Zoe's List

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Finally finished my first book of the year - got some catching up to do!
I finished reading The Last Free Cat by Jon Blake. It was a good book - I'll add a review to the site later today or tomorrow!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I just finished reading Education, Edukation, Edukashun by James Rainsford, which was the book I won from the First Reads thing! I thought it was really good actually, funnier than I was expecting and I hope to be able to get hold of his next book when it's out! Sam, if you read this - I'll send you the book in the next few days! :)

[Sam]

Sounds like a good read (boom boom) then Zoe. Great I'll be looking forward to it arriving, did you want me to return it once I've finished so you can put it on your bookswap site?

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Haha, nice pun :p
I don't mind - it's up to you! I have hundreds of books so not too bothered either way :) If you know anyone else who would want to read it then give it to them, otherwise send it back and I can swap it to give it a bit more publicity or whatever! :)

[Sam]

Cool, I see if anyone wants to borrow it once I'm done and let you know :-)

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Last night I finished reading Alice in Wonderland for the group read :)

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Thought I'd write a post which I can edit each time I read a book as I'm gonna lose track otherwise!:
1) The Last Free Cat - Jon Blake - 4*
2) Education, Edukation, Edukashun - James Rainsford - 4*
3) Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll - 5*
4) A Friend Like Henry - Nuala Gardner - 5*
5) Marley & Me: Love and Life with the World's Worst Dog - John Grogan - 4*
6) The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath - 5*
7) A Head Full of Blue - Nick Johnstone - 5*
8) Time for a Change - Erica James - 4*
9) Just Another Kid - Torey Hayden - 5*
10) One Child - Torey Hayden - 5*
11) The Sweet Dove Died - Barbara Pym - 4*

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I finished A Friend Like Henry by Nuala Gardner last night and rated it with 5 stars. Although not necessarily the best written book, it was very easy to read and get involved in and hard to put down. There were also many times where I nearly started crying but had to stop myself as I was on a train!
And I've finally got another one to add to my A-Z!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

My housemate's always talking about a film she likes to watch called Marley and Me, so when I saw the book in the cheap 2nd hand book shop I decided to buy it and then got forced to read it next! I just finished it last night and it was hard not to cry! You definitely start to love the dog that's in the book and I gave it 4 stars.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I just finished reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, a book I'd been intending to read for years. One of my friends studied it at A level and recommended it to me (to find out that it was already on my wishlist!). I think that, although you don't really get involved with the character (although in the circumstances that's probably a good thing!) it was very well written and easy to understand what the character was thinking and feeling/not feeling. I gave it a 5 star rating.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I thought I was behind schedule with my 50 books challenge, but have realised that we've now had 6 weeks and I've read 6 books so that's about right :D

[Em]

Zoe wrote: "I just finished reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, a book I'd been intending to read for years. One of my friends studied it at A level and recommended it to me (to fin..."

Hi Zoe, I have to agree with you The Bell Jar is an excellent book, I couldn't bear to stop reading it or put it down - ended up reading it in about a day (pre-kids obviously). I studied Sylvia Plath poetry at school, and actually didn't put me off, luckily I had an excellent teacher, got to say the poems are not cheerful as a rule.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Her husband was a poet too - Ted Hughes, he's on the greatest writers list. They separated about 3 years before her suicide apparently.
It's quite weird - I finished reading The Bell Jar last night then started reading A Head Full of Blue by Nick Johnstone and he keeps talking about the Bell Jar and Sylvia Plath, so I'm glad I read them that way round even if it was just coincidental.

[Em]

Ted Hughes is one I've read before - my primary school teacher read us The Iron Man when I was about 8! A few years ago I saw a play by him called Euripides' Alcestis: A New Translation - I loved it though I know nothing about Greek Tradegy. It's about how Admetus escapes death when his wife Alcestis choses to die in his place - who knows, maybe situations in his own life influenced his decision to rethink this particular story?

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

That's quite possible!

[Timothy]

HI Zoe,
Paul Rix here, I put a posting on 'random chit chat' The Winchester writers thingy has been brought forward a week it is now on friday the 25th june and saturday the 26th june, everything else is the same, Terry Pratchett main speaker, etc. There will be several authors on the authors on line stand, some planned, others just tend to turn up, to meet each other as much as anything. Use our stand to meet up with other G/R members, we are easy to find! Frome is still on the 11th July.
All the best Paul Rix [oldgeezer:]

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Yeah I saw that :) I had a look at the Winchester website thing but it didn't seem very clear! I'll have another look nearer the time :) It's quite annoying - 2/3 of the year I live in Pompey which is 1 hour and 1 train to Winchester, but 1/3 of the year, included the weekend of the festival I'm in Dorking and it's 2 hours and 2 trains to Winchester! Typical!!

[Timothy]

Zoe wrote: "Yeah I saw that :) I had a look at the Winchester website thing but it didn't seem very clear! I'll have another look nearer the time :) It's quite annoying - 2/3 of the year I live in Pompey which..."

