Top Ten Tuesday: Books to make you laugh (or at least smile)

April 19, 2016September 26, 201633 Comments

I wasn’t going to take part in this week’s Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish) because I didn’t think I read enough funny books to be able to make a list…but when I stopped to give it some thought, I actually didn’t have a problem coming up with ten titles.

I have concentrated here on books which were specifically written to be funny or which contain lots of amusing scenes, rather than just one or two funny moments (the list would have been far too long in that case). Let me know if you’ve read any of these or if you can think of any more.

1. Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome – This tale of three friends (and dog) who take a disastrous boat trip along the River Thames had to be top of my list!

2. Three Men on the Bummel by Jerome K. Jerome – Our old friends, J, Harris and George get together again for a tour of Germany in this sequel to Three Men in a Boat.

3. Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit by P.G. Wodehouse – I could have included other Wodehouse books here too, but this Jeeves and Wooster novel is the only one I have reviewed on my blog.

4. Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons – I didn’t find this parody of the British rural novel quite as funny as other people have but it still deserves to be included here.

5. The Convenient Marriage by Georgette Heyer – Many of Heyer’s novels feature a bit of comedy and some witty dialogue, but this is one I remember being particularly funny.

6. The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde – This light and entertaining satire is possibly the least ghostly ghost story I’ve ever read!

7. The Adventures of Alianore Audley by Brian Wainwright – Some knowledge of the Wars of the Roses might be needed to fully appreciate this tale of a 15th century Yorkist spy.

8. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes – Who would have thought such an old book could be so funny? The humour doesn’t always work but when it does it’s hilarious.

9. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett – A lovely, witty novel about the Queen’s love of reading.

10. The Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow by Jerome K. Jerome – Yes, it’s another book by Jerome. This collection of essays is not as funny as the Three Men books, but will still make you smile.

Have you read any funny books recently? What would be on your list?

Ten Reading Resolutions for 2016

January 5, 201627 Comments

It’s been a while since I last took part in Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish) but this week’s topic is one I was going to post about anyway: my plans and resolutions for 2016.

1. Make more time for re-reads. Only one of my 2015 books was a re-read (Jane Eyre, which I haven’t written about yet) and this makes me feel sad because I used to get so much enjoyment from reading my favourite books over and over again. I’m not going to set a target in terms of numbers, but I do want to re-read more than just one book this year!

2. Make progress with my Classics Club list. My target date for finishing my list is 10th March 2017 and I still have 32/100 books to read, so I really need to make a lot of progress this year. I will be going through the list to see if I still actually want to read all of the books on it and might decide to make some changes (one thing I like about the Classics Club is that you don’t need to stick rigidly to your original list and can add or remove books at any time).

3. Read books towards the Women’s Classic Literature Event. There’s some overlap here with my previous resolution, as this is an event hosted by the Classics Club. I already read three women’s classics towards the end of 2015, but there are a lot more that I’m hoping to read in 2016.

4. Continue to work through the series that I’m in the middle of reading. I’m very good at starting them but not so good at remembering to continue with them. Some of the many series I would like to make progress with in 2016 include the Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian, Amelia Peabody by Elizabeth Peters, Temeraire by Naomi Novik, Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes by Laurie R King, The Accursed Kings by Maurice Druon, Shardlake by CJ Sansom and the Pallisers by Anthony Trollope.

5. Continue to work on my own projects i.e. Ten from the TBR and Reading the Walter Scott Prize. I have found that ‘challenges’ don’t really work for me (the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge is the only one I’ve signed up for this year, apart from the Women’s Classic Literature Event) and I like to allow myself plenty of time and flexibility, so I’m happier with my own personal projects, for which I haven’t set any deadlines.

6. Read the books that I really want to read! There are a lot of books that I’ve been wanting to read for years and am sure I’m going to love, but that I’ve been avoiding reading because I’m ‘saving them for later’ or ‘want to have something to look forward to’. I’m aware of how silly this is, so 2016 is going to be the year I finally read those long-anticipated books!

7. Be more ruthless about abandoning books I’m not enjoying. Sometimes I can tell almost immediately that a book is not for me, but sometimes I’m not sure and decide to keep going in the hope that it will get better – and then even when it doesn’t improve I still struggle on to the end.

