I wouldn't claim to be an avid reader quantity wise, probably read two books a month. What would you consider a must read, an author you find consistently good, have you read anything that had great reviews that you found disappointing , what are you currently reading, what are your reading habits. 

  To kick things off I have always been a reader, I used to read a lot more than I do now but have over the last year rediscovered  the joy of a good book, being immersed in someone else's imagination. I tend to avoid Sci Fi, Horror and to some extent historical unless recommended. I don't usually read books by best selling widely popular authors like Lee Childs though there are exceptions one being William Boyd, his Any Human heart would be one of my recommended books to read, the first of his I read and slowly working through his other books. I haven't read one that i haven't enjoyed and like to read one of his every three books. 

     I was about to start one of Boyd's when I found Bob Mortimer's The Satsuma Complex in a local animal sanctuary bookshop, decided a bit of light relief was in order after reading The Island Of Lost Trees and The Couple Next Door changed tack and started Bob's book as I enjoy his comedy.

  Hopefully the thread will take off with any book related talk

All the Robert Goddard books are good if you like a good plot! Also I like some John Grisham books, "The Partner" being one of my favorites.

Edited December 7, 20231 yr by Solidsoul

William Boyd was mentioned on the “ Beneath The Covers “ book review programme last week ,I made a note to read “ Any Human Heart “ also .

Any Human Heart is a fantastic book. Just finished Flags on the Bayou by James Lee Burke which was good, but maybe not up to his usual brilliant standard.

Going through a few old James Herbert books- newish to me bit of a UK Stephen King but not too OTT fiction wise. Read this week Magic Cottage - 7/10, the magic carpet - 6/10, Secret of Crickley Hall - Not to bad halfway through maybe a 7/10.

12 minutes ago, Soul Salad said:

Going through a few old James Herbert books- newish to me bit of a UK Stephen King but not too OTT fiction wise. Read this week Magic Cottage - 7/10, the magic carpet - 6/10, Secret of Crickley Hall - Not to bad halfway through maybe a 7/10.

LOL no Magic carpet by JH - said he's new to me.  Before them re-read Weaveworld by Clive Barker - 9/10 fantastic escapism.

Magic carpet by JH doesn't exist so 0/10

Just finished , Trumpet by Jackie Kay , about a Jazz Trumpet player called Joss Moody , would make a brilliant movie ,,, I'm saying no more wouldn't want to spoil it for anybody , good bedtime read 

Edited December 25, 20231 yr by Happy Feet

10 minutes ago, Happy Feet said:

Just finished , Trumpet by Janet Kay , about a Jazz Trumpet player called Joss Moody , would make a brilliant movie ,,, I'm saying no more wouldn't want to spoil it for anybody , good bedtime read 

Gosh Dave, books are for trying to get away from music - you don't want a book about music? 🤔 LOL sounds intriguing though so I'm looking it up as we speak

Dax

1 minute ago, Soul Salad said:

Gosh Dave, books are for trying to get away from music - you don't want a book about music? 🤔 LOL sounds intriguing though so I'm looking it up as we speak

Dax

"Jackie" Kay - on my Christmas list

Cheers chaps for the replies,  I will be checking out the books mentioned. I've bought quite a few of the books featured on Between the Covers and the Book Show on Sky. I do prefer personal recommendations rather than going off the blurb on the back of books. 

1 hour ago, Soul Salad said:

you don't want a book about music? 

unless that book is The Vinyl Detective ,Written in the Deadwax by Andrew Cartmels, 

9 hours ago, Twoshoes said:

Cheers chaps for the replies,  I will be checking out the books mentioned. I've bought quite a few of the books featured on Between the Covers and the Book Show on Sky. I do prefer personal recommendations rather than going off the blurb on the back of books. 

unless that book is The Vinyl Detective ,Written in the Deadwax by Andrew Cartmels, 

WOW, new to me - defo on my Christmas list!😀

11 hours ago, Soul Salad said:

WOW, new to me

It's a great read, wasn't as impressed with the other two vinyl detective books though.

10 minutes ago, Twoshoes said:

It's a great read, wasn't as impressed with the other two vinyl detective books though.

I've asked for all 3 on my Christmas list - if i don't do a Christmas list i won't get anything.

1 minute ago, Soul Salad said:

I've asked for all

The others are ok, just not as good as his first one

42 minutes ago, Twoshoes said:

The others are ok, just not as good as his first one

I will certainly give you my feedback once I've read all - i should've just ordered them myself.

PS Ive read some really strange (but classic) books this year - JAWS, The Fog, Weave world and re-read Da Vinci code LOL and The beach LOL

Reading two books at the moment which is not unusual --sometimes I will have three on the go . For over ten years I have read/re-read a Dickens classic , this year is Martin Chuzzlewhit . Though he liked to put in a hundred words were now ten would do - this critique of greed and selfishness could be written to-day . In contrast I am reading Memphis by Mike Hambrick which is a 'factional' story about a Dj uncovering the conspiracy to kill Martin Luther King .

