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vivdunstan) wrote2011-10-31 11:01 am
vivdunstan) wrote2011-10-31 11:01 am
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Books finished in October 2011
Lots of books this month, though that's partly because I had quite a few nearly-finished ones as the month started.
The Mind's Eye by Oliver Sacks is a collection of accounts of neurological disorders and patients with them. Given my illness (MS-like cerebral vasculitis causing lots of strokes) there was an awful lot for me to relate to in here. But it was a fascinating account, and surprisingly personal, involving the author more than I expected.
I've read quite a few of the Mortal Engines series of books by Philip Reeve. Larklight is another book of his, aimed at children, and extremely imaginative. If I was to sum it up in a few words I'd say "steampunk in space", and what's not to like about that premise?! Absolutely loved it. And fortunately it has sequels.
Diary of a Witchcraft Shop by Trevor Jones and Liz Williams was an offbeat choice of mine. It's an account of a year in a couple's life as they run a magic shop in Glastonbury. I've been to Glastonbury (husband grew up nearby). It's a very bizarre place. This book captured much of that feeling, but was fascinating nevertheless.
Team Up by George Mann and Paul Magrs is a collection of short stories by both authors. I've enjoyed their work before, but was more familiar with the Magrs stories, so got more out of the other half of the book. And it's a tete-beche book, where the two collections of stories are printed back to back, so start at one end and it's the George Mann stories, then turn over and start from the other and it's the Paul Magrs ones.
The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason is a retelling of Homer's Odyssey, and to an extent also the Iliad. Each chapter provides a different what-if take on the stories. The chapters are all very short, so it's an easy read. I liked it a lot initially, but then became somewhat frustrated as it went along. Hard to say why.
Snuff is the latest (#39) in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. It sees Commander Vimes and family off on a holiday in the country. Things do not go as planned. I found the start to this book very exasperating, and would have given up if it wasn't a Terry Pratchett book. It took too long to "get going" for me. But once it did I was hooked, and enjoyed it immensely. If only it hadn't taken nearly a fifth of the book to get to that stage ...
The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2012 edited by Clayton Hickman is the latest in the annual-like series of books, which are better than any annual I've ever seen. When I was a child circa 1980 with my Doctor Who annuals I was used to annuals where the characters in the comic strips looked, notoriously, nothing like the TV characters whatsoever. If I'd had an annual as good and as full of stuff as this one I'd have been positively spoiled. There is also an annual for Doctor Who, but this book is much better. Absolutely loved it.
More Doctor Who, this time another Target reprint (albeit read on Kindle), Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters by Malcolm Hulke. This is a novelisation of his Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) story "Doctor Who and the Silurians" from 1970. I particularly liked the first half of the book; after then it dragged somewhat for me. But it was a rollicking read, and I now want to watch the TV episode which was broadcast before I was born.
Another month, another Brenda and Effie book, this time The Bride That Time Forgot by Paul Magrs. This is the latest one in the series, and, I'm afraid to say, the one I've enjoyed the least. The first half of the book was strong for me, but in the second half, where things moved to somewhere a bit different, I became bored and skipped through large chunks of text to get to the action. Not like me with Brenda and Effie.
The Mind's Eye by Oliver Sacks is a collection of accounts of neurological disorders and patients with them. Given my illness (MS-like cerebral vasculitis causing lots of strokes) there was an awful lot for me to relate to in here. But it was a fascinating account, and surprisingly personal, involving the author more than I expected.
I've read quite a few of the Mortal Engines series of books by Philip Reeve. Larklight is another book of his, aimed at children, and extremely imaginative. If I was to sum it up in a few words I'd say "steampunk in space", and what's not to like about that premise?! Absolutely loved it. And fortunately it has sequels.
Diary of a Witchcraft Shop by Trevor Jones and Liz Williams was an offbeat choice of mine. It's an account of a year in a couple's life as they run a magic shop in Glastonbury. I've been to Glastonbury (husband grew up nearby). It's a very bizarre place. This book captured much of that feeling, but was fascinating nevertheless.
Team Up by George Mann and Paul Magrs is a collection of short stories by both authors. I've enjoyed their work before, but was more familiar with the Magrs stories, so got more out of the other half of the book. And it's a tete-beche book, where the two collections of stories are printed back to back, so start at one end and it's the George Mann stories, then turn over and start from the other and it's the Paul Magrs ones.
The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason is a retelling of Homer's Odyssey, and to an extent also the Iliad. Each chapter provides a different what-if take on the stories. The chapters are all very short, so it's an easy read. I liked it a lot initially, but then became somewhat frustrated as it went along. Hard to say why.
Snuff is the latest (#39) in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. It sees Commander Vimes and family off on a holiday in the country. Things do not go as planned. I found the start to this book very exasperating, and would have given up if it wasn't a Terry Pratchett book. It took too long to "get going" for me. But once it did I was hooked, and enjoyed it immensely. If only it hadn't taken nearly a fifth of the book to get to that stage ...
The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2012 edited by Clayton Hickman is the latest in the annual-like series of books, which are better than any annual I've ever seen. When I was a child circa 1980 with my Doctor Who annuals I was used to annuals where the characters in the comic strips looked, notoriously, nothing like the TV characters whatsoever. If I'd had an annual as good and as full of stuff as this one I'd have been positively spoiled. There is also an annual for Doctor Who, but this book is much better. Absolutely loved it.
More Doctor Who, this time another Target reprint (albeit read on Kindle), Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters by Malcolm Hulke. This is a novelisation of his Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) story "Doctor Who and the Silurians" from 1970. I particularly liked the first half of the book; after then it dragged somewhat for me. But it was a rollicking read, and I now want to watch the TV episode which was broadcast before I was born.
Another month, another Brenda and Effie book, this time The Bride That Time Forgot by Paul Magrs. This is the latest one in the series, and, I'm afraid to say, the one I've enjoyed the least. The first half of the book was strong for me, but in the second half, where things moved to somewhere a bit different, I became bored and skipped through large chunks of text to get to the action. Not like me with Brenda and Effie.