What Alice Forgot, Liane Moriarty

Read on the Kindle after purchasing for 99p on Kindle Daily Deal.

Alice Love falls off her step class in 2008 and wakes up thinking it's 1998, she's desperately in love with her husband and expecting their first child.  In reality she is the mother of three children and going through a bitter divorce.

Many similarities to Oh Dear Silvia by Dawn French, where you learn about the protagonist through others' eyes.

Although many of the characters were stereotypes, and the central premise may seem a bit contrived I enjoyed this book greatly.  Alice's confusion never descends into farce, and her emotional state rang true.

Moranthology, Caitlin Moran

Read in hardback, birthday present from Paddy.

Caitlin Moran's book, How to Be a Woman, was my favourite read from last year. So I was eager to read this one when it came out.

This book is a collection of Moran's writings for The Times - including articles, TV reviews, interviews, and reported late night conversations with her long suffering husband.

The subject matter is various and wide ranging, so not as focussed as How to be a Woman. Also some serious articles have been included, so it's not a laugh a minute, although I did snigger out loud in places.

Almost makes me prepared to pay for online subscription to The Times so I can read everything Caitlin writes, but maybe I'll just wait for the next book to come along.

The Prisoner of Heaven, Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Read in hardback, birthday present from Granny.

Not so much a sequel, more of a companion piece to The Shadow of the Wind.

This book gives the back story to one of the characters from The Shadow of the Wind - Fermin Romero de Torres, and continues the story of Daniel Sempere, who comes to learn the truth about his mother's death.

Very atmospheric.  I've never been to Barcelona, but I'd like to after reading this.  I've also ordered the third book The Angel's Game, so I can complete the series of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

Oh Dear Silvia, Dawn French

Read in Hardback, after recommendation from Amazon, and having loved "A Tiny Bit Marvellous", Dawn French's first novel and "Dear Fatty" her memoir.

This has a great central premise - Silvia lies in hospital in a coma having fallen from a balcony.  A succession of visitors passes through her room, and we hear both their private thoughts and their monologues with the inert Silvia, although we never hear from her.  Our perception of Silvia as wife, mother, sister, employer and lover changes as the book goes on and more of the plot is revealed.

I very much enjoyed this book; I liked the different voices of all the characters and although I thought the plot was fairly obvious I nevertheless enjoyed watching it being played out.

Delirium, Lauren Oliver

Recommended by and borrowed from Linda, read in paperback.

Lena lives in a future where love has been classified as a disease and all young people are "cured" on their eighteenth birthdays after being "paired" with a person from the opposite sex deemed appropriate by the authorities.

Lena has a secret - her mother was subjected to the cure, but it didn't work, and so Lena grew up knowing real love, not just "bonding" until she was six when her mother committed suicide.  At the start of the book, Lena is terrified of love, and can't wait for her cure.

Another "Young Adult" novel, and again it suffered from the lack of bite.  I found the story to be just too predictable.  Having said that it is well written, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone over the age of 19.

I am the Messenger, Markus Zusak

Read in paperback, November book club book, Nicci's choice.

Another book club book set in Australia.  This is a "Young Adult" novel, and reads a bit like a PG film.

Small town loser Ed is working as a taxi driver, even tho' he is under age.  He loves his best friend Audrey, but she dates other guys, he loves his smelly dog - the Doorman, and his two other friends miser Marv and waste of space Ritchie.

After haplessly foiling a bank raid, Ed receives playing cards in the mail, which encourage him to carry out missions on behalf of his town's less fortunate citizens.

The central premise seems to be: be nice to the elderly, encourage the young, be welcoming to immigrants, don't forget about your family, don't get into fights, go to church: in essence think about others rather than yourself.

Dan Savage put it more succinctly: "Worry less about getting your 16-year-old self laid and more about getting your 20-year-old self laid. Get out of the house and do shit, get books and read shit, volunteer for a political organization and change shit. You'll have more boys to choose from in a few years and be a more interesting, informed, and attractive guy thanks to all that doing, reading, and volunteering."

Bring Up the Bodies, Hilary Mantel

Read in hardback - firstly borrowed from Millie, then I bought my own copy so I could read Wolf Hall again, then read this book again.

It starts where Wolf Hall leaves off, with Henry VIII now married to Anne Boleyn, and covers the years until her execution.  After forcing the break with the Catholic church, her inability to give Henry a son makes him again question the validity of his marriage.

Told from the point of view of Thomas Cromwell, by now the King's closest confidante, it follows the extreme pressure he is under to remove all obstacles in the way of the King obtaining his new object of desire - Jane Seymour.

Scenes and characters from Wolf Hall echo through this book.  It's as beautifully and poetically written, but now Cromwell has to be even more ruthless in service of the King.

