susan_

Hello all - I'm not feeling very well so I'm not going to make it to bookclub tomorrow evening. I did do the list (very loosely interpreted theme Europe), so I hope you find something you like! I'll PM my votes through. Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Armin A notice in The Times addressed to 'Those who Appreciate Wistaria and Sunshine' advertises a 'small mediaeval Italian Castle on the shores of the Mediterranean to be let furnished for the month of April'. Four very different women take up the offer, escaping dreary London for the sunshine of Italy. Among the party are Mrs Wilkins and Mrs Arthuthnot, both fleeing unappreciative husbands; beautiful Lady Caroline, sick of being 'grabbed' by lovestruck men; and the imperious Mrs Fisher, who spends her time remembering the bearded 'great men' she knew in her Victorian childhood. By the end of their holiday, all the women will fall completely under the spell of Italy in this funny, insightful and very charming novel. Miss Ranskill Comes Home by Barbara Bower Tells the tale of a woman who goes on a cruise and is swept overboard. She lives for three years on a desert island before being rescued by a destroyer in 1943. When she returns to England it seems to her to have gone mad: she cannot buy clothes without 'coupons', and she is considered uncivilised if she walks barefoot or is late for meals. An unsparing, wry 1946 novel. One Fine Day by Mollie Panter-Downes It is a summer's day in 1946. The English village of Wealding is no longer troubled by distant sirens, yet the rustling coils of barbed wire are a reminder that something, some quality of life, has evaporated. Together again after years of separation, Laura and Stephen Marshall and their daughter Victoria are forced to manage without 'those anonymous caps and aprons who lived out of sight and pulled the strings'. Their rambling garden refuses to be tamed, the house seems perceptibly to crumble. But alone on a hillside, as evening falls, Laura comes to see what it would have meant if the war had been lost, and looks to the future with a new hope and optimism. First published in 1947, this subtle, finely wrought novel presents a memorable portrait of the aftermath of war, its effect upon a marriage, charting, too, a gradual but significant change in the nature of English middle-class life. The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier The classic tale of a journey through war-torn Europe. Alone and fending for themselves in a Poland devastated by World War Two, Jan and his three homeless friends cling to the silver sword as a symbol of hope. As they travel through Europe towards Switzerland, where they believe they will be reunited with their parents, they encounter many hardships and dangers. This extraordinarily moving account of an epic journey gives a remarkable insight into the reality of a Europe laid waste by war. World War Z by Matt Brooks It began with rumours from China about another pandemic. Then the cases started to multiply and what had looked like the stirrings of a criminal underclass, even the beginnings of a revolution, soon revealed itself to be much, much worse. Faced with a future of mindless, man-eating horror, humanity was forced to accept the logic of world government and face events that tested our sanity and our sense of reality. Based on extensive interviews with survivors and key players in the 10-year fight-back against the horde, World War Z brings the very finest traditions of American journalism to bear on what is surely the most incredible story in the history of civilisation

Morning all - Hotel World by Ali Smith won our democratic vote for this month's book. We'll meet at the Tippler on Tuesday 19 July at the usual 19:45 for 20:00 start. I'm doing the list for next month on the theme Europe :) See you there! (Newcomers - just read the book and turn up)

Hi All - I'm looking forward to bookclub this evening. Who's coming out? Don't let me be "Billy No Mates"

Hi all, I'm not likely to attend tomorrow due to work (again!) Annoying as I read the book and was looking forward to the conversation! I've PMed my votes to Rhian and look forward to the results. See you soon. Susan

i also use my bra as a pocket for stuff while out running but I found my phone didn't like being sweaty so now I pop it in a zip top baggie before stuffing it in my bra. Depending on your phone your mileage may vary :)

Hi all, I have a 'required' work do on Tuesday so sadly I will not be able to attend on Tuesday. Really sorry to miss bookclub again! I'll PM my vote to Holly. I'd be happy to do the next month's list if you're stuck for volunteers on the night - just let me know. Susan

Hey all, I've been let down by a colleague and have a few hours of work yet to go this evening....so I doubt I'll be able to make it tonight. I've chosen my votes and will send them to Tash to include in the vote. I equally enjoyed and was annoyed by the Bees so was really looking forward to hearing what everyone else thinks. Susan

Totally agree - v good fish and chips, very friendly

So we choose The Bees by Laline Paull for our next book and Tash agreed to choose a list for the following month (I think - tell me if I misheard!) We meet again on Tuesday 8th March at 7:45 for 8, at the Tippler (we are usually in the seats by the front window) @Jen - it was great to see you again, welcome back! @kimp - you are very welcome, please do come along next month. You might like to subscribe (click Follow this Thread) so you get an email when there are new posts with the book lists and dates.

