Read Scotland 2014 discussion

I don't know if I'm being a bit ambitious going for 9 to 12 books but I'm certainly very keen to give it a go.

A few authors I want to read:

John Buchan
Iain M. Banks (sci fi)
Robert Louis Stevenson
Margaret Oliphant
Neil Oliver
John and Carole Barrowman
Peter May
Dorothy Wordsworth (Recollections of a Tour of Scotland is free on Kindle)
Tobias Smollett
Gavin Maxwell
Ann Lindsay
Katherine Stewart
Gavin Esler
D.E. Stevenson
Val McDermid

I'm sure there'll be many more to add to the list as I see what others are reading.

My first book for this challenge:

Consider Phlebus a science fiction book by Scottish author, Iain M. Banks.

My second book for Read Scotland is Letters From the Horn of Africa - 1923-1942, by Sandy Curle and edited by Christian Curle. My review is here on my blog:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

There's a lovely Canadian in Ontario hosting "The Postal/Epistolary" challenge. You ought to be in it with us. Since I hadn't heard of "epistolary" last year, I only gave it a try because she flexibly allows any incorporation of the post office, diaries, or letters. Goodness, if she doesn't say I won the group last year!

I think that's the one I'm doing, Carolyn. Is the host The Indextrious Reader? This is my first book for her Postal challenge anyway. I have a nice bunch of books all lined for it.

Yes. Mélanie sent me a lovely hardcover book about the art of letter-writing, with a note and special tissues to match. Starting yesterday, this is the week of my blog's third anniversary, so I bid all of my members to stay tuned for activities to crop up! :)

Oh, how nice!

Righty ho... I shall definitely stay tuned to see what you have in mind.

My third book for the challenge, Sisters of Sinai: How Two Lady Adventurers Found the Hidden Gospels by Janet Soskice.

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Book 4 for the challenge, The Middle-aged Mountaineer by Jim Curran.

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

My fifth book for the Read Scotland challenge is Huntingtower by John Buchan.

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

"Huntingtower" sounds like a fun read!

Sarapepparkaka: Apologies for not anwering this before, I've only just found it. Yes, Huntingtower is delightful and huge fun. I hope to read the two sequels very soon.

My sixth book for The Read Scotland challenge is The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey... book one in her Inspector Alan Grant mysteries.

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

I liked it very much indeed!

Goood morning Cath. I've thought about skipping this Goodreads group. I haven't read Scottish yet, with 45 other challenges being juggled right now. Unless it's someone who communicates with me, like you, it's a lot of chatter to monitor before I'm able to contribute. But I own "The Man In The Queue" too (I can't bear all words of a tile not capitalized, hahaha).

I own plenty others. However I may not read pre-1960 material for the remainder of this year, unless I do it purely for me. I'm striving to finish Bev's whole vintage silver mystery board, 1960 to 1989. I hope she removes the dividing line and just allows material up to 1989. For now, golden and silver don't mix and I'm inclinced to save futher oldies to count towards next year. If she takes away groups and just allows the whole span of those areas, we're in business. :)

Hi Carolyn. 45 challenges! Good grief. I don't think I could physically do that many. Well done for attempting it.

I don't tend to monitor all the messages and posts here but I do like to keep my part of this group up to date with my progress. Helps me keep an eye on things.

I'm loving the Vintage Crime challenge but am only doing the Golden one as I own much older books and want to read them. 'Whatever works for you' is my motto. Also enjoying your 'My Kind of Mystery' challenge. I'm only doing 5 or 6 challenges this year and that's enough. Wow... 45. I'm in awe. :-)

My book seven for Read Scotland is The Fair Miss Fortune by D.E. Stevenson.

Review here:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Well my dear, you're the one trumpeting along in this group. I'm done two Scottish books, with at least one more in my queue this month because it's written by a Canadian. That challenge ends June 30th. The 46 I do are nothing at all because all books apply to the majority of them. Of course you know one isn't tackling 46 sets of books. I'm so pleased you're enjoying mine. I need to unroll another contest activity in it and begin doing so for the other two.

For vintage, ideal would be simply permitting all mysteries up to 1989. I have wads of pre-1960 but am working on the 'silver' scorecard. However in 'had a different title' / 'became a movie'; I can only think of old names. The division is frustrating. I worked it out. When Canadian 2014 is done this month, I'm going to blow through that scorecard. I'm striving to avoid not receiving book prizes after 2014 and disqualifying their use for 'Mount TBR' in 2015. I won the first in April and will already hold it off nearly a year. I'll continue with you in your Mount TBR update or mine. :)

Hi Carolyn! I'm quite pleased with my seven books so far, if I keep going this way I might have to change my group. It's such a lovely theme is Scotland and so many different options.

Yes, I'm very much enjoying yours too and have read six books for the Secret Message category. As the aim is five to ten books I'm probably going to have up my aim for that too.

Really enjoying all of my challenges this year, including the Vintage crime one. I'm doing 'gold' and have found so many new authors to read. My shelves are groaning.

