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Happy new year! Here's hoping for better times in 2022...

One thing we can be sure about in the coming twelve months is that there'll be many more great new books released for us to read!

Of course, 'so many books, so little time' is a common refrain. And how to choose what book to read next...

I've mentioned before that when I first started working, I found that I wasn't reading at all so set myself a challenge to finish a certain number of books a year. I think it must have been one a month to start with, but then it soon turned to one a week. And now I'm reading a few times that number - 126 in 2021.

I like to think I read fairly widely in research for my journalism, preparation for author visits, and for reviews and recommendations, as well as just plain interest and curiosity. It means, though, that these days I hardly ever read any literary classics or poetry.

In the blog compiled for Pan Macmillan, we are encouraged to set out our own reading challenge this year, trying books we might otherwise overlook. There are some interesting suggestions: travel the world; prize winners and losers; a poem a day/week/month; overcome prejudices and dip into an unfamiliar genre. 

Meanwhile the Agatha Christie website has its own challenge for 2022 with twelve prompts to pick up a different Christie novel each month. You can sign up for a postcard which will suggest, for example, that you start reading one of her books set in a hot climate, or one featuring train travel or a story she wrote while abroad.

And one blogger I discovered has set herself the task of reading as many books as she can this year, putting a pound in a jar for every title she completes. At the end of the year she will give the total to charity. 

Lots of ways we can shake up our habits, but however you make your selections, I hope you enjoy your reading in the coming year.

I hope you've had a happy Christmas!

It's seemed rather strange, hasn't it? We've not been able to invest wholeheartedly in the usual plans to meet friends and family, nor have we been able to celebrate fully with all the illness around. But also the fact that Christmas Day fell on a Saturday this year made the lead up rather odd, a little disorientating? But of course I am never really clear what day it is in these current times.

Anyway, I hope you were able to spend time with family and enjoyed good food and conversation. Perhaps, too, you were the recipient of some carefully chosen reading material?!

I am rarely given books these days, but I can always rely on one friend who is brave enough to find a title that I would never have picked out myself. This year I was given a novel by Mary Wesley. I can't remember the last time I read one of her books, and I've only dipped into the first page so far, but it's made me feel very nostalgic and I'm looking forward to making the leap in the next few days. Apparently the book, or rather the author, was carefully selected to remind me that it's 'never too late'. Mary Wesley was famously aged 70 when her first book was published!

Like many people, I am prone to procrastination but the past couple of years have proved a salutory reminder that we should value the present, making the most of every moment because we don't know what's in store. Whether it's fulfilling a long-held ambition, meeting up with a distant friend, or going out for a special meal with family, it's important to do these things while we can rather than assume there will be more time, better weather or greater choice tomorrow, next week or next year.

I hope you are able to enjoy this festive period. There are no reading recommendations listed below because I trust that you received books among your Christmas gifts, but next week we'll be looking ahead to a new year of reading and possibly anticipating an author visit too!

Thank you for reading. Happy Christmas!

There are just a few more days until Christmas and once again things are unsettled and uneasy. But we still have good books to delve into for escape, stimulation and hope for the future - if we choose wisely.

Many newspapers and magazines are offering round-ups of titles which their editors consider the best reads from the past twelve months, and in 'Suffolk' magazine, you can read some bookseller picks here. So we're never short of recommendations at this time of year.

But I've got into the habit of looking to the list compiled by the former US president, Barack Obama. It's usually an eclectic and intriguing mix. You can take a look at his titles for 2021 here. He has lists of his music and movie choices too - no mentions for Kermit the Frog or Peppa Pig.

So I hope you are able to enjoy this last week of preparations, stay well, and have a very happy Christmas.

Thank you for reading.

We're well aware of how film and tv feed off contemporary and classic literature ('Mothering Sunday' by Graham Swift was recently released at the cinema) but this week the book hit the catwalk.

Kim Jones, creative director of Dior menswear is a collector of rare books and literary memorabilia and he has drawn on Jack Kerouac's Beat novel 'On the Road' for his first show in London since 2003.

Intending to show how the anti-establishment spirit of Kerouac is connecting with young people today, there is likely to be a revival of interest around next year’s centenary of Kerouac’s birth.

However, unusually for our recommendations evening, there were few 'classics' mentioned in the titles this year. All the fiction and non-fiction nominations were recently published, though of course they still proved intriguing and appealing. You can see the list here.

Thank you for reading.

Time is playing tricks on me at the moment. I can't believe that it was just last week that we met the lovely Angela Harding in her studio in Rutland. It was wonderful to see where she works and to hear more about the processes involved in creating designs for book covers, magazine illustrations, cards and gifts.

And the next day it was our monthly book group meeting, when 'Piranesi' divided the room. Always good for a lively discussion!

Tomorrow it's our annual recommendations evening and I'm full of anticipation for the titles which will be championed this year. Whether they are familiar books or something entirely new and surprising, there's something very special about getting a personal recommendation.

Most of the time, of course, we rely on publishers to convince us to read a book. The content of the praise quotes and blurbs on book covers often causes consternation in our book group discussions. So I was interested, and entertained, by an article in the 'Times' last week where the journalist offered a crash course in 'publisher speak'.

If you've wondered what is really meant by the enigmatic descriptions promoting a book or its author, look no further.

The comprehensive glossary reveals that 'atmospheric', for example, means 'nothing happens, no plot'. 'Dazzling prose' means 'too many adverbs'. And if the author is described as a major new talent then this is 'their second book, the first was ignored'. If they're a 'master storyteller', though, you can interpret this as meaning they write 'the same novel every year, too successful to be edited'.

There's much more in this vein and you can find the complete article here.

I'm sure we won't have any of these phrases tomorrow night but if you'd like to come along to check, please reply to this email to let me know. We're closed for any more recommendations, but everyone is welcome to listen to the titles being championed. And if you can't join us, I'll be sure to let you know all the titles mentioned.

Thank you for reading.