The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I was galvanised into reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy when I saw it suggested as April's 1001 group read. Imagine my surprise to see, on opening the book, a note from my big brother. Apparently he gave this to me for Christmas many years ago, though I suspect it was one of those presents brothers give which they really want themselves. I guess the fact the book belongs to the sci-fi genre is what put me off reading it for so long, but recently I've been branching out more.
Arthur Dent is not having a good day, the council have decided to knock down his house to make way for a bypass. In a display of cosmic coincidence, the Earth is also destroyed for a hyperspace bypass, but he is saved by Ford Prefect, a writer for the best-selling “Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy”, who has been marooned on Earth for 15 years. Arthur and Ford manage to get off Earth in time, hitch-hiking. What follows is their journey in space, getting picked up by the President of the Galaxy, Zaphod Beedlebum and his companion, Trillion, being pursued by those wanting to know a particular question.
I found myself chuckling out loud whilst reading, the humour is very British, very dry and sarcastic. I also hadn't realised how far the series had penetrated popular culture, for example, there is Marvin, the Paranoid Android and Babel Fish, an ear implant translator.
It is not a stand alone book, but luckily I had book 2 waiting for me. While it is not all my cup of tea, I did find it fast paced. ( )

In The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Hitch hiker's guide to the galaxy), book 2 of the series, Arthur, Ford, Zaphon and Trillian are on their way to eat at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe (time not space). I particularly enjoyed Arthur explaining to a machine what a proper cup of tea was. The Restaurant is amazing, with a compère, a show, famous people, though, like Arthur, having a cow recommend to you what parts of it to eat is rather off-putting.
Problems arise with the group trying to leave the restaurant, stealing a ship, which, unbeknown to them, is to be shot into a sun as a grand finale. In this volume there is more movement in time, with Arthur having to cope with the realisation that his ancestors were not as he expected.
As with volume 1, this is funny, but as we get no neared to finding out the question to which 42 is the answer, so I'll have to get my hands of volume 3. ( )

Life, the Universe and Everything (Hitch Hiker's guide to the galaxy) , Book 3 of the series arrived a couple of weeks ago and I couldn't resist picking it up to continue reading about Arthur Dent.
As a cricket fan, I found the idea of a book based round Krikket, a planet with particularly bloodthirsty inhabitants, to amusing for words. That humans would be seen as being in bad taste while playing cricket for its similarity to the Krikket way of killing, genius.
The inhabitants of Krikket, on finding out that they are not alone in Space find the concept rather hard to cope with. Instead they decide to anhilate everyone else to go back to their lonely state. Naturally, the Universe is not happy with this and punishes them by locking them in their planet. Unfortunately one ship was out of its airspace when this owas done, so they are trying to find the key to the lock. This is where Dent and co. come in, to save the world.
Still amusing, though I am getting the feeling that the books are becoming less universal and more for hardcore fans. ( ) 

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy) , number 4 in the series. Arthur finds himself back on Earth after being away for 8 years. It turns out that the Earth wasn't destroyed. Arthur gets picked up by Russell, who's driving his drugged up sister, Fenny, back to the asylum. Arthur feels a connection with her, though he is not sure why. He engineers a meeting with her to work out what it is.  Arthur is also trying to find out why the dolphins all disappeared at the same time as the Earth was due to explode.
While it was nice to see life finally going Arthur's way, I felt book 4 was weaker than the others before. ( ) 

Mostly Harmless (Hitch Hiker's guide to the galaxy) , Adam's last book in the Hitch-hiker's series. Here alternative universes collide. Ford returns to the Guide's HQ to find everything changed, Arthur is separated from Fennie and is trying to find an Earth he can live on and Trillian is living in the reality in which she didn't go with Zaphod.
Not as funny as the others, but with some good moments, like the squirrels the computer trains to be flight attendants, forcing peanuts and wet wipes on all who go past them.
It's always satisfying to finish a series, but I can't see myself getting Eoin Colfer's 6th instalment as I can't imagine a different voice narrating. Mostly Harmless is really for big Hitch-hiker's fans, but I will be looking out for the Dirk Gently books. ( ) 

11 in 11 Category Challenge: 4 Books in a Series COMPLETED

Category 4: Books in a Series


1. Wicked
2. Son of a Witch part of Wicked series
3. A Lion among Men part of Wicked series
4. The Necropolis Railway
5. The Blackpool Highflyer - part of the Jim Stringer Series starting with The Necropolis Railway
6. The Sun over Breda - No. 3 in the Captain Alatriste series
7. The Lost Luggage Porter - part of the Jim Stringer Series starting with The Necropolis Railway
8. Murder at Deviation Junction - part of the Jim Stringer Series starting with The Necropolis Railway
9. Life, the Universe and Everything - part of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series
10. So long, and thanks for the fish- part of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series
11. Mostly Harmless- part of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series

