Past Library Reads – Local Library

I’ve been wondering how much I borrow from the library and whether I read all that I borrow. Below is an overview of the last 6 months from my local Library network. There are 20 items I selected altogether. Please note this table displays better on a computer; On a smartphone the table needs to be swiped to the left to see the comments. Some books will have a link to my book review. You can hover over the title to see.

	Title	Author	Format	Date Borrowed	Comments
1	Calm no matter what	Paul Wilson	Audiobook	05/01/24	Good intentions but haven’t listened to it yet.
2	The second worst restaurant in France	Alexander McCall Smith	Audiobook	04/01/24	On my TBR.
3	How not to have an arranged marriage	Amir Khan	Adult Fiction	13/12/23	Read and enjoyed. About a Pakistani English family from Birmingham and their experience of arranged marriages.
4	Small miracles	Anne Booth	Adult Fiction	13/12/23	Three nuns try to find a way to continue to finance their convent and and try to make the best of their situation. Fun and uplifting but not a favourite.
5	The Living Infinite	Chantel Acevedo	Adult Fiction	26/11/23	A novel of historical fiction about an unconventional Spanish Princess in the mid to late 19th Century. We see her growing up, the story of her wet nurse and travelling to America and Cuba on a Royal tour with her husband and her wet nurse’s son. I found the writing lovely but it was quite sad overall.
6	A quiet passion		DVD	26/11/23	A biopic about American 19th Century poet Emily Dickinson. Well done but heartbreaking and sad.
7	Brideshead revisited		DVD	26/11/23	Adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s novels from 1920’s Oxford and the surrounds. About the friendship of two young men, Sebastian and Charles, Charles’ relationship with the whole family, and love affair with Julia. Magnificent and a firm favourite.
8	Little Dorrit		DVD	26/11/23	Charles Dickens adaptation. Girl lives in a debtor’s prison with her father. The plot goes from there. I gave up quickly because of a horrid serial killer in the plot. Too grim for me.
9	Love weddings & other disasters		DVD	26/11/23	American movie involving wedding planners and their relationships. Sounds fun. Still to watch.
10	Made in Italy		DVD	26/11/23	A father and son go to their villa in Italy and become closer as a result. Still to watch.
11	Blandings		DVD	31/10/23	An adaptation of some of P.G. Wodehouse’s Blandings Castle stories. Very short episodes. Didn’t watch it all. Somewhat amusing.
12	Call the midwife. Series 12		DVD	10/10/23	Midwife Nuns and normal midwives live and work together in 1960’s Poplar in London. Very heartwarming and entertaining.
13	Fisherman’s friends		DVD	05/10/23	A group of fishermen in Cornwall sing sea shanties for fun but then a band manager comes along and thinks they could get a recording contract. Heartwarming and funny.
14	The Irish R.M. Series one		DVD	05/10/23	Adapted from a humorous Irish novel from the 19th Century about an Englishman who takes a post as a magistrate in Ireland. Lots of antics. It was filmed in the 1980’s and wasn’t wonderful right from the start. Saw two episodes then didn’t persevere.
15	The little library cookbook 100 recipes from your favourite stories	Kate Young	Adult Non-Fiction	05/10/23	Cookbook inspired by well known novels and others. Flicked through it.
16	Back when we were grownups	Anne Tyler	Adult Fiction	07/07/23	Didn’t get to it.
17	Good taste	Caroline Scott	Adult Fiction	07/07/23	Historical novel set in the 1930’s about an independent food writer from the North of England. She tries to balance family obligations with her work and having a life of her own. She gets the opportunity to write a book about traditional British food. Her choices are somewhat questionable at times but it showed an unconventional and modern heroine.
18	The apprentice witch	James Nicol	Junior Fiction	07/07/23	Reread of a children’s fantasy about a witch who fails her witch’s exam and must be a trainee witch in the middle of nowhere. Exciting, sweet, with an adorable village and memorable characters.
19	Vinegar girl the taming of the shrew retold	Anne Tyler	Adult Fiction	07/07/23	Interesting modern retelling. Quite funny.
20	Lady of quality	Georgette Heyer	Adult Fiction	29/06/23	Didn’t get to. Read lots of Georgette Heyer’s humorous Regency romances earlier in the year. This one involves an older heroine I believe.

Past 6 months or so – my library reading and watching.

Overall, there were 6 items I didn’t get to (Books, Audiobooks and DVD’s), and some DVD’s I didn’t finish. I tended to read Fiction and watch some DVD’s, the DVD’s tended to be historical and some of the books as well, and 8 items I quite enjoyed. Some others I didn’t get to or finish.

• Fiction
• Reading Lists