Fourth set of twenty books read in 2017

Another brief digression from writing about life in Cyprus. With the slight connection that these books are all ones that I have in our collection (well over 3000 in all) and any local Cyprus friends are welcome to come and borrow books from me.

According to GoodReads and LibraryThing (where I upload ratings and brief reviews of everything I read) I have completed another twenty books. So that's eighty this year, so far, and I am on track - just about - to finish a hundred before the end of the year.

Once again, I'll divide the books into categories and begin with the Christian non-fiction. My aim is to read at least two of this category every month; this time I only managed three in all (I finished the fourth this morning, making my 81st book of the year).

Christian books

I began this period with a 1980s classic, 'Freed to Serve' by Michael Green. The author was quite a forward thinker, assessing what he saw as the way forward, if the church was to survive into the 21st century. Although it's not a long book, I found it quite heavy-going and only read a few pages each day. Quite thought-provoking, however.

Next I chose 'Soul Keeping' by John Ortberg. The writing is clear, and well-presented, with interesting, often self-deprecating anecdotes. I don’t know that I found any great new insights, but I found it encouraging and helpful in beginning to get a glimpse of what our souls are. Definitely recommended if you’re interested in this topic.

Then I read 'Above All' by Brennan Manning. The focus of the book is the well-known song of the same title. This was written as a devotional study of the words, and the theology behind them. Inspiring and encouraging, with a few personal anecdotes and much to ponder. A beautifully made book which would make a lovely gift, but very short. Highly recommended.

Novels

I usually aim to read about four novels per month, although it doesn't always work out that way. In addition to the eight listed here from the last couple of months, or so, I also read the teenage fiction listed in a separate section below, interspersed between them.

The first one in this period was 'When I Was Invisible' by Dorothy Koomson. About two girls with similar names, who have been friends since they were eight. A little confusing at first, but the tension builds up as things become clearer. Shocking in places, yet with an underlying theme about the importance of truth and loyalty. Highly recommended.

After such an emotive book, I wanted something light to follow. It was not difficult to choose an Adrian Plass from my books-to-reread-soon shelf, and I thoroughly enjoyed re-acquainting myself with 'The Theatrical Tapes of Leonard Thynn'. This book is third in the series that begins with ‘The Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass, age 37 ¾’. Despite having read it at least twice before, I found myself smiling several times, even chuckling aloud. Very highly recommended.

I next chose 'Laurie and Claire' by Kathleen Rowntree. Unsurprisingly, this is about two close friends of those names, who grow up together. It was sixteen years since I had last read this, and I remembered it as a very enjoyable read. I found it slightly sordid in places this time, and wasn't too keen on Claire. But it was very well-written.

For another light-hearted read, I opted next for 'Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit' by PG Wodehouse. I love Wodehouse's gentle satire. Literary references abound, and Bertie’s general ignorance would be irritating if it weren’t for his generosity and kindness. Very enjoyable.

Next I picked up 'Starting Over' by Robin Pilcher. An unusual setting: a farmer called Liz is trying to decide whether to allow an American firm to take over her land, and turn it into a golf course. The early chapters are a tad confusing with a lot of different characters, and there was maybe too much description in places. But all in all, I liked this very much. I had read it fifteen years ago, but had entirely forgotten what happened.

After that I chose 'Scandalous Risks' by Susan Howatch. I last read this in 2001, and it was probably my least favourite of the excellent Starbridge series about ministers in the Church of England in the 20th century. It's very well written, gripping and believable, but rather sordid and depressing in places, too.

I don't have many unread books on my shelves at present, but there are still a few. One of them was 'Clouds among the Stars' by Victoria Clayton. A brilliant opening sentence followed by some rather depressing and unpleasant chapters, covering issues not usually included in light fiction. It follows the lives of a big and bohemian family, narrated by the 22-year-old middle daughter. However, the writing is good, and it picks up after the first third; so much so that I could barely put it down by the end. I didn't think it was as good as others by this author, but still worth reading.

