Arlington Park is a clever idea for a book – tell the story of a number of peoples lives on one particular day as they go about their lives in the same suburb, and then bring it all together at a dinner party. Unfortunatley it doesn’t really work. It was about page 220 that I actually found a character of any interest!!!

Plain Truth is the third Jodi Picoult book I have read in a row, and it by far the best. No because it is a great story, or a brilliant novel, but because it is set against the backdrop of an Amish society. It reminded me of the Amish I came across in Toronto when I used to visit regularly on business so it was good to get a better understanding of their ways and beliefs.

Mercy is the second Jodi Picoult book of Sands that I have read and I must say that I enjoyed it way more than Perfect Match. Primarily this is because the core subject matter, a mercy killing, was far more appealing to me as a topic.

It wasn’t a book that I couldn’t put down so I tended to only read 5 or 10 pages at a time so it took a while, but the plot wasn’t so involved that you forgot what was happening from one week to the next.

When I wrote about Winter in Madrid Gary suggested that I read The Shadow in the Wind, and all I can say is thanks!!

Funnily enough we actually had the book already as Sands had picked it up, so I was able to sneak it off her pile and read it before she did!

The story line was very clever and the setting of Barcelona was very clearly projected throughout the book. I particularly liked the concept of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

Winter in Madrid is exactly the type of book that I like.

It is based around a certain period of history (post the civil war in Spain, and early on in WWII) so you get a good feel for a particular period in time, while at the same time it is a good old fashioned thriller – bit of spying, bit of fighting, and a nice twist at the end.

The Saffron Kitchen is another book that Sands has bought having heard great things about it on a book review podcast (SImon Mayo on BBC Radio 5). She really enjoyed it because it was all about relationships, the history behind the people, and the way they came to grips with the consequences of the past.

Me? I sort of liked it eventually, but as I am effectively a cultural void when it comes to feelings, relationships and deep meaningful analysis it was really a set of well constructed words that filled the time pleasantly but didn’t leave me thinking about what was going to happen next in between reading sessions.

I read The Secret River in a week, which is usually a good sign, but not in this case.

I had heard good things about the book, and Sands really enjoyed it so I was looking forward to reading it, but as I turned each page I found myself wondering what all the fuss had been about (in terms of the book not the subject matter), and when it would start to get ‘interesting’.

I have just finished A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry, and I have a whole range of thoughts and emotions going through my mind.

This is one of the best books that I have ever read, which is all the more surprising given that I really wasn’t that interested in when I first picked it up (continuing my approach of reading anything and everything that comes to hand), and the initial pages didn’t grab me at all.

I have always enjoyed reading, but haven’t really read a particularly wide range of writers or styles over the years. Over the last 5+ years I have read less than at any other time in my life.

This year I made a conscious effort to not only read more, but to read a wider range of books. I have no plan, basically will pick up and everything. The only rule I have is that I must finish everything I start, and with the exception of books that I am reviewing I can only have one book ‘on the go’ at a time.