UK Book Club discussion

So again going to try new authors to me - has certainly been a challenge in the past and don't expect it to get any easier!

A Sinan Antoon- The Corpse Washer
B Alessandro Baricco -Silk
C Lucy Cruickshanks -The Trader of Saigon
D Louise Doughty - Apple Tree Yard
E Twan Tan Eng
The Garden of Evening Mists -
F Nathan Filer - The Shock of the Fall
G Rumer Godden- The River
H Cicely Hamilton William - An Englishman
I Hamid Ismailov - The Dead Lake
J Shirley Jackson - We Have Always Lived in the Castle
K Jamaica Kincaid - A Small Place
L Åsa Larsson-Sun Storm
M Lottie Moggach- Kiss Me First
N Charity Norman - After the Fall
O Caroline Overington - I Came to Say Goodbye
P R.J. Palacio -Wonder
Q Anna Quindlen - Still Life with Bread Crumbs
R Jess Richards -Snake Ropes
S Sathnam Sanghera - Marriage Material
T Rosie Thomas -The Kashmir Shawl
U Chika Unigwe - On Black Sisters' Street
V Juan Gabriel Vásquez- The Sound of Things Falling
W Evie Wyld- All the Birds, Singing
X Ruiyan Xu - The Lost and Forgotten Languages of Shanghai: A Novel
Y Christopher J Yates - Black Chalk
Z Koethi Zan - The Never List

In addition going to try a Title A-Z challenge. Other than A and The, the first letter of the title. Should be interesting!

A All the Birds, Singing - Evie Wyld
B Burial Rites - Hannah Kent
C Cockroaches - Jo Nesbo
D The Dead Lake - Hamid Ismailov
E Entry Island - Peter May
F Fly Away Peter- David Malouf
G The Goddess and the Thief- Essie Fox
H The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty
I I Came to Say Goodbye- Caroline Overington
J Just What Kind of Mother Are You? - Paula Daly
K Kiss Me First - Lottie Moggach
L The Lie - Helen Dunmore
M The Master and Margarita A Graphic Novel - Mikhail Bulgakov
N The Never List - Koethi Zan
O Our Man in Havana- Graham Greene
P The Pure Gold Baby - Margaret Drabble
Q The Queen of Spades - Alexander Pushkin
R The Return of the Soldier - Rebecca West
S The Sound of Things Falling- Juan Gabriel Vásquez
T Tipping the Velvet- Sarah Waters
U Unspoken - Mari Jungstedt
V Rebecca Wait - The View on the Way Down
W William - An Englishman - Cicely Hamilton
X Xingu - Edith Wharton
Y Young Goodman Brown - Nathaniel Hawthorne
Z Zadig - Voltaire

Oooh I like the sound of your Title A-Z Sue. May have to give that a go myself. Good luck with them both.

Think the title one might be fun for 2014.

Glad you like the idea - separate thread?

Double whammy for this one! Strange book. Written as letters to a judge. The author was a journalist and I did wonder if she had an axe to grind with social workers although if things were going on in Australia as she recounts they were an eye-opener and did not fit the image Australia usually projects.

Sue wrote: "Glad you like the idea - separate thread?"

Nope, we can just do as a variant under A to Z.

Not my favourite Margaret Drabble book. Too much going on for me but beautifully written.

I have seen the play and read this but not really any the wiser. Understand some of the satire but perhaps I need to read the novel proper to really 'get it'.

Kiss Me First Double whammy for daughter of Deborah Moggach debut novel. Lonely girl assumes identity of a suicide so she won't upset friends and family. Unusual, but in a number of ways, upsetting plot. Look forward to her next one.

The Koh-i-nor diamond, seances, love and betrayal together with some Indian mythology. Lovely. And it got me Berkshire - a bonus!

Best book of 2014 so far - a bit bleak. Set in Australia and Scotland. Thought at first I was going to be using the dictionary a lot with all the unusual creatures and sheep terms.

The book starts with Pandora's box and what happens when secrets are revealed. An easy virtually chronological read which I did enjoy. Sadly it's the second new M reader this year.

Set in Columbia. Chilling when found out the meaning of the title. Interesting geographical and historical information but I didn't like the main characters.

Cockroaches - the second Jo Nesbo's Harry Hole series. Really enjoyed it - but then I do like scandi-crime, even if this one is set in Bangkok.

Why am I so inconsistent in my enjoyment of Helen Dunmore? Her last novel was brilliant and the Russian novels were good too So high hopes for the new one but it was a rather strange mixture of what happened on the front line and what was happening when he returned to Cornwall. Never really engaged with the characters and was annoyed that the landscape wasn't more recognisable. Some beautiful writing- but why has she started quoting chunks of poetry in her stories?

That's disappointing......mind you I was sort of underwhelmed by no 1 in the Siege series and never got round to the next one, so think I will give this one the swerve as well.

