Rebeki reads from her shelves in 2015

I'm back in Club Read for a fifth year and am hoping I'll manage to keep up with others' threads a little better than last year. In spite of not spending as much time on LT as I'd have liked in 2014 and being a bit slow to log my reading, I had an excellent reading year. I managed to finish 38 books, which is pretty good going for me, with only one real dud. I re-read four of my favourite books in 2014, but my favourite new fiction reads were An Experiment in Love by Hilary Mantel and Jigsaw: An Unsentimental Education by Sybille Bedford, while my favourite new discovery overall was E.F. Benson's Mapp and Lucia series. I didn't manage much non-fiction last year, but, of the little I read, the memoirs Manhattan, When I Was Young by Mary Cantwell and Story of a Secret State by Jan Karski stood out.

Planning my reading doesn't work for me, but I find that mini-themes develop organically, as reading one book often inspires me to pick up another. Last year, for instance, alongside all the British fiction I read, I also had a run of books set in New York and in Africa, as well as a brief focus on Austrian literature in the later years of the Habsburg Empire and resistance in the Second World War; only one of those mini-themes was "planned".

In 2015, my only firm goal is to reduce the size of my TBR total, which peaked at 198 last summer and is now slowly coming down again. I'm starting the year with Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín and I look forward to seeing where my reading journey takes me!

Books read in 2015

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín (TBR, bought in 2012)
When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr (TBR, birthday present 2014)
And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini (reading group choice, library book)
Ukraine Diaries by Andrey Kurkov (TBR, Christmas present 2014)
Bombs on Aunt Dainty by Judith Kerr (TBR, Christmas present 2014)

Meine russischen Nachbarn by Wladimir Kaminer (in German, TBR, bought in 2014)
The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant (reading group choice, library book)
Happiness by Design: Finding Pleasure and Purpose in Everyday Life by Paul Dolan (bought in 2015)
Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life by Nina Stibbe (Mothering Sunday present 2015)
How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran (bought in 2015)

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch (reading group choice, from my husband's shelves)
The Oxford Mini History of Britain. Volume II: The Middle Ages by Kenneth O. Morgan (not officially TBR, but on my shelves, unread, for over 20 years!)
A Small Person Far Away by Judith Kerr (TBR, Christmas present 2014)
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis (borrowed from a friend)
Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant (in French, TBR, bought in 2013)

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (reading group choice, re-read)
Journal d'Hirondelle by Amélie Nothomb (in French, TBR, bought in 2008)
This Book Will Save Your Life by A.M. Homes (TBR, bought in 2013)
Lucia's Progress by E.F. Benson (TBR, in Lucia Victrix, Christmas present 2012)
Arthur and George by Julian Barnes (bought in 2015)

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer (reading group choice, library book)
A Favourite of the Gods by Sybille Bedford (TBR, birthday present 2014)
Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel (TBR, bought in 2013)
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (reading group choice, library book)
How to be both by Ali Smith (bought in 2015)

I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani (TBR, birthday present 2011)
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (TBR, bought pre-2008)
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (reading group choice, re-read)
Trouble for Lucia by E.F. Benson (TBR, in Lucia Victrix, Christmas present 2012)
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (birthday present 2015)

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes (reading group choice, library book, re-read)
A Compass Error by Sybille Bedford (TBR, Christmas present 2014)


Currently reading: Crampton Hodnet by Barbara Pym

Books acquired in 2015 (the fewer the better!)

