Bobblybear's Book List - 2013

[Karsa Orlong]

Karsa, I don't get the new quoting system either, especially when it comes to quoting multiple posts. I've given up trying to quote sections, because either my response appears as a quoted text, or I end up deleting the part I'm quoting!

 

I've done that several times already

 

It's all very complex, and I really should stop making these rules for myself and just read what I enjoy.

Absolutely!

[Brian.]

I don’t even know why I want to enjoy the classics, but I feel like I’m missing out on a big literary section if I don’t.

 

I am the same and although I have read some classics that I just hated every so often one comes along which just seems to click. I always try to remember that the same happens with non-classic books and that I shouldn't get worried if I read a classic that everyone likes but I hate.

[Kylie]

Sorry you didn't enjoy Treasure Island very much, Bobblybear. I kind of feel responsible because I may have hyped it up too much for you. But you're absolutely right—you shouldn't force yourself to read something because you think you should. You'll probably never enjoy them that way (much like many of us hated the books we were forced to read at school).

 

That said, all classics are different—much like one contemporary fiction novel differs from the next—so it may just be that you haven't found one yet that really grabs you. Still, don't try to force it. There's absolutely nothing 'wrong' with you if you don't enjoy reading those types of books.

[bobblybear]

I am the same and although I have read some classics that I just hated every so often one comes along which just seems to click. I always try to remember that the same happens with non-classic books and that I shouldn't get worried if I read a classic that everyone likes but I hate.

Which would be your favorite classics, Brian? The same does happen with non-classics; there have been quite a few that others raved about, that I haven't enjoyed, so I don't know why I'm so hung up on wanting to like classics.

 

Sorry you didn't enjoy Treasure Island very much, Bobblybear. I kind of feel responsible because I may have hyped it up too much for you. But you're absolutely right—you shouldn't force yourself to read something because you think you should. You'll probably never enjoy them that way (much like many of us hated the books we were forced to read at school).

 

That said, all classics are different—much like one contemporary fiction novel differs from the next—so it may just be that you haven't found one yet that really grabs you. Still, don't try to force it. There's absolutely nothing 'wrong' with you if you don't enjoy reading those types of books.

No, Kylie you shouldn't feel responsible at all!! I thought I'd enjoy it, and it's most likely one I would have read anyway as it was one of the shorter ones. Anyway, nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say! I think I'll stick with more contemporary books (ones I prefer), until I'm really in the mood to try something more challenging. It's not like I don't have enough on my TBR list to keep me busy!!

[bobblybear]

Off With Their Heads: All the Cool Bits in British History - Martin Oliver

 

This is a British History book written for children, probably pre-teens I would say. Nevertheless, I found it extremely readable and enjoyable. My history knowledge isn't the best, so this was a perfect introduction as it was very basic, with short chapters and illustrations. The book is only 125 pages long but covers all major events from Prehistoric Times, through to the new Millenium.

 

It is clearly indexed and so very easy to also use as a reference point if you are after dates, or the bare bones of what happened and when.

 

The book covers both World Wars, Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian Britain, The Tudors, Roman Britain, The Stuarts, and the Middle Ages. So as you can see, it's a lot to pack into only 125 pages so you get some idea of how short the chapters are (2 or 3 pages each at the most).

 

It's great to pick up when you have a few minutes spare, and probably best used for understanding the timeline of British History.

 

A great read, for children and non-history-orientated adults alike.

 

4/6

[Brian.]

Which would be your favorite classics, Brian? The same does happen with non-classics; there have been quite a few that others raved about, that I haven't enjoyed, so I don't know why I'm so hung up on wanting to like classics.

 

I have found myself to have a thing for Russian literature. Although it was a difficult read I really liked Crime & Punishment by Dostoyevsky  and I also liked the Tolstoy that I have read so far. The Thiry-Nine steps by John Buchan was also a book I enjoyed greatly however being published in 1915 I don't know if it qualifies as a true classic.

[Nollaig]

I'm not a massive classics reader myself, Bobblybear - but I love Wuthering Heights, it's one of my all time favourite novels. It doesn't even feel like reading a classic novel. I've never read any of the others you were considering.

[Devi]

I think it has a lot to do with the word classic being associated with the books that makes it feel so... scary. I think because they are worded as classics, we are meant to instantly love the book, but feel guilty when we don't like it in the end.

 

Least that's my feelings on classics.

[Nollaig]

I just find the writing style in a lot of them quite tedious

[bobblybear]

I think that sums it up for me, Nollaig.   At least I know I'm not alone in feeling this way.

[~Andrea~]

ETA:  Gods, I hate this new quoting system . . . 

Grrr - me too! I was just going to reply to bits of your post when I started tearing my hair out.

