Towers in the Mist by Elizabeth Goudge

Having read and loved “The Little White Horse” by the same author, I was pleased to come across another of Elizabeth Goudge’s books.  Unsure of what to expect, as my library copy had been rebound with a plain cover I embarked into the unknown.

The story is set in Christ Church, Oxford, in the 16th century and follows the Leigh family for a year, through love and grief, joy and loss, culminating with Queen Elizabeth’s visit to that illustrious city.

Although a charming read, and involving many well known characters from history, include Sir Walter Raleigh, I was a little disappointed with the simplicity of the tale.  At each turn of the page I was expecting the story to take off. Perhaps if I had known more about the book, I would have found it more enjoyable.

I also later found out it was the second book of a series.  As I intend to go back and read the first book, “A City of Bells”, perhaps it is a series that will grow on me.



Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Howl's Moving Castle

by Diane Wynn Jones

In the land of Ingary where magic runs rife a prince has been taken captive by the evil witch of the waste and the talented king’s wizard, who has tried to rescue him has reportable been slain. A dangerous, heart-eating wizard by the name of Howl is reported to be on the move.

But all of this is inconsequential to Sophie Hatter. Afraid that her position as eldest of three sisters means she is doomed to failure if she tries to seek her fortune elsewhere, Sophie works in the her tedious family’s hat shop in Market Chipping. That is until her fate takes a turn and brings Sophie to the attention of the evil Witch of the Waste, who casts a spell, turning Sophie into an old lady unable to tell anyone what has happened.

So, Sophie runs away from home, right into the strange and frantic world of Howl, his apprentice Michael and the fire demon, Calcifer where her only hope of reversing the spell lies in untangling and breaking the bizarre contract between Howl and his demon before the witch of the waste catches up with them.

With a wonderful combination of outrageous humor and great sincerity, this tale of magic and finding one’s true purpose will enchant readers of any age.

Part of my 100 + reading challenge

Sugar Queen

by Sarah Addison Allen

When Josey finds Della Lee, a local waitress with a reputation for trouble, hiding in her closet where she secretly keeps sugary food and romance novels, her sheltered life is turned upside-down. Encouraged by Della Lee, Josey begins to changed from a guilt ridden child into a well rounded woman. She soon finds making friends isn’t as hard as she though and depends less and less on her romance novels and food.

Chloe Finley has a secret, ever since she can remember books have appeared whenever she needed them, and whenever they think she needs them. She also has a problem, her boyfriend, Jake, with whom she was planning to spend the rest of her life with has admitted to cheating.

Secrets run rife through the town, and as Josey comes to know Della Lee Chloe, Jake and Adam it becomes obvious that a secret shared is a burden halved if only their friendship is strong enough.

Filled with lively believable characters, this is a delightful tale of friendship, love and subtle magic.

Part of my 100 + reading challenge.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Having read the Twilight series, the Historian and being an avid fan of Buffy, I decided it was about time I went to the source of the vampire trend and read Dracula.

Now, I may be one of the few people in the world who really had no idea what the book was about besides the obvious – a vampire by the name of Dracula. (I didn’t even realize Van Helsing was a character!) So, I had no preconceptions of this dark 19th century novel.

I found the story intriguingly complex if not as horrifying as I imagine the first readers found it to be. Written in diary form, the book is composed of the letters and diaries of a small group brought together by the evils of Dracula. The Count is deliciously mysterious and amoral, and our band of heroes are intrepid and fearful by turn and so very prim and proper.

Jonathan Harker travels to Transylvania to see a client who is buying a house in London with the intent of moving there. On arriving in the town he meets the local peasantry who try to warn him away from the count, his client, but sure it is just local superstition, Jonathan journeys on the terrifying ruined structure where Count Dracula makes his home.

Lucy, recently engaged to be married and a dear friend of Jonathan’s fiancé, Mina, suddenly falls sick after sleep walking in the graveyard at night in Whitby. When Lucy does not seem to get any better, her friend and doctor, John Stuart sends for his mentor from Amsterdam, Dr Van Helsing and it is he who reveals the terrible truth of her sickness. But even he is unable to save her.

Van Helsing and his determined group must use all their wits, courage and strength in a long battle to defeat the sinister Count before it is too late.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge.

Magic Strikes

by Ilona Andrews

Kate Daniels leads a complicated life. A mercenary for years in an Atlanta that constantly shifts between technology and magic in waves and friends with were-beasts, she has seen her fair share of challenging paranormal.

