# Reading Challenge - 2017



## Northerner

I'm hoping to read 100 books this year 

So far I have read:

1. The Girl with all the Gifts, M R Carey - It's a post-apocalyptic zombie thriller with a good scientific angle. Found this very compelling and hard to put down. Highly recommended! 5/5  

2. Fairyland, Paul McAuley - more post-apocalyptic stuff, but this time based on genetic engineering, quite hard sci-fi. @Stitch147 might like the Euro Disney references. Lost me a bit at times with the technobabble, and I found the plot a bit of a struggle at times too, but stuck with it. 3/5 

3. The Incredible Unlikeliness of Being, Alice Roberts - non-fiction. Explains aspects of humans from 'brain to fingertips' and what they reveal about evolutionary background and relationships. Very readable popular science and recommended 4/5 

I'm currently reading 'Spooky Action at a Distance' by George Musser - all about locality/non-locality in quantum physics  I've just read the chapter on quantum entanglement, will put a rating up when I've finished it! 

What is everyone else reading?


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## Stitch147

I am currently reading - A Whole New World byLiz Braswell. Its a twist on Disney's Aladdin, Im enjoying it so far and have ordered a couple more from the series.

Not sure id be able to read 100 book in a year though!


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## Robin

I'm reading The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy. I spent most of last year on Trollope's Palliser and Barchester novels, so I've moved from Victorian Upper to turn of the century Middle classes.
For light relief I picked up 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith ( of Ladies No 1 Detective Agency fame) in our local charity bookstall, and was hooked, so just bought the next in the series. Humerous sketches of characters living in Edinburgh.


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## grovesy

I rarely read books these days as I love my Kindle.


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## robert@fm

I have finally got the Kindle edition of "The Last Hero", which is the only Discworld book I haven't yet read. (I ordered it when the Kindle edition was first announced, ony for my order to be cancelled along with the original release date. Why Amazon couldn't have kept it as a pending order, and reinstated it when the launch was rescheduled, or at the very least informed me that the launch was back on, I don't know.) It's as brilliant as the rest of the series; great illustrations as well, the one showing a Discworld jetpack must be seen!


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## Ljc

grovesy said:


> I rarely read books these days as I love my Kindle.


Me too


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## Martin Canty

You might like this, Alan, just finished "Born to Run" Christopher McDougall

"Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners and learn their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong."


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## mikeyB

I read lots of books on my kindle, so let's not get shy, girls. I'm between books  at the moment, so I'll let you know my next kindle pick.


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## Northerner

Martin Canty said:


> You might like this, Alan, just finished "Born to Run" Christopher McDougall
> 
> "Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners and learn their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong."


I've read it Martin! Probably about 4 or 5 years ago - excellent stuff!


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## Robin

grovesy said:


> I rarely read books these days as I love my Kindle.





Ljc said:


> Me too





mikeyB said:


> I read lots of books on my kindle, so let's not get shy, girls. I'm between books  at the moment, so I'll let you know my next kindle pick.


Being a tightwad, I tend to get out of copyright stuff like the Trollope and Galsworthy free on my iPad kindle app, then raid the local bookstall (in aid of the upkeep of the village community building) for second hand paperbacks at 50p a go.


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## Matt Cycle

Don't read as much as I used to as the internet has stolen my time.  I am however currently reading On the Road Bike - A Search for a Nation's Cycling Soul by Ned Boulting.  It's a humorous look at British cycling and the massive growth of it in the last 20 years.  Able to dip in and out of this one and very good so far.  On another tangent I've got also started to read Stoner by John Williams.  It's a novel about an English professor in the US - William Stoner and his life and loves and ultimately undistinguished career.  Again very good so far.


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## ChrisSamsDad

Northerner said:


> I'm hoping to read 100 books this year
> 
> So far I have read:
> 
> 1. The Girl with all the Gifts, M R Carey - It's a post-apocalyptic zombie thriller with a good scientific angle. Found this very compelling and hard to put down. Highly recommended! 5/5
> 
> 2. Fairyland, Paul McAuley - more post-apocalyptic stuff, but this time based on genetic engineering, quite hard sci-fi. @Stitch147 might like the Euro Disney references. Lost me a bit at times with the technobabble, and I found the plot a bit of a struggle at times too, but stuck with it. 3/5
> 
> 3. The Incredible Unlikeliness of Being, Alice Roberts - non-fiction. Explains aspects of humans from 'brain to fingertips' and what they reveal about evolutionary background and relationships. Very readable popular science and recommended 4/5
> 
> I'm currently reading 'Spooky Action at a Distance' by George Musser - all about locality/non-locality in quantum physics  I've just read the chapter on quantum entanglement, will put a rating up when I've finished it!
> 
> What is everyone else reading?



I'm working my way through a Neil Gaiman special 'Humble Bundle' https://www.humblebundle.com/books/neil-gaiman-book-bundle on my new Kindle Fire, if you've not come across Humble Bundles they're great value - usually a few well-known authors include some books and a lot of upcoming authors are included. I discovered China Melville in one of them. You pay what you like and a portion goes to charity.


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## Ljc

Northerner said:


> I'm hoping to read 100 books this year
> 
> So far I have read:


I thought I read a lot, but a hundred in a year .  I read about 60 or so a year.
I'm  currently re reading , The shepherd's crown  a discworld novel by Terry Pratchett.


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## grovesy

Robin said:


> Being a tightwad, I tend to get out of copyright stuff like the Trollope and Galsworthy free on my iPad kindle app, then raid the local bookstall (in aid of the upkeep of the village community building) for second hand paperbacks at 50p a go.


I am not that bad but wait till they are on offer.


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## Martin Canty

For those looking for a nice easy read, the crime series "a search and rescue mystery" by ML Rowland is to be recommended

What makes it fun is that Marcia (the author) was on my SAR team until she moved to Colorado so that SAR related aspects of the books are absolutely authentic. Although set in a fictional town in California the setting is instantly recognizable as where I live (well, to those who live here).


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## ChrisSamsDad

Ljc said:


> I thought I read a lot, but a hundred in a year .  I read about 60 or so a year.
> I'm  currently re reading , The shepherd's crown  a discworld novel by Terry Pratchett.


His last one  sadly


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## Ljc

ChrisSamsDad said:


> His last one  sadly


I know, sad.   I've been an avid fan of his for many years esp the Discworld novels.


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## mikeyB

I've just started The Fifth Gospel by Ian Caldwell. It's just a big conspiracy thriller. The thinking man's Dan Brown, I suppose, being steeped in Vatican goings on, but far better written.


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## grovesy

Currently reading Cold Moon by Alexandra Sokoloff.


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## ChrisSamsDad

We're starting a book club on our street next week. We're starting off with our suggestions. I'm going with 'The Rosie Project' by Graeme Simsion. It's a heartwarming story of a middle aged guy who's clearly autistic spectrum (but never diagnosed), who's highly functional but hasn't got a wife/girlfriend and decides he needs to change that So of course, he does what any normal IT-literature bloke would do and sets up a spreadsheet and creates a questionnaire to filter in desirable and out undesirable qualities. 

It is just so brilliant, I laughed and cried in equal measure.


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## Ljc

mikeyB said:


> I've just started The Fifth Gospel by Ian Caldwell. It's just a big conspiracy thriller. The thinking man's Dan Brown, I suppose, being steeped in Vatican goings on, but far better written.


I'll have to look out for that one, trouble is I've got so many on my Kindle already  , enough to keep me going for about three years


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## Northerner

ChrisSamsDad said:


> We're starting a book club on our street next week. We're starting off with our suggestions. I'm going with 'The Rosie Project' by Graeme Simsion. It's a heartwarming story of a middle aged guy who's clearly autistic spectrum (but never diagnosed), who's highly functional but hasn't got a wife/girlfriend and decides he needs to change that So of course, he does what any normal IT-literature bloke would do and sets up a spreadsheet and creates a questionnaire to filter in desirable and out undesirable qualities.
> 
> It is just so brilliant, I laughed and cried in equal measure.


Sounds good Chris


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## Northerner

Ljc said:


> I'll have to look out for that one, trouble is I've got so many on my Kindle already  , enough to keep me going for about three years


My Kindle is some sort of quantum tunnel to an unspecified alternate universe - I download things and don't read 'em  I had to laugh the other year because I bought 'The Martian' by Andy Weir book and thought it was brilliant, then I noticed a couple of months later that I had downloaded it to Kindle about a year earlier because it had been a 99p special!  Although I really do intend to read 'Nomad' by Alan Partridge/Steve Coogan, which was a recent 99-pencer


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## grovesy

Northerner said:


> My Kindle is some sort of quantum tunnel to an unspecified alternate universe - I download things and don't read 'em  I had to laugh the other year because I bought 'The Martian' by Andy Weir book and thought it was brilliant, then I noticed a couple of months later that I had downloaded it to Kindle about a year earlier because it had been a 99p special!  Although I really do intend to read 'Nomad' by Alan Partridge/Steve Coogan, which was a recent 99-pencer


When I go to order it reminds me I have already bought. 
I print off list via the manage device list off the Amazon website.


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## Vicsetter

You might like to try :
* Split Second Kindle Edition *
by  Douglas E. Richards (Author) 
it's £0, yes zero cost on Kindle.
Interesting take on time travel as the centre of a power struggle.

Try using https://www.bookbub.com/home/, they will send you a tailored email every day (for free) with recommendations for Kindle books based on your interests (and a lot of them are free)


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## Northerner

grovesy said:


> When I go to order it reminds me I have already bought.
> I print off list via the manage device list off the Amazon website.


Yes, the problem is that it doesn't tell you that you have the Kindle version when you go to buy the paperback!


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## grovesy

Northerner said:


> Yes, the problem is that it doesn't tell you that you have the Kindle version when you go to buy the paperback!


Oh.


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## Radders

Robin said:


> I'm reading The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy. I spent most of last year on Trollope's Palliser and Barchester novels, so I've moved from Victorian Upper to turn of the century Middle classes.
> For light relief I picked up 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith ( of Ladies No 1 Detective Agency fame) in our local charity bookstall, and was hooked, so just bought the next in the series. Humerous sketches of characters living in Edinburgh.


I love those. I'm reading the latest of the no. 1 Detective Agency at the moment on the Kindle. One thing I have noticed is that now I read e-books as I don't see the cover, I never remember what the book's called!


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## Martin Canty

Last year I finally gave up on "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" - carried that book around for 30 years & never got past half way


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## grainger

I can't imagine I'll  read 100 but I'll try for 50. Currently reading Harlan cobens miracle cure .


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## Manda1

I read loads and loads I do have a kindle but love to have a new book in hand its all about the feel of the paper plus i often read in bed and a smack in the face from a paperback it a lot kinder than a smack from a kindle if i doze off x lol x my house is full of paper backs and text books .... Currently reading the trouble with goats and sheep by Joanna cannon


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## mikeyB

Trouble is, I've got 329 books on my kindle/ cloud. If I had those as real books, the walls would collapse under the weight of bookshelves. And with the screen light dimmed, I can read in bed and not disturb anybody else in there with me.


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## grovesy

mikeyB said:


> Trouble is, I've got 329 books on my kindle/ cloud. If I had those as real books, the walls would collapse under the weight of bookshelves. And with the screen light dimmed, I can read in bed and not disturb anybody else in there with me.


