There's a programme on Wednesday on ITV1 at 7.30pm that all you UK peeps should watch.

It's called Lion County and it's where surface_missile and I were in Zimbabwe this time last year! (This is where my default icon really is perfect for the post!)

Now I need to make sure I don't forget it!

Aww, my fishy died today - shortly before I got back from being in Kent.
Alas it was to be expected (I spoke to an aquarium man a few weeks back about the fact that my fish was still bent, and he told me that on one side of him his central nervous system had died and the muscles contracted and he wouldn't live for much longer).



Poor fishy :-(

But he was around 11 years old. He lived a good life.

This year I have read a total of 18 books. Rubbish compared to most of you guys, I know. But amazing for me compared to my total of 5 books last year!

I also decided to do reviews of the books I'd read this year... or at least part way through this year! The missing ones are from books I read whilst travelling.

1. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time - Mark Haddon
A story told from the PoV of a boy with Aspergers. A really great read that I read quite quickly (for me). I'd definitely reccomend this to anyone.

2. Don't Tell Mum - Simon Hoggart & Emily Monk
A fairly amusing book about emails that people who have gone travelling have sent back home to their families. Some crazy stuff that people do when away! And one good piece of advice is don't tell your parents before you plan to do something crazy (like a bungy), especially if you don't email them for a while afterwards!

3. The Trophy Taker - Lee Weeks

4. In Her Shoes - Jennifer Weiner

5. The Exodus Quest - Will Adams

6. The Murderers' Club - PD Martin

7. The Chase - Clive Cussler

8. The Life and Times of The Thunderbolt Kid - Bill Bryson
A look back at life in 1950s America. An amusing but forgettable read.

9. Broken Skin - Stuart MacBride
The author tried to get the Scottish accent of the characters across in their speech, but it just made reading some of what they said quite hard! The plot itself was good though, with fallible (even the main guy) but likeable characters.

10. Gone For Good - Harlan Coben
My first book that I've read by this author, but his writing is fantastic. He had me hooked within the first few pages. And I'd definitely recommend this book, it's full of plot twist after plot twist that you just don't expect, right up to the end.

11. Northern Lights - Philip Pullman
I loved the first half of this book, but part way through it seemed to... I'm not sure exactly. It seemed events happened too quickly in comparison to earlier on, plus the main character had everything going right for her all the time or something. I can't quite put my finger on it.

12. The Subtle Knife - Philip Pullman
This one seemed to be written in a very different style to the first book. Reading it straight after the first one really showed the difference in style, but it really worked and I very much enjoyed the story.

13. The Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman
I really enjoyed the conclusion to the trilogy. Though I did feel a little heartbroken when reading this one!

14. Lyra's Oxford - Philip Pullman
A short story about Lyra two year's after The Amber Spyglass. Short but sweet.

15. Shut Eye - Adam Baron
I enjoyed the plot of this crime thriller, but at times the author was over descriptive, which would really annoy me when reading. You don't need to know the exact ingredients and measurements when the character is cooking a meal, or when they use the enter key when using a computer!

16. About A Boy - Nick Hornby
The book that the film is based on. I remember that I enjoyed the film when I saw it but didn't really remember what had happened in it. But the book? I loved the book. I loved how all the characters developed throughout the story, and you couldn't help but get drawn into their lives. Great book.

17. The World According to Clarkson - Jeremy Clarkson
This is a collection of Jeremy's articles in the Sunday Times from 2001-2003. I quite enjoyed reading it - however I think it would have been better to read by dipping in occasionally rather than reading the whole thing as my current book, because of course the chapters didn't flow as a story would so I never quite got into it. Being Jeremy Clarkson also means that a few of the things he'd write about I didn't agree with, but mostly it was just amusing and sometimes got you thinking about some of the issues he discussed.

18. Ugly - Constance Briscoe
This is a story of the author's childhood, where her mother both abused and neglected her. How she survived this and seems to have turned out so normal I have no idea. But it is well worth a read. The Evening Standard review sums up my feelings quite well: "Reading the book is like an exercise in bottling up your rage. Afterwards, you feel happiness and disturbed. Which is only right." I don't think I've ever felt anger towards a book like I did when reading this one.

Am somewhat amused that everyone's Christmas is over and I've not had mine yet. That'll be tomorrow.

Today we had Dad, Tom, Rob, CG and myself here and we've been doing... well, I'm not sure actually! But we filled a day without going on the computer until just now nor watching any TV. Though I did spend hours (and I mean that literally) cleaning the shower because it was... well, disgusting doesn't begin to describe it. *shudders* Tom did help do part of it though. Apparently 3 males in a house with no mother or any sort of woman figure is a very bad thing.

Not seen Doctor Who yet. Might watch it tomorrow. Might not. Depends if I have time. I'll watch it eventually at any rate!

Sarah, Emily & the girls come tomorrow. Pete's working (and spent today at his gf's) and will be back in the afternoon. Will no doubt be another busy day. Probably complete mayhem actually!

Hope everyone has had a good day whatever you've been up to.