Plans are now taking shape for the Oxford Mail's very own book group.
I can't say too much right now but talks are at an advanced stage with Waterstones in Oxford.
I was given a shortlist of several hundred books, which the bookstore thought might make good reads for people joining the group.
I thought some of the suggestions would definitely be suitable and came up with a few of my own, although nothing has yet been decided, so I'm hoping you might be able to come up with a few good titles.
Here's my shortlist, for what it's worth:
One Good Turn or Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon
Getting Rid of Matthew by Jane Fallon
Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
Six Degrees by Mark Lynas
Anybody Out There by Marian Keyes
This Book Will Save Your Life by AM Holmes
Restless by William Boyd
Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson, (although I'm a big fan of Notes from a Small Island and Walk in the Woods and could easily read them both again).
And Another Thing by Jeremy Clarkson
Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris
The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
And how do you run a book group? Do you have a chairman, do readers wink or raise a hand when they want to speak, or do they just chip in?
I know Mostly Books in Abingdon now has a series of successful book groups, so I might ask the proprietor for some useful advice.
If you can recommend a good book for discussion do let me know.
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