Top Ten Tuesday: Books set during or after WWI

 Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the theme is Books I Enjoyed that Were Outside My Comfort Zone (or books you’d like to read that are outside your comfort zone!) However, it might not be a surprise to see that I am going rogue. It's not the first time and it won't be the last.

Instead, in honour of the fact that today is Remembrance Day which commemorates the end of World War I at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, I am sharing ten books I have read that are either set either in or just after WWI.

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonsen - This book is set in the immediate aftermath of WWI and deals with the impact on society and for those who returned. I could have chosen The Summer Before the War too. I read both of these books earlier this year. (my review)

The House at the River's Edge by Rachel Burton - This book starts just before the outbreak of WWI. It is a dual timeline so we get to see what the legacy of the events that occurred were through the generations. (my review)

The Desert Nurse by Pamela Hart  - Follows a young Australian woman who becomes a nurse in  Egypt during WWI.

 The Vineyards of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell - Another dual timeline, with the historical section being set in the Champagne area of France during WWI. 

The Girl from Paris by Ella Carey- I used to read a lot of Ella Carey's books which are predominantly set in WWII. This one, however, is a WWI story.  (My review)

When I Come Home Again by Caroline Scott - Set in the aftermath of WWI, this story looks at the impact of trauma on two men who both served.  (my review)

In Falling Snow by Mary-Rose MacColl - I loved this book when I read it a number of years ago.  This is another nurse story with a young Australian woman travelling to France to work in the field hospitals in France

The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes - I had forgotten that this was a WWI story. It is set in occupied France and is another dual timeline story. (my review)

Black Diamonds by Kim Kelly - This book tells the story of a young man who goes to war but also of life on the home front with the woman he left behind. (my review)

The Daughters of Mars by Thomas Keneally - Two sisters head off to become nurses in WWI.

Lest we forget.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I read in August over the last 11 years

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Books Guaranteed to Put an End to Your Book Slump (Which books would you recommend to someone (it’s Jana) dealing with the dreaded book slump? No book is grabbing their attention or making them excited to sit down and read and they are suffering for it.) 

I have been there. Back in 2016 and 2017 I had a massive slump. I only read 16 books in 2016 and 11 books in 2017. Given in the past I had been reading 200+ a year it was a big change. The only recommendations I would have is to try reading authors your know you love or rereading favourite books to try and kickstart your reading again. The only other piece of advice I would have is to be kind to yourself. There might be a reason why you just can't at the moment. And your reading will come back in due course. It might look different than it used to, but it will come back.

Rather than do the theme today, I am instead going to share ten books I have read in August over the last eleven years. Why eleven years? You might notice that there is no book for August 2017 which is when I was in my big slump. The year is the year I read them in, not when they were published. 

Funny Story by Emily Henry - 2024 - I would have listened to this on audio!

The Little Paris Toy Shop by Lauren Westwood - 2023 - Man I loved this book so much! (my review)

Elodie's Library of Second Chances by Rebecca Raisin - 2022 - Rebecca Raisin is now an auto-read author for me. (my review)

Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber - 2021 - This was my first book by Heather Webb and I loved it to so much. (my review)

The Switch by Beth O'Leary - 2020 - I liked this one, and yet I still haven't read any more of her books. I do own some of them so I will get to them one day. Maybe. (my review)

The Place on Dalhousie by Melina Marchetta - 2019 - What can I say about Melina Marchetta that I haven't said before. Not much really. 

The Desert Nurse by Pamela Hart - 2018 - I really liked this book. 

The Light Between Oceans by M L Stedman 2016 - When I went to get the cover image for this book I saw that this author is expected to have a new book out next year called A Far Flung Life. I'm excited for it!

First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen - 2015 - I just inhaled Sarah Addison Allen's first few books.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion - 2014 - What a fun read this was!

If I was to hit a slump again, I think the book that I would try rereading first from this list would be The Little Paris Toy Shop, closely followed by Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe and a couple of Rebecca Raisin's books.

I am pleased to see that half of these books are by Aussie authors too. 

Top Ten Tuesday: October Reads

 Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is How My Reading Habits Have Changed Over Time (submitted by Lydia @ https://lydiaschoch.com)

Occasionally I do a look back at books I have read in this month over previous years and this theme seems like it would work for that quite well. So, here are some books that I have read in October over the last few years

2023 - The Christmas Love Letters by Sue Moorcroft - Reading Christmas novels is something I would never have done 10 years ago

2022 - A Year at the French Farmhouse by Gillian Harvey - This was my first Gillian Harvey book, but I have now read a further 6 books by her, and consider her an auto-read author

2021 - The Summer Cottage by Viola Shipman - In October 2021 I read two books by Viola Shipman. I would have read more but his books are a bit tricky to get on e-book here.

2020 - Beach Read by Emily Henry - I did read my first Viola Shipman in October 2020, but it was also the first time I read Emily Henry, who I definitely consider and auto-read author now, or rather auto-listen as I tend to listen to her books.

2019 - The Pearl Sister by Lucinda Riley - Another series I tend to listen to. I really must listen to the last couple of books in this series. They are a big commitment though.

2018 - Lethal White by Robert Galbraith - I really enjoyed the audiobooks of this series, but these days I don't really read this series.

2017 - A Letter from Italy by Pamela Hart - So I have been reading about Italy for a while now

2016 - The Art of Keeping Secrets by Rachael Johns - Even during my biggest reading slump, Rachael Johns was an author I read..

2015- Taken with You by Shannon Stacey - I used to read a lot of books from this author, but this was  the last one I read, and I have no idea why.