It's funny, I was thinking the same thing... that all my new books from this year will qualify for next year's Mount TBR challenge and should I not read any of them until 2015? Not sure I can hold off that long!

Hello Cath! You mentioned knowing there was another chat in my Mount TBR thread and that's exactly it. My ingrained habit which allows me to hold off. I'll leave you to follow up assorted goings-on there but I won't deny being tempted. Every time I see those fine books in my room, or step into our library building.... my orginization of certain groups beckons to me undoubtedly. Fortunately a great deal of my collection, by volume, can only help being a good 20 years old. It qualifies for anything!

I sat on the library couch with two of my cats, preparing seeds yesterday. I sowed the front half of our driveway flowerbed, perennials for a change. Ron was pleased, there being enough mowing and odds & ends when he's home. I shall grow the taller row behind it today, if mosquitoes lessen after the sun is higher. A wind like yesterday would do marvellously. It takes skill for Manitobans to learn how to live among mosquitoes.

My book 8 for the Scottish challenge is Charlotte Fairlie by D.E. Stevenson. It was delightful!

My review:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

My book 9 for the Scottish challenge is Lorraine Kelly's Scotland by Lorraine Kelly:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

My book 10 is A Shilling for Candles by Josephine Tey:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

My book 11 for the Read Scotland challenge is Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Must catch up with you by e-mail to hear about your anniversary; whoever might write first. I'm reminded by looking at your profile, (most of anything fell by the wayside) of a question I was going to ask of you about Josephine Tey. "A Shilling For Candles" is one of two I seek. If you weren't keeping it, I thought I might trade "Mariana" for it. I kept it for you in such an event, or as a prize. You are soaring along with your reading and I'll soon find the strength to resume too.

Hi Carolyn. I'm afraid there's nothing much to say about our anniversary as we don't tend to celebrate unless it's a milestone one, such as last year when it was 40 years. We spent it quietly doing garden things. I'm not doing much email at the moment either as my neck and shoulders are still not great and what energy I have has to go into harvesting veggies from the garden. We've peeled 15lbs of shallots for the freezer over the past two days. Exhausting, but I'm sure we'll appreciate them during the winter.

I'm sorry, A Shilling for Candles belongs to my daughter so I can't swap it.

I hope you're able to get back to reading soon. Thinking of you. Take care!

Nothing untoward at all - merely an enquiry. I understand you're too sore to e-mail. If you're already harvesting something, of course enjoy all of that. We are pleased to use parsley, basil, dill, peas, and beans. Celebrating is much more than stepping out on the town dancing. Being in the garden together, or in any capacity at home, is lovely. I'm sure there are aspects of the occasion unfit for the internet so I'll leave you and your 41-year husband to those pastimes. ;) I'm just in from trimming long plants at that south flowerbed, as Ron re-stains our wooden log house exterior. I'm in a swimsuit at +30C and all of that. It's a smiling day.

Over the past while, before hardship, I finished a good 15 novels. They haven't been entered into any website because I must set out to review all of them. One will be for Scotland at last, making three.

Carolyn, I wish the soreness would go away but it's unlikely as there's quite a lot of work to do this time of year. Never mind.

We had the tail-end of Hurricane Bertha yesterday and, although it wasn't as bad as was forecast, the wind was still strong enough to blow our sweetcorn plants over. So will have to harvest those today or tomorrow. 30C would be too hot for me, I don't do heat all that well, but I'm so glad you love it. :-)

Cath, sorry about the soreness in your neck and shoulders! We've had the tail end of Bertha this afternoon - not too strong up here, just lots of wind and rain. It's calmed down now.

I've completed Ben Nevis and moving on to the Back O'Beyond - it sounds like the end of the world!!

Thanks, Margaret. It's slightly better than it was but as you know, gardening is not all gentle dead-heading in a pretty flowery dress. ;-) And it does take its toll a bit. To tell the truth, it's sitting typing too much that makes it more achey than anything so book posts have to be written over a week or so.

Well done on completing Ben Nevis! Back of Beyond does sound like the end of the world. I'm just reading my 12th. book and will then have completed Hebridean. I'll have to see what the next level up is as it seems I might achieve it.

My book 12 for the Scottish challenge is Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole. (I gave it four stars.)

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Which means I've now finished 'Hebridean' and will move on to 'Ben Nevis' as soon as I start reading another book for this challenge.

My wrap-up post for Read Scotland 2014 is here:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Thank you, Peggy, for hosting this lovely challenge.

Cath wrote: "My wrap-up post for Read Scotland 2014 is here:

http://read-warbler.blogspot.co.uk/20...

Thank you, Peggy, for hosting this lovely challenge."

Your welcome Cath!

Peggy, I left a little comment for you on my Read Scotland wrap-up post. :-)

Cath wrote: "Peggy, I left a little comment for you on my Read Scotland wrap-up post. :-)"

Thanks, I'm off to read it now!