[Florida_Gurl]

I've decided to revist my library this summer instead of buying more books. There's a few I haven't read in awhile. I've restarted the Lord of the Rings trilogy and now I'm on The Two Towers.

[BlueEmperor]

I'm not reading The Last Governor by Jonathan Dimbleby, which follows Chris Patten (now Lord Patten of Barnes) during his days as the last British governor of Hong Kong.

B.E.

[Caer Ibormeith]

I'm getting back into thesis mode, so Samuel Beckett's Theatre," by Katharine Worth.

[JuanaLaLoca]

I'm not reading The Last Governor by Jonathan Dimbleby, which follows Chris Patten (now Lord Patten of Barnes) during his days as the last British governor of Hong Kong.

B.E.

Why not?

[Claire]

I'm not reading The Last Governor by Jonathan Dimbleby, which follows Chris Patten (now Lord Patten of Barnes) during his days as the last British governor of Hong Kong.

B.E.

Why not?

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[BlueEmperor]

Ah, yes. I suspect I meant to type 'now', as in "I'm now reading..." rather than "I'm not reading..." If I listed every book I wasn't reading this thread would get very long!

:oops:

B.E.

[JuanaLaLoca]

Ah, yes. I suspect I meant to type 'now', as in "I'm now reading..." rather than "I'm not reading..." If I listed every book I wasn't reading this thread would get very long!

:oops:

B.E.

I suspected that, too.

But I couldn't resist. I could picture you stamping your foot and saying, "No, I'm NOT reading it!".

If I just listed the books I have purchased but have yet to read, this thread would be quite long, too!

I have to choose my next book. I think I might just keep that list long, and reread an Agatha Christie. I just saw 'By The Pricking of My Thumbs', with Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple, and Anthony Andrews and Greta Scacchi as Tommy and Tuppence, and I don't think Miss Marple was in that book, or that Tommy and Tuppence were having marital problems, but it's been so many years since I read it that I think it's due.

[Claire]

Ah, yes. I suspect I meant to type 'now', as in "I'm now reading..." rather than "I'm not reading..." If I listed every book I wasn't reading this thread would get very long!

:oops:

B.E.

We knew what you meant.

[diamond lil]

I've just re-read By the Pricking of My Thumbs...I'm an anorak and collect stuff.

[Caer Ibormeith]

I've just re-read By the Pricking of My Thumbs...I'm an anorak and collect stuff.

Lil, did you know that PBS just showed a two part series here of By the Pricking of My Thumbs? It was a most excellent BBC production.

[JuanaLaLoca]

I've just re-read By the Pricking of My Thumbs...I'm an anorak and collect stuff.

Lil, did you know that PBS just showed a two part series here of By the Pricking of My Thumbs? It was a most excellent BBC production.

She might have known, since I just said so a few posts up!!! :razz:

I enjoyed it very much, although in a way it is kind of like seeing a movie that you have read the book of, and finding that they have twisted it all around. In those cases, you just have to forget about the plot of the book and try to enjoy the movie as if it were an original work. As I said, I loved the adaptation, but....

There are so many Miss Marple stories; why did they choose a Tommy & Tuppence novel and insert Miss Marple into it? And then fabricate marital problems between Tommy and Tuppence, so that Tuppence could work with Miss Marple? I know they altered some of the earlier McEwan episodes, but this was the most radical yet! I guess next week Miss Marple will be solving The Mysterious Affair at Styles, or Murder on the Orient Express!

But I did love it!

I started rereading the novel last night.

[diamond lil]

it annoyed the hell out of me, too..I saw that one a couple of months ago, I think..and Tuppence was way too glamorous. Like Juana , I enjoyed it once I stopped comparing it to the book.

[Caer Ibormeith]

I've just re-read By the Pricking of My Thumbs...I'm an anorak and collect stuff.

Lil, did you know that PBS just showed a two part series here of By the Pricking of My Thumbs? It was a most excellent BBC production.

She might have known, since I just said so a few posts up!!! :razz:

:oops: All apologies, Juana. Sometimes at work I only have time to skip down to the end of the discussion.

I had hard time with the Tommy and Tuppence insertion at first, too, but Geraldine McEwan is such a presence that I found it didn't matter. These stories have been made into film and read so often, they probably thought the changes would keep people from getting bored. It worked for me.

