The Captive Reader

A reference point for books read and reviewed:

January:

1. Crewe Train by Rose Macaulay (1926)
2. The Siren Years by Charles Ritchie (1974)
3. Miss Elizabeth Bennet by A.A. Milne (1936)
4. The Secret Mistress by Mary Balogh (2011)
5. Reading Women by Stephanie Staal (2011)
6. The Marrying Game by Kate Saunders (2002)
7. Evelina by Frances Burney (1778)
8. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (1962)
9. Once on a Time by A.A. Milne (1917)
10. Bachelor Boys by Kate Saunders (2004)
11. The Element of Lavishness: Letters of Sylvia Townsend Warner and William Maxwell edited by Michael Steinman (2001)
12. Among Others by Jo Walton (2011)
13. Marrying Up by Wendy Holden (2011)
14. The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fisher (1924)
15. Farthing by Jo Walton (2006)
16. August Folly by Angela Thirkell (1936)
17. Emily of Deep Valley by Maud Hart Lovelace (1950)
18. Ha’penny by Jo Walton (2007)
19. Autobiography by A.A. Milne (1939)
20. Half a Crown by Jo Walton (2008)
21. The Curious Gardener by Anna Pavord (2010)
22. Jane Austen by Margaret Kennedy (1950)

February:

23. Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn (2002)
24. Leningrad by Anna Reid (2011)
25. Family Roundabout by Richmal Crompton (1948)
26. The Unbearable Bassington by Saki (1912)
27. Diplomatic Passport by Charles Ritchie (1981)
28. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (1868)
29. Marling Hall by Angela Thirkell (1942)
30. The Fortnight in September by R.C. Sherriff (1931)
31. The Laskett by Roy Strong (2003)
32. Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal (2010)
33. Wild Designs by Katie Fforde (1996)
34. Thyme Out by Katie Fforde (2000)
35. At Mrs Lippincote’s by Elizabeth Taylor (1945)
36. Restoring Grace by Katie Fforde (2004)

March:

37. Summer of Love by Katie Fforde (2011)
38. The Gentry by Adam Nicolson (2011)
39. Living Dangerously by Katie Fforde (1995)
40. A Force to be Reckoned With by Jane Robinson (2011)
41. Miss Bunting by Angela Thirkell (1945)
42. A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper (2008)
43. Dear Friend and Gardener by Beth Chatto and Christopher Lloyd (1998)
44. Peace Breaks Out by Angela Thirkell (1946)
45. Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman (2012)
46. The FitzOsbornes in Exile by Michelle Cooper (2010)
47. To Have the Honour by A.A. Milne (1924)
48. Ariadne, or Business First by A.A. Milne (1925)
49. Portrait of a Gentleman in Slippers by A.A. Milne (1926)
50. Success by A.A. Milne (1923)
51. Mariana by Susanna Kearsley (1994)
52. The Garden Intrigue by Lauren Willig (2012)
53. A Gentle Plea for Chaos by Mirabel Osler (1989)
54. Mrs Milburn’s Diaries by Clara Milburn, edited by Peter Donnelly (1979)
55. First Comes Marriage by Mary Balogh (2009)
56. The Princess Priscilla’s Fortnight by Elizabeth von Arnim (1905)
57. Unusual Uses for Olive Oil by Alexander McCall Smith (2011)
58. Everything and the Moon by Julia Quinn (1997)
59. Brighter Than the Sun by Julia Quinn (1997)
60. Crooked House by Agatha Christie (1949)
61. Recipe for Love by Katie Fforde (2012)

April:

62. The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley (2011)
63. At Last Comes Love by Mary Balogh (2009)
64. Before Lunch by Angela Thirkell (1939)
65. Slightly Sinful  by Mary Balogh (2004)
66. Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie (1959)
67. Georgette Heyer by Jennifer Kloester (2011)
68. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym (1952)
69. Belinda by A.A. Milne (1918)
70. Slightly Married by Mary Balogh (2003)
71. Slightly Wicked by Mary Balogh (2003)
72. Loitering with Intent by Muriel Spark (1981)
73. Doctor Thorne by Anthony Trollope (1858)
74. A Little Folly by Jude Morgan (2010)
75. The Astaires by Kathleen Riley (2012)
76. Jane Austen by Sylvia Townsend Warner (1951)
77. The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley (1997)

May:

78. Paris in Love: A Memoir by Eloisa James (2012)
79. The Headmistress by Angela Thirkell (1944)
80. One Dog and His Boy by Eva Ibbotson (2011)
81. Private Enterprise by Angela Thirkell (1947)
82. Then Comes Seduction by Mary Balogh (2009)
83. Year In, Year Out by A.A. Milne (1952)
84. Boomerang: The Meltdown Tour by Michael Lewis (2011)
85. Mr Pim Passes By by A.A. Milne (1919)
86. Love Among the Ruins by Angela Thirkell (1948)
87. Storm Signals by Charles Ritchie (1983)
88. How It All Began by Penelope Lively (2011)
89. The Proposal by Mary Balogh (2012)
90. The Old Bank House by Angela Thirkell (1949)
91. Ashcombe by Cecil Beaton (1949)
92. The Duke and I by Julia Quinn (2000)
93. The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn (2000)
94. Romancing Mr Bridgerton by Julia Quinn (2002)
95. To Sir Phillip, With Love by Julia Quinn (2003)
96. When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn (2004)
97. A Magnificent Obsession by Helen Rappaport (2011)

June:

98. Ten Things I Love About You by Julia Quinn (2010)
99. Introduction to Sally by Elizabeth von Arnim (1926)
100. The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley (2008)
101. The Duke’s Daughter by Angela Thirkell (1951)
102. Eliza for Common by O. Douglas (1928)
103. Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller (2011)
104. A Night Like This by Julia Quinn (2012)
105. The High Path by Ted Walker (1982)
106. Psmith, Journalist by P.G. Wodehouse (1915)
107. Penny Plain by O. Douglas (1920)
108. Jerusalem: Chronicles from the Holy City by Guy Delisle (2012)
109. Prague Winter by Madeleine Albright (2012)
110. County Chronicle by Angela Thirkell (1950)
111. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis (1992)
112. Once a Week by A.A. Milne (1914)
113. Call Me Irresistible by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (2011)
114. The Benefactress by Elizabeth von Arnim (1901)

July:

115. The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay (2004)
116. The New Moon with the Old by Dodie Smith (1963)
117. The Ugly Duckling by A.A. Milne (1941)
118. Happy Return by Angela Thirkell (1952)
119. The Sky is Falling by Kit Pearson (1989)
120. Priorsford by O. Douglas (1932)
121. Looking at the Moon by Kit Pearson (1991)
122. Taken by the Hand by O. Douglas (1935)
123. The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach (2011)
124. The Lights Go On Again by Kit Pearson (1993)
125. Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (1911)
126. A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson (1985)
127. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (2011)
128. The Dover Road by A.A. Milne (1921)
129. Jutland Cottage by Angela Thirkell (1953)

August:

130. Elza’s Kitchen by Marc Fitten (2012)
131. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (1908)
132. Every Day, Every Hour by Nataša Dragnić (2011)
133. The Lucky One by A.A. Milne (1922)
134. Amberwell by D.E. Stevenson (1955)
135. Miss Marlow at Play by A.A. Milne (1927)
136. Frederica by Georgette Heyer (1965)
137. Celia’s House  by D.E. Stevenson (1943)
138. Mrs Tim Gets a Job by D.E. Stevenson (1947)
139. Charity Girl by Georgette Heyer (1970)
140. He Loves Lucy by Susan Donovan (2005)
141. The You I Never Knew by Susan Wiggs (2001)
142. The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood (2005)
143. Public Displays of Affection by Susan Donovan (2004)
144. Olivia in India by O. Douglas (1912)

September:

145. In the Mountains by Elizabeth von Arnim (1920)
146. Letters to Alice on First Reading Jane Austen by Fay Weldon (1984)
147. Toad of Toad Hall by A.A. Milne (1929)
148. Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgins (2008)
149. Summoned by Bells by John Betjeman (1960)
150. Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins (2011)
151. All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins (2010)
152. The Magic Summer by Noel Streatfeild (1967)
153. Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber (2011)
154. You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me by Sarra Manning (2011)
155. Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins (2007)
156. Fools Rush In by Kristan Higgins (2006)
157. My One and Only by Kristan Higgins (2011)
158. The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins (2010)
159. The Day’s Play by A.A. Milne (1910)
160. Danny, the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl (1975)
161. Somebody to Love by Kristan Higgins (2012)
162. Ashes, Ashes, All Fall Down by Zdena Salivarová (1976)
163. Too Good to be True by Kristan Higgins (2009)
164. Summerhills by D.E. Stevenson (1956)
165. Sarah Simple by A.A. Milne (1937)
166. This Can’t Be Happening at Macdonald Hall! by Gordon Korman (1978)
167. The Underwater Welder by Jeff Lemire (2012)
168. A.A. Milne: His Life by Ann Thwaite (1990)
169. Behind the Lines by A.A. Milne (1940)

