I'm not ok ... looking for book recommendations that will chase the blues away

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  • Nadi
    Nadi Member Posts: 619 ✭
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    Hi @Blossom1961. Thanks for the hugs, appreciate that. Any type of genre. I am not really picky and I have diverse tastes if it is a good read. I too do jigsaws everyday. I use an online jigsaw program offered by David Gray at www.jigsawgalore.com this way I have the space (as opposed to laying large jigsaw mats on my dining room table) and I can still do them when I am away from home like in hospital. Thanks for the suggestion.

    All the best, Nadi
  • Zoffiel
    Zoffiel Member Posts: 3,372 ✭
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    Aren't you the dark horse @Nadi ! I have great respect for anyone who can start writing a story and actually finish it.

    A girlfriend and I had a go at churning out light romance back in the 80s; remember they used to have story guides in the back of the books encouraging writers to try their luck? The lure of a couple of hundred bucks was pretty enticing for poverty stricken uni students.  Let's just say that we always ended up a bit off topic and there was no way any reputable publisher would have touched them. Too much sex altogether, well before the racy versions were a thing. We certainly entertained our friends having 'readings,' but then everyone was always completely off their chop on something or other so I doubt that was an endorsement of our literary skills  :)

    Romances are not my usual choice, I only read them when I'm poorly. I've got a thing for Scandi Noir at the moment, but don't ask me for recommendations. I can hardly remember my phone number, let alone an author's name.
  • Nadi
    Nadi Member Posts: 619 ✭
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    Hi @arpie thanks for your thoughts and the reading suggestions. The IV antibiotics are working and the swelling to my face has gone down a lot today. They have suggested that my lymphoedema and a poor immune system can cause recurrent cellulitis in different areas. They have also told me that if I keep getting stung (I got 4 stings 2 weeks ago) I could develop quite a bad bee allergy that may require an epi pen, so my neighbour has agreed to move his hive further away from my veggie garden.  I took antihistamine within 5 minutes of being stung, swelling didn't come up until 2 days later. Last bouts of cellulitis were caused by 1. a dog bite (friend's puppy nipped me) 2. a scratch from a branch while getting my home bushfire ready and 3. mosquito bite on leg. So I guess I am just really unlucky.

    Hope you are well, and thanks for the recs, Nadi
  • LizetteH
    LizetteH Member Posts: 16 ✭
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    Thanks @Nadi for your encouragement. Must look out for online jigsaw puzzles. And a bit of Bach couldn’t hurt.
  • Raich
    Raich Member Posts: 114 ✭
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    Hi, 
    Sorry to hear things are hard for you at the moment . I’m reading a futuristic Gothic space thriller at the moment , ‘Gideon the Ninth’, which is kinda fun. It’s written by an author from New Zealand called Tamsyn Muir https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42036538

    I can also recommend Neil Gaiman’s
    ‘Stardust’ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16793
    and also ‘The Ocean at the End of the Lane’ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15783514
    and his take on myths  ‘Norse Mythology’

    I’ve oddly found listening to LibriVox readings very relaxing, in particular Little Women. There are a lot to chose from on the site. 

    Markus Zusack,  ‘I Am the Messenger’, is good read. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19057

    ‘The Trials of Morrigan Crow’ by Elizabeth Townsend is for younger readers, I bought the series for my niece but enjoyed reading them myself - a cross between Harry Potter and Enid Blyton with a female protagonist. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34219873

    Hope you find something to keep you occupied. 
    I swing between reading, knitting, drawing or playing Hay Day on my phone 😊
    big hugs xxxx
  • kmakm
    kmakm Member Posts: 7,974 ✭
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    Hi @Nadi. I spent last summer reading all of Maggie Alderson's books. And loved them! They are not difficult, a meaty length without being too long, and highly engaging. They get dismissively categorised as 'chic lit', but I call them good stories which have women as the main character. I bought them all in op shops so if you're not in Melbourne you should be able to lay your hands on them easily. Very, very diverting. K xox
  • Sister
    Sister Member Posts: 4,960 ✭
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    @nadi I hope that you're feeling a bit more okay than you were a couple of days ago.
  • averi
    averi Member Posts: 14 ✭
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    Hi @Nadi. 
    BorrowBox is a great free app. My good friend recommended it just before I had my mastectomy. It’s a digital library where you sign up to your local library, you can send them an email and let them know you want to sign up to BorrowBox and they’ll give you a borrower ID to log in. There’s audiobooks and ebooks. The audiobooks have come in real handy for me especially in the last 4 weeks after my reconstruction as I have to spend 80mins on scar massage and stretches each time, twice daily. It makes the time go faster for such a mundane task. 
    Some of my favourites are 
    Any Ordinary Day - Leigh Sales (lots of tears)
    The Midnight Library - Matt Haig
    The Secret Vineyard - Loretta Hill
    Fragile - Stella O’Malley
    Nine Perfect Strangers - Liane Moriarty
    A Very Public Scandal - Jennifer Bacia
    Enjoy! 

  • Romla
    Romla Member Posts: 2,092 ✭
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    Have you tried Graeme Simsion The Rosie Project about an autistic academic looking for a wife ? Also if you have Netflix “ Schitts Creek” might be worthwhile - stay with it for a bit as it gets better as time goes on.
  • Romla
    Romla Member Posts: 2,092 ✭
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    PS I know you said book but there’s a lot of good movies / series on abc iview and sbs on demand and is free. Plus I found during treatment and in the new covid world ebooks from the library great.( e audiobooks however not so as depends on voice of reader)
  • Hendrix
    Hendrix Member Posts: 324 ✭
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    I find mindfulness a great mood lifter...I sell a lot paint by numbers, beautiful art to hang on the wall...and a real warm fuzzy feeling when your done...when I feel a little low I do one or knit a beanie for Peter Mac...good luck xx
  • Afraser
    Afraser Member Posts: 4,371 ✭
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    I find getting immersed in a good book takes your mind off other things. Although the last instalment of Hilary Mantel’s trilogy on Thomas Cromwell has some interesting parallels to today - when in doubt, blame the gov’mint!! Read once for the story, re-reading for the writing. 

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