Talking bookshelves

Doesn't everyone people-watch and think up stories about the people they are watching? Isn't that normal?

I love fictional stories. I love reading books... and daydreaming. My favourite piece of furniture in our new place is the bookshelf. Perfectly made from different pieces of wood (thank you Ikea!) into a 4 x 6 section wall mount, it stands tall in the front room and holds all my books, games, Harry Potter Lego architecture and the TV.

I love it not only because it looks great, but because it is a priceless reminder of stories that I love, the feelings and takeaways I learnt from reading each one, and the memories of where I was in life when I was reading them. 

People typically ask each other for book recommendations, and I've built up quite a few (below) which I'll keep updating - just in case anyone else finds it useful ;-).

Top 8:

1. Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling (SO smart, therefore needs no explanation)

2. Noughts and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman (I met Malorie when I was at school!) 

3. The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (all stories are heartbreaking, but I will never recover from this one)

4. Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult (I learnt things about myself that I never knew)

5. One Day by David Nicholls (I've never read anything else like this and it'll stay with me forever.) 

6. Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella (I don't usually laugh out loud but...) 

7. Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts (team Prabhu!) 

8. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (yes, over a Thousand Splendid Suns) 

Books I've read and recommend:

1. Behind Closed Doors

2. A Little Life 

3. The Book Thief 

4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series 

5. The Mountains Echoes 

6. The Girl on the Train 

7. The Help 

8. A Fine Balance 

9. Me before you  

10. Me after you 

11. Gone Girl

12. John Grisham - all books 

13. Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry 

14. Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series 

15. Bounce or Blackbox Thinking (similar examples, the takeaway is clear from both) 

16. The Da Vinci Code series 

17. Nine Lives 

18. Life of Pi (although I enjoyed the film a little more!) 

19. Chinese Cinderella 

20. Geisha of Gion 

21. His Dark Materials series 

22. To Kill a Mockingbird 

23. Cormoran Strike series 

24. Sophie Kinsella - all books especially the Undomestic Goddess

25. Jill Mansell - all books

26. Miss You 

27. The Girl Before 

28. Thirteen Reasons Why

29. Flowers in the Attic 

30. Luka and the Fire of Life 

Books I've read that aren't really for me:

1. The Bookseller of Kabul (well written, I just needed more depth) 

2. White Tiger (my mum loves this book, perhaps it's a difference in perception)  

3. God of Small Things (very hard for me to read) 

4. The Alchemist (some brilliant life quotes, but I expected a lot) 

5. The Ice Twins (too long for what it was) 

6. The Outcast (also too long for what it was) 

7. The Mountain Shadow (still great, but so focused on Karla..) 

8. Brick Lane (couldn't really get into it!) 

Books I still want to read:

1. A Thousand White Lies

2. 40 Rules of Love 

3. A palace of illusions 

4. My Brilliant Friend 

5. The Book of Lights

6. Girl with the Pearl Earring 

7. Midnight's Children 

8. The Bell Jar 

9. Room

10. A Million Pieces 

11. Diary of a Lawyer

12. The Shock of the Fall

Yours Truly, 

TML

Home sweet home.