Yep, I live in Norfolk and shudder to think how many trains and how long it would take. I use the car, quicker and cheaper!!!Paul[oldgeezer:]

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I finished reading A Head Full of Blue last night when I couldn't sleep! I thought it was a good book - easy to read and not annoying as it potentially could have been. It's a very honest real-life story about and by a recovering alcoholic.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I finished reading Time for a Change last night by Erica James. It's the second of her books that I've read and I've enjoyed both of them. May have to hunt down some more of hers! :) I thought that it was a little different to most chick flicks which made it more interesting to read. Her books are also really easy to get into and hard to put down.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I read Just Another Kid by Torey Hayden over the past few days and thought that it was a really good book - it's the third of her books that I've read and I've found them all really inspiring and well written.

[Jirinka (sony08)]

Zoe wrote: "I read Just Another Kid by Torey Hayden over the past few days and thought that it was a really good book - it's the third of her books that I've read and I've found t..."

I like her books too - she writes well and is a real inspiration - something like Cathy Glass.

[Em]

I've heard she's a good writer but I've always ended up putting her books back on the shelf and buying something else instead - I think the subject matter puts me off everytime. She does usually write about traumatised and abused kids doesn't she? Maybe I should try though...

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Yeah she does Em, but they're not as miserable as they sound as she helps the children a lot :) I've read 3 of her books I think, and Overheard in a Dream was probably my least favourite... I could post Just Another Kid to you if you wanted? I'm trying to cut down on how many books I've got ready for the end of the uni year when I have to move house!

I've never heard of Cathy Glass, I'll have to have a look at her books!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Ooooh I have heard of Cathy Glass - just hadn't paid much attention to the author's name. Never read any though :)

[Jirinka (sony08)]

Oh she is brilliant - 20 years of fostering so real experience. I have read three of her books and they are so well written. And as she is british it's closer to home.

[Jirinka (sony08)]

Her books are quite shocking, but it's nice to see the outcome and if you go to Cathy's website - where she can she keeps people updated about the progress the foster children are doing.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Oooh that's cool! I'm going shopping in a bit so I might have a look in the 2nd hand book shop or the library while I'm out! I started reading another of Torey Hayden's books last night though so I'll have to finish that one first! :)

[Jirinka (sony08)]

Good luck!!!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I didn't manage to find any Cathy Glass ones - the library didn't have any and I didn't get a chance to go to the cheap book shop! I've planned to go there tomorrow instead though so will have a look :)

I borrowed two books from the library by two of the authors on the Times 50 Greatest Authors list so I'll let you all know how they go :)

[Em]

Thanks Zoe, I've just found a copy of Just Another Kid on my Dads book shelves earlier today. I know what you mean though, my book cases are straining under the weight of books. I try to lighten the load by lending some out to friends then I donate some to charity shops but can only bear to part for good with the books I didn't like much.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Yeah same here! I'm about to look through my books to get rid of tomorrow :( I'll end up walking out with more than I take though!

[Em]

Ha! Always!

At least my CD collection has stopped growing now I've found Spotify and have an MP3 Player, maybe I should look into the reading equivalents (e-readers?!) something like that right? It's just as you can probably tell, I haven't the vaguest notion what I'm doing so need to find out a bit more before I write to Santa!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Haha, yep - an ereader is probably the reading equivalent! I use Grooveshark instead of Spotify and that's made my CD collection stop growing too!

[Em]

Spotify is fantastic but I still don't know what to do about vinyl collection my husband has in the loft collecting dust - maybe I could get shot of that! We don't even own a record player - he has no means of listening to them for goodness sake!

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I'm really not very good at getting rid of things!

[Jirinka (sony08)]

Cathy Glass book seem to be hard to get but when you do find them read them....I tdo think thety are better written then Teroy Hayden books but I do like reading both...Another book that was good was DELIVER ME FROM EVIL BY ALOMA GILBERT.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

Just finished reading One Child by Torey Hayden. The story was just as good as her others, but I'm perhaps getting a little fed up of her writing style. I do intend to read some more of her books but think I'll wait a while and read something else first!

I've got two books that I borrowed from the library so I'll get started on them next! :)

[Amy]

Em wrote: "Spotify is fantastic but I still don't know what to do about vinyl collection my husband has in the loft collecting dust - maybe I could get shot of that! We don't even own a record player - he has..."

LoL my partner is just the same! Loads of vinyls and nothing to play them on. What is the point?! Wondering if he would notice if I snuck them out to charity shop?!

[Em]

Amy wrote: "Em wrote: "Spotify is fantastic but I still don't know what to do about vinyl collection my husband has in the loft collecting dust - maybe I could get shot of that! We don't even own a record play..."

I dare you!

[Amy]

Only trouble is I think I might find a lot of my books had found their way to the charity shop if I did that!

[Em]

I'm too chicken as well! Guess the truth is I am as bad as he is - but obviously don't tell him I said that.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I just finished reading The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym. I rated it with 4 stars as I quite enjoyed it, but I'm not sure that it made me overly interested in reading any of her other books.

[Zoe, UK Book Club Creator]

I'm not sure that I'll be completing this challenge this year! Spent too many months not reading anything. Definitely gonna keep trying though :) 39 books left, 3 months to go... 3 books a week. Easy... O.o

[ModernAlexandrian]

You can do it, Zoe!! *breaks out the pompoms*