April Roundup



Woman Reading in a Garden by Richard Emil Miller (1875 - 1943)

April was a more productive month reading-wise with the majority of the books completed by the middle of the month.  I kicked off the month with my first Read Cornwall challenge book, Manna from Hades which I I quite enjoyed and was very pleased with being transported back to Cornwall after such a long time.

I also attempted a couple of new-to-me M. C. Beatons with mixed results.  You can read my thoughts on Emily goes to Exeter here and I hope to put up a short review of the latest Hamish Macbeth mystery.

I also finally managed to read an Edith Wharton for the first time, which also counted as my first completed classic for the Classics Challenge 2011.  The Age of Innocence was a rewarding read and set in a time in America that I don't usually encounter.  I enjoyed it but felt that the ending was bitter-sweet and left me unsatisfied.  I shall definately be searching out more Wharton though as her prose is rich and her observations of upper-crust New Yorkers at the turn of the last century biting yet slightly sympathetic.

I felt like reading something a little lighter after that and who better that Suzette A. Hill to cheer me up and give me a warm, comforting feeling?  Bone Idle is the third book in the Francis Oughterard series and I continue to be delighted with it.  I hope to post something about this unusual, humourous and thouroughly English series soon.

And now I'm on an extended visit to Corduroy Mansions in Pimlico, London.  I completed the second book in the series and enjoyed it so much that I proceeded onto the third, A Conspiracy of Friends, which is officially released today in the UK.  Although the Scotland Street books by Alexander McCall Smith is my favourite of his series, I find that the Corduroy Mansions serials are fast becoming a favourite too.

I hope everyone had a comfortable and peaceful Easter and holidays.  How was your April?

The books:

1. Manna from Hades - Carola Dunn
2. Emily goes to Exeter - M. C. Beaton
3. The Age of Innocence - Edith Wharton
4. Bone Idle - Suzette A. Hill
5. Death of a Chimney Sweep - M. C. Beaton
6. The Dog Who Came in from the Cold - Alexander McCall Smith

March Roundup

Man Reading - John Singer Sargent

Manic March is over and I fortunately managed to complete a few books towards the end of the month.  Poor Pickwick is still on my bedside table awaiting another reading session but I did manage to read my second Lord Peter Whimsy novel to add to the As My Whimsy Takes Me challenge.  I also took part in Cornflower's Book Group for the first time by reading the first Brother Cadfael novel by Ellis Peters. 

I acquired a lovely midnight-blue Sony Reader in the middle of the month which has been a boon in terms of enabling me to read novels that I am finding difficult (or too expensive) to acquire here in South Africa.  The McCall Smith novel was my first ebook read on this device and I was quite impressed!  This won't replace the luxury of books but it is invaluable when you are struggling to get hold of a book that you've been pining for.  And it's great to take with me on long journeys.

So not a fantastic month for me but not bad... certainly better than this time last year.  There just aren't enough reading hours in the day!

The books:

1. High Wages - Dorothy Whipple

2. Clouds of Witness - Dorothy L. Sayers

3. The Charming Quirks of Others - Alexander McCall Smith

4. A Morbid Taste for Bones - Ellis Peters

February Roundup

Reading (1884) - Julius LeBlanc Stewart



Well, February has not lived up to my hopes of reading a fair amount of books.   I managed to finish only three - perhaps the shorter month has something to do with it?  Instead, I seem to have a number of books on the go.

I have Pickwick Papers on my bedside table to dip into at a leisurely pace.  I've covered the first three chapters and am enjoying the company of the Pickwickians and Dickens' descriptions of Rochester.

I am part way through my first re-reading of E. F. Benson's Mapp and Lucia, brought on by a fit of nostalgia after posting about the lovely Wordsworth and Vintage editions published this year.

I have yet to complete the last Virago book that I started during Virago Reading Week, Pirates at Play, and I'm currently reading and savouring High Wages, which I started during Persephone Reading Weekend.

I don't think I've juggled so many fiction books at once before - at least not for pleasure!  Looking to March, I hope to tackle a few of the challenges that I signed up for.  I have my next Lord Peter Wimsey lined up and I hope to make a sizeable dent in Pickwick Papers.  Then there's the Edith Wharton to look forward to, an Ellis Peters (for the Cornflower Book Group) and hopefully room for something fun and frivolous.  How has the shortest month of the year fared for you?

The books:

1. Mrs Ames - E. F. Benson
2. Bones in the Belfry - Suzette A. Hill
3. Cheerful Weather for the Wedding - Julia Strachey

January Roundup

January has seen an excellent start to the new reading year, especially since I decided to try to read more books than in past years.  I completed seven books in January - which is a recent personal best - thanks in no small part to Virago Reading Week. 

The books I chose were largely comfort reads (and how I still need those!) and were made up of books that I had been meaning to read for ages (such as Henrietta's War and Excellent Women), an old favourite series that I had not visited for two years (Jacqueline Winspear's beautifully executed Maisie Dobbs series) and a new author, Suzette A. Hill.

Suzette A. Hill is a joyful discovery!  I first came across her Francis Oughterard novels last year whilst perusing a Constable Robinson catalogue and was very happy to have secured the first two books at a fairly reasonable price (for a hardback).  It took a few months for me to eventually get on with ordering them but I am so glad I did.

Reading Dorothy L. Sayers for the first time was a definite hit.  I was unsure of whether it would hold my attention as I have listened to all of the BBC's radio adaptations of the novels with the excellent Ian Carmichael.  But I was not bored at all and was still enthralled and enchanted by Wimsey and Sayers' sublime prose.

All of the books were satisfactory and highly enjoyable, with the exception of the Elizabeth Taylor, which was a little less gripping than I expected but nevertheless an enlightening read.  I shall be putting up reviews for some or all of the January books soon and I hope that February will be as productive!

The books:

1. Miss Buncle's Book - D. E. Stevenson (started at the end of December 2010)

2. An Incomplete Revenge - Jacqueline Winspear

3. A Load of Old Bones - Suzette A. Hill

4. Henrietta's War - Joyce Dennys

5. Excellent Women - Barbara Pym

6. The Wedding Group - Elizabeth Taylor

7. Whose Body? - Dorothy L. Sayers