Library books I've been reading.

This is what I've been reading lately, 

This is how it always is - Laurie Frankel

One of my colleagues randomly handed me this book from the new books delivery and said she thought I'd like it, and like it I did. Quirky family of 7 (all with awesome names by the way like Claude, Roosevelt and Orion) where the mum, Rosie, has always wanted a little girl called Poppy, and she gets one when her 5th son comes out as transgender.  I found this so beautiful and interesting, following the whole family as they react to Poppy's transition as a child through to a young adult.  Laurie Frankel is the parent of a transgender child, and the experience she brings to the story makes it even more poignant.  I think this was my favourite book of 2018.

Dear Mrs Bird - AJ Pearce

I loved the first half of this book, but the second half drama happened and it kinda ruined it for me.  Does anyone else just want to read books about mundane everyday life, and people being nice, without authours ruining it with twists, turns, drama and resolution, or is it just me?  Anyway I still liked it, even though it made me a bit sad, the characters talk like grown up Enid Blyton characters and one of them is called Bunty!

The Lonely Life of Biddy Weir - Lesley Allen

Oh my gosh, the first half of this book was a struggle to get through.  Biddy is bullied unrelentingly by girls at her school and we're told about this in great detail.  If you don't want to read about heartbreaking abuse, bullying, anxiety, self harm and isolation then this probably isn't the book for you.  I almost put it down several times.  Having said that, the second part is more hopeful and you'll find yourself rooting for Biddy and loving her new friend Terri and her cosy seaside cottage.  I did a little tear at the end of this, which is always the sign of a good book.

Who runs the world - Virginia Bergin

There are a lot of reviews of this book that say it's man hating, but I enjoyed it and I think with this kind of book you take it with a pinch of salt.  There are no men, they've been wiped out by a virus and women live in a peaceful, crime free, greed free society, coping with the aftermath of climate change.  The young women have never met a man or boy, but the grandmas remember the old times and the protests that happened when the remaining men were put into facilities for their own safety.  Until our protagonist, River, meets a real life boy, escaped from the not so safe facilities, and everything changes. 

The finding of Martha Lost - Caroline Wallace

Martha is a foundling, abandoned as  baby on a train, and adopted by a woman with Very Questionable parenting techniques who runs the lost property department at Liverpool Lime Street Station.  Luckily, it's the seventies and the lady in the station café next door provides cake, music and friendship while Martha solves lost property mysteries (she has a knack for it) and her own mystery too.  

How to Stop Time - Matt Haig

I'm trying to read more books written by men, but then I keep not liking them, and I don't know if it's because I don't like the particular books or I just don't like books written by men (which makes me feel bad - I do like Phillip Pullman so at least there's that!) Anyway, I liked the concept of this but didn't like the writing so much.  This was just ok to me.

Midnight Marked - Chloe Neill

I've read all 13 of this series and this is the last one.  And I'm sad I don't have any more of these light fun vampire stories to work though.  This last one was as fun and silly as the others, I'd highly recommend them if you're looking for a fluffy but engaging urban fantasy series to get your fangs into.

Are we all Lemmings and Snowflakes - Holly Bourne

I so wanted to love this as much as I've loved all of Holly Bourne's other books, but it was pretty hard going.  It's probably a really realistic representation of mental illness, and therefore important to read, understand and think about.  But the actual reading of it is heavy going and I didn't like some of the characters and parts of the plot.  I guess this one wasn't for me, but I'm looking forward to seeing what Holly Bourne writes next. 

What have you been reading? 

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What I've been reading.

I find what I read directly correlates to the state of the world.  And in this current climate of Brexit, Trump, Theresa May and the aftermath of a snap general election, I'm sticking with kids books, gardening and tales of TV dogs.  Here's what I've been reading,

Nigel, My Family and other Dogs - Monty Don

Disappointingly this book was neither written by Nigel the dog from Gardener's World, or written from the point of view of Nigel the dog.  Rather it's Monty Don's stories of Nigel and his other pet dogs.  I don't particularly like dogs, but Nigel is my favourite part of Gardener's World and I really liked this book.

