End of Year Book Survey: 2012

Jamie is hosting the End of Year Book Survey again and I thought I would have a go this year, as it seemed a good way of reflecting on all the amazing books I have read in 2012.  My own quick wrap-up and goals for next year will follow shortly, I expect, but for now….

Best In Books 2012

1. Best Book You Read In 2012? 

I read several books in 2012 that I awarded 5/5 to but my absolute best book of 2012 has to be To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.   Yes, it was a re-read, but it is my favourite book of all time and was amazing this year as well!

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

I read The Great Gatsby back in January before I started book blogging and was expecting great things from it – so many people study it, I thought it must be really good.  However, I couldn’t get into it and I was relieved that it was so short!  I did put it on my re-read list though, as I assume I missed something.

 3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2012? 

I was very surprised (in a good way) with Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell: I didn’t know what to expect from this book but it was so amazingly intricate and imaginative that it quickly became a firm favourite of mine.

 4. Book you recommended to people most in 2012?

I am going to split this one: the book I recommended most to book bloggers, I think is a tie between To Kill a Mockingbird and Cloud Atlas.  Secondly, the book I recommended most to non-bookish people was The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, as I thought them a great series for non-readers to enjoy reading with.

 5. Best series you discovered in 2012?

I didn’t really discover many new series, which is a shame; 2012 seems to be a year where I read a lot more standalones and classics compared to normal where I really enjoy reading series.  I hope in 2013 I will read more of the series I have already started over the past few years.
I did discover The Hunger Games for the first time and also I enjoyed re-reading Stieg Larsson’s The Girl who Played with Fire and The Girl who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.

 6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2012?

Well, I could ramble on this one!  I definitely enjoyed my first Jane Austen (Emma) and my first Stella Gibbons (Cold Comfort Farm).  I also discovered that I love Simon Singh‘s way of writing about maths/science too when I read Fermat’s Last Theorem in October.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

I wouldn’t say this is out of my comfort zone, but in 2012 I did start reading science/maths novels for the firs time so I guess that counts (again Singh’s Fermat’s Last Theorem and E=mc² by David Bodanis).  Also I read my first books in French – Harry Potter 1 and Fantastic Mr Fox, which was totally new but great.

 8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2012?

I could say either book 1 0r 2 but I will go for book 2: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins – I just couldn’t put it down at all.

 9. Book You Read In 2012 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year:

I try not to re-read books within 18 months of their first reading so here are the 2012 books that I put straight on my re-read list: The Great Gatsby, David Copperfield, Wuthering Heights, To Kill a Mockingbird, Dracula, Cloud Atlas.

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2012?

Well a lot of the books I read had really nice covers but here are my favourites:

11. Most memorable character in 2012? 

I think this would have to be Lisbeth Salander from Larsson’s books; who is more unique and interesting than Lisbeth?

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2012?

I think I would go with David Copperfield by Charles Dickens for this – amazing writing by Dickens.  (My second choice would be Great Expectations anyway, so good on you Charles!)

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2012? 

I will say To Kill a Mockingbird again, as I just loved it and liked all the characters and felt as though I really knew them. 

 14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read? 

This is one is definitely The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown: everyone went crazy about this book a couple of years ago, so when I saw it in a charity shop in summer 2011 I bought it…then it took me until summer 2012 to read it!  Although, I do quite like the tradition I seem to have developed of Dan Brown as summer reading…

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2012? 

“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read.  One does not love breathing.”  16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2012?”    Scout Finch – To Kill a Mockingbird

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.  Until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”     Atticus Finch – To Kill a Mockingbird

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2012?

The longest was David Copperfield at a whopping 1263 pages!! The shortest was Fatastique Maître Renard at only 118 pages.  Numerically, my average book length was about 400 pages, which is pretty good, I think.

17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!

There were definitely lots of gruesome and upsetting scenes in The Kite Runner, which was the first book I read this year (before I started book blogging).

18. Favorite Relationship From A Book You Read In 2012 (be it romantic, friendship, etc).

I think that the relationship between Clare and Henry in The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is very unique and also very touching and changes and develops throughout the book.

