Recommend A Book

[bappit]

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Not the worst read in the world is the book by Bill Doherty "A Bird in the Hand", DOXHOPE (user name on here), not trying to corrupt this thread in any way, as he self published a ltd no., and perhaps they are not of the genre the title was started for, just thought if anyone was unaware they might enjoy - as initially I was turned off by the subject matter, as i had little knowledge of it and bird trapping seemed so distasteful However, it is Bills' remininicence of his childhood facination of the wild birds and his enduring love of them to this day, which initially led him to meet many of the local birdmen of his home town, it is written with much respect, humour and enlightenment of those times.

Just thought it fair to mention it :thumbsup:

:cheers:

Sheena

 

[Judy]

I like 'hard Science Fiction so anything by Asimov (especially the Robot books) or Arthur C. Clarke.

I spent months reading Stephen Kings The Dark Tower series last year. They were so good I read all 7 books back to back. I was really upset when I got to the end. The only other time I did that was reading the 3 Lord Of The Rings books. Very unusual for me 'cus I normally like to mix my genres. After reading a crime book, I'll go for a Sci-fi and then a Stephen King or a Dean Koontz whose characters are often very witty. Koontz' Odd Thomas is good and I've just bought the sequel which has just come out. Haven't read it yet though. The Frankenstein books are good and Life Expectancy had me laughing.

Crime books - I like Michael Connelly, Lee Childs (nice short chapters ) & Jeffrey Deaver (The BoneCollecter, The Twelfth Card)

Apart from that I tend to read a lot of non-fiction. Usually with a slant on dogs Genetics, bio-mechanics, animal behaviour.

 

[kris]

well ive just got back from my shopping trip to town and ive got mo hayders tokio,birdman and the treatment for wild whippies.ive got for myself psychopaths,by john clarke and andy shea and a question of evidence (a casebook of great forensic controversies from napoleon to o.j. simpson)by colin evans author of the casebook of forensic detection.im now off to settle down for a good read! :thumbsup:

 

[imperative]

Omg! what a great thread! Books! Love reading and my work means I get lots of free books to review! Paul Britton's books were fab! David Canter is great too, same genre.Tend to read more non fiction however I just love childrens books.Magnus Power Mouse was fab, by Dick King -Smith.

Love Dr Steven Covey books too Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is great.Will be making reading list of many of the books you lot have mentioned.Nothing better than a good read. (w00t) :cheers:

www.knowledgeisking.co.uk is a great site

 

[Joanna]

well ive just got back from my shopping trip to town and ive got mo hayders tokio,birdman and the treatment for wild whippies.ive got for myself psychopaths,by john clarke and andy shea and a question of evidence (a casebook of great forensic controversies from napoleon to o.j. simpson)by colin evans author of the casebook of forensic detection.im now off to settle down for a good read! :thumbsup:

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Looking forward to your reviews. When I have finished the Labyrinth (eventually) I want to look at Wild Whippies recommendation of Tess Gerritson and I might try Mo Hayder too. :thumbsup:

 

[zilloot]

I am an avid reader and also a bookcrosser.  As far as bookcrossing is concerned I have mixed emotions and really only use this as a way to release books that I do not wish to keep.
As far as recommending books I could probably go on all day but I thought I would use this opportunity to mention a book that I am currently reading.  It is not major literature and would probably only take a few days to read.  It is entitled Narrow Dog to Carcassonne by Terry Darlington.  The tales of a couples trip down the canals of Britain and France with their whippet Jim.

Would love to know if any of you read it.  :cheers:

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From all these recommendations I bought 'Narrow Dog to Carcassonne' and it's just great - really funny and poor Jim-the-whippet! I haven't finished it yet but I'm really enjoying their adventures.

 

[whippetsrus]

I am an avid reader and also a bookcrosser.  As far as bookcrossing is concerned I have mixed emotions and really only use this as a way to release books that I do not wish to keep.
As far as recommending books I could probably go on all day but I thought I would use this opportunity to mention a book that I am currently reading.  It is not major literature and would probably only take a few days to read.  It is entitled Narrow Dog to Carcassonne by Terry Darlington.  The tales of a couples trip down the canals of Britain and France with their whippet Jim.

Would love to know if any of you read it.  :cheers:

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From all these recommendations I bought 'Narrow Dog to Carcassonne' and it's just great - really funny and poor Jim-the-whippet! I haven't finished it yet but I'm really enjoying their adventures.

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Could I recommend that you check out their website www.narrowdog.com. There is a brilliant picture of Jim there.

 

[Joanna]

Well I have finally finished Labyrinth by Kate Mosse.

