2011 Books

I am losing my touch ~ or probably I never had one I the first place. In any case I don't seem to be able to post comments on other blogs now: PAH!!!
Kim asked me what I had read recently that was good and although I tried to post back it just didn't work somehow. I will write it all here . . . .

Crace: The Pesthouse ~ not an 'easy' read and quite harrowing in parts but well worth the effort
Ali: Brick Lane ~ a story of life for a Bangladeshi woman in an arranged marriage and her life in London's East End. This story spans many years and chronicles the changes in her life and how she copes. I loved it.
Dawkins: The Greatest Show on Eath ~ a Reading Group read or I would never have picked it up. I'm pleased I did, however, as although I dislike the way he writes and disagree with many of his ideas, the subject WAS fascinating.
McMahon: The Rose of Sebastopol ~ Strong characters and an engaging tale of two very different cousins and the impact of the Crimean War.
Bryson: The Lost Continent ~ Hilarious! and I now know where the 'Mid-West' is!
McMahon: The Crimson Rooms ~ Enjoyed this even more than the Sebastopol. A young, female lawyer in 1920's London and the murder case she takes on. Had me gripped to the last page.
Fallada: Alone in Berlin ~ Such a sad book! Set in Nazi Germany and one man's attempt to sabotage Hitler and the Third Reich. It does end on an up-beat. Please read it!
Austen: Persuasion ~ This year's Jane Austen ~ say no more!
De Bernieres: Notwithstanding ~ I want to buy a copy for everyone I know! Very funny although so quintessentially English that maybe one would need to be brought up in the English countryside to really enjoy it.
Banks: The Crow Road ~ Second time read and just as good as the first time. Banks' books fall into two groups for me: the ones I have to read with my eyes closed (!!) and the others. This was an other!

I also read, amongst other books, Niffenegger's 'Time Traveller's Wife'. This was an interesting idea but I found the idea of the poor chap turning up naked every time he went back and forth, having to steal and the author's use of vulgarities right through the book off-putting and sordid. I didn't like it.


On to 2012 and I have started out with Mervyn Peake's 'Mr Pye', which is good although I should really be reading Nicholls' 'One Day' for Reading Group meeting on Wednesday week.


And a quick update on the NYE Dinner:
We did hold it at my house and it was great fun (as usual). Jane and Eric did most of the cooking (others brought Starters and Puds), we had fireworks in the garden and many a laugh. We all sang 'Auld Lang Syne' when the time came and a good time was had by all.


My right foot has now turned an alarming purple colour and is hideously swollen. I am resting it as much as poss and, when not, hopping about accompanied by a stick borrowed from G. Work again tomorrow ~ although I'm not sure how I will get there as driving is quite out of the question. Such is Life!