I followed that with another new book: 'The Secrets of Happiness' by Lucy Diamond. It's about two very different step-sisters who have never been close. But they're thrown together by a dramatic incident in the first chapter. Rather informal writing, with some excellent characterisation, even if some of the minor characters are a tad caricatured. My main grip is the excessive amount of bad language, which I found quite disturbing. Other than that, though, I thought it an excellent read.

Teenage fiction

Interspersed with novels intended for adults, I like to re-visit some of my childhood and teenage favourite. They are ideal for reading over just two or three evenings, when I want something well-written but very light. Along with re-reading my favourite novels, I'm re-reading my collections by favourite children's authors too.

An easy choice was 'Jane and the Chalet School' by Elinor M. Brent-Dyer. This series is some of my most important comfort reading, and this one is the 51st in the original Chalet School series. By the time I reach the end of the series, I will probably be ready to start from the beginning again. Most of this book is standard Chalet School fare with moments of high drama. But it didn't feel 'samey'. I liked it very much, and thought it covered some new ground. Only of interest to fans of mid-20th century schoolgirl fiction, however.

A couple of weeks ago I finished re-reading (for probably the sixth or seven time)'Good Wives' by Louisa May Alcott. It's a wonderful book, written as the direct sequel to 'Little Women'. It begins three years later as Meg March embarks on married life. Some humour, and a very sad, though inevitable chapter towards the end. Some moralising author intrusion, typical for the period, but even that is written a little tongue-in-cheek. Highly recommended for anyone who has read 'Little Women'.

More recently I re-read 'When the Siren Wailed' by Noel Streatfeild. This is an excellent story about some London children who were evacuated just before World War II. Realistic, showing the deprivation and fears of families in the war, and very well written. Highly recommended for anyone interested in this topic, adults or older children.

Younger children's fiction

Once again, I'm including 'chapter' books I read aloud for the first time to my three-year-old grandson, who was here with his family until almost the end of August.

I was a bit surprised when this book arrived in my lap with a request to read it, but my grandson was very taken with Dick King-Smith's 'Mr Ape'. I read it at least three times to him, and others in the family read it aloud as well. It's the story of an elderly man who lives on his own, and gradually starts to keep more and more animals in his large stately home. Good writing, with an enjoyable pace and quite an exciting climax.

We then moved on to 'The Hiccups at No 13' by Gyles Brandreth. I must have picked this up at a charity shop somewhere, and had not previously read it. It's the story of 9-year-old Hamlet Brown, whose family are all actors. And Hamlet gets a bad attack of hiccups... It's quite amusing, and I think I enjoyed it as much as my grandson did, at least the first time I read it aloud.

I then decided we would embark on 'Sophie's Adventures' by Dick King-Smith, the collection containing the first three books in the series: 'Sophie's Snail', 'Sophie's Tom' and 'Sophie Hits Six'. They're about a small but determined girl who wants to be a lady farmer when she grows up. I have read these aloud to other children, though they are usually rather older than three, and I enjoy them every time. Great characterisation and plenty of humour. There's even some low-key educational information about farms. Very highly recommended.

Then I was persuaded to read 'Esio Trot' by Roald Dahl. I had enjoyed the Dahl books I read aloud in the previous period, and this is also intended for younger children. It's the story of an elderly man who lives in a flat and falls in love with the lady on the floor below him. However her passion is tortoises... the plot is ridiculous, in typical Dahl style. There are delightful line drawings by Quentin Blake every few pages, but the story involves deception and the mis-treatment of tortoises. Perhaps I’m over-thinking it, but I really didn’t like this story much, and wouldn’t recommend it.

And just in case it seems odd to be reading books of this kind to a child of three, I should add that we also read him large quantities of pictures books intended for younger children, including most of the ones shown here, among others. Dr Seuss, Shirley Hughes, Beatrix Potter, Mick Inkpen... and many more. I love children's books!

