All About Books discussion

We're all guilty of adding yet more books to our bookshelves/e-readers! What have you recently acquired?

To "keep up" with our read, I've just uploaded in my kobo The Light Between Oceans

And I did the same with The Mystery of Edwin Drood!

I got a rather large haul of second hand books I'd ordered from Amazon today:

- Twelve (already read it, just wanted it in print form)
- Saving Francesca
- The Piper's Son
- Island of Lost Girls
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
- The History of Love

I'll have to look for The Belly of Paris for teh Zola readalong. I'll look around in internet tomorrow...

Bought Fracture last night, it was the first book I have preordered on my kindle so I completely forgot I was getting it until the email came this morning.

Today I bought The Divine Comedy. I have always been fascinated by it, and I feel like I'm ready to tackle it now. Any tips on how to approach it?

I had a few credits at Paperback Book Swap, so I have ordered Kingsley Amis' Lucky Jim (continuing my collection of British school-related satire!) and a Sara Paretsky mystery, Blacklist. One credit left...

Charbel wrote: "Today I bought The Divine Comedy. I have always been fascinated by it, and I feel like I'm ready to tackle it now. Any tips on how to approach it?"

Never read it... but I will be interested in hearing about your progress :)

Charbel wrote: "Today I bought The Divine Comedy. I have always been fascinated by it, and I feel like I'm ready to tackle it now. Any tips on how to approach it?"

There's a group called Bookish who are starting a Big Read of this (spread over nine weeks) at the beginning of September. I'm talking part in that.

That sounds brilliant Gill. I just asked to join.

Leslie wrote: "Charbel wrote: "Today I bought The Divine Comedy. I have always been fascinated by it, and I feel like I'm ready to tackle it now. Any tips on how to approach it?"

Never read it... but I will be i..."

I'm really looking forward to it.

Charbel wrote: "That sounds brilliant Gill. I just asked to join."
See you there! Which edition have you bought (as in who is the translation by?)

Gill wrote: "Charbel wrote: "That sounds brilliant Gill. I just asked to join."
See you there! Which edition have you bought (as in who is the translation by?)"

The translation is by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Waiting for Sunrise - William Boyd
Mrs Robinsons Disgrace - Kate Summerscale
A Vision of Loveliness - Louise Levene
Ghastly Business - Louise Levene
Trust Your Eyes - Linwood Barclay
Elijah's Mermaid - Essie Fox
Redemption - Jussi Adler-Olsen

and the month's not over yet!

Charbel wrote: "Gill wrote: "Charbel wrote: "That sounds brilliant Gill. I just asked to join."
See you there! Which edition have you bought (as in who is the translation by?)"

The translation is by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow..."

I'm part of that read-along, too. It'll be interesting to see the differences between the translations being read. I'm using one translated by C.H. Sisson.
Glad that you're joining us, Charbel.

Nice haul Maggie! I thought Jussi Adler-Olsen's first book was great - I couldn't put it down!

Leslie wrote: "Nice haul Maggie! I thought Jussi Adler-Olsen's first book was great - I couldn't put it down!"

I know - I love his books.

The Collected Stories by Katherine Mansfield arrived some days ago :D

Akylina wrote: "The Collected Stories by Katherine Mansfield arrived some days ago :D"

Does that include In a German Pension? It is one of her short story volumes I haven't read yet...

Leslie wrote: "Akylina wrote: "The Collected Stories by Katherine Mansfield arrived some days ago :D"

Does that include In a German Pension? It is one of her short story volumes I haven't read yet..."

Yes, Leslie, it includes all of the short stories she has written :)

Charbel wrote: "Today I bought The Divine Comedy. I have always been fascinated by it, and I feel like I'm ready to tackle it now. Any tips on how to approach it?"

Do you really intend to read it? I've not done it, and I think that nowadays in Italy as well it would be difficoult to find someone who has read the whole three Canti!

LauraT wrote: "Do you really intend to read it? I've not done it, and I think that nowadays in Italy as well it would be difficoult to find someone who has read the whole three Canti! "

I agree :D

Moreover it is nearly impossibile to read without notes and without having at least a little bit of knowledge of the Italian history of that time seen that a lot of characters refer to personalities of Italian history; also Dante's life is important and everything related to religion. It is a very complex work. It can't be read like a "normal" book.

It takes us italiens the last three years og high school, and our teachers don't even think of reading it whole!
But some "canti" are really the great, the fith of hell is superb, but as dely was saying to grasp the most of it you should know at least a bit if our literary history - dolce still novo - and Dante's one, he was a stilnovista, at the beginning...

I think it would be a shame not to read it. I understand the challenge in such a task, but I think it's worth it. It's on my bucket list, after all.

Just purchased
The Light Between Oceans
Five on a Treasure Island
Five Go Adventuring Again
Five Run Away Together
Five Go to Smuggler's Top
Five Go Off in a Caravan
The Magic Faraway Tree
The Folk of the Faraway Tree
The Enchanted Wood
The Borrowers

The Famous Five were all in a box set and The Borrowers is all 5 books in one. Having a serious nostalgia trip when these arrive!

