UK Book Club discussion

A....For one more Day by Mitch Albom. READ MAY 2011.

B....All fun and Games Untill Someone loses an Eye by Christopher Brookmyre.READ APRIL 2011.

C....The Other Hand (aka Little Bee) by Chris Cleave. READ APRIL 2011.

D....Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn. READ JULY 2011

E....Garhering the Water by Robert Edric. READ JULY 2011

F....Extremly Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathen Safran Foer.READ APRIL 2011

G....Travels with my Aunt by Graham Green.READ MAY 2011

H....The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett. READ MAY 2011

I....Backwater by Conn. Iggulden. READ SEPTEMBER 2011

J....Here at the End of The World We Learn to Dance by Lloyd Jones. READ MARCH 2011

K....Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok READ APRIL 2011


L....Skeleton Hill by Peter Lovesey. READ JULY 2011

M....The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell. READ FEBRUARY 2011

N....One Day by David Nicholls READ OCTOBER 2011

O....A Clergymans Daughter by George Orwell READ AUGUST 2011

P..The Map of Time by Felix J Palma. READ SEPTEMBER 2011

Q....One True Thing by Anna Quindlin. READ OCTOBER 2011

R....The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss READ JULY 2012


S....The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif. READ MARCH 2011

T....Sanctus by Simon Toyne. READ APRIL 2011

U....Morality play by Barry Unsworth READ OCTOBER 2012

V....No and Me by Delphine de Vigan READ JANUARY 2011

W....The Clue of the Twisted Candle by Edgar Wallace READ JANUARY 2011

X....Sky Buriel by Xinran READ JANUARY 2012

Y....Cold Spring Harbour by Richard Yates READ OCTOBER 2012

Z....Journey into the past by Stefan Zweig READ SEPTEMBER 2011Morality Play

Good luck with the challenge,Susan. I really like the idea of the A-Z challenge, but am already involved in 2 other challenges this year. Maybe I'll have a go next year!

Thanks Angela, I really enjoyed compiling my list, now all I have to do is read all the books!

Have just finished my first book in this challenge, No and Me by Delphine De Vigan , and have loved it.
It's the story of an unusual friendship between a gifted young girl, and a homeless, damaged teenager.
The story is sad, and haunting....and very thought provoking....certainly well worth reading.

I go No and Me at a charity shop the other day - sounds great.

Lynne wrote: "I go No and Me at a charity shop the other day - sounds great."

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

I've just finished my second book of my challenge, The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet , and I thought it was amazing.

I am really looking forward to reading this one Susan, glad you enjoyed it so much - a good sign!!

I've just finished reading my third book of this Challenge Here at the End of the World We Learn to Dance , by Lloyd Jones.

I've wanted to read this book for a while, having really liked another book by this authorMister Pip, but I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much.
It was interesting, and kept me reading, but I found it disjointed, and for me, just didn't seem to fulfil the potential I imagined it to have. Disappointing.

I've just started my fourth book,.The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif. I've had this on my bookcase for ages, and have tried to read it a couple of times, but I think I'm going to actually succeed this time.

It seems to have taken me ages to read this book, but it was worth it.
Detailing Egypt's political struggles at both the beginning and end of the 20th Century, this book also tells a wonderful love story, revealed as the great-granddaughter of the lovers discovers the contents of an old chest.
By reading the journals and letters it contains,she is able to piece together the story, while she and her cousin live through the upheavals of the region in the late nineties.
It seemed especially relevant to read this book just at this time, considering the recent upheavals in Egypt, and it has made me want to read more of it's history.

Omg. Lol. I thought that was a list of all the books you had read so far

No, I still have 22 of them to look forward too!!

I've just finished , by Chris Cleave, which is also known as .
I've enjoyed this unusual story, which explores the problems of illegal immigration from the point of view of a young girl, traumatised by terrible persecution and violence in her own country, who hopes, mistakenly,to find safety in England.
This is a very thought provoking book.

No many to go now susan lol

I've finished All Fun and Games Until Somebody Loses an Eye, byChristopher Brookmyre.
This was a great read, unusual, funny, enough action to keep it exciting...and wonderfully far fetched!

6 down and 20 to go!!!!

I thought the Chris Cleave book was very good; as you say, thought provoking. Glad you enjoyed the Christopher Brookmyre book - I'm looking forward to reading one of his before the end of the month.

Angela....I will definatly read more of Christopher Brookmyre, it was good fun. Hope you enjoy them too.

I've just finished Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer.

This was an amazing book......I think I shall be thinking about it for a long time to come!
It looks at how a nine year old boy tries to come to terms with the death of his Father in the tragedy of 9/11, and is unlike anything I have ever read!

