Welcome to another month of WOYBS!
It’s great to have you join us for another month of our What’s On Your Bookshelf Challenge (WOYBS), #whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge, hosted by good friends, Sue, Donna, Jo (and me).
I’m enjoying my reading challenge for 2022 and so far I’ve managed to read 52 books towards my goal of 100. Yes I read a lot and I read fast – it’s not a competition or a race, I just happen to enjoy reading and have make time to do so.
It’s one treat I gift to myself every day!
Debbie
Last month we joined with the Friendly Friday Challenge where we talked about our favourite travel books. If you missed that post you can read it here.
So what have I enjoyed reading recently?
Just a few of my recent books – such a wide variety (again) but I rated them all 4 or 5 stars (apart from one book which got 3 stars – still a good read).
A stand out so far this year
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy
Enter the world of Charlie’s four unlikely friends, discover their story and their most important life lessons. The boy, the mole, the fox and the horse have been shared millions of times online – perhaps you’ve seen them? They’ve also been recreated by children in schools and hung on hospital walls. They sometimes even appear on lamp posts and on cafe and bookshop windows. Perhaps you saw the boy and mole on the Comic Relief T-shirt, Love Wins?
Here, you will find them together in this book of Charlie’s most-loved drawings, adventuring into the Wild and exploring the thoughts and feelings that unite us all.
This was a simple but oh so charming little story with gorgeous text and drawings. I was given it for Mother’s Day and I adore it. One of those very special books that can be read at anytime and will always improve your mood. Loved it – 5 stars from me. Have you read it?
What am I currently reading?
I always have a few books on the go at once but they are all so different and tend to balance out my reading nicely!
- To Love a Sunburnt Country (#4 in The Matilda Saga) by Jackie French. I wrote about the first in this YA series a few months ago, A Waltz for Matilda which I thoroughly enjoyed. I’ve since read #2 The Girl from Snowy River and #3 The Road To Gundagai and will slowly work my way through all 9 books in the series. I’ve been borrowing these from the local library, either in paperback of ebook. They are so detailed and interesting and suitable for all ages, not just Young Adults.
- Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko – I’ve literally just started this book for my local Bookclub, but although I’ll be away when the discussion is on I still want to read it.
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen – our online bookclub has moved onto Jane Austen ‘s novels, starting with Persuasion and now P & P which I’m really getting into. I thought I’d read it before but maybe I’ve seen lots of shows about it so it just feels like I have. Anyway we’re reading it in sections and discussing as we go, even if I had read it before there’s so much more to understand and get into by reading it again like this. Plus our zoom cooking sessions 🙂
- Go Tell the Bees that I am Gone by Diana Gabaldon. I haven’t read any Outlander books for so long I’m actually having trouble getting back into this. And also it’s massively huge book. I first borrowed it as an ebook from the library but despite renewing it twice I still hadn’t managed to make much of a dent in it. So I’ve now got it to listen to via Audible but have to admit I haven’t listened to it since downloading it. I do enjoy the series but just have to get back into it – it’s taking a while for that to happen.
Author’s Talk
Recently we were fortunate to have three wonderful Australian authors give an intimate and informal talk at our local Artists on Parade studio. It was a fabulous afternoon learning some of the behind the scenes things that happen, how ideas make books, how they write and their various processes. It was very entertaining, interesting and loads of fun!
Chris Hammer (Scrublands, Silver, Trust, Treasure & Dirt); Sulari Gentill (Rowland Sinclair Mystery series, Hero Trilogy, Crossing the Lines and soon to be released Woman in the Library) and Daniel O’Malley (Stiletto, The Rook and soon to be released Blitz).
How lucky were we to have this opportunity?? I also took along some books to be signed and bought Daniel O’Malley’s The Rook, which I recently finished and thoroughly enjoyed!
Reading opens doors to new worlds
If you’re into reading, please feel free to join us, even if it’s just to leave a comment with what you’ve been reading lately. We’ve added a linkup (at the end of my post) so you can add your posts directly there and see what others have posted about for the month as well.
Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.
Rainer Maria Rilke
Will you join us?
