Well I’d been doing very well with my reading, having read all my paper books for review that were previously reclining on top of the TBR shelf and eight books in total (and took one off that I didn’t want to read). And actually the problem I have of more TBR is a lovely problem, because dear Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings has just sent me a Lovely Parcel (see below).
So here’s the current state of the TBR.
I mean, I’ve still got room for the pile, right, so it can’t be that bad.
This is the reason for it all moving around a bit:
So we have Margery Sharp’s “The Eye of Love,” Ellen Wilkinson’s (her of the Jarrow March) “Clash”, and two Henry Handel Richardsons: “Maurice Guest” and “The Getting of Wisdom”. All lovely Viragoes, too!
Reading at the moment and coming up shortly, I’m very much enjoying Samantha Ellis’ “How to be a Heroine” and would have finished it already were it not for my strange hobby of standing in muddy fields pointing the way or writing down numbers. Next up is “The Icelandic Adventures of Pike Ward,” edited by the lovely Katherine Findlay, and then it will be the next Iris Murdoch Readalong read, “An Accidental Man” (14th out of 26 of her books, so I feel we’re already sliding towards the end!).
I’m aware I haven’t addressed the horrendousness of the Kindle TBR recently and I know there are some books on there I won from NetGalley and need to work on. I’m also behind on reading everyone’s blog posts (sorreeee!) and as I’ve got heaps and heaps of work on at the moment, I think I’m just going to have to give up on watching TV in December or something to get everything read!
Then the next books on the shelf, which still include some from Christmas last year, include “The Little Bookshop of Big Stone Gap”, “The book for Forgotten Authors” and “Long Live Great Bardfield (the great big Persephone) as well as Stella Gibbons; “Westwood”, kindly sent to me by Verity. Then we have two I picked up between Christmas and my birthday before we start on the birthday books.
What are you reading this month? Do you have any special December reading rituals?
Cathy746books
Dec 01, 2018 @ 20:22:31
Life can get in the way of our reading plans Liz, can’t it? I have such a backlog on Netgalley too!
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:48:53
It can! I think eschewing telly might be the way forward …
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bostonbookreader
Dec 01, 2018 @ 20:24:55
I am usually a fan of short Christmas romance stories, but this year I’m not sure what I’m in the mood for lol
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:51:22
Interesting! I’m not very good at theming my books myself, though I did re-read Susan Cooper’s Dark is Rising sequence over Christmas/New Year one year.
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kaggsysbookishramblings
Dec 01, 2018 @ 20:53:02
So sorry to have had a bad effect on your TBR (not!) 😀 And funnily enough I saw the Pike Ward book today and thought you would like it but probably had it already so it’s a good thing I didn’t buy it for you… ;D
I have no particular plans or rituals for December, although the house has been invaded by more Russians (review books) so I may try to attack some of them this month!
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:49:35
I have no physical review books left to read but one review to write … and where did you see the Pike Ward book? I know the woman who edited it but managed to miss her book launch which was annoying.
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kaggsysbookishramblings
Dec 02, 2018 @ 19:48:50
Weeeeelllll – I can’t actually remember. But I’m pretty sure it was a second hand copy, not new, and so that would make it Any Amount of Books, Henry Pordes or Oxfam Bloomsbury. If it was new, it would have been Foyles because it definitely *wasn’t* the Persephone shop. Sorry not to be more precise…. :s
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 20:04:34
Hm, it’s only just out so I guess you spotted either a review copy or a new one in Foyles!
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Hayley at RatherTooFondofBooks
Dec 01, 2018 @ 21:15:09
I pretty much gave up on TV in November in order to catch up on some reading. I ended up having a great reading month but now have lots of reviewing and blogging to catch up with. I think I’m always going to be behind… I have How to be a Heroine on my TBR so I’m happy to know that you’re enjoying it so much. Hope you manage to get some more reading and blogging done this month. 🙂
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:50:03
Oh you’re going to love How to be a Heroine – it’s a fairly quick read but has some real bite to it.
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Thomas
Dec 02, 2018 @ 03:20:29
Eeeee these posts always give me so much excitement for you, and reading this made me excited for the time I’ll hopefully have to read over the upcoming break! Again not many similarities in our tbr – though I do recognize Anne Tyler and Neil Gaiman at least. Yay for having lots of books to look forward to. (:
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:53:17
I hope you get lots of lovely reading time during the break! I’m hoping to work half hours between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day at least so I can get some quality reading in. I wonder if you’d like Iris Murdoch – you may do, although she was (hilariously) anti-therapy in her novels. This one or A Severed Head are great. But I’m forever trying to press her novels onto people!
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Cari
Dec 02, 2018 @ 03:54:03
I bookfess that I just bought two dead tree books, but one is a cookbook so that doesn’t really count, right? 🙂
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:53:37
But of course! Unless you’re planning to read every word …
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Cari
Dec 02, 2018 @ 20:50:50
The pretty pictures!
And while I’m not much of a cook in any sense, I find cookbooks easier to use in hard copy
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Terra
Dec 02, 2018 @ 05:18:53
My TBR stacks are a bit daunting like yours are. I am making a bit of headway in reading and giving away books. Currently I am reading “A Test of Wills” (the first Ian Rutledge mystery) and Phineas Redux by Anthony Trollope.
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:54:27
Ooh lovely Trollope. I want to read more Trollope next year.
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BookerTalk
Dec 02, 2018 @ 06:38:54
I’m afraid to even look at the large number unread books that reside on my Kindle. It’s so easy to add them – one click and they’re there. But then I forget I bought them….
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 17:53:52
I hear you loud and clear!!!
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heavenali
Dec 02, 2018 @ 18:00:07
Looking for to your thoughts on How to be a Heroine, my book group really enjoyed. It sparked some excellent discussions. I think you will love Long Live Great Bardfield. I will have to borrow Clash after you have read it. 😊
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Liz Dexter
Dec 02, 2018 @ 18:20:29
I should be writing them up in the week; really enjoyed it tho a bit cross with her thoughts on Barbara Pym as I’m sure you were, too! I know I need to pass you Clash – unless you want it first? Can I leve it to work its way to the top or are you anxious for it?
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heavenali
Dec 02, 2018 @ 18:26:29
I’m not anxious for it, I do have a gazillion books already. 😊
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