My Favourite Reads

Thank you to all of you who have already bought ‘There is Always More to Say’. I have had fantastic feedback about the book. In fact, it’s been quite overwhelming. My friends now know what I have been doing for the last eighteen months!

I am also very touched by the reviews written by people I am yet to meet. I am thrilled that the book is resonating with readers. Thank you.

Reading is such an important part of my life and I know I share the same thrill other readers get when they fall into a good read. That feeling that you can’t put it down and you’ll just read to the next chapter… Yes, I know it well. I thought that I would give my readers a glimpse at my favourite reads. You’ll soon notice that they are about journeys of some sort. I have always been inspired by journeys – be it physical or emotional. Have a look and share your favourites with me!

1.
The Magic Faraway Tree series by Enid Blyton. The entire series really caught my imagination. I love all four of them but if I were to pick a favourite it would probably be ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’ which is the second in the series. I have always had an incredibly vivid imagination and these books just set my imagination alive. Who wouldn’t want to be able to climb up the tree and go into one of the magical lands?

2.
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. I love the relationship between the young Mitch and the elderly Morris and what they learn from each other.  

3.
My Secret Garden by Nancy Friday. Being interested in sexual psychology I read this book not long after it was published in the 1970’s. At the time it was rather an eye-opener. It is a collection of the sexual thoughts, desires, fears and of course fantasies from women in 70’s USA and UK. This book was ground-breaking for its time and I still refer to it from time to time.

4.
One Red Paperclip by Kyle MacDonald. I love a challenge and what a challenge the author set himself! This is the true, self-penned story of an unemployed Canadian slacker who starts an experiment to see if he can start out with a paperclip, swap it for something marginally better, and eventually end up owning a house without actually having spent any money.  The concept of one red paperclip trading up to a house is both genius and entrepreneurial. As the book developed I found it interesting to see how a simple concept can pay such dividends and be so entertaining.

5.
Adultery by Paulo Coelho.  This was the book that kick-started me into writing ‘There is Always More to Say’ I read Adultery and loved it. It literally made me want to write down my feelings.

6.
Many Lives, Many Masters by Brian Weiss.  For me this book really confirmed a belief that I have had since I was a very young child about the continuation of life after death and the influence of our past-life experiences on our present behaviour.

7.
The Women’s Room by Marilyn French. The first piece of feminist literature that I ever read in the late 1970’s. I found this book really thought provoking. It forced me to look at the good, the bad and the ugly/scary in myself. But it also inspired me to do something about these things too. It may have been written in the 70’s and read by me then but I think it still has relevance today. I think that everybody who reads this book will find a character they will be able to identify with. 

8.
84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff. This is a tale of literary friendship. The book is no more than a series of business letters charting the twenty-year correspondence between Helene Hanff, a struggling scriptwriter in New York and Frank Doel, a London antiquarian bookseller. However through these letters you are given an insight into two different worlds, buzzing New York in the 40’s, 50’s and 1960’s in the case of Helene Hanff and down-at-heel post-war London in the case of Frank Doel. What comes through more than anything in this book is the essential humanity of the characters concerned. I find this book both heart-breaking and heart-warming and have re-read it on numerous occasions over the years. 

9.
Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding. Loved Bridget. Lived her life. I was with her all the way.

10.
The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda. This was the first book that truly exposed me to psychedelic literature. There has been much talk over the years as to whether the experience was true or not. I couldn’t care less. The book changed my life.

oh and another…..

11.
Love Story by Erich Segal. The first book that ever made me cry. I read it when it was first published in 1970 ‘Love means never having to say you’re sorry’.