Reading Log

Thank you to all who have been following my Reading Log – I’ve decided to move it over to goodreads, and will keep it updated there.
————————————————————————-

So, here’s what I’ve been up to in my spare time. I always think I never have time to read, but this list belies that, obviously… A few things:
Titles that have links have been BookCrossed; the links lead to the pages for these books so one can keep track of where they have been, and are going!
tiny maple leaf indicates a Canadian author. Canadians do a lot of things well, but I will say that our literature is quite good…
indicates that I’ve read this book for a book club.
indicates that I’ve read this book again.
indicates that the selection was consumed in audiobook format.
Oh yes – I’m also open to suggestions! If you’ve read a book you think is amazing, let me know! Use the ‘Contact Us‘ page to email me suggestions.
The rating system I use for my books can be found at the bottom of this page.

I’ve also included a list of other people’s reading logs at the bottom – it’s often quite interestin to see what other people are delving into…

Reading is not a duty, and has consequently no business to be made
disagreeable.
- Augustine Birrell (1850-1933)

2008

January

1. ‘The Kite Runner’ by Khalid Hosseini (10/10)
2. ‘Wyrd Sisters’ by Terry Pratchett (8/10)
3. ‘I Am Legend’ by Richard Matheson (7/10)
4. ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’ by Jean-Dominique Bauby. Abridged version. (9/10)
5. ‘Lords and Ladies’ by Terry Pratchett. (8/10)

February

6. ‘The Steep Approach to Garbadale’ by Ian Banks. (7/10)
7. ‘The Boy in Striped Pajamas’ by John Boyne. (9/10)

March

8. ‘Shade’s Children’ by Garth Nix (7/10)

April

9. ‘Lords of the Bow’ by Conn Iggulden (8/10)
10. ‘Outcast’ by Michelle Paver (8/10)
11. ‘The Boleyn Inheritance’ by Phillippa Gregory (9/10)

The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.
- Dr Seuss

2007

January

1. ‘A Sense of the World: How A Blind Man became History’s Greatest Traveller’ by Jason Roberts (10/10)

2. ‘A Spot of Bother’ by Mark Haddon (10/10)

3. ‘Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe’ by Fannie Flagg (10/10)

Hmmm… I know it may seem like I’ve been over-enthusiastic about the books I’ve read so far this year, but these are just the ones I’ve finished – so good I haven’t been able to put them down! And thanks so much to Hannah in my book group who suggested ‘Fried Green Tomatoes’ – I’ve been meaning to read it ever since I saw the film – and the book is better than the film, although Kathy Bates and Jessica Tandy are pretty wonderful in it… Glad of an excuse to prioritise reading the novel!

4. ‘Snow White and the Seven Samurai‘ by Tom Holt (8/10)

February

5. ‘Sand Daughter’ by Sarah Bryant (9/10)

March

6. ‘Memoirs of a Geisha’ by Arthur Golden (8/10)

April

7. ‘Valiant’ by Holly Black (8/10)

May

8. ‘The Tenderness of Wolves’ by Stef Penney (9/10) I’m giving her an honorary tiny maple leaf She’s not Canadian – but she writes likes one!

9. ‘My Swordhand is Singing’ by Marcus Sedgewick (7/10)
10. ‘Wolf of the Plains’ by Conn Iggulden (10/10) Visit the website!

11. ‘I Am David’ by Anne Holm (9/10) Very moving. I cried reading the last page to my students!

12. ‘The Devil’s Feather’ by Minette Walters (8/10)
13. ‘The Falcon at the Portal’ by Elizabeth Peters (9/10) Cracking mystery series set in early 20th-century Egypt. Witty and thrilling! Amelia Peabody rocks!

June

14. ‘Wild Cards III: Jokers Wild’ – George R.R. Martin, ed. (7/10)
15. ‘The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid’ by Bill Bryson (9/10)

16. ‘Blade of Fire: A Chronicle of the Icemark’ by Stuart Hill (10/10)

17. ‘The Darkness of Wallis Simpson’ by Rose Tremain (9/10)

18. ‘Deep Wizardry’ by Diane Duane (9/10)

19. ‘The Janissary Tree’ by Jason Goodwin (8/10)
20. ‘Emperor: The Gates of Rome’ by Conn Iggulden (8/10)
21. ‘Heart Songs’ by Annie Proulx (7/10)

July

22. ‘Emperor: The Death of Kings’ by Conn Iggulden (9/10)

23. ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ by J K Rowling (10/10) In my opinion, and entirely satisfactory ending to the series.

