Challenge 19: A Book You Were Supposed to Read in School But Didn't

Ida's book: "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley (Vintage, 2004)

I've always been a keen reader, to the point where I got assigned extra reading at school to keep me occupied. So it was pretty impossible to find a book that I should have read, but didn't. Instead, I asked my Facebook friends which book from their schooldays I should read, and I got a lot of good suggestions. This won out because my friend had already lent it to me 6 months ago, so I felt bad for not reading it. 

Comments:

Well, this book is pretty thought-provoking once you've finished it, but the reading experience in itself was pretty miserable. I didn't like the writing style so it was an uphill battle to finish the book.

Challenge 19: A Book You Were Supposed to Read in School But Didn't

Berlie Doherty, Street Child ( HarperCollins, 2009)

I have to confess that I cheated on this one.  There honestly isn't a single book from school that I was supposed to read, but didn't.  So I took advice from my friends who are parents, and this seemed like a great suggestion for a book that is being read in schools today.

Comments: 

Reading this book made me understand (even more than I did already) why this is a good theme for a reading challenge.  Books aimed at children are GOOD!  I really enjoyed this, and even thought it was clearly written for children there was enough sophistication to the language and storyline to satisfy any reader.  The only thing is that I ended up wanting to know more about Dr Barnardo!  But again, that's what makes it a great book for children, and for adults!

Thanks to all my friends who suggested this book!  Definitely a good suggestion.

Challenge 18: A Book With a Blue Cover

Rosalynn Carter, First Lady From Plains (University of Arkansas Press; 1994)

This has been sitting in my pile of books to read for at least two years, and it has a blue cover!  It seems like destiny!

Comments:

A wonderful, wonderful book that gives a fabulous insight into the life, personality, character and determination of a strong, inspirational, courageous and fascinating woman.  (Can you tell I'm a fan?!)  This made me laugh, when Mrs Carter was describing some of the ways they dealt with things that went unexpectedly wrong; it made me cry, particularly when she described visiting the refugee camps in Cambodia, and my heart absolutely ached for her, when she was talking about the way that Jimmy Carter was treated and the unfairness and injustice he often experienced.  It's clear that she took his defeat in 1980 much harder than he did, and the closing line "I don't like to lose," is poignant.  However, in the years since she wrote her memoir, the Carters have done so much that we now know that she didn't lose, and the Carters won in a far bigger way than anyone could ever have expected.  As well as providing a detailed insight into Mrs Carter, this shows what it's like behind the scenes in the White House.  It really is a treasure and I feel bad that it took me so long to read it.  Thank goodness it had a blue cover!!

Challenge 18: A book with a blue cover

Ida's book: "Dietland" by Sarai Walker (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015)

So this is yet another book that have been on my to-read-list for a long time. I became aware of it through a fat activist network, but I was reluctant to actually read it: probably slightly scared of the inevitable truths it would make me aware of. Then a book shop offered 20% on all english books, and I thought, why not.

Comments:

Although it has only taken me just under a month to read this book, it was a slow start. The writing is excellent and I wanted to savour it; reading slowly and not rushing it. The main character's 'awakening' for lack of a better word is so well written and I follow her anger and wish for revenge, in fact, all the characters are believable and you sort of come to respect and care for them. As a fat woman, it hits close to home, and sometimes I just couldn't summon the energy to read on, it's a tough read sometimes, but then you get to the last 100 pages and I probably read them in a day or so (very typical reading behaviour from me). It's such a great book, and I will be sharing it with other fat women in need of an eye opener to the diet industry (land) that we live in. I'll probably return to it as well, in a not too distant future. Although I took my time (with most of the book) I still feel there is much to discuss and pick through, and I have a feeling it'll be one of those books that I will come back to time and again.

Challenge 17: A Book That Will Make You Smarter

The Last of the President's Men, Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster, 2015)

I've been looking forward to reading this ever since I met Alexander Butterfield at an event at the British Library.  He's an absolutely charming man and, when it turned out that we were heading in the same direction at the end of the talk, insisted on walking me back to the station.  He told me at the time that Woodward was writing this book, and now I finally get to read it!

Comments
This is a wonderful and insightful look inside the Nixon White House, and a very honest account of Butterfield's role in the administration and, particularly, in the taping system that would eventually prove to be Nixon's downfall.  Butterfield's memories reveal the complexity of Nixon's character, and how Butterfield was both charmed, intrigued, and also sometimes repulsed by the president.  Butterfield's dilemma once the Watergate hearings started is handled with sensitivity and honesty, and it's really great to read that side of the story.  My only regret is that the book focused pretty much exclusively on Butterfield's work for the Nixon administration, and didn't cover much more of Butterfield's fascinating career.  I'd heard some of this when Butterfield gave the talk at the British Library, and I was hoping to read more about it in the book.  Maybe they'll be another volume!  I'd definitely read it if there is!

Challenge 17: A Book That Will Make You Smarter

Ida's book: "1915 - Da kvinder og tyende blev borgere" by Pia Fris Laneth (Gyldendal, 2015)

This book is about the Danish suffrage movement - it's title in English: "1915 - When women and servants became civilians". I've been reading it on and off since March, and have read embarrassingly little of it so far. I know quite a lot about the English suffrage movement as I wrote my MA thesis on it (its representation on screen, anyway) but I know next to nothing about the Danish effort. So I shall use this challenge number 17, to get to the bottom of it.

Comments:

Halfway point comment: The problem with books that will make you smarter is that they can be hard to get through. I am halfway through this one now, and have read two other fiction books in between - oops! It's not that it's badly written or anything, but sometimes it becomes too much of a trip through history, I think I need a little more structure and a feeling of connectedness between all the characters and events described. I have decided to continue with the book (obviously! I never abandon books), but also to continue with the other challenges alongside this one, as I would otherwise grind to a complete halt, and I can't really not read books. Stand by for further comments when I finish it.

I FINISHED IT!
I decided to give this book a few days, so I could complete it, and move it from my 'reading pile' to it's proper place on my shelf. It picked up in the second half, and the last few chapters were quickly read. It's a great book for the wider perspective on women's suffrage in Denmark, and I have definitelt learned some new things so - mission accomplished!

Challenge 16: A Book You Learned About Because Of This Challenge

Donna's Book: "Chicken's Soup for the Woman's Soul" by Jack Canfield (Ebury Digital, 2010)

Because of Ida's interests, and the books that she's been reading in this challenge, I've become much more aware of feminism and feminist issues in literature.  I'm not sure that I wanted anything too heavy this summer (I really need to relax after finishing writing the book, end-of-year marking, and the St Peter's 60th Anniversary) and I've always loved the 'Chicken Soup' series, and so I'm hoping this will help me think more about the role of women in society but without being too taxing!

Comments:

Sadly this was really disappointing.  Rather than being a celebration of women and their contributions to society, or inspiring women to succeed or fight on, it drifted into stereotypical messages of how motherhood was good, and very little else.  Of course motherhood is good and important, but women are so much more than that.  Shame this book didn't seem to realise it.