ŷ������

I am slightly earlier this year as my son is moving to Canada on Monday (sob!!!) so I'll be a little busy over the coming days.

Rules

1 The Book Pool will run from the 1st of January till the 30th Of November 2025. Books started before the 1st of January or finished after the 30th of November will not be counted.
2 Members who want to select books, please do so by the 31st of December - PST. You can only change your mind about the books you have chosen until the 20th of December. (PST) Members who add their books on or after the 21st of December can't change them at all. This is so the planners amongst us can organise their reads. No books can be added after the 31st of December. If you join this group or decide you want to join the Book Pool after the 31st of December, that will be great, but you can't add books to the book pool.
3 Everyone taking part will be given a number - for example I will be #1.
4 Anyone else can still join in after the 1st of January, but can't add books. There is no obligation to read all the books - or any of the books. This includes the books you selected to be part of the pool. This isn't just a fiction book pool - Non fiction, later books in a series, YA & books for older children are all fine!
5 First publication date should be 1900-1980.
6 Everyone selects up to 5 books. If someone has already selected one of your choices, please don't select it again.
7 Georgette Heyer books now allowed

If you are uncertain of anything just check the previous challenge (other than the one rule change)
or ask either me or Cindy!

People Taking Part

#1 Carol She's So Novel 4 books
#2 CindySR 3 books
#3 Barb in Maryland 1 books
#4 Cphe 8 books
#5 Susan in NC 8 books
#6 Lesley 2 books
#7 Amanda 3 books
#8 Jackie 6 books
#9 Mela 2 books
#10 Kate 1 book
# 11 Tania 3 books
#12 Katy
#13 Jenn 1 book
#14 Peggy
#15 Sharon 2 books

& this year I thought I would trial having the books as a written list. We do this in the group that I got the Book Pool idea from.

1 The Devil in Clevely aka Afternoon of an Autocrat, The Deadly Gift by Norah Lofts
2 Ride the Pink Horse by Dorothy B. Hughes
3 A Few Green Leaves by Barbara Pym
4 Save Me the Waltz by Zelda Fitzgerald
5 Poison Penmanship: The Gentle Art of Muckraking by Jessica Mitford
6 That Callahan Spunk! by Francis Ames
7 The Perennial Bachelor by Anne Parish
8 Heat Lightning by Helen R. Hull
9 Spoonhandle by Ruth Moore
10 Junior Miss by Sally Benson
11 A Touch of Magic by Betty Cavanna
12 Spam Tomorrow by Verily Anderson
13 Kate Hardy by D.E. Stevenson
14 Silver Canyon by Louis L'Amour
15 Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summer by Molly Clavering
16 Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan aka Agatha Christie
17 Paying Guests by E.F. Benson
18 Susan Settles Down by Molly Clavering
19 The Kingsclere Mystery by Moray Dalton
20 A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century by Barbara W. Tuchman
21 The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy by James Anderson
22 The White Witchby Elizabeth Goudge
23 The Iron Lily by Barbara Willard
24 Joy in the Morning by P.G. Wodehouse
25 Dragonwyck by Anya Seton
26 My Friend the Professor by Lucilla Andrews
27 Legend in Green Velvet aka Ghost in Green Velvet by Elizabeth Peters
28 North From Rome by Helen MacInnes
29 The Big Sky by A.B. Guthrie Jr.
30 Anderby Wold by Winifred Holtby
31 The Friendly Young Ladies by Mary Renault
32 The Enchanted April byElizabeth von Arnim
33 Smouldering Fire by D.E. Stevenson
34 School For Love by Olivia Manning
35 Ten Way Street by Susan Scarlett
36 The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler
37 Old Friends and New Fancies by Sybil G. Brinton
38 The Charmers by Stella Gibbons
39 The Optimist's Daughterby Eudora Welty
40 The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym
41 The Good Shepherd aka Greyhound by C.S. Forester
42 I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
43 Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
44 Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
45 Grass Beyond the Mountains: Discovering the Last Great Cattle Frontier on the North American Continent by Richmond P. Hobson Jr.
46 The Unbearable Bassington by Saki
47 High Wages by Dorothy Whipple
48 The Gulls Fly Inland by Sylvia Thompson
49 Sisters by a River by Barbara Comyns
50 The Fly on the Wheel by Katherine Cecil Thurston
51 Crimson Sails by Alexander Grin
52 The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
53 The Forty Days of Musa Dagh by Franz Werfel
54 Independent People by Halldór Laxness
55Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert K. Massie
56 Call for the Dead by John Le Carré
57 Eva Trout by Elizabeth Bowen
58 Grass in Piccadilly by Noel Streatfeild
59 The Mountain Lion by Jean Stafford
60 Mystery of the White Knight by Charlotte MacLeod
61 The Cheerleader by Ruth Doan MacDougall
62 The Plague and I by Betty MacDonald
63 Lady Rose and Mrs. Memmary by Ruby Ferguson
64 Water Weed: A Golden Age Mystery by Alice Campbell
65 A Pink Front Door by Stella Gibbons
66 South Riding by Winifred Holtby
67 Kate Hannigan by Catherine Cookson
68 After the Funeral by Agatha Christie
69 A Song Begins by Mary Burchell
70 Rest You Merry by Charlotte MacLeod
71 Jane and Prudence by Barbara Pym
72 Touch Not the Nettle by Molly Clavering
73 Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes
74 The Art School Murders by Moray Dalton
75 For Whom The Cloche Tolls - A Scrap-Book Of The Twenties by Angus Wilson

