Book 9 - On Writing. Stephen King

Finished 22nd February 2011.

As a life long Stephen King fan I found this fascinating, helpful and encouraging. It starts off with a short autobiography from his early years up until he gets his first novel published and then it goes on to give aspiring writers ( such as myself) some tips and good advice. I certainly learned a lot and was surprised in parts. Probably one one of the most controversial parts of the book is when King reveals that he doesn't believe in outlines when writing. Something that will probably be debated online and in writing classes everywhere !

For any Stephen King fans or aspiring writers, I would highly recommend this book.

It probably won't turn me into the next bestselling Horror writer but it has hopefully helped me to take a few baby steps towards publication. But more importantly, On Writing has done something else. Something that money can't buy. It has encouraged me to plod on with my dream.

8/10

Book 8 The Whisperers by John Connolly

Finished 16th February 2011

Thrillers are not usually my bag. But this book was brought as a present by my wife a few weeks ago, and it was pleasantly surprising. Surprisingly enjoyable. That's probably more to do with this being a dark thriller ( a thriller-horror ) than anthing else. It was more than just the usual cops and suspense that you find in a lot of books. The great thing about it was the layers. This one has more layers than an onion and that is what made it so rich and readable. In fact I don't think I have read a book with as many layers as this since probably Stephen King's 'The Stand'. And just when you think that you have uncovered all the layers then it provides new ones. In this way, The Whisperers has a canny way of keeping your interest throughout.

This is the first John Connolly book I have had the pleasure of reading and I guess the only slight problem I had with reading this was the fact that I read it out of sequence. The Charlie Parker books can be read as stand alone books but I think I would have enjoyed it and fully ( better ?) understood the ending if I had read the other books first !

The ending was good but it left me with probably a few more questions than answers. Hopefully I will get the opportunity to actually read all the books in order at some point.

The basic plot centres around an ancient box being stolen from an Iraqi museum during the invasion ( liberation ?)of the country and then one by one,returning soldiers start to die in strange circumstances. Charlie Parker is asked to investigate and finds himself up to his neck in a struggle between rival gangs of smugglers and some rather spooky demonic characters.

Would love to read the other books in the sequence. As a writer this has taught me the value of adding skins (layers) to a story. Hopefully something I can incorporate in my own work.

8/10

Book 7 . The Ghosts of Sleath - James Herbert.

Finished 8th February 2011


I have always been a fan of James Herbert but surprisingly it has been a long time since I have read any of his stuff. This book has been sitting on my bookshelves for a long time and I had forgotten almost that it was there. I don't even remember getting the book !

But what a great reminder of his mastery of horror ! To look at, there is nothing new in this book. It relies upon the old cliche of a haunted village. This story has been written many times whether it is a haunted house, hotel or village. And something happened in the ancient past that has led to a haunting and things are starting to awaken from their slumber. It sounds cliched because it is ! But all credit to Herbert for making it work and not only that, he also makes it fresh and seem almost like he came up with the cliche himself !

Ash is a paranormal investigator and he is sent to the village of Sleath after being called by the local vicar's daughter. ( We actually see Ash in a previous Herbert Novel, but it isn't really a sequel.) Once in the village things start to accelerate and ghosts start to grow like warts. Herbert doesn't pull any punches and we soon get as much blood and guts as we can take. The horror certainly isn't subtle in this book, page after page of pure unadulterated blood and more blood.

This book works. It is as simple as that. It had me turning the pages and it had me glued to the pages. It slowly builds up to an incredible and shocking climax and the ending is satisfying as well as terrifying.


8.5/10

Book 6 - Northern Lights by Philip Pullman

Finished 31st January 2011


This is the first time I have read a Pullman book and it is the first time during this challenge that I have read a children's fantasy. It's a good sized book for any child, being 399 pages in total and has all the usual suspects when it comes to children's fantasy. Witches and talking bears, a fantastic journey through a fantasy world, it has all the right mixture of ingredients to keep a child fascinated. The major twist on the theme being the fact that all humans have their own personal daemon, a clever and fun twist, this book really left me wishing that I had one.

I'll be honest and say that as a 39 year old northern bloke, I didn't really appreciate this book as much as it's intended readership would. At times it felt like a bit of a chore to read. If I was 12 or 14 then I probably would have adored it. But as a fully grown and bloated bald bloke, it wasn't too exciting, although I can appreciate this book. I have read a few children's books over the years ( as an adult) that I have enjoyed more.