[JuanaLaLoca]

it annoyed the hell out of me, too..I saw that one a couple of months ago, I think..and Tuppence was way too glamorous. Like Juana , I enjoyed it once I stopped comparing it to the book.

Well, actually I didn't think that Greta Scacchi as Tuppence was anywhere near as glamorous as Francesca Annis had been, so I found her relatively easier to take. But I do agree that I did feel it a tad, and thought she was a bit snobbish. Anthony Andrews as Tommy also seemed way too upper-crust for Tommy - it's been so many years since I read the novels and short stories, but I was not of the opinion that Tommy and Tuppence were upper-class or aristocratic. What bothered me more was the fact that they fabricated marital problems for such a close, loving couple, and that Tommy seemed a bit cold towards Tuppence.

Tommy and Tuppence were always my very favorite Christie sleuths! Except maybe Bundle Brent, who appeared in two novels and reminded me very much of Tuppence (and not just because of the funny nickname!).

[JuanaLaLoca]

:oops: All apologies, Juana. Sometimes at work I only have time to skip down to the end of the discussion.

I had hard time with the Tommy and Tuppence insertion at first, too, but Geraldine McEwan is such a presence that I found it didn't matter. These stories have been made into film and read so often, they probably thought the changes would keep people from getting bored. It worked for me.

I agree about Geraldine McEwan - I just love her! I liked her a lot in the comedy series Mulberry and also in Mapp & Lucia. I think she makes a good Miss Marple.

[Caer Ibormeith]

:oops: All apologies, Juana. Sometimes at work I only have time to skip down to the end of the discussion.

I had hard time with the Tommy and Tuppence insertion at first, too, but Geraldine McEwan is such a presence that I found it didn't matter. These stories have been made into film and read so often, they probably thought the changes would keep people from getting bored. It worked for me.

I agree about Geraldine McEwan - I just love her! I liked her a lot in the comedy series Mulberry and also in Mapp & Lucia. I think she makes a good Miss Marple.

I agree back. How can someone so tiny have such weight onscreen?

Charles Dance gave quite an impressive performance as well as Septimus Bligh, I thought.

[diamond lil]

I recently bought the Agatha Christie Crime Collection at a car boot sale - 24 books, each with three stories. I started re-reading some old favourites immediately, the first being The Unknown Adversary..so I had to move onto Partners in Crime, then N or M?

[Caer Ibormeith]

I should go back and read the Tommy and Tuppence stories again. It's been awhile. Maybe after I'm free from thesis advisers brow beating me. Argh! I just want the thing done now. I don't even care what I write anymore. Here's ten pages of gibberish.

[diamond lil]

how long before you need to have it finished?

[JuanaLaLoca]

I recently bought the Agatha Christie Crime Collection at a car boot sale - 24 books, each with three stories. I started re-reading some old favourites immediately, the first being The Unknown Adversary..so I had to move onto Partners in Crime, then N or M?

Yes, it's fun to go back and reread all of the books with the same sleuth(s) in order, even though they were written over a span of many years! Tommy and Tuppence show the most changes over time, going from quite young to elderly. Poirot might have aged a bit, but much more slowly in relationship to the actual years it took to write all the books, and Miss Marple really didn't seem to age at all.

[Caer Ibormeith]

how long before you need to have it finished?

21 months, but I hope it's sooner. It's driving me crazy. Something I loved and wanted to write about now just makes me feel numb. I'm told that this is "normal." :roll: I just have to keep my eye on the prize, as the saying goes.

[diamond lil]

take a break...give your brain a holiday and read some mind candy. By the end of a few weeks you'l be bored with trashy novels and will glad to get back to the meaty stuff.

You know, Juana..I told you I'm an anorak , but I'm worse than that. It used to really annoy me that the characters didn't age properly. Tommy and Tuppence met in 1920..6 years after they were married they were running Blunt's Brilliant Detectives, at the end of which Tuppence tells Tommy he's going to be a Daddy...which means the twins were born in 1927 at the earliest..which means they were children during the second world war and couldn't possibly be serving their country...tch.

[Caer Ibormeith]

take a break...give your brain a holiday and read some mind candy. By the end of a few weeks you'l be bored with trashy novels and will glad to get back to the meaty stuff.

Thanks, Lil. Good advice.

[JuanaLaLoca]

take a break...give your brain a holiday and read some mind candy. By the end of a few weeks you'l be bored with trashy novels and will glad to get back to the meaty stuff.

