Brodeck's Report -- Phillippe Claudel

All agreed this to be very good  even one of the outstanding books. Set in well somewhere after  the (probably second world) war . Disturbing at times  ,intriguing

The Mayor of Casterbridge -- Thomas Hardy

Some fine descriptions of places  , crowds ,shop-windows , but a narrative far too dependent on unbelievable events and under-develped characters . The soap-opera of its time

The Castle -- Franz Kafka

Quite a revelation  for the humour ,at time farce . A man arrives for a job , but never gets to do it. One can picture the setting  . We were pleased to have read it  .

Reef -- Romesh Guneskera

G loved the almost poetic prose   , the rest were won over in discussion.   A reef as metaphor for Sri Lanka . Short and readable - , sense of place , but  the characters ...

Sourland -- Joyce Carol Oates

A collection of short stories . The doubters were largely won over having discussed it.  Ordinary people are powerless , memories can not be trusted , the strange and even macabre are part of everyday life.

Le Grand Meaulnes -- Alain-Fournier

A french Classic  written in 1912  .
A flawed but haunting tale.The middle is not as good as the end and the first half is the best

Not sure why it is  has lasted so long in the French cannon

Canterbury Tales -- Geoffrey Chaucer

Verily an booke whych   withstandeth  reading.
But do it in a translation  Middle English is not easy . People and their funny ways are the same now as seven hundred years ago and Chaucer captures that well.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry -- Rachel Joyce

This book had many good reviews  so we thought we would try it. An easy read , a parable  , a few touching moments  BUT  it  seems very deliberately written  , over - thought out , and the author could already see the TV adaptation.  One of us hated it   Good but not great

A Single Man -- Christopher Isherwood

A little gem . We all rated this highly . A short book that has so much in it . Wonderful bits on every page
  A top ten I think