Hmm, it seems I've not updated my list of reading since November. I haven't stopped reading, although I do seem to have slowed down a bit after my initial flush of enthusiasm.
It's a bit of an odd (and not very long) list this time, a combination of Christmas presents, a library book, and a charity shop find. I've not felt that inspired by any of them really, for different reasons, and I think I need a good long trip to the main city library to shake me up a bit. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. So, what I've been reading since November...
The Year of Living Danishly (Helen Russell)
This was a Christmas present, and a fairly jolly quick read, although I did get quite irritated by the author's magaziney style, emphasising how odd everything was (when really it wasn't). It did make me think a lot about being outdoors more . Not one to add to my list of favourites though.
Flight Behaviour (Barbara Kingsolver)
Another Christmas present, and one I already have a copy of, although it's buried deep in the cellar and has been for some time. I love reading the same books over and over, and this is on my list of favourites (although not as much as some of her other books). I love losing myself in the story of someone else's life, and this is a vivid portrait of stuckness and spreading of wings that pulls me in every time.
Jazz (Toni Morrison)
This I found in a charity shop for 50p, and it's sat on a shelf for several months before migrating to the side of the bed. I read a paragraph or two then fall asleep with my face in the pages. It's not gripping me - I do want to get to the end but I have to keep going back to the beginning to make sense of what happened as I was falling asleep.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen Covey)
I wasn't sure whether to include this on the list as it doesn't really feel like the type of book you put on a list of books you've read... But it's a book, and I've read it, so here it is. As it happens, I've read it before, possibly more than once. I love the idea of being 'highly effective' (whatever that means), and one of my shameful secrets is this type of 'do this and your life will be great' book. There's a bit too much of an air of smugness about this for my liking, but there are some good suggestions - being proactive, differentiating between what is urgent and what is important (and making sure you do more of the important stuff), and 'sharpening the saw' (taking time to step back and renew your strength, whether physically or emotionally). It's not a read-in-bed book, but it's a good one for the bathroom shelf I think.
So there we are. Two I've read before, one I didn't enjoy very much and another I'm struggling to get past the first chapter of. I don't think I'm going to turn literary critic any time soon...
It's a bit of an odd (and not very long) list this time, a combination of Christmas presents, a library book, and a charity shop find. I've not felt that inspired by any of them really, for different reasons, and I think I need a good long trip to the main city library to shake me up a bit. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. So, what I've been reading since November...
The Year of Living Danishly (Helen Russell)
This was a Christmas present, and a fairly jolly quick read, although I did get quite irritated by the author's magaziney style, emphasising how odd everything was (when really it wasn't). It did make me think a lot about being outdoors more . Not one to add to my list of favourites though.
Flight Behaviour (Barbara Kingsolver)
Another Christmas present, and one I already have a copy of, although it's buried deep in the cellar and has been for some time. I love reading the same books over and over, and this is on my list of favourites (although not as much as some of her other books). I love losing myself in the story of someone else's life, and this is a vivid portrait of stuckness and spreading of wings that pulls me in every time.
Jazz (Toni Morrison)
This I found in a charity shop for 50p, and it's sat on a shelf for several months before migrating to the side of the bed. I read a paragraph or two then fall asleep with my face in the pages. It's not gripping me - I do want to get to the end but I have to keep going back to the beginning to make sense of what happened as I was falling asleep.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen Covey)
I wasn't sure whether to include this on the list as it doesn't really feel like the type of book you put on a list of books you've read... But it's a book, and I've read it, so here it is. As it happens, I've read it before, possibly more than once. I love the idea of being 'highly effective' (whatever that means), and one of my shameful secrets is this type of 'do this and your life will be great' book. There's a bit too much of an air of smugness about this for my liking, but there are some good suggestions - being proactive, differentiating between what is urgent and what is important (and making sure you do more of the important stuff), and 'sharpening the saw' (taking time to step back and renew your strength, whether physically or emotionally). It's not a read-in-bed book, but it's a good one for the bathroom shelf I think.
So there we are. Two I've read before, one I didn't enjoy very much and another I'm struggling to get past the first chapter of. I don't think I'm going to turn literary critic any time soon...
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