24. tiny maple leaf ‘Rockbound’ by Frank Parker Day (9/10) This refers to the Podcast by CBC Radio: Between the Covers.

August

25. ‘The Fourth Bear’ by Jasper Fforde (9/10)

26. ‘The Poisonwood Bible’ by Barbara Kingsolver (10/10)

27. ‘The Red Tent’ by Anita Diamant (8/10)

September

28. ‘Wolf Brother’ by Michelle Paver (8/10) This refers to the podcast version released by Audible.co.uk.
29. ‘Spirit Walker’ by Michelle Paver (9/10)

30. ‘Stormbreaker’ by Anthony Horowitz (8/10)
31. ‘The Woman in Black’ by Susan Hill (9/10)

32. ‘Eminent Lives: Shakespeare – The World as a Stage’ by Bill Bryson (9/10)

October

33. ‘Traces: Framed!’ by Malcolm Rose (7/10)
34. ‘The Caves of Steel’ by Isaac Asimov (8/10)
35. ‘The Naked Sun’ by Isaac Asimov (7/10)

November

36. ‘The Robots of Dawn’ by Isaac Asimov (7/10)
37. ‘Hogfather’ by Terry Pratchett (9/10)
38. ‘Storm Thief’ by Chris Wooding (8/10)
39. ‘Soul Eater’ by Michelle Paver (9/10)
40. ‘Good Bones and Simple Murders’ by Margaret Atwood (7/10)

December

41. ‘Cranford’ by Elizabeth Gaskell (9/10)
42. ‘Persuasion’ by Jane Austen (10/10)
43. ‘The Uncommon Reader’ by Alan Bennett (10/10)

What is reading but silent conversation?
- Walter Savage Landor

2006

What delights does 2006 have in store??

January
1. ‘Predator’s Gold’ by Philip Reeve (8/10)
2. ‘The Shadow of the Wind’ by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (9/10)

3. ‘Toast’ by Nigel Slater (8/10) I blogged this!
4. ‘Varjak Paw’ by SF Said (8/10) – Lovely – coming of age, ‘quietly wise’ as the review says, but probably for 8-10year olds

February

5. ‘The Haiku Handbook: How to Write, Share and Teach Haiku’ by William J. Higginson (8/10)
6. ‘The Fortean Times Book of Strange Deaths’ compiled by Steve Moore (Non-fiction)
7. Pocket Penguins: No. 41 ‘The Country of the Blind’ by H.G. Wells and No. 15 ‘Artists and Models’ by Anais Nin (8/10)
8. ‘The Periodic Table’ by Primo Levi (10/10) I blogged this!

9. ‘Rebecca’ by Daphne du Maurier (9/10) – Mrs Danvers is so hateful!

10. ‘The New Policeman’ by Kate Thompson (10/10) This book was nominated for the Carnegie Award for 2006

March

11. ‘The Sword in the Stone’ by T.H. White (7/10)
12. ‘Lost in a Good Book’ by Jasper Fforde (9/10)

13. ‘The Ragwitch‘ by Garth Nix (9/10)

14. ‘The Cry of the Icemark’ by Stuart Hill (10/10) This book was nominated for the Carnegie Award for 2006

15. ‘In Cold Blood’ by Truman Capote (8/10) Visit a tribute to Capote website.
16. tiny maple leaf ‘The English Patient‘ by Michael Ondaatje (10/10) - Broken and haunting This book won the Governor General’s Award for Fiction

17. ‘My Sister’s Keeper‘ by Jodi Picoult (11/10) – It’s been a long time since I cried all the way through a book. This is such a difficult issue, and Picoult handles it with grace and humour and raw emotion all rolled into one.

Â£25.50 raised for Book Aid International!

April

18. ‘Personality and Prayer’ by Ruth Fowke (Non-fiction)
19. ‘Something Rotten’ By Jasper Fforde (9/10) – Definitely a satisfactory ending to the series. Lots of loose ends tied up.

