A selection of quotes and pictures to represent March’s reading:

commonplace book
noun
a book into which notable extracts from other works are copied for personal use.

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“One of the difficulties of mankind is that they have the vice of inventiveness. It would be an easier world for dragons if this were not so, or if it could be kept within bounds, used for the better working of gold, setting of jewels, or such trading activities as bringing treasure from far countries within reach of dragons.”

Travel Light by Naomi Mitchison (1952)

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For a moment, standing beneath the wide skies and the vista of fields and ancient hedgerows exactly the same as they had been centuries before, she had no longer been in the present day, instead caught up in the turmoil her ancestors had lived through. Love longed for, and love lost. With her feet placed firmly in both times, Paige was able to feel the heartache and anger in both.

The Alchemist’s Secret by Clare Marchant (2026)

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‘Everyone is an artist deep down inside; people are creative by their very nature. That’s something Lionel hates to admit because he likes to think he’s special, but I think if we can open up art to everyone that can only be a good thing.’

The Strawberry House by Rachel Burton (2026)

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You had so many ways of deciding which way to live your life. It made his head spin to think of them. It hurt his heart to think that he had decided on the wrong way.

A thing seemed important until there was something more important.

West by Carys Davies (2018)

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‘To be able to love is a luxury,’ he said. ‘That’s why it is always balanced exactly with loss. It is another of life’s great justices.’

The Infamous Gilberts by Angela Tomaski (2026)

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‘You know as well as I do that the world is in a mess and floundering deeper every day. We have only a precarious hold on the forces we do liberate – and problems that we ought to be trying to solve, we neglect.’

Trouble with Lichen by John Wyndham (1960)

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‘I think Miss Juniper would acknowledge we do these young women a better service by forewarning them of what awaits them in the world they will soon set out in than by leaving them ignorant of it and allowing them to be guided only by novels. There is a class of people amongst whom they will move that do not always face the justice they should, and it is important they understand that.’

The Cromarty Library Circle by Shona MacLean (2026)

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Yes, she thought, going to war had solved so much, it had left things in abeyance, it had meant that all discussion had been postponed, it had made compromise impossible, but in solving what it did, it had solved too much. It had solved everything so there was nothing left.

The News from Dublin by Colm Tóibín (2026)

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‘There is no one right way to do things,’ she said seriously. ‘Life looks different for everybody and just because something you want hasn’t happened yet, doesn’t mean it won’t. There are a thousand different stories waiting in your life, Thea, and you still have time to tell whichever one you want. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.’

A Remedy for Fate by MA Kuzniar (2026)

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My favourite books read in March:

The Strawberry House and West

Authors read for the first time in March:

Rachel Burton, Naomi Mitchison, Clare Marchant, Angela Tomaski

Places visited in my March reading:

England, France, US, Ireland, Spain, Argentina, Czech Republic, Scotland

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Reading notes: In March I managed to take part in both Reading Ireland and Reading Wales, with books by Colm Tóibín and Carys Davies respectively. I also completed my Classics Club Spin book, Trouble with Lichen, ahead of the deadline. More importantly, I enjoyed most of the books I read in March, although the Angela Tomaski took me a while to get into, and I had mixed feelings about the Shona MacLean as well.

In April I’m looking forward to 1961 Club which will be hosted by Karen of Kaggsy’s Bookish Ramblings and Simon of Stuck in a Book. I also have some NetGalley books to catch up with, so it will be another busy month.

How was March for you? Do you have any plans for your April reading?