I have just read....

[Emma]

Beautiful Bodies, by Laura Shane Cunningham.

I picked it up at Tescos (we love the Tesco book section )

Six old friends are getting together to celebrate the pregnancy of one of the friends...the book starts out by describing the journey and the state of mind of each friend, and then weaves them all together as they arrive at their destinations and interact with one another. (*See* how I am not adding spoilers!). I mention this because I enjoyed the structure of the book as much as the content

I thought it was a lovely, gently funny and engaging study of how female friends 'get along' (or not!!). On the back it says it's a 'paean to the frailties and foibles of female friendship' Ooh, alliteration!

[Emma]

btw meant this thread as a place for other people's book reviews too....specially as I'm running out of books! Yikes!!

[Forte]

"The Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold a tender, beautiful and suspense filled story told from the point of view of a murdered teenage girl. She watches her family (and her un-caught murderer) over several years from heaven until she can do without them and she feels at peace. It made me cry in a good way!

[Sparkles]

'Spellbound' by Jane Green (a very girly book I know). I usually really enjoy Green's books but this one I found predictable and disappointing. Normally her observation of people is pretty much spot on, but in this book she seemed to lose the heart of the story she was trying to mimic (as far as I’m aware this is another first for her, as she usually writes her own stories rather than rewriting others’). Maybe it’s just me, but I felt no satisfaction or glow upon finishing it .

[Stuart M]

...Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut

I had always thought this was "cult" science fiction, but on finally getting round to reading it, it turns out to be a slyly clever anti-war novel.

Vonnegut served in the US army in WWII, and ended up as a prisoner of war in Dresden. He got to see first hand the effects of that city's firebombing in 1945, when over 130,000 died in one night (more than either Hiroshima or Nagasaki...). The story is based on his own experiences.

Vonnegut's trick in the novel was inspired by Mary O'Hare, the wife of a buddy he visits in the 60s when he was collecting memories for the book. She berates him for writing it now, 20 years later. Now, she points out, he's misty-eyed about his wartime adventures, not the raw recruit who went to war. Vonnegut took her criticism on board: Billy Pilgrim, the US soldier who is the central character of the novel, is child-like throughout. This makes the whole thing much more powerful (the book's other title is "The Children's Crusade"). Not as funny as Catch-22, but more poinient. And at 150 pages, a much shorter read.

There is a science fiction element, but it's really more of a story-telling device than anything. Overall, I still prefer Catch-22, but this was still pretty good.

[Emma]

This girlie has read Slaughterhouse Five

(though I am ashamed to say I recall almost nothing about it...is that the one where there is a man in a zoo...or is that a figment of my fevered imagination?)

Have also read Spellbound, in one gulp, on the train home from Scotland..which come to think about it I also can't remember much about..

Lovely Bones is a different matter, I remember all about that one - great book. I have been told by more 'literary' friends that her other book 'Lucky' is even better. Though it's a memoir of a rape, which frankly has prevented me reading it so far

[Stuart M]

Originally Posted by Emma

This girlie has read Slaughterhouse Five

(though I am ashamed to say I recall almost nothing about it...is that the one where there is a man in a zoo...or is that a figment of my fevered imagination?)

Aye...that's in the science fiction bits...which are of course a product of the character's fevered imagination in the novel...

[Forte]

I have just read and hated... "Time's arrow" by Martin Amis. It is told backwards which is roiginal but gets a bit wearisome after a while. The main character was a doctor in concentration camps doing obscene experiments on the prisoners and so it was told weirdly in the sense that if it was backwards they were getting syringes taken outof their eyeballs etc and getting better... narrator was getting younger, too. I finished it but didn't like it...

[jivecat]

I have just read, and adored, The Crimson Petal and the White, by Michael Faber. It's a long read, 700+ pages, but thoroughly absorbing. Set in Victorian England, it chronicles the lives of a young prostitute and her wealthy, industrialist lover. Reminiscent of Charles Dickens and John Fowles, the atmosphere, culture and social conditions of London in the 1870s are evoked very effectively, with considerable research. This book is never dry and learned however: it's often extremely funny, totally unsqueamish in it's treatment of sex and creates very well-rounded characters. Written by a male author, I was impressed by how effectively he got inside the skin of his female characters: the sex scenes are, unusually, told from a woman's perspective (and are NOT titillating!) and he brings alive the feeling of being constricted inside the coccoon of sweaty clothing that must have been the daily reality for most Victorian women. Faber's also interested in charting the beginnings of the materialist, merchandising era as the fictional Rackham's perfume empire battles it out against Pear's, Rimmel et al.

I thought the ending was flawed, and that the characters had aspects to them that were referred to and left inexplicably undeveloped. The outcome does have a certain satisfying symmetry to it, however, and I felt bereft upon getting to the final page.

If anyone's in a book group I would certainly recommend this one. Loads to stimulate discussion, especially in an all-women group. Though it's definitely not Chick-Lit!

[Trish]

Originally Posted by Forte

I have just read and hated... "Time's arrow" by Martin Amis. It is told backwards which is original but gets a bit wearisome after a while. The main character was a doctor in concentration camps doing obscene experiments on the prisoners and so it was told weirdly in the sense that if it was backwards they were getting syringes taken outof their eyeballs etc and getting better... narrator was getting younger, too. I finished it but didn't like it...

Yes I read that at university and hated it too! I think part of the reason I hated it was because it's so disturbing. You read the things that are happening backwards, as they are written in the book, then you reverse it in your head to see what the character is really doing, which then brings horrible images forth. I certainly wouldn't have chosen to read that one - although I guess it does force you to think about things that you might otherwise ignore as they are a bit too horrific!