I simply cannot wait for the third book in the series, where the downfall of Cromwell will be played out.

Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel

Originally read in 2009, as part of the Booker shortlist, which it went on to win.  Read again in hardback in preparation for reading the sequel.

Tells the story of Henry VIII's divorce from Katherine of Aragon, from the point of view of Thomas Cromwell, a commoner who rises to the position of Henry's most trusted advisor.

A magnificent feat of imagination, bringing to life those who lived in Tudor times, their motivations (greed and power) echoing with relevance today.

Words cannot express how much I loved this book.  I read it twice when it first came out, and again this year after I'd read Bring Up the Bodies, so I could read that book again too.

Religion for Atheists, Alain de Botton

Read in hardback after seeing Alain speak at Cambridge WordFest 2012.

Subtitled "A non-believer's guide to the uses of religion", this book is Alain's attempt to gather from some of the world's major religions those elements which could be useful to secular society.

Covers a wide range of topics, including Community, Education, Art and Architecture.

Well written and researched, also very well-meaning, Alain seems determined to bring depth of feeling and thinking to the secular world.

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, Maggie O'Farrell

Book Club choice for Oct 2012, chosen by Clare and read in paperback.

I devoured this book when it first came out, and read it again with relish.

Iris, an Edinburgh shop-owner, is surprised to be contacted by a nursing home about a Great-Aunt that she never knew existed.  This book describes how Esme came to be written out of family history.

The story is revealed gradually, in different voices: Esme's own, Esme's memories, and the ramblings of Esme's sister Kitty, now suffering from dementia.

Not the jolliest of reads, but gripping.

Sweet Tooth, Ian McEwan

Read on the Kindle, following Amazon recommendation.

A new Ian McEwan book? Well, what are you going to do? You have to download and read it, right? After all it will probably end up on the Booker list, no?

Well, actually, no.  This book didn't make the even the long list for the Booker, and I think the reason may be that this book is McEwan by numbers.

Serena Frome is recruited into MI5 out of Cambridge University, where she has gone to study Maths at her mother's insistence.  She works on some low level projects before getting involved in Sweet Tooth, a project to secretly recruit and financially support writers who are hostile to Communism.  Serena starts an affair with, and eventually falls in love with the author she has been sent to recruit.  Of course, such a massive deceit is not going to end well for them.

Perhaps I am just too young to recall the 70s; the political wrangling and the 3 day week.  Perhaps I didn't take enough notice of the Cold War at the time, but this book failed to grab me.

A Visit From the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan

Read in paperback, recommended and lent by Sam.

This book reminded me very much of Cloud Atlas: the changing narrators, styles and time periods, including a chapter set in the future.

You have to keep your wits about you, as the points of view and time frame changes from chapter to chapter with no preamble.  However, the same characters come back time and again in different configurations.

It also reminded me of Black Swan Green, another David Mitchell book, because each chapter can be read on its own, like a collection of short stories.

Set in America, the story broadly follows the lives of Bennie, a music entrepreneur, and his assistant Sasha, their brushes with celebrities and their successes and failures.

I enjoyed the style of this book, but was not particularly moved by it.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce

Read on the Kindle, as recommended by Granny, also on the Booker Prize Long List 2012.

A very gentle book, with a deceptively simple premise.  Harold receives a letter from a friend to let him know that she is dying.  Harold writes a reply, and sets out to post it, but walks past the postbox and keeps on going. Eventually walking from South Devon to Berwick upon Tweed.

On the way we learn about Harold's history, and his relationships with his wife, his son, and the friend he is trying to keep alive.

Contains some very poetic passages about the English Countryside, and also meditations on materialism and celebrity.

At times sad and poignant, ultimately uplifting and definitely a page turner.

Cloudstreet, Tim Winton

Read for Book Club - chosen by Ros.

Set in Perth, this novel teems with strong Australian characters.

Two families come by chance to live together in a big old house.  Each family has their own tragedies and joys to cope with in a story spanning 30 years.

It took me a while to read, but it was worth it to follow the lows and highs.

The Stranger's Child, Alan Hollinghurst

Read on the Kindle - special purchase at 20p.

I had read and enjoyed the Line of Beauty, so when I saw this book on special offer on the Kindle I went ahead and downloaded it.

It's a novel with a broad historic sweep - starting in the early 20th Century, and ending in the current times.

Each section of the book is set in a different time, and the challenge every time the focus shifts is to work out where and when you are, and how everybody is connected.  Events and characters are viewed differently with hindsight, sometimes we know more than the characters in the book, and sometimes they have knowledge we didn't have.

Only spoiled by a slightly downbeat ending, where loose ends were left flapping in the wind, I nevertheless enjoyed this book too.

