Why the fixation on numbers? Quality matters more than quantity, surely. 215 chick-lit novels aren't much of an achievement.
Also, some books are very very long - I'm currently reading the Outlander series - have you seen the size of these books? But some on the previous thread (214 in 2014) actually counted graphic novels in! Not books as such, imo.
I am actually interested in the answer, I'm not just being awkward.
Another question - I've posted remarks in these threads occasionally, and been ignored. Does anyone read other people's posts or do they just list what they've read and have no interest in anyone else's choice?
In short, what is the point of this or any other "list" thread?
Thanks for any replies. If there are any.
Hi Granny McSmith
Interesting - what is the point of this thread? For me its a list, and a chance to see what others are reading.
In theory of course you are right - quality is better than quantity. But of course there is no guarantee that a book with 1500 pages is better quality than a book with 300 pages.
And I disagree - if someone wants to read 215 chick lit books - good on them - I love it that people enjoy books. Personally I read a wide variety - in my day job I read a lot of legislation and legal text so sometimes chick lit is what I fancy to relax - or more often a great thriller or spy or crime novel or a biography or travel tale. Each to their own - we are all different and there are millions of books out there!
I have a tedious 2 hour plus commute each day when I tend to read and am a fast reader on the whole (probably because of my legal training) so when I am "in the zone" I can average a book a day.
- if someone gets pleasure out of 5 books in the years that just as valid and valuable as me getting pleasure out of my 250 or so
Happy New Year and lets get started!! Am going to try and comment more on what I read this year.
Just back from a Christmas cruise with a few days at sea in the New Year so plenty of reading time!!!
1) Alan Drew - Gardens of Water
For my book club. Really interesting story of a couple of families - one Turkish and one American whose lives were devastated by an earthquake in Turkey
2) David Nicholls - Us
Excellent - I find his books very moving
3) Patricia Mann - Is ties all there is?
First bad read of the year - self obsessed woman in California discontented with her life
4) Joanna Ross - Moving On
Lighthearted read of 4 young widows in Cape Town coping with their changed circumstances
5) Sophie Kinsella - Shopaholic on Honeymoon
pure froth!
6) ASA Harrison - The Silent Wife
Good read - set in Chicago. Alternate chapters written by "him" and "her" telling the story of a separation - very moving
7) Rosie Thomas - Follies
I seem to have acquired a few books by Rosie Thomas on the Kindle and feel this may have been a mistake. Picked this one as set in Oxford - but a complete load of twaddle!
In theory of course you are right - quality is better than quantity. But of course there is no guarantee that a book with 1500 pages is better quality than a book with 300 pages.
And I disagree - if someone wants to read 215 chick lit books - good on them - I love it that people enjoy books.
I didn't mean to imply that longer books are somehow more worthy than short ones - of course they are not. And there's nowt wrong with chick lit - sometimes it's just what you need.
I was just querying the 215 bit of the thread title. Now I'm embarked on a series with very long novels there's little chance of my reaching that number! (Though you never know).
But it seems the numbers aren't important for most posters, anyway, so that's OK!
1. Acts and Omissions by Catherine Fox.
A lucky find amongst the Kindle bargains.
A year in the lives of the residents of the Cathedral Close in the fictional city of Lindchester. It's told by an all knowing narrator and centres around Freddie May, aged 22, ex-chorister, ex-offender and general disaster area. Lots of C of E politics, interesting characters, sad, funny, beautifully descriptive of the changing of seasons and full of music. I thoroughly enjoyed this and look forward to the follow up book.
I like the idea of posting a bot more information about the books - I have already added 2 to my wishlist - at this rate I'll have a couple of hundred on it by the end of the year!
(Gardens of Water and Acts and Omissions)
Re. the title of the thread - I think we have just followed the same pattern that someone started in 2010 with 210 in 2010 - maybe it should be renamed next year!
I like the idea of posting a bot more information about the books - I have already added 2 to my wishlist - at this rate I'll have a couple of hundred on it by the end of the year!
(Gardens of Water and Acts and Omissions)
Re. the title of the thread - I think we have just followed the same pattern that someone started in 2010 with 210 in 2010 - maybe it should be renamed next year!