I agree about reading in bed, I also like as it does not take much to carry when sitting waiting for various appointments.


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## Northerner

Adding...

4. 'Spooky Action at a Distance' by George Musser - all about quantum field theory, but written in a very accessible way, allthough I did have to re-read some passages a few times to understand! Basically, the cutting edge of physics, and I found it amazing! I can now accept that time and space do not actually exist!  4/5 stars

I have been bitten by the quantum gravity bug and have now embarked on Reality is not what it seems, by Carlo Rovelli


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## robert@fm

instead of a Kindle, I have the Kindle software running on my Lenovo (A10-70F) tablet! I've lost count of the books I have, but they include the entire "Discworld" series. My tablet is my PDA (the primary reason I have it; pity it has to be rooted for this functionality to work, and it's about time that tablet manufacturers once again gave the finger to Google's idiot paranoia regarding writing to the external SD card), music player, e-book reader (I have an EPub format reader as well), news source (the Metro app), entertainment centre (mostly a great free app called Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzles), and other things as well.


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## Flower

I've just started reading Hillbilly Elegy by J.D.Vance really topical about growing up in the Rust Belt of Ohio but breaking out of that upbringing. Really interesting so far.

I love the Scotland Street books, Bertie is one of favourite characters


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## Northerner

Flower said:


> I've just started reading Hillbilly Elegy by J.D.Vance really topical about growing up in the Rust Belt of Ohio but breaking out of that upbringing. Really interesting so far.


Ordered it!


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## eggyg

Late to this thread sorry. (Too busy reading!).I could quite easily read 100 books in a year. No wonder my house is a tip! I got 5 books for Christmas and have just finished the 4th. Two were biographies which are easy to read, Adele and Len Goodman. The others were very different, The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley. Set in the 70s, really difficult to put a genre to it. Basically some folks including children go on a religious retreat every year to the north of England  ( I guessed it was the Morecambe Bay area) spooky/unusual goings on occur but are never really solved, it's left to your imagination. Enjoyed it on the whole but was left wanting, if you know what I mean. Wonderfully descriptive which is what I love in a book. The other was by Ceceilia Ahern, The Marble Collector, about a guy who has had a stroke and lost a lot of his memories and his daughter is trying to help him recall things. Very touching and unusual. I'm leaving my John Cleese autobiography for a later date and am now reading the Wishing Game by Patrick Redmond, it was published in 1999 but I picked up a 2015 reprint in a local charity shop, I get most of my books from charity shops and the plan is to take them back but I never get round to it! This is a mystery/thriller set in a boarding school. Just literally started it last night but good so far. 
By the way, I like real books, I like the feel, smell, the cover. I do borrow a Kindle for holidays but it's not the same.


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## eggyg

mikeyB said:


> Trouble is, I've got 329 books on my kindle/ cloud. If I had those as real books, the walls would collapse under the weight of bookshelves. And with the screen light dimmed, I can read in bed and not disturb anybody else in there with me.


That's sounds like it's someone different each night!


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## eggyg

grainger said:


> I can't imagine I'll  read 100 but I'll try for 50. Currently reading Harlan cobens miracle cure .


I love Harlan Coben, just recently read The Stranger. Very different to his usual stuff with Myron Bolitar,  more like his early stuff like Tell No One. Thought it was brilliant.


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## Ditto

Martin Canty said:


> Last year I finally gave up on "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" - carried that book around for 30 years & never got past half way


The way I read books I'll 'never get round to reading' is I read one double page spread every night before turning off the light. That's how I got through Thomas Hardy The Return Of The Native and how I'm currently reading The Odyssey, Pickwick Papers, History of London, Brave New World, some dry thing by Mark Twain and a whole pile of other books. Favourites like Donald E Westlake, Margaret Drabble, Stephen King I can get through in next to no time. So many books so little time...


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## grovesy

Book no 2-A chance of a lifetime( Physical Transformation of Singapore)  .
Book no 3 Book ofl Shadows -) Alexander Sokoloff.


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## weecee

Books are friends.  My pile includes Patricia Cornwell's Scarpetta series and Martina Cole's crime family series, among others. Partial to big old style romances too, and also subscribe to the ever useful and interesting Gardeners World magazine. I too never seem to catch up with the pile


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## grovesy

Book no4 - Gray Vengeance by Alan Mcdermott.


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## grovesy

No. 5 Reverse Your Diabetes by Dr. David Cavan.


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## Northerner

I really need to update my list - will do it tomorrow, I've read quite a few!


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## grovesy

I am trying to do it as I go along.
Have already started next one, I requested some books from Library and 2 arrived middle of the week. Could not get straight away as the are closed on Wedensday's. It takes about 12 mins to walk there so it is good exercise. I have Gut book on order.


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## Ditto

I'm reading Diabetes for Dummies and I'm gripped. S'really interesting. I'm still reading Gretchen as it's recced but truth to tell I think it's dry as dust. I'll finish it though. I've just started a Maggie O'Farrell, gripped by her too. So many books, so little time... 

Another book I'm finding fascinating is Six Weeks To OMg. I glanced at it for curiosity as it's aimed at teenage girls, but it's full of apt information. I've nearly finished it in one go. I'd rec this to newbies for sure. Ignore the stuff that's not relevant ie I'm not going to be taking cold baths nor drinking black coffee first thing to lose weight, but I am blowing up balloons!


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## robert@fm

Amazon (both .com and .co.uk) are currently offering a free download of the Kindle edition of _The Communist Manifesto_ by Karl Marx. Should be good for a laugh.  Note that the phrase "Workers of the world, unite" is a misquote; the correct translation is generally agreed to be "Working people of all countries, unite".


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## Ditto

In an ideal world I would be a communist, it should work, but it doesn't. Humans are too flawed.


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## Northerner

Ditto said:


> In an ideal world I would be a communist, it should work, but it doesn't. Humans are too flawed.


One of the biggest failures was in the Soviet Union, which was a dictatorship, not communism, but of course everyone thinks that's what communism is. Annoyed me slightly the other day when Trump declared that 'the USA had defeated communism' - for a start, it wasn't communism, and it was due to the courage of Mikhail Gorbachev that it collapsed, and secondly if they had 'defeated' it, how do they explain North Korea and China, who both follow the same notional concept? 

You're right though @Ditto, humans are too diverse, socialism is the true goal. It appears that doesn't work either though


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## grovesy

Book no 6- Staying Alive -how to get the best from the NHS by Dr Phil Hammond.
A bit heavy going but worth a read.


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## Northerner

grovesy said:


> Book no 6- Staying Alive -how to get the best from the NHS by Dr Phil Hammond.
> A bit heavy going but worth a read.


Phil is a brilliant advocate of the NHS  I will look that one up!


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## grovesy

Northerner said:


> Phil is a brilliant advocate of the NHS  I will look that one up!


Yeah. it is around £11-00 on Amazon but I got it from the Library. I have just had a voice mail I have another book waiting at the Library and when I have checked my online account it is The Gut book. A shame the library is not open tomorrow, so that is a walk for Thursday sorted.


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## muddlethru

I had 15 books for Christmas and read them all. Mind you they were all murder mystery as I'm not into anything too heavy. I did manage to get through War and Peace years ago and quite fancy reading it again. I've started On My Way To The Club by Ludovic Kennedy someone gave me a signed copy years ago and as it fell off the shelf recently  I thought I'd have a read. Another waiting to be read is Jane Hawkings Travelling to Infinity. Only books I don't read are lovey dovey ones, rather have a good who dunnit anytime.


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## grovesy

Picked up Gut from the Library this morning.


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## Adrasteia

Just read Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman which I really loved, and moved on to Sapiens: A brief history of humankind by Yuval Noah Harari but courtesy of having a cycle commute now and being absolutely knackered from trying to get Adam's levels right on the pump I'm making only slow progress. Interesting though so far. Think I'll go back to Discworld next though, seeing a few people mention them makes me want to dive back into the series.


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## Ditto

Neil Gaiman is excellent. I love his Good Omens written with Terry Pratchett, read it two or three times. He seems a really nice bloke.


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## grovesy

Book no 7- Gut by Giulia Enders.
Found it very interesting.


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## sean penguin

reading 'the castle' by franz kafka again, he always cheers me up


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## grovesy

Just picked up Doctoring Data by Dr Malcolm Kendrick, interesting reading so far.


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## Ditto

grovesy said:


> Just picked up Doctoring Data by Dr Malcolm Kendrick, interesting reading so far.


That sounds interesting, might reserve it at the library. 

I picked up 'Gut' yesterday, it _is_ interesting.


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## grovesy

Ditto said:


> That sounds interesting, might reserve it at the library.
> 
> I picked up 'Gut' yesterday, it _is_ interesting.


Yes i finished at the begining of the week.


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## grovesy

Book 8- Doctoring Data- Dr Malcolm Kendrick.


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## Ditto

I've just realised we're supposed to be numbering? I never read things properly. ::sigh::


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## grovesy

Ditto said:


> I've just realised we're supposed to be numbering? I never read things properly. ::sigh::


Not necessarily i just find it easier to do.


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## grovesy

Book 9 -Splinter the Silence by Val McDermid.


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## Ditto

Just finished Diabetics For Dummies. It was okay, learned a few things.

Must hurry up and finish Gut because it's wanted back at the library, very popular. I had to reserve it but so have others.


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## grovesy

Book - 10- the 8 week blood sugar diet by Dr. Michael Mosley. 
Not as heavy reading as some of the books i have read lately. Intresting if you don't think you could manage the 8 week diet he suggests doing a day or two of fasting a week. That need to be sure before embarking on the 8 week diet need to be sure Type 2 as will not work for the other types.


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## Ditto

Another reserve for the library, I fancy reading that.


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## Steff

Ditto said:


> Another reserve for the library, I fancy reading that.


Ditto at @Ditto


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## sean penguin

just finished a sf novel from the sixties (stand on Zanzibar by john brunner), which is set in a future totalitarian society where strict eugenic laws forbid diabetics from reproducing!


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## Robin

sean penguin said:


> just finished a sf novel from the sixties (stand on Zanzibar by john brunner), which is set in a future totalitarian society where strict eugenic laws forbid diabetics from reproducing!


Too late, I'd already bred by the time I developed it!


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## sean penguin

ditto!


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## Lucy Honeychurch

Robin said:


> Too late, I'd already bred by the time I developed it!



Same here lol!


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## Ditto

sean penguin said:


> just finished a sf novel from the sixties (stand on Zanzibar by john brunner), which is set in a future totalitarian society where strict eugenic laws forbid diabetics from reproducing!


Not so far fetched, like Iceland has bred out Downs. Not sure what I think of that really. I wouldn't want to be born with Downs but where do you draw the line with the weeding out?


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## grovesy

Book 11- think like a pancreas-Gary Schiender. Interesting.


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## Northerner

grovesy said:


> Book 11- think like a pancreas-Gary Schiender. Interesting.


One of the first books I read after diagnosis


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## grovesy

Northerner said:


> One of the first books I read after diagnosis


I found it interesting even though i am not an Insulin user.


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## Ditto

grovesy said:


> Book 11- think like a pancreas-Gary Schiender. Interesting.


Another for the reading list.  Finished Gut. Absolutely fascinating. Learnt a lot. Wasn't so impressed with Diabetes For Dummies but learnt to keep the lid on my strips and to read the leaflet you get with them! I left the lid off being lazy. 