October:

170. When Patty Went to College by Jean Webster (1903)
171. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (1916)
172. Under a Cruel Star by Heda Margolius Kovály (1973)
173. Peace with Honour by A.A. Milne (1934)
174. Katherine Wentworth by D.E. Stevenson (1964)
175. Listening Valley by D.E. Stevenson (1944)
176. Sunshine on Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith (2012)
177. The Proper Place by O. Douglas (1926)
178. Two-Part Invention by Madeleine L’Engle (1988)
179. The Secret World of Og by Pierre Berton (1961)
180. Vittoria Cottage by D.E. Stevenson (1949)
181. Michael and Mary by A.A. Milne (1930)
182. Swept Off Her Feet by Hester Browne (2011)
183. Before the Flood by A.A. Milne (1951)
184. Sarah Morris Remembers by D.E. Stevenson (1967)
185. The Finishing Touches by Hester Browne (2009)
186. Tommy and Grizel by J.M. Barrie (1900)
187. Sarah’s Cottage by D.E. Stevenson (1968)
188. The Wise Virgins by Leonard Woolf (1914)
189. The Priory by Dorothy Whipple (1939)
190. Operation Heartbreak by Duff Cooper (1950)
191. Young Mrs Savage by D.E. Stevenson (1948)
192. Behind the Beyond by Stephen Leacock (1913)

November:

193. The Gentle Art of Quilt-Making by Jane Brocket (2010)
194. Victoria Line by Maeve Binchy (1978)
195. Central Line by Maeve Binchy (1980)
196. Music in the Hills by D.E. Stevenson (1950)
197. Shoulder the Sky by D.E. Stevenson (1951)
198. Fräulein Schmidt and Mr Anstruther by Elizabeth von Arnim (1907)
199. The FitzOsbornes at War by Michelle Cooper (2012)
200. The Blue Sapphire by D.E. Stevenson (1963)
201. Indiscretion by Jude Morgan (2005)
202. Glengarry School Days by Ralph Connor (1902)
203. The Incomplete Amorist by E. Nesbit (1906)
204. Pink Sugar by O. Douglas (1924)
205. High Rising by Angela Thirkell (1933)
206. An Accomplished Woman by Jude Morgan (2007)
207. Guard Your Daughters by Diana Tutton (1953)
208. The Caravaners by Elizabeth von Arnim (1909)
209. The Runaway Princess by Hester Browne (2012)
210. Many Waters by Madeleine L’Engle (1986)
211. The Library Book (2012)
212. Good Evening, Mrs Craven by Mollie Panter-Downes (1999)
213. Silver Moon by Ian and Vladyana Krykorka (2004)
214. Never Sleep Three in a Bed by Max Braithwaite (1969)
215. Lady of Quality by Georgette Heyer (1972)
216. My Berlin Kitchen: A Love Story (with Recipes) by Luisa Weiss (2012)

December:

217. English Decoration by Ben Pentreath (2012)
218. Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce (1958)
219. Catherine the Great by Robert K. Massie (2011)
220. Salt Sugar Smoke by Diana Henry (2012)
221. What Did It Mean? by Angela Thirkell (1954)
222. Dear Octopus by Dodie Smith (1938)
223. The Night We Stole the Mountie’s Car by Max Braithwaite (1971)
224. The Adventures of Elizabeth in Rügen by Elizabeth von Arnim (1904)
225. Sunset at Blandings by P.G. Wodehouse (1977)
226. Firefly Summer by Maeve Binchy (1987)
227. The House on the Cliff by D.E. Stevenson (1966)
228. Sylvester by Georgette Heyer (1957)
229. A Country Life by Roy Strong (1994)
230. Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton (2011)
231. Bel Lamington by D.E. Stevenson (1961)
232. Fletcher’s End by D.E. Stevenson (1962)
233. Mrs Tim Carries On by D.E. Stevenson (1941)