The Year in Books - July

With the promise of long, lazy summer days looming I have been stock piling books from the library.  There are several that I really want to read, having read reviews from other bloggers taking part in The Year in Books and also from reviews in Red.  Infact there are so many books I want to read at the moment that I wish there was such a job as professional book reader! 

June was a bit of a miss for me regarding my book choice.  I managed about the first third but to be perfectly honest I wasn't enjoying it.  It was well written but didn't really capture my imagination.  So having promised myself that if I'm not enjoying a book after the first quarter to waste no more time on it.  Long gone are the days when I had to read books for my English A level or the English Literature part of my first degree.  Life is too short to be wasted on books I am not enjoying, especially when there are so many books I really want to read.  Therefore I have spent much of June catching up on favourite magazines (Red, The Simple Things and Country Living) and have almost finished Picture Me Gone by Meg Rosoff as recommended by Lucy, my thirteen year old daughter.  I have to admit Meg Rosoff is fast becoming one of my favourite authors this year.  Even though her work is aimed at young adults and my greying hair and fine lines suggest I no longer fit this category, I am enthralled by her stories.  I adore the way she writes and have yet to find one of her books that I don't devour with great zest.

Already part way into July I have a little pile of books aligned, ready and waiting for my attention.  Dear Life by Alice Munro, Five Days by Douglas Kennedy and Life After Life by Kate Atkinson are on my list this month and I still have Gone Girl waiting in the wings.  However I am not sure I will get through all of these this month but I am hoping for plenty of reading time.  So now I am just hoping for the sunshine to return so I can lay out in the garden and enjoy many happy hours with a book.

What are you reading this month?  Recommendations are always appreciated and be sure to see what everyone else is reading for The Year in Books project.

Until next time, take care.
Zoe
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The Year in Books - March

I am a little late to the table with my year in books post this month.  Life has been a little hectic but somehow I have managed to find some time to read a couple of books.  Those few snatched minutes at bedtime are so precious to me, a time when I can enter the pages of another world, just for a little while.  Last month I read and absolutely loved How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff.  As you may remember this book was recommended by my eldest daughter, Lucy and it certainly didn't disappoint.  Infact I was pleasantly surprised by this young adult fiction, a novel full of fear, love and coping.  Initially I struggled to work out that this was set in modern day Britain, but soon adapted to the concept of our modern world being destroyed by war.  Entwined in moments of joy, love and tenderness there were moments of unimagainable fear.  The immature understanding of the characters made this even more poignant and the believability of their situation became easier as the story progressed.  Lucy and I have definitely added Meg Rosoff to our list of favourite authors this year and will be reading more of her work in the coming months.

Over the last month I have also been dipping in and out of the Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin.  I have been subscribed to Gretchen's daily email for several months and have enjoyed reading about her mission to make her life happier.  Taking a few moments a day for be grateful can help us all to feel happier and definitely something I am trying to adopt.

So this months book choice.  To be perfectly honest with you I have yet to choose from the many books awaiting my attention, both on my bedside table and loaded onto my iPad.  My biggest downfall is wanting to read more books than I have time for.  Books reguarly added to my wishlist on Amazon, nevermind the appeal of fabulous bookcovers on a trip to the library or the local bookshop.  

Right I will pick a book for a March.  The Curious incident of the Dog in the Night-Time has been on my list (and bedside table) for a little while, especially since Jack went to London recently to watch the play as part of his GCSE Drama course.  The best thing about taking part in The Year in Books is tha fact that I am taking making time to read books that I have wanted to try for ages.

What are you reading this month? I would love to know, maybe I can find space on my overloaded reading wishlist!

Until next time, take care.

Zoe

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The Year in Books - February

Well January flew by in haze of wet and windy days.  At last February has arrived and with the second day of sunshine and blue skies here in Suffolk I can almost smell spring.  Inspired by the idea from Laura of Circle of Pines to read a book a month, I have ended most of my evenings throughout January reading Bonkers by Jennifer Saunders.  This was an adventure through the comedienes life and a thoroughly enjoyable one too.  Although Jennifers writing seemed a little erratic at times but what more would you expect from a comic genius.  In the early days writing down their sketches were not part of their work, but as soon as French & Saunders worked for auntie beeb suddenly pen and paper were required.  It is clear that Jennifers head is bursting with ideas that occasionally pour out, I imagine in the same way she has shared her life in Bonkers.  

So time to chose another book.  This months choice is a recommendation from Lucy, my eldest daughter.  I had picked this book up from the library for her having read alot about it before Christmas as it was released as a film.  Being keen to share books with my children I am really excited as Lucy gets older that we can share books, having already encouraged her to read The Help, To Kill a Mockingbird and some of Cecelia Aherns books. So for Februarys book I will be reading How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff.  

For more reading inspiration pop over to Lauras blog to see what the rest of the group are reading this month and what we read last month.

Until next time, take care.
Zoe
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