Books 2008 #34

1. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl (read to the children at bedtime)
2. "Bush Falls" by Jonathan Tropper
3. "A Bear Called Paddington" by Michael Bond (read to the children at bedtime)
4. "I Hate Myself And Want To Die: The 52 Most Depressing Songs You've Ever Heard" by Tom Reynolds
5. "The Islamist" by Ed Hussain
6. "Dawn of the Diesels: The First Volume" by John Spencer Gilks
7. "Memoirs of a Spymaster" by Markus Wolf
8. "Dawn of the Diesels: The Second Volume" by John Spencer Gilks
9. "Britain Under Fire" - a book published in 1941 showing photographs of air raid damage in British towns and cities
10. "Dawn of the Diesels: The Third Volume" by John Spencer Gilks
11. "The Boy's Book of Survival: How to Survive Anything, Anywhere" by Guy Campbell
12. "Postwar: A History of Europe since 1945" by Tony Judt
13. "The Necropolis Railway" by Andrew Martin
14. "As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me" by Josef M. Bauer
15. "Love Jude" by Annie Porthouse
16. "He Never Said..." by Steve Chalke
17. "Dear Bob" by Annie Porthouse
18. "Affluenza" by Oliver James
19. "Live and Work in Scotland" by Nicola Taylor
20. Extract from "What Are We Doing Here?" by Brian Norris (the part about his time in East Germany) - sent to me by the author
21. "Working for Yourself" - Which? Essential Guides
22. "Cell" by Stephen King
23. "Out of the Tunnel" by Rachel North
24. "The Historic Locomotive Pocketbook" by H.C. Casserley
25. "The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams
26. "Mysterious Britain" by Janet and Colin Bord
27. "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe" by Douglas Adams
28. "Life, The Universe and Everything" by Douglas Adams
29. "Railway: Identity, Design and Culture" by Keith Lovegrove
30. "So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish" by Douglas Adams
31. "How to be Free" by Tom Hodgkinson
32. "The Essential Guide to Festivals: Tents and Mud and Rock 'n' Roll" by Sharon Watson
33. "Mostly Harmless" by Douglas Adams
34. "Roadblock: How People Power is Wrecking the Roads Programme" by John Stewart, Jonathan Bray and Emma Must
35. "Is Britain Great?" by The Caravan Gallery
36. "How to be Idle" by Tom Hodgkinson
37. "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman
38. "Max Headroom's Guide To Life" by David Hansen and Paul Owen
39. "How to be a Wally" by Paul Manning
40. "My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary" by Rae Earl
41. "Home Run: Escape from Nazi Europe" by John Nichol and Tony Rennell
42. "Get That Job: Interviews" - Business: The Ultimate Resource series (no author's name stated)
43. "SS-GB" by Len Deighton

This is an alternative-history novel - a spy story set in Britain in 1941, after Britain had been defeated and occupied by the Nazis. It's a book I've been meaning to read for ages, having read a bit of it years ago and getting quite engaged by it.

It's very well-researched and seems entirely credible, but the plot is pretty complex and I lost it a bit at times - mainly because I've been very busy for the last few weeks, and read the book in lots of small sittings. This combined with my terrible memory resulted in me not being able to recall who all the myriad characters were and what their alleigances were etc...so I was a bit confused by the end.

Good stuff, though, and quite a gripping read. It would make a very good film, I think.