8. Try to take more notes while reading. Even if I write about a book immediately after finishing it, I often struggle to remember exactly what I wanted to say about it. Better note-taking would definitely help, but once I become swept away by a good book I don’t like having to interrupt the flow of my reading. I’m not sure what to do about this but will give it some thought.

9. Continue trying to blog regularly, but don’t worry if I ‘get behind’ or if I don’t manage to post as often as I would like to. The focus of my blog in 2016 will still be books and reading and I will still be aiming to write about every book I read (as the original purpose of my blog was to keep a record of my reading). I will be continuing with my monthly Historical Musings posts this year as I enjoy writing them and I think we’ve had some good discussions in the comment sections. I’ve also settled on a new format for my end-of-month summary posts which I think will be more interesting for me to write and for you to read!

10. Try to make every book I read a potential favourite book of the year. I know this won’t realistically happen, but it’s what we would all like, isn’t it? Hopefully Resolutions 1-7 will help with this!

Do you have any resolutions for 2016?

Top Ten Tuesday: Newly acquired books

July 14, 201512 Comments

This is only the second time I’ve taken part in Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish). I enjoy reading other people’s weekly lists but never seem to have time to put my own together. When I saw that this week’s topic was The Last Ten Books That Came Into My Possession I thought it might be an easy one to join in with as I’ve acquired quite a lot of new books recently!

From the library:

1. Dacre’s War by Rosemary Goring – This is the sequel to After Flodden which I read last year. It’s been getting good reviews and I’m looking forward to reading it.

Review copies:

2. Kit by Marina Fiorato – I received this from Bookbridgr for a blog tour. I’ve previously enjoyed two other books by this author and can’t wait to start this one.

3. The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley – The second book in Lucinda Riley’s Seven Sisters series. I loved the first one and am hoping this one will be just as good.

4. 1066: What Fates Impose by G.K. Holloway – I was offered a copy of this book by the author and as this is a period of history I’m very interested in at the moment I was pleased to accept.

Bought second-hand:

5. Daughter of Siena by Marina Fiorato – The day after I received the copy of Kit I found another of Marina Fiorato’s novels in the second-hand bookshop.

6. Queen of Silks by Vanora Bennett – I’ve read one of Vanora Bennett’s other books (Midnight in St Petersburg) and wasn’t sure if I really wanted to read any more of her work. This one is set during the Wars of the Roses, though, so when I saw a cheap copy on the shelf I couldn’t resist!

7. The Love Knot by Elizabeth Chadwick – I love Elizabeth Chadwick so I was pleased to find one of her books that I haven’t read yet.

Ebooks:

8. The Odd Women by George Gissing – I downloaded a free copy to my Kindle as this is one of the books I’m planning to read for my Ten from the TBR project.

9. Imperium by Robert Harris – This is set in Ancient Rome which is a period I’ve been wanting to read more about. I have already read the first two chapters and am enjoying it so far.

10. Fortune Made His Sword by Martha Rofheart – I don’t know much about this historical novel from the 1970s, but it was free on Amazon last week so I thought it would be worth downloading.

Well, they are the last ten books that came into my possession! Have you read any of them? And have you acquired any interesting new books recently?

Six in Six: the 2015 edition!

July 4, 2015July 13, 201513 Comments

Jo’s meme is the perfect way to look back at the books we’ve read during the first six months of the year. The idea is to choose six categories and for each one list six books that you’ve read so far this year. Six in six! If you need inspiration, Jo has provided a selection of category headings from previous years but you can also create new ones to fit your own reading.

I’ve been musing over my categories and lists for a few weeks now and this is what I’ve come up with:

Six books with a person’s name in the title:

1. Fair Helen by Andrew Greig
2. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
3. Edwin: High King of Britain by Edoardo Albert
4. Ross Poldark by Winston Graham
5. Mary of Carisbrooke by Margaret Campbell Barnes
6. Jakob’s Colours by Lindsay Hawdon

Six books set during a war:

1. If You Go Away by Adele Parks (World War I)
2. Girl at War by Sara Novic (Yugoslav Wars)
3. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (World War II)
4. The Royalist by S.J. Deas (English Civil War)
5. Red Rose, White Rose by Joanna Hickson (Wars of the Roses)
6. HMS Surprise by Patrick O’Brian (Napoleonic Wars)

