Another eight books this month, helped in no small part by going away for a few days and doing nothing but read in the evenings.
The Saltmarsh Murders by Gladys Mitchell
Part of the Shedunnit book club reread for those who joined a while after the club began. Like many I read this book mainly to see if I liked Mrs Bradley any better. And also because I could get a copy of the book very cheaply. I still don't like Mrs Bradley and found the narrator a pompous idiot - no doubt this is meant to be amusing, but it's not my sort of humour.
The Division Bell Mystery by Ellen Wilkinson
Last month I read Murder's A Swine because I had already read the Shedunnit book for the month and this was a runner up. However this month Murder's A Swine was the winner, so again I'd already read the month's book, so once more I went for a runner up which was also available at the library. The book is set in the Houses of Parliament and was written by an MP so there was a lot of insider information. I enjoyed it and would recommend it for the local colour and period (it was written in 1932).
Love Lies Bleeding by Edmund Crispin
At the beginning of the year I had a list of library books to read - my A list - but one I returned having only read about one-fifth so the next Crispin book became a substitute. I enjoyed this book more than some of his. The plot was suitably convoluted and I found Gervase Fen less annoying than in some of the earlier books. [A11]
Settling Scores: Sporting Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards
The last of the British Library Crime Classics short story collections that I hadn't read. As usual I took it away with me and read over half when we were away. Possibly not as good a collection as some, but there were still some stories I really enjoyed - and there again I'm not a particular fan of sports.
The Great Push by Patrick MacGill
My C reading list was for books I had bought in the past but not got round to reading, this was the final book, which seemed appropriate to read in November with Remembrance Services being held. Patrick MacGill was termed the 'navvy poet' and this is his account of the Battle of Loos in September 1915 where he was a stretcher bearer. It tells of the time from the point of view of the ordinary men in the trenches and MacGill's poetic use of words really brings the experience to life. I'm not a fan of descriptive passages, but with a few words he conveys so much. I would thoroughly recommend this short book to anyone with an interest in that period. [C11]
When in Rome by Ngaio Marsh
List D was various continuations of series, Miss Read's Fairacre books, Monica Ferris' Needlecraft mysteries and Ngaio Marsh's Inspector Alleyn stories. This time Alleyn is sent to Rome to look at drug dealing, and for me it wasn't as good as some of the others. The solution wasn't as satisfying, and the descriptions of Rome felt like they had been shoehorned in. [D11]
Return to Thrush Green by Miss Read
Having read a lot in the first half of the month I was left with a gap while I waited for my next library books to come in, so I read the next in the Thrush Green series, which was as enjoyable as the previous ones. I do like being able to sink into a story and know that it won't require effort and yet I shall enjoy it.
A Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
Lastly, List B was a combination of long-term reservations at the library plus recommendations from friends. With one library reservation becoming a no show I again needed a substitution. This book was sent on to me by![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
moth2fic The subtitle is The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812. I really enjoyed the diary entries, reading them over a period of weeks, but the accompanying explanations etc weren't always all that interesting, and some of the information I skipped over. (Moth had warned me about this.) There was quite a lot on how chores etc were split between the sexes, which, although correct, was definitely looking at past times from a modern perspective. I enjoyed the opportunity to learn about Martha Ballard from her own records, which showed her to be a hardworking and committed midwife in Hallowell, Maine. [B11]
I have now finished all four of my book lists for 2021. December is almost entirely Christmas stories of one description or another.
Audiobook
The Honorary Consul by Graham Greene read by Tim Piggott-Smith. I didn't enjoy this as much as the last Graham Greene I listened to, although Piggott-Smith was still an excellent narrator. Less happened, but the characters still live on in my mind, so it obviously still made an impact.
FutureLearn course
Enlightening the Dark Ages by the University of Padova. The course looks at the end of the Roman Empire, as far as Rome is concerned, and the Early Middle Ages in northern Italy. For me there was too much time spent on the ways of finding the evidence, and it wasn't until the final week when the Lombards in northern Italy were discussed that I found it interesting. I think it went too deep too quickly when it's a subject I knew nothing about.