Really enjoyed this one. Sikh family own a corner shop in Wolverhampton - son goes off to London, returning when father dies. Complicated family and best friend. Some laugh out loud moments as well as pathos and significant details given in throw away lines.

Excellent story of murder in early 18th century Iceland. A real page turner set against a backdrop of poverty and freezing temperatures. Recommended.

William - An Englishman First WW1 story (written in France) about an idealist who rethinks his views after his honeymoon. Beautifully written.

Title E . Absolutely loved this duel time story. Set in Canada and Scotland it is essentially a crime novel but so much more.

Title T Really enjoyed the book having lived in Whitstable. Bit like Lady C really - remove a few pages (if you're not keen on explicit writing) and there's a really good story.
Over half way with titles - gets more difficult from now on!

Author F Interesting study of a boy with mental health difficulties after the death of his brother. Won a Costa prize.

Title F. Read for WW1 genre. Shortish book set in Australia and France (mainly). The first third deals with life in Australia, centred around birdwatching mainly. The descriptions of life in the trenches are vivid.

Title U. Scandi-crime - second in series with Anders Knutas. Murders but not too bloody and I didn't get who done it until about 3 chapters from the end. Story rattles along - couldn't put it down.

That looks good sue, put it in tbr, i like a new scandi crime idea

Author Y. Black Chalk] Good story but the characters were not nice. Set in Oxford for anyone looking for UK challenge. University students agree to play a game- the dares become increasingly difficult. One of them dies (says on the cover so not giving anything away). Good ending though.

Title R. WW1 story of a shell shocked soldier, whose return shakes the comfortable existance of his wife and cousin with revelations about the past. Good short read - beautiful writing. Horrid character!

Author A set in Iraq a story of conflict and unfulfilled dreams.Painful to read but compelling.

Author I, Title D and it got me Kazakhstan too! It was also a brilliant story of living in the Steppes in the time of automic bomb testing.

Title O Vacuum salesman is recruited to be a spy and is not a very good one. Sadistic chief of police is in love with his daughter.

Sue wrote: "Title O Vacuum salesman is recruited to be a spy and is not a very good one. Sadistic chief of police is in love with his daughter."

My favourite of Graham Greene's humorous novels, I hope you liked it?

Author P August has a severely deformed face and starts middle school having been home-schooled. A 'young adult' book which had me in tears - often! Some finely drawn characters.

Author Q Unusual to have a female lead character 60+. The title refers to a photograph and it's the photographer's money and then romantic problems that form the story. Enjoyed it.

Author T Grandaughter of missionary goes to India in search of the history of the shawl she finds after her father dies. Interesting but at times a bit long. Some lovely descriptions of the country.

Author U Four women come from Africa to join the sex trade in Antwerp. This novel tells their back stories as well as a little of their lives in Antwerp and their futures.

Title J Page turner set in the Lake District. Girl goes missing and mother's friend who was supposed to be looking after her gets the blame.

Title Enjoyed it.

Have changed to a tablet and cannot get into goodreads except via emails! So going to update in 'chunks'. At Christmas when 'technical support' is home I hope to get it sorted!
E Absolutely loved this. I am not sure of surname but my edition had E at the end so I'm going to count it.
Z Good story. Have just started another z author!
L Sucker for scandi-crime.

Three more to go - with my library pile with none of the letters think I'm going to struggle a bit to get this done.

J This is an American classic story of a dysfunctional family. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Title X Short story. Don't look up what the title means if you don't know as it's a very clever story about a literary group who think they know more than they do. Written with all Edith Wharton's wit.

Author X Quite good story of US doctor who comes to China when a man loses his ability to speak Chinese and can only speak English. Would have liked a bit more of the sort of info that you would expect from someone like Ian McEwan about aphasia.

Just one left.....authors anyway. I've failed miserably trying to do both.

Have started last author one but struggling on the other challenge. Awaiting books from library for the other letters but not found a 'v' yet. Son has offered me his books on Vulcan, Viscount etc but not that desperate ......... Yet!

Sue wrote: "Have started last author one but struggling on the other challenge. Awaiting books from library for the other letters but not found a 'v' yet. Son has offered me his books on Vulcan, Viscount etc ..."

I read The View on the Way Down earlier this year and loved it.

Thank you Danielle! There is even a copy in my local library!

Author G Cannot believe I have never read anything by her before only seen dramatisations of The Greengage Summer and Black Narcissis. Well worth a read for the description of a family in colonial India. Lots of description.

And that completes the A-Z of authors new to me in 2014. Having a rest next year!

Title Y Short story of the 'was it all a dream?' type.
3 to go. Have 2 awaiting 1! Is it possible?

Well done Sue, for finishing the A-Z authors, some really interesting books there!

Thanks Liz. They were all new to me authors so I have even more books on that tbr pile!