I enjoyed the story which is based in the Languedoc region of France. It is two stories which are linked by a secret, another slant on the Grail. One story is set in medieval France and focuses on the Crusaders and the persecution of heretics, and the modern day element is about a young woman who helps out on a dig and discovers a pair of skeletons.

The book is very long and I did get a bit muddled with names and places at one stage, this is because I read it in bed when I was tired. This week-end, I have really gone for it and read the remaining third in the shade of the garden in the day. I would recommend reading it when you're not tired as it came alive for me then :wacko:

If any-one fancies reading it, I will pass on my copy to the them. First come first served, it has wine stains on it and guacamole splodge It would be nice to think it could get passed on and on until it falls apart :thumbsup:

Jo x

 

[dawn]

Well I have finally finished Labyrinth by Kate Mosse.I enjoyed the story which is based in the Languedoc region of France. It is two stories which are linked by a secret, another slant on the Grail. One story is set in medieval France and focuses on the Crusaders and the persecution of heretics, and the modern day element is about a young woman who helps out on a dig and discovers a pair of skeletons.

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Read this when it first came out and although interesting premise and full of detail did not grab me. Marketed as being on similar lines to the DV code but not (IMO) as well executed.

From KRISmo hayders tokio,birdman and the treatment for wild whippies

Where can I get Mo Hayders 'The Treatment for Wild Whippies' ? I've read Tokio and Birdman and look forward to reading her latest book.

 

[EJW]

I am an avid reader and also a bookcrosser.  As far as bookcrossing is concerned I have mixed emotions and really only use this as a way to release books that I do not wish to keep.
As far as recommending books I could probably go on all day but I thought I would use this opportunity to mention a book that I am currently reading.  It is not major literature and would probably only take a few days to read.  It is entitled Narrow Dog to Carcassonne by Terry Darlington.  The tales of a couples trip down the canals of Britain and France with their whippet Jim.

Would love to know if any of you read it.  :cheers:

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From all these recommendations I bought 'Narrow Dog to Carcassonne' and it's just great - really funny and poor Jim-the-whippet! I haven't finished it yet but I'm really enjoying their adventures.

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I bought "Narrow Dog" too but OH took it away to work with him :angry: So I'll have to wait a while before I get to read it :b

 

[wild whippies]

Where can I get Mo Hayders 'The Treatment for Wild Whippies' ?  ops

I've heard calpol is effective?! :teehee:

Just finished Tokyo, very impressed and loved the ending as I didn't see that coming. I wasn't aware of the atrocities that happened in Nanking and it's got me looking on Google. Mo Hayder refers to a book called the Chrysanthemum and the sword which I'm going to look out for.

To me any book that can inspire you to know more is a good read.

 

[kris]

i knew about what went on in china as id read a book about it.in china after the revolution they would not admit to outside authorities that communism wasnt working and the revolution a failure.people starved literally in their millions.chinas leaders would not go to the outside world for help.so its people starved to death.ive seen pictures and read a really good informative book (which was a few years ago and i cant remember the title though it wasnt as a biography)families ate their youngest children who died.they also ate their elderly parents.cannibalism was practiced after they eaten all the animals,boiled grass, and ate soil.it was a harrowing but enlightening read.just shows that some governments leaders will never admit when theyre wrong,despite the suffering of its peoples.

 

[~Helen~]

Has anyone read The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver? All about a family of missionaries in the Congo during the 1950s, basically falling apart because of their tyranical and scarily-obsessive father. It's a fantastic story, incredibly well-written and inventive, quite emotionally tearing in places, with an interesting subject matter. It's one that I will probably never be able to read again (too painful in one particular place, and anyone who's read it will know which bit!) but I couldn't bear to part with it. I love knowing it's on my bookshelf :b

I'm also finding huge enjoyment in Bernard Cornwell's Lords of the North series, having read his Grail Quest trilogy twice because it was so good. I guess they are Sharpe with Vikings and Sharpe with bows-and-arrows respectively, but such engaging page-turners crammed with fabulous characters. And lots of manly derring-do and bloodthirsty battle scenes.

Talking of the Grail, Labyrinthe by Kate Mosse, which has been mentioned already in this thread, IMO is a study in being able to get published because of who you are and who you know in the publishing world. Goodness knows why it's sold so many copies. A triumph of marketing over substance. Sadly, being one of the originators of the Orange Fiction Prize seems to mean you can (badly) write utter tosh, larded with lazy metaphors, swap viewpoints mid-scene and generally exhibit a dire lack of characterisation. We're told Alice is clever... but where is she clever??? She's a bimbo masquerading as an archaeologist. And there are so many incidents where things and people are flagged as being important... and then they vanish without trace, never to resurface in what passes for an extremely tiresome story. And how does the author have the brass neck to bang on about tourists in the novel (bad tourists, cluttering up lovely Carcassonne) and then be responsible for encouraging a whole lot of new tourists to jump on the "must see Carcassonne" bandwagon. Rant, rant, rant, as you can see this book really got my goat :lol: :lol: I wish I could have just thrown it across the room and never picked it up again, but I can't not-finish a book I've started :wacko:

My copy had a review saying "Dan Brown eat your heart out". PMSL! I shouldn't think this piece of sub-Barbara Cartland pot-boiling even features on Dan Brown's radar :blink:

edited to add a little list, I got so carried away being beastly about Labyrinthe I fogot!!