A Perfectly Good Man, Patrick Gale

Read on the Kindle, after Amazon recommendation.

A companion piece to Notes from an Exhibition, it features the same Cornwall location and some of the same characters.

An interesting structure, where Father Barnaby Johnson's chapters work backwards in time, while the rest of the narrative starts at the beginning and works forward.

Beautifully written, with the central questions seeming to be not only What makes a Good Man? but also What makes a Man Good.

I loved this book, and was sad and bereft when I finished it.

How to Eat Out, Giles Coren

Read on the Kindle, after recommendation by Amazon.

Giles Coren, son of Alan Coren, former editor of Punch, and brother of Victoria Coren, writer, presenter and champion poker player, is a food critic and television presenter. (He's also written a novel, but I haven't read that yet).

This book is part autobiography, part travelogue, and part instruction manual for how to get the best out of a dining experience in various different types of restaurant.

He may come across as pompous and opinionated some times, but he sure knows how to string a sentence together, and some of the chapters are laugh out loud funny.

Fifty Shades of Grey, E L James

Read on the Kindle, mainly to see what the fuss was all about.

I can see how it has become a sensation, through clever marketing.  It's like it's given women permission to read and talk about reading 'saucy' books.

I read it all the way to the end, but found the repetition really grating.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened, Jenny Lawson

Read on the Kindle, downloaded following a recommendation from Amazon.

The first Kindle book that I have regretted buying in electronic format.  There were lots of footnotes, bit of a pain clicking on them, then coming back to your original page, and lots of photographs, which go a bit fuzzy when you zoom in on them.

Having said that, Jenny Lawson is a very funny woman and has written a very funny book.  If you love her blog, you will certainly love this book where her whimsy and flights of fantasy are given a more free rein in chapter form rather than being constrained to the length of a blog post.

Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins

The last instalment of the trilogy, I read this straight away after the second book to keep the momentum going.

As our heroine Katniss takes on the Capitol in the final battle, there is much more violence than the first two books, more intrigue too.

All plot lines suitably closed, the story done and dusted, including the Harry Potter style epilogue.

Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins

Clearly it would be difficult to match the excitement and originality of the first book, but this sequel does a good job of moving the characters, plot and story forwards towards the conclusion.

Reading the sequel next.

The Slap, Christos Tsiolkas

Read for Book Club - Jo's choice.  Book borrowed from Granny.  Read it a couple of years ago, but needed to refresh my memory.

One man slapping another couple's child at a suburban barbeque is the catalyst for a series of events which involves a cast of characters drawn from all walks of Australian society.

Each chapter is written from the point of a different character.  My favourite chapter is Manolis, the elderly Greek immigrant, trying to come to terms with the lack of respect shown by the younger generation, the gradual loss of his contemporaries and the change in his relationship with his wife.

There could not be a more perfect book club book.  So many issues are covered - women who are over protective mothers, women who work and have children, women who don't want children, tension between the older and younger generations, religious intolerance, racial intolerance, drug taking, homosexuality, teenage angst, marital infidelity - it's got the lot.

Where'd You Go, Bernadette, Maria Semple

Read on the kindle.

Recommended to me by Amazon.

Genius architect and agoraphobic Bernadette goes missing in the Antarctic, and it's up to her gifted daughter Bee to find her.

I loved this book, found it funny and human.  I enjoyed the settings of Seattle and the ship cruising the Antarctic, and believed in the flawed characters.

Pure, Andrew Miller

Read on the Kindle.

Winner of the 2011 Costa Book of the Year Award.

Set in pre-Revolutionary Paris, engineer Jean-Baptiste Baratte is charged with clearing the cemetery and church of Les Innocents, to make the ground, and the air around pure again.

A very atmospheric book, a great cast of characters, including the rustic Jean-Baptiste, out of his depth in a Paris which seems spoiling for change.

The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins

Borrowed from Adam, who had it as a birthday present.  Wanted to see what all the hype was about.

I enjoyed the concept, the story and the strong female lead.  Less keen on the violence.

Liked it enough to reach for the sequel.

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald

My choice for Book Club this year, suggested in time for the Baz Luhrmann movie to come out later this year.

An American classic that I'd never read before. Read on the kindle for 70p, it's now down to 49p.

Despite being published in 1925, the themes are remarkably current, social climbing, the gap between the have and have nots, marriage and infidelity.

It's shorter than I thought it would be and more melancholy.

Jamrach's Menagerie, Carol Birch

From the Booker Prize Shortlist 2011. Read on the kindle.

Not having read the blurb I wasn't expecting such a visceral novel of shipwreck and cannibalism.

A book of two halves, before and after Jaffy goes to sea, very poetic.

