The Top 50 from the Best Books of 2019 List of Lists

This is my annual community service to book-bloggers – a list of the books that appear most frequently on the 56 lists that I listed on Best Books of 2019 – A List of Lists. Continue reading

20 Books of Summer (Winter) 2019 – Challenge Complete

The 20 Books of Summer reading challenge drew to a close on Melbourne’s first distinctly-Spring-like day (it was 21 degrees here yesterday and glorious). I don’t have trouble reading 20 books in the allotted time (this year I read 20.5 hard copies and listened to six audiobooks) however I am a bit behind on reviews… Continue reading

I’m waiting for… 2019 edition

Seems there’s lots of good reading to be done this year (have I ever started a year not thinking the same…? No). Continue reading

The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert

Excuse me while I cut myself a very, very large slice of humble pie.

Because I have never been backward in saying how much I loathed Eat, Pray, Love. And that Elizabeth Gilbert must be incredibly self-absorbed to have penned it. It’s on the very short list of books I could not finish – abandoned midway through the ‘Pray’ section because I couldn’t bear to read another whiny, sniveling word.

And then I read The Signature of All Things. And I loved it. Continue reading

20 Books of Summer (except that it’s winter)

books-for-challenge

Cathy at 746 Books is hosting the 20 Books of Summer reading challenge again this year. I’m going to join in, with a particular effort to read from my stacks of physical books (as opposed to e-books).

There’s no better time to curl up with a book than winter. Because it’s winter in Melbourne. So while Cathy et al. is enjoying the Irish sunshine along with twenty selected books, I’ll be rugging up  (I wonder if in fact my winter will be the equivalent of an Irish summer? Perhaps I’ll post the weather forecast for the day I finish each book to compare…). Continue reading