I'm not going to be embarrassed by this
Feb. 8th, 2008 06:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pebblerockerI'm putting EVERY book I read on the book list, not just ones that make me look cool. Up until now it hasn't been hard to keep to that plan, but it's tempting to leave a couple out of this lot.
I See Red: the shocking story of a battle against The Warehouse by Judith Bell
Bell's gas cylinder company was bankrupted by The Warehouse pulling out of a contract and engaging in some shady dealings against her. Turns out their commitment to NZ-made products is mainly hot air. It was an interesting read and explained a few concepts I hadn't managed to pick up by osmosis (economics is not on my exciting subjects radar). Also I now have an idea of what people are talking about in all those discussions about Wal-Mart: that's what The Warehouse is imitating.
Tapestry of the Boar by Nigel Tranter
I read every Tranter book I can get my hands on. He's written about ninety of them, all set in Scotland at various historical periods. This one was set in the twelfth century, a nice change after reading several about Mary, Queen of Scots and James I. The monarch of the time was Malcolm IV, who comes across as a bit of a soft king, not a good leader and in poor health for much of his reign, but a nice young chap anyway and good at founding hospitals and monasteries.
Daja's Book and Briar's Book by Tamora Pierce
The Circle of Magic series is really enjoyable. I think the quality of writing has improved since the Alanna books. Now I've finished these I can carry on with the same characters, whom I rather like, in The Circle Opens.
Six Cousins at Mistletoe Farm by Enid Blyton
My mother was getting rid of a pile of books and I wanted to go through them before they were biffed. All the Enid Blytons were in the pile, so I rescued them. Can't get rid of all the Famous Fives! I did pass on the Secret Sevens, I never enjoyed them as much--too many characters in such short books, couldn't remember who was who and most of them didn't get a chance to develop personalities. There were assorted other Blytons in there too, including Six Cousins--plenty of character development in this one, despite the six major characters. Jolly good!
Six Cousins Again by Enid Blyton
The cover pictures for these two are in a very different style to the illustrations inside; they must have been done for the 1987 reissue. This one's cover shows a smashing Christmas dinner scene with silly hats, crackers, nuts in the shell and a big flaming Christmas pudding, and on the table is a little toy car, obviously from one of the crackers. Looking closely I saw that it was Noddy in his yellow car!
Learning the Ropes by Eric Newby (Author's name apt for the title?)
In 1938 Newby sailed around the world in one of the last commercial sailing ships, a steel four-master on the grain trade between South Australia and the British Isles, at the time the largest sailing vessel in the world. He was on board as an apprentice seaman, and found time to take wonderful photos when it wasn't his watch. The book is full of black and white photos of sails and rigging, decks and high seas, crewmen relaxing and crewmen working two hundred feet up the mast.
I See Red: the shocking story of a battle against The Warehouse by Judith Bell
Bell's gas cylinder company was bankrupted by The Warehouse pulling out of a contract and engaging in some shady dealings against her. Turns out their commitment to NZ-made products is mainly hot air. It was an interesting read and explained a few concepts I hadn't managed to pick up by osmosis (economics is not on my exciting subjects radar). Also I now have an idea of what people are talking about in all those discussions about Wal-Mart: that's what The Warehouse is imitating.
Tapestry of the Boar by Nigel Tranter
I read every Tranter book I can get my hands on. He's written about ninety of them, all set in Scotland at various historical periods. This one was set in the twelfth century, a nice change after reading several about Mary, Queen of Scots and James I. The monarch of the time was Malcolm IV, who comes across as a bit of a soft king, not a good leader and in poor health for much of his reign, but a nice young chap anyway and good at founding hospitals and monasteries.
Daja's Book and Briar's Book by Tamora Pierce
The Circle of Magic series is really enjoyable. I think the quality of writing has improved since the Alanna books. Now I've finished these I can carry on with the same characters, whom I rather like, in The Circle Opens.
Six Cousins at Mistletoe Farm by Enid Blyton
My mother was getting rid of a pile of books and I wanted to go through them before they were biffed. All the Enid Blytons were in the pile, so I rescued them. Can't get rid of all the Famous Fives! I did pass on the Secret Sevens, I never enjoyed them as much--too many characters in such short books, couldn't remember who was who and most of them didn't get a chance to develop personalities. There were assorted other Blytons in there too, including Six Cousins--plenty of character development in this one, despite the six major characters. Jolly good!
Six Cousins Again by Enid Blyton
The cover pictures for these two are in a very different style to the illustrations inside; they must have been done for the 1987 reissue. This one's cover shows a smashing Christmas dinner scene with silly hats, crackers, nuts in the shell and a big flaming Christmas pudding, and on the table is a little toy car, obviously from one of the crackers. Looking closely I saw that it was Noddy in his yellow car!
Learning the Ropes by Eric Newby (Author's name apt for the title?)
In 1938 Newby sailed around the world in one of the last commercial sailing ships, a steel four-master on the grain trade between South Australia and the British Isles, at the time the largest sailing vessel in the world. He was on board as an apprentice seaman, and found time to take wonderful photos when it wasn't his watch. The book is full of black and white photos of sails and rigging, decks and high seas, crewmen relaxing and crewmen working two hundred feet up the mast.
