Dusty Shelf Books

[Paul]

Tell us about the books you are reading that have inhabited your shelves for a long time here

[Pink]

I've read 3 books from my 'dusty shelf' so far, all of them are only a few months old, so I haven't tackled any really dusty ones yet!

I finished Cranford, which I liked, Jason and the Golden Fleece, which was also okay, but not as enjoyable in prose. Then yesterday I read 13 Reasons why, which I hated. At least it's off the list now!

[Gisela]

My reading is going more or less the same way. Read Red Sorghum which is AMAZING, Ostfriesenkiller which is so-so and struggling through the Scarlet Letter.

[Pink]

I hated The Scarlet Letter!

[[deleted user]]

"The Picture of Dorian Grey", which was also my Book Viper's January Choice for the full-deck challenge. This one has been sat on my kindle for a good couple of years now and I've intended to read it since I was at university (I graduated 10 years ago). I'm grateful for the encouragement to read it. I really enjoyed the story. The second half more than the first. I felt it took quite a long time to get going with the story and then all of a sudden became very fast-paced and interesting. I often find this with classics.

I'm currently about half-way into Susan Hill's "Howard's End is on the Landing", which I am enjoying, although the name-dropping is beginning to get a bit tedious.

[Nikki]

I liked the story of "The Scarlett Letter" although maybe like is the wrong word but did find it quite hard work. The introduction alone almost put me off

[Gisela]

Nikki wrote: "I liked the story of "The Scarlett Letter" although maybe like is the wrong word but did find it quite hard work. The introduction alone almost put me off"

Me too, if it wasn't for this competition, it would probably have gone back on the shelf.

[Gisela]

Charlotte wrote: ""The Picture of Dorian Grey", which was also my Book Viper's January Choice for the full-deck challenge. This one has been sat on my kindle for a good couple of years now and I've intended to read ..."

Agree on Susan Hill'. Bit of a proud public school boy me thinks.

[Paul]

For all those who haven't got a dusty shelf, you may have a Tsundoku

[Pat]

That's me Paul. Thanks for reminding me

[[deleted user]]

I have both!!

[Catherine]

I have both too Charlotte! I never knew there was a word for it! I just always called it my pile. Although since Christmas I now have piles! *cough*

[Gisela]

I have a shelve with the books I have bought and not read yet, although it is emptying. And next to it is a big pile of library books because I can't resist taking out more than I can possibly read in the period, which is why they get renewed a lot! I just love browsing and choosing books.

[Trine]

That is why I usually just reserve books at the net, and then pick em up at the library... Less books that way! (though... atm... 50 library books at home - lol)

[[deleted user]]

Finished the Susan Hill book last night. I enjoyed it, name dropping aside!

[A.L.]

Dark Fire, Warriors Of The Dragon Gold and The Blade Itself I've had for a while.

[A.L.]

Pink wrote: "I hated The Scarlet Letter!"

I couldn't finish it.

[Trine]

First down - Leoniderne - and could check alot of on that one. Dusty, another tbr challenge AND full deck;o Good job me;o

It doesn't seem it is translated into anything yet, but if you can manage to read danish - i REALLY think you should do so!

[Pat]

Gisela. Me too

[Gisela]

Anybody else finding the Year of Reading Dangerously hard going. Got to Jane Austen, that should be better. Ah well, we persevere.

[Pat]

Yep. I am speed reading some parts.

[Paul]

Hoping to get to it this week.

[Gisela]

I fianlly finished Year of REading Dangerously, but I hve to say I started skipping parts of this going on and ons re his liking. Started getting really cross about his waxing on of how difficult for a person in publishing(!) and a part-time working dad who also can work from home it is to keep reading? Really.

[Gisela]

BlacklistBook 4 from my Dusty Shelf read. Really enjoyed it, should have read it earlier. Good relaxing and entertaining read unlike The Scarlet Letter, which I am still struggling through. Half-way to my target of 8. I know compared with most of you that is not very ambitious, but at least for me achievable.