[Stuart]

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

I picked this up in the departure lounge at Gatwick when I went on holiday recently and found I could hardly put it down. I read the whole thing in about 3 days flat.

Without giving too much away, it is about two people trying to solve a murder in the Louvre by following a series of cryptic clues which appear to lead to the works of Leonardo Da Vinci.

[ToeTrampler]

[quote=Stuart]The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown /[quote]

I have just started this book and have to say I have been hooked from page 1. (Well it's page 21 actually but you know what I mean )

Just finished reading The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
The basis of it is that after dying on his 83rd birthday while trying to save a little girl during a fairground ride accident, the story follows both sections of Eddies life and afterlife as he meets five significant people on his journey through heaven. Each of the five people have some link to Eddie’s life and play a role in explaining these (mostly unresolved) aspects of his life to him. A gem of a book and well worth a look. It is available from Ottakars and Amazon (haven’t seen it in Waterstones) and the first chapter can alsl be read on line at: http://www.albomfivepeople.com/fivepeopleexcerpt.htm

[Almost an Angel]

Ceclia Ahern PS I Love you - v. girly book but so so good - it really has you thinking about life, love etc... Bit of a sad topic I know but so well written. definately gets my recommendation.

Also read Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold - what an amazing book I'll have to get hold of the other one - that's the second time I've been told her other book is very good too.

Currently devouring The curious incident of the dog in the night time - but not very far through it - that pesky work stuff keeps getting in the way.

[Alex P]

RE: Ceclia Ahern PS I Love you - I also loved this book - it had me laughing out loud (the chapter where they were hiding under the sheet in the nightclub) - it also had me sobbing my heart out on numerous occassions!!

I agree it was a sad topic - however - it was a captivating read. I highly recommend it

[Alex P]

Originally Posted by Almost an Angel

Ceclia Ahern PS I Love you - v. girly book but so so good - it really has you thinking about life, love etc... Bit of a sad topic I know but so well written. definately gets my recommendation.

Also read Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold - what an amazing book I'll have to get hold of the other one - that's the second time I've been told her other book is very good too.

Currently devouring The curious incident of the dog in the night time - but not very far through it - that pesky work stuff keeps getting in the way.

RE: Ceclia Ahern PS I Love you - I also loved this book - it had me laughing out loud (the chapter where they were hiding under the sheet in the nightclub) - it also had me sobbing my heart out on numerous occassions!!

Another author you might enjoy is Maggie O'Farrell - I recently finished 'My Lovers Lover' and it is definately a storyline with a difference!!

[Sal]

Originally Posted by Forte

"The Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold a tender, beautiful and suspense filled story told from the point of view of a murdered teenage girl. She watches her family (and her un-caught murderer) over several years from heaven until she can do without them and she feels at peace. It made me cry in a good way!

I read that and loved it too. So much so, that I read another book of hers - Lucky. You have to be feeling quite strong to read it, as it is the amazing tru story of the author's rape and the repercussions. However, I found it a very inspiring and interesting read.

[DangerousCurves]

I can thoroughly recommend "The Lovely Bones" too - very compelling read.

I've just finished "The Amateur Marriage" by Anne Tyler. Its about a mismatched couple who marry after a highly charged WW2 romance - and then actually get to know each other. I read it on a friend's recommendation and was highly dubious at first since I don't do romantic fiction - but this was more an observation of people, their frailties and contradictions rather then slushy rubbish. I greaty enjoyed it and found it a real page turner!

[Rougeforever]

Originally Posted by DangerousCurves

I've just finished "The Amateur Marriage" by Anne Tyler..... I greaty enjoyed it and found it a real page turner!

I love Anne Tyler, if you enjoyed this one, try some of her others (and there are plenty!). They all have a gentle, observational quality about them.

The book I'm reading at the moment (The Song Reader - Lisa Tucker) reminds me of her writing (which is why, I guess, I'm enjoying it !)

[Stuart M]

...Oh Play That Thing, by Roddy Doyle.

This is the sequel to "A Star Called Henry", where Doyle told the story of Irish independence through the eyes of one of the people fighting in/for it, Henry Smart.

In this book, Henry has fled Ireland (where he's under a death sentence from his former commanders) to America. When he realises that New York isn't quite far enough away from Ireland, he flees further to Chicago, where he ends up being Louis Armstrong's bagman. As you do.

Roddy Doyle is the bloke currently saddled with the title "Ireland's Greatest Living Writer", plus one Booker Prize win, which probably explains the middling reviews for this book from the literati. However, if you read it just as a "rollicking adventure yarn" set in Prohibition era USA, it's great fun. And anyone who's read The Commitments will know how good Doyle is at getting the music into his writing. Jazz, and Satchmo in particular, comes alive on the page here.

[Bangers & Mash]

The Diary of Anne Frank...

I'm not really much of a reader, but I visited the Anne Frank house last weekend and was inspired to buy the diary.

This book was a fascinating insight into life in occupied Holland through the eyes of a Jewish teenager in hiding. It is a diary that Anne Frank kept whilst she, her family and some other Jewish friends were holed up in the annex of her fathers business for 3 years or so. For her age, her writing is very good (helped probably by the translator who translated her diary from German to English).

Despite its circumstances, the book is highly entertaining and even hilarious in places. It is also very disturbing in that it recounts in real terms what happened during the occupation and what went through the minds of not only the Jews in hiding, but also the rest of the population who were not in hiding.

Whilst reading the diary, I was deeply moved by what Anne and her peers endured in hiding, but I was surprised to find myself feeling that they were, at times, better off and safer than many of the non-Jews of the time.

I would thoroughly recommend this book anyone - followed up with a visit to the Anne Frank house.