I am seriously scared to read comments as I have about 500 books to read- but I know I will keep adding more!
No way i would read 215 books in a year!! that's so many.
I have set my goal at 30 this year on goodreads. That is the lowest i have ever set it...2012 (50), 2013 (40), 2014 (40). I set it lower as i plan to read alot of longer books this year that i have been putting off for example i am just beginning Ken Follett - World Without End which is 1200 ish pages. I think i have 10 800+ books i want to get to which will take a bit longer than my average 400 ish page ones. If i get to the summer and i am smashing my goal i will up it to 35.
No way i would read 215 books in a year!! that's so many.
I have set my goal at 30 this year on goodreads. That is the lowest i have ever set it...2012 (50), 2013 (40), 2014 (40). I set it lower as i plan to read alot of longer books this year that i have been putting off for example i am just beginning Ken Follett - World Without End which is 1200 ish pages. I think i have 10 800+ books i want to get to which will take a bit longer than my average 400 ish page ones. If i get to the summer and i am smashing my goal i will up it to 35.
Folletts stuff is lengthy but very readable, I find I get through them surprisingly quickly.
Be interested to know what you think of World Without End, I read it a few months ago.
I'll not post what i thought and we can compare when you're done 😁
My challenge was 52 last year and I managed 50 - I blame this on a trip to Ireland over the New Year and discovering The Walking Dead (had to watch all five series in a month so it scuppered my reading)!
Going for 52 again this year, I'm already two down so will try and catch up. I do miss the days of having a commute to work as I'd easily double that once I'm in "the zone"!
10) Alphabet House - Jussi Adler-Olsen
What a strange book - about 2 ww2 airmen who end up in a German mental hospital. Then gets very weird. Didn't really enjoy this one.
Will try for 52, although I usually forget to update the list after a couple of weeks!
1. 1Q84 book 1 by Haruki Marakami
7/10. Can be hard reading at time and not always at lot happening. Three books make up the whole story and have now started book 2
2. 1Q84 book 2 by Haruki Marakami
7/10, 2nd book of the trilogy. Young girl age 10 who is a member of a commune creates a 'passageway' for supernatural beings known as the Little People to access this world. 7 years later and a book based on how this happened is published, initially dictated by this girl, the story is rewritten by an aspiring author. This brings them to the attention of the little people and the commune, which is now a religious cult. Also involved is a fitness instructor and part time assassin of abusive husbands, who the aspiring writer was at school with. The 1Q84 relates to an alternative version of 1984, which they seem to have been transported into. Sounds a little like a children's book, but most certainly isn't!
I think that just about sums things up so far without giving too much away! Still not sure I fully understand it though!
12) A Place of Strangers - Geoffrey Seed
Quite a good story of a journalist who had been adopted and his elderly parents reaching the end of theirs lives with the journalist seeking his true identity and uncovering a story of Nazis and revenge
1. The Book Thief
2. The Strange Library - Haruki Murakami 3. Last Train to Memphis - Peter Guralnick
This is the first of a two part biography about Elvis Presley and follows his life until the age of about 23. Definitely plan to buy the second book and will read it later in the year. Some of it got a bit tedious but generally it is well written and I enjoyed it.
13). Every Day is a Holiday- George Mahood
Humorous book of a family man who celebrates all the different holidays that are in the calendar e.g National Limerick Day. Sounds weird but was quite a good read. I have read this author's previous book and its all lighthearted fun.
Well, I finished Fiery Cross(1), and decided I'd have a bit of a rest from the Outlander books. Only a bit, though as I went on to read the Outlander spin-off Lord John novels and short stories
(2) Lord John and the Private Matter. (3) The Brotherhood of the Blade. (4) The Hand of Devils and (5) The Scottish Prisoner.
So I've now got to choose my 6th book. Back to Outlander or something completely different? I love the Outlanders but they do go on a bit, and I've been reading them for months. But can I cope without my Jamie Fraser fix, aye? I'll let you know what I decide.....
