icklebabe.com, it’s in the blog

**Quick note from icklebabe** -I feel I must add something as quite a few people have said they thought the choice for the first book a bit strange.
When I blogged about how much I enjoyed the book in first place, I never thought it would turn into a lovely little club. It just kind of evolved because people wanted to read the book. If I am honest I probably would have chosen something that might have been deemed “more intelligent” if I had know it was going to be our first read. But in hindsight I am really glad it was our first book. Not everything I read I need to be super challenged by, and my choice for Sophie Dahl’s was a simple one, I loved it! and I wanted to recommend it to my friends. Surely that’s what the bloggy book club should be about. I am very much looking forward to all the different books you guys choose too.

Back to our new read, and what a fab one it is! XXX

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   So its the start of a new bloggy book club month, and this times offering is from the very bright and shiny @allaboutheboys, her book is a total departure from my choice.

A quick review from tinternet…. “This remarkable book defies categorisation. Under the Skin introduces Isserley, a woman obsessed with picking up male hitchhikers – so long as they’re well-muscled and alone. But why? As the novel unfolds and the reason becomes clear, the reader is drawn inexorably into a completely unexpected and increasingly terrifying world.”

Ohhhh sounds exciting, no?

I Cant wait…. pop over to @allaboutboys blog to hear why it was her choice. We start now and we will review back at her place on the 28th again, I will keep you all posted with regular reminders

I also just wanted to ask if anyone has suggestions for the next two? After our current choice, we have  The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. Recommended by @soriko. But then the field is open, so if you have a book your burning to have us all read, leave me a comment and we will make yours next. Don’t worry if you don’t have your own blog, you can always guest host here, or I will host it, if your a bit shy (most of you aren’t tho, as I have discovered from the last book club review! hehe!)

It has been absolutely great so far, I really want to thank u all for enjoying it along with me, I look forward to seeing you all at @allaboutheboys in a months time.

Ok then, *reading glasses at the ready* (that maybe just me that…bit of an old git )

On your marks…Get set…Go get reading!!!! ;-D XXXX

So here we are, its our first bloggy book club review *excited!*…. hehe.

Our first book was the bootiful Sophie Dahl’s “playing with the grown-ups” . I have to say at first  I wasn’t really hoping for allot from this book, Sophie being an ex model, (Naomi Campbell’s swan comes immediately to mind..and not in a good way!) and being Roald Dahl’s  granddaughter, I love his books, but I am never sure whether relatives of talented people only get the chance to do the same by proxy. 

But I was wrong.  I was enchanted by this book, she seems to conjure up such warm, “full” characters that you cant help but fall in love with them. I even had a soft spot for Marina’s very hopeless drunk boyfriend, pitiful as he was.

And as for kitty’s Mum Marina. I loved the whole story of how wretched  her mum was, but at the same time it wasn’t a two dementional, Marina- bad..Kitty- good story. There was so many layers to their relationship. Some  good, some almost hideously bad (the drugs bit comes to mind). But in the end kitty, her brother and her sister still had a warm affection for their very broken Mum. I love that it shows that we are all complex, different individuals and we can still love the most flawed of parents.

The only slight criticism of the book for me, was the rather abrupt ending, it felt a little rushed and unsatisfactory some how. But that might have just been because I didn’t want it to end. I wanted to see them go visit Marina, and to see what happened to Kitty and the baby… I would so definitely be up for second helpings ….Sorry,  a terrible pun considering lovely Sophie now seems to have become a rather good  chef! ;P

So that’s what I thought, over to you, fab Book Club members..what did you think? XXXX

This week my mum bought round a big pile of photo’s, in amongst the embarrassment was this one. She says it was my Dad’s favorite shot of me and he carried it in his wallet all the time. I can’t say I can really see the attraction, maybe the perm and the padded headband? or the truly awful mans jumper? who knows…. Although Ten Boy Jack just saw it and said, “Mum…is that you???…What happened!??!” …

out of the mouths of babes eh?

I could have told him he did, along with  his two sisters!

I was 16 in 1990 when this was shot, lots of dreams and wide eyed hopes.

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This week me and Milly got sent the Fun Factory play set from Play-Doh.

Its been a long time since I played with the stuff and when I opened the box with the little round tubs of brightly coloured squidgy loveliness I got a familiar feeling.

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 Milly has a new joy…Skippy Isps! ;D

  Read the rest of this entry »

 Bloggy Book Club Update Part Deux!  -

Hi again,

Just a quick update for you all, we have a few more members @JoCopner @Robin_Kemp @AllAboutTheJovi

So Hi to you all, “Waves, like idiot “

And there has been lots of #bloggybookclub hash tag action on twitter.

The new and my fave trend is to twit pic your book where your reading it, we have had some rather stylish entries from @allaboutheboys and @sjspence010 and I’d love some more!

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  So Summer is in full swing, Big J read recently that its the hottest on record, and I can so believe it. I have been on the verge of boiling point!

What I love about this time of year is the lazy days. Its way too hot to do anything over exciting so the best days are spent  in the garden with a good book, toes dangling in a ice cold paddling pool. Followed by some yummy light, sunshiny food and a tall glass of pimms. Which despite our little fall out at the beginning of summer  ( Where I discovered that yes, you can have to much of a good thing! ) we are now firm friends again.

The books I have been reading this month whilst feet dangling and pool soaking have been fab ones! Read the rest of this entry »

I have a little secret…..

It is something I have been hiding for some time, Milly doesn’t really eat. I know allot of you lovely blog friends and visitors have this illusion that I am some kind of earth mother type, (you know who you are! ;D) . And it’s true, I do like to cook and I have an aversion to the taste of Dolmio (and all other weird plastic sauces)  so I make most things from scratch, but that doesn’t mean Milly eats it….

In fact we call her *Milly One Bite* because she will try anything, but only one bite! Then its just pushed around the plate or squashed onto my plate and she’s off, down from the table and onto something different. She seems to get very little pleasure from food which is obviously  a complete alien concept for me! Read the rest of this entry »

This week I am calling, The Wilderness Years.

Not nice cozy cabin wilderness, with open fires and warm argyle  fluffy blankets, but more survival bear grylls style.

 This is because,  it very much feels like it has been much longer than a week and I have very much been lost in the wilderness and slight panic of  sick baby. Poor Milly had a really nasty tummy bug for an agonizing seven days. And it was all more than a bit of a worry….

 If it had been a movie the tag line would have gone something like this…. “One Mum, One baby  and the germ , go head to to head in a battle of nappies, vom and will!”…. Read the rest of this entry »