19. Favorite Book You Read in 2012 From An Author You Read Previously

The Kalahari Typing School For Men by Alexander McCall Smith was definitely the highlight of January 2012: I adore those books and I am very sad that I haven’t read one since then (I have all the way up to book 10 on my TBR shelf, they just haven’t come around yet).  Watch out for lots more of AMcCS in 2013!

20. Best Book You Read That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:

Lots of the classics I’ve read this year have been due to various bloggers and lists on websites, but there are some books that I was bought by my friends: And This is True by Emily Mackie, The Shadow of the Wind by Carol Ruiz Zafón, Submarine by Joe Dunthorne and The Crow Road by Iain Banks.

 Book Blogging/Reading Life in 2012

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2012?

Well, I only started book blogging this year so any book blogs are new to me!  I love them all and I am going to try and be a bit more proactive and discover some more in 2013.

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2012? 

Oh um maybe my review of Great Expectations where I rave about re-reading as well.

3. Best discussion you had on your blog?

Some of my non-bookish posts had lots of discussions – notably my posts about my exams, results and holidays; I think it’s important to share other parts of our lives too.

4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on somebody else’s blog?

I can remember discussing why books in translation or books in other languages aren’t as popular over at Amanda’s blog.

5. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?

I don’t think there are many book blogger events in England?  And probably none outside of London so I haven’t been to any, however The Classics Club is definitely a main feature of the book blogging world that I am proud to be a member of.

6. Best moment of book blogging in 2012?

For me, it would have to be the 1st March 2012 – the day I wrote my first post on adamsbibliomania!

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

My most popular posts by views are often those that people come across when searching on the internet, for example The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon.  My most popular post in terms of comments and activity was my original sign-up to The Classics Club.

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

Actually my Reading Habits post didn’t seem to get read much…maybe it was a bit text-dense or something.

9. Best bookish discover (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

Definitely the new Penguin English Library books this year – very addictive and attractive!

10.  Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

I wanted to read a classic a month after signing up to The Classics Club in March and in 10 months I have read 8.  That’s not too bad and it’s only November and December that I didn’t manage.

Looking Ahead…

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2012 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2013?

Oh so many!  But I am halfway through Villette so I am determined to finish that in 2013.  Also I really need to read The Hobbit.

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2013?

I’m really looking forward to loads of books in 2013: Pride and Prejudice, more AMcCS…

3. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging In 2013?

I really just want to improve – so that means do better than last year!  Who knows if this is a possibility or not with my heavier workload in sixth form etc but I think 35 books in the year is a good target to have 🙂

Friday Quick Wrap-Up – 13th July 2012

Hello everyone, I feel as though I haven’t done a weekly wrap up in ages!  So much has been going on recently.

It seems like years ago that I finished my exams (it’s only been a couple of weeks) and then there was sixth form induction, which was good and reassured me that I have picked the best subjects for me (French, Chemistry, Maths, Further Maths and Physics).  Then I went camping with my friends in Bude, Cornwall last week which was very eventful but great fun and really worth all the rain and mud (British summer is literally non-existent at the moment).  Then there were the Wimbledon finals which were bittersweet to watch – Murray lost but they all played very well and the matches were very exciting.
This week I have been trying to relax as much as possible, although I have been into school a lot due to my maths A2 lessons carrying on.  Also, it was the school concert on Wednesday evening in which I played the clarinet with the orchestra and my jazz group and also sang in the chamber choir; that was great.

Yesterday I had my first actually completely free day in a very long time, so I took myself off to Bristol to do some [well-earned] book shopping!  I returned with three new Penguin English Library titles – The Moonstone, Gulliver’s Travels and The Warden, to go with the two I already own – Great Expectations and The Mill on the Floss.  I ADORE this series of books…as you can probably tell.

Luckily I have been able to get some good reading done this week! 😀  I finished The Subtle Knife earlier this week – my post is here – and now I am onto The Time Traveler’s Wife, which I am enjoying so far.

The Literary Classics Reading Challenge Friday Progress:

I feel as though I have been doing pretty well in this challenge – I signed up at the very end of May with my 15 books and so far I have read one – Great Expectations which I greatly enjoyed.  I have been on a slight classics break since then because I fancied reading some completely different stuff but I am ready to go back to the classics soon so up next is To Kill A Mockingbird, a re-read of my all-time-favourite book! I can’t wait!

