I’ve begun and abandoned a few library books lately. I don’t rate or review books I DNF (Did Not Finish), but here is a little about why I decided not to continue with these:

All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman. I liked this book at first, as it had a wicked edge and an ex-girl group theme. It reminded me a bit of The Thunder Girls by Melanie Blake. However I found the main character, Florence – who grew up in Florida and now mingles with the posh mothers in London – very annoying. I don’t mind reading characters who are supposed to be unlikeable, but I found her uncompelling enough to abandon the book after several chapters.

Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett. I remember when this Discworld book was published and I wasn’t interested, as the theme is football. Recently I thought I’d give it a go, as it’s one of the few in the series I haven’t read. I quite enjoyed it at first, but the plot seemed very drawn-out and complicated, plus it was football, which even though it was played by wizards, still didn’t appeal to me.

Adventures in Stationery by James Ward. I thought this might turn out to be surprisingly fascinating. The cover had illustrations of brightly-coloured stationery. Maybe the fact that the author has a blog called ‘I Like Boring Things’ should have warned me. Anyway, I didn’t get far with this. I’m sure it’s a great book, when it reaches the right reader. I must admit I have never wondered how paperclips were invented and it’s very low down my list of things to know.

Faery Tale by Signe Pike. I thought the book was interesting at first but then I lost my enthusiasm for it. The book is about a young woman, an editor for a US publisher, searching for faeries, however its concept didn’t seem strong enough. I couldn’t work out if it was a self-discovery thing, or a travel memoir, but it was a bit too ‘new age’ for me and moreover I wasn’t keen on the writing style.

The Famous by Rachel Lynch. Described as a psychological thriller about the dark side of fame, this sounded like it might be a gripping read. I don’t often read this genre now as I find the books too similiar unless they have something unusual in their concept. Sadly I didn’t get far with this book, as I couldn’t get into the story and the characters seemed unrealistic.