Susan wrote: "I've just finished Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer.

This was an amazing book......I think I shall be thinking about it for a long time to com..."

Added to my tbr list - thanks Susan

Ian....I'll be interested to read what you think of it.

Could be a while Susan - my tbr list is growing like Topsy

Susan, have you read any other Safran Foer? I was surprised to find Everything Is Illuminated difficult to get to grips with for the most part. I must say despite this, the book also provided one of the most emotionally hard hitting moments I've ever read and genuinely moved me to tears. In the end I'm not quite sure if he's a writer for me or not... from your comments I'm beginning to think I should give him another go.

Em......I really loved Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, It was one of the most moving books I've ever read.....I honestly can't stop thinking about it. It's very unusual....not like any other book I've read.
I think I shall read his other books, this was the first of his I've read.

You've convinced me!

I've just finished Sanctus by Simon Toyne, which I suppose you could describe as being a Dan Brown sort of book, but not really in the same league.
I enjoyed the first half, then it became not so good, then it became just daft !!
Disappointing.

I've just completed G Travels with My Aunt by Graham Greene. I gave it four stars.

I've now read my book for A. For One More Day by Mitch Albom.
It was good, but not as good as his other books which I've read.

For H I chose The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett.
I've enjoyed reading it, and watched the film version as soon as I had finished the book.
I was surprised by how much the film left out, and much preferred the book. Classic stuff!

11 down 15 to go!

For D I chose Ella Minnow pea,and thought it was very good.
So clever....if you like words, I think you will like this book.

Just finished Skeleton Hill by Peter Lovesey.
This was the first of his books I've read. It was an enjoyable Detective/Murder mystery, which I thought was well written, and kept me guessing until the end.

Half way....so a bit behind if I want to finish this year.
Doing E now....Gathering the Water by Robert Edric.

I didn't like this book at all....if it hadn't been on my A to Z challenge I don't think I would have finished it.

Just added two books which I had forgotten to list....blame my age!!

W. The Clue of the Twisted Candle by Edgar Wallace.

K. Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok

So not as behind as I thought!

I read a lot of George Orwell when I was younger, but must have missed A Clergyman's Daughter, so this has been my book for O.

Chapter two, when the heroine of the story suddenly finds herself a down and out in London, having suffered a loss of memory took me by surprise, but her journey through destitution, and back to her vicarage home was interesting enough to keep me reading.

Hi Susan! So glad you liked Ella Minnow Pea. It's one of my favorite books.

Melki....it was so unusual, and very clever, I must look and see whay else this author has written.

He has one called Ibid: A Novel - a book written entirely in footnotes. It's also very clever, but not as heartwarming as "Ella...".

Thanks Melki, I shall look it up.

I think I'll look that one up as well Melki, I really enjoyed what Mark Dunn achieves with language in Ella Minnow Pea but still somehow tells a compelling story so I'd be interested to read more by him...

Z....Journey Into the Past by Stefan Zweig

This short love story really surprised me in just how good it was, I will definatly be looking for more of his writing.

I....Blackwater by Conn Iggulden

This is another novella, it was a good story, even though short, and has interested me in reading more of his work.

P....The Map of Time by Félix J. Palma

I'm not too sure what to say about this book....there were parts of it that were good, and the idea behind it was brilliant, but, I found large parts of it boring and strangely irritating, and sadly, overall I didn't really enjoy it.

N....One Day by David Nicholls

I quite enjoyed this book, at least I kept reading it until it was finished, but
I definatly wasn't all that impressed .
It was all rather predictable, a bit depressing and obvious, and to be honest I thought it stretched credibility that all those momentous things should just happen to happen on the same date, year after year......

Q....One True Thing by Anna Quindlen

I loved the writing in this book, but of course it is such a sad story.
It's very well done though, and some parts were incredibly moving.
I saw this movie a while ago, and thought it was very good, but the book was somehow different and better.

I can't believe I only have four to go....I have R and X waiting on my iPad, but I'm struggling to find books for U and Y for some reason....any suggestions?

Hi Susan, not many left!

For Y maybe Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto or Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates?

For R, my husband surprised me with a new novel One Moment, One Morning by Sarah Rayner - I haven't read it yet but will have to soon, if only to encourage him to treat me to more books!

Thanks Em.....this looks interesting and unusual....I think I'll give it a go.

My husband has only ever surprised me with one book, apart from lots of cookery books, that is, and that was The Lord of the Rings, many moons ago....I suppose nothing could ever surpass that, so he's never chosen another for me.

X....Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story Of Tibet by Xinran

R.....The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

2 left

It's taken me forever to do this.....just U and Y to go.....