What books did you read in 2022?

[Jamie John]

6/24: Assassin's Apprentice, Robin Hobb

 

 

I've been meaning to read this for a while now and once I started it was difficult to stop. A great low fantasy page turner that felt like a more centred Game of Thrones, albeit with less bonking. I'll definitely pick up the next one in the trilogy.

 

---

 

7/24: Blood Meridian, Cormac McCarthy

 

 

My third or fourth time reading this. It's a masterpiece, obviously. One of my favourite books. A hyper-violent, apocalyptic anti-western and a nihilistic treatise on the darkness of man's heart. Utterly dazzling prose. This was my first time reading it on Kindle, and I found the translation tool for all of the bits in Spanish very useful. There were lots of obscure words that the Dictionary and Wikipedia still couldn't cope with, however. If you enjoyed The Road, No Country for Old Men, Lord of the Flies or, y'know, The Illiad, then it's essential reading.

 

Quote

His feet are light and nimble. He never sleeps. He says that he will never die. He dances in light and in shadow and he is a great favorite. He never sleeps, the judge. He is dancing, dancing. He says that he will never die.

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

 

6. One by Peter Schmeichel

 

This is a much more bog standard footballer's autobiography which I managed to get through in very little time.  It's pretty good - by the end, Big Pete speaks more about his life as opposed to a 'by the numbers' overview of his career which makes the first 50% of the book a bit dull.

 

Comes across as a good bloke which is a relief because I've always liked him, despite absolutely loathing Man Utd in the 90's when they won everything and all the kids at school were glory hunters.

 

Anyway, worth 99p but nothing too amazing here.  Not a patch on Paul McGrath's book I read earlier this year.

 

7/10

[ZOK]

On 07/05/2022 at 12:13, the_debaser said:

Read Fahrenheit 451, been meaning to for ages as it’s widely considered a stone cold classic.
 

Wish I hadn’t bothered as it is absolute shit. 

 

The more literate amongst us will no doubt be fascinated to learn that there were around 200 copies printed with an asbestos binding - fireproof! - which go for about £15K if you’re in the market for an amazing copy of a masterpiece: https://www.whitmorerarebooks.com/pages/books/1169/ray-bradbury/fahrenheit-451-asbestos-binding?soldItem=true

[Stopharage]

2 hours ago, Boothjan said:

  Reveal hidden contents

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

 

6. One by Peter Schmeichel

 

This is a much more bog standard footballer's autobiography which I managed to get through in very little time.  It's pretty good - by the end, Big Pete speaks more about his life as opposed to a 'by the numbers' overview of his career which makes the first 50% of the book a bit dull.

 

Comes across as a good bloke which is a relief because I've always liked him, despite absolutely loathing Man Utd in the 90's when they won everything and all the kids at school were glory hunters.

 

Anyway, worth 99p but nothing too amazing here.  Not a patch on Paul McGrath's book I read earlier this year.

 

7/10

I’m currently reading the Troy Deeney effort and it’s decent - 99p this month. He’s pretty honest about how misguided he’s been at times, the abuse he dealt with in childhood and discusses his mental health issues. He’s an interesting chap and it’s a good read. 

[Boothjan]

2 minutes ago, Stopharage said:

I’m currently reading the Troy Deeney effort and it’s decent - 99p this month. He’s pretty honest about how misguided he’s been at times, the abuse he dealt with in childhood and discusses his mental health issues. He’s an interesting chap and it’s a good read. 

 

For 99p I'll give it a try - though I really really dislike Troy Deeney 

[megamixer]

I've recently re-read Mr Mercedes and Finders Keepers by Stephen King. Both as excellent as I remember (moreso Mr Mercedes). I'm in two minds about whether to re-visit End of Watch; I remember enjoying the writing and characters themselves (as with the first two books in the Hodges "trilogy") but feeling that the Detective/Cat & Mouse style from the first two books was completely ruined by introducing a load of supernatural stuff. Obviously supernatural and Stephen King go together like beer and a barbeque, but I felt that it had no place in these particular stories.

 

On the other hand, I'm an OCD completionist and it doesn't feel right re-reading these books and missing one out. Bah.

 

While I debate that, I dug out my copy of Christine and have started that again. One of my all-time favourites. There's nothing like returning to an old 1980's physical book with yellowed pages and that ancient book smell.