Miscellaneous

I try to read one or two other non-fiction books each month. I didn't manage to complete any writing books in this period, but I did finish a couple of other books that don't fit in any of the above categories.

The first is 'A Slip of the Keyboard' by Terry Pratchett. This is a collection of his speeches, book introductions, and other short non-fiction pieces produced over many years. Inevitably there's a lot of repetition as he didn't say new things every time he gave a speech or wrote an article. It took me ages to get into the book, and I found the final section (after his diagnosis with Alzheimer's Disease) rather depressing. But all in all, I was glad I read it, to gain a few more insights into his life.

I think picked up 'Liberated Parents, Liberated Children', by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish, a book I'd bought second-hand at some point. I've read and very much appreciated some of their other books about communicating, particularly with children. This one is written in semi-fictional form, describing family situations and their resolution (or not...) after using some of the techniques the authors espouse. My sons are now adults, but some of the suggestions are appropriate when dealing with any communication breakdown, or apparent deadlock in a disagreement. I finished it in just a few days, and would recommend it very highly.

Another twenty books completed

I wrote about my first twenty books of the year early in March. The next set of twenty books was completed late in May. It was at the end of May that my son and his family arrived to stay in our guest flat for three months. During that time, I got very behind on reviewing books. I mostly kept up - with only a few days' lag - until I went away for a couple of weeks in July.  After that, I kept note of when I had finished each one, but I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my grandchildren while they were here, and by the time I had an hours or two myself in the evening, I was too exhausted to do anything constructive.

Moreover, I didn't do much reading for myself, other than ten minutes or so before going to sleep each night. So I thought I was going to be lagging seriously on my 100-books-a-year challenge on Goodreads. Then I realised that I could review the longer books I was reading to David. I didn't want to review shorter picture books - some only take five minutes to read, even though many are delightful - but he likes shorter chapter books too, the kinds with line drawings every couple of pages, so I decided to count them as part of the challenge, if I read them aloud. Which means that my third set of twenty books is rather unbalanced, with an abundance of children's books...

As with the earlier posts, links to my full reviews of each book (on my book reviews blog) are given.

Christian books

I'm surprised and quite pleased to find that I did manage to complete four Christian books in this period, as I have done previously, even if it was over nearly three months rather than two, and one of them was very short....

The first was on my Kindle, 'The Beloved Disciple' by Beth Moore. It's a lengthy study of the Apostle John, written in devotional style to be read over a couple of months. I liked parts of it, but found it a bit too informal and culturally American for my tastes.

After that, I read 'The Divine Dance' by Richard Rohr, which I had been given for my birthday.  Very readable, interesting, and also reassuring. I had moments of wondering if the author was veering a bit too far into non-orthodox belief, but my gut feeling is that he stayed just inside the line. One I'd like to read again fairly soon.

To contrast with that new, somewhat mystical book I then opted for what is now almost a Christian classic: 'Out of the Saltshaker' by Rebecca Manley Pippert. Written at the end of the 1970s, the contrasting cover style is shown rather clearly in the photo above. The contents are very good, though inevitably somewhat dated.

The fourth Christian book I read over the past three months is a very short one: 'Waking Up' by Ted Dekker, which I read on my Kindle. It's a biographical account of the author's struggles with his faith, and how he moved on to a newer appreciation of life as a believer.

Novels

I read nine novels intended for adults in my first twenty books of the year, nine in my second twenty... and just six in this third batch. I always have a novel of some kind to read before going to sleep at night, but it evidently took me rather longer than usual to read most of these. In addition, they were interspersed with some teenage novels, listed below.  They're all fairly light-weight, as I wasn't awake enough for anything too deep.

'The Christmas Promise' by Sue Moorcroft was the first one I completed in this period. It would have been ideal to read in the Christmas season, but I was given it for my birthday, and couldn't resist. Good characters, interesting plot.