The Worst Witch - Jill Murphy

I never read The Worst Witch as a child, but I loved the 90's kids TV programme based on it and wished my school uniform included stripey tights and doc martins.  I love the illustrations in this book too.  Am I definitely too old to go to a boarding school for witches?  

The Rurbanite - Alex Mitchell

If you want to live a more rural life in an urban setting then this book's for you.  There's lots of inspiration for guerilla gardening, community gardens, urban wildlife gardening and all sorts of other eco-friendly things you can do to make your urban space nice and green.  I liked this even though I don't live in a city.

The Twins at St Clare's - Enid Blyton
The Twins at St Clare's series is basically Malory Towers, with different names.  But they're a nice easy read, full of midnight feasts, tricks on teachers and schoolgirl dramas.  Malory Towers has a swimming pool though, which I think makes it the better school.  Swimming is waay better than lacrosse. 

The Tales of Beedle the Bard - J K Rowling

So firstly, this has the most beautiful black and white illustrations, which totally makes it worth reading.  Secondly, if you need to read wizarding fairy tales, with additional commentary and analysis from Prof. Dumbledore, then you should probably read this.  

More things I've been reading,

Emmy and Oliver - Robin Benway  Ollie is kidnapped as a child, and returned to his neighbourhood as a teen, with added romance with the girl next door.

Rat Queens Vol. 1 Sass. and Sorcery - Kurtis J. Wiebe  You definitely want to read a graphic novel about kick ass, violent ladies called 'sass. and sorcery'!

Air Head - Meg Cabot  The plot for this is Weird, in a way I can't say without giving a spolier, but it's still good!

All the Feels - Danika Stone  When her favourite film character is killed off, Liv launches an online campaign to reinstate him, which gets ever so slightly out of control.

What have you been reading?  I'm trying to get through my big pile of library books so I can start re-reading the Harry Potter series!  (It's not going well, I keep adding to my library book pile!)

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What I've been reading.

Here's what I've been reading recently, lovely library books and some second hand finds too, 

The Little Women Letters - Gabrielle Donnelly
If you need to read a fluffy book about the ancestors of the Little Women (assuming of course that they're real) then I can recommend this one.  A quirky lady with wild hair (Jo March's great great granddaughter, obvs) finds Jo's letters in the attic and their stories intertwine.  But WARNING the girl's dad is the most annoying character ever written and is likely to induce feminist rage (he has an imaginary wife, who he talks to, and about to his real wife.  Seriously.)

The Manifesto on how to be Interesting - Holly Bourne

I've read everything Holly Bourne has written so far and I've loved it all.  I started with this book, wherein a quiet geeky girl undertakes to make herself cool with big consequences.  And lots of feminism.  In all her books.  Yey for feminism.

How to Grow Food A Wartime Guide - Doreen Wallace

This is a funny little book published in the 1940s to help new gardeners dig for victory.  We follow a year in the gardening life of our family, newcomers to the country and to growing their own, with sage advice from their neighbour, the weatherbeaten lady.  It's delightfully vintage. 

Saffy's Angel - Hilary McKay

I've been working my way through this childrens/YA series for a while, there are six books and some are better than other, but all quite good comfort reads.  I've seen this series likened to Dodie Smith's I Capture the Castle, and other retro-feeling books, where the family are arty, and the parents do care but are a bit crap and the children are free to have all sorts of adventures with no adult supervision.  It's a sweet, charming series.

What have you got out from the library right now?

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What I've been reading.

Here's what I've been reading recently, lovely library books and some second hand finds too,

Doctor Who Time Lord Fairy Tales

This book has the most gorgeous illustrations and it looks beautiful on the shelf.  The stories are quite simply told, in the same style as fairy tales, so it's best to leave any literary expectations aside and imagine baby Time Lords being told these stories.  I especially liked the story of Cinderella and the Magic Box and the Three Little Sontarans.

Sofia Khan is Not Obliged - Ayisha Malik

This is a typical chick lit, rom-com, but with a twist as the main character is a strict British Muslim and the focus is on her love life.  I don't think this was a brilliantly written book, but I got into it and it was a really interesting insight into Muslim culture, which it turns out I know little about despite living in an area with a huge Muslim community.  It's nice to learn something. 

