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There is currently a TV series here in the UK which follows couples searching for "A Place in the Sun", basically homes abroad. Whenever I catch a bit of one of these shows - and I'm not an avid viewer of them, honest - I am always stunned to see how much more you can buy in other countries for...

I like the sound of this. The site has a good, simple appearance too. However, unlike other online second hand book sellers you don't get any information on the condition the book is in. It also works out a bit more expensive than Amazon. Would it be better to buy second hand books elsewhere and...

Big gold embossed letters on the front? The sort of book that sells by the truck load in airports and supermarkets, but is looked down upon by critics for being populist. To be fair, even many of us elitist types now speak favourably of some works in this genre.

This thread raises the question of whether books are ruined by being studied academically? Is it possible to over-analyse books? The answer to both questions is probably, "sometimes, yes". I asked one of my A level English teachers whether part of what we were aiming to do was to discover...

Yes, a friend of mine qualified as a primary teacher last year and has only been able to get supply work. I also know that there are a number of schools about to be closed in our borough. Yet we still keep hearing that schools in London and the south east are having to look abroad to try and...

Welcome, Rod. You mention "Mill on the Floss". Other than the school scenes and the drowning, I don't remember much of it. I'm currently reading one of Eliot's lesser known works, "Felix Holt the Radical". It is taking some time to get in to. "Mutual Friend" is not one of my favourites by...

Thanks for the contribution Sally. Its good to know that downshifting has worked for you. Of course, unlike the people in that article you downshifting from teaching rather than in to it! Sounds as though you are still doing something worthwhile, that will give you the feeling you are being...

Welcome Trickster. Is the Branson book you've read that critical biography that he tried to stop getting printed. By Tom someone or other I think?

Welcome Mr Hazabaza, I'll be interested to read what you think of "Life of Pi". I suspect magic realism isn't for me. Hearing the book compared to "A Thousand Years of Solitude" was enough to put me off. I just couldn't take to the latter.

I've just checked the voting. It's now 56% saying that the death was suspicious out of over 500 votes cast.

It's looking worse and worse for Hardy. He'd welcome that!

One of the reasons this particular conspiracy has taken off is that it gives the newspapers an opportunity to put pictures of Diana on their front pages. More than six years after her death she is still selling newspapers. In my view this sort of celebrity stuff isn't real news, its frothy stuff...

We seem to have a consensus! Would anyone like to spring to Hardy's defence?

I've just voted in a poll on the Independent newspaper's website which asks the question "Was Diana's death suspicious?". Worryingly, from my perspective, the yes camp were just ahead with 51% of the vote - and this was out of over 200 votes. If you share my take on this, you might like to help...

The last third or so of this book is dominated by the First World War. This is hardly surprising since Herbert Asquith was Prime Minister for half of it, and his three eldest sons were all combatants. I'll not say anything about their fate so as not to spoil things for anyone who likes the...

This discussion makes for interesting reading. Thanks to the contributors. In the end I concluded there are far more other books I would rather read before giving Eco a try.

I hear the sound of Thomas Hardy novels dropping down my 'should read' list faster than something heavy being dropped from a small building. Thanks for the warning re "Jude the Obscure".

I've found that well known internet bookseller named after a river is a great place to pick up used books. Some of the books I have bought there are as good as new, and they tend to be cheaper than Abebooks (another second-hand book site), even including postage. I've not sold any that way...

Books/plays studied for GCSE included: Macbeth Romeo and Juliet Lord of the Flies To Kill A Mockingbird My Family and Other Animals No Dickens, but I've since read all his major novels. The only one I've never been able to finish is Pickwick - a favourite for some other Dickens fans...

The "books you were forced to read at school" thread, generated a few comments on Hardy's Tess. In my case it was "Far From the Madding Crowd" that was on my A-level syllabus. The latter was not the worst book I ever studied, even if far from being my first. I have since read Tess and the Mayor...