May

20. ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’ by Audrey Niffenegger (9/10)

21. ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald (10/10)

22. ‘Blacklist‘ by Sara Paretsky (8/10)
23. ‘The Kalahari Typing School for Men’ by Alexander McCall Smith (7/10)
24. ‘Autumn Bridge’ by Takashi Matsuoka (7/10)
25. ‘Waterland‘ by Graham Swift (7/10)
26. ‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Jane Austin (9/10)

June

27. ‘The Constant Princess’ by Philippa Gregory (9/10) Visit the website!

28. ‘Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception’ by Eoin Colfer (9/10) Visit the website!

29. ‘Aberystwth Mon Amour’ by Malcolm Pryce (8/10)

July

30. ‘The Borgia Bride’ by Jeanne Kalogridis (8/10) – Thanks for the birthday present, Mom!
31. ‘Lord of the Flies’ by William Golding (9/10)

32. ‘Perfume’ by Patrick Suskind (9/10)

33. ‘March‘ by Geraldine Brooks (8/10)
34. ‘Haiku: Poetry Ancient & Modern’ edited by Jackie Hardy (7/10) – seemed a bit too ‘pretty’ for me, even though much of the verse is good.

August

35. ‘Zorro’ by Isabel Allende (9/10)

36. ‘The Merrybegot’ by Julie Hearn (8/10) - Only the second book since summer hols began!! That’s what happens when you get busy and sell your house…
37. ‘The Mermaid Chair’ by Sue Monk Kidd (9/10)

September

38. ‘this is all: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn’ by Aidan Chambers (8/10) - Quite harrowing in places, but I think you need to read all of it to understand the whole concept…
39. ‘The Lastling’ by Philip Gross (8/10)
40. ‘The Prisoner’ by James Riordan (6/10) - Lots of description about what happened to Hamburg in WWII, but not much plot or action…
41. ‘Fat Boy Swim’ by Catherine Forde (9/10)

42. ‘Warlands’ by Rachel Anderson (7/10)
43. ‘To Say Nothing of the Dog’ by Connie Willis (7/10)

October

44. ‘Narrow Road to the Interior and Other Writings’ by Matsuo Basho, translated by Sam Hamill (10/10)

45. ‘The Bell Jar’ by Sylvia Plath (9/10)

46. ‘The Wonder House’ by Justine Hardy (9/10)

47. ‘Bill Bryson’s African Diary’ by Bill Bryson (9/10)

November

48. ‘The Birth of Venus’ by Sarah Dunant (10/10)

December

49. ‘The Golem’s Eye’ by Jonathon Stroud (8/10)
50. ‘Skybreaker’ by Kenneth Oppel (9/10)

51. ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ by Lauren Weisberger (7/10)
52. ‘Out of the Silent Planet’ by C.S. Lewis (8/10)

I have never known any distress that an hour’s reading did not relieve.
- Montesquieu

2005

2005 seems to have been very productive…

January
1. ‘A Classic Christmas Crime’ by various authors – edited by Tim Heald (7/10)
2. tiny maple leaf ‘Monkey Beach‘ by Eden Robinson (10/10) This book was nominated for the Governor General’s Award and the Giller Prize

3. ‘The Amulet of Samarkand‘ by Jonathon Stroud (9/10)

4. ‘A War in Words: The First World War in Diaries and Letters’ edited by Svetlana Palmer and Sarah Willis (9/10)

5. ‘The Da Vinci Code‘ by Dan Brown (4/10)
6. ‘Doctor Illuminatus’ by Martin Booth (8/10)

April
7. ‘Gallows Thief‘ by Bernard Cornwell (8/10) Visit the website!
8. ‘Jigs and Reels‘ by Joanne Harris (7/10)
9. ‘City of Beasts‘ by Isabelle Allende (8/10) Visit the website!

May
10. ‘Morality for Beautiful Girls’ by Alexander McCall Smith (7/10) Visit the website!
11. ‘Silk‘ by Alessandro Baricco (9/10)

12. ‘Time Out of Joint’ by Philip K Dick (8/10)

June
13. ‘The Virgin’s Lover’ by Phillippa Gregory (8/10) Visit the website!
14. ‘The Magician’s Guild’ by Trudi Canavan (9/10) Visit the website!

