The List 2014

THE List

Hello, How are you?

Read anything brilliant lately?

If you have, come into the library and share so we can all read it , if you haven't, what are you waiting for? A hand delivered selection from Ryan Gosling.

We have so many fantastic

NEW BOOKS.

I’m going to say that again in case you missed it.

NEW BOOKS!

Hurry up, Ryan isn't coming. You need to collect them yourself.

Ms Lea Purveyor of incredibly good lists

I have added QR codes for you– I know, get me! Ms Yates showed me how, it’s my new trick.

THE List

THE List

Mr Beniston can be a kind soul, he suggested a picture of Ryan as the delivery driver. We are in the realms of fantasy but it is a magazine about fiction so this is entirely in keeping don't you think?

THE List

My gift to you An antidote to the sidebar of shame.

These books will help cure you of an unhealthy addiction to the Daily Mail’s sidebar of shame.

You read it, I’ve seen you.

Switch it off!

It will give you strange ideas about what matters in life.

THE List

This gift involves an introduction to an entirely new genre, christened by the fabulous journalist Miranda Sawyer Let me announce the arrival of

Women’s wit-lit A collection of books that celebrate women instead of denigrating them.

Turn the page and be inspired.

THE List

The answers to life’s trickiest questions. Both witty and wise .

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‘be the heroine of your life, not the victim’

Ok it’s not new but I’m sneaking it in because it’s amazing. (And it’s my list and I can!)

A feminist manifesto that will make you snort with laughter. Relevant and joyful.

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Are you ready for the next controversial work from this bestselling Australian?

Love isn’t an exact science but handsome geneticist, Don Tillman does his best to instil some order into the chaos that is usually involved in finding a wife— Welcome to The Wife Project, a scientific test to find the right partner. Then he met Rosie ...

See the book trailer

here

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They’ve got the wrong man but what made him confess to a murder he didn't commit? Can you guess?

Coming of age novel for the internet generation.

Riveting!

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NEW Books to Film Read before you watch, it’s always better.

An unflinching record of slavery from the inside

Is there anyone who doesn't love The Book

Thief?

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A coming of age story AND a love story with some unforgettable characters

Four people accidentally meet on top of a tower block, all prepared to jump to their death. This story contains dark comedy, some wise words and a great plot.

A gripping biography and feminist dramatization of the life of Nelly Ternan, Charles Dickens’ mistress.

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How fast can you turn the page? ...a shocking, blazingly fast read

A Peter Decker Rina Lazarus thriller. With a walk in part for Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware. Brilliant treat for Kellerman fans

As the nights draw in so the killings begin...

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A neat twist on Hitchcock’s Rear Window sees schizophrenic savant Thomas Kilbride witness a murder whilst poring over Whirl 360, a program like Google street view. He has a credibility problem, he believes the CIA have tasked him with committing to memory all of the streets of every major city in the world. Even his brother doubts him initially but then he starts to realise Thomas might have stumbled across a deadly conspiracy that puts them both in danger. Heart thumpingly fast paced.

This book opens brilliantly

“How angry am I? You don't want to know. Nobody wants to know about that�

An arresting, combative novel, I cant recommend this highly enough!

Third instalment in the Frieda Klein series. We have the others too.

Compulsive reading.

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Can there be a new

Hunger Games?

Immerse yourself in the WOOL trilogy

In a ruined and hostile landscape, in a future few have been unlucky enough to survive, a community exists in a giant underground silo.

Inside, men and women live an enclosed life full of rules and regulations, of secrets and lies. To live, you must follow the rules. But some don't. These are the dangerou ones; these are the people who dare to hope and dream, and who infect others with their optimism. Their punishment is simple and deadly.

They are allowed outside. Jules is one of these people. She may well be the last.

n

t us e t

e

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These books claim to be just that.

What do you think? Does Catniss need to worry about the competition?

The Delirium trilogy Read the third and final instalment, Requiem, to find out who Lena will choose. If you haven't read the others in this dystopian collection you are in for a real treat. Movie rights have been purchased and negotiations are underway. Read them first and you can say with honesty that you prefer the books!

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People can be so interes "See, we love each other. We just don't like each other very much."