You know, Juana..I told you I'm an anorak , but I'm worse than that. It used to really annoy me that the characters didn't age properly. Tommy and Tuppence met in 1920..6 years after they were married they were running Blunt's Brilliant Detectives, at the end of which Tuppence tells Tommy he's going to be a Daddy...which means the twins were born in 1927 at the earliest..which means they were children during the second world war and couldn't possibly be serving their country...tch.

Hmmm - maybe all those sitcom writers who have kids age years in between seasons are basing this concept on the Beresfords' children! :mrgreen:

I'm of two minds on the subject of characters aging. On the one hand, if you are reading a series for years and years, but the characters don't seem to get any older, it seems strange. On the other hand, if they do age, then they may eventually die, and the series will be over! I am getting anxious about Amelia Peabody and Emerson in one of my current favorite series. They now have grandchildren and are rather aged, but I don't want them to die! I suppose Elizabeth Peters could carry the series on with the next generation(s), but Amelia's unique personality would be sorely lacking. The third-person narrative sections about the others don't measure up to her first-person narrative.

[Vintage Girl]

I am currently reading "A Breath of Snow and Ashes" by Diana Gabaldon. It is the 6th book in the series which began with "Cross Stitch". The whole series has been absolutely gripping. It starts in World War Two in Scotland when the main character has an experience at some standing stones and finds herself in Scotland years before the battle of Culloden. Thinking that she is trapped in that time she makes a new life for herself, but then circumstances force her return to the 20th century. Over the next books she passes from one era to another several times with very dramatic consequences. It really is a brilliant series so I won't give away too much of the plot. Has anyone else read it?

[Florida_Gurl]

That sounds excellent, VG. Do you know what the name of the series is? I might check them out.

[kitchenwitch]

I am currently reading "A Breath of Snow and Ashes" by Diana Gabaldon. It is the 6th book in the series which began with "Cross Stitch". The whole series has been absolutely gripping. It starts in World War Two in Scotland when the main character has an experience at some standing stones and finds herself in Scotland years before the battle of Culloden. Thinking that she is trapped in that time she makes a new life for herself, but then circumstances force her return to the 20th century. Over the next books she passes from one era to another several times with very dramatic consequences. It really is a brilliant series so I won't give away too much of the plot. Has anyone else read it?

Oh yes, I have. It's a fabulous and fascinating series. Over here in the states the first book is titled "Outlander". I have a copy of her book "The Outlandish Companion" which is full of pronunciations, synopsis of the books and a cast of characters, all to help you jog your memory since it takes her years to write an installment. She has a good website too:

http://www.dianagabaldon.com/

[JuanaLaLoca]

I am reading The Girl Who Walked Home Alone, which is 'A Personal Biography' of Bette Davis. The author (sorry, I can't remember her name off the top of my head, Charlotte Chandler, maybe?) met Davis in 1980 when Davis asked her if she would write a biography of her, after having read a similar biography she had written of Groucho Marx (Hello, I Must Be Going). Most of it is in Davis' own words. The title is based on an anecdote that the author told Davis, where the author was with Groucho Marx at a party and someone asked him why he always brought two women to a party. Groucho replied that he hated to see a girl walk home alone. I'm up to just before she made 'Of Human Bondage'.

[Vintage Girl]

That sounds excellent, VG. Do you know what the name of the series is? I might check them out.

Sorry, there isn't a series name on the book. Just start with Cross Stitch.

[diamond lil]

I've just read the Kenneth Williams diaries.

[BlueEmperor]

That sounds excellent, VG. Do you know what the name of the series is? I might check them out.

Sorry, there isn't a series name on the book. Just start with Cross Stitch.

I looked it up. It's known as the Outlander series.

B.E.

[Vintage Girl]

Who's a clever little sausage then????

[Florida_Gurl]

Thanks Blue.




:lol:

[BlueEmperor]

Anything for you, sweetcheeks.



B.E.

[Florida_Gurl]

Ooooo....
Blue you certainly know how to win over a girl!





I've finished my revisiting of The Lord of the Rings, so I've moving on to Wicked. I loved the musical, so I hope the book is just as good!

[kitchenwitch]

Florida Gurl -

Several posts up I posted the web site address for Diana Gabaldon, the author of the Outlander series. It has a list of all of the books she has written as well as excerpts and all sorts of interesting things about her and the books.

I read Wicked and really enjoyed it. I haven't seen the musical, but friends who have said both are equally as good.

