Book club

Indeed.....and I'm obviously not averse to grim books either....in the same post of 11 months ago I mentioned above, I explained that The English Patient is probably my favourite novel.....and that ain't exactly bursting with joy !!

Hi Number, a very warm hello to you on this grey and cold morning.

You are more than entitled to your opinion and I believe many think the same way as you re this book, it is a grim read but I find books like this almost addictive and can't stop reading them once I start. I like a good drama and thriller book me.

Number said:

Each to their own !

This comment made me think about the books I like best including the 2 aforementioned and they are all bleak in outlook.

Curious

Hi Goofyball.  Just goes to show how we all perceive and interpret things differently.....(i am referring to Brighton Rock in this instance.)  I say this because I just glanced one of my posts 11 months ago in this thread that read......

"Relieved to hear you say that!  Brighton Rock was one of my O level English texts.....I found it threatening, upsetting and overwhelmingly depressing.  Grim period of history.  Grim location (at that point in history) and the darkest sorts of human motivations and behaviours spelt out at every corner.  Brighton Rock is a literary masterpiece in the same way that a lobotomy is a marvel of modern medicine - in my opinion."

Each to their own !  You have a good Friday Goofyball.

Enjoy Brighton Rock, Debbie, I enjoyed that book. I grew up on all the classics, my parents are very old fashioned and for a few years I was living with my aunt's and they had hundreds of vintage books.

I'm currently reading The Phoenix and the Carpet which is one I first read at my Aunt's when I was staying with them. It's now one of my favourite books, I've read it so many times but it never gets old for me.

The novel before last I read was Lawrence Osborne's the Forgiven which I enjoyed and reminded me of the Paul Bowles' The Sheltering Sky.

So, I just re-read TSS.

I find this novel fascinating but a warning for anyone who takes it as a recommendation: racism abounds, by today's standards.

Oh Brighton Rock. Read in my late teens on the recommendation of my English teacher, God Bless his memory.

We read his 21 short stories for O level. Yes folks, O level, shows how old I am, lol

Good idea but I've got too used to a Kindle, thanks.

I also like the fact you can just sit it on your lap and not constantly hold it, like a book (which needs holding open).

It's been a number of years now, so there's no going back.

I do think though that novels should be in larger print, as a lot of people struggle I think.

Although of course that would cost more as it would use more paper and the books would then be even bigger to hold in your hands!

Unfortunately I can't experience that as my eyesight means a Kindle is best.

How about using a magnifier - a bit cumbersome but then you get that tactile experience to stimulate one sense while the prose stimulates your mind?

I'm not reading this currently but it was my favourite book of the past few weeks, Garth Marenghi's Terrortome. If you've seen and liked Darkplace on Channel 4 in the UK you'll love it.

Also got to mention 'Strong Female Character' by Fern Brady as it helped me finally decide to get assessed for Autism!

Iain said:

somehow wholesome and comforting to hold as you flick over the thick, lush pages with occasional prints thrown in to create more a feel for the world.

Lovely description.

Unfortunately I can't experience that as my eyesight means a Kindle is best.

I'm tempted to try it again, having started it 30+ years ago.

I'm re-reading The Lord of The Rings after 37 years.

Tolkien has a way of writing that is wonderfully absorbing and he weaves a tale that is drenched in history, often hinted at and covered in much more detail in his other works (The Hobbit, The Silmarillion, Book of Unfinished Tales etc) that is probably the source of most contemporary fantasy since it was writted (in the 40s and 50s).

Not a light read at a dense 1070 pages in my hardback version - a bit of a knee squisher but somehow wholesome and comforting to hold as you flick over the thick, lush pages with occasional prints thrown in to create more a feel for the world.

Still probably the best book I have ever written by some margin.

I've started reading Stephen King even though generally his books aren't genres that interest me the most.

I've sort of run out of crime novels.

So, I've just finished The Shining.

I enjoyed it, thought it a bit far fetched but found the experiences of the 5 year old boy particularly disturbing, because he was so young to go through those things.

When something happens to a young child in novels I think it's particularly affecting.

Just about to start 'The Stand'.

How about you?

Have you read any books on German history? I own a few and wrote a piece on German culture a few years ago. I love history in general but especially German history, very interesting.

Ive never been able to read fiction, i can only read non fiction. 
At the moment I'm reading a book about the history of Union Berlin football club. I love any books about Germany

So as not to add too many extra individual comments, a collective thank you everyone for all your recommendations.

Hopefully we have many good reading hours ahead with these (and hopefully, future) suggestions.

I'm re-reading A Wrinkle in Time which I loved when I was young and I'm finding it oddly relatable from an autistic perspective. The characters all seem to have some kind of traits, which is so cool.

You might like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragonriders_of_Pern

Turns out it's attractive to both male and female readers. My youngest sister, she is reading a lot too, and she loved it too

Most recently I have read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. It is a long series and unfortunately he didn’t get the chance to write the final few, but Brandon Sanderson did. I love fantasy and this was well worth the read.

For anyone interested in crime novels, I would recommend the Nicci French Frieda Klein series (amongst many others)..best read in order.