[Pink]

4 Burmese Days
5 Doomed Love
6 Lady Chatterley's Lover (this one was very dusty, has been on my shelf for many years, but I loved it)

[Paul]

I have some that I placed on a shelf a decade ago when we moved!

[Pink]

Paul wrote: "I have some that I placed on a shelf a decade ago when we moved!"

Haha, these ones will be the most satisfying to cross off your list!

[Paul]

They will indeed

[[deleted user]]

I've cleared off a few more now.

No Time for Goodbye which was quite good. Light reading, but a good thriller / crime.

The Bay at Midnight The Lake of Dreams and Second Hand Heartwhich were all okay, but I'm not surprised they've been sat on my shelf so long, and I wouldn't rush to recommend either of them.

I've also read Property Of which is worth a read, but not one of Hoffman's best (in my opinion) and The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making which was reasonably good.

[Jo]

Well done Charlotte. You are way ahead of me.

[[deleted user]]

The first four on the list were really easy reads. I did them in a day each. I'm still a couple behind on my target though

[Paul]

I am two behind Jo!

[Sarah]

Read Susan Hill's book a couple of weeks ago, and have to say I was quite touched by her memories of different books, and it really woke me up to how many of my own book should special memories. As she did, I'm aiming to compile my 'Desert Island Books' list and so number one on my list is On Beautyby Zadie Smith. I read it once about ten years ago and remember loving it, reading it second time around, and enjoying it possibly even more!

[Pink]

Five more dusty books off my shelf, quite pleased with this, as I've been taking it easier on my library books.

7 The Sense of an Ending
8 A Tiny Bit Marvellous
9 On Anarchism
10 Flowers for Algernon
11 To the Lighthouse

[Cathy]

Finished Coronation Everest today, which I'm also counting towards the Full Deck challenge as memoir/biography.

Great book - review here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Pat]

Great Pink

[[deleted user]]

I've cleared another three off my dusty shelf.

Neal Stephenson "Anathem"
Susan Fletcher "Eve Green"
and
"The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society"

The first one is the only one worth reading in my opinion.

[Paul]

Anathem is great. And huge

[[deleted user]]

Yes. Really huge!! I'm pleased I finally read it though. It was brilliant

[Paul]

Reamde is much better. And even longer!

[[deleted user]]

I might give that one a swerve whilst I crack on with this year's challenges!!

[Cindy]

The Dusty Shelf book I'm currently reading is The Art of War, which was on the shelf next to The War of Art(seriously!).

[Laurie]

I just finished what I considered my dustiest book, the one I've intended to read the longest: War and Peace. So glad to check this one off the list, and it's worth reading as well. I will start my next dustiest in a couple of weeks, Middlemarch

[Paul]

Huge books Laurie!

[Laurie]

Yep that was my biggest goal this year was those two big classics.

[Gisela]

I admit I'm not doing too well with my dusty shelf at the moment and instead of reading my "dusty books" picked up The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe from the library, drawn to it like a magnet by the words book club and end of life, the first one I can never resist and the second one is a topic which is currently a topic in the forefront of my mind. The reason I mention it here is because it is a remarkable book and achieves everything and much, much more which the "Year of reading dangerously" failed on so miserably. Great journey of a dying mother and her son connecting through a series of remarkable books, engaging you in the books and their messages, but also in what they mean to them and their situation. HIGHLY recommend it and well worth while a detour from the dusty shelf.

[Paul]

It was a book of the month a while ago Gisela. I thought that it was pretty good too.

[Jo]

I need to make some inroads on my Dusty Shelf soon. Just should pick one and get going. Same old problem. Too many books.

[Paul]

I am reading one from my own at the moment, A House In Corfu. Just a really lovely book so far

[Gail]

I have managed a couple for my Dusty Shelf but I keep being diverted by books I find in the library, books that have good reviews and book club books!

The End of Your Life Book Club I completely agree with Gisela's comments and my copy is pretty battered as I have loaned it out several times!