[lolly]

11 hours ago, ZOK said:

 

The more literate amongst us will no doubt be fascinated to learn that there were around 200 copies printed with an asbestos binding - fireproof! - which go for about £15K if you’re in the market for an amazing copy of a masterpiece: https://www.whitmorerarebooks.com/pages/books/1169/ray-bradbury/fahrenheit-451-asbestos-binding?soldItem=true

That's fucking lit!

 

 

[smac]

On 10/05/2022 at 12:20, ZOK said:

 

The more literate amongst us will no doubt be fascinated to learn that there were around 200 copies printed with an asbestos binding - fireproof! - which go for about £15K if you’re in the market for an amazing copy of a masterpiece: https://www.whitmorerarebooks.com/pages/books/1169/ray-bradbury/fahrenheit-451-asbestos-binding?soldItem=true

 

Quote

Page block is tight and square, although it smells a bit smoky 

 

Smelling a book with asbestos binding? 

[smac]

On 10/05/2022 at 12:20, ZOK said:

 

The more literate amongst us will no doubt be fascinated to learn that there were around 200 copies printed with an asbestos binding - fireproof! - which go for about £15K if you’re in the market for an amazing copy of a masterpiece: https://www.whitmorerarebooks.com/pages/books/1169/ray-bradbury/fahrenheit-451-asbestos-binding?soldItem=true

 

Well fuck me. Life and art intertwining once more:

 

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/may/24/margaret-atwood-handmaids-tale-unburnable-edition

 

Quote

“Printed and bound using fireproof materials, this edition of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale was made to be completely un-burnable. It is designed to protect this vital story and stand as a powerful symbol against censorship.”

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

 

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson

 

I absolutely loved Clarkson's Farm - probably the best thing I've seen him in, not just entertaining but shows just how difficult everyday life is for the farming industry, particularly with the affects from Brexit and covid.

 

This book consists of Clarkson's columns from the Sunday Times during the first year he spent working on his farm, and it's short but entertaining.  I appreciate that Clarkson is rather 'marmite' (I do understand why some people loathe him!) but I did really enjoy this.  

 

7.5/10

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson - 7.5/10

 

8. Shackleton's Boat Journey by Frank Worsley

 

An account of the thrilling journey across the Antarctic seas by Sir Ernest Shackleton, as told by one of his crew - the captain of the doomed Endeavour.

 

This is fairly short, but absolutely riveting throughout, which makes it quick to breeze through.  The conditions these men had to endure as they left the rest of their crew marooned on Elephant Island in dreadful conditions towards South Georgia in order to raise the alarm were absolutely appalling.  I have no idea how any of them survived - be it in Shackleton's rescue party or the men they left behind.

 

It's told in such a 'matter-of-fact' manner which actually helps the story - even though there's very little peril or exaggeration on the pages, you absolutely feel the danger they all faced.

 

Can't help but feel that this is an epic drama series in the making - it's a phenomenal story and if you don't know much about it, I'd recommend you research it.  Or - better still - give this a read.

 

I felt cold throughout reading it.  Even when I was wrapped up in my duvet in my nice warm house, windows closed and heating on.  In May.

 

9/10

[Alexlotl]

I went to a few exhibitions about Scott and Shackleton when I lived in NZ, including the Frank Worsely collection at the Akaroa museum (his home town). I particularly liked the fact that one member of the crew was by all accounts a negative pain-in-the-arse, and that Shackleton chose to take that person with him on the boat, as he knew that he'd be absolute poison for the morale of the men they were leaving behind on Elephant Island.

 

The more you learn about the two of them, the more you wonder why we were brought up with Scott venerated and Shackleton almost forgotten.

[wev]

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi - Charles Soule

 

As stated in the Star Wars: The New Canon thread, I enjoyed this but it does have its problems. The biggest being that it tries to follow too many characters. It does this, initially, by taking an approach like A Song of Ice and Fire, following a character per chapter, but as events play out and characters begin to be in the same location it focuses more on whats happening in that particular location. It makes it a little difficult to follow everything that's going on. That said, its definitely a "World Building" book, and it does this well enough. It's set about 200 years before The Phantom Menace and the Star Wars Universe is quite different to whats in the films (its largely at peace at the start of the book), but it establishes some interesting villains, eventually gives you an idea of the structure of the Jedi and doesnt get too hung up on featuring some of the more infamous planets in the galaxy.