This was an enjoyable category, but none of the books will be on my best of challenge list. I have read 3 Arturo Perez Reverte books for this challenge, and I think that this installment of the Capitan Alatriste series is as strong as the previous books. I am glad that I finally read the Wicked trilogy, though they were rather odd and not what I expected. I bumped the Jim Stringer books up my TBR list after receiving The Somme Station from Librarything's Early Reviewers. The murder mysteries are great light reading. I have put the later books in the series in my Mystery category. I finally heeded my big brother's advice and read the Hitch-hiker's series.

Euro 1001-Library VBB

There were 20 books in the box at the start, and over 40 books are now winging their way around Europe to be read by new readers.  I am pleased that it has worked well, and that the list has moved so quickly!
Taken out of the box:
Closely Observed Trains (Abacus Books)
The Successor 
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
The Rings of Saturn: An English Pilgrimage (Panther)
MORVERN CALLAR
In the Forest: A Novel 
The Awakening  
Frankenstein 
Disgrace
A Clockwork Orange 

Suite Francaise 
The Diary of a Nobody (Penguin Classics) 
The Arabian Nights: The Marvels and Wonders of the Thousand and One Nights 
Silk   
The Sound of Waves 
The Light of Day
The Hours  
Agnes Grey
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Penguin Popular Classics)
Through the Looking Glass
Ethan Frome (Wordsworth Classics) 
Mother
The Cement Garden *1001-book*
Soldiers of Salamis (different cover)
Possession: A Romance
Barabbas
The Talk of the Town
The Grass Is Singing
Elizabeth Costello
The Age of Innocence (Vintage Classics)
Life and Times of Michael K: A Novel
Black Dogs 
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
To the Lighthouse 
Atomised
The Body Artist: A Novel(A 1001-Library Book)
Journey to the Centre of the Earth
The Accidental 
Lady Chatterley's Lover: Cambridge Lawrence Edition (Penguin Classics) 
Nervous Conditions 
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich (Signet Books)
Portrait of the Artist
Invisible Cities
Uncle Tom's Cabin
The World According to Garp

52x 1001 Books in 2011, 1/2 way there

Here is my second quarter of reading.  A good mix of books, from classics to modern, from humourous to deadly serious.  My favourites would have to be The Reluctant Fundamentalist, A Fine Balance and Closely Observed Trains (Abacus Books).  Three very different books, but linked by politics.  In the Forest: A Novel was also great, dark and opressive. I am pleased that I read some books which I'd had for a long time, like A Fine Balance and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  No bad books here, which is not always the case with the 1001 List.  As for the next quarter, I still have some 1001 books here in Spain, but will be adding to the pile from the 1001-Library.  I am one away from having read 300 off the combined list, just need to choose the right book to hit that milestone with.

14. The Reluctant Fundamentalist Brilliant book, why, oh why was it removed from the 2010 edition?
15. A Fine Balance I am ashamed to say I had this for 3 years before reading it, worth the wait though ;) 
16.  In the Forest: A Novel  dark story based on fact.
17. The Arabian Nights: The Marvels and Wonders of the Thousand and One Nights (Signet classics) good to get beyond the Disney versions.
18. Under the Net (Vintage Classics)  my first Iris Murdoch, and certainly not my last! 
19.  The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy  I had been given this (apparently) for Christmas years ago by my brother, but it was rediscovered in a box of books he gave me.  Good fun, very sarcastic.
20.Vanity Fair (Penguin Popular Classics)  another scary classic read, I took it travelling and got stuck in.  I enjoyed it, though there were parts which dragged. 
21. Burmese Days a biting look at life in Burma, the British living there and prejudice.  Very good.
22. Agnes Grey read as part of a Librarything Readalong, I thought that the life of a governess was well described, with the characters being very real. 
23. Closely Observed Trains (Abacus Books) finally reading the book after seeing the film.  Life at a sleepy station under German occupation, very short, but well-deserving of its place on the list.
24. Diary of a Nobody (Penguin Classics) nice to see a funny book on the list, and what great illustrations!

25. Suite Francaise Another Librarything readalong.  The first 2 books of an anticipated cycle cut short by the author's death in Auschwitz.  The chaos of life in WW2 written at close hand.

