot older than I expected. On the first page, where we see a list of Adrian Mole's New Year's resolutions, I wasn't expecting to find (among other things): 'I will put the sleeves back on my records.' I asked my mum when the book was set, and she said about the 1980's. OK, I thought - if I omit the references to the records and GCE results, this book could pretty much apply to today. I could kind of tell throughout why it would be funny. I got the jokes and could see why they they might make people laugh. A few made me laugh, but not really an out-and-out belly-laugh. I think I didn't find it totally hilarious because it's not the sort of book that I enjoy. I prefer books with a little more...drama. So, overall, it was a funny book, but I wouldn't say that it was one a really enjoyed - it just wasn't for me. But, no matter - I gave it a go and that's another book and another genre I can tick of my list! How about you? Did you find a book which made you laugh? Was there a character in it you would love to meet? Looking forward to mystery and horror books next week... Hello everyone, It's week two of the Summer Reading Challenge and this week it's all about Classics! There are so many different books in this genre to choose from, and I wasn't sure what to go for, but in the end I chose 'David Copperfield' by Charles Dickens. That's a nice, reliable book, with everything you need in a classic. I've read 'Bleak House' by the same author but, still, I was a little daunted by the size and the time it would take to read the book. But I gave it a go, took it off the shelf, and opened the first page.... I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Sometimes an old, long, dusty classic with lots of strange phrases and big words can be a really tough read, and you as the reader can get bored pretty quickly. I found this book the opposite of that - it was fast, fresh, interesting and had so many wonderful characters in it. I liked it more than 'Bleak House', and, for that matter, more than many other books I've read, and it's taken a proud place on my shelf of absolute favourite books. I thought, seeing as I enjoyed the book so much, I might as well watch the new film version of it. I did, and I thought that the film showed the humorous side of the book very well, but I wasn't sure I got the sadness, too, which the book had more of. I also watched an older, five-episode adaptation of the book which I thought captured more of the book's range of emotions, but not all of its nuances and finer details. I suppose it is a very hard book to base a film off, as it has so many layers and messages, and it has had so many interpretations over the years. So, overall, for me, classics week turned out remarkably well - but what was it like for you? What did you read? Did you like it? And are you looking forward to comic/graphic novels next week? - I am! Hello everyone, It's the first week of the Summer Reading Challenge, and this week's all about Action/Adventure - hooray! This week got me thinking because Action/Adventure isn't my default genre and I was struggling to find a book in the genre but also appealed to my reading taste. In the end I settled on 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' by Baroness Emma Orczy, which is a short adventure novel based on the successful stage show by the same author. I got it off the shelf and started reading..... THREE DAYS LATER...... I had a mixed reaction to this book. The title - which, by the way, is the name of a type of flower - didn't give many clues away, but I knew that the book was based at the time of the French Revolution and was about an Englishman who rescued French aristocrats and brought them across the Channel through schemes and plots of his own mysterious making. OK, I thought - this sounds alright. When I actually got to reading the book, though, I realised that it wasn't all adventure and death-defying escapes: there were parts of it more in the style of historical fiction or romance. I didn't mind the historical fiction bit - I thought in places some of the period details were quite funny - but I didn't enjoy the romance part. I thought it detracted from the really exciting adventure feeling and slowed down what was otherwise a faced-paced, action-packed mystery story. So, overall, not sure - I really liked the story, but I think the focus was a bit off for me, and lost my interest in it. But what about you? What have you been reading this week? I'd love to know whether you love action/adventure, or absolutely hate it, or even if you've never tried it before now - get in touch and tell us all about it!! I don't know about you, but I'm also looking forward to next week with Classics as our genre - I wonder what I'll be reading then....... |
AuthorHi, I love reading all kinds of books. Here, we can talk about different types of books we're reading and recommend reads to each other. Maybe share with us your reading 'ideal meal' or one of your favourite books. Archives
August 2020
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