Hey bookclubbers - see you tonight at the Tippler - 7:45 for 8

Hello all, please see below the list for next month. I hope you find one you like - remember you get two votes in our secret ballot. Finished Jackie's book over the weekend - uhm yipes, I wasn't expecting some of the things that happened! See you all on Tuesday. Bookclub March 2016 Outlander - Diane Galbadon The year is 1945. Claire Randall, a former combat nurse, is just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon when she walks through a standing stone in one of the ancient circles that dot the British Isles. Suddenly she is a Sassenach?an ?outlander??in a Scotland torn by war and raiding border clans in the year of Our Lord...1743. Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life, and shatter her heart. For here James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire?and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London's Metropolitan Police. Too bad his superior plans to assign him to the Case Progression Unit, where the biggest threat he'll face is a paper cut. But Peter's prospects change in the aftermath of a puzzling murder, when he gains exclusive information from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost. Peter's ability to speak with the lingering dead brings him to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and other manifestations of the uncanny. Now, as a wave of brutal and bizarre murders engulfs the city, Peter is plunged into a world where gods and goddesses mingle with mortals and long-dead evil is making a comeback on a rising tide of magic. Shades of Grey - Jasper Fforde From the bestselling author of Thursday Next?a brilliant new novel about a world where social order and destiny are dictated by the colors you can see Part social satire, part romance, part revolutionary thriller, Shades of Grey tells of a battle against overwhelming odds. In a society where the ability to see the higher end of the color spectrum denotes a better social standing, Eddie Russet belongs to the low-level House of Red and can see his own color?but no other. The sky, the grass, and everything in between are all just shades of grey, and must be colorized by artificial means. Eddie's world wasn't always like this. There's evidence of a never-discussed disaster and now, many years later, technology is poor, news sporadic, the notion of change abhorrent, and nighttime is terrifying: no one can see in the dark. Everyone abides by a bizarre regime of rules and regulations, a system of merits and demerits, where punishment can result in permanent expulsion. Eddie, who works for the Color Control Agency, might well have lived out his rose-tinted life without a hitch. But that changes when he becomes smitten with Jane, a Grey Nightseer from the dark, unlit side of the village. She shows Eddie that all is not well with the world he thinks is just and good. Together, they engage in dangerous revolutionary talk. Stunningly imaginative, very funny, tightly plotted, and with sly satirical digs at our own society, this novel is for those who loved Thursday Next but want to be transported somewhere equally wild, only darker; a world where the black and white of moral standpoints have been reduced to shades of grey. American Gods - Neil Gaiman Days before his release from prison, Shadow's wife, Laura, dies in a mysterious car crash. Numbly, he makes his way back home. On the plane, he encounters the enigmatic Mr Wednesday, who claims to be a refugee from a distant war, a former god and the king of America. Together they embark on a profoundly strange journey across the heart of the USA, whilst all around them a storm of preternatural and epic proportions threatens to break. Scary, gripping and deeply unsettling, American Gods takes a long, hard look into the soul of America. You'll be surprised by what - and who - it finds there... The Bees - Laline Paull The Handmaid's Tale meets The Hunger Games in this brilliantly imagined debut. Born into the lowest class of her society, Flora 717 is a sanitation bee, only fit to clean her orchard hive. Living to accept, obey and serve, she is prepared to sacrifice everything for her beloved holy mother, the Queen. Yet Flora has talents that are not typical of her kin. And while mutant bees are usually instantly destroyed, Flora is reassigned to feed the newborns, before becoming a forager, collecting pollen on the wing. Then she finds her way into the Queen's inner sanctum, where she discovers secrets both sublime and ominous. Enemies roam everywhere, from the fearsome fertility police to the high priestesses who jealously guard the Hive Mind. But Flora cannot help but break the most sacred law of all, and her instinct to serve is overshadowed by a desire, as overwhelming as it is forbidden... Laline Paull's chilling yet ultimately triumphant novel creates a luminous world both alien and uncannily familiar. Thrilling and imaginative, The Bees is the story of a heroine who changes her destiny and her world.