26.The Rings of Saturn: An English Pilgrimage (Panther) My second by the author, a tramp around East Anglia, looking at life there and its connection with the wider world.

Euro 1001-Library VBB

With the UK version doing well, I decided to set up a second VBB, this time for all Europeans.  This is partly selfish as I now live in Spain and have been accumulating 1001 books there.  There has been a good response so far.


The VBB started out with 20 books from three donors.

My additions: 
Suite Francaise I have just finished this, and it blew me away.  
The Diary of a Nobody (Penguin Classics) nice to see a lighter book on the list. 
The Arabian Nights: The Marvels and Wonders of the Thousand and One Nights Finally to read something I knew from so many other sources was great fun and insightful, there is a lot more to the collection than can be gleaned from children's versions. 
In the Forest: A Novel a strange story based on fact, very dark. 
Agnes Grey I requested this from the 1001-Library for a readalong, and was not disappointed by the tale of a governess. 
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Penguin Popular Classics) great fun, such a wonderfully written book. 
Through the Looking Glass the sequel to the above, and the story continues in the same crazy, literary way. 
Closely Observed Trains (Abacus Books)
 a short read, but a lot is packed into those 90-odd pages.  A quiet train station in occupied Czechoslovakia in WW2, but not as quiet as it seems.
The Rings of Saturn: An English Pilgrimage (Panther)
I am actually reading this right now, I bought it because my parents live in East Anglia.

Thanks Lemon-Crisis for your donations:     
Life of Pi  a modern classic
Silk another short book on the list, but beautifully written. 
A Clockwork Orange a very dark book, but one which asks many pertinent questions. 
Oliver Twist I've never read this, despite having acted in the musical version at school.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time such a quirky mystery

And from  blackwidow1971
Ethan Frome (Wordsworth Classics) Another I don't know, but a copy is on its way to me :)
The Light of Day I know the author but not the book.
MORVERN CALLAR Crazy with a capital C
The Accidental seems to be a Marmite book 
The Successor  a great find through the 1001-Library 
Soldiers of Salamis (different cover)  A Spanish entry on the list, I haven't read it.

11 in 11 Category Challenge: 10 Travel COMPLETED

Category 10: Travel

My favourite hobby ;) Fiction, non-fiction
Some of my choices might seem tenuous, but if there is some sort of trip, journey, then I'll count it here.

1. Three moons in Vietnam
2. Driveby Saviours
3. Ghosts of Spain
4. The Monkey and the Monk **1001 Book
5. Felicia's Journey **1001 Book
6. The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy **1001 Book
7. The Restaurant at the end of the Universe
8. The Great Railway Bazaar
9. Seven Years in Tibet
10. Closely Observed Trains **1001 Book
11. Duende

Another strong category. I found The Monkey and the Monk to be really enjoyable, a book that has been on my radar for years. Closely Observed Trains was also a cracking read, very short, but it was good to see that the film version was faithful. Since starting the challenge, I have moved to Spain, so it made reading Ghosts of Spain much more relevant and also helpful for a newcomer.

Inkheart

I've been reading this for a wee bit, at almost 600 pages and in Spanish I needed time! I had read this before in English, but I enjoyed the reread. My local library as the next 2 books, so will get to them soon.
Books about books, could there be anything better! Mo, Silvertongue, has a gift, he can read characters out of books, but for every character read out of a book, a replacement is taken from our world. This is what happened with his wife 9 years earlier, and now one of the characters, Dustfinger, is back, wanting Mo's help. Brilliant!

At the back of the book, there was a bibliography of the books cited in Inkheart, and I found a list of them online.  I found the list here - http://www.listsofbests.com/list/28877-the-books-in-inkheart-by-cornelia-funke

1. Watership Down
2. Peter Pan
3. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
4. The Children of Green Knowe
5. Fahrenheit 451
6. The Witches
7. BFG
8. Great Expectations
9. Oliver Twist
10. The Neverending Story
11. Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver
12. The Wind in the Willows
13. The Night Daddy
14. Secret of Platform 13
15. The Jungle Books
16. The Borribles Go For Broke
17. Prince Caspian
18. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
19. The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader
20. The Silver Chair
21. The Brothers Lionheart
22. Bill Bergson and the white rose rescue
23. Mio, My Son
24. Bill Bergson, Master Detective
25. Sejtes skatt
26. The Satanic Mill
27. Clockwork
28. Where the Wild Things Are
29. Shakespeare Stories
30. Naftali the Storyteller and His Horse, Sus: And Other Stories
31. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
32. Kidnapped
33. Treasure Island
34. The Hobbit or There and Back Again
35. The Fellowship of the Ring
36. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
37. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
38. The Sword in the Stone
39. The Selfish Giant

Of this list, I have read many, but there are a few I'll have to search out. I love Watership Down, it blew me away the first time I read it. Roald Dahl and Robert Louis Stevenson are two of my favourite authors, it is their books that I reread and can't part with.