2014 - Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins - Back in the day I used to read and love the occasional YA book but it has been a while now

Top Ten Tuesday: Favourite Settings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Favourite Settings

So, in no particular order, here are some of my favourite settings

WWII - The Tolstoy Estate by Steven Conte - I know that there is a lot of talk out there about people being over WWII as a time period, but I still love it, mainly because there is so much variety. You could read about Europe, America, Australia, Japan, about someone on the frontlines or the people left behind or so much more. This book is set in Russia, features a German main character and was one of my favourite books of last year. (review)

WWI - The Desert Nurse by Pamela Hart - Actually,  I do enjoy books set against any big conflicts, so I do enjoy it when I read a good book with a WWI setting. I must find some more.

Bookshops/Libraries  - The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan - There's something very comforting about reading books about books, whether it is characters who love to read or work in bookshops or whatever.

Cafe/Bakery/Restaurants -  Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber - The heat in the kitchen (both due to the cooking and between the people who work there on occasion), the sense of community, the delicious sounding food! What's not to love.

Scotland - The Vanished Days by Susanna Kearsley - I love both historical and contemporary books set in Scotland. It is a place that keeps calling my name.

Paris - The Black Swan of  Paris by Karen Robards - Speaking of places that call my name. One day I will get back there. The most recent book I read set in Paris was this one.

Russia - Tsarina by Ellen Alpsten - I don't read them as much as I should be I do love a good book set in Russia.

Africa - Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi - I have long loved a book set in Africa. I chose this book to spotlight because it is a book that was set in Africa (at least at the beginning) and I read it while I was in Africa

Melbourne - Earthly Delights by Kerry Greenwood - I love it when you get to read a book where you recognise the landmarks and places that are mentioned in a book.

Rural settings - Snowy Mountains Daughter by Alissa Callen - I do love a good rural romance setting. There are so many great books out there. Whole series set in small country towns where you get to know the whole community.

And what's better than one of these settings? When you manage to combine two or more. Bookshop cafe in Scotland...I'm there. Although I am not sure all the combinations would work.

What are your favourite settings?

Six Degrees of Separation: Beezus and Ramona to Digging Up Dirt

Welcome to this month's edition of Six Degrees of Separation, which is a monthly meme hosted by Kate from Books Are My Favourite and Best.  The idea is to start with a specific book and make a series of links from one book to the next using whatever link you can find and see where you end up after six links.  I am also linking this post up with The Sunday Salon, hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

This month's starting point was Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary. I struggled with this as a starting point as, while I have heard of Ramona Quimby, I don't remember reading any of Cleary's books when I was young. I must have done I think but that was a long time ago. I therefore thought about the name Ramona, which led me to my first link.

Ramona Koval is an Australian media personality, who features at many of our local literary festivals, as well as those around the world. She was host of The Morning Show on our national broadcaster, the ABC, and then on The Book Show. She is also a published author, so my first book is going to be By the Book: A Reader's Guide to Life.

When I was looking for some of the interviews that Koval has done over the years, I came across this interview with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wrote Half of a Yellow Sun. I don't read books set in Nigeria all that often anymore, but when I do I find them very interesting. Part of the reason is that my son's father is Nigerian which gives my son some Nigerian heritage.

Another book set in Nigeria that I remember really enjoying is Tiny Sunbirds Far Away by Christie Watson.

Christie Watson also wrote a memoir of her life as a nurse called The Language of Kindness: A Nurses Story

Over the years, I have read many books where the main character is a nurse, but I have chosen The Desert Nurse by Australian author Pamela Hart, set in WWI Egypt.

Pamela Hart's latest book moves away from historical fiction and is called Digging up Dirt, which is a mystery where a body is found when doing home renovations! This seems like a very fitting place to finish seeing as we are renovating our ensuite this weekend. Luckily we didn't find a body underneath the floorboards...just some old bricks and things.

Next month's starting point will be winner of the 2021 Stella Prize The Bass Rock by Evie Wyld.

Top Ten Tuesday: Spring TBR

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.  This week the theme is all about the books that we have on our TBR pile over the coming months.

Here are the books that are coming out soon that I am really looking forward to.

Return to Virgin River by Robyn Carr - Book number 19 in the Virgin River series. This was quite a surprise when it was announced earlier this year. After all, it has been 8 years since book number 18 was released.

Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner - The final book in The Queen's Thief series. I was very excited when I heard about this book. Tonight I realised that I actually haven't read the last book in the series which is an oversight!

Death and the Maiden by Ariana Franklin and Samantha Norman - This is another long awaited novel which will wrap up the series. I loved the early books in this series so hard, and was gutted when Ariana Franklin passed away 10 years ago.

The Survivors by Jane Harper - I am very much looking forward to reading this latest release from Aussie crime author. And today Harper just announced that this book has been optioned for a TV series.

Christmas at the Island Hotel by Jenny Colgan - This is the next book to be set on the island of Mure. I am not necessarily a Christmas book reader but I am going to try and give this one a go!

Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline -This is another book that I am not sure we knew was coming and that we have been waiting for a long time for. Ready Player One came out 10 years ago!

The Charleston Scandal by Pamela Hart - I realy enjoyed the last books I read by this author, and I am excited by the sound of this one!

The Champagne War by Fiona McIntosh - World War I in the champagne region of France - yes please!

Flying the Nest by Rachael Johns - Rachael Johns is my Clayton's author - the author I read when I am not reading books, so I am always excite

The Cartographers Secret by Tea Cooper - I am lucky to have read lot of great historical fiction set in Australia this year, and I am hopeful that this will be another great one!

What books are  you looking forward to over the coming months?