Found a new author that I can't put down, Maggie O'Farrell. I found one of hers on the charity book shelf in Tesco, enjoyed it and so I looked in the library. She's obviously popular as they had two copies of The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox which I read through in one go. Some facts from long ago are so shocking that they don't bear thinking about. Mental asylums where women were locked up for nothing. 

Now I'm reading Help I'm Being Held Prisoner by Donald Westlake and a ton of others. So many books, so little time...


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## grovesy

Ditto said:


> Another for the reading list.  Finished Gut. Absolutely fascinating. Learnt a lot. Wasn't so impressed with Diabetes For Dummies but learnt to keep the lid on my strips and to read the leaflet you get with them! I left the lid off being lazy.
> 
> Found a new author that I can't put down, Maggie O'Farrell. I found one of hers on the charity book shelf in Tesco, enjoyed it and so I looked in the library. She's obviously popular as they had two copies of The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox which I read through in one go. Some facts from long ago are so shocking that they don't bear thinking about. Mental asylums where women were locked up for nothing.
> 
> Now I'm reading Help I'm Being Held Prisoner by Donald Westlake and a ton of others. So many books, so little time...


Hope she lives up to your expectations. I find alot if authors can be a bit hit and miss, and a bad one can put me off reading more of thier books.


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## Ditto

grovesy said:


> Hope she lives up to your expectations. I find alot if authors can be a bit hit and miss, and a bad one can put me off reading more of thier books.


I've found this myself occasionally, but I'm on her third one now and up to now it's still a gripper.


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## grovesy

12- Bad Banks by Alex Brimmer.
Bit hard going but finished it now.


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## Ditto

All my reserved books were in at the library, I'm now run ragged reading! I've got all four Nella Lasts. Bliss.


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## grovesy

Enjoy them.


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## grovesy

13- The Girl In The Spiders Web (Millinium Series 4)-David Lagergrantz. 
Struggled with this at first but could not put it down when i got into it. Think it was because this was written by a different author.


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## grovesy

14-Pure ,White, and Deadly. By John Yudkin.
Not sure what to make of it.


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## grovesy

15- Type 1 Diabetes in children,adolescents and young adults by Dr. Ragnar Hana's.
Found it an interesting read despite only been Type 2.


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## TheClockworkDodo

I have that on my to-read pile, @grovesy - though I'm not sure how long it will be before I read it as it's a big pile!

I've just read all through this thread, very interesting to see what everyone's been reading.  I'm another Neil Gaiman fan, @Adrasteia - Anansi Boys is on my to-read list (which is even longer than my to-read pile is big!!) - I want to read American Gods first though, because I think they've adapted that for TV and I'd like to read it before it's on.  Other books on my to-read pile include Kiran Millwood-Hargrave's The Girl Of Ink And Stars; China Mieville's Railsea (I loved his Un Lun Dun, one of my all-time favourites); Antony Sher's Year Of The Fat Knight; and the latest Carola Dunn.

We have Stand on Zanzibar somewhere, @sean penguin - one of R's which I've never read, I'll have to have a look at it.



mikeyB said:


> Trouble is, I've got 329 books on my kindle/ cloud. If I had those as real books, the walls would collapse under the weight of bookshelves.



Eek  - I had better check our walls, I think R and I have about 3000 books between us!

My favourite books of the last couple of years are Daniel O'Malley's The Rook - I now have his Stilleto on my to-read pile; Connie Willis's To Say Nothing Of The Dog - I've just read her Blackout and am now reading her All Clear; and Robin Sloan's Mr Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore.  I also read a lot of teenage and young adult books because sometimes my cognitive dysfunction is too bad for me to be able to understand anything else - recent favourites of those are Soman Chainani's School For Good And Evil series; and Stephanie Burgis's Magick series.


----------



## grovesy

It is a thick book too , I was surprised when I picked it up from the Library, but as I walk there it adds to the exercise.


----------



## SB2015

Just finished _Hitman Anders_.  A good entertaining light read, by the same author who wrote The Man who climbed out of the window.  ( eating breakfast so unwilling to pop up stairs for the name)


----------



## SB2015

In a gap as I am giong to miss the next two book club meetings so have two months to read anything.
Too many choices both on my Kindle and on the book pile.


----------



## grovesy

I have loads of books to read on my Kindle.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

I find it harder to read on a screen than on paper so haven't given in and bought a Kindle yet, despite our groaning bookshelves.  R has one so we have managed to curb his book-buying habit a bit.  Only a little bit 

I forgot, I have also just read _The Play That Goes Wrong_ and _Harry Potter And The Cursed Child_, both of which I bought as part of my 50 Things (I haven't read the Tom Stoppard I also bought yet, it's part of my to-read pile).


----------



## grovesy

TheClockworkDodo said:


> I find it harder to read on a screen than on paper so haven't given in and bought a Kindle yet, despite our groaning bookshelves.  R has one so we have managed to curb his book-buying habit a bit.  Only a little bit
> 
> I forgot, I have also just read _The Play That Goes Wrong_ and _Harry Potter And The Cursed Child_, both of which I bought as part of my 50 Things (I haven't read the Tom Stoppard I also bought yet, it's part of my to-read pile).


I find i can change font and  size of print on my Kindle which i like.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

It's something to do with the glare rather than the size or type of font for me, I think.  I have a big clear font on my computer, which is fine for most things, but I can't read anything very long on it - I have to print it out.  I have anti-glare stuff on my glasses but it doesn't make any difference.

Btw, @Northerner - if you want a slightly harder challenge, I just asked R how many books he reads a year and apparently he's been counting and his current average is 270


----------



## grovesy

Book 16- Black Box Thinking by Matthew Syed. Struggled to finish this.


----------



## grovesy

Book 17- The Sweet Poison Quit Plan by David Gillespie.


----------



## grovesy

Book -!8 -I Let You go by Clare Mackintosh. Struggled with this till the last quarter.


----------



## grainger

I'm one for easy reading but my list so far:

1. Harlan coben - Miracle Cure
2. Suzy Quinn - The bad mothers diary 
3. Alex Flint - beastly
4. T. R. Reagan - wrath 
5. Bella Forrest - The Gender Game
6. Bella Forrest - The Gender Secret
7. Bella Forrest - The Gender Lie
8. Bella Forrest - The Gender War
9. Bella Forrest - The Gender Fall

That's it so far unless you count accountancy study books!


----------



## Ditto

> Anansi Boys is on my to-read list


It wasn't bad but I prefer Good Omens, read that a few times, one of my faves. 



> Connie Willis's To Say Nothing Of The Dog - I've just read her Blackout and am now reading her All Clear;


Black Out and All Clear are some of her 'running about' books, drives me a bit bonkers with the heroine running hither and thither, same with the one set on the Titanic about near death experiences. She's still one of my fave authors though, I loved Doomsday and read it every other year.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

Stardust is my favourite Neil Gaiman, @Ditto - one of my all-time favourite books.  Did you hear the radio adaptation of Good Omens (a couple of years ago now)? - it was really well done.

I found Blackout and All Clear a bit difficult to read because all the different timelines were difficult to follow with my cognitive dysfunction - I kept wanting to follow one story instead of jumping about from 1940 to 1944 and then back to 1941 and so on.  But having finally got to the end of them, I think they are brilliant - not as much fun as To Say Nothing Of The Dog - but much more classic books that everyone should read.


----------



## Ditto

I don't think I've read To Say Nothing Of The Dog, only the original by that author I don't like, only I've forgotten why I don't like him....Three Men In A Boat, that's it.  Jerome K Jerome. Will be ebaying for To Say Nothing and also Stardust as I haven't read that either. I missed the radio thing too, darn it, would like to have heard that.

WILLIS CONNIE - Bellwether - not bad, interesting facts about sheep! Passage - another running about, in fact the very worst but I'd read it again, I love spooky stuff and this is 'go to the light' stuff.  I also read Remake, but not that impressed. Doomsday is still my fave.

I often read young adult books as they can be excellent. My fave author for young people is Robert Westall, I have read all his and my favourite is Devil On The Road, I've read it countless times. I also like Robert Swindells for gritty stuff. Brother In The Land, sad. The only book I wish I hadn't picked up from the Children's Library back in the day when my two were nippers was When The Wind Blows! Agh. I had nightmares for an age. What numpty put that in there. I complained when I took it back and the librarians put a huge sticker on it. I'm always causing trouble. 

I tried ebay then thought I'd try the library but no To Say Nothing but they do have Crosstalk so I've reserved it. Not heard of that Connie Willis one but I'll give it a whirl and buy the other.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

Just had a quick look and I'm afraid the radio Good Omens isn't on i-player, but there is a page with some clips and things here - http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04knt4h - and there is a CD available, though it seems a bit expensive to me.  Apparently they are making a TV version of Good Omens now though!

Ooh, When The Wind Blows, that brings back memories - I went to see a production of it at a little fringe theatre somewhere - Battersea, I think.  Not exactly a children's book though!

I'll look up the young adult authors you mention, not come across those.  I love Jerome K Jermone, but I think his books are a bit marmite.


----------



## Ditto

Thank you for the link, I'll check that out.


----------



## grovesy

19 - Follow you home by Mark Edwards.
Took me a while to read.


----------



## Ditto

I've been reading so many books from the library since I discovered the online reserve option. Totally fatal. I've not been near my reading at night book pile. I usually read a double page spread of each book. I've found the info stays with you this way and you don't get bored.



> Follow you home by Mark Edwards.


I would probably read that if I came across it, but won't seek it out as it looks a bit tensing. Mind you, me and Mum like the odd gruesome murder and suchlike.



> Pure ,White, and Deadly. By John Yudkin.


I  must get this though I might have read it back in the day and forgotten it. I used to have his column in Slimming Magazine for years. I feel he was pilloried like poor Dr Atkins. 