Just read The Man From Muscle Shawls - Rick Hall story and now reading Betty Layettes.

I started reading avidly again through lockdown for obvious reasons and have just continued. I enjoyed a 'classic in Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'. It had been on the bookshelf unread for at least twenty years. I'd also recommend Hans Fallada's 'Alone in Berlin', a disturbing thriller about a dissident German living in pre-War Nazi Germany. A testament to some of the most sombre events of the 20th century.

Obviously my non-fiction reading reflects my passions and current fads so won't be of interest to many. Just finished an interesting biography of Charlie Wood called 'Our Honest Charlie Wood'. Wood was champion flat jockey in the 1890s so we are talking a niche interest. I read a fair few racing biographies having had a love of racing since my youth.  Similarly niche but very good was a biography of the artist Gwen John by Alicia Foster. Will finish this week 'The Robin: A Biography' by Stephen Moss, a delightful history of the Robin Redbreast within our culture with the life cycle and physiology all added.

Best History book that I've read recently is George Goodwin's 'Fatal Colours' , about the events leading to the bloodiest battle of The War of The Roses. It is estimated that in 1461 up to 28,000 soldiers were killed at Towton Moor. Goodwin is a great writer of history and is able to communicate the thoughts of the medieval mind.  

Steve Guarnori's quite brilliant  history of the All Platinum label is a must for any soul fan. My copy is all ready well thumbed. Steve has included a comprehensive discography including some obscure Irish and European releases but it's the excellent anecdotes that I've enjoyed. I'll be meeting Stevie G in a few weeks and will encourage him to write another tome. Retirement clearly suits him.

Thanks for the recommendations thus far.

Happy Christmas

 

Edited December 11, 20231 yr by Dukeofburgundy
comprehension

Interesting stuff . I have the All Platinum book on my wish list already but will definitely check out the Gwen John and 

Fatal Colours books .

 

One of my favourite books of recent times is “ Do Not Sell At Any Cost “ by Amanda Petrusich .Its the story of Amanda following the top blues 78 collectors in their quest to unearth  pre war blues records .Its a great read and makes many of us obsessive collectors appear quite normal 😊.

 

 

20 hours ago, Dukeofburgundy said:

Hans Fallada's 'Alone in Berlin

Brilliant book and also a good film which begs the question to all would you rather read the book then see the film, wouldn't bother with the film once you've read the book or visa versa.

  My experience of that has gone both ways, loved the film October Sky but had read the book first, the film enhanced the book in so much as it gave a picture of the place where the boys grew up. Further to that just the other month I found a book by Homer Hickman in a local charity shop telling the true story of the making of the film which was a very interesting read. I read Where the Crawdads Sing and thought it was brilliant then saw the film with Lou which wasn't a patch on the book in my opinion. Watched the tv series My Brilliant Friend and recently read the first book with the other three waiting on the to be read shelf, found the book a beautiful read but couldn't get the visual of the characters in the tv series out of my mind and found myself reliving scenes rather than my imagination creating the pictures in my mind.

    Non fiction wise a wonderful read if you like football is The Greatest  Footballer You Never Saw, I read it many years ago when some of the names mentioned  where still fresh in the memory especially if you watched lower league football. It's the story of Robin Friday who played for Reading.

  Again non fiction picked up this week The Secret Life of Trees, hoe they live and why they matter by Colin Tudge, which looks interesting, anyone read it?

   

 

     

It took me ages to get through it, but it's very interesting. It's about the victims of Jack the Ripper, but does not speculate on the ID of JTR or details of their grisly end, and being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's an in depth look their lives and  the circumstances that led to them to ending up   in the wrong place at the wrong time.

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/434594/the-five-by-rubenhold-hallie/9781784162344

 

Alone in Berlin was unlike any other book I’ve read. Compelling, very disturbing and suspenseful. I know people who had nightmares after reading it!

On 07/12/2023 at 20:47, Soul Salad said:

"Jackie" Kay - on my Christmas list

Hi Dax , have pm'd 

On 11/12/2023 at 17:43, Eddie Hubbard said:

Do Not Sell At Any Cost “

Got a copy on the way, looking forward to reading 👍

Just finished i am pilgrim by terry hayes.....got me reading books again....brilliant....cant believe i stopped reading for a few years!

Two books for Christmas which both look like must reads at first sight.

Clive Myries’s autobiography ‘Everything is Everything’

’Hitler, Stalin, Mum and Dad’ by Daniel Finkelstein. 