The Reef by Edith Wharton (bought February 2015)
The Fruit of the Tree by Edith Wharton (bought February 2015)
How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran (bought February 2015, read April 2015)
Fludd by Hilary Mantel (bought February 2015)
Crampton Hodnet by Barbara Pym (bought February 2015)
Happiness by Design: Finding Pleasure and Purpose in Everyday Life by Paul Dolan (bought February 2015, read February 2015)
Arthur and George by Julian Barnes (bought March 2015, read July 2015)
Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life by Nina Stibbe (Mothering Sunday present, March 2015, read March 2015)
Tuer le père by Amélie Nothomb (bought June 2015)
Barbe bleue by Amélie Nothomb (bought June 2015)
Une forme de vie by Amélie Nothomb (bought June 2015)
La Nostalgie heureuse by Amélie Nothomb (bought June 2015)
Le Fait du prince by Amélie Nothomb (bought June 2015)
Des inconnues by Patrick Modiano (bought June 2015)
L'herbe des nuits by Patrick Modiano (bought June 2015)
How to be both by Ali Smith (bought June 2015, read August 2015)
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (birthday present, July 2015, read November 2015)
Eight Months on Ghazzah Street by Hilary Mantel (birthday present, July 2015)
Man at the Helm by Nina Stibbe (birthday present, July 2015)
Art Nouveau by Susan A. Sternau (bought July 2015)
The Silver Sword by Ian Seraillier (bought July 2015)
Born in Exile by George Gissing (bought July 2015)
The Nether World by George Gissing (bought July 2015)
Our Hearts Were Young and Gay by Cornelia Otis Skinner and Emily Kimbrough (bought July 2015)
Second Term at Trebizon by Anne Digby (bought July 2015)
An Unsuitable Attachment by Barbara Pym (bought November 2015)
An Academic Question by Barbara Pym (bought November 2015)

Mission TBR

Last year I set myself the target of reading 12 books from my TBR pile as it stood at the beginning of the year, but I actually managed to read 14. I've therefore increased this year's goal to 15:

Interested about your thoughts on Brooklyn. I read it a few years back and I quite liked it.

Brooklyn has been on my TBR for quite a while. Looking forward to your thoughts.

>3 OscarWilde87: >4 NanaCC: I'm almost halfway through and enjoying it very much so far!

Hi Rebeki - I loved Brooklyn and am a big Colm Toibin fan. I'm looking forward to following your thread this year and know you will add books to my wishlist!

Welcome back! Like you, I haven't been on the threads much lately, but hope to do more this year. I too don't do particularly well with planned reads, but mini-themes develop as one book leads to another. I'm glad Story of a Secret State was a top read of 2014 for you. It was for me too.

>6 cushlareads: Hi Cushla, thanks for visiting! I'm determined to keep up with your thread this year! Brooklyn is the first book I've read by Colm Tóibín, but I'd definitely like to read more by him. Is there a particular book you'd recommend?

>7 labfs39: Hi Lisa, I hope we'll both manage to spend more time on LT this year. Yes, thank you so much for bringing Story of a Secret State to my attention. On the whole I'm trying to read those books I already own and not be swayed too much by what others are reading, but that was a book definitely worth breaking the rules for!

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín

In December, I found myself gripped by an episode of the BBC documentary series Imagine focusing on Colm Tóibín, in spite of never having read anything by him. After learning that a film version of Brooklyn was set to be released in 2015, and having the plot somewhat spoilt for me, I decided it was time to stop watching and actually read the book, which has been sitting on my shelves for two years (OK, a relatively short time around these parts!).

For anyone that doesn't know, Brooklyn is the bittersweet tale of Eilis Lacey, a young Irish woman in the 1950s, who, unable to find suitable work in her hometown, is encouraged by her mother and sister to move to the United States. Ultimately, she must decide on which side of the Atlantic her future lies.

At first, I wasn't sure how much I was going to enjoy this novel, in spite of all the praise it has received, as the narrative style seemed rather flat and unlikely to engage my emotions. I turned out to be wrong about that. Tóibín's understated and matter-of-fact writing corresponds perfectly to the stoicism and pragmatism of Eilis and her family, adept at keeping their emotions under control with each other, but not hidden from the reader. He also paints a vivid picture of the immigrant experience and I loved the descriptions of life in Mrs Kehoe's boarding house and the Christmas dinner served at the parish hall, although I think the account of Eilis's uncomfortable crossing to New York made the biggest impression on me - such detail!

This was a really good start to my reading year, and I look forward to seeing the film adaptation, finally watching the rest of the documentary and definitely reading more of Colm Tóibín's work!

>9 Rebeki: great! This book is on my TBR shelf and I've never read anything by Colm Toibin so I'm glad to see a positive review!

>10 japaul22: Hi Jennifer, I've just tidied up my review slightly, but yes, I can definitely recommend it, and it's a quick read too!