That Callahan Spunk Francis Ames
The Perennial Bachelor Anne Parrish
Heat Lightning Helen Hull
Spoonhandle Ruth Moore
Junior Miss Sally Benson

I like the written list better, it's easier to read.
ETA author names

I'll join in for 2025 but at this stage have no idea what I'll read.

Same here, I’ll join in but haven’t decided on my list yet.

I agree, the written list is much easier to read, also makes it easier to find book info, as covers and sometimes titles vary country to country, and with reprints.

Carol She's So Novel ꧁꧂ wrote: "I am slightly earlier this year as my son is moving to Canada on Monday (sob!!!) so I'll be a little busy over the coming days.

Rules

1 The Book Pool will run from the 1st of January till the 30t..."

I know you’ll miss your son, but I hope all goes smoothly for him in his move! Hang in there, mum!😉

Cphe wrote: "I'll join in for 2025 but at this stage have no idea what I'll read."

No worries! Anyone can just indicate interest & decide books later. I'll mention that I will be away for 3-5 days over Christmas & don't know if I'll have internet. But I can fix anything up when I get home!

Susan in NC wrote: "I know you’ll miss your son, but I hope all goes smoothly for him in his move! Hang in there, mum!😉
"

Thanks Susan - what makes it harder is that he has lived with us for the last three months & it has just been wonderful. The girls are here now & we are all going out to dinner tonight, then the girls go back home.

May I please be #3 ?

A Touch of Magic
Spam Tomorrow
Kate Hardy
Silver Canyon
Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summer

Love the written list!

Barb in Maryland wrote: "May I please be #3 ?

A Touch of Magic
Spam Tomorrow
Kate Hardy
Silver Canyon
Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summer"

Oh I gave no 3 to Cphe! Cphe do you mind being Number 4?

Carol She's So Novel ꧁꧂ wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "I know you’ll miss your son, but I hope all goes smoothly for him in his move! Hang in there, mum!😉
"

Thanks Susan - what makes it harder is that he has lived with us for the l..."

Oh, enjoy this time when you’re all together- your kids sound lovely!🥰

Carol She's So Novel ꧁꧂ wrote: "Barb in Maryland wrote: "May I please be #3 ?

A Touch of Magic
Spam Tomorrow
Kate Hardy
Silver Canyon
[book:Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summe..."

Don't mind what number I end up - just that I'll participate and read, read, read.

Hoping to get some suggestions from what is put forward at this stage.

As Susan said, the written list is much easier to read, but could I ask that authors also be included as so many books by different authors share the same title.

Be brave, Carol! In today's world Xavier won't really be that far away. Well, that's what people tell me :)

Lesley wrote: "As Susan said, the written list is much easier to read, but could I ask that authors also be included as so many books by different authors share the same title."

Thanks, Lesley, excellent suggestion!

Ok everything added. I haven't hyperlinked Helen Hull's name as there looks to be some problems with her listing that I want to check out first.

& I was reading reviews of Silver Canyon last night & one of them indicated it was also published under another name. If anyone knows for sure let me know. :)

& if anyone wants to change their read please give me the number I have assigned the book as well as the title please. :)

Ok, here are my 5, tough choices!

1. Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan, 1946
2. Paying Guests by E.F. Benson, 1929
3. A Fugue in Time by Rumer Godden, 1945
4. The Kingsclere Mystery by Moray Dalton, 1924
5. A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century by Barbara W. Tuchman, 1978

Susan in NC wrote: "Ok, here are my 5, tough choices!

1. Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan, 1946
2. Paying Guests by [author:E.F. Benson|1347979..."

Added for you, Susan!

Thank you, dearest!

Carol She's So Novel ꧁꧂ wrote: "Ok everything added. I haven't hyperlinked Helen Hull's name as there looks to be some problems with her listing that I want to check out first.

& I was reading reviews of [book:Silver Canyon|6996..."

Re: Silver Canyon--to the best of my knowledge it was never published under another title. However, L'Amour was a prolific short story writer and it is possible that there's a short story that was re-worked into the novel Silver Canyon.

Barb in Maryland wrote: "Re Silver Canyon."

Thanks Barb - I wasn't looking forward to checking through all of L'Amour's book records.

1. The Affair of the Blood-Stained Egg Cosy by James Anderson, 1975
2. The White Witch by Elizabeth Goudge, 1952
3. The Iron Lily by Barbara Willard, 1973
4. Joy in the Morning by P.G. Wodehouse, 1947
5. Dragonwyck by Anya Seton, 1944

Added for you Amanda - & you are #7!