.

11 in 11 Category Challenge: 3 History COMPLETED

Category 3: History
Fiction and Non-Fiction


Another returning category as this is an area I enjoy reading about. I hope to have more non-fiction here this year.

1. The Help
2. The Bamboo Palace
3. Ivanhoe
4. Shakespeare: The World as a Stage
5. Bound Feet and Western Dress
6. The White Queen
7. Guernica
8. The Clan of the Cave Bear in Spanish
9. Salt and Saffron
10. El Capitan Alatriste
11. Rebel Heiress

I do love reading historical fiction, only two non-fiction, which is a pity. I really enjoyed Shakespeare: The World as a Stage, a fascinating insight into the writer. The White Queen was also good, the first in Philippa Gregory's new series. Salt and Saffron I got from a virtual bookbox, what great writing style! I resisted reading Ivanhoe for years, but in the end it flew by.

11 in 11 Category Challenge - 9 Links COMPLETED

Category 9: Links


Any book that is linked with another I read, for example, mentioned in a book I am reading, from the same series, written by the same author.

1. An Unequal Marriage - Jane Austen Link
2. Sunday at Tiffany's - linked with Breakfast at Tiffany's
3. Jigs and Reels - also read Five quarters of the orange by the same author, Joanne Harris.
4. The Jane Austen Guide to Dating - Jane Austen link to I was Jane Austen's Best Friend
5. The Mysteries of Udolpho - mentioned in I was Jane Austen's Best Friend **1001 Book
6. Through the Looking Glass **1001 Book, the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
7. Austenland Jane Austen link to I was Jane Austen's Best Friend
8. Persuading Annie - Jane Austen link to I was Jane Austen's Best Friend
9. Jane Austen: A Life- Jane Austen link to I was Jane Austen's Best Friend
10. A Christmas Carol - also by Charles Dickens ** 1001 book
11. Vanity Fair ** 1001 book, mentioned in The Story of Lucy Gault

I have enjoyed this category, a new one for me (an idea I stole from other people's challenges!). I often go on a reading binge on one author or topic, so this has worked well, most have been Jane Austen related. I did give up on Lesley Castle, as her work translated into Spanish loses its appeal for me. This category has also inspired me to read a couple of tomes that I have been avoiding, The Mysteries of Udolpho and Vanity Fair. As for favourite books, I think that Jane Austen A Life was the best book, it was informative without being dry. Persuading Annie and Austenland were great fun for an Austen fan like me, both worth a read. The bottom 2 were definitely An Unequal Marriage, a miserable continuation of Pride and Prejudice and Sundays at Tiffanys, a nice idea poorly executed.
4 1001 books from this category.

Top Reads in April

I did read a few 1001 books, including The Arabian Nights.  Whilst very familiar, the skilled interweaving of the stories in this collection is what makes the book great. We all know Aladdin, Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves, Sinbad the Sailor, but here they are all brought together, with other less well-known tales, in a less Disney-sanitised way, making them more enjoyable.
I also read Under the Net, my first Iris Murdoch, and it certainly won't be my last.  An intricate, incestuous web, on which the narrator fumbles his way, cadging lodging and money off friends. A frustrated writer and translator of French novels, Jake Donaghue hopes he will one day make it big, though his only literary attempt sank without a trace and cost him a friendship.

 

Salt and Saffron was a book I received through a virtual bookbox.  I enjoyed this a lot, reading most of it this morning before class. Aliya's family history is rich, providing her with many tales that span India, Pakistan, from before the British Raj, through independence and partition to the modern day. Some of the stories tell of the 'not-quite' twins, the relations that are linked closely, although not directly by blood.

I am a big Austen fan, so I did enjoy Persuading Annie.  I had it on my wishlist for ages and it popped up through Bookmooch. A modern retelling of Persuasion. For readers who already know Persuasion, Persuading Annie has the added appeal of seeing how the author updated the story. I think it works well. If you don't know Austen's original, it is still an entertaining read.