I'm glad you liked Brooklyn. It's such a quiet, understated book. Of the Toibin that I've read, I like his short stories, which are quite diverse and I liked The Blackwater Lightship.

I am hoping to read Brooklyn this year. It has been on my TBR for a while. I just need to borrow it from my daughter. I'm glad to see another good review.

Yes The Blackwater Lightship is really good.

Understated is a good word for Colm Toibin

A movie version of Brooklyn! Well that's exciting! I read this novel when it first came out, and I found the ending troubling. Looking back, I have such strong, positive memories of it. I've also enjoyed Toibin's short story collection The Empty Family and very short novel The Testament of Mary.

I loved The Heather Blazing - just had a look in my catalogue on here and I gave it 5 stars. I'm a bit generous with stars but that means it was really special. It's about a judge in Ireland and his family.

Hi Kay, Colleen, Bas, Cait and Cushla! Thanks for the recommendations!

>13 NanaCC: Colleen, I think you'd enjoy Brooklyn.

I wasn't aware of Tóibín until The Master came out, so some of these titles are completely new to me. Clearly I have some catching up to do! I was also interested to see that there are a couple of otherwise pointless references to an unseen character called Nora Webster in Brooklyn, so I'm intrigued by his latest work too - the story has obviously long been in the planning.

ETA: >15 Cait86: I'm looking forward to the film too, now that I've read the book. Not sure when it's going to be released...

Nice review of Brooklyn, Rebecca. I enjoyed it as well, and I'll probably read his latest novel, Nora Webster, in the next month or two.

>18 kidzdoc: Hi Darryl, I look forward to seeing what you think of Nora Webster!

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr

It was watching another episode of Imagine, with the writer Judith Kerr, that made me want to read her trilogy of novels dealing with her experiences as a refugee fleeing Hitler's Germany, of which When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit is the first. I liked her Mog books as a child and my son is also a big fan of The Tiger Who Came to Tea, but, for some reason, I'd never come across this book for older children. In any case, while it is a children's book, written by Kerr to explain her childhood to her own children, I believe, there is plenty in it for adults to enjoy.

Nine-year-old Anna leads a happy and comfortable life in Berlin with her mother, father and elder brother, Max, but it is 1933 and, sensing which way the elections will go, Anna's father, a prominent Jewish writer, decides the family must leave Germany as soon as possible. Mirroring Kerr's own experiences, they settle first in Zurich and then in Paris, before arriving in London at the end of the book.

Considering the circumstances, this is an often funny and joyful book. In spite of the challenges of adapting to a life very different from the one she has known, Anna views it all as a great adventure. That is not to say that there are no darker notes, or the sense throughout that the family has had a narrow escape. It is also clear, to the adult reader certainly, that the situation must have been a source of constant worry to Anna and Max's parents. However, the entire family shares a zest for life and a curiosity about the world that makes reading about their experiences, in particular the differences in culture and customs between Germany, Switzerland and France (or Berlin, Zurich and Paris, as far as they are representative of those countries), and how they adapt to their reduced material circumstances, a real delight.

>20 Rebeki: When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit is one I hadn't heard of before. What would you say is the target age recommended?

>21 NanaCC: Hi Colleen, are you thinking of your grandchildren? I would say 9/10 (the same age as the protagonist) upwards. I haven't taken a close look at the sequels yet, but I imagine the target age shifts upwards as does Anna's. I think, in the third book, Anna is a young woman...

>22 Rebeki: Thank you, Rebecca. Yes, I was thinking about a couple of the grandchildren. Once they start learning about WWII in middle school, they are often looking for age appropriate books. They all read The Diary of Anne Frank, but then they want more. This sounds like it would give another perspective.

Maybe i need to find this show Imagine...

A nice start to your year. Brooklyn sounds terrific and i'm interested in When Hitler Stole the Pink Rabbit. Wonder if my daughter might read it.

Hi Colleen and Dan. Sorry it's taken me a while to get back to my thread.

