(in case you were wondering about the title…) I made it to fifty-three books. So damn close. I’m too damn lazy to review all of them, so here’s the list. It wasn’t as good a year as 2010 (despite my also failing to reach my goal then too) where I finished fifty-nine books, started fifty-four [...]
Also tagged French language, readingFrom my friend Claire: Have you read more than 6 of these books? The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here. I’ll put the books I’ve read in bold. Fellow booksluts, feel free to copy and paste your list into the comments. I was actually surprised I’d [...]
Also tagged BBC booklist, literary classics, readingPullman’s ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy is probably the most intelligently written children’s fiction/fantasy I’ve ever read. I didn’t find the first one The Northern Lights as easy to read as this one – it’s fast-paced and thoroughly interesting. It can be confusing at times too – Lyra and Will live in alternate Oxfords and somehow [...]
Also tagged book review, fantasy, Philip Pullman, trilogyThis is the longest story out of all the Beatrix Potter tales. It starts off innocently enough – a pig goes to market to run errands for his aunts, as he is a sweet-natured little piglet. Alas, the market is riddled with dangers that a naive pig might not be ready for. It also makes [...]
Also tagged Beatrix Potter, book review, readingI am desperately trying not to start new books, but rather finish the ones I do have in progress. Very hard given that my mind is racing and wanting to fill itself with new ideas at the moment (poststructuralist book, I’m looking at you). After reading a bit of Wuthering Heights, decided to wind down [...]
Also tagged Beatrix Potter, book review, reading, The Tale of Pigling BlandI hadn’t heard of Fanny Hill till I saw it at a bookshop and read the blurb – it sounded pretty raunchy, so I bought it. It’s actually listed in Boxall’s book of 1001 books to read before you die. It’s almost a guilty pleasure reading it – it is so entertaining and I just [...]
Also tagged book review, erotic literature, Fanny Hill, John Cleland, readingI got this for my partner for Christmas and I figure if he’s not going to read it, then I’m perfectly happy to dip into it every now and then. T. S. Eliot, while being one of the most famous exponents of Anglo-American modernist literature, is ripping good fun in this small volume of poems [...]
Also tagged Axel Scheffler, Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, poetry, reading, T. S. EliotMore Neil Gaiman, more Dave McKean. It took me a while to fully embrace the grim world of a boy remembering his childhood spent in Portsmouth – at first it seemed slow-paced, and the art is schizophrenic, and very, very creepy. What I like best about The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr Punch [...]
Also tagged Dave McKean, graphic novels, Mr Punch, Neil Gaiman, Portsmouth, readingI was one of those poor sots who didn’t get to read the Beatrix Potter books as a child. I guess once I could read my parents figured there was no point reading them to me. Recently, my mother purchased two sets of the entire series – one to give to my future nephew, and [...]
Also tagged Beatrix Potter, children's literature, illustrated classics, reading, The Tale of Mr TodMy aim was to read fifty books this year. It’s always a bit of a struggle come December (I did it last year too)! Thought I might do a ‘breakdown’ of the list, which can be found here: teenage fiction/vampire literature Stephanie Meyer, Twilight Stephanie Meyer, New Moon Stephanie Meyer, Eclipse Stephanie Meyer, Breaking Dawn [...]
Also tagged booklists, list, readingFucking Facebook. Anyway, some member of EMS tagged me for a book meme and of course I will bore you to death with my answers. The instructions: Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you’ve read that will always stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 [...]
Also tagged list, memeBut who cares, right? I have nice books! On Wed, I got to meet up with an old schoolfriend and had claypots and Peking duck. He took me out because I was broke-arse. He also took me out for coffee and dessert – I had a marzipan log, mmm! On Thursday, I went to see [...]
Also tagged cats, friends, Mr Scruff, pub, TwitterI rode into the city today (perfect day to do so) to do various things related to getting ready for my brother’s wedding, and to pick up a present for my mother’s birthday. Sadly, I did not have time to acquire seamless panties. Sadly, the book I wanted to get her was gone (it’s not [...]
Also tagged malaprop, relatives, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, underwear, wedding