This month, I solidified my love for Neil Gaiman, read a classic (and didn’t like it), tried a popular fiction novel (thought it was okay) and reread some stories from my childhood.
Category: Reading
What I’ve been reading: June 2016
This month, I have devoured books. Two were recommended, one of which I loved and two are oldies but goodies and free or basically free on my Kindle. The house may not be tidy, but I feel enlightened in a way that only books can do.
What I’ve been reading: May 2016
I’m back in the swing of things now. This month, I re-read the entire Harry Potter series. I have no regrets. I read two new books too; one I hated and one I loved.
What I’ve been reading: April 2016
Another short list, but I’m getting back in my groove now. And in my defence, one is a fairly dense history text with very small font. (Is that an excuse?)
5 elements of the best travel writing
You may have gathered, I read a lot. I read rather widely, but one of my favourite topics is travel. As I’m on my own writing journey, I thought about what elements take centre stage in the best travel writing. What makes the best writing different from the just sort of interesting writing? What makes a story one that I can’t put down and then, when I have to, I rave about it? What should I aspire to?
What I’ve been reading: January, February, March 2016
This is a fairly short list for 3 months of reading and yes, I am disappointed in myself. I could say I made up for quantity with quality, but I think that’s just an excuse! I have excellent taste in books every month… or something like that. All joking aside, there were definitely some winners in this list.
What I’ve been reading: December 2015
Thanks to my local library for all but one of the books I read this month. A combination of early Christmas shopping and well, London rent meant that I spent my book budget on other things. Regardless of my bank account, I genuinely really enjoy going to the library. I even go to it when my finances aren’t crying. I just browse the shelves for authors I know and love or (most of the time) for a cover or a title that catches my eye. This method rarely fails me, but one book this month was so bad I couldn’t get past the first chapter, despite it’s very colourful cover. The books I did finish were all fairly good, but nothing blew me away this month. (Maybe I was exhausted from NaNoWriMo!)
What I’ve been reading: November 2015
A few quick, easy fun reads. Stardust by Neil Gaiman, The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett, The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Pforde.
I downloaded all of these on my Kindle to read on my commute. I loved Stardust which surprised me. I, like many people, got a free download and happened to choose this one. I didn’t expect much, but absolutely fell in love. The Light Fantastic isn’t the best one by Terry Pratchett, but I enjoyed it.
What I’ve been reading October 2015
I usually read a lot because of my commute. I’d rather have my nose shoved in a book, or my Kindle than try not to make eye contact with my fellow commuters. (I am sure they’re nice people, but I have a tendency to stare when I’m tired!) And, while it only takes me about 50 minutes to get to work (that’s average by London standards), it feels like it goes faster if I read. This month, I downloaded a blog reading app – so I’ve not read as many books per se, but I’ve read a lot in general.
How to be Both: book review and Ferrara, Italy
It’s no lie that one of my favourite days of the month (other than pay day) is book club day. We meet at a really nice pub, have a drink and talk about a book. What could be better?
One of the last books we read was How to Be Both by Ali Smith. I’ve been trying to write a synopsis and I can’t really. I’m not 100% sure what happened. I don’t know who was a girl or who was a boy. I can’t decide if it was all just a cheap trick or not. I wasn’t even sure when it ended due to both options (artist first vs girl first) being included in my Kindle version. What I can say is some of the description was fantastic, I fell in love with the artist (but it’s unrequited). I can also say with some certainty that the book was focused on a little northern Italian town called Ferrara.
Teacup and Mouse 