All About Books discussion

1/ Have you always loved books? Who, if anyone, in your life has most inspired you to read?

I have always enjoyed reading as long as I can remember. I used to love going to the children's library when I was small, and sitting on the floor looking at books. For years I wanted to have a job in a library when I was a grown-up. I thought it meant I would have lots of time to read books when I was at work!

There were lots of books at home when I was a child. I was the youngest of four children, so there were always plenty of people to read to me. I couldn't wait until I was able to read myself, so that I could read to my dolls and to the cats.

2/ What was your favourite childhood book?

I'm not sure about this one at all.

I remember we had a copy of Orlando the Marmalade Cat: A Seaside Holiday I remember it as an outsized book with beautiful pictures. I loved to look at the pictures whilst it was read to me. Sometimes I just made up the story myself!

By the time I was 9 or 10 I was an avid reader and would pick up everything I could find. My parents had a book called New Bottles For New Wine ; these were scientific essays. I loved the title and when my parents said I wouldn't find it interesting because I wasn't old enough, I read it from cover to cover in order to prove them wrong. I will now confess that I really didn't find it interesting at all!

3/ Which books do you remember studying at school? Did you enjoy them?

We used to read books out loud round the class, with each of us taking our turn. It seemed to take ages to get through a book and spoiled several books and authors for me. Silas Marner was a case in point. It was years before I tried anything else by George Eliot. And then I found how much I liked her novels after all.

4/ Where do you most enjoy reading? Do you need silence to read, or can you read almost anywhere?

I don't need silence, but if I'm by myself and reading I tend to do it with silence. I wouldn't think of turning music on or anything.

For most of my life I've read almost anywhere, in queues, in cafes, sometimes when walking along (but not in cars, it makes me travel sick!) Now my eyesight is bad, I prefer my regular chair at home where I have a really good 'daylight' task-light to help me.

5/ Choose 5 of your favourite books and tell us why you loved them so much.

This is a tricky one; there are so many to choose between. I think I am going to choose books that have stuck in my memory over time.
Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I have read and enjoyed several books by him. This is a short book (only 120 pages) which I think is perfectly structured.
Don Quixote by Cervantes. I had always (wrongly) imagined this would be a dreary book. I took it on holiday a few years ago and thought it was wonderful. It was really funny in parts, and sad in others, and I will definitely read it again.
Breath by Tim Winton. I have been impressed by all the books I have read by Tim Winton. They can be quite harsh, and give a different view of life in Australia. Breath is a book ostensibly about surfing, but about so much more besides.
Not a specific book, but Tony Harrison is one of my favourite poets. He is from a working-class background in Leeds (a northern English city) who then went on to study the classics. His poetry reflects this mixed background and the contradictions inherent in it.
Waiting for the Barbarians by Coetzee. I often think about this book. It has an apparently simple story, but with universal application.

And, if I can have an extra book, my 'desert island' book would be Vanity Fair.

6/ Do you prefer reading fiction or non-fiction?

I enjoy reading both. I read quite a lot of non-fiction. Often they are historical/political books about places I have visited.
I also enjoy reading poetry.

7/ Are you fond of a particular author and what attracts you to their books?

I think my favourite author is Carol Shields , a Canadian writer who died in 2003. She writes very observantly and sympathetically about ordinary sorts of people. She shows that each of us has a bit of the eccentric inside us. My favourite book of hers is Larry's Party

8/ Is there an author you haven't tried but you'd really like to?

I've never read anything by Stendhal.
Maybe this is the year that I manage to read one of his novels.


9/ Do you rely on Goodreads to keep track of your reading or do you have your own method?

For years I've kept a list, set out by month, of the books that I have read. Sometimes I've tried to write myself a little reviews of them, but I've never been very successful at continuing to do this. So Goodreads is really just a backup for this.
I'm finding Goodreads very useful in terms of keeping records of books that I want to read in the near future though.

10/ What's the best book you've read so far this year?

In my case, I'm using 2013! It seems a long time since I read it now, but my best book by far was Stoner .

What are you reading at the moment?
Robinson Crusoe and The Goldfinch

What will you be reading next?

I'm going to read Heartstone which is a detective novel set in Tudor times.

Some really good books for me to look at here Gill. You have had a wonderful journey with your reading. Thank you for sharing.

What a lovely journey, Gill! I agree with Tracey - thank you for sharing it :)

Your current reading is always impressive. And with your favourite books here, you make authors I've always been hesitant about approaching sound much more accessible than I feared. It makes me think I should give them a try!