 

Was going to mainly say - The Mill On The Floss!! Ugh! I totally sympathise having had to study it for A Level

[Kidsmum]

I think my children will love Off With Their Heads.... as they love the Horrible Histories books so it's definitely one for the wishlist

 

Thanks for the review Bobbly 

[bobblybear]

You're welcome, Kidsmum. I have to say, I enjoyed it a lot as it was educational without being too heavy. Can't criticise that!

[bobblybear]

More Blood, More Sweat and Another Cup of Tea - Tom Reynolds

 

This is based on a series of blog posts by a London EMT (Emergency Medical Technician). The name is a pseudonym, and his blog is (obviously) on the net, but I don't know if the same blog posts appear in this book. It's a sequel, and I had bought this one and it's prequel before I realised that they were a series of blog posts, but never mind - if I recall, it was a Kindle cheapie.

 

I enjoyed it more than the first one, but I'm not sure why as the content is similar (if my memory serves!). Each chapter is very short, and details a day on the job, plus some rants and raves about things that get on his nerves. It's a good book to pick up when you have a spare few minutes which is what I have been doing.

 

I found it a real eye opener in the lives that EMTs lead. It's not particularly gory, and it's easy to read. There are some touching cases in there, but also some that just make your blood boil, with people hoax calling or EMTs having to waste time on people who have drunk far too much and passed out on the street. I was also surprised to hear how many people ring an ambulance for very minor injuries (ie. period pain, or someone who had stepped on tiny sliver of glass). Every news report always seems to harp on about people not calling an ambulance (out of embarrassment, is what they usually say).

 

I learned a few things as well, for example EMTs cannot have more than 3 periods of sick leave in an 18 month period. I don't know what happens if you are sick more often than that - perhaps you get the sack?

 

Anyway, all in all it was an easy and interesting read, and another one off my pre-2012 list.

 

3/6

[Athena]

I've got Blood, Sweat and Tea, I haven't read it yet. It's not the kind of thing I normally pick up (it was kind of a freebie when I bought some other books) but I hope it'll be interesting. After reading your review of the next book, it sounds like it could be nice to read.

[bobblybear]

It's an easy read, Athena, and the advantage is that you can pick it up and put it down without worrying about where you left off, given that there's no 'plot'.

[Athena]

Thanks, that can be handy sometimes .

[bobblybear]

Elizabeth Street - Laurie Fabiano

 

Elizabeth Street starts off in a small fishing village in southern Italy – Scilla, Calabria in 1901 – with the wedding of childhood sweethearts (and cousins) Giovanna and Nunzio. Nunzio joins Giovanna’s brother in New York as there is no work for him in Italy. The plan is for him to find work and earn money for his family as L’America is where dreams are made. Certain events happen and Giovanna follows in her husband’s footsteps to New York to begin a new life there.

 

I can’t give away much more of the plot, as a lot of things happen which build on earlier events, and if I told you what they were I would be spoiling the story. Needless to say, some of the plot turns were very unexpected and really caught me by surprise.

 

It’s described as a multi-generational saga but I think that description is a bit ambitious. I wouldn’t think of it as a saga – it doesn’t seem long enough or developed enough, and only really focuses on one main character. Rather, it's more about the lives immigrants had to build for themselves in New York and the difficulties they endured to fit in.

 

It’s an easy to read book, peppered occasionally with Italian words. It take a turn towards the end and the last quarter or maybe third of the book focuses on one event, which while not necessarily boring just seemed to change the direction of the book. So much happens at the start of the book with many different characters, and then it just tapers off into the one event which carries on all the way to the end. But that’s only a minor criticism and as I said, it didn’t bother me that much and it was interesting enough on it's own, it just wasn't as varied as the earlier part.

 

Apparently it took the author over ten years to write. Odd, as it’s just a smidgen over 400 pages, and not what I would call a literary masterpiece with oodles of details. It is based on true events - something I didn't realise until after I'd finished, but that doesn't change the way I feel about the book.

 

I'd recommend it as a read if you already own it, but didn't love it enough to suggest that you buy a copy now and start reading immediately!!

 

3/6

[bobblybear]

We Bought A Zoo - Benjamin Mee

 

This is the true story of Benjamin Mee and his family’s purchase of Dartmoor Zoological Park and their struggle to turn around the ailing (about to be shut down) zoo into a place that people want to visit.

 

I’ve visited the zoo twice, but unfortunately can’t remember which years. I’m sure the first time was prior to its sale and the second time was either just before or just after it opened. I do recall it being quite tired when I visited (which makes sense having read the book) but it has the best big-cat enclosures I’ve seen in a zoo, especially Tiger Mountain. Being fortunate enough to watch the tiger feeding time was a blessing as well.