'Belonging' by Alexandra Raife was next. Warm characters, a nice pace, and a hint of mystery that kept me turning the pages.

I then embarked on 'The Holiday' by Erica James. It was with some reluctance, as I hadn't much enjoyed it the first time I read it. But I'm slowly re-reading books by my favourite authors, and thought it only fair to give this another chance. I'm glad I did, as I liked it much more this time.

Wanting a change from contemporary women's fiction, I next read Agatha Christie's 'The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side', which I enjoyed very much. It features Miss Marple, and an intriguing plot set in a small village.

By the time I'd finished that, I was about to leave for my UK visit, so I picked something from my Kindle: 'The Incomplete Amorist' by E Nesbit. Set over 100 years ago, it was pleasant light reading although I didn't feel it was as good as the author's better-known children's books.

The final book I read that was intended for adults is 'Anna's Return' by Sally Quilford. A novella rather than a novel, it is set in the middle of the 20th century with references to the war, and I liked it very much.

Teenage Fiction
This category involves the books I read interspersed with the novels above, at bedtime; some are for older children (8+) rather than just teenagers, but I enjoyed them anyway.  I read three of this category in my first twenty books, three in my second twenty, four in this batch:

The first one I read in this period was 'Little Women' by Louisa M Alcott, a book I loved when I first read it, probably as a child, and which I've re-read many times over the years. Pure indulgence, and I enjoyed it very much.

I followed that, a week or two later, with 'Meet the Austins' by Madeleine L'Engle. I hadn't read this book before, as far as I recall. Not a whole lot of plot, but a pleasant light read with very well-drawn characters.

Chalet School books are one of my first choices of comfort read, so it's no surprise that I also read Elinor M Brent-Dyer's 'The Chalet School Reunion' during this busy period. Fiftieth in the original series, this is about families and friends connected with the school, rather than being a school story as such. Very enjoyable.

The fourth book in this category was on my Kindle while travelling: 'Of Wheels and Witches' by Stephen Hayes. A very interesting read, set in the apartheid years in South Africa, featuring some children having rather dangerous encounters and adventures.

Children's read-alouds

The first book in this section is one I read to some young friends, over several weeks, and finished just before my grandchildren arrived. 'The Exiles' by Hilary McCay features four girls sent to live with their grandmother for the summer, and I very much liked reading it aloud. My friends enjoyed it too, partly because three of the girls were the same ages as they were.

The first short chapter book I read to my grandson was 'Help!' by Margaret Gordon, a book, along with those below, which I found at the local thrift store. It's about two young pigs who live in a block of flats with their extended family, and who are determined to be helpful... unfortunately it doesn't always work that way. Amusing in places, each chapter complete in itself.

'TJ's Sunflower Race' by Rose Impey is a delightful story intended for early readers, but it works very well as a read-aloud. Lovely line drawings, and if the ending is predictable, it's very nicely done with a bit of humour here and there too. We read this one aloud several times...

'Lollipop Days' by Margaret Nash is about a friendship between a rather mischievous girl and a somewhat more ordinary boy who live near each other.  Not particularly exciting, but quite a nice set of stories, probably intended for about age 5-6 as later chapters involve school.

Roald Dahl's 'The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me', in a large format with colour drawings by Quentin Blake was a wonderful find. The story is (unsurprisingly) bizarre, but not unpleasant, and my grandson loved it. I don't know how many times one or other of us read this thing aloud in its entirety. There are no chapter breaks, so we just kept going...

And finally, at least for this batch of books, another by Roald Dahl. Not as enjoyable as the previous one, my grandson also very much liked 'George's Marvellous Medicine'. It involves a boy concocting a potion to replace his horrible grandmother's medicine, with unexpected results.

