It's short but it's for a good cause - so, 5 stars!

This is an enjoyable book and of course Harry Potter fans will inhale it in about one sitting. I liked it, I thought it was a bit of a cash in but then the money is going to a good cause, so fair enough.

I wonder what J K Rowling's next full length book will be about?

Interesting. Amusing. Ideal for dipping into.

This book is simply a collection of amusing quotations from the famous - and the not so famous. It doesn't really appear to have anything more to do with QI than having the series name on the cover. It's a great book for dipping into but hardly something you'll want to tirelessly read from cover to cover. Ideal as a bathroom reader or to amuse others with.

Overrated

Poor story all around, no surprises here. I suppose the book would make for some sort of (poor) guide to India for someone who has no clue about the country. For everone else its a waste of time.

The book dwells into the lives of the worst possible characters in any society. We don't need the book to tell us, that human society has a few of such kind in whichever country we may live.

Complete waste of time.

Disappointing waste of a story

Disappointing; I expected more but, for me, The Book Thief failed to deliver any lasting impact.

The story covers a few formative years in the life of Liesel, a young, orphaned, German girl growing into her early teens through the Second World War in a town near Munich and not far from Dachau. It chronicles a series of incidents that depict growing relationships in extraordinary circumstances, as the war takes its toll on the everyday life of a provincial town and its citizens.

Liesel's scrapes with Rudy, the young schoolboy classmate next door, for example, and her slow-to-emerge love for her working-class foster family and their secret Jewish hideaway show love and true friendship. There are some wonderfully evocative passages, particularly between Liesel and Rudy, that capture the essence of two young children living every dangerous moment together, prepared to fight to defend each other against older bullies and Hitler youth, and walking home together at the end of every day. Liesel is the eponymous thief, fuelling her yearning to read by acquiring a handful of books by various means.

Perhaps life in such circumstances has to be lived on the surface if you want to survive, it is, after all, at those times when deeper emotions are allowed by the characters to take them over that the greatest danger emerges.

This bold book presents its story in brave fashion, with theatrical asides breaking into the staccato chapters to maintain the high tempo. However, this simple series of events through time, narrated by Death as a character with a strangely human presence, fails to make any real point.

Little is made of the opportunity to explore the tensions felt by ordinary folk as anti-Semitism takes hold of a population. Is Liesel's Papa the only person in Germany to have doubts about a policy of such persecution? Or is it only when it is applied to his personal Jew, the one he has accepted responsibility for, that such horrors become too much to bear? And what of using the more susceptible minds against those who might ask awkward questions, employing the younger generation to pressurize and, in extremis, inform upon their parents, an approach repeated in the ghetto where Jew was forced to inform upon Jew. Such events are ignored in favour of a simpler, sentimental tale which lacks any real punch.

It suffers badly as a result, is a hundred and fifty pages too long and, ultimately, boring.

be depresed at christmas!!!!!

Having read lots of good reviews of this book i sadly have to disagree-only read this if you want to feel depressed this Xmas! You need to sympathise with the main character of Lou for this book to work and i dont think you will an if you enjoy reading about pill taking,adultery,hurt and neglect then this book is for you!!! Read 'If you could see me now' its much much better!

What an awful book

This book was very very depressing, and even the main character was executed before the end.

To write a book about someone, who has absoluteley no luck or enjoyment throughout their life is particularly weird.

In fact, both the main characters suffer indescribably bad fortune throughout their lives, with awful beatings, starvation and continuous suffering from the factional fighting in Afghanistan.

The money left for his rejected daughter by the wealthy father, after he died, never got to her, before she herself died.

How can one enjoy a book of such misery.

Only my expectations of an upturn in their fortunes, kept me reading to the very end, but it never came.

Scarpetta

Finally the author has come to her senses and returned to writing in the manner that made her famous and her books impossible to put down. Though not as good as Body Farm and Point of Origin, it still is a good read. Let's hope the next one will deserve 5 stars.

Page turner

I studied this period (and this battle in particular) during my history degree in the early 90's and decided that I would delve back in time to remind myself what this was all about. Azincourt was my companion on a return flight to Bahrain recently and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Historically interesting, full of action and detail it really had me turning pages through both flights! When I landed at Gatwick I was disappointed to have to find another book to read. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a passing interest in medieval history, but it's easily accessible to absolutely anyone who enjoys as good action adventure.

Frustration-Nation.

30 pages in i thought to myself ( ok. i can put up with this. this isnt that bad, the plot is warming up, even if the characters are annoying--lets see where this goes) It does pick up. it becomes mildly enjoyable......but then 2 thirds of the way through the story-- disaster strikes;the plot is leached of new ideas, inventiveness is abandoned just when new ideas would keep the final 90 pages or so enjoyable too.

p.s. i am not Prattchets biggest fan, nor am i a hater.

Drop everything - read this book!

Oh my goodness, just finished The Kite Runner! The most epically tragic book I have ever read. My heart feels abit broken.....

After reading this book I just wanted to scoop all the characters up and tell them it will be ok. I had tears in my eyes throughout,this really is a very special book.

The Shack

After much hype and worldwide acclaim, I felt duty bound to get my hands on a copy of"The Shack". Just as the review before mine, I broke a lifelong rule, and abandoned my copy having read half of it (this is extremely rare as I persevere with any book with the hope that it will prove worth the time and effort).
I would never discourage anyone from reading it, but it proved a useless task for me. I always judge books by my own view, and take, of the content. But I am sorry, I have never read so much nonsense, and unbelievably naive dribble in a very long time. And I feel so let down, for believing the hype, and getting no substance whatsoever in return. And I so, so wanted this book to be all that it promised.

Frustration-Nation.