15. ‘The Novice’ by Trudi Canavan (9/10)

16. ‘The High Lord’ by Trudi Canavan (9/10)

17. ‘The Five People You Meet In Heaven‘ by Mitch Albom (9/10)

18. ‘Wilde’ by Jonathon Fryer (8/10)
19. ‘The World’s Wife’ by Carol Ann Duffy (8/10)
20. ‘A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian’ by Marina Lewycka (9/10)

21. ‘The Scarecrow and His Servant’ by Phillip Pullman (7/10) This book made the Carnegie Award Shortlist

July
22. ‘Mister Monday‘ by Garth Nix (8/10)
23. ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’ by J.K. Rowling (8/10)

August
24. ‘The Subtle Serpent‘ by Peter Tremayne (8/10)
25. ‘The Big Over Easy’ by Jasper Fforde (10/10) I blogged this!

26. ‘The Eyre Affair’ by Jasper Fforde (9/10) Visit the website!

27. ‘Wuthering Heights’ by Emily Bronte (7/10)

September
28. ‘The Athenian Murders‘ by Jose Carlos Somoza (7/10)
29. ‘Ramses: The Temple of a Million Years‘ by Christian Jacq (7/10)
30. ‘Grass for His Pillow’ by Lian Hearn (8/10)
31. ‘The Wolves in the Walls’ by Neil Gaiman (10/10) Visit the website!

32. ‘Heartbeat’ by Sharon Creech (10/10) This book made the Carnegie Award Shortlist

33. ‘True History of the Kelly Gang‘ by Peter Carey (8/10)

October
34. ‘Eve Green‘ by Susan Fletcher (9/10)

35. ‘Portrait in Sepia’ by Isabelle Allende (8/10) Visit the website!
36. ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell (9/10)

37. ‘The Well of Lost Plots’ by Jasper Fforde (9/10) Visit the website!

38. ‘Slaves and Obsession’ by Anne Perry (9/10) Visit the website!

39. ‘Eats, Shoots and Leaves’ by Lynn Truss (10/10)

40. ‘Absolution by Murder’ by Peter Tremayne (9/10)

November
41. tiny maple leaf ‘The Jade Peony‘ by Wayson Choy (10/10) I blogged this! – This book won the Trillum Book Award

42. ‘Quarantine‘ by Jim Crace (6/10) This book was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won the Whitbread Novel Award
43. ‘The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray’ by Chris Wooding (8/10) Visit the website!

December
44. ‘44 Scotland Street‘ by Alexander McCall Smith (8/10) Visit the website!
45. ‘Bloodline’ by Malcolm Rose (8/10) – good book for teenage boys!
46. ‘Clone’ by Malcolm Rose (8/10) Visit the website!
47. ‘Guess Who’s Coming for Dinner?’ by J. Kelly and C. Tincknell (8/10) – This book made the Greenaway Award Shortlist
48. tiny maple leaf ‘Airborn’ by Kenneth Oppel (9/10) Visit the website! – This book won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Children’s Novels

49. ‘Three-Legged Horse’ by Cheng Ch’ing Wen (9/10) I blogged this! – This book won the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize

50. ‘Anansi Boys’ by Neil Gaiman (10/10)

When we read a story, we inhabit it. The covers of the book are like a roof and four walls. What is to happen next will take place within the four walls of the story. And this is possible because the story’s voice makes everything its own.
- John Berger

2004

More good reads here!

January
1. ‘Dragon’s Kin: A New Novel of Pern‘ by Anne and Todd McCaffrey (7/10) Visit the website!
2. ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ by Gregory Maguire (10/10) I blogged this! – Visit the website!

3. tiny maple leaf ‘Clara Callan’ by Richard B. Wright (10/10) This book won the Governor General’s Award for Fiction and The Giller Prize

4. ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley (8/10)

February
5. tiny maple leaf ‘Vinyl Cafe Unplugged’ by Stuart McLean (9/10) I blogged this! – Visit the website!

6. ‘Lirael’ by Garth Nix (9/10) Visit the website!

March
7. ‘Wild Cards’ by various authors; George R.R. Martin, ed. (8/10)
8. ‘Holy Fools‘ by Joanne Harris (7/10)
9. ‘The Girl with the Pearl Earring‘ by Tracy Chevalier (8/10) Visit the website!
10. ‘The Lovely Bones’ by Alice Sebold (9/10)

April
11. ‘Only Forward’ by Michael Marshall Smith (7/10) Visit the website!