Latest books read are: 
*44 Scotland Street - Wikipedia*
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/44_Scotland_Street
44 Scotland Street is an episodic novel by Alexander McCall Smith, the author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. The story was first published as a serial in The Scotsman, starting 26 January 2004, every weekday, for six months. The book retains the 100+ short chapters of the original. ... Language, English.
NOT BAD, interesting bits and surprising bits, you just keep reading, nothing much happens, but you still keep reading...
~~~
*The 21-Day Total Body Transformation: A Complete Step-by-Step Gene Reprogramming Action lan Paperback – 6 Dec 2012 *by Mark Sisson _'Regardless of your starting point, past failures, or bad luck with familial genes, you can turn things around quickly - starting with your next meal and next workout. Your genes expect you to be lean, strong, energetic and healthy.'_

Take Mark Sisson's 21-day Primal Challenge and watch the pounds begin to melt away. Based on 8 key concepts and 5 action items, Mark outlines a blueprint to get your health back on track – and your body fit and toned. 

- Shed at least 2lbs of fat a week 
- Get a stronger, leaner body 
- Increase your energy levels
- Develop an iron-clad immune system
- Improve health conditions, including migraines, tinnitus, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure and cholesterol

With supermarket shopping lists (fully adapted for UK readers), simple workouts, menu suggestions and a 21-day planner, Sisson will walk you step by step through the 21 days to start reprogramming your genes and embark on a completely new way of living.
~~~
One thousand beautiful things : chosen from the life and literature of the world / by Arthur Mee.Mee, Arthur, 1875-1943, (author.) 1925, English, Book, Illustrated edition:
Took me months to read, two page spread a night but worth it, contains some lovely poems and picture plates. 
~~~
*The Primal Blueprint: Reprogramme your genes for effortless weight loss, vibrant health and boundless energy Paperback – 7 Jun 2012 *by Mark Sisson - the thing I took away from this book is get out every morning into the sunshine, so I do the watering of garden and all the pots, plus I've given up mayo and I now buy tuna in brine rather than sunflower oil. I try and take something from each book even if the rest of the info is beyond me. 

If you want to reach your physical and genetic potential Mark Sisson's 10 Primal Blueprint Laws will get you real results. Combining evolutionary biology with modern genetic science, Mark Sisson takes you back to basics and explains what you need to do to get the body and health you want - with the minimum amount of effort. 

Mark's approach works by adapting the simple practices of our early ancestors to our modern lifestyles. These include: eating a high-protein, high-fat diet with plenty of vegetables; exercising _less_ for the best results; eliminating sugar and grains; improving quality of sleep; and spending more time outside. The 10 Primal Blueprint Laws will help you:

- Lose weight quickly and easily
- Increase your energy levels
- Get a strong, fit, lean body
- Sleep soundly
- Improve cholesterol and blood sugar 
- Enjoy vibrant health 

This is an empowering and enlightening book that will help you stop struggling with your weight and give you back control of your health - and your future.
~~~
*The Pursuit of Love Paperback *by Nancy Mitford Zoë Heller (Introduction)
*Nancy Mitford's The Pursuit of Love* *is one of the funniest, sharpest novels about love and growing up ever written.*

_'Obsessed with sex!' said Jassy, 'there's nobody so obsessed as you, Linda. Why if I so much as look at a picture you say I'm a pygmalionist.' _

_In the end we got more information out of a book called Ducks and Duck Breeding. _
_'Ducks can only copulate,' said Linda, after studying this for a while, 'in running water. Good luck to them.'_

Oh, the tedium of waiting to grow up! Longing for love, obsessed with weddings and sex, Linda and her sisters and cousin Fanny are on the lookout for the perfect lover.

But finding Mr Right is much harder than any of the sisters had thought. Linda must suffer marriage first to a stuffy Tory MP and then to a handsome and humourless communist, before finding real love in war-torn Paris. . .

