Books received at Christmas

I don’t THINK any more books are now due … so here’s the rather wonderful pile that ensued when I gathered up all of the books I have received for Christmas from my lovely friends (of course to be added to the ones I opened at BookCrossing Secret Santa time).

And what do we have here, thanks to Tedd and Jane (Project 365 and Virago Group Secret Santas), Sian, Ali, Bridget, Verity, Gill and Meg … Well, from the top …

Angela Thirkell – “August Folly” – a lovely Virago and next in her Barsetshire series – looks like a cracker with amateur dramatics and all sorts.

Mollie Panter-Downes – “London War Notes” – accclaimed by many fellow-bloggers, this Persephone collects the columns she sent to America reporting back on London during WW2. I’ve loved the short stories of hers I’ve read, so this looks great, too.

Indra Sinha – “The Cybergypsies” – a romp through the world of the Internet, looks very intriguing.

“How it works: THE HUSBAND” – one of those satirical books based on the old Ladybird books, using actual illustrations with hilarious captions (note: the husband received “How it works: THE WIFE” but won’t let on what gems he’s picking up from that one …)

Danny Baker – “Going to Sea in a Sieve” – I wanted this in a shop and lo and behold it appears from the person with whom I was in the shop. I’ve loved Mr Baker’s radio stuff for years, so looking forward to this one.

Simon Armitage – “Walking Home” – I’ve wanted this since seeing him at the Birmingham Book Festival talking about this book, so another winner from the person I was with at that talk, too!

Joanna Rakoff – “My Salinger Year” – Joanna worked in publishing and interacted with the elusive author – this was not on my actual wishlist but was on my mental one, so an inspired choice.

Ella Berthoud and Susan Elderkin – “The Novel Cure” – all sorts of remedies for all sorts of ailments, in the form of novel recommendations. The friend who gave me this has read it herself, and when a friend opened it in her BookCrossing secret santa, I knew what to ask for. Looks SUCH fun!

Runner’s Journal – not a book to read, but one to write in, log runs, note details of trainers and make notes on which races to do again next year. Very cool.

James Fletcher – “Mark Twain’s 88 Days in the Mother Lode” – a book about the sender’s local area, by a local author bought in a local bookshop with the bookshop’s bookmark inside. Looks very interesting, too.

A. S. Byatt – “Ragnarok: End of the Gods” – the author’s retelling of the Norse myth.

Halldor Laxness – “Under the Glacier” – a favourite classic Icelandic author.

Auður Ava Olafsdsottir – “Butterflies in November” – Iceland road-trip novel with a quirky heroine – looks right up my street.

“The Wallpaper Colouring Book” – have you SEEN this??? Gorgeous vintage wallpapers to colour in, embellished with pictures of pugs and cats! So fun!

Wow – quite a haul. Fortuntely, I’ve finished SIX books since Christmas Eve – yes, SIX (that’s what you get for being poorly over Christmas). So reviews to come every day for the rest of the year, maybe three on a couple of days. You can cope, right?

Soooo… how many books were on your Christmas pile, and have you read any of these lovelies? Happy Christmas and Happy New Year!