I wanted a light listen while sunbathing in the garden so thought I’d give this a try. I didn’t expect it to be but it was compulsive and sometimes very dark listening. It’s about a woman who was a bully at school who comes back into contact with the girl she bullied in their 30’s. The story of the past is told interspersed with the present. As the story unfolds, the main character develops into a better person as she comes to terms with the past and tries to repent for it in the present. Sadly I did guess the mysterious reason why the main character’s family felt so indebted, but it’s still a good listen. There is quite a lot of self-harm mentioned in the book. I’m not sure how I felt about it.

It brought back memories of bullying behaviour at primary school. Certainly there were times when I was picked on, but I remember making fun of someone’s weight with another girl and I also remember a girl called Vicky who was picked on by lots of people and I never did anything about it. She could have been the bullied girl in this book and that makes me feel very uncomfortable.

I read this a few years ago but, since it was this month’s reading group book, I read it again. Of course, having read it before, it didn’t have as much shock impact as it did the first time but I was still struck by how beautifully written it is. The scene near the end where Kathy and Tommy speak to Madame had my heart thumping loudly. The sheer pathos of the ending brought tears to my eyes. This is a suspenseful story of supressed emotions and the meaning of friendship. I highly recommend it.

This book just like The Wrong Boy, except that this boy is a little older. A harmless, quick read which probably appeals most to those who went to university at the same time i.e. in the 80’s. Nowhere near as good as One Day though.

This is brilliantly perceptive. John Lanchester is a man who is clearly in touch with the real London. The end was a slight anti-climax but for such real, well-researched characters I have to forgive him.

I enjoyed some articles in this immensely. Others I found quite dreary. Generally, the ones where she’s talking about anything (even loosely) political or individual celebrities are brillant and fascinating respectively. The Celebrity Watch and facetious rant ones I find dull.

There’s no doubt that Moran is a fantastic writer but I’d say that this is a book to dip into from time to time rather than immerse yourself in.

I had meant to read this for some time as several people I know recommended it. I was happy when it was chosen as this month’s reading group book. But, disappointingly, it’s a thumbs down from me.

I found roughly the first third quite boring. There are many characters introduced and they all seem very two-dimensional and indistinguishable from one another. The style of the novel reminds me of Dan Brown, but without being quite as sensational and with far less description. I found the solution to the central mystery quite ridiculous. Another aspect I didn’t enjoy was the product placement sprinkled all over the place.

The only part of this book I really enjoyed was the confrontation between the hero and the villain. That was pretty exciting and would be a fantastic on screen. I haven’t seen either of the films that have been made of the book but I’m sure they could be very good indeed; there’s a reasonably engaging plot once it picks up. However, it falls short as a book because there’s nothing there to make the reader sympathise with any of the characters because he/she just doesn’t get to know them. There’s more written about what people eat than about what they are really like.

I don’t know how much of this is down to translation but the style of the writing is very dull and wooden. The book tells you a lot about what happened and what people said but not how they said it or what they felt. Perhaps it’s because SL was a journalist so was used to writing in that style? Whatever the reason, this book just didn’t make its mark on me.

This is brilliant; it’s scathing, farcical, satirical and ultimately satisying. Such a well woven tale. I can’t put it better than John Mullan, who spotted way more connections and hints than I did when the book was discussed for the Guardian Book Club.

This is the reading group book for this month. It’s a short book but packed with drama, action and emotion. It evokes childhood memories very well. The central theme of the book is the power of friendship. It reminds me very much of the Stephen King story Stand By Me, right down to the group of friends running away and a vomiting child who sets off several other vomiters.

Some parts of the plot seemed a little far-fetched, for example, the real identity of Tony’s Polish stepfather. Everyone always seemed to be crying, even some of the men. The book doesn’t paint a very appealing picture of life in a small Scottish village in the late 60s. But the pace of the book and the amount packed into it kept me turning the pages. Spit Against the Wind is a very enjoyable read.

Just finished listening to this. I enjoyed it, especially because it was read by Jason Manford himself. When I read Peter Kaye’s and Michael Macintyre’s autobiographies I could hear their voices in my head. With this audiobook I actually could hear his voice and it was fantastic.

I can’t think of any criticisms really. This is a warm, friendly book with several laugh out loud moments. There are a couple of sad parts which are handled well. Something that surprised me was the amount of support he got from Peter Kaye. I think he deserved it; his Live At Manchester Apollo is the funniest show I’ve seen in recent years.