I was discussing with my best friend whether we fancied reading a book ‘together’ at this time of isolation, and decided to get it ALL out (and this isn’t even all of it actually as I’d put the Piles to one side. I’m not getting it all out again though!
and here’s the more usual view of it. In fact, it’s doing quite well (a bit well), because the books on the back aren’t all in horizontal piles any more, just two piles and a normal row of books.
That might be down to the fact that I read FIFTEEN books in March, although a lot of those were on Kindle on our holiday at the beginning of the month. FIFTEEN though. And I’m still working very much (very, very much) full time at the moment.
Coming up next are these four lovelies. I’m just finishing Jane Linfoot’s “Christmas Promises at the Little Wedding Shop” (I’ll be reviewing the three in this series I read in March together next) and then it’ll be on to Ada Leverson’s “Love at Second Sight”, which is the third volume in the “Little Ottleys” trilogy. Volume two was a bit nail-biting as the Ottleys’ marriage is threatened, and I had a little change before going back to the third. I’ll be reviewing those together, too, and was reading them along with Heaven-Ali so we will try to link our reviews when they’re done.
Then it’s on to my Paul Magrs of the month: “Could it be Magic?” which is the third in the Phoenix Court series and features a man giving birth to a leopard-skin furry baby, as you do. After that comes Helen Lewis’ “Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights” for which I did the transcriptions; I want to read it anyway and am reviewing it for Shiny New Books. Hopefully I’ve persuaded a couple of other people to read it alongside me, too – hooray! And then Delia Owens’ “Where the Crawdads Sing” for which I have seen both glowing and scathing reviews but which Matthew read recently on audio book and absolutely loved, so exhorted me to buy and read.
There have been some more incomings on the Kindle front, via NetGalley, which I am always forgetting to update on here.
Clare Pooley’s “The Authenticity Project” is a cafe-based random acts of kindness novel that appealed in January.
“Diary of a Confused Feminist” by Kate Weston is a YA book about trying to be a feminist as well as everything else in today’s times (well, not today’s actual times right now: that would involve sitting in your house being a feminist at Joe Wicks’ PE or something, wouldn’t it).
Catherine Sanderson’s “The Bystander Effect” is about the effect peers / crowds have on helping behaviour and will hopefully have hints on how to stand up for what is right, because that’s how it was advertised.
“Our House is on Fire” is by Greta Thunberg’s parents about what it’s like raising and living with a world icon in climate change activism.
Beth Moran’s “How not to be a Loser” is a novel about a come-back to running with an inspirational group, I saw it on another blog and requested it.
And Brit Bennett’s “The Vanishing Half” is a novel about twin sisters who grow up together in a small southern American black community but then take wildly different paths, one remaining at home and the other moving away and passing as white.
That’s only the most recent ones but I am looking forward to everything there!
A readalong a readalong a readalong a readalong?
So I was wondering, does anyone have any of these lovely books coming up and would like to read along with me? I’m going to share the whole TBR now, apart from two really old 2nd hand books no one is going to have, and I managed to miss Madness’ “Before We Was We” off the photos below but am up for that one, too. I hope you can see these, let me know in the comments if you’d like to draw together and do a shared read of any of these in April/May. Something to look forward to.
Cathy746books
Apr 01, 2020 @ 14:49:51
15 books is a great amount to read in one month – well done you!
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 14:53:07
I think eight of them were in one week, we did nothing on our holiday and had 3.5 hour flights at either end of it …
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Laura
Apr 01, 2020 @ 15:32:43
That is a serious TBR! I’ve wanted to read Love of Country for ages, but I don’t have a copy at the moment. I’ll be interested to hear what you think about the new Brit Bennett – I considered requesting it from NetGalley but didn’t because I found her debut, The Mothers, well-written but pretty forgettable.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 15:49:59
I quite scared myself getting it all out and put it all back again rapidly!! A shame you don’t have Love of Country, as I’d like to do a readalong with you. I had a look at Mothers when I requested that one, it does look fascinating and follows a tradition (e.g. Nella Larson’s “Passing”) so I decided to go for it.
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Laura
Apr 01, 2020 @ 21:47:38
Yeah, I’d usually just buy it, but I know my mum has a copy so I’ll probably wait and borrow it off her when this is all over.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 02, 2020 @ 07:12:17
Sounds sensible. I will look out for you mentioning you’re about to read it, or for your review, and slot it in then.
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Rebecca Foster
Apr 01, 2020 @ 16:14:20
We don’t overlap on any of these, alas (apart from the Brit Bennett I’ve also requested from NetGalley, but I’m super-slow to get to Kindle reads). Enjoy your reading!
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 16:17:00
Oh, that’s a shame! I need to do some more Kindle reading but after the current ones I have lined up. So easy to overlook those!
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kaggsysbookishramblings
Apr 01, 2020 @ 17:57:11
Nothing more fun than digging out piles of books and reshuffling them! I don’t think I have anything in your stacks (apart from ones I’ve already read) but I will dig more closely…
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 18:02:03
Oh, what in there have you already read?
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kaggsysbookishramblings
Apr 01, 2020 @ 21:21:27
Erm…. Motherland and On Roads, for a start! 🤣🤣🤣🤣
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 21:22:18
Ha, of course!!