>23 NanaCC: Yes, very different perspective. It's funny, really, because being suddenly uprooted from everything and everyone you know and knowing that you cannot return to your beloved home, possessions and way of life is undoubtedly traumatic, but it really does pale in comparison with what befell most Jews in Europe. Judith Kerr has admitted that, for her, the experience was a great adventure, which makes When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit a fun read. (Actually, I was surprised, when I read The Diary of a Young Girl, years ago now, that it was not unrelenting doom and gloom, but when you know how things will end, that makes it a tough read.) Have your grandchildren read The Silver Sword (known, it seems, as Escape from Warsaw in the US)?

>24 dchaikin: Dan, in case you are interested, here's the Wikipedia entry for Imagine. I think it's excellent, but I confess to having watched only a handful of episodes, pretty much exclusively those dealing with writers...

>9 Rebeki: Brooklyn is the only book by Colm Toibin that I read. And I liked it a lot. So I'm glad to hear that there'll be a movie version. This might be interesting.

>25 Rebeki:. I'm not sure about The Silver Sword/Escape from Warsaw. I will have to check with them.

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

This was my reading group's choice for January, otherwise I would probably never have picked it up. I tend to shy away from books set in countries where women are treated very unfairly and am still scarred by reading Hosseini's earlier book A Thousand Splendid Suns for my reading group six years ago. I also tend to think of Hosseini's books as written deliberately to provoke an emotional response, which I dislike. A third issue, in this case, was that a mistake with the library reservation system meant that I had only a week to read the 463 pages of (admittedly generously-sized and -spaced) print. After an uncertain start, however, I found myself racing through the pages.

The premise is the separation of two siblings from an impoverished family in rural Afghanistan in the early 1950s, when three-year-old Pari is effectively sold to a wealthy, childless family in Kabul, leaving her 10-year-old brother, Abdullah, devastated. What saves this novel from being overly harrowing and syrupy is that Hosseini quickly moves the action on, focusing on a variety of characters and moving backwards and forwards in time between 1949 and more or less the present day, with sections set in France, Greece and the US, as well as Afghanistan.

Weirdly enough, given my reluctance to pick up a book dealing with Afghanistan, it was the sections set there that I most appreciated, in particular the letter from Pari's uncle, Nabi, and the return to war-torn Afghanistan by two cousins, now US citizens. I didn't really need the backstory of the Greek NGO worker, in spite of his important role in pulling the different strands of the story together. I could also have done with fewer details about Pari's life as an adult.

Overall, I think Khaled Hosseini is a master storyteller and this is a page-turner of a novel. For me, however, there is something missing in his writing that would make me rush to read another book by him.

Not about to pick it up, but interesting. I thought A Thousand Splendid Suns was a bit of writing technical failure, or struggle anyway. From your review it seems he put a lot effort into that kind if thing.

>29 dchaikin: Interesting, Dan. I actually don't remember too much about A Thousand Splendid Suns, other than that it was emotionally hard-going; this latest book was certainly more readable.

I read A Thousand Splendid Suns because it was a book club choice. I enjoyed it in the same way that I would enjoy a Leon Uris novel. It is rich in local detail and life in war torn Afghanistan sounded authentic enough (I spent a little time in Afghanistan in the 1970's), but it is not great literature.

>31 baswood: I'd not heard of Leon Uris, but I think you've summed up perfectly my feelings about Hosseini's books. Unlike you, I know very little about Afghanistan, so I was happy to learn something about the country. However, that's not the main thing I look for in fiction.

I have one of Hosseini's books, and I've never been inclined to pick it up after buying it. It is probably his first one. I don't think I'm any nearer to getting to it after reading your review of And the Mountains Echoed. Perhaps some day.

>33 NanaCC: Is that The Kite Runner? I haven't read that one and have no plans to do so unless it also ends up on our reading group list! I wouldn't want to put you off unduly though, Colleen. If/when you do get to it, I imagine it'll be a fairly quick read, at least...

>34 Rebeki:. That's the one, Rebecca. There are too many books that I am really looking forward to reading, so doubtful that I'll ever get to it.

>35 NanaCC: Fair enough!

Glad to have found your thread! I too am hoping to spend a bit more time here this year.

Looks like you're off to a good start! I read Brooklyn a couple of years ago and enjoyed it. Reading your review, I realise just how much it's stayed with me.