 

Berzerk vol. 5 - Kentaro Miura

 

Not much to write about with this volume, it's not filler but nothing really of much note happens.

 

Berzerk vol. 6 - Kentaro Miura

 

Much better than the previous one. Guts actually gets a bit of character development but its also not too focused on him either. Its still very much of its time though.

 

Star Wars: The High Republic Vol. 1 There Is No Fear - Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito

 

The first volume of the High Republic comics, picks up roughly where Light of the Jedi finishes, uses some of those characters so it was nice to put faces to names and introduces a really likeable, newly Knighted Jedi. Quite enjoying the era so far.

 

Spoiler

The Fight - Norman Mailer

The Witcher: Time of Contempt - Andrzej Sapkowski

Can't Stop, Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation - Jeff Chang

Saga: Compendium One - Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples

The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring - JRR Tolkien

Berzerk vol. 4 - Kentaro Miura

The Only Good Indians - Stephen Graham Jones

Playing The Bass With Three Left Hands - Will Carruthers

Master and Apprentice: Star Wars - Claudia Grey

To Be Taught, If Fortunate - Becky Chambers

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi - Charles Soule

Berzerk vol. 5 - Kentaro Miura

Berzerk vol. 6 - Kentaro Miura

Star Wars: The High Republic Vol. 1 There Is No Fear - Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson - 7.5/10

8. Shackleton's Boat Journey by Frank Worsley - 9/10

 

9. Redemption by Troy Deeney

 

First of all, a hat tip to @Stopharagefor recommending this.  I have never particularly liked Troy Deeney but this is a very good read - I found the details about his childhood difficult to read, he really had a tough upbringing.

 

To be fair to him, he admits he has made some terrible mistakes and has tried to rectify that as he's got older and matured and one of the final chapters focuses on racism still rife within football - this is by far the best chapter of the book as I agreed with every word he said, and it's said pretty eloquently too.  I think I can re-evaluate my opinion on him.  Only slightly though, after all - he plays for Birmingham City now so a complete 'Redemption' isn't possible in such circumstances....

 

I'll rate this as 'better than Schmeichel but not as good as McGrath' in the 2022 footballer's autobiography stakes.  

 

8/10

 

[Alexlotl]

2. The Peripheral, by William Gibson

 

I picked this up (on Kindle) back in 2016 when it was cheap for a day, but with the election of Trump, reading a near future novel about the world’s gradual descent into kleptocratic apocalypse seemed a bit close to the bone. Not sure if I’m less worried about the world now, or just more accepting, but either way I felt ready. Thoughts below. 
 

Spoiler

All in all, a good read, with two well imagined timelines each with a distinct sense of place. But it didn’t really hold up in the final third, with characters being a bit too accepting and easily adaptable to their wildly changed circumstances, and the ending was a bit too happy, with seemingly everyone happily paired off and with all their troubles solved.

 

Assuming it’s going to be a trilogy like his others, it’s probably the weakest opening salvo of the four, but the bar is set very high there.

First book I read on my new Kindle Paperwhite, which is wonderful. I’ll keep my old 5th Gen for reading on the beach and in the bath, but the text quality on the Paperwhite is so much better. 

[ZOK]

On 02/06/2022 at 17:01, Alexlotl said:

2. The Peripheral, by William Gibson

 

I picked this up (on Kindle) back in 2016 when it was cheap for a day, but with the election of Trump, reading a near future novel about the world’s gradual descent into kleptocratic apocalypse seemed a bit close to the bone. Not sure if I’m less worried about the world now, or just more accepting, but either way I felt ready. Thoughts below. 
 

  Hide contents

All in all, a good read, with two well imagined timelines each with a distinct sense of place. But it didn’t really hold up in the final third, with characters being a bit too accepting and easily adaptable to their wildly changed circumstances, and the ending was a bit too happy, with seemingly everyone happily paired off and with all their troubles solved.

 

Assuming it’s going to be a trilogy like his others, it’s probably the weakest opening salvo of the four, but the bar is set very high there.