As for writing books and 'miscellaneous', I didn't complete any of those in this period. 3e

(I actually finished the last of this batch of books on August 8th and have read another seven books since then, including one of the ones which I mistakenly included in the photo for the final category - but I'll mention it, along with the others, when I've completed my next set of twenty books for this year. )

Twenty books so far this year

After the first hints of spring, this weekend, as so often happens in March, has returned us to chillier weather. It rained yesterday, on and off, and although it wasn't predicted to start raining until eight o'clock this morning, the heavens opened around 7.15 when my friend Sheila and I were almost at the end of our walk. We didn't have umbrellas and weren't wearing raincoats... we were drenched.

As Sheila has decided to write about the books she reads each month, I thought I might take a short break from writing about living in Cyprus, and do something similar. I write reviews of all the books I read on my book reviews blog,  but more people visit this one.  I challenge myself to read a hundred books each year; that doesn't sound like very many, but life gets in the way and some days I read only a page or two.

I've finished twenty books so far this year, so I'm currently on track. Rather than write about them chronologically, I've listed them below in categories.  My aim is to read a couple of Christian non-fiction books each month, four novels, one writing book, and one 'other' - maybe a biography, or a self-help book, or one about personalities, or that catch-all 'miscellaneous'. Most of the novels I read are in the genre of women's fiction (relationship/character-based, primarily) but I also like reading and re-reading some teenage fiction. I try to slot in a few light crime novels too, to make a change now and again.

I usually have about six books that I'm reading at any moment; they're listed in my sidebar if anyone's interested. Likewise, if you're curious to find out more of what I thought about any of them, links given below are to the reviews on my book blog.

Christian books 

At the start of the year we were in the UK visiting relatives, so I was mainly reading on my Kindle.  I wasn't particularly impressed with 'Meeting Rich', which is almost too short to count as a book, but it was quite well written, and passed the time.

I then started reading one of the books I was given for Christmas: 'Accidental Saints' by Nadia Bolz-Weber. I wish this book didn't contain such strong, sometimes crude language, because it's extremely well written otherwise, and very thought-provoking. The author is a Lutheran pastor who runs an alternative and inclusive church, and while some of her ideas are quite controversial, she writes with compassion and humility, and I thought it excellent.

The third Christian book I finished this year, again on my Kindle, was 'The Jesus Training Manual', a title which almost put me off reading it. However, it was well written, if a little repetitive in places: a mixture of biographical account, as the author's faith and theology underwent some significant changes, and some teaching of the kind which we'd first heard in the Vineyard Church we belonged to for a couple of years back in the 1990s when we lived in the United States.

Then I read a book which I found on one of our shelves with a much more appealing title: 'Following Jesus without embarrassing God', by Tony Campolo.

- So I succeeded in my aim of two per month, and hope to finish the two I'm currently reading by the end of March.

Novels 

The first book I finished reading was on my Kindle, one I started on our flight to the UK a couple of days after Christmas. 'Passing Shadows' by Della Galton was ideal holiday reading; it's a romance featuring an artist and a woman who runs an animal centre.

I then embarked on 'The Shepherd's Crown' by Terry Pratchett, which I was given for Christmas.  It was a little bittersweet, knowing it was the last book Sir Terry wrote before he died; I love the way it ties up so many loose endings, and that it's the last of his series for older children and teenagers. It was moving as well as having amusing moments, and I was very pleased to have read it at last.

'Summer on the River' by Marcia Willett was the next novel I decided to read. That was another Christmas present, and I started reading it on our return flight to Cyprus... then found I could barely put it down. As with most of this author's stories, it's character-based and about different kinds of relationships. I liked it very much.

I then decided I should finish 'Elsie's Kith and Kin', a book I had been reading on my Kindle, off and on, for quite some time. I was quite pleased when I first discovered the 'Elsie' series free to download, having read about them in the Chalet School books. I worked my way through a couple of them some years ago.  I didn't much like this one, though, and doubt if I'll read any more.

Back to my Christmas books, and I had immense pleasure reading Jan Karon's latest, 'Come Rain or Come Shine'. I've loved all her Mitford series, featuring the delightful (and now retired) Father Tim and his wife Cynthia. This one features a wedding, and is best read after the rest of the books.

