New Leaf Welcome to the New Leaf Book Club

[Bookpossum]

I have read them and while I quite liked the overarching plot that was gradually revealed, I don’t really want to read them again.

Philip Pullman’s books are very good indeed, and he was one author I have been thinking about.

I like your new avatar Dazrin - my, how you are growing up!

[Dazrin]

Originally Posted by Bookpossum

I like your new avatar Dazrin - my, how you are growing up!

Thank you! She's about 2.5 in that picture (from today) versus about 9 months in the other (~Father's Day 2017.) It's amazing how fast they grow up. My eldest is over 5 FT tall already (just turned 11 a few days ago), another year or so and she will be taller than her grandmother!

@Catlady, don't worry, I know Harry Potter is one of her favorites but I wouldn't actually nominate it. I won't preclude science fiction or fantasy in general but her list will be ... moderated.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by Dazrin

@Catlady, don't worry, I know Harry Potter is one of her favorites but I wouldn't actually nominate it. I won't preclude science fiction or fantasy in general but her list will be ... moderated.

Don't let my curmudgeonliness stop you!

I have exactly one vague idea for this topic. I'm not feeling inspired.

[gmw]

The first book of Harry Potter was not really anything more than an amusing children's story. Well imagined, I thought, but still only a children's story. The true value (IMO) is in the full series and how the story and characters evolve. Not that I particularly want it as a book for the NLBC.

As for Philip Pullman, something other than His Dark Materials might be interesting (I found that series okay but underwhelming, also Northern Lights aka The Golden Compass was done in the MRBC in 2016). I would be interested in reading his Grimm Tales but they're still quite expensive.

Something from Eoin Colfer could be good, either Artemis Fowl or maybe Airman.

Or I wonder if anyone here is interested in trying William Horwood's The Willows in Winter - an extension to the The Wind in the Willows. I found it quite good - not an instant favourite but still well done, I thought.

[Bookworm_Girl]

I enjoyed the His Dark Materials series and the new prequel, but The Golden Compass was already a selection in the old MobileRead Book Club. I haven’t read any of his other books outside this series.

I’m excited for this category and have been looking forward to it. I haven’t even read The Wind in the Willows!

[CRussel]

And, of course, there's always the classic Canadian tale, Anne of Green Gables. (I'd be happy to read Pullman, but perhaps his first Sally Lockheart book, The Ruby in the Smoke, given that His Golden Compass is ineligible. )

[Bookpossum]

Also of course it could be a book about children, though not a book for children, such as The Go-Between or The Shrimp and the Anemone both by L P Hartley. Or of course The Lord of the Flies if you want something really jolly.

[gmw]

Bookpossum: Lord of the Flies jolly? Goodness! I hate to think what that means about the other two (which I haven't read).

While throwing names into the ring: Stephen King wrote The Eyes of the Dragon which is styled as a fairytale and so conceivably for children (but regrettably only so so to read). Terry Pratchett has written a number of books for children or younger readers, any of which I'd happily vote for but probably won't nominate. Neil Gaiman has written a few that probably fit into this category, but the clubs have already done two of his books.

I'd be interested to see what I made of any Enid Blyton stories now - since I haven't even looked at one for a VERY long time. What do we think of Noddy, Bigears and Golliwog now? It's almost frightening.

C.S. Lewis's The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe I think might spark some conversation. An interesting man is C.S. Lewis.

Or maybe we might try The Silver Brumby by Elyne Mitchell. Oh, my childhood beckons. Sadly, the works of Joseph E. Chipperfield don't appear to have made it into ebooks yet. But many of the books by Mary Grant Bruce are available very cheaply, for a little bit of children's story Australiana-style.

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by CRussel

And, of course, there's always the classic Canadian tale, Anne of Green Gables. (I'd be happy to read Pullman, but perhaps his first Sally Lockheart book, The Ruby in the Smoke, given that His Golden Compass is ineligible. )

I did not enjoy my experience with Pullman at all a few years back. As to Montgomery, I am of the generation that remembers Megan Fallows fondly as Anne from the PBS series. As I grew up, I liked it less, but I would 100% revisit it again for the pleasure of listening to Rachel McAdams do the audible reading.

ETA: I would love to read something more out of the way like Edith Nesbit. There are some great readings of hers on Librivox.

[gmw]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

[...] ETA: I would love to read something more out of the way like Edith Nesbit. There are some great readings of hers on Librivox.

I'd happily vote for The House of Arden, that sounds interesting to me (more so than some like the Psammead books).

[issybird]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

ETA: I would love to read something more out of the way like Edith Nesbit. There are some great readings of hers on Librivox.

Originally Posted by gmw

I'd happily vote for The House of Arden, that sounds interesting to me (more so than some like the Psammead books).

In the absence of a lightning bolt, I planned to nominate my favorite of all her books, The Enchanted Castle.

[Catlady]

I was (am?) considering My Sister Rosa (evil child) but, alas, it's not available in the UK.

Also considering two WWII historical novels The Librarian of Auschwitz and Salt to the Sea.

I'm reluctant to mention some childhood favorites for a variety of reasons--I don't want to hear anyone criticize them, I don't want to reread them because they broke my heart, or I've recently revisited them.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Catlady

I'm reluctant to mention some childhood favorites for a variety of reasons--I don't want to hear anyone criticize them, I don't want to reread them because they broke my heart, or I've recently revisited them.

Well, of course I'm dying to know!

I'm pretty hardened when it comes to people dissing my childhood favorites; see The Scarlet Pimpernel thread. I'd be more worried about a happy memory that doesn't stand up, but mostly they do. At a minimum, I can see why I loved them once and if they're really bad of the "what was I thinking?" variety, then that's interesting, too.

Now I'm trying to think of childhood favorites that broke my heart. When Beth died in Little Women was probably as bad as it got.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by issybird

When Beth died in Little Women was probably as bad as it got.

That was indeed about the worst. And not a bad thought for a book to read, actually. Might be interesting to see what we all thought of it as adults.

I've actually thought of nominating the first book in a favourite YA Space Opera series, Quarter Share. It's not great literature, but it's very much a cozy where nothing really bad happens (and where the bad happens to those it should.) A favourite re-read that has stood the test of time for me.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

I did not enjoy my experience with Pullman at all a few years back. As to Montgomery, I am of the generation that remembers Megan Fallows fondly as Anne from the PBS series. As I grew up, I liked it less, but I would 100% revisit it again for the pleasure of listening to Rachel McAdams do the audible reading.

ETA: I would love to read something more out of the way like Edith Nesbit. There are some great readings of hers on Librivox.

FWIW, the Sally Lockheart books from Pullman are very different as compared to the His Dark Materials trilogy. They can be taken as straightforward mysteries, though as you'd expect there's a bit more going on. I've had them on my TBR for a re-read for a couple of months, but haven't gotten to them yet.