Annie, I've got to agree. I enjoyed some of Moby Dick, but didn't find it to be a page-turner. In fact, I preferred the Wishbone version my kids had when they were younger (hanging my head in disgrace!). As many of you ladies who have suggested Austen, I have to say that both my DDs had Austen assigned in Lit class and hated it. Broke my heart, because I loved them and read them again and again as an undergrad. I don't know why, but my girls don't even like the movie versions. I thought for sure that Du Maurier would succeed where Austen had failed with DD2, only to find that she didn't care for Rebecca or Jamaica Inn, either. I can't fathom it. I was passionate about Nectar in a Sieve and Things Fall Apart as a young adult, and neither of my girls cared for them, even though they read non-fiction on the same topics greedily. As happy as I am when one of my girls loves a book that I loved, too, it makes me sad when they don't. I spent so many happy hours with British novels and by and large, they flop with my daughters. I won't give up trying, though!

My favourite Books of 2011 - no particular order - 1) ""Get Me Out of Here" - Henry Sutton A dark -- very dark -- satire set in modern-day London.... Tells of a once-successful financial professional who's on the skids -- yet, still hankers for the luxuries and amenities so many of his ilk had during the '80s - early-2000s - until the global financial crash. 2) "Bleak House" - Charles Dickens My first reading of this classic. Like the above -- another tale of riches-to-rags -- for some characters, rags-to-riches. Teeming w/ delightful or creepy characters, high drama, ugly-beyond-belief slum scenes and human cruelty, enough neuroses to keep a psychiatric clinic busy for a decade (or more!), generosity of spirit, healthy lust for life, etc., etc. ... a rich cornucopia of humanity -- both wonderful and lousy. 3) "Left Early, Took My Dog" - Kate Atkinson Very "juicy" mystery involving a kidnapped spunky little girl and one of the most delightful female police detectives I've ever encountered. ... She reminded me of the actress Dawn French. 4) "King Solomon's Carpet" - Barbara Vine / Ruth Rendell One of the best books she's ever written ... even though I was annoyed w/ how meagre the explanation was at the end -- of a couple of the characters' outcomes. But, still, a fascinating ride -- in both senses! -- the story as well as the hair-raising subway ("Underground" in Brit speak) scenes. Some of the weirdest, most intriguing characters I've come across in a book in a long time! 5) "Bad Behavior" - Isabel Wolff A woman's storybook -- I call this genre -- some call it "Chick Lit", which turns me off. Anyway -- a lovely story about a young, single woman setting up a new veterinary practice in London. She has a very awful secret in her past. A war photojournalist comes into her life, and the secret if blown open. 6) "My Cousin Rachel" - Daphne du Maurier Several of us "chatted" about this in the August thread. I still think the dame did it! 7) "The Private Patient" - P.D. James A professional investigative TV journalist goes to a posh country clinic to have an old scar removed from her face. But much more than that happens to her. Really intriguing who-done-it... although I felt that bringing Dalgleish's personal life into the story interrupted the flow. That's it. This year think I'll read more non-fiction. After going over the lists of all the books I read - 2011 - I noticed I've been reading way too many mystery books! Some books keep popping up in the lists above and in discussion that I want to try -- "IQ84", "Discovery of Witches", "The Assassin's Cloak". Kathy9norcal - You named 2 of my all-time favourite books: 1) "Brazzaville Beach" - Wm. Boyd -- Every time I mention this novel I have the feeling I'm the only person who's read it, as no one seems to've heard of it! Although I've read some awfully good books set in Africa (fict. &...

THE 3,000 MILE GARDEN Two professional gardeners, one British, the other American, having met at a New Hampshire "mushroom foray," continue to share their gardening adventures in this delightful collection of their letters. Journalist/author Land (The Modern Country Cook) has country gardens in Cushing, Maine, and upstate New York; Phillips, a prolific writer/lecturer and plant photographer (Quest for the Rose), gardens by committee in London's three-acre city park at Eccleston Square. The difference in their situations intrigues them both and is instructive. They exchange discoveries about climate, garden design, rare and common cultivars, soils, mulches, pests and numerous other details of concern to gardeners. They spice their letters with botanical myth and gossip, bits of local history and geography and custom, and compare favorite recipes for their edible plants. Among other titillations, Phillips tells her how he heated a ham in mulch, and Land describes her experiments with diluted urine as a greening agent. But every page in this chatty, exuberant book is a feast of tips and surprises whose abundance and utility well serve any gardener. Photos not seen by PW. Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From Library Journal Land is an American food writer who gardens; Phillips is a London-based plant photographer and writer who cooks. The two met in 1989 at a mushroom bash in New Hampshire and began a conversation that was too good to end. They continued it by mail. The resulting letters, through 1994, make up a book that is an exchange of ideas, drawings, practical tips, recipes, and personal tidbits. The correspondence is also the basis of a public television series that will air beginning in December of this year. Of particular interest are Phillips's references to the garden squares of London. We learn a bit about their history, the committee that oversees them, and the assaults on them by builders of high rises and car parks. Land's garden is in Maine, and the reader enjoys following her struggles with weather, soil, and terrain. The letters, witty and entertaining, are unfortunately published with no linking narrative, leaving gaps and unanswered questions. Though not an essential purchase, this book nevertheless will be enjoyed where anglophilic gardeners or public television fans are numerous. Carol Cubberley, Univ. of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

I've completed my last book of the year, so I'm ready to commit: Ordinary Grace -- William Kent Krueger I really loved this book and bought copies for a couple of people and recommended it widely. I learned about it on Reader's Paradise when Reader_In_Transit recommended it in 2017. I discovered during a RP site search however, that it had also been listed as a favorite of Artiste8 in 2014. I didn't remember that. We Are Called To Rise -- Laura McBride I was attracted to the title of this book when I saw it on a shelf at the library. It was a great find! Little Fires Everywhere -- Celeste Ng I read this for my book club. I had read one previous novel by Ng (Everything I Never Told You) that, for me, was not enough to entice me to read a second by her, so I'm very glad that my book club made me take a second look at this author. Nomadland -- Jessica Bruder I have my book club to thank for this one also. I don't pick up much nonfiction on my own, but I thought this one was incredibly interesting. Birds in Fall -- Brad Kessler After reading Skibby's list, I had to come back and add this one. On her recommendation, I read it and really enjoyed it also.