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit was one of my absolute favourite books when I was a child (an older child, obviously, but I can't remember how old). I had no idea that there were sequels! The Silver Sword was another favourite, and I am David by Ann Holm. I've bought them all in recent years, but the only one I've dared read again is I am David; I don't want to spoil the magic (though your review makes me think I needn't worry).

How old is your little boy now?

>37 rachbxl: Nice to see you here, Rachel! I hope we both do better with LT this year!

Coming to When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit only as an adult, I thought it was wonderful, so I'm sure you wouldn't be disappointed. And then you could go on to read the sequels!

I plan to read the second book, Bombs on Aunt Dainty, soon. I've never heard of I Am David, but will have to investigate. I'd certainly be interested in re-reading The Silver Sword. It was read to us at school when I was nine, but I think I was too young to understand the events it was relating.

My son is now three and a half and at nursery three hours each day. I'm not planning to start working again until he starts school in September, so I confess to using some of this time to settle down with a cup of coffee and a book, rather than do anything "useful"...

How is your daughter? I'm guessing she must be nearly a year old now...

Off to search for your thread!

I think I might re-read all three, and then move on to the sequels to Pink Rabbit. Good plan!

That sounds like an entirely reasonable way to spend your child-free time! I'm working 3 days a week, and on those days I get some reading time on the train. Yes, my daughter is 11 months old - doesn't it go fast!

Ukraine Diaries by Andrey Kurkov

I've been interested in and troubled by the conflict in Ukraine, a country I'd love to visit one day, since the anti-Yanukovych protests began in November 2013. Since I'm not very good at following news reports, however, this book by the novelist Andrey Kurkov seemed a good way to learn more about the situation.

The diary entries run from the unexpected announcement in November 2013 that the Yanukovych Government would not be signing an association agreement with the EU, but would instead be developing its cooperation with Russia, to the end of April 2014, by which point Crimea had been annexed and fighting in the east of Ukraine had become the normality.

First off, I can say that it's enlightening to have the perspective of someone is Ukrainian (and not a politician). In the Western media, the conflict is often portrayed as one between ethnic Ukrainians and ethnic Russians. As a Russian-born, Russian-speaking Ukrainian who would like to see his country loosen its ties with Russia and become more open and democratic, Kurkov demonstrates perfectly that the situation is more complicated than that. The divisions really concern the kind of society in which Ukrainians would like to live and how they would like to be governed. These divisions also exist in Russia, but, seemingly, with a greater majority in favour of Putin's authoritarian style.

While supportive of the "Euromaidan" movement, Kurkov is not, himself, part of it and is able to observe its failings. One of the accusations frequently levelled by Russia is that some of those in favour of a closer relationship with Europe are "fascists". Well, yes, some of them are, as Kurkov makes clear, but most of them are not and their involvement does nothing to denigrate the cause of those who want a more open and accountable type of government.

It was also interesting to learn Kurkov's views on those politicians who became known to us during the Orange Revolution, in particular Viktor Yushchenko and Yulia Tymoshenko, about whom I've not been sure what to think, given the disillusionment that has set in since 2004. Needless to say, he is presenting just one point of view, but his is as good as any and I'm happy to trust it.

When not watching news reports, walking through Kiev to observe the situation for himself and generally worrying about his country, Kurkov is visiting his house in the country, spending time with his wife and children, travelling for work and meeting with friends. I appreciated these details, not just as light relief but also to set the wider events in some kind of context. Yes, the country is in turmoil, but life has to and does go on.

Obviously, the story is not over yet and I can only hope that Kurkov has continued to keep a diary and that it will see publication, as I have learned much more from his diary entries than I could ever glean simply from news articles.

>40 Rebeki: Fascinating review. In looking to see if my library has this title (they do not) I realized that he is also the author of mystery novels. Now I am intrigued by Death and the Penguin.

>41 ELiz_M: Hi Liz, I really enjoyed Death and the Penguin and the sequel, Penguin Lost. I'm not sure how much I think of them as mysteries, but there's suspense and dark humour and more than a hint of the absurd. I think they give you a good idea of what it's like living in contemporary Ukraine. I can also recommend The President's Last Love, a more overtly political novel. It was published a good few years ago, but is set, if I recall correctly, around 2014/2015 and turned out to be quite prophetic. It'd probably be especially interesting to read it now, in the light of recent events.

