Just finished Union Street by Pat Barker which litsy doesn't have listed. This focuses on the lives of 6 women living in working-class northern England in the 70's. Its a bleak but an interesting read from a 'now and then' perspective.

The humour and wit in this, as in A Whole Life, is so enjoyable... When Franz meets Freud

50 pages into this but felt the need to rave about it! I don't know how he does it, but RS creates protagonists who I immediately fall in love with. First Andreas Egger in 'A Whole Life' and now Franz Huchel in this second novel I'm reading. Without a doubt, one of my new favourite authors; I can't stop gushing about him. Well... It is Valentines 😉 ♥

The cetenary of the outbreak of Spanish flu so this seemed approrpiate but I'm not sure I fully 'got' this; i certainly enjoyed parts of it and was completely lost in other parts. Intriguing, I'd say but agree with @rachaich on this one. Bit so-so for me.

OMG! I was completely hooked on this! Any Pullman fans out there yet to read this (as if), you won't be dissapointed! Any one who hasn't yet come across Pullman's work will almost certainly become a fan. Disappointed there's a wait to find out more!

I loved Yates after reading his tragic Revolutionary Road: this is the second book of his I've read, a series of 11 short stories, which I loved.

My goodness. It's been a long while since a book has made me weep like this ('A Little Life' and 'Stoner' being the last). It's a short tale about Andreas Egger and his life in the mountains. I wanted to share my favourite quotes from it but there were just too many. Beautifully translated, I wanted to read it all over again before I'd even finished it. I'll remember AE forever. Gorgeous artwork too.

8 pages in and I'm enchanted by this already

Grey and sparse. But also bloody brilliant.

I can't say too much about this without spoiling it for @rachaich who is still reading this for this months book club but it I had mixed thoughts about it. No disrepect to Ms Fuller, she's done a womderful job with her debut novel, but for me, it felt just that. A good first attempt but lacking in parts. And I felt the end was disappointing.

I'd definitely recommend reading this next installment soon after Gilead. For me, I enjoyed this second part more than Gilead; I felt it had more depth and I empathised with the characters much more. Cemented my respect for Ms Robinson and I look forward to the third part, Lila, but I'm taking a break from these for now. There's a lot to reflect on and savour with this one.

I found this book a challenge particularly with so much theological content and I can understand why it doesn't appeal to everyone. I'm pleased I persevered because theology aside, the prose is rich and plentiful, a real joy to read, and the story of Jack Boughton alone kept me really engaged.
I found the second part, Home, in a charity shop yesterday and I‘m going to get stuck into it straight away while Gilead is still so fresh in my mind.

I came across A Town Like Alice in my local Oxfam shop by pure chance. I'd never heard of Nevil Shute or any of his books but I'm always excited by the promising red spine of a Vintage Classic!
Shute had me hooked at just a couple of pages in with this remarkable love story between Jean Paget, Joe Harman and Noel Strachan set in war time Malay and later in the Australian outback.
A Town Like Alice has put NS on my favourite author list!

Well. That was different from Dickens!! Loved the first person narrative that B. E. E. does so well but very dark and depressive. Back to some Austen to lighten the mood a little I think!

Thank you @rachaich for this months festive read! First Dickens I've read in ~10 years and I'm keen to add more to my classics TR list. Now what next?!

Thanks to the lovely @rachaich for the loan of this insightful and thought provoking book with a difference. Not only did it grip me but its stacked my TR list!

Gandalf to Bilbo - "You are a very fine person, Mr Baggins, and I am very fond of you; but you are only quite a little fellow in a wide world after all!"
Aren't we all? Regret that I didn't read this as a child and get to experience as it was originally intended; with that childs awe and innocence. Now, do I follow up with LOTR? Hm...

My latest book club choice appears to have been very well received by other members and I'm super excited for our meeting on Thursday. Plenty to talk about on this one.
Also, dear Jane Austen. I'm enjoying discovering these novels although later in my life than I feel is justified! I've covers Pride & Prejudice, Emma and next up is Persuasion...

My first Atwood read. Totally overwhelmed by the prose and have added more MA to my TR list.

Unlike me to opt for a sci-fi but this was a gripping, straightforward, read that made me wanting more!

Thoroughly enjoyed this American classic; intrigued by the themes and the context its set in.