[Florida_Gurl]

Thanks, KW. I'll have to check that out.

[Natasha]

I bought the first book in the Outlander series at Barnes and Noble this weekend. I have jury duty on Wed and need something big to take with me. Last time I went I did more sitting and waiting than anything else. Anyway, I read the first few chapters last night and quite enjoyed them. I'll be thrilled if I like the book. I am always looking for new things to read.

[UKgirl]

I am reading "Danger Stalks the Land" by Larry Kaniut


It is a book of short stories of death and survival in Alaska.

UNBELIEVABLE..

[Princess Eve]

Real-Life Homeschooling by Rhonda Barfield


>>>LINK>>>LINK<<<LINK<<<

[litholad]

Whose Names Are Unknown by Sonora Babb

A powerful book about the Depression and Okies. Poverty on a level that is hard to imagine.
Some of my relatives migrated to Califronia in the 1930's as part of the move from the Dustbowl. My aunt told us that the dust was in everything. The only way they could eat something that wasn't gritty was to boil eggs and get under a blanket and peel and eat them.
The book was orignally written during the Depression and she submitted it to Random House. Bennet Cerf, the president of Random House called it a "great little novel". Ironically, John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" had came out a few weeks before and had already sold 145,000 copies. Cerf didn't think the market could stand another book about the Okies, so he shelved it for almost 60 years.

[Druid 2156]

What am I reading? Currently just this!

[el pistolero]

Ironically, John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" had come out a few weeks before and had already sold 145,000 copies.

I loved "The Grapes of Wrath". I especially love how the charachters call diarrhoea 'The Skitters'.


I've just started reading Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis.

[Natasha]

I just finished "The Tavern on Maple Street" by Sharon Owens. She writes nice little stories about people in Belfast. Anyone who likes Maeve Binchey will like Sharon Owens. Anyway, I am about to begin the final book in the Outlander series recommended by Vintage Girl. I loved all of the previous books. I'll start A Breath of Snow and Ashes on Friday on my flight to PA.

I just received an email from Amazon telling me that Jasper FFordes new book is out. I adore his books. They are so whimsical and quirky.

[Grimm Ghost]

The Road to Madness by H. P. Lovecraft.

Hence my Sig:

[Hypatia]

The Queen's Conjurer - Benjamin Woolley

[cherrybabe]

I have two on the go.

The Meaning of Night: Michael Cox
Northern Lights (HDM): Phillip Pullman

[JuanaLaLoca]

I'm currently reading a collection of Irish horror stories. I had, for some reason, not been reading for a while, so my enormous backlog of books just kept growing (I never stopped buying them!).

I just got a couple of books in the "The Little Big Book..." series. I had gotten The Little Big Book of Christmas a couple of years ago, and just loved it. Now I have added The Little Big Book of Chills and Thrills, and The Little Big Book of Cats. I also got The Little Big Book of Ireland for my father for Christmas, but I might try reading some of it before I wrap it! These books always have a variety of (usually short) works, like short stories, poems, recipes, magic spells, cat training tips, legends, songs, etc., and the illustrations are very retro and just charming - often full-page, or even spanning two pages.

[cherrybabe]

I am the same Juana i just keep buying them. I love reading it's like travelling, it broadens your mind. I find you have to be in the right frame of mind for certain types of books so i keep them till i am, but i always get around to them in the end. Mini CB has tons of books from her three years at uni, so i have a load of them she is on at me to read also. One of which is Revolutionary Road (one of her favourites, despite the 3,000 word essay!) which is being made into a film with Kate & Leo apparently, so she has plans to drag me to the cinema and chat about it; like she did with Atonement. Its nice to have a passion for something and someone to share it with, i also loved Eng Lit at school so i love it.

[Persephone]

One of the books I'm reading right now is a Dutch translation of the American book: Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert. Has anyone read it? I quite like it I have to say. I just finished the Italy part, which I loved to read because I so get it and because I'm going to Rome myself in January. The India part I relate to very much as well. I wonder how it ends, it is amusingly to read. My mum didn’t like it that much though (she bought the book ‘cause I recommended it to her), but maybe I am more in the same phase as the author when she wrote it (in her 30).

Another book I am reading is the 'Devils Triangle', but it is by a Dutch author. I don't think anyone is familiar with that one unfortunately, because it is a very good book. Next to that I am reading three other books, also written by Dutch artist, so I don't think anyone on here knows them unfortunately.