'Utter, utter bliss' _Daily Mail_
~~~
*Love in a Cold Climate Paperback *
*by Nancy Mitford*
*Love in a Cold Climate* *is the sequel to Nancy Mitford's bestselling novel The Pursuit of Love.*

_'How lovely - green velvet and silver. I call that a dream, so soft and delicious, too.' She rubbed a fold of the skirt against her cheek. 'Mine's silver lame, it smells like a bird cage when it gets hot but I do love it. Aren't you thankful evening skirts are long again?'_

Ah, the dresses! But oh, the monotony of the Season, with its endless run of glittering balls. Even fabulously fashionable Polly Hampton - with her startling good looks and excellent social connections - is beginning to wilt under the glare.

Groomed for the perfect marriage by her mother, fearsome Lady Montdore, Polly instead scandalises society by declaring her love for her uncle 'Boy' Dougdale, the Lecherous Lecturer, and promptly eloping to France. But the consequences of this union no one could quite expect . . .

_Love in a Cold Climate_ is the wickedly funny follow-up to _The Pursuit of Love_.

'Entirely original, inimitable and irresistible' Philip Hensher, _Spectator_

_I loved it, the Mitford sisters fascinate me...I thought I had a dysfunctional family but this lot take the biscuit. _
_~~~_

I have To Say Nothing Of The Dog on it's way from eBay, cheap as chips. Did somebody rec a book about the A1 time travel? That's come too and it's a tome! I could use it as a doorstop!! Gonna take me about a year to get through that nightly.


----------



## grovesy

20- Gray Salvation (A Tom Gray Novel Book 6) by Alan McDermott
Enjoyed but then I have done all the books in this series.


----------



## Ditto

I'm still reading Nancy Mitford's letters. I'm not reading as much. Summer has thrown me for a loop with the garden burgeoning and stuff. Also I don't want to go to bed to read when it's so bright out.  I have piles of books everywhere though. Agh.


----------



## grainger

10. The gender plan

11. Just about to start - the girl on the train - Paula Hawkins. Struggling to find time to read at the moment though - I miss commuting purely for the reading time!


----------



## Ditto

grainger said:


> 10. The gender plan
> 
> 11. Just about to start - the girl on the train - Paula Hawkins. Struggling to find time to read at the moment though - I miss commuting purely for the reading time!


I'm going to skim that if I ever sell it.  It's the only way I don't get snowed under with books. I put them on ebay and those sold get read before I post them out.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

The last couple of books I've read (apart from old favourites I've re-read and children's books) were

Catherine Fox - Wolf Tide - a lot darker than the summary on Wordery suggests, and I certainly wouldn't categorise it as a children's book, as they have - young adult maybe, but emphasis on the adult.  It's completely different from Fox's earlier books (Angels And Men is one of my all-time favourites), very thought-provoking, and I think she does a good job of creating a 3-dimensional other world.

Ben Aaronovitch - Rivers Of London - modern police proceedural crossed with wizardry and all sorts of supernatural stuff - shouldn't really work, but it does - I'll be reading the others in the series.


----------



## grovesy

I had a phase just after my op where I id not read. In this weather I usally sit and read in the garden but I haven't been up to that yet.


----------



## Ditto

When you get older too your attention span goes. My sister used to be an avid reader, but now she never thinks to crack open a book. 

It's gonna take me ages to get through Nancy's letters, I could use it as a doorstop it's that thick.


----------



## grovesy

That was not the reason, I think it was just the after affects of the operation. I am not comfortable sitting in a garden chair at the moment.


----------



## Carolg

No 1-7
The outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. My favourite books when I'm not well, or feeling a bit low. Fiction. Made into 2 series of DVDs. Set in Scotland, France and America,and when series was produced for tv,alledgedly  it was not allowed to be screened in Britain when there was the Scottish referendum in case it stirred up votes for independence
No 8 the witches. Terry Pratchett


----------



## Carolg

Ditto said:


> Another for the reading list.  Finished Gut. Absolutely fascinating. Learnt a lot. Wasn't so impressed with Diabetes For Dummies but learnt to keep the lid on my strips and to read the leaflet you get with them! I left the lid off being lazy.
> 
> Found a new author that I can't put down, Maggie O'Farrell. I found one of hers on the charity book shelf in Tesco, enjoyed it and so I looked in the library. She's obviously popular as they had two copies of The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox which I read through in one go. Some facts from long ago are so shocking that they don't bear thinking about. Mental asylums where women were locked up for nothing.
> 
> Now I'm reading Help I'm Being Held Prisoner by Donald Westlake and a ton of others. So many books, so little time...


And locked up in mental institutions for being unwed mothers as well


----------



## grovesy

Book 21-Play Dead(D.I. Kim Stone Book 4) by Angela Marston. Really enjoyed as I have all the books in this series.


----------



## Ditto

Books up to now...

1) Stephen King - Dark Tower VII
2) Dr Tony Copperfield - Sick Notes
3) Anne Tyler - Noah's Compass
4) William Davis - Wheat Belly
5) Nancy L Mace&Peter V Rabins - The 36 Hour Day (Dementia)
6) Bill Rancie - First Light
7) Dava Sobel - Longitude
8) Peter Kay - Saturday Night Peter
9) Alan Bennett - The Complete Talking Heads
10) Lucy Whitman - Telling Tales About Dementia
11) Christopher Stevens - The Life Of Kenneth Williams
12) Ben Wicks - Waiting For The All Clear
13) Tony Curtis - Some Like It Hot (fave film too)
14) Mark Lawson - The Deaths
15) Maureen Lipman - I Must Collect Myself
16) Stephen King - The Wind Through The Keyhole
17) Daphne Du Maurier - My Cousin Rachel (read again)
18) one diabetic book, one bulimia book, forgot details
19) Bill Bryson - Down Under (read again)
20) Venice A. Fulton - Six Weeks To OMG
21) Dr Alan A Rubin, Dr Sarah Jarvis - Diabetes For Dummies
22) Maggie O' Farrell - The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox
23) Christopher Stevens - Born Brilliant (Kenneth Williams biog)
24) Giulia Enders - Gut
25) Maggie O'Farrell - This Must Be The Plae
26) Nella Last - Nella Last's War
27) Nella Last - Nella Last's Peace
28) Nella Last - 1950s
29) Wes Butters - What's His Name (Charles Hawtrey biog)
30) Jessica Rob... - How To Lose Weight Without Dieting
31) Alan J Rubin & Dr Sarah Brewer - Thyroid For Dummies
32) Chuck Wendig - Mockingbird
33) Molly Lefebure - Murder On The Home Front
34) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes
35) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes Diet Book#
36) Alan Bennett - Keeping On Keeping On (reading...)
37) Maggie O'Farrell - After You'd Gone
38) Donald E. Westlake - Help I'm Being Held Prisoner (rad again)
39) Arthur Mee - One Thousand Beautiful Things
40) Dr Malcolm Kendrick - Doctoring Data (a very disturbing book)
41) Tom Kerridge - Dopamine Diet
42) Hilaire Belloc - The Great Heresies (skimmed)
43) Ray Bradbury - The Day It Rained Forever (read again)
44) Alexander McCall Smith - 44 Scotland Road
45) Nancy Mitford - The Pursuit Of Love
46) Nancy Mitford - Love In A Cold Climate
47) Mark Sissons - The Primal Blueprint (I never knew you could cook radishes)
48) Mark Sissons - The 21 Day Total Body Transformation

Now I'm reading Nancy Mitford's letters and another dementia book to keep au fait with Mum's condition. Need to get a move on if I'm gonna do 100 books this year as the garden is taking up a lot of time, I'm reading far less...


----------



## Northerner

Ditto said:


> Books up to now...
> 
> 1) Stephen King - Dark Tower VII
> 2) Dr Tony Copperfield - Sick Notes
> 3) Anne Tyler - Noah's Compass
> 4) William Davis - Wheat Belly
> 5) Nancy L Mace&Peter V Rabins - The 36 Hour Day (Dementia)
> 6) Bill Rancie - First Light
> 7) Dava Sobel - Longitude
> 8) Peter Kay - Saturday Night Peter
> 9) Alan Bennett - The Complete Talking Heads
> 10) Lucy Whitman - Telling Tales About Dementia
> 11) Christopher Stevens - The Life Of Kenneth Williams
> 12) Ben Wicks - Waiting For The All Clear
> 13) Tony Curtis - Some Like It Hot (fave film too)
> 14) Mark Lawson - The Deaths
> 15) Maureen Lipman - I Must Collect Myself
> 16) Stephen King - The Wind Through The Keyhole
> 17) Daphne Du Maurier - My Cousin Rachel (read again)
> 18) one diabetic book, one bulimia book, forgot details
> 19) Bill Bryson - Down Under (read again)
> 20) Venice A. Fulton - Six Weeks To OMG
> 21) Dr Alan A Rubin, Dr Sarah Jarvis - Diabetes For Dummies
> 22) Maggie O' Farrell - The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox
> 23) Chistopher Stevens - Born Brilliant (Kenneth Williams biog)
> 24) Giulia Enders - Gut
> 25) Maggie O'Farrell - This Must Be The Plae
> 26) Nella Last - Nella Last's War
> 27) Nella Last - Nella Last's Peace
> 28) Nella Last - 1950s
> 29) Wes Butters - What's His Name (Charles Hawtrey biog)
> 30) Jessica Rob... - How To Lose Weight Without Dieting
> 31) Alan J Rubin & Dr Sarah Brewer - Thyroid For Dummies
> 32) Chuck Wendig - Mockingbird
> 33) Molly Lefebure - Murder On The Home Front
> 34) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes
> 35) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes Diet Book#
> 36) Alan Bennett - Keeping On Keeping On (reading...)
> 37) Maggie O'Farrell - After You'd Gone
> 38) Donald E. Westlake - Help I'm Being Held Prisoner (rad again)
> 39) Arthur Mee - One Thousand Beautiful Things
> 40) Dr Malcolm Kendrick - Doctoring Data (a very disturbing book)
> 41) Tom Kerridge - Dopamine Diet
> 42) Hilaire Belloc - The Great Heresaries (skimmed)
> 43) Ray Bradbury - The Day It Rained Forever (read again)
> 44) Alexander McCall Smith - 44 Scotland Road
> 45) Nancy Mitford - The Pursuit Of Love
> 46) Nancy Mitford - Love In A Cold Climate
> 47) Mark Sissons - The Primal Blueprint (I never knew you could cook radishes)
> 48) Mark Sissons - The 21 Day Total Body Transformation
> 
> Now I'm reading Nancy Mitford's letters and another dementia book to keep au fait with Mum's condition. Need to get a move on if I'm gonna do 100 books this year as the garden is taking up a lot of time, I'm reading far less...


Gah! You've put me to shame @Ditto   You've read a lot more than me, I seem to have had all sorts occupying me. I have read quite a few, and will do a list (eventually!). For now though, I'll just mention my latest read, which was 'Make room, make room!' by Harry Harrison. It's the book that the film 'Soylent Green was based on (I watched the dvd the other night after finishing the book ) Book an film do share common themes, but end up being quite different in places, but both very interesting in their own right 

I'm just about to embark on 'The Gradual' by Christopher Priest


----------



## Ditto

Northerner said:


> 'Make room, make room!' by Harry Harrison. It's the book that the film 'Soylent Green was based on


I need to read that! Gave me nightmares first time I saw it in early 70s, just knew it was moreorless all going to come true. 7 billion of us now and counting...I didn't know it was based on a book.

Cheap as chips on ebay, the cover of the paperback is horrifically lurid! Wonder if they ever have it in large print? I find large prints so much easier to read these days, you can zip through a large print...


----------



## Northerner

Ditto said:


> I need to read that! Gave me nightmares first time I saw it in early 70s, just knew it was moreorless all going to come true. 7 billion of us now and counting...I didn't know it was based on a book.
> 
> Cheap as chips on ebay, the cover of the paperback is horrifically lurid! Wonder if they ever have it in large print? I find large prints so much easier to read these days, you can zip through a large print...


I got it s/h, so cheap  The book's action takes place in 1999 (written in 1966), whereas the film is set in 2022 (made in 1973). Now, I know that the 1999 version didn't quite come to pass - we made it through that - but 2022 might be where we are after 4 years of Trump and another 5 years of austerity!


----------



## grovesy

22- The Tea Planters Daughter by Janet MacLeod Trotter. First of a trilogy. Good book.


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> 22- The Tea Planters Daughter by Janet MacLeod Trotter. First of a trilogy. Good book.


I want to read that. The Mitford's were tea planter's daughters. 

Finally finished Nancy's letters. Took me ages, it was inches thick.  Excellent book, I was gripped.


----------



## grovesy

23-The Tea Planters Bride by Janet MacLeod Trotter.
Good book .


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> 23-The Tea Planters Bride by Janet MacLeod Trotter.
> Good book .


It's a series then?


----------



## grovesy

It is a Trilogy but I have not got the last one on my Kindle and at the moment it is more than I want to pay.


----------



## Ditto

You need to go library like me.  Do they have kindle stuff at a library? They have audio books.


----------



## grovesy

Ditto said:


> You need to go library like me.  Do they have kindle stuff at a library? They have audio books.


There stuff is not compatible with Kindle. It is a bit of a joke, we waited for over 30 years for a local one and it is staffed by volunteers.
Amazon often reduce the price of Kindle books so it is no problem I have plenty to read on my Kindle.


----------



## mikeyB

I would have thought everyone would be reading (or like me rereading) The Handmaids Tale, now that it is on TV in a truly chilling adaptation on C4. If you haven't seen it, find it on catch up. 

And good news for fans of the Outlander books, if, like me, you think they could have done with a bit more editing, the TV series, only so far available on Amazon, is going to be shown on earthly TV on Channel 4 fairly soon. It's a really enjoyable and fairly graphic reproduction of the books with the boring bits taken out. Those of us with Amazon will be looking for season 3 come September. They've finished the filming in the Highlands, but certain parts of the highlands are currently swarming with fans looking for the places where filming took place. Ancient castles previously only visited by completist nerds are now overrun by folk with cameras and getting previously unheard of visitor numbers.


----------



## Lucy Honeychurch

The Handmaids Tale is very hard to watch but excellent. I've just ordered the book.
Shutter Island by Dennis LeHane is a great read, I'm glad I read it before I saw the film.


----------



## Ditto

Good grief, I can't watch or read either of those! Too angsty for me.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