 

The book starts off in France, when Benjamin’s sister comes across an article or notice of the sale of the zoo, and it piques his interest. I think the funding primarily came from Benjamin’s mother, but as far as the fighting the battles with creditors, hiring and motivating staff, and making the decisions on how the zoo was to be run, it was Benjamin driving it.

 

He covers his struggle to raise finance for the zoo and being messed about by banks time and time again, dealing with animals which have escaped – a jaguar and a wolf - which apparently is quite common in zoos! Also how they handled a tiger which woke up in the middle of sedation and stood up and started to stagger around when she was out in the open – I was on the edge of my seat with that one! A part I found slightly amusing was when he was run out of an enclosure by porcupines, a few times he'd be working near an enclosures boundary and look up to see several of it's animals (I think it was lions) had managed to sneak up on him without his noticing; how after a few close calls he’s become so twitchy that once while walking his dog in an open field he had a flurry of panic when a plastic bag blew up from the grass. It’s clear that the zoo has had a huge impact on his life, but also he lost his wife from a brain tumour during the initial stages of getting the zoo up to scratch, which no doubt has had a lasting impact.

 

All in all, it's a brilliant look at what goes on behind-the-scenes of running a zoo; it's a very fascinating read and I can imagine that the zookeepers and owners have had all sorts of experiences that haven't been covered in the book.

 

I’ve looked at a few reviews of the zoo and unfortunately it has been slated (by some, others give it the highest praise) as still being worn down as recently as 2012. It’s a shame that people aren’t really appreciating it and all the hard work that has been put into it. I don’t think the focus is on presentation, as some of these 'up-market' zoos with plenty of financial support have. He has always stated that he doesn't want a large variety of animals in his zoo, instead he wants the endangered animals and for them to have much larger enclosures that they would usually have. Also, it's very clear to see in his book just how tight the funding is, and that it will take many years for them to raise enough money to make it aesthetically pleasing for visitors.

 

4/6

 

[Devi]

I've added We Bought A Zoo to my wish list! 

[bobblybear]

Hope you enjoy it, Devi.

[bobblybear]

Small Steps - Louis Sachar

 

This is a semi - sequel to Holes and follows the life of Armpit (an inmate from Camp Green Lake) as he tries to make a fresh start in the outside world. He is trying to get his life back together, going to school, doing honest work and saving up a bit of money, and being a big-brother figure to his young neighbour who has cerebral palsy. His old pal from Camp Green Lake, X-Ray, offers him the opportunity to double his money by scalping concert tickets for the latest up and coming singer Kaira Deleon. This sets of a chain of events, which lands Armpit in some interesting situations.
 

It can be read as a stand alone book, as very little mention is made of Holes - aside from a little in-joke about shovels and digging.  I’d say it was a young adult book but it’s somewhat easy reading for the most part, which could also be enjoyed by adults. It has gentle humour, mixed in with some serious parts but altogether it’s not a taxing read. It's a short book and I think I finished it in little over a day.

 

3/6

[bobblybear]

The Golden Acorn - Catherine Cooper

 

This was a Kindle freebie with some pretty good reviews, so I loaded it up. It's free, so what do I have to lose?

 

Jack Brenin is a young boy (I don't think the book mentions how old he is - maybe 10?) who has recently been sent to live in England with his grandfather. One day, on his way home, a golden acorn drops on his head. Jack picks it up and so confirms his fate as the chosen one who is destined to save the trees and those druids and nymphs living within them. There's time-travel, druids, talking ravens, shape-shifting and all sorts of other-wordly bits and pieces.

 

While it was readable, I felt it lacked something. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it seemed like there was a lack of excitement or urgency to the characters and their actions. Considering time was running out for Jack to save this little part of the world, everyone just seemed to be taking their sweet time with it. The book wasn't short, coming in at just over 350 pages. I think this could have been reduced by a third without losing anything from the story. It had sections which were very readable, quite funny and interesting, but then they were followed by long bits which just dragged and didn't push the story forwards at all, or reveal anything new about the characters.

 

I'm not the target audience - it's clearly a children's book - so maybe that's why I didn't 'get' it. Not to say I disliked it, but it just somehow felt empty. There are four books in the series, but I won't be reading them, as I don't feel interested in Jack or the rest of his adventures.

 

2/6

 

[Janet]

I downloaded this one ages ago (one of my first downloads after I got my Kindle at Christmas 2011, I think) but I think that in light of your review I might delete it.  it's not like I'm short of other books!    That said, it's a shame you didn't enjoy it. 

[bobblybear]

At least it didn't cost me anything.   Who knows - you may enjoy it. I just found it very lacking, and I think the only reason I bought it was because I was in my "download everything that's free!" phase, regardless of whether I thought it would be my kind of book.