First book I read on my new Kindle Paperwhite, which is wonderful. I’ll keep my old 5th Gen for reading on the beach and in the bath, but the text quality on the Paperwhite is so much better. 

Agency is the next one, I thought it was better than The Peripheral.

[Ste Pickford]

I've finally finished the Gormenghast trilogy, which I started in Feb or March or something.  I got all three as a single volume on kindle in one of those 99p monthly deals.   Great value, but it's hard to see how far through each book you are when you just have a % for the whole trilogy (had the same problem with a 6 volume set of Dune books I also got for 99p a couple of years earlier).

I enjoyed it all tremendously, and was almost kicking myself for not reading this when I was younger.  I didn't like the third book initially, the way everything changed felt wrong, but I slowly came around and enjoyed it just as much as the first two.  It had a similar vibe to Piranesi towards the end.

 

I can see there's a fourth book, cobbled together from the authors notes.  Is that worth bothering with?

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson - 7.5/10

8. Shackleton's Boat Journey by Frank Worsley - 9/10

9. Redemption by Troy Deeney - 8/10

 

10. The White Ship by Charles Spencer

 

Well this is excellent - a very thorough, fascinating look into the dynasties of the Norman rulers of England, the direct descendants of William I.  The White Ship disaster was the turning point of the English empire in the mid 12th century, as the lives of many important people - including the heir to the throne of King Henry I - were lost at sea.

 

The repercussions were massive, and led to civil war.

 

I knew a bit about this before I started reading it, but this is very well written and easy to follow and goes into a lot of detail.

 

Coincidentally, a lot of what happens as a result of the sinking of the White Ship is what influenced the best part of George RR Martin's Fire And Blood, which will make up the main story of the Game of Thrones prequel out later this year.  

 

Also, I had absolutely no idea that the writer was Earl Spencer (Diana's brother) until I checked the author's other work after finishing it.  Talented dude - this is very good and definitely worth a read.

 

8.5/10

[little che]

On 16/06/2022 at 10:35, Boothjan said:

  Reveal hidden contents

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson - 7.5/10

8. Shackleton's Boat Journey by Frank Worsley - 9/10

9. Redemption by Troy Deeney - 8/10

 

10. The White Ship by Charles Spencer

 

Well this is excellent - a very thorough, fascinating look into the dynasties of the Norman rulers of England, the direct descendants of William I.  The White Ship disaster was the turning point of the English empire in the mid 12th century, as the lives of many important people - including the heir to the throne of King Henry I - were lost at sea.

 

The repercussions were massive, and led to civil war.

 

I knew a bit about this before I started reading it, but this is very well written and easy to follow and goes into a lot of detail.

 

Coincidentally, a lot of what happens as a result of the sinking of the White Ship is what influenced the best part of George RR Martin's Fire And Blood, which will make up the main story of the Game of Thrones prequel out later this year.  

 

Also, I had absolutely no idea that the writer was Earl Spencer (Diana's brother) until I checked the author's other work after finishing it.  Talented dude - this is very good and definitely worth a read.

 

8.5/10

Agreed, it’s excellent. I read it some time ago and until I read your post I had no idea it was Diana’s brother who wrote it. 

[Boothjan]

@little che I think it was you who recommended it actually mate, a few weeks back when it was one of the Kindle daily deals.  So thanks for that - much appreciated!

[Vimster]

Being really slack with the reading of late.

 

08 - The Van by Roddy Doyle - the third of the trilogy, and it's just as entertaining, this time with Jimmy snr and Bimbo running a chip van. It's full of crude laughs but there's heart to it as well, the nuances of the relationships sort of sneaks in with the humour.

 

Spoiler

01 - Fever Of The Bone by Val McDermid

02 - Join The Future: Bleep Techno and the Birth of British Bass Music by Matt Anniss

03 - And Away by Bob Mortimer

04 - Die Trying by Lee Child

05 - A Fabulous Creation: How The LP Saved Our Lives by David Hepworth

06 - Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture by Simon Reynolds

07 - Who Owns England by Guy Shrubsole

08 - The Van by Roddy Doyle

 

[Jamie John]

8/24 - Dune, Frank Herbert (1965)

 

 

This has taken me about six weeks to get through. I'd tried it years ago but couldn't get into it, so, after re-watching the film version, I thought I'd give it another chance. Overall, it was a lot less accessible than I was expecting, and without the film as a frame of reference to help me visualise certain scenes, or know about particular relationships, I probably would have abandoned it again.