Made me want to seek out more things she has written.

The Humourist, Russell Kane

Read on the Kindle.  Have seen Russell Kane a couple of times doing stand up.  Was not disappointed by his book, but was surprised by how dark the humour was.

Benjamin White, comedy critic, discovers the secret of fatal humour.

Reading in the Dark, Seamus Deane

Bought from Amazon Market Place and read for Book Club - Gillian's Choice.

A remarkably poetic book about a not-very poetic time - the troubles in Northern Ireland in the 40s and 50s.

The family story is interwoven with local myths and local histories.

The Pregnant Widow, Martin Amis

Borrowed from Granny.

Story of one man's long hot summer in Italy and its lasting effects on his relationships through the years.

Set in the 70s.  Interesting cast of characters.

A bit wordy for me.

Briefs Encountered, Julian Clary

Read in hardback, in preparation for seeing Julian speak at Wordfest in Cambridge.

Semi-autobiographical story of actor who buys Noel Cowards old house and restores it to its former glory, whilst coping with spooky goings on.

Delightful bit of fluff.

Me Before You, Jojo Moyes

Read on the Kindle. Tackles the sensitive subject of euthanasia for those who are paralysed.

A cut above the average chick lit.

The Tiger's Wife, Tea Obreht

Read for Book Club, Clare's choice.

History, Myth and Present Day intertwined in war-torn former Yugoslavia.

Beautifully written - amazing first novel. Didn't get the emotional engagement I was searching for.

Snowdrops, A.D. Miller

Read on the Kindle, another of the 2011 Booker shortlist.

Written as a confessional to his intended, by a man about to be married. The story of one fateful year in the life of an English lawyer in Moscow, and his corruption by people, criminals and the state.

Certainly readable, but a bit downbeat and depressing.

Waiting for Sunrise, William Boyd

Irritatingly named and hapless hero Lysander Rief, actor, gets himself in a scrape in Vienna in 1913. Owing a debt to the British Government, he is forced to carry out covert missions during the first world war.

Atmospheric thriller, but didn't like it as much as Restless or Ordinary Thunderstorms.

The Secret River, Kate Grenville

Booker Prize Shortlist 2006, Read on the Kindle.

The story of the early 19th Century, set in Australia in the developing city of Sydney and its environs, peopled by criminals transported from London, then pardoned, and who can make a claim to a patch of land simply by building a hut on it, and clearing enough land to plant a crop.

A sympathetic main character made this an intriguing read. The violence perpetrated against the Aboriginals will be a bit strong for some to stomach.

There but for the, Ali Smith

Read on the Kindle. Saw the author speak at Wordfest 2011, she was a bundle of raw energy.

The words are poured onto the page. In the last section especially, a stream of consciousness and word play.

Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell

Read in hardback. Has been sitting on my bedside table since nominated for the Booker Prize in 2004. Finally got round to reading it after challenge from Gillian.

Enjoyed the nested structure of the stories, felt some were more successful than others. It's a long book, not to be undertaken lightly.

Read more about it at Booker Prize website.

Black Swan Green, David Mitchell

March Book Club Book, chosen by Rachel. Read in paperback.

A coming of age tale, set in the early 80's. Should be my era. Was bogged down in the middle until I read an Amazon review suggesting the book should be read as a sequence of 30 short stories, each with a beginning, middle and end. Then I got on much better with it and enjoyed it to the end.

Booky Wook 2 This Time It's Personal

Borrowed from Alex. American version, but only one footnote this time, describing Opportunity Knocks as a beige X-Factor.

Enjoyed more than the first one - more stories about films etc that I've seen. Includes the story of how he met Katy Perry. Seems to have fallen pretty hard for her - poor sod.

Star Island, Carl Hiaasen

February book club book, chosen by Sam, read on the Kindle.

Hilarious romp set in Florida. Calls to mind Elmore Leonard with a Quentin Tarantino twist.

The Sisters Brothers, Patrick deWitt

From the Booker List. Read on the kindle. Quirky tale of gunslingers in the Wild West. If I hadn't read it on the kindle I would lend it to you. That's a recommendation.

Buy it from amazon here.

Call the Midwife, Jennifer Worth

Recommended by Granny, and read on the kindle. True story of a midwife in the East End in the 1950s. If you like your realism gritty and grimy, this is the book for you.

Buy it from amazon here.

My Booky Wook, Russell Brand

Borrowed from Alex. Read the American version with footnotes. The footnotes are the funniest bit.

Buy from amazon here.

First Book of the Year - Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman

From the Booker List. Read on the kindle. Harri from Ghana tries to make sense of English culture at school and in the high rise where he lives. Loved the language. Not keen on the ending.

Buy from Amazon here.