 

I gave up on my first book - Lesley Castle. I got it out of the library, in Spanish, and I just can't get into it. Not for the content, but more because it felt like I was watching a badly dubbed film :(  I did read Jane Austen - A Life, a well researched look at the author's life, from her family roots, through her books to her legacy.

I also read a good travel book, The Great Railway Bazaar.  Theroux's journey from London to Japan and back by train, biting at times, amusing, I read it on the train.

 

Overall I would say it was another good month, though I doubt any would make it on my top reads for the year. 

11 in 11 Category Challenge - 2 1001 Books

Category 2: 1001 Books

I have the all singing and dancing spreadsheet and would like to boost my stats. I had this category over the last 2 challenges as well, spurring me on with my 1001 reading. I have enjoyed reading 1001 books as it has definitely broadened my reading, getting round to reading those classics and also putting me in touch with many new authors.

1. The Idiot
2. Of Mice and Men
3. Schooling
4. Pereira Maintains
5. The Amazing Adventures of Kavelier and Clay
6. Platero and I
7. Invisible Man
8. The Reluctant Fundamentalist
9. A Fine Balance
10. Under the Net
11. Burmese Days

I really enjoyed reading Pereira Mantains as I had already Declares Pereira, a different translation of the original Italian. I think I found it better because I lived in Portugal before reading the former, so the situation described was much more familiar. As I am now living in Spain, I did so enjoy Platero and I, such a well-written book. I devoured The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and am sorry to see that it has been left off the 2010 list.
It is probably easier to say which books didn't grab me as much, and they would be The Idiot, just because it was rather dense, and The Invisible Man, but these are 1001 books, so I had higher expectations of them.

11 in 11 Category Challenge - 11 British Authors COMPLETED

Category 11: British Authors

I am including all authors from the British Isles here, as on my 1001 list, pre-Independence Irish writers are shown as British.

1. It Could Happen to You
2. Cold Comfort Farm **1001 Book
3. I was Jane Austen's Best Friend
4. Mrs Fry's Diary
5. The Day of the Triffids **1001 Book
6. The Story of Lucy Gault **1001 Book
7. Five Quarters of the Orange
8. The Understudy
9. Pandora
10. El Emperador
11. Lost Innocence

A mixed bag of a category, I thoroughly enjoued the 3 1001 Books. Cold Comfort Farm was very amusing, The Day of the Triffids was a real page turner, but I must say that Lucy Gault blew me away. Two short story collections, both showing the range of the authors' writing, but I think Joanne Harris's was more up my street.
Bottom books were Lost Innocence, just not my cup of tea, but I was more disappointed by The Understudy, having enjoyed the writer's other books.

11 in 11 Category Challenge - 8 Film & Adaptations COMPLETED

Category 8: Film & Adaptations

I love the cinema and I watch a lot of adaptations, even though when they vary wildly from the book I do get rather annoyed!

1. The French Lieutentant's Woman ** 1001 Book
2. Bleak House ** 1001 Book
3. Crash ** 1001 Book
4. The Notebook
5. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ** 1001 Book
6. Breakfast at Tiffany's **1001 Book
7. The Time Machine **1001 Book
8. The Graduate ** 1001 Book
9. Stardust in Spanish
10. The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly
11. The Arabian Nights ** 1001 Book

I was blown away by The French Lieutenant's Woman, a book I had had on my shelf for ages. A good story and an intrusive narrator makes for a great read. Another book from my TBR pile was The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly, such a positive book despite the inevitable death of the narrator.
I didn't enjoy Bleak House, too dense, too many characters, it was a chore to read. If I hadn't been travelling, I imagine that I would have ditched this.
8 1001 Books read :)

11 in 11 Category Challenge - 5 Asia COMPLETED

Category 5: Asia

I was born in Asia and so have always had a fascination with this diverse continent. I also have a large amount of Asia related books on my TBR pile.

1. The Good Earth
2. The Inheritance of Loss ** 1001 Book
3. Eating Chinese Food Naked
4. The North China Lover
5. Love and longing in Bombay
6. The House of the Mosque
7. The Royal Ghosts
8. The Interpreter of Maladies
9. Brixton Beach
10. Difficult Daughters
11. Queen of Dreams

A very successful category, no duffers! I particularly enjoyed The Good Earth, which had been on my wishlist for years. Revisiting The Lover in The North China Lover was also fantastic- the subtle variation, the benefit of hindsight. 3 were short story collections (5, 7 and 8) and one 1001 book, and also they weren't all from India and China (something I was keen to avoid).  Only one 1001 book, but there are a few Asian 1001 books elsewhere in my challenge.