Monday, September 22, 2014
Monday, August 25, 2014
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
WWW Wednesdays
WWW Wednesdays is a weekly meme hosted by Miz B of Should Be Reading
To play along, just answer the following three questions:
• What are you currently reading?
• What did you recently finish reading?
• What do you think you’ll read next?
What are you currently reading?
Perhaps the question should be, what am I not currently reading. The pile of books on my bedside table is growing at an alarming rate and I have so many on the go - I just need to commit to one. However, I am looking forward to picking up the new Alexander McCall Smith one tonight.
What did you recently finish reading?
I've just finished The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul and had a great discussion about it at bookclub last night, over cupcakes and cocktails. I've already written a review about it here.
What do you think you'll read next?
At the top of my pile is A Girl is a Half-formed Thing but a bookmark is currently sitting about a quarter of the way in to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harbold Fry so I may opt for that one. Monday, August 18, 2014
Saturday, August 16, 2014
The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul
It's been years (I'm not kidding) since I last wrote a book review but what better book to get back into it than this one. What a sweet, sweet story.
I'd seen this book lying around on the shelves of bookshops, charity shops and supermarkets for a while but had never picked up it. Don't ask me why, though having a 16-month-old in the house has put a blight on reading over the last, well, 16 months!!!
However, the lure of a book club discussion, held in a venue that serves cocktails and cupcakes, was too good to refuse so The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul made it onto my reading list.
And I loved it! An easy read, a wonderful collection of characters, each with their own story to share (and a secret to reveal), a lovely tone and a fabulous setting. I'm not one to pick up non-fiction to learn about a particular area of the world - that's too much like hard work. But to be able to read stories that give you an insight into another country, another culture- like this one does - is certainly my cup of tea (I don't drink coffee!)
It's not a mind-blowing story by any means, nor is it all that gripping - I didn't get to the end of each chapter desperate to know what was going to happen to the characters in the next - but it was the perfect book to curl up with on an English summer's evening when a hot drink and a blanket are needed to keep warm!
I think for me, it was knowing a bit about the author - herself an expat having lived in Kabul - that really gave something of a compelling angle to the story. I'm now looking forward to picking up Deborah Rodriguez' bestselling memoir, The Kabul Beauty School.
I'll be interested to hear what the rest of the readers of the bookclub this week think of it - and what cocktails and cupcakes are on the menu!
I'd seen this book lying around on the shelves of bookshops, charity shops and supermarkets for a while but had never picked up it. Don't ask me why, though having a 16-month-old in the house has put a blight on reading over the last, well, 16 months!!!
However, the lure of a book club discussion, held in a venue that serves cocktails and cupcakes, was too good to refuse so The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul made it onto my reading list.
It's not a mind-blowing story by any means, nor is it all that gripping - I didn't get to the end of each chapter desperate to know what was going to happen to the characters in the next - but it was the perfect book to curl up with on an English summer's evening when a hot drink and a blanket are needed to keep warm!
I think for me, it was knowing a bit about the author - herself an expat having lived in Kabul - that really gave something of a compelling angle to the story. I'm now looking forward to picking up Deborah Rodriguez' bestselling memoir, The Kabul Beauty School.
I'll be interested to hear what the rest of the readers of the bookclub this week think of it - and what cocktails and cupcakes are on the menu!
Friday, May 9, 2014
Friday, March 9, 2012
I'm in need of a new challenge
2012 came about pretty quickly; now we're fast approaching the first quarter mark and I'm still trying to get my year sorted! With each 12 month period disappearing faster than before I think we need to introduce a "sort your sh*t out" month in between so I can at least update my diary, register everyone's birthdays for the year ahead, plan holidays and of course, suss out the reading challenges for the year ahead.
As you'll see, I'm a bit behind on that last resolution. My reading challenges are still of 2011 vintage and dare I say it most of them are sadly incomplete. The planning of holidays on the other hand has been sorted (London last month, Tokyo this month) so at least I have set aside time too read.
But I'm now on the search for 2012 challenges. And given that most of you will already have started a few I wonder if I could be so cheeky as to ask for some recommendations. Have you signed up to a fabulous challenge for 2012 that is still accepting new members? Or do you have a challenging your hosting that I could join. I'm open to anything and everything... so put your challenge forward!
As you'll see, I'm a bit behind on that last resolution. My reading challenges are still of 2011 vintage and dare I say it most of them are sadly incomplete. The planning of holidays on the other hand has been sorted (London last month, Tokyo this month) so at least I have set aside time too read.
But I'm now on the search for 2012 challenges. And given that most of you will already have started a few I wonder if I could be so cheeky as to ask for some recommendations. Have you signed up to a fabulous challenge for 2012 that is still accepting new members? Or do you have a challenging your hosting that I could join. I'm open to anything and everything... so put your challenge forward!
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