Heather wrote: "Just purchased
The Light Between Oceans
Five on a Treasure Island
Five Go Adventuring Again
Five Run Away Together
Five Go to Smuggler's Top
Five Go Off in a Caravan
The Magic Faraway Tree
The Fol..."

Great haul! I got the same Famous Five box set I think :-) I spotted it in Tesco a while ago for £5 and made my boyfriend buy me them because I had no cash, haha.

I bought;

The Disenchantments & As I Lay Dying online

and

The Carrier, Necessary Lies, Wonder & The Night Rainbow when I was away during the week.

I am on a ban now (except for monthly reads).

Chimney wrote: "I purchased a new ebook tonight:

Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked"

What a great title! :)

@Becca - Good luck with your ban :P

Just bought The Selection for kindle as it was 99p. Gotta love those kindle daily deals.

Becca wrote: "I bought;

The Disenchantments & As I Lay Dying online

and

The Carrier, Necessary Lies, Wonder & The Night Rainbow when I was away during the week.

I am on a ban now (except for monthly reads)."

Good luck with your ban.

Do pre-orders count?

Just pre-ordered The Shining Girls and The Burning Air

Thanks Leslie and Alannah - I'm gunna need all the luck I can get haha :-)

@Alannah - I loved The Selection! And its sequel, The Elite. I'm eagerly awaiting the final part of the trilogy (The One) but its not out until the middle of next year :-( I hope you enjoy it :-)

Lord of the Flies, just bought it. I also got Deception Point and Digital Fortress.

Invisible MurderLene Kaaberbøl

I loved The Boy in the Suitcase and this one has had good reviews too.

(Haha I've just learned how to add book/author!)

My Sara Paretsky book arrived Blacklist, and I borrowed a Kindle book from Amazon, The Sea and the Silence. Sadly the Paretsky will have to sit on the shelf for a while before I can get to it.

Just bought The Queen's Lady on the kindle deal. I am now officially putting myself on a buying ban as I feel I am buying a lot more than I'm reading now.

Alannah wrote: "Just bought The Queen's Lady on the kindle deal. I am now officially putting myself on a buying ban as I feel I am buying a lot more than I'm reading now."
I know perfectly well: I used the "ban" now for these last two years and still have many books to be read!

Maggie wrote: "Invisible MurderLene Kaaberbøl

I loved The Boy in the Suitcase and this one has had good reviews too.

(Haha I've just learned how to add book/author!)"

Well done. Maggie! I've never heard of her, but since I'm in my thriller period I may have a look at what I can find in the net...

Yay, my copy of Vile Bodies has arrived, along with a big box of Keurig coffee pods. Now I have coffee AND Evelyn Waugh :)

Downloaded An Ideal Husband, hopefully this doesn't count as breaking my ban as I technically did not pay for it.

I don't remember where I wrote that I was waiting from the USA Waiting for Gertrude: A Graveyard Gothic. Well, it arrived :D

Well. We could read it together then dely! But not before the 10th!

LauraT wrote: "Well. We could read it together then dely! But not before the 10th!"

For me it's ok. I must still finish La verità sul caso Harry Quebert and Three Lives.

I know I said I was a book buying ban but I bought The Light Between Oceans for the group read.

dely wrote: "LauraT wrote: "Well. We could read it together then dely! But not before the 10th!"

For me it's ok. I must still finish La verità sul caso Harry Quebert and Three Lives."

Ok then! How's La veritá sul caso Harry Quebert? I've read "everithing and its contrary" as we say in Italy about this book!

LauraT wrote: "How's La veritá sul caso Harry Quebert? I've read "everithing and its contrary" as we say in Italy about this book! "

I don't know, I am not able to have opinions about this book; perhaps because I am not a mystery/thriller reader. It has a flowing pace, a lot of twists, I am curious to know who the murder is but it seems a little bit "tasteless" and it doesn't has emotions and also the love story in the book is trivial and childish, it doesn't seem real. I am reading it only because my neighbor lent it to me otherwise it isn't a book I would have bought because it is not my genre.

I usually like thrillers, but alsi by lover of this genre I've been told different opinkons. I'll havo to see for myself!

Alannah wrote: "I know I said I was a book buying ban but I bought The Light Between Oceans for the group read."

I am tempted to do this too, as the waiting list at the library is very long!

Leslie wrote: "Alannah wrote: "I know I said I was a book buying ban but I bought The Light Between Oceans for the group read."

I am tempted to do this too, as the waiting list at the library is very long!"

I haven't even got that far but I think it is worth buying.

I recently got as a prize for participating in my library's Summer Reading Program Steelheartwhich was a pretty good read and my first Brandon Sanderson novel. I also got at Barnes and Noble Dark Passagewhich is book 6 of the series and they were both pretty good reads. It's sad that the Kingdom Keepers series is ending when the final book comes out next year. Those are all the books I acquired for my bookshelf right now.