1. The Secret Place - Tana French
2. The Outcast Dead - Elly Griffths
3. False Impression - Jeffrey Archer
9/10 - I haven't read any of Jeffrey Archer's books for donkeys years (I read Kane & Abel and about 3 others when they were first out) and I got this book in a cheap Amazon deal last year. I loved it! So much so that Ifeel I have "rediscovered" him as an author and have now added all of his other books onto my wishlist. It's about a stolen painting and a chase around the world for it and it was a real page turner. The only that stopped me from giving it 10/10 was the reason for the chase around the world in the fist place was a bit tenuous!
1. The Book Thief
2. The Strange Library - Haruki Murakami 3. Last Train to Memphis - Peter Guralnick
This is the first of a two part biography about Elvis Presley and follows his life until the age of about 23. Definitely plan to buy the second book and will read it later in the year. Some of it got a bit tedious but generally it is well written and I enjoyed it.
The Peter Guralnick book "Last Train to Memphis - The Rise of Elvis Presley" is a superlative book. If you never read any other Elvis biography, choose this one. The second instalment, "Careless Love - The Unmaking of Elvis Presley" is just as good too.
14) William Nicolson - Motherland
A very good read. WW2 romance but much more - developing characters and marriages and including a bit of the Indian independence issue. I realise I am not describing it very well but it is worth reading!
Comments
Hi Granny McSmith
Interesting - what is the point of this thread? For me its a list, and a chance to see what others are reading.
In theory of course you are right - quality is better than quantity. But of course there is no guarantee that a book with 1500 pages is better quality than a book with 300 pages.
And I disagree - if someone wants to read 215 chick lit books - good on them - I love it that people enjoy books. Personally I read a wide variety - in my day job I read a lot of legislation and legal text so sometimes chick lit is what I fancy to relax - or more often a great thriller or spy or crime novel or a biography or travel tale. Each to their own - we are all different and there are millions of books out there!
I have a tedious 2 hour plus commute each day when I tend to read and am a fast reader on the whole (probably because of my legal training) so when I am "in the zone" I can average a book a day.
- if someone gets pleasure out of 5 books in the years that just as valid and valuable as me getting pleasure out of my 250 or so
Just back from a Christmas cruise with a few days at sea in the New Year so plenty of reading time!!!
1) Alan Drew - Gardens of Water
For my book club. Really interesting story of a couple of families - one Turkish and one American whose lives were devastated by an earthquake in Turkey
2) David Nicholls - Us
Excellent - I find his books very moving
3) Patricia Mann - Is ties all there is?
First bad read of the year - self obsessed woman in California discontented with her life
4) Joanna Ross - Moving On
Lighthearted read of 4 young widows in Cape Town coping with their changed circumstances
5) Sophie Kinsella - Shopaholic on Honeymoon
pure froth!
6) ASA Harrison - The Silent Wife
Good read - set in Chicago. Alternate chapters written by "him" and "her" telling the story of a separation - very moving
7) Rosie Thomas - Follies
I seem to have acquired a few books by Rosie Thomas on the Kindle and feel this may have been a mistake. Picked this one as set in Oxford - but a complete load of twaddle!
1) Jurassic Park 7/10
Enough differences from the film to make it a worthwhile read, a little bit heavy on technobabble in places.
Have the sequel to read but going to keep that to read a bit later
I didn't mean to imply that longer books are somehow more worthy than short ones - of course they are not. And there's nowt wrong with chick lit - sometimes it's just what you need.
I was just querying the 215 bit of the thread title. Now I'm embarked on a series with very long novels there's little chance of my reaching that number! (Though you never know).
But it seems the numbers aren't important for most posters, anyway, so that's OK!
An action packed thriller set in southern US and Alaska - unbelievable plot and wouldn't recommend it
A lucky find amongst the Kindle bargains.
A year in the lives of the residents of the Cathedral Close in the fictional city of Lindchester. It's told by an all knowing narrator and centres around Freddie May, aged 22, ex-chorister, ex-offender and general disaster area. Lots of C of E politics, interesting characters, sad, funny, beautifully descriptive of the changing of seasons and full of music. I thoroughly enjoyed this and look forward to the follow up book.
(Gardens of Water and Acts and Omissions)
Re. the title of the thread - I think we have just followed the same pattern that someone started in 2010 with 210 in 2010 - maybe it should be renamed next year!
