What are you reading at the moment

I enjoyed Rosamund Lupton`s Sister, a different sort of thriller. Am now reading Afterwards, also by Rosamund Lupton. A mother runs into a burning school to rescue her daughter, they`re both seriously hurt, but come out of their sick bodies to wander around and try to find out who torched the school.

numberplease - that's just your type of book...!! I'm reading 'Major Pettigrew's Last Stand' - lovely!

Ariadne - thank you! I've just finished Kent Haruf's 'Plainsong' following your recommendation. A great book - right up my street.

I read 'Major Pettigrew's Last Stand' a while ago, greenmossgiel - I absolutely loved it! Refreshingly different.

Unusually for me, I have two books on the go. I'm reading 'The best Marigold Hotel' by Deborah Moggach, after downloading it on the Kindle to take on holiday last week. Having six grandchildren with us as part of the family gathering, meant that I didn't do much reading. So far I am finding it different to the film, but enjoying it none the less.
I'm also reading 'A Tree grows in Brooklyn' by Betty Smith. This was first published in the 1940s and is my book club choice for this month. I've got nine days to read over 400 more pages, so I think I will have to concentrate on it and stop flitting between the two.

Afterwards was really good, if terribly sad, I thought it was even better than Rosamund Lupton`s other book, Sister, which I also enjoyed.

Just finished A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel on newly-aquired Kindle. Long but enjoyable tale of three main characters and their activities in the French Revolution of the late 18th century. Lots of people in it and needed going back to the list of characters at the start to keep up with who each person was. I found that a bit of a pain on the Kindle. At the moment think I still prefer the feel of a book.
Any tips on Kindle use would be appreciated.

Am just starting War Horse, by Michael Morpurgo.

I've just started Alice Munro's New Selected Stories. I've always thoroughly enjoyed her writing.

DavidH22 this is the same problem that I have with a Kindle. I'm afraid that, although I love my Kindle, I do keep a slip of paper or notebook with it to write down a "who's who" or family tree. Although the search facility can be useful just to look up one name when you suddenly think - "who is that?"

number - I loved War Horse. Read it before I saw the stage show so that I knew what it was all about. Since then I've read lots of his other books too. Looking forward to my GC being a bit older so that they will appreciate them too. I've recently finished Kasper, Prince of Cats and Born to Run.
I want to read The Mozart Question but think that's going to be quite moving and poignant

I'm getting used to the search facility on kindle (at last). It's getting easier.

But I would still rather have an easily accessible list of characters.

MaureenM 'A Tree Grows In Brooklyn' is one of my all-time favourite books.

I'm reading 'Pereira Maintains' by Antonio Tabucchi which is my book-club read for next month. I've had it from the library for weeks and it's due back soon so I'd better get on and finish it ... luckily it's a short book. So far, it's very good.

It's set in Portugal in 1938.

'The last letter from your lover' by Jojo Moyes. I loved it and also cried. It is definately not chic lit, which you would believe from the book cover.It is well written and part of the story is set in the 1960's. It is termed a romantic novel, which I suppose it is, in its way. Don't let that turn you off. I rarely read so called romantic fiction so this was a treat.

Anybody missing Mary Wesley? A Prue Leith, who I never knew wrote novels, turned up on the Daily Kindle Deal recently, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Same sort of style, but with more fashion, which was fun.

On an entirely different note I am reading Cables from Kabul by Sherard Cowper-Coles, an account of his time as Our Man in Kabul. There is a touch of Jennifer's Diary about it, in that everyone is "highly intelligent" or " extremely efficient" but I suppose that goes with being a diplomat.. The stories of what goes on behind the scenes make one want to weep. All that hard work, all those good intentions, and yet there seems to be almost nothing we can do that actually helps the Afghans to find a way of running their own country in a way that brings them peace and prosperity.

I am reading 'Millions like us' by Virginia Nicholson, which I read about on GN. It is absolutely riveting!
As a child born just before war broke out, I remember the Sheffield Blitz and the Anderson shelter in the back garden. I have already read the books by the diarists quoted throughout, especially 'Nella Last's War' but there was so much more happening than can be told in one diary and all of that is covered in 'Millions Like Us'

Claire Tomalin's "Life of Dickens." Still don't like him though

I'm reading 'The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet' ;all about dutch traders in 18th century Japan...while waiting for my library reservations of 'The Kashmir Shawl' and 'Major Pettigrew's last stand' to become available..

Thanks expatmaggie and ganja for ideas, I have just orderd the Nicholson and Prue Leith's "The Gardener" for my Kindle. I much enjoyed Nicholson's "Singled Out" a couple of years ago, so hope this is as good.

Hitch-22 - it is Christopher Hitchens' autobiography. It is very interesting - he certainly got about! He has some interesting insights into modern history and some of the recent international and political events and comes across as a compassionate and thinking man.

It is not a light read though.

Finished War Horse, it may be a children`s book, but it had me in tears, much in the way that Black Beauty did years ago. Next on my pile is The Calling of the Grave, by Simon Beckett, should be alright, I usually like his books.

I have just discovered one disadvantage of a Kindle - I have been reading That Woman (life of Wallis Simpson by Anne Sebba) and thought, according to the sliding scale thingy at the foot of the "page", I had about 40% of the book to go - strange I thought, the Duke of W has died and I can't believe there's a lot of mileage in the rest of Wallis's life - sure enough,there wasn't, there must be nearly as many pages of footnotes as of book!
It's quite an interesting book, not great though, and didn't quite live up to my expectations.

My first post here: I am re-reading 'The Dressmaker" by Rosalie Ham. an Australian author.

"Dungatar is a small town like any other in the Victorian wheatlands - except that the woman dress like paris models.."

'The Dressmaker" is an Australian Gothic Novel of love, hate and haute couture.'

I'm reading 'The Elephant Whisperer' on my new Kindle.