Books on my Bedside Table
August 3, 2006 at 11:01 AM
by Ashleigh
Some of these have been here for ages and some are in permanent residence, like Steve Biddulph's Secret of Happy Children.
All of them have a 'back story'.
The Switzerland book was bought 6 years ago when we were supposed to move to Zurich and I got it out again earlier this year when there was a chance we might move there again.
It didn't happen, but it was still nice to dip into a book about a completely different culture and lifestyle, and then talk to our friends in Zurich and realise it's not that different from what we have here.
I'm not reading Terry Pratchett or Ruth Rendell. I don't know why they're there! Actually I do know. I was trying to get back into reading and thought maybe these would help. They didn't. I love Terry Pratchett's Witches books, but I find it difficult to get into the others. Ruth Rendell is nice, but better in tv adaptations. (Oh dear, did I say that out loud?)
I am reading the Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason. It's quite engaging, in that I haven't really abandoned it for anything else just yet.
Adrian Mathew's Apothecary's House was bought because it's set in Amsterdam. Unfortunately it's not engaging so I can't comment on the story, writing or anything else. I started reading it a year ago and it's stil languishing.
The Locus Awards book is fantastic! I love short stories. I love Science Fiction & Fantasy short stories best of all. I read this one periodically. I think the best thing about short stories is that they don't require commitment. You can read them and move on. Great for people with a short attention span ;) I also just read the BBC Radio 4 book of short stories. It was excellent!
Dubbel Dutch is a Dutch grammar book written in a very entertaining style. I recommend it to anyone trying to work their way through the maze of things you can say wrong when you're learning to speak Dutch.
And at the bottom, Nigella's 'Feast' in Dutch. I got this out of the library and I'm enjoying it. It takes a bit more energy to read it in Dutch as opposed to English, but I realised I wouldn't buy the book in hardcover (although maybe in paperback), so getting it out of the library is a good substitute. Even if it is in a different language.
What's on your bedside table?
Comments
I got Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner out of the library two weeks ago. Haven't started it yet. MOre often than not, I read magazines--lots of magazines. They're like crack for me. Time, O, In Style, Real Simple, More, Women's Health, etc. I love to browse rubber stamping books and catalogs.
Go ahead and give up on 13 steps down -- my brother in law gave it to me for christmas and I read it but it wasn't very good. He also gave me a Walter Mosley book and several by PD James that were much better.
I read most of the Apothecary's House on the plane from Germany to the US back in January. I finished it while I was in the US, but like you I didn't find the story *that* engaging, so I left it in the guest room at my mom's.
August 3, 2006 12:22 PM