>40 Rebeki: Hi! Thank you for your review of Kurkov's Ukraine Diaries; I've been wondering what I can read about the conflict, so this is very helpful. I have to say I'm intrigued by the mystery novels, too.

>40 Rebeki:. Great review of Ukraine Diaries. It is one that I should probably read, as well. I try to keep up to date with the news, but a personal perspective reveals so much more.

>43 reva8: Hi Reva, I hope you enjoy Kurkov when you get to him!

>44 NanaCC: Agreed about the personal perspective. I also have a tendency to skim-read articles. I would be a lot better at keeping up with the news if it came in book form!

Fascinating review of Ukraine Diaries

>46 baswood: Thanks, Barry!

>40 Rebeki:

Very interesting review. I am not sure I want to read about this so soon after it happened but I enjoyed reading your review of the book.

>48 AnnieMod: Hi Annie! Yes, I can understand that. In my case, however, I wished I'd read it when it came out last summer, as I felt very much that I was catching up on events I hadn't fully understood at the time.

Bombs on Aunt Dainty by Judith Kerr

This is the second book in Judith Kerr's semi-autobiographical trilogy. It is now 1940 and 15-year-old Anna and her family have been in London for a few years. While her brother, Max, is sailing through a law degree at Cambridge, Anna and her parents are feeling rather less settled. Money is tight and, in order to be able to afford to live with her parents at the aptly-named Hotel Continental, home to refugees from all over Nazi-occupied Europe, Anna needs a job. As she begins to find her feet, Hitler's invasion of the Netherlands and Belgium, just over the water, brings unwelcome consequences for Germans residing in Britain. Then there is the Blitz to contend with, and the fear that Britain, too, will fall to Nazi Germany.

While inevitably less "fun" than When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, I found this book just as enjoyable to read. Though weighed down by greater worries and responsibilities, Anna remains as likeable and determined, and I especially enjoyed reading about her discovery of her talent for drawing and her passion for art. Ending as the war does in May 1945, this book also provides a good account of what life was like in wartime London, both for refugees and the general population.

I'm looking forward to reading the final instalment in the trilogy.

>34 Rebeki:: I really enjoyed The Kite Runner, more so than A Thousand Splendid Suns. It is very emotional and quite harrowing in places, though.

Loved your review of Brooklyn - there goes another book on the wish list!!!!

Ukraine Diaries sounds fascinating. I read and enjoyed Death and the Penguin (and I wouldn't call it a mystery, either--more of a political satire), and The President's Last Love sounds interesting too.

Intriguing comments on Ukraine Diaries. Something to keep in mind for future reference.

Am intrigued by Ukraine Diaries. For obvious reasons much of what happened last summer passed me by, and this sounds like a good way of catching up. And I need to catch up, for work, but also for personal reasons; one of my closest friends (my daughter's godmother) is Ukrainian, and I feel like I've let her down by not keeping up.

I'm just off to my own thread to post my thoughts on my re-read of When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit; I was blown away by it, and I don't think it'll be long till I move on to Aunt Dainty.

Hi Alison, Deborah, Suzanne and Rachel! Sorry, I've been away/busy the last couple of weeks and have neglected my thread.

>51 AlisonY: Hmm, interesting to know that you rate The Kite Runner above A Thousand Splendid Suns. I'm not sure I'll have the stomach for it any time soon though.

>52 arubabookwoman:, >53 Poquette:, >54 rachbxl: Reading Ukraine Diaries is definitely a good way of catching up on and gaining some insight into the situation in Ukraine. Obviously things have moved on in some ways since last summer, but I'm finding it easier to keep up with the news now that I have a better understanding of how the conflict started.

>54 rachbxl: I'm so pleased you enjoyed When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit just as much as an adult! Off to visit your thread now...

Meine russischen Nachbarn by Wladimir Kaminer

The Russian-born German author Wladimir Kaminer's (often eccentric) tales of life in Berlin don't, on the face of it, have much in common with Alexander McCall Smith's No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, but for me they serve the same purpose: providing a gently amusing read, the details of which often fade fast but which leaves a warm impression.