Six books that are not novels:

1. The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy (short stories)
2. The Gothic: A Very Short Introduction by Nick Groom (non-fiction)
3. The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (play)
4. Rebellion by Peter Ackroyd (non-fiction)
5. Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand (play)
6. The Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow by Jerome K. Jerome (essays)

Six books with a mystery to investigate:

1. Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
2. Death in Kashmir by MM Kaye
3. One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
4. Dark Fire by CJ Sansom
5. Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton
6. The Silent Boy by Andrew Taylor

Six books about historical women:

1. The Chosen Queen by Joanna Courtney (Edyth of Mercia)
2. The Child from the Sea by Elizabeth Goudge (Lucy Walter)
3. The King’s Curse by Philippa Gregory (Margaret Pole)
4. Rebel Queen by Michelle Moran (Rani Lakshmibai)
5. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (Grace Marks)
6. An Accidental Tragedy by Roderick Graham (Mary, Queen of Scots)

Six cities visited:

1. Rome – City of God by Cecelia Holland
2. London – The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber
3. New York City – The Fatal Flame by Lyndsay Faye
4. Florence – Romola by George Eliot
5. Paris – Pure by Andrew Miller
6. Venice – The Glassblower of Murano by Marina Fiorato

Well, that’s my six in six for this year! Will you be posting yours?

The Classics Club 50 Question Survey

November 16, 201422 Comments

I can never resist a survey and The Classics Club posted this tempting 50 Question one last week. After spending a few days musing over my answers I think I’m ready!

1. Share a link to your club list.
My list

2. When did you join The Classics Club? How many titles have you read for the club?
I joined in March 2012 and have read 42/100 books so far.

3. What are you currently reading?
For the Classics Club: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. This has been my long-term reading project for 2014 – I started in January and hope to be finished before Christmas.
Non-club related: Assassin’s Quest by Robin Hobb (which I’m loving; I think I’ve found a new favourite author) and The Hollow Crown by Dan Jones, a non-fiction book on the Wars of the Roses.

4. What did you just finish reading and what did you think of it?
Phineas Finn, the second of Anthony Trollope’s Palliser novels. I loved it, though maybe not quite as much as the first in the series, Can You Forgive Her?

5. What are you reading next? Why?
I’ll be starting Bellarion by Rafael Sabatini soon as it’s my Classics Spin book.

6. Best book you’ve read so far with the club, and why?
I enjoyed my re-read of The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and my first read of its sequel, Twenty Years After, but I also loved A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Oh, and Scaramouche by Sabatini. And The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. You didn’t expect me just to pick one, did you?

7. Book you most anticipate (or, anticipated) on your club list?
Probably The Vicomte de Bragelonne by Alexandre Dumas and Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne du Maurier, given how much I’ve enjoyed everything else I’ve read by those two authors.

8. Book on your club list you’ve been avoiding, if any? Why?
East of Eden by John Steinbeck, though I’m not sure why I’ve been avoiding it. I know a lot of other bloggers have read it and loved it, but I seem to have convinced myself I probably won’t like it.

9. First classic you ever read?
I read lots of classics as a child and can’t remember which was first, but it could have been something like The Secret Garden, Black Beauty, The Wind in the Willows, Alice in Wonderland or The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

10. Toughest classic you ever read?
Clarissa by Samuel Richardson! It was not necessarily a difficult book to read, but I struggled with the slow pace and the repetitiveness. There were parts of the book that I loved, but there were also times when I just didn’t think I could go on!

11. Classic that inspired you? or scared you? made you cry?
Inspired me: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Scared me: Ligeia by Edgar Allan Poe. Made me cry: Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy.

12. Longest classic you’ve read? Longest classic left on your club list?
The longest I’ve read is probably Clarissa – I think it’s slightly longer than War and Peace, which I’ve also read. The longest book left on my list (after I’ve finished Don Quixote) is Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset.

13. Oldest classic you’ve read? Oldest classic left on your club list?
The Epic of Gilgamesh must surely be the oldest I’ve read. It’s believed to be 4,000 years old! Most of the classics left on my club list are from the 19th and 20th centuries, but The Romance of the Forest by Ann Radcliffe is from 1791.