The latest novel from the Orange Prize-winning author of

We Need to Talk About Kevin.

Such a moving story of sibling devotion it makes you gasp.

Fresh beguiling and laugh out loud funny! Read it, go on, you must, it’s genius.

I a d a d

sting!

THE List

Martha is one awesome old lady and I probably shouldn't say this (she goes in for a bit of robbery and kidnap) but I want to grow old with Martha’s attitude. This is a hugely entertaining and empowering book but it is also a sobering wake up call for all of us about how society treats the elderly.

Budo is Max's imaginary friend. But though only Max can see him, he is real. He and the other imaginary friends watch over their children until the day comes that the child stops imagining them. And then they're gone.

In 1923, 15-year-old Hattie Shepherd flees Georgia, hoping for a chance at a better life. Instead, she marries a man who will bring her nothing but disappointment, and watches helplessly as her firstborn twins succumb to an illness a few pennies could have prevented. Oprah raved about this debut novel.

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I love this book!

This is a wonderfu ending road trip y

This is the story of journey The bo marijuana and h reach that p If you loved Harry

Susan Rustin sum

Read it!

(Not that I woul fantasise f

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! So does Ms Yates

ul story about an unlikely friendship and the most life affirming, death you are ever likely to encounter. It is funny and heart breaking without being sickly sweet. seventeen year old geek extraordinaire Alex Woods and his remarkable ook opens with him being stopped at Dover customs in possession of his best friends ashes. The story that follows is his amazing journey to oint. It is unique and since finishing the book I miss him terribly. y Potter, A Prayer for Owen Meany or The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time then you really must read this. mmed it up perfectly for me in her review of the book in the Guardian.

The Universe Versus Alex Woods is

“a fairy tale for rationalists�

ld ever define myself as a rationalist, life has demanded the ability to far too often! I loved Alex anyway, can you tell? Everyone will.)

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Ms Yates loves thi

Stoner was first published in 19 some seriously impressive auth and Adam Foulds have all waxe

Stoner tells the story of the who literature at the University of M

Ian McEwan describes perfectly

“Great authority in the prose, be man can drift into obscurity, can back... it sounds depressing wh them.�

Read it!

This book is a remarkable exerc achieve. I share the wonder that beautiful read, but also very eas the first time.

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is book and so do I!

965 and it went largely unnoticed. It was reissued a few years ago and hors have been singing its praises ever since. Ian McEwan, Geoff Dyer ed lyrical about this quiet and gentle story.

ole life of William Stoner, a farmer’s son who becomes a teacher of Missouri.

y what it is that makes this unassuming story so exquisite.

eautiful, sad, utterly convincing account of an entire life, of how a gifted n almost lift himself into the clear light of happiness in love, then fall hen these elements are listed, but Williams makes a thing of beauty out of

cise in restraint and simplicity, one only a truly talented writer can t it went unnoticed and I'm glad I found it. The book is an agonising and sy. It is a great place to start if you are just turning to serious literature for

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What can I say? It’s perfect.

“the person one loves at first is not the person one loves last, and that love is not an end but a process through which one person attempts to know another” ― John Williams, Stoner

On finding your vocation

“But don't you know, Mr Stoner?" Sloane asked.

"Don't you understand about yourself yet? You're going to be a teacher."

Suddenly Sloane seemed very distant, and the walls of the office receded. Stoner felt himself suspended in the wide air, and he heard his voice ask, "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Sloane said softly.

"How can you tell? How can you be sure?"

"It's love, Mr Stoner," Sloane said cheerfully. "You are in love. It's as simple as that.” ― John Williams, Stoner

THE List

On marrying the wrong one.

“Within a month he knew that his marriage was a failure; within a year he stopped hoping that it would improve.” ― John Edward Williams, Stoner

Mrs Bostwick’s face.

If I pulled a particularly disagreeable face my Nan would remind me that I should take care, the wind might blow and I would be stuck with it. Mrs Bostwick’s character quite clearly didn’t benefit from the guidance of a luminary like my Nan.