Forever Amber - Kathleen Winsor, an oldie but a goodie, deserves lots of re-reads.

Angelique - Sergeanne Golon, ditto

Corbenic - Catherine Fisher, modern day and very original re-telling of the Grail legend but nothing like any other re-telling I've ever read (Sir Percival's quest if he lived in the present day and was the young son of a very mixed up mother), aimed at teenagers but so good it's worth picking up even if you're a grown up!

The Roman Mysteries series - Caroline Lawrence, ditto in that they are for children but are really exciting.

Fingersmith - Sarah Waters, sheer genius, also Affinity and Tipping the Velvet

Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

Legends of the Fall - Jim Harrison, short stories, beautiful prose

In Pale Battalions - Robert Goddard, First World War with a wonderful mystery at its core and the best mid-way twist ever, I really didn't see it coming!!

 

[Joanna]

Has anyone read The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver? All about a family of missionaries in the Congo during the 1950s, basically falling apart because of their tyranical and scarily-obsessive father. It's a fantastic story, incredibly well-written and inventive, quite emotionally tearing in places, with an interesting subject matter. It's one that I will probably never be able to read again (too painful in one particular place, and anyone who's read it will know which bit!) but I couldn't bear to part with it. I love knowing it's on my bookshelf :b
I'm also finding huge enjoyment in Bernard Cornwell's Lords of the North series, having read his Grail Quest trilogy twice because it was so good. I guess they are Sharpe with Vikings and Sharpe with bows-and-arrows respectively, but such engaging page-turners crammed with fabulous characters. And lots of manly derring-do and bloodthirsty battle scenes.

Talking of the Grail,  Labyrinthe by Kate Mosse, which has been mentioned already in this thread, IMO is a study in being able to get published because of who you are and who you know in the publishing world. Goodness knows why it's sold so many copies. A triumph of marketing over substance. Sadly, being one of the originators of the Orange Fiction Prize seems to mean you can (badly) write utter tosh, larded with lazy metaphors, swap viewpoints mid-scene and generally exhibit a dire lack of characterisation. We're told Alice is clever... but where is she clever??? She's a bimbo masquerading as an archaeologist. And there are so many incidents where things and people are flagged as being important... and then they vanish without trace, never to resurface in what passes for an extremely tiresome story. And how does the author have the brass neck to bang on about tourists in the novel (bad tourists, cluttering up lovely Carcassonne) and then be responsible for encouraging a whole lot of new tourists to jump on the "must see Carcassonne" bandwagon. Rant, rant, rant, as you can see this book really got my goat :lol:   :lol: I wish I could have just thrown it across the room and never picked it up again, but I can't not-finish a book I've started  :wacko:

My copy had a review saying "Dan Brown eat your heart out". PMSL! I shouldn't think this piece of sub-Barbara Cartland pot-boiling even features on Dan Brown's radar  :blink:

edited to add a little list, I got so carried away being beastly about Labyrinthe I fogot!!

Forever Amber - Kathleen Winsor, an oldie but a goodie, deserves lots of re-reads.

Angelique - Sergeanne Golon, ditto

Corbenic - Catherine Fisher, modern day and very original re-telling of the Grail legend but nothing like any other re-telling I've ever read (Sir Percival's quest if he lived in the present day and was the young son of a very mixed up mother), aimed at teenagers but so good it's worth picking up even if you're a grown up!

The Roman Mysteries series - Caroline Lawrence, ditto in that they are for children but are really exciting.

Fingersmith - Sarah Waters, sheer genius, also Affinity and Tipping the Velvet

Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

Legends of the Fall - Jim Harrison, short stories, beautiful prose

In Pale Battalions - Robert Goddard, First World War with a wonderful mystery at its core and the best mid-way twist ever, I really didn't see it coming!!

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You weren't keen on Labyrinth then :lol:

I enjoyed Memoirs of a Geisha, haven't read any of the others on your list, but am currently reading a Robert Goddard. He is a good teller of tales. After your review, I think my copy of Labyrinth will end up in the charity shop. Funnily enough, my Mother has just read it on holiday in France. She enjoyed it as a result of being in the area it was based in.