The Treasure Hunters - Enid Blyton

I picked up this 1960s edition of The Treasure Hunters for 20p in a charity shop.  It's not an Enid Blyton story I've read before and it was a nice comfort read, full of adventure, picnics, and a naughty dog.  I was mostly attracted to it because it looks like it's been printed in a proper printing press, and by the cute, retro illustrations.

The Girls - Emma Cline

Evie's boring summer is dramatically turned around when she gets involved with a cult, implicated in an infamous murder.  It's set in 1969, all hippies and living in a commune, but The Girls gives a deeper look at the dysfunction rife in that kind of living arrangement.  It's told from the present day, with a grown up Evie looking back on her youth.  Although I've never lived in a commune, I did find a lot of Evie's thoughts relatable and familiar to my own as a teen and as a woman.

Vinegar Girl - Anne Tyler

The Hogarth Shakespeare series sees popular authors updating Shakespearian plays.  Vinegar Girl is Anne Tyler's version of The Taming of the Shrew.  This is the first book I've read by her and I thought it was just OK, easy to read and quite sweet, it shows a different imagining of the story and is less extreme than the play, or the Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor film.  But to be honest I prefer 10 Things I Hate About You.

What have you been reading?  

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What I've been reading.

Here's what I've been reading recently, lovely library books and some second hand finds too,

Dumplin' - Julie Murphy

Oh I loved Dumplin'.  Dumplin' is a self proclaimed fat girl from Texas, a high school student with a job in a fast food joint and a mother who runs a teen beauty pagent.  When her aunt dies, Dumplin' enters the beauty pagent and confonts lots of her own (and others) beliefs about her body (thoughts that ring true to me, as someone who is currently plus sized, but who felt fat even as a size 10!).  There's also a brooding, hot co-worker, high school friendships and Dolly Parton.  Read it!

Royal Wedding - Meg Cabot

This is the 11th book in the Princess Diaries series we probably all remember from our teenagery times.  In fact I found the whole collection of Princess Diaries books in a charity shop for 30p each and re-read them in preparation for reading Royal Wedding.  This 11th installment picks up the same characters in their twenties, it's nice to see where they all end up, and there's the promised royal wedding.  Perfect comfort reading.

Hag-seed - Margaret Atwood

Oooh this is a clever book, as all Margaret Atwood books tend to be.  Hag-seed is a retelling of the Tempest, set in the unlikely (but workable!) world of a prison theatre group. I love Shakespeare and I love Margaret Atwood and I loved this book! 

Craft for the Soul - Pip Lincolne

Craft for the Soul is a nice self-help style book to help you live a happy and creative life.  It's nothing ground breaking, but I found it full of gentleness, inspiration and nice ideas.  I love the craft section at the back too.

What have you been reading?  

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Library love.

What have you been reading?  I've picked up some awesome library books in the last couple of weeks,

Kindred Spirits - Rainbow Rowell.

I liked this book fine, but it wasn't my favourite by Rainbow Rowell.  I liked the main character, Elena, and loved the twist at the end, but the story just didn't grab me.      

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl - Ryan North and Erica Henderson.

I really, really love Squirrel Girl.  This collection of the first 4 Squirrel Girl comics is so cute and funny.  Doreen Green tucks her tail into her trousers and goes to college, while saving the world on the side.  I love tippy-toe her squirrel friend, the inclusion of Iron Man and her knitting room-mate.  I've had the Squirrel Girl theme song stuck in my head for weeks though!

The First Rebellion - M.C. Beaton.

I feel a bit ashamed for liking this book so much.  On the one hand it's full of bluestockings, feminists and the story is so engaging I Need to know what's going to happen!  But on the other hand the women are kissed, sometimes forcibly, in the manner of a she-says-no-but-likes-it-really Mills and Boon romance.  Which makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.  But not so uncomfortable that I'm not going to read the rest in the series. 

My Tiny Garden - Lucy Scott and John Cardwell.

I love this kind of book with photos and stories of lots of inspiring gardens.  These are all tiny gardens, and I especially like the one on a houseboat!

Check out my other library book reviews too!

Have you read anything lovely lately?

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