Books we'll never forget...

This month we thought we’d tell you about our favourite books, so here are three of mine:

The Re-invention of Ivy Brown is like a jigsaw – set in the past and the present, with the hint of a mysterious happening which is not fully revealed until the end.  

Carry on Jeeves – any Jeeves title takes the reader into a world of country houses, landed gentry and Bertie Wooster, well-meaning gentleman about town who regularly needs rescuing by his manservant, Jeeves.

Oliver Twist – have you seen 'Oliver!' but never read the book? You’d be surprised how much more happens to Oliver. I was also surprised how much humour there is in it, despite it being the story of a mistreated workhouse boy.

Share your favourites with us and introduce others to books they’ll never forget by clicking on 'comments' below. 

For more reading choices try the Read and Relax pages on Bex-L. 

Next month, in time for the summer holidays, we'll be chatting about books we loved as children.

This month's moderator: Jill

From page to screen

What do you think about books that have been adapted for the screen?  Was your favourite book ruined or did you actually prefer the film version?

Here are a few examples of books which have appeared on the big screen recently:

• Eat, Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
• Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson
• Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane
• The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
• The Road by Cormac McCarthy
• Atonement by Ian McEwan
• My Sister’s Keeper by Jodie Picoult
• The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
• Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

And we can also look forward to adaptations of:

• Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
• The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
• One Day by David Nicholls
• Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
• The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Are you a fan of film adaptations or do you avoid them at all costs?  Did a favourite book work well on the screen?  And how do you feel when screen writers change the ending?

Let us know what you think by clicking on the ‘comments’ link below!

This month’s moderator: Rachel            

Top of the Cops

                          

Top of the Cops
or the Body in the Library...

Who would win the vote for your favourite fictional detective?

We've put on our thinking caps  (or deerstalkers) and come up with our Top Ten fictional detectives (click on the names for details of the books) :

• Jackson Brodie
• Inspector Brunetti
• Sherlock Holmes
• Miss Marple
• Inspector Morse
• Hercule Poirot
• Madame Ramotswe
• Lisbet Salander
• Matthew Shardlake
• Wallander

But we’ve had to leave out lots of other Top Cops too, including :

• Dalziel & Pascoe
• Stephanie Plum
• Falco
• Rebus
• Frost
• Kay Scarpetta
• Simon Serrailler
• Rumpole

So when you find a Body in the Library – who you gonna call?

We’d love to hear what you think - join in the debate by clicking on 'comments'  below. Let us know who's your favourite. It's elementary my dear Watson!

Bexley Book of the Year 2011 - part two

               

Thank you to everyone who joined us last month to chat about the first four books on our Bexley Book of the Year shortlist. We really enjoyed chatting with you.
 
This month, we're talking about the other four and we think you'll find them just as interesting. If you've read any of them, let us know what you think. If you haven't had time to read them yet, which one appeals most to you? Have you decided yet which one you'll vote for?

You can find out more about the books and the reactions of our shortlisted authors on Bex-L.

This month's moderator: Sharon