As always it is hard to know how much is fact and how much invented for the purposes of a good story, but no matter. This time, Kaminer's musings and anecdotes centre around Andrey and Sergey (properly speaking, a Belarusian), who share a flat in the same building as him and his family. We read about Andrey's novel approach to learning Russian, Sergey's mother's love life and the surfeit of cuddly toys in the Belarusian city Žlobin, amongst other subjects. The tone is light-hearted, but, underneath it all, Kaminer is aiming, I think, to counter anti-Russian prejudice, while mocking aspects of life in Germany and in Russia as he sees fit, including the Russian President...

The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant

I read this for February's reading group meeting and liked, but didn't love, it. Set in late 15th-century Florence, this novel chronicles the shift from life under the decadent Medici family to the rule of the religious fanatic Girolamo Savonarola and, finally, his downfall, all seen from the perspective of a young woman from a wealthy family.

Fifteen-year-old Alessandra has no interest in marriage and yearns to become a painter. However, the arrival of French troops in Italy and increasingly repressive rules on what women can and can't (OK, mostly can't) do mean that marriage starts to seem like an escape route...

I'm not naturally drawn to this time period or setting, but I really enjoyed learning about Florence at this time. Reading this book prompted many visits to Wikipedia - I knew pretty much nothing at the start and was fantasising about a holiday in Florence by the end. The story didn't work quite so well for me. It skipped along nicely, but I didn't always feel that engaged by it and found parts of it quite implausible. Dunant had clearly done lots of research and had sometimes crammed in too many details for my liking.

Most other people in my reading group were also lukewarm about The Birth of Venus, but I'm glad I read it and I think people who like the idea of a love story in a historical setting with plenty of references to art and religion would enjoy it.

I could be tempted by The Birth of venus thanks for an excellent review

>56 Rebeki: Your review of Kaminer is so enticing, I went hunting for an English translation (to no avail!)

I read something by Sarah Dunant many years ago, and it didn't intrigue me, so I haven't been back.

>58 baswood: I can see that it could appeal to you, Barry, what with your reading through the centuries, although it is a little silly... "Holiday reading" was my reading group's verdict! (My personal idea of holiday reading is a little different, but I know what they mean...)

>59 reva8: Reva, his first book is available in English as Russian Disco (although the touchstone links to the original) and I can recommend that. To be honest, I find a lot of his books quite "samey", but it's a sameness that works for me!

>60 rebeccanyc: Rebecca, that's pretty much how I feel. I read Sacred Hearts a few years ago, again, for my reading group, and enjoyed it more than The Birth of Venus, but not enough to pick up anything else by her of my own accord.

>61 Rebeki: Thank you, I'll hunt that one up!

Happiness by Design: Finding Pleasure and Purpose in Everyday Life by Paul Dolan

Given that I actually finished this book almost a month ago, I'm not going to be able to do it justice here, but I'll try my best...

I saw this book beckoning to me on one of the tables in Waterstones just after Christmas, but managed to restrain myself from buying it until mid-February, when I took a short holiday from my general (self-imposed) ban on buying books. A mixture of self-help and popular science, it's an engaging read, not least because Dolan comes across as extremely likeable (in spite of confessing to not having read a novel since he was at school!).

Dolan pithily defines happiness as "experiences of pleasure and purpose over time" and sets out to help the reader maximise and find their optimum balance of those two things. Key to this is allocating your attention wisely and not falling into the trap of mistaken desires, projections and beliefs. Early on, he makes a distinction between his definition of happiness and that which features in life satisfaction surveys, the former being concerned with the "film" of your life as opposed to the "snapshot", with life as it is experienced rather than as it is evaluated. For instance, someone who has a prestigious job of which they are proud may enjoy the fact of holding that job while not at all enjoying the everyday reality of it.

The inclusion of purpose as a factor of happiness is also interesting: apparently men experience more pleasure over time than women, but with purposeful activities taken into account, women experience greater happiness. This makes me feel better about some of those useful, necessary, but not particularly fun tasks I spend time doing!

