Stringcat3's 2021 50-Book Challenge
Converses50 Book Challenge
Afegeix-te a LibraryThing per participar.
1stringcat3
1. Ten-Second Staircase - Christopher Fowler
A re-read (well, it was an audiobook). Not my favorite Bryant & May.
A re-read (well, it was an audiobook). Not my favorite Bryant & May.
2stringcat3
2. Burning Down George Orwell's House -Andrew Ervin
3stringcat3
3. White Corridor - Christopher Fowler
4. On Silbury Hill - Adam Thorpe
5. The Victoria Vanishes - Christopher Fowler
4. On Silbury Hill - Adam Thorpe
5. The Victoria Vanishes - Christopher Fowler
4stringcat3
6. Bryant & May On the Loose
7stringcat3
9. The Burning Man - Christopher Fowler
Tear-jerking ending for the old pals as well as for Longbright and Renfield, but Meera and Colin!
Tear-jerking ending for the old pals as well as for Longbright and Renfield, but Meera and Colin!
8stringcat3
10. Dark Encounters: A Collection of Ghost Stories - William Croft Dickinson
Decent enough collection, with obvious nods to MR James.
Decent enough collection, with obvious nods to MR James.
10stringcat3
12. The Burning Man - Christopher Fowler
11stringcat3
13. Strange Tide - Christopher Fowler
12stringcat3
14. Bryant & May and The Bleeding Heart - Christopher Fowler
13stringcat3
15. Sherlock Slept Here - Howard Lachtman
A very readable account of Conan Doyle's trips to the US, plus some commentary on The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes and on "The Noble Bachelor".
A very readable account of Conan Doyle's trips to the US, plus some commentary on The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes and on "The Noble Bachelor".
14stringcat3
16. A Thousand Ships - Natalie Haynes
Very good - the Trojan War from the viewpoint of the women caught up in it. Could have used better copy editing ... "disorientated"? Really?
Very good - the Trojan War from the viewpoint of the women caught up in it. Could have used better copy editing ... "disorientated"? Really?
16stringcat3
19. The Lonely Hour - Christopher Fowler
Possibly the best of the Peculiar Crimes Unit books, and undoubtedly the funniest and saddest. Raymond Land has come into his own as a character (as much as Raymondo ever could, that is).
20. Oranges and Lemons - Christopher Fowler
The most recent of the PCU series, with an interesting new character introduced.
21. Three Houses - Angela Thirkell
A sunny memoir of a Late Victorian childhood by the author of my beloved Barsetshire series. Thirkell was the granddaughter of the painter Burne-Jones and Rudyard Kipling's first cousin once-removed; she and his daughter Josephine were dear friends until the latter's death at age 7.
Possibly the best of the Peculiar Crimes Unit books, and undoubtedly the funniest and saddest. Raymond Land has come into his own as a character (as much as Raymondo ever could, that is).
20. Oranges and Lemons - Christopher Fowler
The most recent of the PCU series, with an interesting new character introduced.
21. Three Houses - Angela Thirkell
A sunny memoir of a Late Victorian childhood by the author of my beloved Barsetshire series. Thirkell was the granddaughter of the painter Burne-Jones and Rudyard Kipling's first cousin once-removed; she and his daughter Josephine were dear friends until the latter's death at age 7.
17stringcat3
22. Galahad at Blandings - P.G. Wodehouse
The gallant Galahad rides again, righting wrongs and uniting lovers (between cocktails).
The gallant Galahad rides again, righting wrongs and uniting lovers (between cocktails).
18stringcat3
23. Breakfast at Tiffany's - Truman Capote
Not a patch on the original, Isherwood's "Goodbye to Berlin".
Not a patch on the original, Isherwood's "Goodbye to Berlin".
19stringcat3
24. Full Moon - P.G. Wodehouse
More silliness at Blandings, with The Hon. Galahad on hand.
More silliness at Blandings, with The Hon. Galahad on hand.
20stringcat3
25. The Dead Shall Be Raised
26. The Murder of a Quack
A George Bellairs tandem edition from the British Library Crime Classics series. Easy reads, more interesting for the mid-1940s English settings than the mysteries themselves.
26. The Murder of a Quack
A George Bellairs tandem edition from the British Library Crime Classics series. Easy reads, more interesting for the mid-1940s English settings than the mysteries themselves.
21stringcat3
27. The Stones of Muncaster Cathedral - Robert Westall
A YA novel of the supernatural, well-written.
A YA novel of the supernatural, well-written.
22stringcat3
28. The Girl from the Channel Islands -
23stringcat3
29. Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe
Engrossing classic novel from Nigeria examines the life of a man who both upholds and defies traditions in his village. He meets his nemesis when Christianity arrives.
30. Ghost Stories - Robert Westall
YA collection, not all ghosts, some supernatural. Not bad, overall.
31. Monday, Monday - Ben Aaronovitch
Lame graphic novel in Rivers of London series. Pointless.
32. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
YA novel, decent enough. The framing of the adult protagonist returning to the Sussex farm seemed a bit forced.
Engrossing classic novel from Nigeria examines the life of a man who both upholds and defies traditions in his village. He meets his nemesis when Christianity arrives.