Sue, Donna, Jo and I hope that you will join us in this fun series. I left it so late to write this post I didn’t think I’d ever get it done, but I managed to pull it all together. You’d think I’d be more organised as it’s a post I write every month, but hey ho life sometimes gets in the way!
You can read more from my stunning co-hosts here:
Sue from Women Living Well After 50
Donna from Retirement Reflections
We’re all in this together, sharing our love of reading 🙂
Happy reading to you.
Deb xx
All my WOYBS posts can be found here
Guidelines for WOYBS:
What: What’s On Your Bookshelf #whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge
When: Third Thursday PM (Northern Hemisphere)/ Third Friday AM (Southern Hemisphere).
Why: Share a love of reading.
Where: Linkup below, Blog, Blog Comments, Instagram or other Social Media.
Who: This linkup is open to everyone.
How: You can share in the comments, with a blog post, or on other social media of your choice. You can use the hashtag #Whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge
You can also find Deb’s World in lots of other places – stay in touch by clicking any of the buttons below.
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Deb's World 
I’ve seen “The Mother” around blogging book circles. Do you recommend?
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Yes I do but I would have to add in a trigger warning of domestic violence and issues surrounding this topic.
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I’m going to look into a few of those books you listed. I feel as though I never finish books fast enough…lol. I don’t know why because I love to read.
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Thanks so much Kirstin, enjoy your reading when you get the chance.
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I should have done something like this years ago when I had more reading time. I always had at least two books going and they were always real books, nothing like the kindle world I stay within now. I still have stacks of books I should get rid of because they own the house and don’t leave much room for the people who live here.
Now – I scrape out an hour or so per day for a kindle book read and much more time writing or curating my story collection.
Thanks Deb.
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Thanks for your visit Gary, I enjoy reading and use books and my kindle and free library apps for my books.
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Finally mine
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Thanks Ali 🙂
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Pro tip for getting back into Outlander: read the synopses in The Outlandish Companion and The Outlandish Companion Vol. 2. It’s a quick way to refresh your memory before diving into the new one (and it’s wonderful BTW).
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Thanks for the tip Janet, I’ll have a look for the companion books. It’s going better once I started listening to it in a more regular way, otherwise I lose the momentum.
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Always enjoy a round-up of book recommendations. Like you I always have several books on the go, non fiction and fiction.
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Thanks Gail, the more books the merrier in my opinion!
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Hi Deb, a great roundup of books for this month’s WOYBS and I think I will find The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse as it seems to have some good life messages. I’ve not been to a Writer’s festival (although my cousin goes to the Sydney Writers’ Festival each year – COVID permitting), I’m sure you found the discussion panel very interesting and it’s great to hear about Aussie authors. Thanks for being such a great contributor and co-host of #Whatsonyourbookshelfchallenge. I wonder what you will be reading this month? xx
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Hi Sue, that sweet little book has a lot of life lessons in it and I think it suited me at that moment in time. I’ve extended my books I want to read list again by reading all the great posts in our linkup! Thanks for all your support 🙂
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Thank you Debbie for sharing your reads with us at #weekendcoffeeshare. I add Charlie Mackesy’s book to my TBR list and will come back to the other ones later. I read Scrublands and enjoyed it. Have a great weekend!
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Thanks Natalie – it was an interesting month of reading and that little book made its way into my heart! Have a lovely week ahead 🙂
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Oh, I love this site and all the great ideas for reading. On my recent post on my blog site I talked about purging my bookcase. An interesting process.
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Thanks Kate, I’m so glad you enjoyed my post. I’ll pop over and read about your purge shortly. It’s always an interesting process but I tend to get sidetracked with the memories the books take me to.
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Hi Deb – The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse showed up in my FB feed for quite a while but has subsided and I haven’t seen any for a while. I read Diana Gabaldon’s latest book a while back – I love her Outlander series (the books not the TV series) but it takes a long time for each new one to be written doesn’t it?
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Hi Leanne, yes the Outlander series has been good, it must take her soooo long to write them as it takes me a long time to read them. Hope you’re going OK.
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Hi Debs – wow you certainly do read a lot! I love reading but I’m not a very fast reader which is rather frustrating when there are so many amazing books to be read in the world! Thank you for sharing your reviews. I shall be adding a few of them to my growing book wish list.