This is a quick read and I found myself instantly applying some of the ideas to my life, to good effect. It's also helped me banish certain negative and unhelpful thoughts about work/my employment status that tend to intrude from time to time. However, as what I've read starts to fade from my memory, I can tell that this is a book I will need to return to at regular intervals. Recommended.

I've been busy the last few weeks - although not particularly stressed with it - which has led to a mild case of reader's block. After racing through Happiness by Design, I got bogged down with Burial Rites, a book I thought I'd enjoy. I made it to nearly 200 pages, before realising that I just didn't care enough to continue. I'm a little bemused, as it seems to be universally loved, but it just wasn't working for me.

The antidote has come in the form of a dry overview of mediaeval Britain and, a little less surprisingly, the very funny Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life. Hopefully, once I've finished these, I'll be able to tackle some fiction again.

Dry histories have their place and appeal.

Interesting review on Happiness By Design. Sometimes i want a book like that, other times i hate the existence of that kind of book. Anyway, glad you made some use out of it.

>65 dchaikin: Yes, something remote and unlikely to excite the emotions was just what I needed. Plus whatever low-level worries were bothering me (and preventing me from reading very much), they were nothing compared with the worries of a mediaeval king!

Anything remotely "self-help" runs the risk of being annoying, but I didn't find Happiness by Design at all annoying and definitely got lots out of it. My impression is that the author genuinely wants everyone to be happier and he isn't preachy or prescriptive as to the specifics of achieving this.

Love, Nina: Despatches from Family Life by Nina Stibbe

This collection of letters proved to be the perfect cure for my reader's block. Now a novelist, in 1982 20-year-old Nina Stibbe had just moved to London from her native Leicester to work as a nanny to the children of Mary-Kay Wilmers (and the film director Stephen Frears), editor of the London Review of Books. Though bright and funny (and a touch eccentric), Stibbe had been patchily educated and her immersion in the world of literary and intellectual North London marks the beginning of a burgeoning relationship with literature.

Spanning five years, from 1982 to 1987, these letters are all addressed to Stibbe's sister, Victoria, and, as such, are chatty, frank (except as regards her relationship with 'Nunney', another family-help-turned-student, for which we must read between the lines a little) and prone to flit between all manner of subjects. She frequently inserts comical snippets of conversation that have taken place in the Wilmers household, to which Alan Bennett is a regular visitor. We never see Victoria's responses, but it is easy to imagine that, living a very different life back in Leicester, she may not always have been that enthralled by the minutiae of her sister's existence; we can tell that she neither visits nor calls Nina as often as the latter would like. However, for the reader, these idiosyncratic letters are a true delight.

I've seen some lukewarm reviews for this book on LT and I think it would probably appeal more to a British audience, for whom the references will be more familiar. If you like the sound of it though, I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it!

>67 Rebeki: Perhaps it is a little prurient, but I love reading these posthumously published letters. I'll look this one up, thanks.

Lovely reviews, Rebeki. I added the Kerr books and Kurkov to my wishlists. Like you, I read books by people like Hosseini and Dunant for my book club and end up disappointed. Maybe I need a new book club!

Responding to your comments rather late:

>68 reva8: Nina Stibbe is very much still alive and has, in fact, published her first novel in the last couple of years. She gained the permission of Mary-Kay Wilmers and her family (and, presumably, of her sister) to publish the letters. I did read an article saying that Alan Bennett felt he'd been portrayed inaccurately, although there can be a big difference between how we perceive ourselves and how others perceive us!

>69 labfs39: Lisa, my heart does sometimes sink when I see some of the titles chosen for our reading group, but it's rare we read anything terrible. If I really don't like a book, I won't read on (or even start on it in some cases!). I enjoy the meetings, in any case, and like the fact that I'm forced to alter my reading diet every now and then. Our next book is Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I seem to recall reading mixed reviews of it, but I'm pleased to have been given a push to try it for myself.

I'm having a good reading year, but I've been awful at keeping up with LT. I have a backlog of 14 books to review and for most of them the reviews are going to be pretty brief and sketchy. I'll attempt to catch up over the next few days and then hopefully stay on top of things for the rest of the year!

Even if you don't get to the reviews, it's nice to hear from you now and again!

What are you currently reading?