14. Favorite biography about a classic author you’ve read — or, the biography on a classic author you most want to read, if any?
I don’t read a lot of biographies but I did enjoy Claire Tomalin’s Charles Dickens: A Life. I want to read her biographies of Thomas Hardy and Jane Austen at some point too.

15. Which classic do you think EVERYONE should read? Why?
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas as it’s my favourite classic and I would like everyone to love it as much as I do!

16. Favorite edition of a classic you own, if any?
The beautiful hardback copy of A Christmas Carol with colour illustrations which I was given for Christmas as a child.

17. Favorite movie adaption of a classic?
I have a few: To Kill a Mockingbird, Rebecca and Gone with the Wind.

18. Classic which hasn’t been adapted yet (that you know of) which you very much wish would be adapted to film.
Something by Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone and The Woman in White have been adapted before (though not recently) but I think both No Name and Armadale would make great films!

19. Least favorite classic? Why?
I’m not sure I really have a least favourite classic, though I didn’t like either The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger or Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. I know most people love them, but neither of them was my type of book.

20. Name five authors you haven’t read yet whom you cannot wait to read.
Sticking with unread authors on my Classics Club list: Charles Reade, Samuel Shellabarger, Jules Verne, Charlotte M. Yonge, William Makepeace Thackeray

21. Which title by one of the five you’ve listed above most excites you and why?
Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger as it’s a classic historical fiction novel (my favourite genre) and I’ve read some wonderful reviews.

22. Have you read a classic you disliked on first read that you tried again and respected, appreciated, or even ended up loving? (This could be with the club or before it.)
Emma by Jane Austen. The first time I read it I just didn’t like the character of Emma herself and struggled to see past her superior attitude and the way she treated Harriet Smith. On a second read several years later I found I was much more tolerant of Emma and her faults. By the end of the book I really liked Emma – both the character and the novel – and was so pleased I’d tried again.

23. Which classic character can’t you get out of your head?
Edmond Dantes from The Count of Monte Cristo.

24. Which classic character most reminds you of yourself?
I’m not sure…maybe Elinor Dashwood from Sense and Sensibility.

25. Which classic character do you most wish you could be like?
Melanie Wilkes from Gone with the Wind. I’ve always admired her quiet strength.

26. Which classic character reminds you of your best friend?
It’s not something I’ve ever thought about!

27. If a sudden announcement was made that 500 more pages had been discovered after the original “THE END” on a classic title you read and loved, which title would you most want to keep reading? Or, would you avoid the augmented manuscript in favor of the original? Why?
I would prefer to stick with the original ending but probably wouldn’t be able to resist reading the newly discovered pages! I remember reading Scarlett, the sequel to Gone with the Wind, and while it was nice to get a more satisfying conclusion to the story I did sort of wish I hadn’t read it because, really, the ending was already perfect the way it was.

28. Favorite children’s classic?
Watership Down by Richard Adams, though I don’t consider it specifically a children’s book as it has so much to offer an adult reader too.

29. Who recommended your first classic?
That’s difficult to answer as I can’t actually remember what my first classic was, but it was probably my mother who loves reading as much as I do.

30. Whose advice do you always take when it comes to literature. (Recommends the right editions, suggests great titles, etc.)
I don’t know many people who share my taste in books, so I rely on my favourite book blogs for recommendations!

31. Favorite memory with a classic?
Reading Watership Down for the first time at the age of ten. I started reading it on a Sunday evening when I was feeling miserable about having to go to school the next day and it really cheered me up.

32. Classic author you’ve read the most works by?
I’ve been working my way through Daphne du Maurier’s books over the last few years and have now read sixteen of them.

33. Classic author who has the most works on your club list?
I tried not to include too many books by the same author, but couldn’t resist listing seven by Alexandre Dumas!

34. Classic author you own the most books by?
Wilkie Collins.

35. Classic title(s) that didn’t make it to your club list that you wish you’d included? (Or, since many people edit their lists as they go, which titles have you added since initially posting your club list?)
I’ve edited my list so many times I can’t remember all the changes! There are some books I put on my original list that I just have no desire to read anymore so there was no point in leaving them on there.

