Wednesday, April 30, 2014

The Year in Books - April





I am so late, I am almost too late, which is how life in general feels just at the moment. So much going on both at work and at home. I know it will all come together in the end, but the process of getting each of the individual projects completed seems forever destined to be done in the final possible minutes.

However this month I especially didn't want to miss the link as I managed to read three, very different, books. They were Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The Unlikely Pilgramage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce and A Little Love Song by Michelle Magorian. I am not going to say too much here, because I have read them as part of A Blogging Good Read, which will be going live on Alex's blog on May 7th (the link has now been updated to take you straight to the post). There will be more detailed comments over there, from three bloggers who have read the same three books. It would be great if you popped along to check out what we thought, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on any of these books too!

I can't write this post without revealing that one of these three has become one of my favourite books ever, and I have been heartily recommending it to anyone who will listen. I simply adored it, and am wondering what will be a reasonable length of time to wait before I can pick it up and start it again. I cannot wait to see what the other bloggers thought (particularly as it was my pick - I had no idea I was going to love it, having picked it from the shelf full of books The Husband has bought me) and find out whether other people enjoyed it as much as I did.

I hope that has got you intrigued, and I will make sure I link to the post here when it goes live. Next month I will be reading The Shock of the Fall, having already started on the first few chapters, and I'm determined to restart, and finish, The Art of Fielding. I'm looking forward to catching up on everyone else's reads, as well as continuing to nurture my rediscovered love of reading.

Linking up with The Year in Books



10 comments:

  1. My last read was Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - had me completely enthralled. I'm am Austen girl too and pretty much anything by Gaskill, Dickens and Bronte. Don't mind Jodi Picoult's earlier stuff for an easy read and I have to say that one of the most amazingly unique novels I have ever read was Room by Emma Donoghue - I recommend it to EVERYONE & ANYONE.

    Thanks for your lovely comment on my blog too btw

    Have a great weekend! :-)

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    1. Gone Girl was very first read for a year in books over on my old blog http://sevenhundredwordblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/eight-oclock-precise.html

      I adored it! Couldn't put it down. Glad to hear your trip was so good. I will be adding Room to the list!

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  2. The last book I read was The Fault in Our Stars. It's definitely a new favorite.

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    1. I wrote about that on the old blog too - the same post http://sevenhundredwordblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/eight-oclock-precise.html

      I couldn't decide about it - I think perhaps I had read too much hype :)

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  3. I'm guessing Of Mice and Men? East of Eden is definitely one of my favourites.

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    1. my lips are sealed!!! I will have to check out East of Eden - I haven't read any other Steinbeck.

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  4. I'm glad to hear that you are doing the Blogging Good Read! If it's the Steinbeck that you love, I can see why. I'm an East of Eden fan, too.

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    1. ooh hope you enjoy the post when Alex publishes it! Ok that's two votes for East of Eden, maybe by the end of the year! Thanks for visiting

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  5. Hi Katie, loving reading your post about books. I am fascinated to know which has turned out to be your favourite! I have read 2 of the 3, not read A Little Love Song. However I finished The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake! Have you read it? What did you think? I really enjoyed it, though it was not exactly as I expected, and once I had got over the absence of speech punctuation marks I read it in one sitting (serving??) Now racing thru Love, Nina, by Nina Stibbe. It is totally irresistibly fabulous. Being a child of the '80's, and having worked as a nanny too, it is very nostalgic reading, but she's as sharp as a tack, and the writing is so pithy and funny. Let me know how you are doing with Lemons!

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    1. the post is up over on Alex's blog now - htthttp://oddsocksandprettyfrocks.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/a-blogging-good-read-may.html so you do not need to be in suspense any longer!

      I haven't started The Particular Sadness.... yet, it is third in the list this month, but we have a holiday towards the end of May so intend to devour some books then. Even more keen to read it now you have said that about the punctuation - will be interesting!

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