The Saltmarsh Murders by Gladys Mitchell
Part of the Shedunnit book club reread for those who joined a while after the club began. Like many I read this book mainly to see if I liked Mrs Bradley any better. And also because I could get a copy of the book very cheaply. I still don't like Mrs Bradley and found the narrator a pompous idiot - no doubt this is meant to be amusing, but it's not my sort of humour.
The Division Bell Mystery by Ellen Wilkinson
Last month I read Murder's A Swine because I had already read the Shedunnit book for the month and this was a runner up. However this month Murder's A Swine was the winner, so again I'd already read the month's book, so once more I went for a runner up which was also available at the library. The book is set in the Houses of Parliament and was written by an MP so there was a lot of insider information. I enjoyed it and would recommend it for the local colour and period (it was written in 1932).
Love Lies Bleeding by Edmund Crispin
At the beginning of the year I had a list of library books to read - my A list - but one I returned having only read about one-fifth so the next Crispin book became a substitute. I enjoyed this book more than some of his. The plot was suitably convoluted and I found Gervase Fen less annoying than in some of the earlier books. [A11]
Settling Scores: Sporting Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards
The last of the British Library Crime Classics short story collections that I hadn't read. As usual I took it away with me and read over half when we were away. Possibly not as good a collection as some, but there were still some stories I really enjoyed - and there again I'm not a particular fan of sports.
The Great Push by Patrick MacGill
My C reading list was for books I had bought in the past but not got round to reading, this was the final book, which seemed appropriate to read in November with Remembrance Services being held. Patrick MacGill was termed the 'navvy poet' and this is his account of the Battle of Loos in September 1915 where he was a stretcher bearer. It tells of the time from the point of view of the ordinary men in the trenches and MacGill's poetic use of words really brings the experience to life. I'm not a fan of descriptive passages, but with a few words he conveys so much. I would thoroughly recommend this short book to anyone with an interest in that period. [C11]
When in Rome by Ngaio Marsh
List D was various continuations of series, Miss Read's Fairacre books, Monica Ferris' Needlecraft mysteries and Ngaio Marsh's Inspector Alleyn stories. This time Alleyn is sent to Rome to look at drug dealing, and for me it wasn't as good as some of the others. The solution wasn't as satisfying, and the descriptions of Rome felt like they had been shoehorned in. [D11]
Return to Thrush Green by Miss Read
Having read a lot in the first half of the month I was left with a gap while I waited for my next library books to come in, so I read the next in the Thrush Green series, which was as enjoyable as the previous ones. I do like being able to sink into a story and know that it won't require effort and yet I shall enjoy it.
A Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
Lastly, List B was a combination of long-term reservations at the library plus recommendations from friends. With one library reservation becoming a no show I again needed a substitution. This book was sent on to me by
moth2fic The subtitle is The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812. I really enjoyed the diary entries, reading them over a period of weeks, but the accompanying explanations etc weren't always all that interesting, and some of the information I skipped over. (Moth had warned me about this.) There was quite a lot on how chores etc were split between the sexes, which, although correct, was definitely looking at past times from a modern perspective. I enjoyed the opportunity to learn about Martha Ballard from her own records, which showed her to be a hardworking and committed midwife in Hallowell, Maine. [B11]I have now finished all four of my book lists for 2021. December is almost entirely Christmas stories of one description or another.
Audiobook
The Honorary Consul by Graham Greene read by Tim Piggott-Smith. I didn't enjoy this as much as the last Graham Greene I listened to, although Piggott-Smith was still an excellent narrator. Less happened, but the characters still live on in my mind, so it obviously still made an impact.
FutureLearn course
Enlightening the Dark Ages by the University of Padova. The course looks at the end of the Roman Empire, as far as Rome is concerned, and the Early Middle Ages in northern Italy. For me there was too much time spent on the ways of finding the evidence, and it wasn't until the final week when the Lombards in northern Italy were discussed that I found it interesting. I think it went too deep too quickly when it's a subject I knew nothing about.