Very good spy thriller. I "discovered" Charles Cumming about a month ago and am really enjoying his books
I am seriously scared to read comments as I have about 500 books to read- but I know I will keep adding more!
Oh I do enjoy a good spy thriller, might have to check him out
I have set my goal at 30 this year on goodreads. That is the lowest i have ever set it...2012 (50), 2013 (40), 2014 (40). I set it lower as i plan to read alot of longer books this year that i have been putting off for example i am just beginning Ken Follett - World Without End which is 1200 ish pages. I think i have 10 800+ books i want to get to which will take a bit longer than my average 400 ish page ones. If i get to the summer and i am smashing my goal i will up it to 35.
Folletts stuff is lengthy but very readable, I find I get through them surprisingly quickly.
Be interested to know what you think of World Without End, I read it a few months ago.
I'll not post what i thought and we can compare when you're done 😁
Going for 52 again this year, I'm already two down so will try and catch up. I do miss the days of having a commute to work as I'd easily double that once I'm in "the zone"!
I'd recommend The Trinity Six to start with
What a strange book - about 2 ww2 airmen who end up in a German mental hospital. Then gets very weird. Didn't really enjoy this one.
Thanks, sounds like it could be my cup of tea.
£3.99 for the e-book so think I'll give it a shot.
I promised myself just yesterday that I wouldn't buy any more books until I've read at least 10 from my 'to read' pile, haven't even lasted 24hrs! 😖
Tale of a small town American housewife who is fed up at being taken for granted and takes off on a whim. Reasonable read but forgettable
2. 1Q84 book 2 by Haruki Marakami
7/10, 2nd book of the trilogy. Young girl age 10 who is a member of a commune creates a 'passageway' for supernatural beings known as the Little People to access this world. 7 years later and a book based on how this happened is published, initially dictated by this girl, the story is rewritten by an aspiring author. This brings them to the attention of the little people and the commune, which is now a religious cult. Also involved is a fitness instructor and part time assassin of abusive husbands, who the aspiring writer was at school with. The 1Q84 relates to an alternative version of 1984, which they seem to have been transported into. Sounds a little like a children's book, but most certainly isn't!
I think that just about sums things up so far without giving too much away! Still not sure I fully understand it though!
Quite a good story of a journalist who had been adopted and his elderly parents reaching the end of theirs lives with the journalist seeking his true identity and uncovering a story of Nazis and revenge
2. The Strange Library - Haruki Murakami
3. Last Train to Memphis - Peter Guralnick
This is the first of a two part biography about Elvis Presley and follows his life until the age of about 23. Definitely plan to buy the second book and will read it later in the year. Some of it got a bit tedious but generally it is well written and I enjoyed it.
Humorous book of a family man who celebrates all the different holidays that are in the calendar e.g National Limerick Day. Sounds weird but was quite a good read. I have read this author's previous book and its all lighthearted fun.
(2) Lord John and the Private Matter. (3) The Brotherhood of the Blade. (4) The Hand of Devils and (5) The Scottish Prisoner.
So I've now got to choose my 6th book. Back to Outlander or something completely different? I love the Outlanders but they do go on a bit, and I've been reading them for months. But can I cope without my Jamie Fraser fix, aye? I'll let you know what I decide.....
2. The Outcast Dead - Elly Griffths
3. False Impression - Jeffrey Archer
9/10 - I haven't read any of Jeffrey Archer's books for donkeys years (I read Kane & Abel and about 3 others when they were first out) and I got this book in a cheap Amazon deal last year. I loved it! So much so that Ifeel I have "rediscovered" him as an author and have now added all of his other books onto my wishlist. It's about a stolen painting and a chase around the world for it and it was a real page turner. The only that stopped me from giving it 10/10 was the reason for the chase around the world in the fist place was a bit tenuous!
The Peter Guralnick book "Last Train to Memphis - The Rise of Elvis Presley" is a superlative book. If you never read any other Elvis biography, choose this one. The second instalment, "Careless Love - The Unmaking of Elvis Presley" is just as good too.
A very good read. WW2 romance but much more - developing characters and marriages and including a bit of the Indian independence issue. I realise I am not describing it very well but it is worth reading!