After To Kill A Mockingbird, my aim is to read at least 5 more classics from my list – hopefully more, but I think Middlemarch will take me a looong time!  Good luck to everyone else participating in this challenge – it is great to read your thoughts on the classics.

If anyone else wants to know more  about this challenge click here for all the information.

June Wrap-Up and July Plans

There has not been much action on my blog this week as I have been super busy – I finally finished my exams on Wednesday; had induction days for sixth form on Thursday and Friday; a party on Friday evening; concert rehearsals on Saturday and then concert and then post-concert meal on Saturday evening; special church service Sunday morning and then packing for camping.  Yes, I am tired.  Yes, I am going camping on Monday… in England …wish me luck!

I have read an average amount in June, I think.  It has been hard to find time to read when everything has been so hectic and I hope I will have a bit more time in July.

Here’s what I read in June 2012:

Great Expectations – Charles Dickens 

Submarine – Joe Dunthorne

Mockingjay – Suzanne Collins (post to follow asap.)

This is good as I aim to read at least three books every month.  This was the same number of books as I read in May.  Also, my target of at least one classic every month was fulfilled in May by Great Expectations, which I really enjoyed.

Challenge Progress in May 2012:

The Classics Club :  4/60 books read  (Great Expectations)

The Victorian Challenge 2012:  3/6 books read  (Great Expectations)

The Literary Classics Reading Challenge: 1/15 (Great Expectations)

As you can see, I killed 3 challenge-birds with one stone, which is often going to be the case, as I am involved in 3 classics-based challenges.

Currently In Progress:

During camping, I am planning to read The Subtle Knife, which is a re-read of an old favourite for me.  Also, if I have time I will read The Time Traveler’s Wife but I don’t know what sort of reading time I will get – there are 25+ of us going camping!!

June Plans:

Books:  the next three books on my TBR shelf are The Timetraveler’s Wife; To Kill A Mockingbird and The Crow Road.  As I have already said, I don’t know how much time I will spend reading this month, but hopefully I can make a start on some of these titles.

Challenges:  To Kill A Mockingbird will count towards The Classics Club and The Literary Classics so that’s good..also considering it’s my favourite book, I think I will enjoy July a lot!

I hope you have all had a productive June and are going to enjoy some down time in July; you deserve it!

Great Expectations – Charles Dickens & Re-reading

Title: Great Expectations

Author: Charles Dickens

Date Finished: 22/06/12

Re-Read? : Second time read

Challenges? : Yes – Victorian Challenge 2012 & The Classics Club & The Literary Classics

Overall: 4/5 – rather good

I knew I needed to re-read Great Expectations at some point, because I was too young to really appreciate/understand it the first time I read it, a few years ago.  Basically, I think I got the fundamentals – the basic story and who the characters were, but I remember it being a struggle to read and now I know I was just that bit too young.

Also, the edition I read a few years ago was an old Penguin paperback I found in a second hand book shop with lots of writing in, as the previous owner had obviously studied it at school.  Now, I am someone who needs books to be “nice”.  Note, I don’t say “new” because there is nothing wrong with reading a second (or third or fourth) hand book; but I have real issues with broken books, print that is too small and many other things that make reading harder than in needs to be.  Therefore I thought I would treat myself to a nice new copy, and this was just the time that the Penguin English Library was launched.  What a coincidence – one of their first books was Great Expectations, so that was that!  You can see how lovely it looks.

So I was all prepared to read.

The plot in Great Expectations is something I thought I essentially ‘got’ from my first read of this book.  However, I was wrong.  There were so many twists and turns that I had completely missed the first time and even though I assumed I got the basic story, I didn’t really get that either!

I was really impressed by the story Dickens tells in this books – before, I thought it was a good idea but it was just another ‘hard-done-by boy grows up to be good with disappointments’ but it was so much more than that.  Especially in the second half of the third volume, I could not stop reading.