“...Mrs. Bostwick's face was heavy and lethargic, without any strength or delicacy, and it bore the deep marks of what must have been a habitual dissatisfaction.” ― John Edward Williams, Stoner

THE List

THE SECRET TO FINDING TIME TO READ FOR PLEASURE. Reading for Pleasure can sound decadent and wonderful but it should be an essential part of our lives. We should strive to read for pleasure every day in the same way that we try and eat well, exercise and get enough sleep. I believe it is important for our health and well being – not that I reject accusations that I have a vested interest in encouraging your development of a reading habit.

The reason I hear most often is

“ I don't have time” Really? Really, truthfully, honestly pinky swear you don't have time?

Hmmmm...lets see. I will give you the benefit of the doubt for now, just for now whilst we look at how I think your day might be filled.

This is information gathered from an entirely unscientific study and my own biased observations. I’m just saying, before someone else does. It still has some validity though so bear with me.

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WHERE DOES THE DAY GO? 7 hours in lessons and private study in the library (with the odd 10 minutes in social study with your friends-I’m trying to be kind here people!)

2 hours studying when you get home– see above 2 hours with family and friends in the evening 1 hour eating 1 hour traveling 3 hours watching TV and on social media 2 hours on Daily Mail sidebar of shame - Yes, I’m back on that again, my crusade will continue until that life sucking, woman hating grubby tabloid rag disappears from your screens!

1 hour watching prank YouTube videos– yes I know they are really funny 8 hours sleeping Total 27 hours –

HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM 24 hours in each day means you are trying to find another 3 hours from somewhere. I would hazard a guess that you are filching them from your sleep time because I don't see any evidence of time away from the SBOS or YouTube!

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HOW CAN I HELP YOU FIND THE TIME TO READ FOR PLEASURE? I can’t give you extra hours in the day, I suspect only Ms Ratcliffe has the knowledge required to achieve this and for the moment she is keeping mum. I can give you more hours in the day by helping you change how you think about what you do with your time.

Electronic temptations will always be there to pull us away from the more focussed mental effort necessary to read a book. They are time vampires-how often have you checked your emails, written a few texts looked on Instagram and found that 3 hours have disappeared? It happens so easily.

I am not going to sugar coat this, YOU DO HAVE TIME TO READ, you just need to choose to read for pleasure.

There is a simple test for working out where your potential reading for pleasure time might lurk. Follow these steps and you will find the time.  Choose a real page turner, one that has a narrative impossible to put aside. Recent examples include Gone Girl or even The Hunger Games. Books from this edition of The List include Linwood Barclay’s Trust your Eyes, Kellerman’s Predator and Zan’s The Never List. You need to keep reading, you have to find out what happens next. It is compulsive and everything else irritates you because it is getting in your way and stopping you from finding out where the story is going to take you.

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If you aren't sure where to start ask a librarian or friends for recommendations. You could treat yourself and book an appointment in The reading Spa.  You will find yourself sneaking 20 minutes whilst friends are chatting, reading on the bus instead of texting or scrolling through your emails for the sixth time. You might jump out of the shower really quickly so you can squeeze in another couple of pages before you try and eat your breakfast without dropping crumbs on the page.  The important thing is to note every time you read, where you are, what you would have been doing and how long you read for.  You will quickly see that when you choose to you can find time to read for pleasure. You just need to change how you think about it.

You might go back to your old routine when you finish the book but at least you will have the knowledge that you can find the time if and when you want to. You will want to, we don't call it Reading for Pleasure for nothing!

Reading for pleasure is exactly what it says, pleasurable. That it has other benefits is a fabulous bonus. Pursuit of pleasure is a great reason to read and one I hope you will discover soon if you haven't already. 

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SMALL THINGS THAT CAN MAKE YOU HAPPY

SURELY IT’S NOT JUST ME

E?

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Farewell you wonderful creatures I hope you have enjoyed the second edition of The List as much as I enjoyed putting it together for you. Let me know which were stars and which were stinkers.

I shall also be checking to see if I have cured you of your ‘sidebar of shame’ habit. I am sure it is destroying brain cells. I am thinking of asking Ms Ratcliffe to back me up on this. At the very least it is diminishing your intellectual capabilities.

Another announcement The Reading Spa is open so make a booking and let us pamper you.

You lucky people!

Ms Lea Purveyor of exceptionally good book lists