It is difficult to rate this book. It wasn't a bad book and any child would probably appreciate it more than me. But as a writer it was a good experience to read, especially if I start to write this genre myself, which is quite possible. I only wish I could ever , one day, write a book like this, even if it is not my cup of tea , but I'm an old git.


6.5/10

Book 5. Emma by Jane Austen

Finished 25th January.


This is the second 'Austen' book that I have read. My first being 'Pride and Prejudice' a few years ago. Not usually the kind of book I would read but it was actually a welcome change. This book is a very old book and was written nearly 200 years ago !

First of all I have to say how beautifully presented this Penguin book is. I adore the cover artwork and it feels and looks like a proper book.

It isn't the easiest book to read because it is written in a style and language that is essentially old fashioned. It did take me a few chapters to get into and the old fashioned style did trip me up occasionally and once or twice I had to back step and on more than one occasion I had to work out who on earth was talking and what they were talking about. But we can't blame Jane for this, it's not her fault she wrote it such a long time ago !

However at the end of the day this is a charming light hearted book that does keep its interest going and in a modern world such as ours, reading a book like this is probably as much an escape as reading a science fiction novel.

The book is essentially about a young, rich, spoiled women and her one sided take on her life and the people around her. She unsuccessfully attempts to match-make for her new friend 'Harriet' and then a new man arrives into her life, Frank Churchill and her old nemesis ' Jane Fairfax' who both turn her little society upside down. And then we have her neurotic father who absolutely loathes the idea of marriage and pities anyone who goes down that path and the hilariously talkative Miss Bates.

On the whole this isn't the kind of book that I would normally read but it is neither a bad book nor an average book. It is much more than that. It is a good book.
Just one that doesn't rock my world. Will I read another Austen ? Probably. I prefer this to 'Pride and Prejudice'.


7.5/10

Book Number 4 The Runes Workbook by Leon D Wild

Finished 16/01/11

This is the first non fiction that I had read during this challenge and therefore it is not easy to rate because I probably can't rate it on the same scale as fiction. However there are probably other non fictions books that will be better and a lot more interesting in the future.

Ok first the negatives. A lot of this book is bullshit ! I found myself reading about ancient Gods and beliefs that just seem plain ridiculous in 2011. And I had to ask myself seriously what I was doing even reading it at times and I had no interest in actually using the book as a workbook. I want to read 52 books in a year, not spend months workbooking !

Now to the positives. I am a Tarot reader and am hoping to build up my tarot reading business and so my new found knowledge of the Runes will hopefully be very useful. It is another string on my bow and hopefully now I can make rune reading a part of my business. The book is extremely well illustrated, in fact the works contained within are exemplary, from the beautiful front cover onwards. I will have to remember the illustrator, her name is Corroe Cunningham. Maybe I can find her on Facebook !

This is the first book in a good while that I have read that does not contain any printing or spelling mistakes which is amazing considering that it is not a bestseller or written by a particularly famous author. I did find it interesting and useful for my business and it could be a great help in years to come. However that interest and usefulness have to be balanced with the fact that it contains alot of new age bollocks.

5.5/10

Portrait of the artist as a young dog - Dylan Thomas

Finished 13/01/11

As an 'on and off' poet myself and having visited Laugharne once, the place where he spent so much time, it was with interest that I finally read this book. Poetry is something that I have been interested in since childhood but I generally shy away from all the snobbery and stuck up attitude that comes with it.Probably the main reason that I haven't written more poetry.

Portrait of the artist as a young dog has a photograph of Dylan tangled up in a tree on the front cover. I guess his life was pretty tangled because of his poetry and his addiction to drink. This book is an autobiography written as a collection of short stories or 'memories'.

To be honest while it isn't the best and most exciting thing I have ever read it isn't the worst either. It isn't wonderful and it isn't boring. It is a bit like drinking water. It quenches your thirst but doesn't do much else ! The stories are charming and easy to read and are packed with emotion, as I would expect from a poet. But sadly this book never really goes anywhere.

It has a certain charm and it never gets boring. However it is a bit like reading one of those stories in a women's magazine. It is something to read while you are on a bus or waiting at the Doctor's. But that's about it really.

Most of the stories are short and relatively bland. The last story entitled ' One warm saturday' kind of saves the day. In this story we are taken on a drunk fuelled escapade and we see Dylan's poetry and emotion in the raw. And I ended up feeling extremely sorry for him at the end, something I guess we can all relate to.

6/10