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Hi Janine, I certainly read a lot – just ask my husband 🙂 I know how long does a TBR pile get before an intervention needs to be staged? Thanks for stopping by!
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I’ll be late linking up……really distracted by family stuff this week.
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No drama Carol, hope all is well. See you when you link up 🙂
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Whew! I made it! Sliding in under the wire!
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Great work Carol!
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Hi Deb, Thanks so much for reading and reviewing Linda’s Midlife Crisis. Your reading list is amazing. Toni x
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My pleasure Toni, you are a talented writer and i loved reading about Linda.
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I checked out the Boy, The Mole etc today at Big W and do like it a lot. I am on a limited spend right now (ha!) and have enough to read. Listening to authors is such a great way to get insight into their writing. I admit I cannot do long, long books but then again at times, like listening to Pachinko I stuck with it. It is a special day for Bees. Unsure exactly. Audible is such a great way to listen on long distances. I have Lisa Curry’s book ready for Monday when I drive to Sydney to see Dad. Thanks for the link up. Denyse
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Yes it’s one of those sweet little books I plan to keep so that I can read bits when I feel the need. It’s an easy one to dip in and out of. Lisa’s book will be interesting, I have plans to listen to it too. I’ve listened to a few podcasts about her daughter’s death and it’s just so sad. Thanks for joining us with your great post.
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I thought I already said this but it must have been somewhere else – my brain is hopeless. I saw the Boy, mole, horse is on audible. I have no idea how that would work. I was given that a few years ago – a lovely book. I just got back from my first session at the writers festival (Art Spiegelman) I have a sneaking suspicion that will also be the highlight. He covered a lot of BIG issues/ideas, as well as explained one of his books I purcharsed about 20 years ago and I don’t think I gave it the attention it deserved (the Towers one).
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Also what’s the Kate Lagbrock book like? I always liked her on tv…
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It was great! We listened to it via audible while driving around the countryside and really enjoyed her reading it to us. She got emotional at times and laughed and cried so it felt real. The family story was interesting – full of travels, Covid ups and downs and family issues. Well worth it!
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Yes I mentioned it in a previous post and you left a comment there thanks. I have no idea how it would work as an audio book either?? Great to hear about your session at the Writers Festival. Thanks for the comment and ideas.
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I’m really drawn to the wonderful illustrations you’ve shared!
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They are just so brilliant aren’t they? I love the whole simplicity and sweetness of the book – maybe a reflection of the times we are going through at the. moment. Thanks 🙂
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I tend to read a lot too and try to make sure I’m trying a wide variety of genres.
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Some great reads here Debbie. I haven’t heard of the Charlie Mackesy book will have to take a look. I’ve read the first two by Chris Hammer and enjoyed them and I’ve started Treasure and Dirt, one of the many on the go! I’ve also got Dervla’s book on my TBR. We had Too Much Lip last year for our bookclub and I just couldn’t get into it. It’s written in the vernacular and has a bit of fantasy about it. Anyway see what you think.
I have my review planned for the weekend!
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Hi Ali, it’s a sweet little book that made me smile 🙂 Chris Hammer was such an interesting bloke to listen to, and I’ve enjoyed all his books too. Dervla’s book was very different to her others I thought, but let me know what you think when you’ve read it. I’ll give Too Much Lip a go and see if it’s for me, if not I’ll give it up! Looking forward to your post 🙂
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I’ll let you know what I think about the new Dervla book
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It is a great way to mix it up isn’t it Joanne?
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Hi, Debbie – I absolutely love ‘The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse.’ I received it in the mail this past February, as a surprise ‘thinking of you’ gift from a friend. What a wonderful gift and one that I will continue to share with others. Thank you for highlighting it here. Thank you also for this great post with so many awesome books to choose from!
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What a lovely gift to receive Donna. In my local area there have been High Teas run for women impacted by bushfires and this book was given in a goody bag to the ladies, such a thoughtful gift. Thanks 🙂
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I looked at Go Tell The Bees, but seriously, it’s such a massive commitment! That writers panel would have been a great one to attend & I love the sound of The Boy etc…
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Yes such a commitment Jo and not sure I’m in the mood to be honest! The panel was so good…
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