I did laugh about your thought (as a child) that if you worked in a library you could read all the books. Actually, that's not too far from the truth, provided it's in a junior position. In my 20's I worked in various libraries as an assistant. Whenever I was on "counter duty" I had a book secreted under the counter, so if it was quietish I could read to my heart's content!

Once I found Tolkiens' tickets in the Issue (you will remember that in the olden days there were paper tickets attached to the tickets in books, one for each book and its current reader.) Yes, J.R.R. himself! He lived locally to Bury Knowle public library in Oxford, where I worked. I was never on duty when he came in though unfortunately. One of the other assistants came in the staff room all excited once though when he'd come in...

Gill I really enjoyed reading your 'Reading Journey', and found I could relate to almost all your childhood memories. The librarian always reading, the horror of taking turns in reading books (as we all well know by now, an unfit narrator can distroy the best of books ;)) and particularly the stubborness in reading a book cover to cover that you were told you were to young for to care for it. (in my case an opticians handbook that my father had in his study;)

Also, I am afraid most of your favourite books just ended up on my TR-List which is about to overtake my 'read' list ;)And I was really happy to find Waiting for the Barbarians on your list of favourites as well.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold is also one of my favourites. I will endorse your saying about the book that though being a short book yet it is a well structured one. There are also events in the book which can be read as fantastic literary short stories...

Great answers gill! :-)

I enjoyed reading your journey. I loved libraries as a child and used to want to try and read all if the books in my local library!

Dhanaraj wrote: "Chronicle of a Death Foretold is also one of my favourites. I will endorse your saying about the book that though being a short book yet it is a well structured one. There are also eve..."

Hmmm... maybe this should be one of my books for South America then.

Gill, great journey! Thanks for sharing :) And if you want to try reading some Stendhal with me, I am determined to read The Red and the Black this year!

Leslie wrote: "
Hmmm... maybe this should be one of my books for South America then"

Added this as my South Amercian Read a few hours ago ;)

Leslie wrote: "Dhanaraj wrote: "Chronicle of a Death Foretold is also one of my favourites. I will endorse your saying about the book that though being a short book yet it is a well structured one. T..."

I'm not sure whether to read The Red and the Black or The Charterhouse of Parma. But let me know when you are reading this, and I may join you.

Gill wrote: "Leslie wrote: "Dhanaraj wrote: "Chronicle of a Death Foretold is also one of my favourites. I will endorse your saying about the book that though being a short book yet it is a well st..."

Both of those are on my TBR but for some reason a few months ago, I became fixed on The Red and the Black… I have no idea when I will get to it but I'll let you know when I get ready to start.

Stoner is on my TBR list. Good to know you've liked it!
And I also like Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez but I prefere his One Hundred Years of Solitude ...

I really enjoyed reading your journey, Gill.

Enjoyed your journey Gill.

Thanks for all the comments. To be honest, it took me longer to prepare this reading journey than I expected. I found it quite thought-provoking, and interesting for myself to do this.

Gill wrote: "Thanks for all the comments. To be honest, it took me longer to prepare this reading journey than I expected. I found it quite thought-provoking, and interesting for myself to do this."

I am glad I'm not the only who thought this, haha.

Thanks Gill, I have enjoyed reading this. I also wanted very much to be a librarian when I was younger! I have added quite a few of your books you mention to my ever-growing to read list - some of which I hadn't heard of - but that's the great thing about doing this - it is an eye-opener to just how many unread books there are out there...

Gill wrote: "Thanks for all the comments. To be honest, it took me longer to prepare this reading journey than I expected. I found it quite thought-provoking, and interesting for myself to do this."

It took me longer than I expected to write mine as well! As you say, it's a way to "reconsider" something you take for granted as books and reading

LauraT wrote: "Stoner is on my TBR list. Good to know you've liked it!
And I also like Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez but I prefere his One Hundred Years of Solitude ..."

It is on mine as well, plus I bought the book a while ago! ;) hint hint

Thanks for compiling such a wonderful list Gill :)

It's a shame to hear that your school experience spoiled several books for you, but I'm glad you've been able to appreciate them since then. You have mentioned several books that are on my TBR list and it's interesting to hear of a lesser known book by Marquez. Hopefully I'll be starting Robinson Crusoe for the read along tomorrow, so at least that's one I can cross off my list!

Jenny wrote: "It is on mine as well, plus I bought the book a while ago! ;) hint hint "

We definitly need to discuss things better!!!!

Loved your reading journey Gill. I haven't read any of your favourites, Carol Shields or Stendhal but like you I've always made lists.

Thanks for all the comments everybody.