36. If you could explore one author’s literary career from first publication to last — meaning you have never read this author and want to explore him or her by reading what s/he wrote in order of publication — who would you explore? Obviously this should be an author you haven’t yet read, since you can’t do this experiment on an author you’re already familiar with. 🙂 Or, which author’s work you are familiar with might it have been fun to approach this way?
That’s an intriguing question but without having already sampled an author’s work I wouldn’t want to commit to reading everything they had written! Of the authors I’m already familiar with, there are a few that I would have liked to approach this way – for example, Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy or Daphne du Maurier – but as I’ve been reading their books out of order it’s too late for that now!

37. How many rereads are on your club list? If none, why? If some, which are you most looking forward to, or did you most enjoy?
I have five re-reads on my list (plus another two which I’ve already re-read for the club). I’m particularly looking forward to re-reading The Count of Monte Cristo and Rebecca, as they’re two of my favourite books, and also Wuthering Heights to see if I still love it as much as I did when I was younger.

38. Has there been a classic title you simply could not finish?
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. I’ve tried twice and couldn’t get past the first few chapters either time. It’s on my Classics Club list as I do want to try it again and I feel more positive about it after reading one of Dostoyevsky’s other books, The Idiot, earlier this year and enjoying it.

39. Has there been a classic title you expected to dislike and ended up loving?
The Painted Veil by Somerset Maugham. For some reason I think I’d formed a preconceived idea that I wouldn’t like it, yet it ended up as one of my favourite books of last year!

40. Five things you’re looking forward to next year in classic literature?
I haven’t started planning for next year yet, but I do want to find time for some of the re-reads on my list and I’m also looking forward to trying some of the authors I’ve never read before.

41. Classic you are DEFINITELY GOING TO MAKE HAPPEN next year?
Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray, which I do really want to read but keep putting off.

42. Classic you are NOT GOING TO MAKE HAPPEN next year?
None – I don’t want to rule anything out.

43. Favorite thing about being a member of the Classics Club?
The sense of community and being able to easily find other readers who love classic literature. And of course, the classics spin, monthly memes and surveys like this one…

44. List five fellow clubbers whose blogs you frequent. What makes you love their blogs?
The Bookworm Chronicles
Fleur in her World
Lakeside Musing
Heavenali
Tell Me a Story

45. Favorite post you’ve read by a fellow clubber?
I’ve enjoyed lots of my fellow clubbers’ posts and couldn’t pick just one!

46. If you’ve ever participated in a readalong on a classic, tell about the experience? If you’ve participated in more than one, what’s the very best experience? the best title you’ve completed? a fond memory? a good friend made?
I participated in year-long readalongs for both Clarissa (in 2012) and War and Peace (in 2013) and would probably never have made it to the end of either of those books on my own. I’ve taken part in other classic readalongs too and enjoyed them all, but they are the two I’ll never forget as they lasted a whole year!

47. If you could appeal for a readalong with others for any classic title, which title would you name? Why?
Any of the titles on my list that I haven’t read yet.

48. How long have you been reading classic literature?
As long as I can remember!

49. Share up to five posts you’ve written that tell a bit about your reading story. Reviews, journal entries, posts on novels you loved or didn’t love, lists, etc.
Top Ten Tuesday: Needing to read more
Classics Club March Meme: Literary Periods
Best Books of 2013
Classics Club August Meme: A Favourite Classic
Turn of the Century Salon: Introduction

50. Question you wish was on this questionnaire? (Ask and answer it!)
I’m already exhausted after answering so many questions, so let’s just leave it at 49!

Top Ten Tuesday: Needing to read more

September 16, 201440 Comments

I don’t normally take part in Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish), but this week’s topic is one that I’ve been thinking about a lot recently:

Top Authors I’ve Only Read One Book From But NEED to Read More

There are many, many authors I could include in this list, but I’ve decided just to concentrate on authors I’ve tried for the first time since I started book blogging. After the name of each author, I have given the title of the one book I’ve read…and of course, I would welcome any suggestions as to which books I should read next!

1. Kate Atkinson (Life After Life)
This was one of my favourite books read last year, so it seems ridiculous that I haven’t tried any of her others yet. I’m looking forward to starting the Jackson Brodie series.

2. Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale)
I loved this, but I read it for “Advent with Atwood” two Decembers ago and still haven’t picked up any more of her books. That will have to change soon!

3. E.M. Forster (A Room with a View)
Early last year I participated in a “Turn of the Century Salon” reading event and decided to try two authors who were new to me. I liked both but haven’t got round to reading a second book by either of them yet. One of these authors was E.M. Forster (I think Howards End will be the next of his books I read) and the other was #4 below.