 

[~Helen~]

After your review, I think my copy of Labyrinth will end up in the charity shop.

(w00t) Nooo! People will want to read it to make up their own minds :b It's gots lots of rave reviews on amazon, so it obviously pushes the right buttons for some folk, just not me :unsure:

Robert Goddard is great, isn't he? A real story teller as you say, and I like the fact that so many of his main protagonists are quite flawed (ex-alcoholics with a troubled past who have to dig deep to find their inner hero...). If you like RG then I bet you'd like Bernard Cornwell. You're probably a bit Grailed out for the Grail Quest trilogy, but try the Lords of the North. The first one is called The Last Kingdom, all about a 10-year old boy who is kidnapped by the Danes and isn't quite sure where his loyalties lie when he's a full-grown manly warrior and it comes to fighting for Alfred the Great.

And knowing your love of pus etc, you'll like the gory battle scenes. Very detailed :lol:

 

[dawn]

Talking of the Grail,  Labyrinthe by Kate Mosse, which has been mentioned already in this thread, IMO is a study in being able to get published because of who you are and who you know in the publishing world. Goodness knows why it's sold so many copies. A triumph of marketing over substance. Sadly, being one of the originators of the Orange Fiction Prize seems to mean you can (badly) write utter tosh, larded with lazy metaphors, swap viewpoints mid-scene and generally exhibit a dire lack of characterisation. We're told Alice is clever... but where is she clever??? She's a bimbo masquerading as an archaeologist. And there are so many incidents where things and people are flagged as being important... and then they vanish without trace, never to resurface in what passes for an extremely tiresome story. And how does the author have the brass neck to bang on about tourists in the novel (bad tourists, cluttering up lovely Carcassonne) and then be responsible for encouraging a whole lot of new tourists to jump on the "must see Carcassonne" bandwagon. Rant, rant, rant, as you can see this book really got my goat In Pale Battalions - Robert Goddard, First World War with a wonderful mystery at its core and the best mid-way twist ever, I really didn't see it coming!!

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What are you doing now without a goat?

Definitely well overrated is Labyrinthe - although I did find some of the 'historical' aspects interesting and revealing. Reminded me in places of Barbara Erskine but not as well written.

Having read ALL Robert Goddard's books from Past Caring to Never Go Back I can fully recommend his books I must admit that the earlier books Past Caring, In Pale Battalions, Hand In Glove etc have a much better 'feel' and I found much more enjoyable. Maybe the expectations were raised for the latter books, from the quality of the earlier, so much so that it was not possible to meet the expectations.

Still I am sure I will read his next (and his next) book.

Just waiting to start [SIZE=21pt]'The Fourth Bear' [/SIZE](several others though, that I must read first)

 

[~Helen~]

What are you doing now without a goat?

I am goatless! :lol: :lol: :clown:

Maybe the expectations were raised for the latter books, from the quality of the earlier, so much so that it was not possible to meet the expectations.

Poor man was probably working to impossible deadlines to get the next book out to satisfy the marketing department! He has my pity

I know what you mean, Dawn, about the earlier ones having a better feel, and this seems to be the case with a lot of authors who are obviously under pressure to deliver a book-a-year

 

[whippetsrus]

i knew about what went on in china as id read a book about it.in china after the revolution they would not admit to outside authorities that communism wasnt working and the revolution a failure.people starved literally in their millions.chinas leaders would not go to the outside world for help.so its people starved to death.ive seen pictures and read a really good informative book (which was a few years ago and i cant remember the title though it wasnt as a biography)families ate their youngest children who died.they also ate their elderly parents.cannibalism was practiced after they eaten all the animals,boiled grass, and ate soil.it was a harrowing but enlightening read.just shows that some governments leaders will never admit when theyre wrong,despite the suffering of its peoples.

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Would recommend that you read Wild Swans by Jung Chang. She has also just written a biography of Mao which is now in paperback as seems to be getting good reviews.

 

[lalena]

if you like historic epic types, read edward rutherfurds book 'sarum'. its very engrossing, rich with detail. bit ott in places, regarding sex, which i felt superflous to the needs of the story, but otherwise a good read. hes also written another couple of books 'ruska' and 'london' but i've not yet gotten my hands on either

 

[~Helen~]

if you like historic epic types, read edward rutherfurds book 'sarum'. its very engrossing, rich with detail. bit ott in places, regarding sex, which i felt superflous to the needs of the story, but otherwise a good read. hes also written another couple of books 'ruska' and 'london' but i've not yet gotten my hands on either

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Ooh, yes! London is v good :thumbsup: