Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten favourite books in 2010

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

So.. Which were my favourite reads in 2010? Well.. Some of them were re-reads - but I enjoyed them very much and I think you might get a good look at my reading habits:

1. Sarah Waters: TIPPING THE VELVET (1998)

2. Daphne Du Maurier: REBECCA (1938) - just great. Take a look at the German edition cover:

Read it. Love it. And compare it with

3. Emily Brontë: WUTHERING HEIGTHS (1847) - what can I say.. *HEATHCLIFF...!*

(I like the German cover of this edition very much. My own copy looks a bit different.. I am obsessed with book covers!)

4. Esther Williams: THE MILLION DOLLAR MERMAID (2000) - which I read in English and enjoyed it very much.

5. Leonie Swann: GAROU (2010)- Leonie Swann's heroes are sheep. And they investigate murders.. A great laugh which made me cry, too. E.g. when an animal is harmed.. This is a real good thriller - just only with sheep.. ;")


6. James M. Cain: MILDRED PIERCE (1941) - a woman has to earn her living for herself and her daughters in the USA during the era of the Great Depression.. Yes, this book is picturized. :")

7. Mary Jane Ward: THE SNAKE PIT (1946) - a woman finds herself in an asylum. Based on Mary Jane Wards own experiences - there's a film, too.

8. Charlotte Armstrong: MISCHIEF (1950)- yes, I metioned this one not sooo long ago, but I really like this one.. ;")

9. Gina Kaus: CATHERINE (1935) - biography about Catherine the Great - and a great read, too. No book cover but here's a picture of Catherine the Great:

10. John Wyndham: THE MIDWICH CUKOOS (1957) - almost every woman in Midwich is pregnant - even if she hadn't got a "chance" to conceive.. and when the babies are born, they all have golden eyes and act strange.. Normally, I don't read science fiction but this one - oh boy! and yes - there's a film.. This book will be reviewed soon here - and the film in my film blog AND THEN THEY START TO SPARKLE but *shush* it's a secret yet..

11. Jetta Carleton: THE MOONFLOWER VINE (1962) - this is a bonus, because I can't remember wether I read it this or last year - but I LOVED it!)

12. Elizabeth Edmondson: FROZEN LAKE (2004) - I did not finish this one yet, but I like it very much sooo - another bonus.. *wuhahaha*

So, that's it - I reviews for some of them and of course I linked them then. For the other ones I am going to write reviews.

What were your favourite books in 2010?

Merry Christmas to YOU!

Have a Merry Christmas everyone! - and maybe some new books under the tree!

With Love,

Frl. Irene

Read My Review: TV/Movie adaptations

A Trillian Books hosts Read my Review where you can share your - you might have guessed it - reviews. This time the topic is TV/Movie adaptations.

I picked MISHIEF by Charlotte Armstrong which was brought to the silver screen as DON'T BOTHER TO KNOCK. I did two reviews (one for the film and one for the book) so there are two links to reviews in this post.

It was the first review I did on this blog - so there was (and still is) much improvement possible - well, lets be honest: necessary. ;")

As you might know I am not only a nostalgic reader - I am obsessed with films (esp. the classics.) So you may look forward for a lot more filmrelated reviews than I did yet.

Top Ten Tuesday - Ten books from my wishlist

This is a weekly meme from The Broke and the Bookish.

This time we should reveal our bookish desires - and here they are - but I won't burst out in tears when I don't get them .. ;") I visited many other blogs where fellow blogger also posted book covers, which is a lovely eyecandy bonus. So - I try it, too.

1. ALLES IST JAZZ by Lili Grün - its a novel about an actrice in 1930s Berlin. The title means (lit.) "All is jazz" - I just love that and the cover is amazing!
   
   
   



2. SHUTTER ISLAND by Dennis Lehane - I liked the film very much and now I am eager to read the book.
   
   
   



3. GIRL, INTERRUPTED (DURCHGEKNALLT is the German title) by Susanna Kaysen
   
   
   





4. BAD GIRLS GO EVERYWHERE by Jennifer Scanlon - the biography of Helen Gurley Brown (author of SEX AND THE SINGLE GIRL)
   
   
   




5. THE FIRST FEMALE STARS by David W. Menefee
   
   
   




6. THEO LINGEN : DAS SPIEL MIT DER MASKE - a biography about German actor Theo Lingen (1903-1978), who was hilarious and had a very distinctive voice.
   
   
   




7. THIS'N'THAT by Bette Davis. I've found no cover of that one - so I give you a picture of Miss Davis herself:
   
   
   




8. DIE MALWEIBER is about the daring female artists in 1900 and I am just in love with these women on the bookcover. "Malweiber" is a term used by people as an offence back then to make sure that these ladies were no artistes. You could translate it into "paint broads" or something like that, I guess.
   
   
   
   



9. SCHWARZE KATZEN, BUNTE KATZEN a book with many pictures about female writers and female artists and their cats. This is a classical exemplification for a book you would not buy but would be happy if someone gave it to you.. ;") - Same for Book No.8 of my list.
   
   
   
   
   
   
10. DIE KARRIEREN DER VICKI BAUM is a biography about Vicki Baum (1888-1960), who was a great writer.

Top Ten Tuesday Top Ten Most Anticipated Books in 2011

This is a weekly meme from The Broke and the Bookish.

As you may already know, I am more of an nolstagic reader - so I am more exited about old books I rediscover. So my Top Ten List of most anticipated books in 2011 is rather short:

1. Waters, Sarah: THE LITTLE STRANGER will be released in German translation and I am highly enthusiastic about this release. :")

Well, that's it.

Jennifer Donnelly: A Northern Light

A NORTHERN LIGHT by Jennifer Donnelly (2003) is a historic novel stted in the north of New York State. In July 1906 Mathilda (a farmer’s daughter who is called Mattie) is working in a hotel. Then the death body of hotel guest Grace Brown is found in a lake near the hotel. Only Mattie who has Grace’s letters is able to solve this mystery.

On first sight this seems to be a crime novel – but it isn’t. Yes, it is based on a true murder case, but it is more of a coming of age story about Mattie who wants to be a writer but is bound to her home and family.

Beside the classic topics (love, family, infidelity, loss etc.) also racism and sexual harassment are touched on. Friends of literal classics will be happy to find some classic titles and quotes mentioned. Certain Captain Wenthworth, Heathcliff and Rochester are mentioned.

*yay for that!*

Though this book is nothing to cause headaches because of a too complex story it certainly is able to cause an interest to read classic novels (again). By the way - this time I like the German cover ways more. What Do you think?

• Please, tell me: I have one question to my followers who have read this book already: In the German translation there is an Edgar Allan Poe story quoted in which a man has “burned” a death body beneath his floor. I am a lover of Edgar Allan Poe stories and the only one I can think of, which would match this is THE TELL-TALE HEART – and there are death body is “buried” beneath the floor. Is there a story I don’t know or is there a mistake in the translation? Please tell me!
  
  
• Links to look at: The German title DAS LICHT DES NORDENS - which is the direct translation of the original title - is also a name of a German breed of great danes. Have a look: Licht des Nordens (this page is also available in English) These animals are great - but I think I'll stick to my cats.. ;")
  There’s also a link to a page with marvelous photos showing northern Scandinavian landscape by a photograph who lives in Cologne: Licht des Nordens. (Please don't copy any of his pictures - most Germans are very fond of their copyrights.. ;")
  And of course Wikipedia has an article about the Grace Brown murder case: Read it here.

Sarah Waters: Tipping the Velvet

Sarah Waters: TIPPING THE VELVET (1998) is a historic novel - setted in Victorian England - about Nancy who falls in love with male impersonater Kitty Butler, becomes a male impersonater herself and also lover of Kitty. Then Kitty deserts her for a man and Nancy starts to earn her money by working as a hustler before she becomes sort of a salaried lover of a high society lady. Afte she looses her "job", she has to search again for luck - and the love of her live.

What can I say? I am a big Sarah Waters afficionada! I love that she is true to detail - and its always thrilling to read her novels. I read TIPPING THE VELVET now twice and loved it both times.

I got to confess that mostly I don't read books that are this direct with its sexual language - well, most of the books I read are classics - so: No wonder.. ;")

The German title of the novel is DIE MUSCHELÖFFNERIN (lit.= "the shellopener") and like sooo many times I like the English cover waaaayys more than the German one.

I just watched the BBC adaptation and I liked it very much, though there are some changes and I like the end of the novel much more than the one in the TV series. I was so happy that two of my favourite actors (Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins) were in it, too. Even if their parts were not that big - but they have important ones. Oh and I love Keeley Hawes (who is perfect for Kitty), Anna Chancellor (who looks soo beautiful - like always), Jodhi May (soo cute) and Rachael Stirling (who is Diana Rigg's daughter and reminds me of Marlene Dietrich when she is wearing a high hat and a tuxedo).