Cityread London

My Dear, I wanted to tell you

by Louisa Young

has been chosen as the Cityread London book this year.  This London-wide celebration of literature is designed to promote reading for pleasure and the whole capital is invited to get reading the same book during April.

Free copies of the book are available from libraries in participating boroughs and there are events and workshops throughout the month.

So pick up your free copy and let us know your thoughts.

To find out more visit www.cityreadlondon.org.uk

World Book Night

World Book Night is on April 23 in the UK, Ireland and the USA.

World Book Night is about giving books and encouraging those who have lost the love of reading – or are yet to gain it

It is a celebration of reading and books, where volunteers gift books to people in their communities and is run by The Reading Agency.

Look at the 20 books that have been chosen for this year – and borrow them from one of our libraries if you are not lucky enough to be given one.

Do you think it is a good choice which will appeal to those who are being encouraged to read?

Have you applied to be a book ‘gifter’? What title did you choose and who will you give them to?

http://www.worldbooknight.org/books

Man Booker Shortlist 2013

We Need New Names   by   NoViolet Bulawayo 

The Luminaries   by   Eleanor Catton

Harvest   by   Jim Crace 

The Lowland   by   Jhumpa Lahiri 

A Tale for the Time Being   by   Ruth Ozeki 

The Testament of Mary   by   Colm Tóibín 

 

The six books on the list could not be more diverse. There are examples from novelists from New Zealand, England, Canada, Ireland and Zimbabwe – each with its own highly distinctive taste. They range in size from the 832 pages of Eleanor Catton’s The Luminaries to the 104-page The Testament of Mary by Colm Tóibín. The times represented stretch from the biblical Middle East (Tóibín) to contemporary Zimbabwe (NoViolet Bulawayo) by way of 19th-century New Zealand (Catton), 1960s India (Jumpha Lahiri), 18th-century rural England (Crace) and modern Tokyo (Ruth Ozeki). The oldest author on the list, Jim Crace, is 67, the youngest (indeed the youngest ever shortlistee), Eleanor Catton, is 28. Colm Tóibín has written more than 15 books, The Luminaries is only Catton’s second. 

 

Winner announced on 15 October

 

http://www.themanbookerprize.com/man-booker-prize-2013

Talk to the author

The Mists of Simla by Balraj Khanna

Rahul Kapoor is about to take his final exams to enter college in Simla in the foothills of the Himalayas, it is 1962,  it is hot, there is cricket to play, love is in the air and then the Chinese army arrive on the borders of North India.

A book to be read in our Indian summer during September and October – fingers crossed.

The author Balraj Khanna will be responding to any comments posted on Text Tribe.

Summertime Reading

What have you been reading this Summer?

What are you planning on reading?

What books have you packed into your suitcase (loaded onto your Kindle)?

Or are you choosing from our e-audio books?

Share your best and worst choices.

The Great Gatsby, by F Scott Fitzgerald

Our next book:

‘There was music from my neighbour’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whispering and the champagne and the stars’.

Go back to a summer in the 1920’s Jazz Age by reading The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald.

Amid the parties, the dancing, the drinking and the glamour – the American Dream went sour.

What went wrong?

Was Daisy Buchanan to blame?

Have you seen the new film? How does it compare to the book?

What book next?

What do you suggest for our next group read?

It should appeal to both sexes and all ages from 18 years +.

It’s got to be readily available and in paperback.

Ideas as comments please.

2013 Women’s Prize for Fiction

Today saw the much anticipated announcement of this year’s shortlist for the Women’s Prize For Fiction 2013 (formerly the Orange Prize).

The shortlist:

• Kate Atkinson – Life After Life
• A M Homes – May We Be Forgiven
• Barbara Kingslover – Flight Behaviour
• Hilary Mantel – Bring Up the Bodies
• Maria Semple – Where’d You Go, Bernadette
• Zadie Smith – NW

The final Awards Ceremony will take place on 5 June 2013. You can find more information about this year’s prize and its nominated authors on the Booktrust website.

Have you read any of the nominated books?
Were there other books on the longlist that you think should have made it through?
If you would like to share your views and experiences of reading any of the titles on the shortlist (or indeed the longlist!) then please do!

[Georgina]

A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks

The book chosen for April is A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks.
OK, it’s April, but it feels like December in the UK!

We’re not the only group reading it – it’s the Cityread London book choice, and book groups and individuals all over London will be reading it at the same time. Find out more about Cityread London, including loads of events for all ages throughout the capital.

Have you read it? Will you read it? And… is it any good?!?

Reading 1984 in 2013

St John’s Wood Library book group have been reading George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984.  

But has Winston Smith’s wrestle with oppression stood the test of time and remained chilling?

And do you hear the term Big Brother and think ‘Oh great, when is that coming back on TV ?’ rather than ‘I really must read 1984’.  

Discuss…