 

It begins very much in media res and goes on in that same vein by hot-dropping proper nouns all over the place, as well as lots of Arabic words and Arabic-derived portmanteaus, that the reader is expected to infer the meanings of, or look up. Helpfully, there are appendices and a glossary at the back of the book, but, unhelpfully, reading this on Kindle, I didn't bloody realise that they were there until I' d got to about the 90% mark and the story suddenly ended, only to turn to the next page and see 'Appendix I: A History of House Atreides', or whatever, which I should probably have read as I was reading.

 

And as visually spectacular as the film is, I was struck by how interior and inward-facing the novel is: there's little in the way of expositional description when it comes to the spaceships, the different settings, the technology. It's really quite a cerebral novel, dealing as it does with Paul's prescient visions, and false visions, and visions that might become true or might be false depending on the action he and others around him take, as well as the bits where he's off his tits on spice. Having been written in the mid-60s, the influence of hallucinogenics is plain to see.

 

Ultimately, it's one of those sci-fi books that I found more 'important' and worthy than I found enjoyable, though I was intrigued enough by the structure and the political back-stabbing to keep reading. I can say that part two of the Villeneuve film is going to be even more epic than the first, if events in the second half of this are anything to go by.

[Stopharage]

Haven't updated my reading list for a while. Fair to say this is a reasonably eclectic mix..

 

7. How to be a RockStar by Shaun Ryder - Enjoyably honest write-up of how lucky he has been, how grounded he is about the madness of his life up to now and how he's a bit more clean living. 

 

8. Putin:Prisoner of Power by Misha Glenny - An account of how Putin ended up running Russia, the people who put him there and the impact on Russian society. 

 

9. Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall by Spike Milligan - 1st part of his WW2 account. I remember enjoying this more when I was a bit younger but still an amusing account of the madness of the times. 

 

10. Shadow State: Murder, Mayhem and Russia's Remaking of the West by Luke Harding - Another Putin focused tome. The level of skullduggery and machinations behind the scenes is upsettingly impressive. 

 

11. Manifesto: How a Maverick Entrepreneur Took on British Energy and Won by Dale Vince - This is the guy who started Ecotricity and is now the owner of Forest Green Rovers, who Fifa have branded the most environmentally friendly football club in the world. If he joined up to this place, he'd be very highly thought of, I'd imagine. During the 80's he railed against Thatcher, was part of the rave and striking culture, began generating renewable energy from a hastily created hodgepodge windmill on a hill, began travelling around the country and Europe in an old, renovated truck and so on. He's a really likeable individual and it's clear that he's extremely talented and devoted businessman. 

 

12. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. Decided to read this as one of the kids is having to read this for their GCSE. It was short and I didn't really get anything out of it. I was under the impression from the various cultural influences that Hyde would feature more prominently.

 

13. The Collector by John Fowles. This was a pretty unsettling read, where a man captures and traps a young lady in the basement of his house. It's well written and I loved the narrative shift half way through, however it all left me feeling a bit grubby, which I think was part of the aim. Would definitely recommend. 

 

14. Redemption by Troy Deeney. Autobiography of an outspoken, Marmite-type footballer. I thought this was really illuminating and explains why Deeney is such an abrasive character. 

 

15. Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld. Snippets of Seinfeld's favourite work over the last 40 years. I bounced off this and didn't get a great deal from it. 

 

16. The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo. This is terrific. A Fantasy novella that is concerned with an Empress who is exiled and her friendship with a servant called Rabbit. It won the Hugo Award for Best Novella in 2021 and is well worth a read. The writing is great and engaging throughout. Some great ideas too. Recommended. 

 

17. The Damned United by David Peace. A fictional account of Brian Clough's tempestuous managerial stint at Leeds. Real character and wit throughout. 

 

18. Beautiful World, Where Are You? by Sally Rooney. I really liked Normal People but this was self-indulgent and featured similar issues to her first 2 books. Got fed-up with the unlikeable characters. Disappointing. 