4. W Somerset Maugham (The Painted Veil)
This is another novel that found its way onto my favourite books of the year list last year, but again, I still haven’t explored Maugham’s other work. I like the sound of The Moon and Sixpence.

5. Barbara Pym (Less than Angels)
This isn’t regarded as one of Barbara Pym’s most successful books, but I did enjoy it and am expecting to love some of her others…especially Excellent Women which I really must read soon!

6. Sir Walter Scott (Ivanhoe)
I was always intimidated by the thought of reading Walter Scott, until I read Ivanhoe and found it much easier to read than I’d expected. As I do love reading classic historical fiction, I’m sure I would like Scott’s other novels too…if I could only find time to read them!

7. Josephine Tey (The Daughter of Time)
I read this because of my interest in Richard III but I do want to read some of Josephine Tey’s other mystery novels eventually as well.

8. Elizabeth von Arnim (The Enchanted April)
It’s been more than three years since I read this book and I still haven’t read another von Arnim, despite stating in my review that I would “definitely be reading more”.

9. Edith Wharton (Ethan Frome)
I didn’t love Ethan Frome, but I’m hoping I’ll love one of Edith Wharton’s other novels. The House of Mirth and The Age of Innocence are both on my Classics Club list.

10. John Wyndham (The Midwich Cuckoos)
I don’t read science fiction very often, but I enjoyed this book when I read it a year ago. I think The Day of the Triffids will probably be next.

***

Do you like any of these authors? Do I need to read more of their work? What would you recommend?

Classics Club July Meme: Biographies

July 22, 20148 Comments

This month’s Classics Club Meme question is:

Have you ever read a biography on a classic author? If so, tell us about it. If you had already read works by this author, did reading a biography of his/her life change your perspective on the author’s writing? Why or why not? // Or, if you’ve never read a biography of a classic author, would you? Why or why not?

Looking through my list of books reviewed here on my blog, I can only see three or four biographies of classic authors that I’ve read in the last five years. I’ve also read some fictional biographies (such as The Taste of Sorrow by Jude Morgan) but they’re not quite the same thing! When I read a book, classic or otherwise, I do like to know some basic information about the author (whether they are male or female, which country they are from, how old they are, etc) but I can usually get that information from the book cover or ‘about the author’ page. Beyond that, I don’t usually feel any need to know every detail of the author’s life and prefer just to concentrate on enjoying their work.

One biography that I did enjoy was Claire Tomalin’s Charles Dickens: A Life. It didn’t leave me with a very good opinion of Dickens as a person, but it was interesting to see how people and events from his personal life inspired his fictional plots and characters. Having also read Tomalin’s Samuel Pepys: The Unequalled Self, which is another excellent book, I would like to read more of her work at some point, despite my usual lack of interest in reading biographies. Her book on Thomas Hardy sounds the most appealing to me, but I’ve been waiting until I’ve finished reading all of Hardy’s novels first.

Earlier this year I read The Secret Life of Wilkie Collins by William M. Clarke but although Collins is one of my favourite classic authors, I was a bit disappointed with this particular biography. There’s a lot of information on Collins’ private life (though to be fair, you would expect that from the title) but Clarke doesn’t spend much time discussing his writing. He does occasionally show how aspects of Wilkie’s personal life may have related to his work, but there’s not enough of this and when I reached the end of the book I didn’t feel I’d gained any real insights.

While I did learn a lot about Collins’ and Dickens’ lives from these two biographies, I can’t really say that they changed how I feel about their writing. For the purposes of this meme, a better book for me to mention here is probably the biography of Daphne, Angela and Jeanne du Maurier which I read last year – Daphne du Maurier and Her Sisters by Jane Dunn. Although I had a few problems with this biography too (which I’ve explained in my review) I do think Jane Dunn did a good job of explaining how the girls’ childhood experiences and influences shaped their future careers. I’ve never read anything by Angela du Maurier, but I know that Daphne put a lot of herself into her writing and many of her novels include autobiographical elements – reading Dunn’s biography gave me a better appreciation of this.

Well, it seems I’ve found more to say on the subject of biographies than I’d expected! Do you enjoy reading biographies of classic authors? Which ones have you read?