I can't cope with angst either, Ditto.  In fact I felt I needed something very light, funny, and completely divorced from reality while the general election was on so I put the third Ben Aaronovitch on hold for a bit, and I've been re-reading Meg Cabot's series of epistolary (well, email!) novels instead - have read The Guy Next Door and Boy Meets Girl, and now I'm on the third one of those, Every Boy's Got One.


----------



## Ditto

I read ghost stories for light relief.


----------



## grovesy

24- Angel (DCI Ryan Mystery) by LJ Ross. Good read.


----------



## Lucy Honeychurch

David Garbutt said:


> I am working my way through Dickens, about half way through his novels so far. When i think about the future of Britain, i think Oliver Twist with a smart phone.
> 
> As a glutton for punishment i reread 1984, then have to take a day to recover from the mental anguish.
> Kindle and tablets for reading 90%




I'm a big fan of Dickens, I'm half way through Our Mutual Friend. My favourites are The Old Curiosity Shop and Bleak House.


----------



## Ditto

David Garbutt said:


> I am working my way through Dickens, about half way through his novels so far. When i think about the future of Britain, i think Oliver Twist with a smart phone. As a glutton for punishment i reread 1984, then have to take a day to recover from the mental anguish. Kindle and tablets for reading 90%


The film's on this week. I like John Hurt. Not seen it since I was a kid. Will give it a whirl. Ages since I read it. Bleak. 

Never read any Dickens! I like his g'granddaughter Monica Dickens. Similar social themes but modern. I find the names in Dickens a bit off-putting. Proper daft some of them. Oh I have read Christmas Carol and The Chimes because they are faves. I watch every single version every Christmas.


----------



## Robin

I'm half way through Martin Chuzzlewhit at the moment, it's one I've never read before. Good bedtime reading, and free on kindle, but I put it down to read the next in the Alexander McCall Smith Scotland Street series, because I found it for 50p in our local book stall. Cheapskate? Me?


----------



## Ditto

I might see what they have in large print Dickens at the library...

I finished a Stephen King rec...it was okay. Interesting stuff at the back of the book.
A Head Full of Ghosts is a horror novel by Paul Tremblay. The plot involves an American family under strain when their fourteen-year-old daughter, Marjorie Barrett, exhibits signs of mental illness. Wikipedia

Originally published: 2 June 2015
Author: Paul G. Tremblay
Page count: 304
Genre: Horror fiction
Set in: Beverly, Massachusetts
Awards: Bram Stoker Award for Novel

Also just finished Dead Funny compiled by Robin Ince. Wasn't that funny!


----------



## Stitch147

Ive not read half as much as some of you on here, but ive just started Good Vibrations My Life as a Beach Boy by Mike Love.


----------



## grovesy

Do you not read on your commute to work? I know many do.


----------



## Stitch147

grovesy said:


> Do you not read on your commute to work? I know many do.


Most days. I tend to read going (45 minutes) and sometimes watch things on catch up on the way home as I tend to nod off when reading in the afternoon after being at work.


----------



## Flower

mikeyB said:


> would have thought everyone would be reading (or like me rereading) The Handmaids Tale, now that it is on TV in a truly chilling adaptation on C4. If you haven't seen it, find it on catch up.



I'm reading The Handmaids Tale at present. Compellingly chilling . I can only watch the tv adaptation on catch up in daylight. I'm too much of a wimpy kid to watch it at night!


----------



## grovesy

25- Death Trap by Drew Say Mitchell- not read anything by her before but found it quite gripping.


----------



## SB2015

Just got going on The Lacuna, Barbara Kingsolver.  I have read loads of hers and always enjoyed them.  Poinsonwood Bible is one of my best rads ever.  This one took a lot of getting going but now hooked.


----------



## Ditto

Just read this again...fab again...some people on the Stephen King Facebook thread don't like it. I can't understand why not! It's excellent. 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11564.The_Girl_Who_Loved_Tom_Gordon


----------



## Stitch147

Bugger! Just left my book on the train. Was just over half way through. I'll ring up lost property in the morning or I might have to go and re-buy it.


----------



## grovesy

Stitch147 said:


> Bugger! Just left my book on the train. Was just over half way through. I'll ring up lost property in the morning or I might have to go and re-buy it.


That is a shame, hope it has been handed in.


----------



## Ditto

Oh what a shame, so annoying. Reminds me of the time I was reading on the loo, I left the book behind in the bathroom, fiance ran out of loo paper and used the last three pages of the book.  I never did read the ending of Forever Amber and I never should have married that numpty. Why couldn't he tear out the first three pages?!


----------



## Stitch147

Been and replaced my lost book. I'm glad I took my loyalty card to Foyles with me as I got £4.81 off the replacement.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

A Foyles loyalty card <drools enviously> .... ooh, lucky R and I are not living in London any more, we'd have to find a way of fixing bookshelves to the ceiling, we've run out of wall space!


----------



## grovesy

Book 26- Depraved Heart - Patricia Cornwall. Bit hard going not one of her best in my opinion.


----------



## grovesy

Book 27- Type 2 Diabetes In Adults of All Ages by Dr Charles Fox and Dr Anne Kilvert. An intresting read.


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> Book 27- Type 2 Diabetes In Adults of All Ages by Dr Charles Fox and Dr Anne Kilvert. An intresting read.


I'll put in for it at the library, does sound interesting.


----------



## Lilian

I have not read through the whole thread so do not know if anyone has mentioned this before.     I read on my kindle and on my kindle app on my iphone.      Our local county library uses an app called borrow box and if you are a member of the library you can actually borrow books to download on the app.    It works just like going to the library.     You choose the book you want, it is either available straight away or if not, you reserve it (all through the app).     You can download up to 7 at a time and have the usual time to read them.    You can renew through the app.     If you have not bothered to renew and you are over time they just take it away.    You can also borrow audio books.    There is no need to go inside a physical library at all.    I love the audio books because it allows me to 'read' and do something else at the same time.


----------



## Ditto

The library doesn't have that diabetic book but I'm reading one or two already anyway. I read 'dry' books a couple of pages a night to get through them. 

Just finished Hattie which was excellent. I thought it was just going to be a resume type thing but got better page by page...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hattie-Authorised-Biography-Jacques/dp/1845133625


----------



## grovesy

Ditto said:


> The library doesn't have that diabetic book but I'm reading one or two already anyway. I read 'dry' books a couple of pages a night to get through them.
> 
> Just finished Hattie which was excellent. I thought it was just going to be a resume type thing but got better page by page...
> https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hattie-Authorised-Biography-Jacques/dp/1845133625


You can request books at mine that they don't stock from other libraries.


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> You can request books at mine that they don't stock from other libraries.


That's good. I have had a lot of 'reserved' books and I think you can request or suggest books for them to purchase but this time they asked me for payment and I don't see the point of that, might as well get one cheap as chips from ebay.


----------



## grovesy

Ditto said:


> That's good. I have had a lot of 'reserved' books and I think you can request or suggest books for them to purchase but this time they asked me for payment and I don't see the point of that, might as well get one cheap as chips from ebay.


The Diabetes book I justed read is over £ 15 second hand on Amazon £19 new.


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> The Diabetes book I justed read is over £ 15 second hand on Amazon £19 new.


Good grief, that's too expensive, I likes cheap and cheerful. 

Just finished Saturday Night & Sunday Morning by Alan Sillitoe. Think I read this back in the day but I'd forgotten it. There's a sequel which I didn't realise so I want to read that now. Also finished Contented Dementia by Oliver James which I'm not sure about. Think they're all wearing rose coloured spectacles with that one. Plus I skim read a pulp horror Afraid, which I picked up in Tesco; charity book stall, you just put some money in the collecting tin, it's fatal, I get lured in...must find out the author. It wasn't bad, bit over the top when he chopped his own leg off and I never know why characters don't just chop the baddies heads off and have done with it. Y'just know they're gonna revive and come back later!

It's by Jack Kilborn.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._A._Konrath


----------



## Stitch147

Just finished the book Good Vibrations, My Life as a Beach Boy by Mike Love, would anyone like it before I charity shop it.


----------



## Ditto

Stitch147 said:


> Good Vibrations, My Life as a Beach Boy by Mike Love


I'd quite like to read that. You can't beat a good biog.


----------



## Stitch147

Ditto said:


> I'd quite like to read that. You can't beat a good biog.


Private message me your address Ditto and i'll pop it in the post to you.


----------



## Ditto

Thank you, I will.


----------



## grovesy

28- The Man Who Watched Women by Hjorth and Rosefeldt. Good book a Scandinavian crime by the people responsible for The Bridge TV series.


----------



## grovesy

29- Blindspot- Jesse Stone novel.


----------



## grovesy

30- Murdoch Mysteries Except the Dying by Mauren Jennings, a good read. I like the TV series.


----------



## Ditto

I never figured out how to do a pm! 

Have I logged Bill Bryson's African Diary, Stephen King's Gwendy's Button Box and Stephen King's The Gunslinger. Read that last back in the day and only just finished the series not long ago; took approx. 30 years.


----------



## TheClockworkDodo

@Ditto - to pm Stitch, just click on Stitch's name, where it's in blue, under her avatar - a box will pop up with info. about her.  Click where it says "start a conversation" - and you will get the page from which you can send her a pm


----------



## Ditto

Oh right, ta.  Bit late now though, but I will know for in future. I have had conversations with peoples but they get in touch with me first.


----------



## grovesy

31-Trophies by David Evans. Gripping read a police procedural book.


----------



## grovesy

32- Torment by David Evans, another good read.


----------



## Ditto

Stephen King's The Gunslinger. The first book in the Dark Tower series. Read it decades ago and I've only just finished the series so I'm starting again, I'll have to get a shufti on as I can't afford another 30/40 years...


----------



## Stitch147

Just started reading The Nowhere Man by Gregg Hurwitz. Its a follow on from Orphan X (which I read last year). So far so good.


----------



## Ditto

Interesting...I've never been afraid of change though, in fact too much the other way!

Fern's great, I couldn't put this down.  

Read this a few pages every night, bit dry in places but good info.


----------



## grovesy

33- Blood Lines by Angela Marston. Another police procedural, gripping read.


----------



## Ditto

Just read this, as it features Dementia. A very quirky read imo.


----------



## grovesy

34- Sick Notes-Dr Tony Copperfield. Easy read.


----------



## Ditto

Yes, I've read that, s'good if I remember rightly or is he the jaded doctor? I read that much sometimes I forget about what I've read!


----------



## grovesy

Sort of.


----------



## Ditto

This was good. Entertaining and inspiring. Must look him up on YouTube.


----------



## Carolg

mikeyB said:


> I would have thought everyone would be reading (or like me rereading) The Handmaids Tale, now that it is on TV in a truly chilling adaptation on C4. If you haven't seen it, find it on catch up.
> 
> And good news for fans of the Outlander books, if, like me, you think they could have done with a bit more editing, the TV series, only so far available on Amazon, is going to be shown on earthly TV on Channel 4 fairly soon. It's a really enjoyable and fairly graphic reproduction of the books with the boring bits taken out. Those of us with Amazon will be looking for season 3 come September. They've finished the filming in the Highlands, but certain parts of the highlands are currently swarming with fans looking for the places where filming took place. Ancient castles previously only visited by completist nerds are now overrun by folk with cameras and getting previously unheard of visitor numbers.


Loved the books and watched 1st series. Got 2nd series fir Xmas but rewatched series 1 except last episode, brutal so can't work up to watching that before going on to series 2. Wat a wimp. You almost smell mucky pup hielanders when watching it all


----------



## Carolg

mikeyB said:


> I would have thought everyone would be reading (or like me rereading) The Handmaids Tale, now that it is on TV in a truly chilling adaptation on C4. If you haven't seen it, find it on catch up.
> 
> And good news for fans of the Outlander books, if, like me, you think they could have done with a bit more editing, the TV series, only so far available on Amazon, is going to be shown on earthly TV on Channel 4 fairly soon. It's a really enjoyable and fairly graphic reproduction of the books with the boring bits taken out. Those of us with Amazon will be looking for season 3 come September. They've finished the filming in the Highlands, but certain parts of the highlands are currently swarming with fans looking for the places where filming took place. Ancient castles previously only visited by completist nerds are now overrun by folk with cameras and getting previously unheard of visitor numbers.


Really chilling. Watched series and read book. Scary


----------



## Ditto

How come scary? I gave up after two episodes because it wasn't doing my blood pressure any good. I was getting too grrrr....


----------



## grovesy

35-The Broken Shore by Peter Temple an Australian Police procedural, good book.


----------



## Ditto

Couldn't put it down...again!


----------



## Ditto

An okay read, but I couldn't quite see what all the fuss was about, it was everywhere at one time...