 

19. How High We Go In the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu. Absolutely loved this. Global warming leads to the thawing of permafrost, awakening a virus from years before. Every chapter then looks at how this effects humanity. Each chapter is standalone, although there are links between some and the same characters feature in some of them. I thought this was a superb piece of work with more more ideas, craft and ingenuity than in any other book I've read for a few years. The theme-park chapter and the pig chapter will stay with me for a long time. I can understand that people might dislike the whole but there is enough merit in individual chapters to make this a must-read. Think this will be my favourite book of the year. 

 

20. When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope. A disaster expert who has helped at the Boxing Day Tsunami, 7/7 etc. explains her role and how contingency plans are created and initiated. It was a superb insight into a little-known role and the thought, humanity and kindness with which she embraces her job is uplifting. She also details the impact that this has had on her health, her family and how she puts victims and their families at the heart of everything she does. Well worth reading. 

Spoiler

1. How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie.

2. The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

3. Empireland: How Imperialism Has Shaped Modern Britain by Sathnam Sanghera

4. The Etymologicon by Mark Forsyth

5. The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

6. My Last Supper by Jay Rayner

7. How to be a RockStar by Shaun Ryder

8. Putin:Prisoner of Power by Misha Glenny

9. Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall

10. Shadow State: Murder, Mayhem and Russia's Remaking of the West by Luke Harding

11. Manifesto: How a Maverick Entrepreneur Took on British Energy and Won by Dale Vince

12. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

13. The Collector by John Fowles

14. Redemption by Troy Deeney

15. Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld

16. The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo

17. The Damned United by David Peace

18. Beautiful World, Where Are You? by Sally Rooney

19. How High We Go In the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu

20. When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope

 

[Jamie John]

9/24 - Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes (1966)

 

 

Another sci-fi classic, the one a very good, very sad story about a mentally disabled man who undergoes surgery to increase his intelligence, only to find that ignorance may well be bliss. It ends up going where you always knew it was going to go from the very beginning, but I thought it was by turns touching and, in places, terrifying. An easy recommendation. (I read the novel version; the earlier short story was published in a sci-fi serial in 1959.)

 

I'm going to give Wolf Hall another go next, which is a bit of a tome. I'm going to watch the series alongside it and really hope I get along with it this time.

[Alexlotl]

I have read roughly the first quarter of Wolf Hall three times, each time with great enjoyment, but then life somehow gets in the way of reading and I lose my thread.

[little che]

The Wolf hall trilogy is as good as it gets . I agree that it can take a bit of the book to get the feel of it but I'd implore you to persevere..I was going to describe it as a Tudor game of thrones but it's much more a Tudor sopranos with double crossing and people meeting sticky ends. You'll not regret it 

 

[Stopharage]

21. The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro. Didn’t really get on with this. The central mystery was compelling enough but I found it all pretty predictable and overblown in places. 
 

Spoiler

1. How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie.

2. The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

3. Empireland: How Imperialism Has Shaped Modern Britain by Sathnam Sanghera

4. The Etymologicon by Mark Forsyth

5. The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

6. My Last Supper by Jay Rayner

7. How to be a RockStar by Shaun Ryder

8. Putin:Prisoner of Power by Misha Glenny

9. Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall

10. Shadow State: Murder, Mayhem and Russia's Remaking of the West by Luke Harding

11. Manifesto: How a Maverick Entrepreneur Took on British Energy and Won by Dale Vince

12. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

13. The Collector by John Fowles

14. Redemption by Troy Deeney

15. Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld

16. The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo

17. The Damned United by David Peace

18. Beautiful World, Where Are You? by Sally Rooney

19. How High We Go In the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu

20. When the Dust Settles by Lucy Easthope
21. The Hidden Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

 

[wev]

Horns - Joe Hill

Eh, it was alright, felt Ig was a bit whiny, same with Lee and it felt like Hill was ghost writing for his Dad. Are all his books basically Stephen King?

 

Berzerk vol. 7 - Kentaro Miura

 

Enjoyed that there was more focus on Griffith and Casca, taking a little break from this series as I've got loads of other manga waiting to be read.

