Crafting with Audiobooks

October 30, 2019 / Eleanor Jane / Leave a comment

I have written before about how much I love audiobooks but I have realised recently that I have been listening to them more than ever. Before I discovered I could download audiobooks from the library onto my phone I had a limited supply of books – my choice isn’t limitless now but it is much wider. I am listening to books almost constantly – in the car, working in the stables – any time I can’t read an actual, physical book.

The increase is very obvious when I look at my reading log. Last year I listened to 13 audiobooks – so far this year I have heard 39, with two months still to go.

Over the past couple of weeks I have been working hard on a pair of crochet socks – I often have spells when I am very enthusiastic about crochet and don’t want to be doing anything else. Audiobooks are perfect for that as I can lose myself in the story whilst still having both of my hands free. The only downside is that I have been reading far fewer physical books and I do miss the act of sitting down with my book.

It has also meant that I can’t necessarily read the book I really want as I don’t have access to it in audio form. I am, however, reading a much wider range of books – I tend to just browse until something takes my fancy. I’m sure it’s very good for me!

Book Review – A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

October 23, 2019 / Eleanor Jane / Leave a comment

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is a book which has been intriguing me ever since I first saw it. It has sat in the young adult section of the bookshop for months, looking at me and clearly needing me to read it. Eventually the right time came along and I treated myself to a copy.

Publisher’s Blurb

The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.

But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the crime, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth . . . ?

This book was everything I had hoped it would be. I was completely gripped by the story and read it long into the night – well past my bedtime! I just had to know what happened next and I have to confess that the solution did take me by surprise.

I thought the book was very well written and I particularly appreciated the low levels of teenage angst. No longer being a teenager myself, I do often find myself infuriated by the behaviour of teenagers in books. That was most definitely not the case here and I have recommended this book to several ‘proper’ grown-ups who have also loved it.

I have also just heard about the sequel which is due out next year and I cannot wait!

Book Details

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

Publisher: Egmont Publishing

ISBN: 9781405293181

RRP: £7.99

Micro Libraries

October 16, 2019 / Eleanor Jane / Leave a comment

Like most of you (I imagine!) I am constantly on the look out for book shops. The lure of a book shop is almost irresistible and I love to find new ones to explore.

DSCN5994

Some of my favourite finds though have been the mini book exchanges and charity book shops which seem to have been popping up in more and more places recently. Not only are they unexpected, they are often very beautiful as well.

How lovely is this?!

I have seen several in old phone boxes too which I love. The only trouble is that unless I know when I leave the house that I will find one I very rarely have a book with me which I can swap – only the one I am actually reading. Still, that just means another trip to find some books and that’s not really a hardship!

Autumn Reading

October 9, 2019October 9, 2019 / Eleanor Jane / 3 Comments

I quite often find that my reading slows down over the summer. There is just so much to do outside and I have been particularly busy this summer – see my alter ego Gadding About with Galahad if you want to know why!

Not that I haven’t been reading – I have made a reasonable dent in the TBR shelves I showed you in July (ten books read) as well as several extra ones I snuck in. It is just that I wasn’t reading as much as I would have liked.

However, the onset of autumn always makes me want to read. It’s partly all the back to school stuff in the shops and partly the long dark evenings when a blanket and a book by the fire seem like the most wonderful idea. Either way, I’m hoping to read a great many more books over the next few months!

Brilliant Book Festival

October 2, 2019October 2, 2019 / Eleanor Jane / Leave a comment

As I mentioned in my last post, last week was the Appledore Book Festival. Not only was I at the book fair, I was also working at the festival itself which meant that I got to spend an entire week by the sea talking to people about books. It was wonderful.

Added to that, I also got to meet many authors which is always fun. It was particularly lovely to meet Tim Waterstone – who was one of only a very small handful of authors to come across and introduce himself to me. I was utterly charmed and of course I bought his book.

Another highlight was the event for Hazel Prior and her book Ellie and the Harp Maker. It was held in a little café and as well as talking about harps and writing she read some passages from the book interspersed with harp music. It was a delightful event – not least because she got the entire audience singing a song about how books are cool.

Books, books, books

Books are cool!

I also ate a lot of cake. This was peanut butter and jelly cake and it was amazing!

I had a wonderful week. It was hard work – almost twice as many hours as normal – and I am now exhausted but Appledore is always one of my favourite weeks of the year and I wouldn’t have missed it for anything.