The characters are another thing I presumed I understood already.  Sadly, no – I was wrong again!  Yes, I remembered Pip, Miss Havisham, Estella and Joe, but I had completely missed Herbert, Biddy, Orlick and many more.  The characterisation was perfection, as I have come to expect from Dickens, and again all these characters are completely unique.  It is truly amazing to think that one person thought up all these different people and got them absolutely spot on – you can see and hear them all right in front of you.

Of course the prose is flawless and the setting, especially the marshes, is completely unique.  The reasons for me concluding with a 4/5 and not a 5/5 are twofold.  Basically, I compared how I felt about reading other similar(ish) books that I really loved, such as Jane Eyre and David Copperfield and I realised that this didn’t spark my reading in the same way.  Until the last 100 pages, I was going quite slowly (for me) and didn’t have the drive to plough on with the story.  Secondly, I didn’t warm to the characters as much as I did with David Copperfield.  I understand that this is obviously a less ‘nice’ book and that there are many unpleasant characters, but I didn’t feel the motivation to read all about the minor characters in Great Expectations as I did in David Copperfield.  No-one rivalled Peggotty/Betsey/Mr Dick.

So overall I really did enjoy Great Expectations, especially towards the end.  Also, it completely proves my case for re-reading.  You can get so so so much more out of a book the second or third or fourth time you read it.  I had missed so much the first time round.  Re-reading lets you experience more because you can see beyond the major plot and characters – you get to really appreciate the author’s skill and craftsmanship.  So yeah, everyone should re-read!

Friday Quick Wrap-Up – 22nd June 2012

What is going on in my bibliosphere at the moment?

Woooo! ‘Hell Week’ is over!  I am very happy to have done 6 exams this week!! Now time for the last couple, relaxing and reading!

Here is a bit of a breakdown:

• GCSE Exams: 12 / 14
• AS Level Exams: 4 / 4  FINISHED!
• GCSEs done this week: Geography; German Listening; Physics; History; Latin Literature (Verse Selections); Latin Literature (Narratives).
• AS Levels done this week: None – Finished.

Finally, the worst is over.  6 exams in one week is never fun, but the good thing is, I am almost finished!  Hell Day last Wednesday when I had Physics, History and Latin Literature was definitely hard, and Physics and History both could have gone better, but I am so relieved it is over.  You can all look forward to the end of my exam-orientated posts after next week, as I only have 2 exams left: Geography on Monday and German Reading on Wednesday.  Then it is 6th form induction days on Thursday and Friday, my orchestra’s summer concert on Saturday and then camping with my friends from a week on Monday!  Lots of good things going on.

Now for the books!  This week has been quite a good one in terms of reading, considering the amount of work I’ve had to do – I am almost finished with Great Expectations (like literally a few pages left) and I have really enjoyed it – a post will be up this weekend.  I do love me some Dickens.

Next up is Submarine by Joe Dunthorne which is quite short and about as far from Dickens as you can get, I think.  It will be nice to read something easy!

Have a great week everyone 🙂

P.S Wimbledon starts on Monday WOO!  And England are through to the Quarter Finals of the Euros! 😀

Friday Quick Wrap-Up – 15th June 2012

What is going on in my bibliosphere at the moment?

Firstly, I have to apologise for the lack of posts this week: I am very busy with revision and I haven’t finished any books…so that’s why.  (Although I am still reading!)  Slowly but surely I am getting through my exams.

Here is a bit of a breakdown:

• GCSE Exams: 6 / 14
• AS Level Exams: 4 / 4  FINISHED!
• GCSEs done this week: Biology; Chemistry
• AS Levels done this week: None – Finished.

I like science exams so this week wasn’t too bad, but next week I have 6 exams 😦 😦 😦 so I have been trying to get in some revision for them too.  Next Wednesday I have 3, with Latin Literature clashing with History…I advise people to be cautious around me on that day!

Now for the books!  I have not been keeping up with my reading-revising idea this week, as there has been so much sport to watch!  The Euro Football championships are on so I have been supporting England a lot and watching as many matches as I can.  This has meant less reading time is available…I hope to make up for this when I have finished my exams and have time to spare.

I am still ploughing on with Great Expectations which I am almost 2/3 done with and it is picking up again for me.  I am looking forward to finishing and putting up a post as it counts for a lot of challenges and I know you all will have comments about it!