----------



## Ditto

I've watched the DVD, read the book and now just need to listen to the CD. I find him excellent. A real help if you follow the instructions. A gift from a dear friend.

 Interesting...


----------



## Ditto

I thought I'd read this back in the day, but no! Excellent. Cracking story.


----------



## grovesy

36- Evil day day-to-day by Peter Temple. Ok.


----------



## grovesy

37-The Reverse Diabetes Diet by Neal Barnard. Interesting read,  advocates vegan low fat diet.


----------



## Lucy Honeychurch

I went in HMV today and got 2 books for a fiver I got A Clockwork Orange and A Handmaids Tale, nothing like a good dose of dystopia before bed 
I had ordered a handmaids tale last month but it never turned up


----------



## Stitch147

Just started The Innocent Man by John Grisham


----------



## grovesy

37- Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution by Richard Bernstein. 
Interesting reading not sure I agree to him refering to some forms as mild. 
He also does not seem to favour Generic Metformin, Mixed Insulins, Insulin Pens, Pumps , and Continuous Glucose Monitor into devices.
Though he is an advocate of low Carb, and self monitoring.


----------



## mikeyB

I've just started John le Carré's new book, A Legacy of Spies. It's quite brilliant, but you do need to have read the early George Smiley books, particularly The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, to fully appreciate it.


----------



## grovesy

mikeyB said:


> I've just started John le Carré's new book, A Legacy of Spies. It's quite brilliant, but you do need to have read the early George Smiley books, particularly The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, to fully appreciate it.


I did not realise he was still alive till I read something today about comments he had made about Trump and Hitler.


----------



## Ditto

grovesy said:


> 37- Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution by Richard Bernstein.
> Interesting reading not sure I agree to him refering to some forms as mild.
> He also does not seem to favour Generic Metformin, Mixed Insulins, Insulin Pens, Pumps , and Continuous Glucose Monitor into devices.
> Though he is an advocate of low Carb, and self monitoring.


Dunno if I've read that, I'm beginning to lose track of all the diabetes books.  

Just finished another Donald E. Westlake, read before of course, there's not many of his I haven't read. This is a 'Dortmunder' novel. S'funny.


----------



## Ditto

I've been missing books off my list! This was a fab read...


----------



## Ditto

Books up to now...my numbering was all mixed up! Must remember where I'm up to now...get a move on, only four months to go...  Don't panic Mr Mannering....if you notice any duplications please let me know...

1) Stephen King - Dark Tower VII
2) Dr Tony Copperfield - Sick Notes
3) Anne Tyler - Noah's Compass
4) William Davis - Wheat Belly
5) Nancy L Mace&Peter V Rabins - The 36 Hour Day (Dementia)
6) Bill Rancie - First Light
7) Dava Sobel - Longitude
8) Peter Kay - Saturday Night Peter
9) Alan Bennett - The Complete Talking Heads
10) Lucy Whitman - Telling Tales About Dementia
11) Christopher Stevens - The Life Of Kenneth Williams
12) Ben Wicks - Waiting For The All Clear
13) Tony Curtis - Some Like It Hot (fave film too)
14) Mark Lawson - The Deaths
15) Maureen Lipman - I Must Collect Myself
16) Stephen King - The Wind Through The Keyhole
17) Daphne Du Maurier - My Cousin Rachel (read again)
18) one diabetic book, one bulimia book, forgot details
19) Bill Bryson - Down Under (read again)
20) Venice A. Fulton - Six Weeks To OMG
21) Dr Alan A Rubin, Dr Sarah Jarvis - Diabetes For Dummies
22) Maggie O' Farrell - The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox
23) Chistopher Stevens - Born Brilliant (Kenneth Williams biog)
24) Giulia Enders - Gut
25) Maggie O'Farrell - This Must Be The Place
26) Dr Sarah Brewer - Overcoming Diabetes
27) Maggie O'Farrell Instructions For A Heatwave
28) Nella Last - Nella Last's War
29) Nella Last - Nella Last's Peace
30) Nella Last - 1950s
31) Wes Butters - What's His Name (Charles Hawtrey biog)
32) Jessica Rob... - How To Lose Weight Without Dieting
33) Alan J Rubin & Dr Sarah Brewer - Thyroid For Dummies
34) Chuck Wendig - Mockingbird
35) Molly Lefebure - Murder On The Home Front
36) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes
37) Dr David Cavan - Reverse Your Diabetes Diet Book#
38) Maggie O'Farrell - After You'd Gone
39) Donald E. Westlake - Help I'm Being Held Prisoner (read again)
40) Dr Malcolm Kendrick - Doctoring Data (a very disturbing book)
41) Tom Kerridge - Dopamine Diet
42) Hilaire Belloc - The Great Heresies (skimmed)
43) Ray Bradbury - The Day It Rained Forever (read again)
44) Alexander McCall Smith - 44 Scotland Road
45) Nancy Mitford - The Pursuit Of Love
46) Nancy Mitford - Love In A Cold Climate
47) Mark Sissons - The Primal Blueprint (I never knew you could cook radishes)
48) Mark Sissons - The 21 Day Total Body Transformation
49) Arthur Mee - One Thousand Beautiful Things
50) Mark Sisson - The 21 Day Total Body Transformation
51) Nancy Mitford - The Letters Of Nancy Mitford ed. Charlotte Mosley
52) Paul G. Tremblay - A Head Full Of Ghosts
53) Robin Ince - Dead Funny
54) Stephen King - The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
55) Andy Merriman - Hattie (biography)
56) Alan Sillitoe - Saturday Night And Sunday Morning
57) Oliver James - Contented Dementia
58) Jack Kilburn - Afraid
59) Bill Bryson - African Diary
60) Stephen King & Richard Chizmar
61) Stephen King - The Gunslinger (again)
62) Paul McKenna - Hypnotic Gastric Band
63) Janet Street-Porter - Fall Out
64) Anne Tyler - Vinegar Girl
65) Dr Spencer Johnson - Who Moved My Cheese?
66) Fern Britton - My Story
67) Rachel Khong - Goodbye Vitamin
68) Stephen King -11/22/63 (again)
69) Stephen King - The Dead Zone
70) Anne Tyler - Back When We Were Grown-Ups
71) David Mitchel - Cloud Atlas
72) Donald E. Westlake - What's So Funny? (again)
73) Gretchen Becker - Type 2 DIABETES
74) Anne Tyler - The Beginner's Goodbye
75) Christina Bishop - Collecting Kitchenware


----------



## Stitch147

I've just finished The Innocent Man by John Grisham. Great book, true story.
Just started The Railway Man by Eric Lomax.


----------



## Ditto

Is that the book of the film with Colin Firth? Agh, I watched it by mistake, I can't take angst. I was traumatised.


----------



## Stitch147

Ditto said:


> Is that the book of the film with Colin Firth? Agh, I watched it by mistake, I can't take angst. I was traumatised.


Yes it is. Whilst I was in Dorset we went to the Royal Signals Museum and was reading about him there. Haven't seen the film yet. I'll read the book first.


----------



## mikeyB

When I worked in War Pensions I worked in Special Section which handled Far East Prisoners of War cases, including Mr Lomax. Dreadful


----------



## Ditto

That was funny my post being edited.  No worries. I use those kind of phrases all the time, no offence intended, so I can't call them across the channel amphibians neither? I must remember this.

I just finished No76 - Mark Twain's 'The Gilded Age' and it was such a chore to read. I thought he was a fave author but I've come to realise he's not. I loved Huckleberry Finn when young but on reading it again this year I didn't like it. Also, I have one of his ghost stories in my collection and that's rubbish too! I still like him though and his quotations.  Plus the film of Tom Sawyer was good. Tom Sawyer was the first book I ever owned, either my Mum or my Auntie Sheila bought it me on a trip to Warrington and I kept it for ages but don't think I ever read it for some reason. In the film I like the fence painting scene...class. The caves gave me nightmares for ages though. As a child I was very scared of mines, industry, caves, fire, ghosts and going upstairs by myself. Wimp!


----------



## mikeyB

I finished the Legacy of Spies. Absolutely superb. A wonderful farewell to Smiley and the gang, but as I said, you do need to be familiar with the Spy Who Came In From The Cold as the absolute minimum. 

I've now started The Seagull, which is Ann Cleeves' very latest 'Vera' book. One of my favourite authors.


----------



## grovesy

mikeyB said:


> I finished the Legacy of Spies. Absolutely superb. A wonderful farewell to Smiley and the gang, but as I said, you do need to be familiar with the Spy Who Came In From The Cold as the absolute minimum.
> 
> I've now started The Seagull, which is Ann Cleeves' very latest 'Vera' book. One of my favourite authors.


I like Ann Cleeves too.


----------



## grovesy

39 Truth by Peter Temple, an Australian  police procedural.


----------



## Ditto

#77 Donald E. Westlake (fave author) Baby Would I lie (again) still fab. I luvs the song "If it ain't fried, it ain't food!" 

 #78 Margaret Drabble, another favourite author. This was interesting, partly biographical...about jigsaws and stuff.

 #79 Donald E. Westlake thought I'd read most of his, but hadn't read this one. S'good.


----------



## Stitch147

Just got the new Stephen King doorstop, sorry I mean book, to read (only 715 pages)! Sleeping Beauties. Its a collaboration that he has written with his son Owen King.


----------



## Ditto

Oh you lucky thing! I make myself wait till it comes on ebay. Why am I such a cheapskate? SK would never have become a zillionaire if all his readers were like me.  Also, my dream book is a hardback and large print. So much easier to read these days. SK says you'll never know which bits he wrote. Hurry up and read it, let us know what it's like.


----------



## Ditto

Somebody gave me this to sell on ebay so I'm skimming it first. Very interesting. Makes the Bible seem quite exciting though when I'm reading the original book I don't feel that so much. It's taking me all year to get through the New Testament!

#80


----------



## Stitch147

Ditto said:


> Oh you lucky thing! I make myself wait till it comes on ebay. Why am I such a cheapskate? SK would never have become a zillionaire if all his readers were like me.  Also, my dream book is a hardback and large print. So much easier to read these days. SK says you'll never know which bits he wrote. Hurry up and read it, let us know what it's like.


It may take me a while as I have a shorter commute to work as of Monday and don't really have much time to read at home.


----------



## purgatory

well I came a little late to the forum to really join in with this, though I do read a lot and wouldn't be surprised if I read more than a 100 books a year, I don't tend to go in for heavy reading though its usually sci-fi, fantasy and the odd thriller or crime book, I have just finished rereading the dragons of pern series by Anne McCaffrey which are brilliant and I've lost count of the times I have read them, just picking up on the latest Karen Rose one now and I do have some diabetes books that I will be attempting to get through soon
good to see there are some Pratchett fans on here too


----------



## mikeyB

Stitch147 said:


> Just got the new Stephen King doorstop, sorry I mean book, to read (only 715 pages)! Sleeping Beauties. Its a collaboration that he has written with his son Owen King.


Oo Stich, thanks for reminding me. I've just had a quick look on my Kindle and there it is That's the fun of preordering

I'll start on that when I've finished Robert Harris' new book Munich. 

The latest Vera book from Ann Cleeves was not her best, but still enjoyable.


----------



## Ditto

#81 Clive James 'A Point Of View' Fabulous of course. Luv Clive. 

#82 Maeve Binchy 'This Year It Will Be Different' Fabulous short stories about Christmas, I couldn't put it down.

#83 John Grishom ' Skipping Christmas' the book before the film, The Kranks, it was okay.


----------



## Ditto

Forgot one...does anybody want this? It's mostly menus etc...

#84


----------



## mikeyB

I finished Robert Harris’ Munich. Excellent. 

I’ve now, like Stitch, embarked on the latest Stephen King (with son Owen) “Sleeping Beauties”, and enjoying it. Forgetting genres, Stephen King is the best storyteller in the English speaking world. 

Speaking of storytellers, the latest Dan Brown romp with symboligist Robert Langdon has appeared. Dan Brown can’t write for toffee, but his books are great fun. I’ll download that when I’ve finished the Stephen King, who can write for sure.


----------



## Ditto

I've put m'name down at the library for the latest Stephen King, I'm 27 in line.  I hope they're all fast readers.


----------



## Ditto

Apologies for the double post, I don't know how to post pix to an amended post. 

#85  Richard Milward  'Apples' I wish I'd never read this. It's all about Middlesbrough young ones and it's appalling. If that's how they think they should behave...

#86  Alan Sillitoe 'Birthday' sequel to 'Saturday Night And Sunday Morning' which I thoroughly enjoyed and a nice, 'quiet' ending. 

#87  Carb&Calorie Counter by Chris Cheyette & Yello Balolia - This is kind of ongoing as I'll be able to dip into as and when after the initial read through. An invaluable book for me, I'm really pleased with it.


----------



## Ditto

Has everybody stopped reading?!

 
#88 "Make Room! Make Room!" by Harry Harrison - filmed as Soylent Green. Different from the film, but enjoyable.

#89 "I Still Dream Of You" by Fannie Flagg - who wrote "Fried Green Tomatoes..." I was gripped!

#90 "Brigantia" by Guy Ragland Phillips - excellent, wish I'd kept it now for my 'spooky' collection. I had to devise a rule to get me reading all the piles of books I own, so I put them all up for sale on ebay and when I sell one I have to read it before I post it out. Didn't have time to read this one so had to post and get one from the library! Yup, crazy. 

#91 "I Am What I Am" by John Barrowman - I likes biogs. He's a very jolly person. Loved him as Captain Jack.

_If anybody fancies reading any of the books I've read just holler and I'll send it...if I've not sold it that is. _


----------



## Northerner

I read the Harry Harrison one earlier in the year - a;ways prefer the books to the films  I have been reading a lot, but neglecting to post here about it!


----------



## Stitch147

Finished the Stephen King book. Took a bit longer than normal due to the size! Great book though.

Now reading The Holocaust - Laurence Rees


----------



## mikeyB

I finished the Stephen And Owen King book, now I’m on to Dan Brown’s latest, Origin.  Great fun, but I wish he’d been on a creative writing course. 

I’ve downloaded Philip Pullman’s new book The Book of Dust:: La Belle Sauvage. I know it’s aimed at a teenage market, but he’s such a good writer. My daughter will read this first - she can tie in her Kindle to mine.


----------



## Northerner

mikeyB said:


> I finished the Stephen And Owen King book, now I’m on to Dan Brown’s latest, Origin.  Great fun, but I wish he’d been on a creative writing course.