But when Derek, her werewolf friend asks her to deliver a message, Kate has no idea what she is getting herself into, and when that message all but gets Derek killed, Kate begins her own investigation only to find it is all tied up with the gladiators of the Midnight games, a most deadly fighting tournament, and the supernatural prize being offered to the winners.

Packed with action, humour, strange magic and beasts, fans of Patricia Briggs will find this fasted paced, energetic novel a welcome addition to their shelves.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Lavinia

by Ursula K. Le Guin

Little is known about Lavinia, Aeneas of Troy’s second wife, with whom he founds his empire. Now Ursula K. Le Guin turns her incredible talent to give voice to Vergil’s silent character from the Aenead.

Growing up in peaceful Latium, a beloved daughter of King Latinus, Lavinia knows more freedom than many princesses. She roams the hills and forests of her homeland and visits the sacred springs. It is at one of these sacred places she first meets the poet who tells Lavina she is destined to marry a great man from Troy and with whom she will have just a few short years. But her mother and most of the kingdom favour Turnus, the king of neighboring Rutuli and Lavinia’s cousin as her match. And so, when the oracle tells King Latinus to marry his daughter to the Trojan outsider a bitter civil war breaks out, a war that breeds resentment for years to come and shapes the kingdom that will become Rome.

Le Guin, drawing on Vergil’s original tale, creates a realistic mythological account of a shy girl who becomes a strong partner to a great hero and passionate heroine in her own right.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

A Year Without "Made in China" by Sara Bongiorni

After a Christmas full of new plastic and electronic toys mostly from China, writer and journalist Sara Bongiorni decides to try an experiment: boycott China goods for 12 months.

Aware that the experiment is flawed and that they can’t expect friends and family to fall in line, they do accept Chinese wares as gifts, a device that save the experiment and their sanity on many occasions!

Often frustrated by misleading labels, a mutinously sneaky husband and the fear of disappointing her young son, this anecdotal account will make you laugh and cry as the search for everyday items becomes an ordeal, you can just forget replacing electronic equipment and even birthday candles have to be forgone!

This thought provoking, witty and frank story of a family’s attempt to live without Chinese goods also provides an interesting insight into global economics.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

by Richard Bach

 

I first came across the title of this book several years ago on the BBC's 2003 Big Read, but at the time was unable to find a copy. So, when I found it a few days ago, hidden on a shelf at my local library, I picked it up.

The small volume contains the wonderful tale of a seagull who dares to be different. "For most gulls it is not flying that matters, but eating. For this gull, though, it was not eating that mattered, but flight”. Banished from his home, Jonathan Livingston begins his journey to find the true joy of flight and along the way learns love, kindness and the fulfillment of helping others.

Throughout this truly inspiring and allegorical tale is the gorgeous black and white photography of flying seagulls taken by Russell Munson that add depth to its simplicity. I can understand why this book of barely more than 100 pages made the list of Britain’s best loved novels.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

by Alexander McCall Smith

This latest delightful episode of the best selling No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series finds Precious Ramotswe in a quandary. Her tiny white van, which has carried her for years, has developed a disturbing noise. Not knowing what to do, and afraid that her mechanic husband will condemn her beloved vehicle, Mma Ramotswe turns to one of the mechanic assistants for help. But is her van too old to be saved?

Grace Makutsi, also has a problem. Her fiancé, Phuti Radiphuti, has inadvertently hired Violet Sephotho, Grace’s hated enemy from the Botswana Secretarial College. Not only that, but Grace is sure the glamourous women is trying to win Phuti’s affections.

To add to the difficulties, the ladies have a new client. Leungo Molofololo, the owner of a football team, is sure he has a traitor on the team. Why else would his once successful team be losing? The case will be challenging as neither of the ladies knows anything about football.

A good addition to the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency books, although I would have liked it to have had a few more smaller mysteries for the ladies to solve. Even so, Mma Ramotswe’s simplistic, yet shrewd way of problem solving and the breathtaking setting of Botswana makes this book a pleasure to read.

Part of my 100 + reading challenge

Dragon Bones

by Patricia Briggs

Raised by an abusive father, Ward, the heir to Huron has pretended to stupidity so long it is second nature, but when his father is killed in a hunting accident the reigns of the kingdom fall heavily on Ward's shoulders.  Not knowing who he should trust or where to turn for help, Ward soon finds himself on a journey to prove himself worthy.  His companions, the family ghost who might just be mad, a brother who has no love for him, a runaway slave and the only two men of the kingdom who know Ward's secret.