Hope the Europeans are enjoying the football; have a good week. 🙂

Friday Quick Wrap-Up – 8th June 2012

What is going on in my bibliosphere at the moment?

Not much action on the blog this week I’m afraid; I have been very busy with…you guessed it, revision.  It is half term this week and I am trying to cram in a LOT of knowledge for all the content exams I have in the next 3 weeks.  (after that, FREEDOM!)

Reading-wise, I have been enjoying Great Expectations and still reading at least some every day, but my usual revise-and-read tactics are on hold due to the French Open, which I am using as a reward.  I absolutely adore watching tennis and I can’t wait for Wimbledon later on this year.

Therefore, I haven’t really got through a lot of Great Expectations (I am just over a third done) but hopefully that will change this weekend, as it is our church’s parish weekend away.  We are off to Devon today and coming back on Sunday and should be really great.  I will be using the car journey to tackle some more Dickens.

In other news, I saw yet another brilliant classical music concert at the Colston Hall in Bristol this week – (it was a jubilee celebration including Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto, The Lark Ascending by Vaughn Williams and Handel’s The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba amongst many others).  The amazing thing is, for under-18s all the classical concerts at Colston Hall are ONLY £1!!!  It is brilliant for me and a couple of friends who adore both playing and hearing classical music.

I am so looking forward to the summer now, as the weather is (again) terrible and I just want to be free to read all day in the sun!  Fortunately, the end of the exam period is now just about in sight, although I have to get through 10 more exams first.

Well I hope you are all coping if it is exam time for you, and even if I seem to be a bit dormant, blog-wise, don’t fear – I always read the posts from blogs I follow (I get them emailed to me), even if I don’t comment.   Have a nice weekend!

May Wrap-Up and June Plans

Three months book blogging and I am still going strong.  I am really grateful to everyone who has followed/reads my blog and I hope you feel like it’s a two way connection and that I am just as interested in your posts as you are in mine, because believe me I am! 🙂

May has been a very hectic month for me: earlier on, I had my Last Day and Prom which were great and then the exams kicked in…which were not so great.  (You can catch with my exam progress in my Friday Quick Wrap-Up posts.)  But in terms of reading, it has been quite a good month and I am very pleased with what I have achieved.

Here’s what I read in May 2012:

The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins

The Girl Who Played With Fire – Stieg Larsson

This is good as I aim to read at least three books every month (and I really enjoyed these books).  This was the same number of books as I read in April.  Also, my target of at least one classic every month was not officially fulfilled in May, a I haven’t read any classics, but I read two in April so it works out fine anyway.

Challenge Progress in May 2012:

The Classics Club :  3/60 books read  (None this month)

The Victorian Challenge 2012:  2/6 books read  (None this month)

This isn’t amazing but doesn’t really matter, as I am on target for both challenges as I only need to read a Victorian every 2 months and a classic every month to complete these challenges on time.

In other challenge news, I have recently signed up to Ali’s Literary Classics Reading Challenge, which ties in very nicely with the other challenges I am participating in.  Here is my sign up post

Currently In Progress:

Great Expectations: I am re-reading this as I don’t think I understood it enough to enjoy it when I struggled through it a few years ago, and so far (about 20% through) that is proving to be right – I don’t seem to remember anything except the basic story.

I still have Harry Potter À L’École Des Sorciers – J.K. Rowling, Living French, The Languages Book and Italian For You by my bed, for languages reading, but with my Latin and German GCSEs not complete, this is quite a rarity at the moment (I don’t want to get my languages muddled).  Yes, I am going to teach myself basic Italian grammar and vocabulary over the summer and hopefully enter for a GCSE in it before I leave school – I just think it’s a great language!

June Plans:

Books:  the next three books on my TBR shelf are Submarine – Joe Dunthorne, The Subtle Knife – Philip Pullman and The Time-Traveller’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger.  Great Expectations may take me a while, although I do have a week’s break this week so (even though levels of revision are high) I should get some reading time.  Therefore, I will probably get round to Submarine and The Subtle Knife, at least.