I put mine in front of my house with a 'Free' sign and it was gone within the hour. This 'frrecycle' method works great for all sorts of things, in my experience.

Hi JenniferJ, Yes, we're that same book club :) We chose The World is Full of Married Men And we'll be meeting at the Tippler on Tuesday 9th February at 7:45 for 8 o'clock start I'll be doing a list for next month (theme yet tbd) Do come along, you're very welcome :) Susan

I recommend Vanessa http://www.madebypurehands.com/ who offers treatments at Bellenden Therapies.

Hi everyone, Next month we are meeting at the Tippler at 7:45 for 8 on Tuesday 12 January. We'll be discussing the Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones. It looks like it's only recently available in the UK as many of the secondhand offers on Amazon are from the states. I'd suggest ordering right away. Also there's a Kindle version available through the Amazon.com site (but not the UK site). Kenneth is doing the list for next month - a tribute to Jackie Collins (RIP)

Here's the original recipe I used for my sweet potato crackers. And here's what I actually did: (It's a north American recipe so I converted some measurements to metric with the help of Mr Google) 188g all purpose flour 2.5 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt (actually I didn't add this as I used salty butter) 44g unsalted butter 200g cooked, mashed sweet potato (approximately one medium one) 1 teaspoon sugar (I added some cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg but you really add whatever spices) I peeled, cut up and steamed the sweet potato for 8-10 minutes. It mashed easily with a fork and I plopped in the butter while it was hot so it would melt and combine easily. Then I added the dry ingredients and used my fork to mix it all until it was nearly a dough. I used my hands to knead it a couple times and then put it (wrapped in clingfilm) in the fridge for half an hour or so just to make it easier to work with. I rolled it out in batches (using a little more flour for dusting) and use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. You really must roll it very very thin so that the crackers get properly crisp. My first batch was too think and simply didn't dry out enough in the baking so ended up kind of chewy. I baked them on parchment-lined cookie sheets at 175C for 10 minutes then flipped them over and baked for another 6 minutes. The aim is to get them crisp without going too brown. The pictures in the link show beautiful orange-y crackers almost like the goldfish crackers of my childhood, but I didn't watch mine closely enough so some of them discoloured from overbating. Enjoy!

Thanks Kenneth for hosting us last night - your new flat is lovely. Next month we're back at the Tippler on 17 November at the usual time of 7:45 for 8pm start. We choose The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing. Newcomers are welcome, just read the book and turn up on the night - we usually sit in the seat by the front window. (If the Tippler is unexpectedly shut then we reconvene at the Palmerston.) Tash agreed to do the list for the following month.

Hi ladies, I'm so sorry I missed tonight's knit night. I have family staying with me this week and it just wasn't possible to get out the door. Hoping to be back next week.

Hi ladies, I really enjoyed meeting you last week. I won't be able to attend tomorrow but hope to be there next week. Susan

I had them put in last year by this company - http://www.stormwindows.co.uk My main aim was to make the house warmer but they have reduced noise too.

I just found out that Southwark libraries is now lending ebooks and eAudiobooks - http://www.southwark.gov.uk/ebooks and thought my fellow book-clubbers might be interested... If you've already got a library card it's super easy to set it up on your phone or tablet. I don't think this would really be an option for our bookclub books but I've certainly enjoyed downloading some eAudiobooks for listening while I'm doing something else (cooking/cleaning)

Anyone watching the Bake-off tonight? I'm cheering for Nadiya tonight!

Hi Julie82, you are very welcome - I just bought the book myself and am looking forward to the discussion. See you in September. Susan

I agree ?17 is steep but I found it for ?10ish at Waterstones. Happy to swap to something else if preferred.

Thanks to Holly and Tash for setting this group up and thanks to Holly and Mary for hosting! I had a lovely evening - it was great to meet so many talented local bakers and sample such a variety of goodies :)