An intriguing tale of fantasy and honor, set in a world where heroes must prove their metal and dragons are not quite extinct.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Trustee from the Toolroom by Nevil Shute

Keith Stewart is a hard working, good man who loves job.  Having given up advancement as an engineer, he lives quietly in London creating miniature models and writing for a mechanic magazine.  When his sister and brother-in-law decide to immigrate to Vancouver, using their own sailing boat, they ask Keith and his wife to look after their daughter, Janice, until they arrive.  As the laws about taking money out of Britain mean they would have to leave most of their money and jewelry behind, they ask Keith to help them hid a jewelry box on the boat.

When disaster strikes and the little boat goes down just off of the islands of Tahiti, Keith realizes the box he helped to hid must contain all of their life savings. Never having left England before, but wanting to do his best for Janice, Keith sets out on a journey to Tahiti. Not knowing how he is going to get there or how he will pay his way, Keith finds help in unexpected places.

This charming novel highlights the honesty and integrity of ordinary people and how even small kindnesses can have effects that pay you back tenfold.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Ascendant Sun

by Catherine Asaro


In this sequel to The Lask Hawk, Kelric cybernetically enhanced Jagernaut warrior and heir to the Skolian Empire is on his way home. But much has changed in the galaxy during his 18 years of exile on the planet Coba. The psyberweb that united the known planets and was run by his family has collapsed after a devastating war and the other members of the ruling family are either hostages or dead. Kelric, now the only heir to the throne, is in great danger, not only from those who would use him but also from the damage to his body sustained on Coba which is slowly killing him.

Hiding his ignorance and his identity Kelric takes the only job available as a crew member on a merchant ship headed for Euban space, but when disaster strikes and the vessel is captured by his families sworn enemies, the Aristos, Kelric must use all his skills to win his freedom and stop them from gaining complete control of interstellar communications which would endanger, not only himself and those left on Coba but every world in the Skolian Empire.

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

The Green Man

edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling

A wonderfully inspired selection of short stories and poems each with their own spin on the legendary “Green Man”. Find here a teenage girl plays a deadly game with the Queen of Central Park, a boy who risks his own life to help in a war, two girls who wish for their lives to change with unexpected results and many more.

The tales range from humorous to untamed and mystical, but each contains the power and mystery of the forest. The Green Man will take you from New York to Arizona, from fairy tale to present. With authors like Patricia Mckillip, Emma Bull, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Jane Yolen and many more, this fasinating collection will appeal to more than just fans of fantasy and mythology.

Part of 100 + reading challenge

The Red Tree

by Shaun Tan

This beautiful picture book dramatically illustrates the darkness of despair and how one small, fragile thing can be a ray of hope.

The girl, weighed down by her sorrow and the feeling than no one understands, fails to see the one shred of hope - a red leaf that follows her throughout her journey until she comes full circle, back to the bedroom where she started and is able to find her smile as the leaf has become a glorious tree.

The wonderful dream-like imagery created using a range of artistic techniques from paintings to collages depict and enhance our understanding of the child’s growing depression and her smile at the astonishing red tree.

Part of my 100 + reading challenge

Fantastic Mr Fox

by Roald Dahl

This is a delightful children's tale by the renown author, Roald Dahl, perhaps best known for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Soon to be made into a movie, this story of a wily hero and three dastardly farmers is full of fun and daring deeds.

Boggis and Bunce and Bean

One short one fat, one lean.

These horrible crooks

So different in looks

Were nonetheless equally mean.

Mr. Fox and his wife and his small children have been living off the chicken and geese and ducks owned by three greedy villains: Mr. Boggis, Mr. Bunce and Mr. Bean. All three farmers are quite aware of Mr Fox's thievery and are extremely angered by it. But are hero is far to wily for them to catch.

One night, the mean old farmers decide to get rid of Mr. Fox once and for all. Mr. Bean devises a cunning plan. They will wait for the fox right outside his hole on the hill and shoot him when he comes out. But when Mr. Fox, outsmarts them at the lose of his tail, the villains are so enraged they decide to dig him out. The more they dig the fast the foxes dig, until the hill becomes a crater. The farmers are sure they have him now and again lay siege to the den. And that is when Mr. Fox has an idea. An idea so, clever, so wonderful, so fantastic that if he can pull it off it will mean he, his family and all the other animals will have as much food as they want and be able safe from the farmers forever.


