I've had another bumper crop from the postie this week, with four more new titles for my shelves to show off for Mailbox Monday, hosted during March by Diary of an Eccentric.
Caravan Thieves by Gerard Woodward
I'm looking forward to finishing Gerard Woodward's August trilogy soon, but when I spotted this volume of his short stories I just had to order a copy.
From Goodreads:
Most of these vivid and unsettling stories are rooted in apparently everyday lives and situations, but suddenly become surreal or disturbing. Reading them feels as though you’re walking along in the real world and suddenly you step off an edge into a void, where rules of gravity and normality have disappeared but life carries on. Full of Woodward’s trademark mix of humour, pathos, dysfunctional families and disappointed lives, they contain also dazzling moments of illumination, perfect imagery and intimations of mortality.
Folly by Alan Titchmarsh
Though he's better known in the UK as a TV gardener, Alan Titchmarsh writes rather lovely romantic fiction too. I've always enjoyed his books and hadn't read this one before, so couldn't resist adding it to my basket.
From Goodreads:
Jamie Ballantyne and Artemis King were never meant to fall in love. The feud between their families has run for three generations. But whatever Jamie's head might tell him, his heart will always belong to Artemis. After fifty years, perhaps it's time for the Kings and the Ballantynes to bury the hatchet.
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
I noticed this clothbound edition was starting to get very low on stock on Amazon's website so, rather than be caught out without a copy (Madame Bovary and Crime and Punishment are already impossible to find) I thought I'd grab this quick while I still can!
From Goodreads:
Part romance, part melodrama, part detective story, the novel spreads out among a web of relationships in every level of society, from the simpleminded Sir Leicester Dedlock to Jo the street sweeper. A savage but often comic indictment of a society that is rotten to the core, Bleak House is one of Dickens's most ambitious novels, with a range that extends from the drawing rooms of the aristocracy to the poorest of London slums.
84 Charing Cross Road by Helen Hanff
Continuing my love of beautiful editions, I also grabbed this from the Virago Designer Collection. There are quite a few more books in the series I'm now lusting after.... I have a nasty feeling more money is about to be spent!
From Goodreads:
It all began with a letter inquiring about second-hand books, written by Helene Hanff in New York, and posted to a bookshop at 84, Charing Cross Road in London. As Helene's sarcastic and witty letters are responded to by the stodgy and proper Frank Doel of 84, Charing Cross Road, a relationship blossoms into a warm and charming long-distance friendship lasting many years.
Nice mix of books! I really want to read 84 Charing Cross Road - I've heard it's fantastic. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteSo many lovelies :-) And nice find with the clothbound edition of Bleak House.
ReplyDelete---
Tanya
Girlxoxo.com
Great mailbox list. There's a book blogger read-along of Bleak House going on right now I think.
ReplyDeleteOh, very intriguing mix. I like the look of Folly...and, of course, 84 Charing Cross Road is one I must read.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy!
Here's MY MONDAY MEMES POST
Folly looks interesting. Have a great reading week!
ReplyDeleteHope that you have a great reading week.
ReplyDeletehttp://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2012/03/mailbox-monday.html
There are some lovely new editions about aren't there. I was eyeing up some black and white covers in Belgravia Books but most of the titles were American classics that I'm not that excited about reading so I put them back down. I also really like the reworked Philip K Dick, they look similar to the Virago ones.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a trend that a lot of publishers are following. With so many people reading classics for free on their kindles they are looking at ways of making the hardbacks so beautiful that we'll be happy to part with our cash for them. Have you seen the new F. Scott Fitzgerald books from Penguin? They are so lovely, I want them all even if I never read them!
DeleteI've long wanted to read 84 Charing Cross Road. Enjoy your new books!
ReplyDeleteI loved AT's Animal Instincts so much that I read it twice. Whole scenes pop into my head often, and I posted some of his wonderful words once.
ReplyDeletehttp://lettersfromahillfarm.blogspot.com/2008/05/todays-poems-about-trees.html
I've also written about him other places on the blog. You could type his name into the search if you are interested.