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Tredynas Days
Apr 01, 2020 @ 20:44:39
The only one I have in common and unread is the R. Lehmann. I’m still working slowly through John O’Hara’s New York Stories – can’t seem to focus on long fiction at the moment- ironic, since technically I have more free time than usual.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 20:54:25
Well shout up if you want to do the Lehman. It is difficult – I don’t actually have more time than usual as I always work from home and am really busy, plus, as a friend pointed out cleverly, everything these days is a giant problem-solving exercise!
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Elle
Apr 01, 2020 @ 20:52:00
Do you fancy doing My Antonia? I’ve a nice green Vintage copy of it somewhere. Also, Howl’s Moving Castle is brilliant and I’d love to read it again.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 01, 2020 @ 20:55:25
Yes, both sound great to do, and not too long or Difficult, which is useful. I can slot them in before my Paul Magrs and concurrent with my Difficult Women, once I’ve finished the Little Ottleys.
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Elle
Apr 01, 2020 @ 20:57:26
Excellent! Whenever’s good for you, just let me know.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 02, 2020 @ 07:08:34
I’d say we’ll start on Monday with Howl, how about that?
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Elle
Apr 02, 2020 @ 14:08:19
Sure, sounds good. Do we want to divvy it up into chunks?
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Liz Dexter
Apr 03, 2020 @ 08:08:20
I’ve written a post about how I hope it’ll work – I don’t really have the bandwidth or predictability of life to do anything apart from read the book in the week and review it hopefully within the week, and have the discussion on my review. No rules about when we have to finish the book, etc. either. Hope that’s OK and look forward to reading it and hearing your thoughts on it.
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Elle
Apr 03, 2020 @ 13:29:48
Yeah, that’s perfect and exactly what I was hoping in terms of low-stress 🙂
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Thomas
Apr 02, 2020 @ 00:16:05
Love seeing all the books Liz! Makes me feel connected to you as I also have a huge amount of books lying around my apartment; I’ve been splurging lately, trying to order books from independent bookstores to help them out during this turbulent time. Curious what you make of the books centered around feminism specifically.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 02, 2020 @ 07:10:33
They’re not normally lying around like that but glad you liked them. In fact, it was so horrific, I put them all away again very hurriedly! My best friend has them all over her house so we mainly concentrated on what I’ve got and she knows she’s got. I’m really looking forward to starting Difficult Women, because I worked on it and I want to see how it came out, and there’s three of us reading that now. I’ve been managing not to buy toooo much as I do have all this plus a kindle-full and am still working full-time!
I think I have more books on race and culture than feminism at the moment, which is quite interesting.
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wadholloway
Apr 02, 2020 @ 00:55:58
We barely cross over at all. I forget what Leverson I have and anyway I’m not home for a month. I hope you read The Three Miss Kings one day, it’s a lovely book and quite typical of Ada Cambridge’s work. If as it looks like you might you read Antonia I might download a free copy to my kindle and read along.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 02, 2020 @ 07:11:19
I will get to the Miss Kings in time – in August, for All Virago/All August, if not before. I’m looking forward to it. I should be starting Antonia on about Thursday next so do join in, that would be lovely!
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Batchelor NT (2) | theaustralianlegend
Apr 03, 2020 @ 05:13:43
April readalong – care to join me? | Adventures in reading, running and working from home
Apr 03, 2020 @ 07:48:34
Paul at Halfman, Halfbook
Apr 03, 2020 @ 19:48:01
There are lots there that I have read and lots more that I want to read. Read wilding next! Good Luck!
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Liz Dexter
Apr 04, 2020 @ 18:03:33
You’ve read Wilding, haven’t you ? I might slot that in the 3rd week …
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Paul at Halfman, Halfbook
Apr 04, 2020 @ 18:27:15
I have indeed, thought it was fantastic. Have met Isabelle too and she is lovely
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heavenali
Apr 04, 2020 @ 20:14:20
You read a brilliant amount in March. Love the pics of your tbr books. I really enjoyed The Little Ottleys, perfect escapism.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 05, 2020 @ 09:16:28
Yes, it was a good one for me, helped by the holiday. I loved the LOs and liked the fact I was reading it along with you. Just settling down to review them now. And it’s horrific getting all the TBR out, I don’t recommend it!!!
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hopewellslibraryoflife
Apr 08, 2020 @ 00:47:27
LOVED LOVED LOVED Where the Crawdads Sing! Waiting on Authenticity Project when the library reopens or an e-book comes up.
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Liz Dexter
Apr 08, 2020 @ 08:07:31
Ah, good. Not sure if I saved your review – can you link to it here? And will be nice if we both do The Authenticity Project at some stage!
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hopewellslibraryoflife
Apr 08, 2020 @ 15:27:31
Here you go! Crawdads review: https://hopewellslibraryoflife.wordpress.com/2019/08/26/review-where-the-crawdads-sing-a-novel-by-delia-owens/
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Liz Dexter
Apr 09, 2020 @ 07:04:26
Great, thank you!
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Book review (and readalong) – Diana Wynne Jones – “Howl’s Moving Castle” | Adventures in reading, running and working from home
Apr 09, 2020 @ 07:27:33
Book review – Willa Cather – “My Antonia” #readalong #amreading | Adventures in reading, running and working from home
Apr 18, 2020 @ 16:25:45