The Hound of the Baskervilles

Ah... gaze upon the beauty of this cover. It's another one of my Penguin Clothbound Classics and it is beautiful (also perfectly proportioned to fit into my handbag). This is obviously a story that is very familiar and now part of popular culture, but it is a story that I have never actually read before. In fact I don't think that I have ever read a Sherlock Holmes adventure before. I was surprised at how much of the story went by with SH not being present given that this is one of his most famous cases! Anyway, I enjoyed reading this book and the pace at which the adventure unfolds over the 160 pages or so. Not much was a surprise in this story for the reasons mentioned above but it was an enjoyable read nonetheless.

Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Another happy coincidence that this month's book club choice also happens to be on my list of 1000 novels everyone should read. This was an interesting book as it is written from the point of view of one character and written at different stages of her life - including the fetal stage, in fact, the book starts off at the moment of conception. I found this book interesting, at least at first, in that every second chapter is a footnote that is referenced in the previous chapter. I say that I found it interesting at first, as the academic in me was tempted to read the footnote as soon as it was referenced in the preceding chapter, but after four chapters (and four footnotes) I found this format a little tedious. The novel follows the story of Ruby Lennox, a Yorkshire girl, and her family through the highs and lows of family life after World War II. The footnotes act as a way of delving into the families past, looking into the life of Ruby's great grandmother, grandmother and mother, whilst the chapters follow Ruby's life in it's different stages. I don't think this will be a book that I will revisit, and it will be interesting to see what the other ladies think of it.

Hard Times

A very interesting book that explores ideas around an industrialising Britain and the rise of the newly rich. Again a very interesting character study from Charles Dickens. Very short entry today - I read the beautiful Penguin Clothbound Classics edition which is simply gorgeous! Long day - stressed... tired...