On 11/12/2023 at 14:07, Dukeofburgundy said:

I started reading avidly again through lockdown for obvious reasons and have just continued. I enjoyed a 'classic in Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter'. It had been on the bookshelf unread for at least twenty years. I'd also recommend Hans Fallada's 'Alone in Berlin', a disturbing thriller about a dissident German living in pre-War Nazi Germany. A testament to some of the most sombre events of the 20th century.

Obviously my non-fiction reading reflects my passions and current fads so won't be of interest to many. Just finished an interesting biography of Charlie Wood called 'Our Honest Charlie Wood'. Wood was champion flat jockey in the 1890s so we are talking a niche interest. I read a fair few racing biographies having had a love of racing since my youth.  Similarly niche but very good was a biography of the artist Gwen John by Alicia Foster. Will finish this week 'The Robin: A Biography' by Stephen Moss, a delightful history of the Robin Redbreast within our culture with the life cycle and physiology all added.

Best History book that I've read recently is George Goodwin's 'Fatal Colours' , about the events leading to the bloodiest battle of The War of The Roses. It is estimated that in 1461 up to 28,000 soldiers were killed at Towton Moor. Goodwin is a great writer of history and is able to communicate the thoughts of the medieval mind.  

Steve Guarnori's quite brilliant  history of the All Platinum label is a must for any soul fan. My copy is all ready well thumbed. Steve has included a comprehensive discography including some obscure Irish and European releases but it's the excellent anecdotes that I've enjoyed. I'll be meeting Stevie G in a few weeks and will encourage him to write another tome. Retirement clearly suits him.

Thanks for the recommendations thus far.

Happy Christmas

 

Funnily enough lockdown put me off reading I used to read one or two books a month since lock down can’t seem to get back into it but I have got about 50 books on my kindle ready to go at.

On 26/12/2023 at 08:22, Keamus said:

’Hitler, Stalin, Mum and Dad’ by Daniel Finkelstein.

Cheers for that one , I looked at the reviews and put it on my to get list.

interesting reading?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-67646676

 

Rosemary Bailey , Life in a Postcard , escape to the french Pyrenees , 

We spent a few years down in Languedoc, and the Pyrenees in the 90s , building in some lovely picturesque places , La Radote & Corneilla-de-Conflent spring to mind , the latter only 22km. from where Rosemary was based , we where in the foothills of Mt. Canigou , spectacular but very dangerous at times weather wise , worth a read .

The Racketeer - John Grisham

Couldn't put it down. Great for me.

Only took me an hour ! 😂👍🏻

Rarely of late have I not finished a book but after struggling through 250 pages of David Mitchel's Cloud Atlas I cannot summon the will to read another 250 pages. No question it is a very cleverly written book, the way he switches the way the characters speak must have taken him an age to write yet I have found it a very hard read. I'm sure at some point it would all come together as various threads crop up in later chapters but my head is spinning. Maybe it's a step up beyond my intellectual level I don't know.

  I never like to leave a book unfinished but sadly there are large parts of this one where I just haven't enjoyed the reading experience. Has anyone had a similar feeling over a book you haven't finished for one reason or another?

On 11/12/2023 at 17:43, Eddie Hubbard said:

“ Do Not Sell At Any Cost “ b

Thanks for the recommendation, just finished the book, I enjoyed it though I did find small sections of it a bit deep intellectually . Never the less a fascinating read, I enjoyed looking up the tunes mentioned intending to work my way slowly over time through the discography listed at the end of the  book. 

    It also reminded me of when I was around fourteen I bought a wind up gramaphone  from a school fair ,my mate then got one from his Grandad and four or five of us for a few months used to meet up playing all sorts of weird stuff we'd found in second hand shops until the novelty wore off and soul music took over. Funny how memory works, I just remembered the other attraction of going to his house, his mum was pretty fit in a Bridgette Bardot kind of way and no husband on the scene, oh the fantasies  the rest of us dreamt up. He wouldn't have been happy 😇

7 hours ago, Twoshoes said:

Thanks for the recommendation, just finished the book, I enjoyed it though I did find small sections of it a bit deep intellectually . Never the less a fascinating read, I enjoyed looking up the tunes mentioned intending to work my way slowly over time through the discography listed at the end of the  book. 

    It also reminded me of when I was around fourteen I bought a wind up gramaphone  from a school fair ,my mate then got one from his Grandad and four or five of us for a few months used to meet up playing all sorts of weird stuff we'd found in second hand shops until the novelty wore off and soul music took over. Funny how memory works, I just remembered the other attraction of going to his house, his mum was pretty fit in a Bridgette Bardot kind of way and no husband on the scene, oh the fantasies  the rest of us dreamt up. He wouldn't have been happy 😇

Glad you enjoyed it ,the friends mum piece made me laugh 😆