After that I read yet another Christmas book, 'The Great Christmas Knit Off' by Alexandra Brown. It's lighter than the previous books I'd been reading, but moves at a good pace and is surprisingly thought-provoking in places. I hadn't read anything by this author before, but thought that a book about knitting made a nice change from the many similar books about cakes or other baking.

Interspersed with new books I like to re-read books I've enjoyed at least eight years previously, and I tend to work through novels by some of my favourite writers. So the next one I picked up was 'Tell Mrs Poole I'm Sorry' by Kathleen Rowntree, a book I had only read once before, as long ago as 2001. I had only the vaguest recollection of the story, and while it's somewhat shocking, it's very well written.

After that, wanting something different, I decided to re-read Frank Peretti's 'The Visitation', another book which I first read in 2001 but have not picked up since. I had vague memories of it being a book that I found pleasanter than I had expected. I liked the first part very much, when a visitor comes to a small American town and starts doing 'miracles'... but it gradually became more suspenseful and quite violent in places. So I doubt if I'll read that one again.

I followed it with another lighter-looking novel, 'Summer with my Sister' by Lucy Diamond, which I acquired second-hand some time last year.  It's another book about relationships - it features the contrast between a high-flying business woman and a single mother who are sisters, and have almost nothing in common.  I enjoyed it.

After that I picked up 'Many Waters' by Madeleine L'Engle, which I don't think I have ever read before, although it has been on our bookcase of teenage books for many years. Rather different from the others in the 'Time Quintet', the fantasy and science are minimal; the bulk of the story takes place on Earth in the time before Noah.  I was surprised at how much I liked it.

The next novel was another re-read: 'An Ocean Apart' by Robin Pilcher, son of the better-known Rosamunde Pilcher. This was his debut novel, and I read it first in 2001. I'd almost entirely forgotten the story, and once again I loved it.  It's character-based, and in places extremely moving.

I followed that with the much lighter 'Horizontal Epistles of Andromeda Veal' by Adrian Plass, sequel to his first 'Sacred Diary' book. Light-hearted fun with a more serious underlying story; an eight-year-old girl with socialist leanings and highly creative spelling is in traction in hospital with a broken femur, and writes letters to friends, acquaintances, and world leaders.

- So, I finished twelve novels in two months, which is more than my planned one per week. Three are intended for teenagers, and there's inevitably cross-over between the genres as five of them would also be considered Christian books.

Writing books

I downloaded on my Kindle 'Back to Creative Writing School' by Bridget Whelan a long time ago, and dipped into it several times before deciding to read it to the end. It takes the format of a creative writing class, so could be studied over the course of several weeks. I liked it very much, and thought it helpful, but didn't do most of the exercises.

I then read 'Writing with Cold Feet' by Kathrin Lake, a slim volume that contains a great deal of wisdom. It doesn't give instruction about writing, or grammar, and doesn't have any exercises as such. Instead it looks at reasons why so many writers feel immense resistance when they sit down at the computer to write. I thought it extremely helpful and inspiring.

Miscellaneous

The first 'other' book I read was very short, and almost a cheat to include it in a list of books read, as it took me no more than ten minutes to read it, punctuated by reading bits aloud or chuckling. However, I thought it a wonderful book so wrote about it on my blog - 'How it Works: The Mum', another book which I was given for Christmas.   It's a Ladybird book, in the style of the children's books that were so popular in the 60s and 70s; anyone who has not come across Ladybird books of that era would probably find it bizarre!

And finally... 'The Procrastination Equation' by Dr Piers Steel. It's somewhat of an academic work, by a writer who has done extensive research into what makes people procrastinate, discovering three main styles of procrastination, and outlining what may (or may not) help with working through it. Very interesting information about the way our brains work; a little heavy in places, but overall I thought it excellent.