May
12. ‘Abhorsen’ by Garth Nix (10/10)

13. ‘Thursday’s Child’ by Sonya Hartnett (8/10)
14. ‘Cloud of Sparrows’ by Takashi Matsuoka (9/10)

15. ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’ by Mark Haddon (9/10) Visit the website! – This book won the Whitbread Award

June
16. ‘Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code’ by Eoin Colfer (7/10) Visit the website!
17. ‘The Straw Men’ by Michael Marshall (7/10)

July
18. ‘The Queen’s Fool’ by Philippa Gregory (9/10)

19. ‘The Wee Free Men‘ by Terry Pratchett (9/10) Visit the website!

August
20. ‘Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister’ by Gregory Maguire (9/10)

21. ‘The Lady and the Unicorn’ by Tracy Chevalier (8/10)

September
22. ‘The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency’ by Alexander McCall Smith (8/10)
23. ‘Lost’ by Gregory Maguire (7/10)
24. ‘Mortal Engines‘ by Philip Reeve (8/10)

November
25. ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens (8/10)
26. ‘Spares’ by Michael Marshall Smith (7/10)

December
27. ‘Enduring Love‘ by Ian McEwan (8/10)
28. ‘Home: The Story of Everyone Who Ever Lived in Our House’ by Julie Myerson (7/10)
29. ‘Birdsong’ by Sebastian Faulks (10/10)

30. ‘Therapy’ by Jonathon Kellerman (5/10)
31. tiny maple leaf ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Atwood (10/10) Visit the website!

32. ‘Song of Susanna: Dark Tower VI’ by Stephen King (7/10) Visit the website!
33. ‘The Dark Tower: Dark Tower VII’ by Stephen King (8/10) I blogged this!

Of all the diversions of life, there is none so proper to fill up its empty spaces as the reading of useful and entertaining authors.
- Joseph Addison

2003

This isn’t a full year – I started my reading diary in March.

March
1. ‘The Secret Life of Bees‘ by Sue Monk Kidd (8/10) Visit the website!
2. ‘Postcards from No Man’s Land‘ by Aidan Chambers (7/10) Visit the website!

May
3. ‘Midnight for Charlie Bone’ by Jenny Nimmo (7/10)
4. ‘A Child’s Book of True Crime’ by Chloe Hooper (6/10) This book won a Betty Trask Prize
5. ‘Greenwitch’ by Susan Cooper (9/10)

6. ‘Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague’ by Geraldine Brooks (10/10) Visit the website!

7. ‘Number 5′ by Glenn Patterson (9/10)

8. ‘The Grey King’ by Susan Cooper (8/10)

June
9. ‘Vagabond’ by Bernard Cornwell (7/10) Visit the website!
10. ‘The Wind Singer‘ by William Nicholson (7/10) Visit the website!

July
11. ‘A Virtuous Woman’ by Kaye Gibbons (9/10) Visit the website!

12. ‘Snowball Oranges: One Mallorcan Winter’ by Peter Kerr (8/10)
13. ‘A Painted House’ by John Grisham (7/10)

August
14. ‘Cause of Death’ by Patricia Cornwell (7/10)

December
15. ‘Wolves of the Calla: Dark Tower V’ by Stephen King (9/10)

16. ‘So You Want to be a Wizard’ by Diane Duane (9/10) Visit her blog!

A man ought to read just as inclination leads him, for what he reads as a task will do him little good.
- Samuel Johnson

Book Ratings

These ratings are from Scism, a member of BookCrossing.

10: Excellent, at the top of its category. This book has impacted me deeply, challenged me profoundly, or has simply been a pure delight to read
9: Great book – just a nitpick stands between it and a 10
8: Good, solid book that I would recommend to others
7: Good book, but it didn’t grab me in a big way
6: Decent, but not my type of book
5: Maybe somebody else would like this. I didn’t
4: Only OK. Barely worth reading. The line between taking it and leaving it is very thin
2-3: Has major problems. I don’t recommend it
1: It’s hard to imagine anyone liking this book

This website uses IntenseDebate comments, but they are not currently loaded because either your browser doesn't support JavaScript, or they didn't load fast enough.

Exigency In Specie

Thoughts from, and the lives of a Canadian and a Brit living in Southern England.

Reading Log

Search

Asides

Flickr Pictures

Lifestream