Challenges:  Great Expectations will count for all three of the challenges I am involved in – The Classics Club, The Victorian Challenge 2012 and The Literary Classics Reading Challenge, which is great.

I hope you’re all looking forward to some (hopefully) warm weather this month and can take some time out to relax with a good book!

Friday Quick Wrap-Up – 1st June 2012

What is going on in my bibliosphere at the moment?

Hello everyone, I have now completed my third week of exams and I had two this week.  They were both ones I wasn’t too worried about and they went well so that’s good.  A week off for half term now is very welcome.

Here is a bit of a breakdown:

• GCSE Exams: 4 / 14
• AS Level Exams: 4 / 4  FINISHED!
• GCSEs done this week: Latin Language
• AS Levels done this week: Critical Thinking

I have finished all my AS exams which is great as I am taking a few early and they were getting in the way of my GCSEs.

Now for the books!  My read a bit revise a bit system is still going very well and I hope it continues.

This week I finished The Girl Who Played With Fire and really enjoyed it, despite it being a re-read. I would recommend seriously recommend the Millennium Trilogy to anyone who hasn’t read it yet!

I am currently reading Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, which is also a re-read for me.  However, I seemed to have missed out on absolutely everything apart from the basic story the first time I read it!  I am enjoying reading about Pip and Miss Havisham again.

On a challenge-based note, I have signed up to The Literary Classics Reading Challenge (my post is here) as it fits in with the other challenges I am involved in really well.  I would recommend you take a look as it is very relevant to members of The Classics Club too.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Classics Club Books I am Looking Forward To:

Every week, The Broke and The Bookish poses a category for book bloggers to post their ‘Top Ten’ in that week’

This week is a free week for us to decide on a category for ourselves.  I saw that Jillian had picked the top 10 books she was looking forward to reading from The Classics Club and I thought this was a great idea, so I have ‘borrowed’ it!

For my full Classics Club list and details about the challenge, click here.

1. Villette – Charlotte Brontë:  I am most looking forward to this because everything I’ve heard about it suggests I will love it – I loved Jane Eyre, really enjoyed Wuthering Heights and people have said it’s ‘full of French’ which is a language that I love!
2. Great Expectations – Charles Dickens:  I have been looking forward to re-reading this for a long time, as I didn’t really get it the first time (I was too young).  On top of that, I bought a stunning edition the other day (a new Penguin English Library edition!) so I can’t wait to get into it.
3. To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee:  This is (possibly) my favourite book of all time so I can’t wait to read it again and see if I enjoy it even more (or maybe less).
4. King Lear – William Shakespeare:  I saw this play at the Tobacco Factory Theatre in Bristol in February and it was absolutely amazing.  I really loved reading Much Ado About Nothing, so I am anticipating my next dose of Shakespeare.
5.  The Moonstone – Wilkie Collins:  I don’t seem to have read a negative word about Collins recently and it’s so exciting to get into a new author – especially if there is a great mystery to look forward to!
6. Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons:  Again, I am going by recommendation – I have heard this book is hilarious.  It is not too long, hopefully not too hard to read and I have a feeling it will be a pleasure to read.
7. Middlemarch – George Eliot:  I am just as scared of reading this mammoth volume as I am excited!  It is so long I might have to stagger reading it through the summer, although I did plan to do that with David Copperfield and loved it so much I just powered through!  I am excited about getting into a new author and considering it is number 1 on Daily Telegraph’s list of ‘100 novels everyone should read’, I have great expectations for it (see what I did there?!).
8. Nicholas Nickleby – Charles Dickens :  As I’ve already mentioned, I loved David Copperfield so can’t wait to get stuck into another massive Dickens!  This one is meant to be quite funny too (I think?) so I should enjoy it.
9. Suite Française – Irène Némirovsky:  This book is all about Nazi occupied France and I think I’ll find it really interesting.  Also, I bought a lovely edition (Vintage 21) in Vienna so it looks amazing on my shelf!
10. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen:   I recently read Emma and really enjoyed it, so I am looking forward to getting stuck into some more Austen – I have bought Pride and Prejudice and plan to read it next Christmastime.  Also, I will finally be able to say I have read this iconic book!