> 
> I’ve downloaded Philip Pullman’s new book The Book of Dust:: La Belle Sauvage. I know it’s aimed at a teenage market, but he’s such a good writer. My daughter will read this first - she can tie in her Kindle to mine.


I've been listening to The Book of Dust on Radio 4


----------



## grovesy

35- Shooting Star by Peter Temple, I struggled to finish this.


----------



## Ditto

Northerner said:


> I read the Harry Harrison one earlier in the year - a;ways prefer the books to the films  I have been reading a lot, but neglecting to post here about it!


I know! That's why I read it. I didn't even know it was a book before it was a film. The book is more realistic. I tried to get my daughter to watch the film but she says she can't watch a film where an ol' bloke is wearing a too small cap.


----------



## grovesy

36- Murder in Steeple Martin by Lesley Cookman. Murder mystery bit of struggle to read this.


----------



## mikeyB

While I’ve been distracted from my duties, I’ve read all 6 Lindsay Gordon books by Val McDermid. Very enjoyable murder mysteries, not as dark as Val’s usual books. Lindsay Gordon is a lesbian feminist journalist, but great fun to be with. 

I’ve also just finished Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, winner of this years Booker Prize. Absolutely superb, though a strangely constructed novel. Quite funny at times, particularly the banter between dead people in the cemetery where most of the action takes place over a period of just one day. A truly memorable piece of writing, I can’t recommend it enough.

I’ve now diverted to SF to another award winner NK Jemesin, who won the Hugo award twice for the first two books in her Broken Earth trilogy. I’m reading the first, The Fifth Season. As an aside, NK Jemesin is the first ever person of colour to win the Hugo award. Excellent, if you like that sort of thing. It’s being developed as a TV series.


----------



## grovesy

I like Val Mcdermid books. I found Ian Rankin a bit hit and miss so stopped reading his.


----------



## Ditto

mikeyB said:


> Bardo by George Saunders, winner of this years Booker Prize. Absolutely superb, though a strangely constructed novel. Quite funny at times, particularly the banter between dead people in the cemetery where most of the action takes place over a period of just one day. A truly memorable piece of writing, I can’t recommend it enough.


I'm going to have to look on ebay for that, it sounds just my cup of tea.


----------



## Stitch147

Had the new Shaun Hutson book Chase arrive from amazon yesterday probably gonna start that at the weekend. Ive read all of his books so far and haven't been disappointed yet.


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## Northerner

Stitch147 said:


> Had the new Shaun Hutson book Chase arrive from amazon yesterday probably gonna start that at the weekend. Ive read all of his books so far and haven't been disappointed yet.


I think the only one of his I have read is 'Slugs'


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## grovesy

37- Say no to Diabetes(10 Healthy Ways to Prevent or Reverse Diabetes) by Patrick Holford. 
I found it an interesting but he does recommend using multiple supplements. Many would find many of his recommendations oats, and some the fruit he recommends would raise their blood sugar levels.


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## grovesy

38-Spilt Image by Robert B Parker- good read.


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## mikeyB

I’ve finished the NK Jemesin Broken Earth trilogy, which is absolutely brilliant. I’ve also finished LaBelle Sauvage by Philip Pullman, which is equally brilliant. Can’t wait for the next one.

I’m sticking with SF/Fantasy by starting the first book in the Culture series by the late great Iain M Banks. There’s only ten in total. Should keep me going through January.


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## Stitch147

Ready to kick start my 2018 reading. Popped into Foyles and came out with some goodies (hopefully).


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## Ditto

Might have to get World War Z, I watch the DVD whenever I get a chance, luv it.  Dunno why I like apocalypse/pandemic films so much! Would like to read that diary too.

#92 "Overcoming Overeating" by Jane R. Hirschmann and Carol H. Hunter
This confidence-building guide replaces bound-to-fail diets with tools for learning how to identify emotions that trigger eating binges and offers tips on how to eat when hungry rather than in response to emotional needs.

#93 "Edith's Diary" by Patricia Highsmith. 10/10
'Edith's fall takes the form of a psychological chiller, but there is also something larger, the poignancy of her struggle not to go under. She is betrayed by such ordinary dreams' New York Times

Edith Howland's diary is her most precious possession, and as she is moving house she is making sure it's safe. A suburban housewife in fifties America, she is moving to Brunswick with her husband Brett and her beloved son, Cliffie, to start a new life for them all. She is optimistic, but most of all she has high hopes for her new venture with Brett, a local newspaper, the Brunswick Corner Bugle. Life seems full of promise, and indeed, to read her diary, filled with her most intimate feelings and revelations, you would never think otherwise. Strange, then, that reality is so dangerously different . . .

#94 Iris Murdoch As I Knew Her Paperback by A.N. Wilson
A brilliant, controversial and insightful biography. Fifteen years ago, Iris Murdoch asked A. N. Wilson to be her biographer. This book is a tribute to the novelist he knew for thirty years. This is not Iris Murdoch the Alzheimer's patient, but Iris Murdoch the witty conversationalist, the emotional chaotic and, above all, the writer. Both sad and farcical, this completely personal attempt to set the record straight gives us back the fiercely intelligent novelist and professional philosopher, and will cause amusement as it ruffles feathers.

#95 "The Shade of Hettie Daynes" by Robert Swindells - young adult book.
If you expect to see a ghost, you see a ghost...

That's what Bethan tells herself when her brother Harry takes her to see the ghost at the old reservoir. But she really can see it: a pale figure floating over the water, one finger pointing downwards.

Local legend says that the ghost is Hettie Daynes, an ancestor of their family, who vanished over a hundred years ago.

If so, what does she want? And why is she appearing now?

Harry and Bethan and their friends Rob and Alison are determined to find out!

A deliciously shivery ghost tale from multi award-winning author Robert Swindells.

#96 "Nigel - My family and other dogs" by Monty Don.
NIGEL - One of Britain's favourite dogs! 
When Monty Don's golden retriever Nigel became the surprise star of BBC Gardeners' World inspiring huge interest, fan mail and his own social media accounts, Monty Don wanted to explore what makes us connect with animals quite so deeply. 
In many respects Nigel is a very ordinary dog; charming, handsome and obedient, as so many are. He is also a much loved family pet. He is also a star.
By telling Nigel's story, Monty relates his relationships with the other special dogs in his life in a memoir of his dogs past and very much present. 
Witty, touching and life-affirming, Nigel: My family and other dogs is wonderfully heart-warming. Monty Don is a great writer coming out of the garden and into the hearts and homes of every dog lover in the UK.

'I have always had a dog, or dogs. I cannot imagine life without them. I am just as much a fan of Nigel as any besotted viewer. In the book I explore why we love dogs and what they mean to us emotionally and domestically. I look back on all the dogs in my life - all of which I have loved deeply and which have been an essential part of my life. So, this is the book of Nigel - but also the book of all our dogs in every British family and a celebration of the deep love we feel for them' Monty Don.

#97 "Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day" by Winifred Watson.
A major film to be released this year starring Frances McDormand, "Miss Pettigrew Lives for Day" is based on a delightful, funny novel first published in 1938. When Miss Pettigrew's employment agency sends her to the wrong address, her life takes an unexpected turn.

Did they do the film? I'd like to see it.

#98 "The Haunted Heart" the life and times of Stephen King.
‘I’m afraid of everything.’ Stephen King

Since Stephen King’s wife fished his first novel Carrie out of the waste paper basket, King has written more than 50 books, selling 300 million copies worldwide. Here, for the first time, is the ultimate biography of this prolific and widely-loved writer.
From King’s childhood to becoming a successful writer, the author has interviewed friends, relatives and stars who know him. She follows the effects of abandonment by his father at an early age (‘We were ashamed not to have a father’), and his mom giving him a nickel for every story he wrote. At the age of four he saw a neighbouring boy get hit by a freight train. At 13, he was sent to his grandmother’s room to wake her but instead found her cold, lifeless body.
His local Bookmobile which visited every week allowed him to take out Edgar Allan Poe, HP Lovecraft and he ran through the classics of horror.
Haunted Heart is the story of one of the greatest horror writers, and his trials both as a young boy and, now 70, an ageing citizen. It covers everything from his love of buying scratch cards to the real-life stories and events that have provided the backdrop to many of his novels. 

Lisa Rogak is the co-author of Barack Obama: In His Own Words, The Man Behind The Da Vinci Code: An unauthorized Biography of Dan Brown amongst many other titles. Her works have been reviewed and otherwise mentioned in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Family Circle, and hundreds of other publications. She lives in Lebanon, New Hampshire.

#99 "Lincoln In The Bardo" by George Sanders. Recced on here so I got it from the library...well worth the read, excellent.
WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2017
A STORY OF LOVE AFTER DEATH

'A masterpiece' Zadie Smith
'Extraordinary' _Daily Mail_
'Breathtaking' _Observer_
_'_A tour de force' _The Sunday Times_

The extraordinary first novel by the bestselling, Folio Prize-winning, National Book Award-shortlisted George Saunders, about Abraham Lincoln and the death of his eleven year old son, Willie, at the dawn of the Civil War

The American Civil War rages while President Lincoln's beloved eleven-year-old son lies gravely ill. In a matter of days, Willie dies and is laid to rest in a Georgetown cemetery. Newspapers report that a grief-stricken Lincoln returns to the crypt several times alone to hold his boy's body.

From this seed of historical truth, George Saunders spins an unforgettable story of familial love and loss that breaks free of realism, entering a thrilling, supernatural domain both hilarious and terrifying. Willie Lincoln finds himself trapped in a transitional realm - called, in Tibetan tradition, the bardo - and as ghosts mingle, squabble, gripe and commiserate, and stony tendrils creep towards the boy, a monumental struggle erupts over young Willie's soul.

Unfolding over a single night, _Lincoln in the Bardo_ is written with George Saunders' inimitable humour, pathos and grace. Here he invents an exhilarating new form, and is confirmed as one of the most important and influential writers of his generation. Deploying a theatrical, kaleidoscopic panoply of voices - living and dead, historical and fictional - _Lincoln in the Bardo_ poses a timeless question: how do we live and love when we know that everything we hold dear must end?

#100 "Semi-detached" by Griff Rhys Jones.
Griff relives freezing bus journeys to school and the impulsive stealing of that half-a-crown from Charlie Hume’s money box; sitting outside Butlins at Clacton (longing to be inside and on the Waltzer instead of stranded on the pebbles with his dad); hazy summer afternoons spent with feral gangs in the woods, or storming the mud flats singing extracts from the Bonzo Dog Dooh Dah Band. The memories are like Mivvis, frozen and fuzzy at the edges, but a sweet jam of pure recollected goo at the centre.

From birth to the BBC, this is a story of a confident middle child. Griff’s devoted parents Gwynneth and Elwyn gave him love, security and plenty of asparagus soup from a fake wicker vacuum flask with a plastic top. Griff’s father Elwyn, a retiring hospital doctor with a penchant for sweeties and ice-cream, loathed the tedium of English social ritual and hid behind his family and woodwork. From tree houses to boats, puppets to tables, he sawed and hammered his way into his family’s affections.

Griff left the bosom of his loving, irascible, eccentric, solid, all engulfing family for the firm embrace of real life; via the Upminster Fun Gang, the Direct Grant System and Party Sevens, losing his virginity down the back of a bunk in a twenty nine foot yacht, discovering the romantic advantages of shared babysitting engagements and the drawbacks of infatuation with identical twins.

If he hadn’t moved around so much as a child, would Griff have felt less like a voyeur, looking in on the lighted window across the square, the Georgian house glowing in the sun, the clink of glasses and the bray of public school certainties? Would he be able to tuck in his own shirt? Would he be fully detached?

A laugh-aloud buffet of baby boomer Britain, Griff’s self-deprecating, elegant, affectionate prose reveals a little bit better how on earth you got from there to here.


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## mikeyB

I’m pleased you enjoyed Lincoln in the Bardo, Ditto. It is such a good book.

Over Christmas I read This Is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay, which is the diary of a hospital doctor. It is laugh out loud funny, but also will have you in tears. It is a best seller for very good reasons, particularly the open letter to Jeremy Hunt. It gives the lie to all this talk of greedy doctors. 

I’m still doing SF, working my way through the late Iain M Banks Culture series novels. I’m up to number 5 out of 10. 

I also got an email to tell me that Ben Goldacre’s Do Statins Work? is delayed in publication (maybe the lawyers have been going over it). I’ll let you all know when it arrives on my Kindle. Knowing Ben, it should be a revelation.


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## mikeyB

I should add, do not read “This is going to hurt” if you are pregnant. You’ll have nightmares. That’s if you don’t tear your waters laughing...


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## Ditto

> This Is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay


 Sounds good, I shall see if they have it at the library.


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