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Oct 2, 20201 min read
818. Martin Amis - The Rachel Papers
Heard Amis interviewed on the radio and thought ‘Time to try him again’. I had read this years ago, but thought it was pretty dreadful...
Jun 14, 20191 min read
689. DJ Taylor - Rock And Roll Is Life
A library book of Paddy’s. She liked it, I didn’t much, although one would have expected the opposite, given that I am more into rock and...
May 30, 20191 min read
687. Ivan Turgenev - Fathers And Sons
Although I think regarded as a classic of 19th century Russian literature, I thought this had dated badly and didn’t really enjoy it. My...
Dec 11, 20181 min read
644. Jonathan Coe - What A Carve Up!
Quite a long read, but have been very busy with work; maybe a summer holiday beach book. Quite a difficult read, very funny in places but...
Jun 2, 20181 min read
594. Henry James - The Wings Of A Dove
Maybe optimistic to pick a difficult late James after enjoying 593, but you can see the logic I hope. And I read the Ambassadors...
Apr 6, 20181 min read
583. Anthony Trollope - Barchester Towers
I have never read this before and perhaps because I am not in a very receptive phase didn’t enjoy it, although struggled to understand...
Feb 10, 20181 min read
571. Mick Herron - Slow Horses
This is the 3rd time I have read this (463 & 517), having recommended him to a friend and wanting to remind myself/confirm (!) that they...
Nov 26, 20171 min read
552. Elizabeth Gaskell - Wives And Daughters
Tried to read this, I think 5 years ago at Stuart’s in Spain, but gave up. These 19th century novels are incredibly long, but I got to...
Sep 1, 20171 min read
518. Mick Herron - Real Tigers
Went for another Mick Herron, despite the above. These books do improve all the time. I didn’t fully understand the plot here – which of...
Aug 27, 20171 min read
517. Mick Herron - Slow Horses
Originally read this (463) in January, as all his books were well reviewed, inter alia, by Ann Cleeves in the Radio Times. There are a...
Apr 17, 20171 min read
481. Lynne Truss - Tennyson's Gift
I gave up on this before even discovering what Tennyson’s Gift was. A tedious reconstruction of a (possible or actual, I never got that...
Jul 13, 20161 min read
417b. Joseph Conrad - Nostromo: A Tale Of The Seaboard
I hate this but after about 160 pages I gave up on this. It was all unmitigated hard work. So I didn’t progress any further. Very...
Mar 15, 20151 min read
289. Alan Hollinghurst - The Line Of Beauty
Not quite sure why I bought this, although it did win the Booker prize and is good, if a little ponderous for me. I found it difficult to...
Sep 5, 20141 min read
241. Michel Houellebecq - Whatever (Serpent's Tail)
Undoubtedly the worst and stupidest book I have read for a long time. The plot, if it has one, is about an incredibly cross Frenchman,...