My strange compulsions

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The Truth About Love - Josephine Hart

Narrated by three different voices, this novel tells the story of an Irish family and how love can affect you. Sounds boring, right? Well each of the three sections were lovely as stand alone pieces - O'Hara has a beautiful, poetic writing style at times and I enjoyed each section individually. However, the three sections did not segue well into eachother, which disappointed me. You turn a page and at the beginning of a new chapter you suddenly realise the narrator has changed - lazy and irritating in my view.

Recommended for the writing style, because it's so pretty, but the novel itself was a little disappointing.

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The Palace of Strange Girls - Sallie Day

Much like the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society this book charmed me. I thought it would be much different to the engaging read it turned out to be, but the characters are so human and their flaws are so ordinary that they are very easy to relate to.

An amusing little read, not taxing but definitely enjoyable. Recommended.

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An Táin - Colmán Ó Raghallaigh

Úrscéal grafach as gaeilge é An Táin, agus ceapaim go bhfuil sé ar fheabhas. Fuair mé o cara é agus tá an-brón orm é a tabhairt ar ais dí!

10/10

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The Bolter - Frances Osborne

Telling the story of the irrepressible Idina Sackville, Frances Osborne takes a look at her great-grandmother's life and loves which took her across continents before she finally died, alone, in Kenya. Exposing Lady Idina's way of living with reference to social norms of the time, Osborne discovers the fragility and ferocity of a lady known in polite society for all the wrong reasons.

Recommended.

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Melmoth the Wanderer - Charles Robert Maturin

I feel like I've been reading this book all year, but it's really worth it! It's slow going, but a very interesting read.

Recommended!

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The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters

I really enjoyed this novel. Although it was a terrifically easy read, it was very interesting and still echoes in my head a bit, which I love.

Recommended.

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Maximum Ride: An Angel Experiment - James Patterson

A children's book based around the idea behind Patterson's When the Wind Blows, the story concentrates on a group of six children who are 98% human and 2% avian.

Recommended for young teenagers.

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White Teeth - Zadie Smith

While I quite enjoyed White Teeth, I still feel that On Beauty was far superior. That said, I enjoy Smith's writing style, and the characters are not only believable but likeable for the most part.

Recommended.

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Her Perfect Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger

I enjoyed this novel, but not as much as I enjoyed The Time-Traveller's Wife. I think perhaps if I'd read this first I'd have liked it better, however the end was a little predictable.

Recommended.

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Going Postal - Terry Pratchett (Audiobook)

My first audio book, Going Postal was entertaining and very enjoyable. Tony Robinson was a fantastic narrator.

Recommended.

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Jeeves in the Offing - P.G. Wodehouse

Quite enjoyable, but I may need to try some more Wodehouse before I get it really.

Recommended for a bit of a giggle.

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The Supernaturalist - Eoin Colfer (Audiobook)

Very enjoyable, fast paced and not overly childish - while I can see the appeal for older kids and young adults I still really enjoyed it myself.

Recommended

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Human Croquet - Kate Atkinson

What you think happened may never have happened at all... Isobel Fairfax is prone to time travel at the most inopportune moments. Her mother "abandoned" her and her older brother when they were just children, walking away into the forest, and was never seen again. In the interminable wait for Eliza's return, Isobel and her brother get on with their lives, blindfolded by the past. Isobel's forays into the past and also into alternate presents paint a number of potential realities.

Recommended - really very enjoyable.

bp1989

Any books you don't recommend?

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bp1989 wrote: »

Any books you don't recommend?

Usually the ones I don't finish, hence them never making it to this list. I used to give marks out of 10, but that was far too dependent on my mood at the time. And you'll find there are a few I haven't recommended, should you care to read through the thread, or even merely glance over it. Thanks for your comment though.

Bad Day in Blackrock - Kevin Power

A moving account of the assumed events that lead up to the death of a young man outside a nightclub in Blackrock, and the aftermath of his death. Surprisingly balanced, and well written, although I had a cheapie Tesco copy, which I hope is the reason for one of the peripheral characters suffering a name change as the story progresses.

Enjoyable might not be the right word, but very well written and an interesting read.

Recommended.

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The Wish List - Eoin Colfer (Audiobook)

Meg Finn teeters on the brink between heaven and hell, and must help someone to make their wishes come true before she can be sent conclusively to where she's supposed to spend eternity.

Amusing, but far less enjoyable than The Supernaturalist.

Recommended for children / young teens.

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It's OK, I'm Wearing Really Big Knickers - Louise Rennison

Enjoyable, light and fluffy. Rennison's protagonist may talk and act like an irritating teen (more than partially because she is an irritating teen0, however her sense of humour is undeniable and infectious.

Enjoyable for what it is - a work of unadulterated fun.

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Tsotsi - Athol Fugard

When Tsotsi is handed a shoebox containing a baby by a woman who he was about to rape, his bafflement allows her to escape. However, her gift opens up a history Tsotsi has repressed, a name he has forgotten he possessed and the world that shaped a young boy into an angry and violent gang leader.

Recommended.