 

Spoiler

The Fight - Norman Mailer

The Witcher: Time of Contempt - Andrzej Sapkowski

Can't Stop, Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation - Jeff Chang

Saga: Compendium One - Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples

The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring - JRR Tolkien

Berzerk vol. 4 - Kentaro Miura

The Only Good Indians - Stephen Graham Jones

Playing The Bass With Three Left Hands - Will Carruthers

Master and Apprentice: Star Wars - Claudia Grey

To Be Taught, If Fortunate - Becky Chambers

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi - Charles Soule

Berzerk vol. 5 - Kentaro Miura

Berzerk vol. 6 - Kentaro Miura

Star Wars: The High Republic Vol. 1 There Is No Fear - Cavan Scott, Ario Anindito

Horns - Joe Hill

Berzerk vol. 7 - Kentaro Miura

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Emperor: The Death of Kings by Conn Iggulden - 8/10

2. Back From The Brink by Paul McGrath - 9.5/10

3. Nemesis Games by James S A Corey - 9/10

4. Love as Always, Mum by Mae West

5. I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - 9/10

6. One by Peter Schmeichel - 7/10

7. Diddly Squat: A Year on the Farm by Jeremy Clarkson - 7.5/10

8. Shackleton's Boat Journey by Frank Worsley - 9/10

9. Redemption by Troy Deeney - 8/10

10. The White Ship by Charles Spencer - 8.5/10

 

11. Lonely Boy: Tales from a Sex Pistol by Steve Jones

 

Read this pretty quickly after watching Pistol on Disney Plus, which is partly based on these memoirs.  TBH I think I preferred the series - this has plenty of interesting anecdotes, but the main issue I have with this is that Jones does not come across as a particularly likeable character.  I can accept that as a member of the era-defining punk group, it would be foolish to think that anyone would come across particularly well, but IMO Jones comes off worse compared to John Lydon's book 'Anger is an Energy'.

 

I think I would have enjoyed this more if I hadn't have seen Pistol - and the post-Pistols era was interesting to hear about, as I had no idea what else Steve Jones had done aside from that.

 

Still - there are plenty of good things in this.  His difficult upbringing and Jones' inability to conform to the 'norms' of society make the early parts of this a fascinating read.

 

Maybe worth picking up before watching the show, unless you're a massive fan of punk, and the Sex Pistols in particular in which case you'd probably get more out of this than me.  Good, but not amazing.

 

7/10

[Miner Willy]

30. Earth Abides by George R Stewart - I thought this was great. Didn't really know where it was going for much of the book, but really enjoyed it throughout.

29. Featherhood by Charlie Gilmour - Guy adopts a magpie and describes his relationship with it and also his largely absent biological father. Much better than that might make it sound.

28. Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead - Not sure why I had this on my Kindle, but I thought it was really good and very well written.

27. The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman - Enjoyed rather than loved this. I'll read the next one, but it's not completely grabbed me.

26. La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman - Very late to this - it was the catalyst for re-reading the Northern Lights books. I did enjoy it, but it was very different to the original trilogy, and wasn't really what I was expecting going in.

25. The Future we Choose by Christina Figueres - An OK book on climate change, though I've read so much on this topic, and probably several that I think are better.

24. The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman - As below, really enjoyed and the ending remains a powerful gut punch.

23. Lonely Castle in the Mirror - Decent enough story, and I thought the way it covered the narrator's loneliness was effectively done.

22. The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman - I vaguely recall from years ago that I thought this series got better as it went along and the world(s) opened out, and that was my feeling again. I really enjoyed this, much more so than the first book.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

30.Earth Abides

29. Featherhood

28. Great Circle

27. The Secret Commonwealth

26. La Belle Sauvage

25. The Future we Choose

24. The Amber Spyglass

23. Lonely Castle in the Mirror

22. The Subtle Knife

21. Northern Lights

20. Notes from the Burning Age

19. Spike

18. The New Jim Crow

17. Empire of Pain

16. The Brave Athlete

15. Ball Lightning

14. Sandworm: A New Era of Cyberwarfare

13. The Chysalids

12. The Border

11. Inverted World

10. The Mirror & the Light

9. To Kill a Mockingbird

8. Ghost Wall

7. The Cartel

6. Bring Up the Bodies

5. The New Climate War

4. Death's End

3. The Children of Men

2. Neuromancer

1. The Sleeping Beauties