Part of my 100+ book challenge

The Mystery of Grace

by Charles de Lint

When John meets Grace he knows there is something unusual about her but he is falling in love with her two weeks too late.

Grace is an unusual woman. Not because of the tattoos, or because of her job as at Sanchez Motor work where she restores and customizes old cars. No, Grace is dead. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time - the corner shop when a kid decided to rob it.

But instead of passing on, Grace wakes up in her own apartment in a realm occupied by the dead of her neighbourhood. She soon learns the inhabitants can cross back into the world for a night on Hallowe’en and May Eve.

Both John and Grace have problems that need to be fixed. After meeting John, Grace is determined to solve the mystery of the realm she inhabits, and John needs to come to terms with his brother’s death years earlier. With the help of each other, friends, “rockabilly” music and old cars Grace and John learn the value of love, hope and the necessity of letting go.

This romantic fantasy brings together a wonderful mix of folklore, fairy tale and urban legends. De Lint creates well balanced, energetic, imaginative people that puts my lack of incentive to shame!

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

Image from www.sfsite.com/charlesdelint/

The lightning Thief

by Rick Riordan

Percy (short for Perseus) Jackson is a 12-year-old kid living in New York. He has ADHD, dyslexia and a bad temper, and has been expelled from many different schools, despite his good intentions. But when Percy’s Math Teacher turns into a monster and tries to kill him on a museum trip, Percy begins to realize that he really is different from other kids – in fact he is a half-blood offspring of one of the Greek gods!

Sent to Camp Half-Blood where he meets the other children of the gods and Percy finally learns who his father really is. But the knowledge comes with a price as Percy must make his way across America, helped by his new friends, Annabeth the daughter of Athena and Grover a satyr, on a terrifying quest to find Zeus’ missing lightning bolt. Dealing with Furies, monsters, other gods and immortals, Percy must return the bolt to Mount Olympus (the 600th floor of the Empire State Building!) before Midsummer’s Day or a war will break out in the heavens that could destroy the earth.

A funny, adventurous tale of a reluctant hero, with a fascinating blend of classic mythology and present day. The only let down for me was the story lacked imaginative deviations from the classical quests.

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

A photographic memory, circus abilities, puzzle solving skills and extreme stubbornness.  Four abilities, four children, one dangerous mission.

Encouraged by his tutor, Reynie Muldoon responds to an advertisement in the newspaper for "gifted children looking for special opportunities". After a series if weird and wonderful tests Reynie, along with Kate Weatherhill, Constance Contraire, and George (Sticky) Washington, is selected for a dangerous mission – to go undercover at L.I.V.E, the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, and discover what is really behind the strange messages broadcasting from the school.

Reynie, Kate, Constance, and Sticky must use all their special talents to solve the mystery and uncover Mr. Curtain’s dastardly plan before it is too late.  But close knit as the four become, will their bond, courage and talents be enough in the face of real danger?


Part of my 100 + Reading challenge

The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan

A boy on the beach is searching for a bottle cap for his collection when he notices a huge, pot-bellied-stove looking creature that doesn’t seem to belong to anyone, and no one else seems to see. When he takes it home even his parents don’t notice it until the boy points it out to them. Immediately, the boy is told he can not keep it, but finding where the creature belongs proves to be a difficult task.

Filled with the weird and wonderful drawings I have come to expect from Shaun Tan, the story of the boy and his “lost thing” seems very simple. But when one delves deeper into the imagery the book becomes more of a puzzle book as one reads the exterior diagrams and newspaper articles, or perhaps text book entries, which include things such as: "The Federal Department of Odds & Ends," where the motto is "sweepus underum carpetae."

Through Tan’s story and images we see the world around us anew, a world were not everything fits neatly into place, and begs the question, aren’t we all lost things?

Part of my 100+ reading challenge

The Cygnet and the Firebird by Patricia A. Mckillip

A mysterious mage fleetingly appears at Ro Holding looking for a magical object, closely followed by a man with no memory of the past, transformed into a firebird, whose mournful cries turns anything in its path into precious gems or gold.

Convinced the two are connected in some way, Nyx, sorceress and heir to Ro holding searches all her books for knowledge and spells to help the firebird regain his memory. When the mysterious mage reappears, fights with the firebird and abducts her warrior cousin Meguet, Nyx must use all her skill to find a way to follow them and unravel the mystery. A quest that will take her to the land of Sapier where dragons slumbering in the eerie magical desert, and a plot against her homeland is in the making.

An interesting tale that disappointingly fails to live up to its full potential.

Part of the 100+ book challenge