30. Ghost Stories - Robert Westall
YA collection, not all ghosts, some supernatural. Not bad, overall.
31. Monday, Monday - Ben Aaronovitch
Lame graphic novel in Rivers of London series. Pointless.
32. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
YA novel, decent enough. The framing of the adult protagonist returning to the Sussex farm seemed a bit forced.
24stringcat3
33. The Long Good-bye - Raymond Chandler
I can see the appeal of noir detective stories, and enjoyed the snappy dialogue, but this genre still leaves me cold. None of the characters are of interest and I didn't give a rat's who killed whom.
34. Early Riser - Jasper Fforde
Another romp from the wildly inventive and slightly mad Fforde.
35. Island of the Mad - Laurie R. King
A B-minus Holmes/Russell outing, with the setting more interesting than the "mystery".
36. Paris Was Ours - Penelope Rowlands, ed.
Short pieces by 30+ writers describing their experiences of the city. Most were quite good.
I can see the appeal of noir detective stories, and enjoyed the snappy dialogue, but this genre still leaves me cold. None of the characters are of interest and I didn't give a rat's who killed whom.
34. Early Riser - Jasper Fforde
Another romp from the wildly inventive and slightly mad Fforde.
35. Island of the Mad - Laurie R. King
A B-minus Holmes/Russell outing, with the setting more interesting than the "mystery".
36. Paris Was Ours - Penelope Rowlands, ed.
Short pieces by 30+ writers describing their experiences of the city. Most were quite good.
25rocketjk
>24 stringcat3: I, too, loved Early Riser.
26stringcat3
>25 rocketjk: I need to get The Constant Rabbit. I wish he'd continued the Nursery Crimes.
27stringcat3
37. Malice Aforethought - Frances Iles
Clever "mystery" takes the reader along with the criminal on his merry murderous way. The question is, how will he be caught? Character-driven, engaging. I generally hate mysteries but this was quite different from the usual tedious whodunnits.
38. So Big - Edna Ferber
A well-read audiobook. I was startled when it ended because it just ... ended. Harrumph. And the mother was the main character for most of the book. When the focus moved to her son, the story became much less interesting.
Clever "mystery" takes the reader along with the criminal on his merry murderous way. The question is, how will he be caught? Character-driven, engaging. I generally hate mysteries but this was quite different from the usual tedious whodunnits.
38. So Big - Edna Ferber
A well-read audiobook. I was startled when it ended because it just ... ended. Harrumph. And the mother was the main character for most of the book. When the focus moved to her son, the story became much less interesting.
28rocketjk
>26 stringcat3: Rats! I'm behind again. I didn't even realize there was a Jasper Fforde novel out that I hadn't read. On the other hand . . . Hurray! There's a Jasper Fforde novel I haven't read!
Thanks for letting me know.
Thanks for letting me know.
29stringcat3
39. Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
30stringcat3
40. The Splendid and the Vile - Erik Larson
Excellent account of Churchill, his family, staff, and other close associates during 1940-41. I never knew he had a cat named Nelson.
Excellent account of Churchill, his family, staff, and other close associates during 1940-41. I never knew he had a cat named Nelson.
32stringcat3
43. Faith Fox - Jane Gardam
34stringcat3
45. Ghostland: In Search of a Haunted Country - Edward Parnell
An unusual mix of memoir and English travelogue, with lit crit of favorite authors of spooky tales. Oh, and birdwatching, which I mostly skipped. But worth reading, nonetheless.
An unusual mix of memoir and English travelogue, with lit crit of favorite authors of spooky tales. Oh, and birdwatching, which I mostly skipped. But worth reading, nonetheless.
36stringcat3
47. The Claverings - Anthony Trollope
A re-read, after 15 years or so, for the Classic Lit group. Trying to convert people to Trollope-lovers (will settle for "Sure, I'd read something else by him"). This was the first novel of Trollope's I'd read, and it does hold up.
48. The Exploits of Dr. Sam: Johnson, Detector - Lillian de la Torre
The fourth and last volume of the clever mystery stories narrated by "Bozzy", featuring the Great Cham.
A re-read, after 15 years or so, for the Classic Lit group. Trying to convert people to Trollope-lovers (will settle for "Sure, I'd read something else by him"). This was the first novel of Trollope's I'd read, and it does hold up.
48. The Exploits of Dr. Sam: Johnson, Detector - Lillian de la Torre
The fourth and last volume of the clever mystery stories narrated by "Bozzy", featuring the Great Cham.
37stringcat3
49. Lord Halifax's Ghost Book - Charles Lindley Wood Halifax
Interesting anecdotes and ghostly tales collected by Viscount Halifax
50. Weird Women: Classic Supernatural Fiction by Groundbreaking Female Writers 1852-1923 - Lisa Morton & Leslie S. Klinger, eds.
Disappointing collection mostly of tedious stories.
Interesting anecdotes and ghostly tales collected by Viscount Halifax
50. Weird Women: Classic Supernatural Fiction by Groundbreaking Female Writers 1852-1923 - Lisa Morton & Leslie S. Klinger, eds.
Disappointing collection mostly of tedious stories.