30 pages in i thought to myself ( ok. i can put up with this. this isnt that bad, the plot is warming up, even if the characters are annoying--lets see where this goes) It does pick up. it becomes mildly enjoyable......but then 2 thirds of the way through the story-- disaster strikes;the plot is leached of new ideas, inventiveness is abandoned just when new ideas would keep the final 90 pages or so enjoyable too.

p.s. i am not Prattchets biggest fan, nor am i a hater.

Light entertainment for a cold winter's day

First, let me say this - I'm not normally a fan of 'famliy' saga type novels, and the only reason I purchsed this book was that (a) it was in the sale and (b) I fancied trying something different from my usual list of 'reads'. Secondly, having now read the book over the Christmas break it is fairly clear this book probably isn't going to change your life. However, I wasn't disappointed by the book.

It's a bit on the predictable side, and split between three main characters but it leads you gently by the hand through their different lives. It is paced well and has enough in each chapter to keep you wanting to read the next and the story is as charming as the picture on the front cover. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone looking for a deep and meaningful read but if you fancy a bit of light holiday reading, which isn't too mindless, then I would certainly suggest trying it. It's the sort of book I'd lend to my Mum and I would certainly keep an eye out for toerh Kate Morton books in the sales.

Iconic, influential, inimitable... and intermittently irritating

First off,"Watchmen" is an awesome product. Chapter 1, especially the opening two pages (closing with"That's quite a drop") have definite wow factor. Throughout, the multitextured storyline by Alan Moore and the terrific artwork by Dave Gibbons surprise, intrigue and entertain. The ambitious concept of trying to give the comic heroes of the 1940s both a back story and a future comes off pretty well. The characterisation and the sombre mood are both exquisite.

So what's not to like? First, the resolution is, compared with the complexity of most of the storyline, daft. Villains (or heroes) who say:"If we do X, Y will happen" are always suspect. Veidt's big play, and the world's simplistic reaction, don't live up to the rest of the book. I also found some of the side stories illustrating the horrors of the world a bit too discursive. So only four stars.

Pros: drop-dead brilliant product. Cons: a bit dated and occasionally long-winded.

Heartwarming

I have not read any of Tremain's work before and found this book very moving. Living in London I could picture many of the places talked about, but even without this, Tremain creates a clear picture in your head with her words, even if it is not something you wish to imagine e.g. a person sleeping on the streets. I found myself at times not wanting to keep reading because the subject matter was so poignant, but had to, to get to a happier place in the novel before I fell asleep at night. This book was gripping in that respect. I have reccomended this book to other people who have also enjoyed it and I certainly reccomend it to others as it may change your mindset.

Inspiration for the novel?

I thought this was a funny book, though there were some missed opportunities for comedy scenes. Three years seemed too short to change your life so radically - five years or more would've been more realistic.

I wondered whether Sophie Kinsella was influenced by Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. Imagine the new Mrs de Winter waking to find she is Rebecca, whilst retaining her own character. I'd love to know if this was an influence - doubt whether I'll ever find out!

One of the best series about

I wasn't to sure when I picked the first book up, but then I read it and then promptly bought the next one, and so on. This series is a must for anyone who enjoys reading.

A Beautiful Curiosity

P D James has always been a great stylist. She writes with a beautifully unfussy elegance; her characters are always given depth and her descriptions of landscapes and buildings display a rare gift for the telling detail and the striking metaphor, but in this, her latest work, the detail and the fine writing somehow take centre-stage at the expense of the plot. The murder mystery - the death of the investigative journalist Rhoda Gradwyn while staying in a private clinic - is almost incidental to the descriptions of the gothic pile in which the sinister events take place, the people inside the building and the haunting circle of stones just outside the grounds. It's a curious state of affairs, especially when one considers that the murder mystery is essentially solved without too much of an input from Dalgliesh and his colleagues.

And yet, for all the strangeness of a murder mystery in which the solving of the murder is almost an incidental concern, this is an excellent novel. James is brilliant at portraying human beings in all their messy, confused, emotionally bewildered complexity. Rhoda Gradwyn isn't at all likeable, and yet the scene in which Dalgleish has to break the news of Gradwyn's murder to her mother is incredibly moving. Commander Dalgleish himself always remains, in public, the model of quiet control and authority and yet the news that his fiance has recently seen an old flame sends him tumbling into the realms of jealousy and self-doubt. No one is portrayed in black and white, everyone is a shade of grey.

I've read most of James' books and I've always found them thought-provoking, beautifully written and enjoyable. They make fabulous comfort-reading, the sort of books one reads over the Christmas holidays, and I always come away from her books with a renewed affection for Dalgleish and an increased regard for James' qualities as a writer. I suspect The Black Tower will always be my favourite among her novels, simply because it is one of the most beautifully sustained reflections on the fragility and beauty of life that I have ever read, but each of her novels offers something to admire and The Private Patient is no exception. Forget the almost incidental nature of the crime's solution and instead just wallow in a masterclass of character, atmosphere and descriptive writing. P D James is one of our best writers and while I wish she had broken out of the crime genre a little more often (I wish she had written a ghost story because with her gifts for conveying an unsettling atmosphere I'm sure it would have been superb) I still look forward to each new novel from her in a way I rarely do for other authors. Buy a copy, settle in for a few winter nights and enjoy.

Majestic

A little gem, perfect for a cosy afternoon read with tea and buns, and the voice of Alan Bennett talking in your head

A great gift for any Dr Who fan!

My son aged 10 is heavily into Dr Who and was dying to get this annual. He was impressed by this new one and found it both interesting and entertaining. Although a cheap gift he rated it above some of the PS2 games he was given!!! Would recommend this annual for any Dr Who fan.