Thank you!

Amanda wrote: "1. The Affair of the Blood-Stained Egg Cosy by James Anderson, 1975
2. The White Witch by Elizabeth Goudge, 1952
3. [book:The Iron Lily|1..."

Oh, Barbara Willard's Mandlemass series! I loved those books. Thanks for reminding me.

I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy in the Morning and really enjoyed it.

Jackie wrote: "I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy in the Morning ..."
Yay Jackie!

The Summer Book was in the '23 &'24 selections, so I would rather it wasn't chosen for a third year, but I won't stop anyone who wants to. Any other books from 24 are fine I think.

Yes don't list books already on the '25 list. They only need to be on once as this is a shared list.

You're #8 Jackie. :)

whoohoo!

Jackie wrote: "I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy in the Morning ..."

I love Wodehouse anytime! ;o)

Carol She's So Novel ꧁꧂ wrote: "Jackie wrote: "I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy ..."

Oh, good, because there were some excellent books in the two previous pools I didn’t get to - if they show up again, it’d be a helpful reminder!

Yes, I am definitely going to read one more before the pool ends, but there were at least another three I would have liked to have read.

Jackie wrote: "I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy in the Morning ..."

Barb in Maryland wrote: "Amanda wrote: "1. The Affair of the Blood-Stained Egg Cosy by James Anderson, 1975
2. The White Witch by Elizabeth Goudge, 1952
3. [book:..."

I'm looking forward to reading that series.

Jackie wrote: "I will participate, but haven't decided on my list yet. Do I have to make sure they aren't in this year's pool? or last year's?

Amanda, I just listened to the audio version of Joy in the Morning ..."

Yay!

Tentatively 2025.......


My Friend the Professor: A heartwarming 1960s hospital romance

Legend in Green Velvet

North From Rome

Berlin Game (not sure if this fits the timeframe)

The Big Sky

Anderby Wold

Cphe wrote: "Tentatively 2025.......


My Friend the Professor: A heartwarming 1960s hospital romance

Legend in Green Velvet

North From Rome

[book:Berlin Game|48212..."

Hi Cphe

I started adding your books - then I noticed you have chosen six books. The maximum is 5. But Berlin Game is outside our time period (first published 1983) Shall I just leave that one out?

Originally we went from 1920-1970. I wanted to change the time period from 1900-1999, but the consensus was everyone was happy to go earlier, but most didn't want to go later than 1980.

That's fine.....thank you

Cphe wrote: "That's fine.....thank you"
All entered now. :)

I'm #8 and let's see if I can get this right in one try:

1. The Friendly Young Ladies Mary Renault
2. The Enchanted April Elizabeth Von Arnim
3. Smouldering Fire D.E. Stevenson
4. School for Love Olivia Manning
5. Ten Way Street Susan Scarlett

I think found out about all these books from goodreads groups including this one. This is where I heard about Susan Scarlett, for sure.

All ok Jackie & I've added for you. :)

I have checked my to-read list and I am choosing these books:

The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler (1903)
Old Friends and New Fancies by Sybil G. Brinton (1913) ��
The Charmers by Stella Gibbons (1965)
The Optimist's Daughter by Eudora Welty (1972)
The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym (1979) ��

Added for you Mela!

We have both picked books from the end of Pym's career!

New Pyms for me, yay!

I’d like to join again!

Here’s my list:

The Good Shepherd by C. S. Forester
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
Grass Beyond the Mountains: Discovering the Last Great Cattle Frontier on the North American Continent by Richmond P. Hobson, Jr.

Thank you for organizing this!

Kate wrote: "I’d like to join again!

Here’s my list:

The Good Shepherd by C. S. Forester
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
[book:..."

Kate, that's a nice list. I see several that I want to read or re-read.

Kate wrote: "I’d like to join again!

Here’s my list:

The Good Shepherd by C. S. Forester
I, Robot by Isaac Asimov
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
[book:..."

It's my pleasure, Kate. You are #10

I'm really pleased to see there is a book I physically own on your list - Cold Comfort Farm.

This should give me the push to get it read! :)

& I have just realised that I didn't post my selections individually - they are 1-5 in the list.

Dorothy B. Hughes is the only author I've read before with the five books I have chosen, & the only woman Noir writer I have read.

I have been meaning to read Norah Lofts for a while, as early on in my time on GR people told me if I loved Georgette Heyer I would love Lofts too.

I have owned A Few Green Leaves by Barbara Pym for a while, but this was her final book & I was hoping to read earlier books by her first. I couldn't wait any longer!

Save Me the Waltz is the only book by Zelda Fitzgerald. I've read that her husband mined their lives for his material, so I wanted to read things from her point of view. & the kindle was very reasonably priced on Amazon.

& the Jessica Mitford was my one & only purchase from the Book Fair this year. The Mitfords fascinate me - & Jessica was so different from the rest of her family!

I have liked some Norah Lofts but don't find her anything like Heyer. I'd be interested in why others think that.