Operation get fit and healthy started today with me joining my fitness freak boyfriend for a run around the park. Like a caucus race, no-one won and I nearly tripped over my next door neighbour’s dog but I didn’t collapse so that’s as good as winning in my book.
The running is because I’m going into hospital for an operation on November 3rd and need to get as fit as possible for a quick recovery. I have to stay in for a fortnight so am liable to go mad with boredom. This is why I need your suggestions: I need the mother of all reading lists to keep me totally distracted from the fact that I am stuck in bed for 14 days.
I’ll try almost anything unless it has paranoia inducing hospital scenes- I made the mistake of watching a House box set when I was sick with ‘flu once… never again! Can anyone recommend some good books to take with me?
The Book and Biscuit 
I’ve got a bunch of reviews on my blog, but quickly I’ll suggest The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson, fantastic epic fantasy series. I just finished the Leviathan series by Scott Westerfeld and I really enjoyed those books as well. The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan is huge and could quite easily keep you going for the full two weeks.
There’s a few suggestions for you, hope everything goes well for you.
Thanks Adam, a good fantasy trilogy might well be the ticket. I’ll be around to check out your blog soon too!
Great job on the running and good forward planning with the book list! I’d suggest The Book Thief (which I just finished and LOVED) and The Forgotten Garden if you’re into fiction. If you like nonfiction I really enjoyed The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and The Devil in the White City. Good luck on your healing!
Thank you! I used to run a lot but it has been years since I last ran for anything other than the bus. I loved The Book Thief too, but I will check out your other suggestions.
Thank you for reminding me (though obviously it was not your intention) about the HeLa book! I’m adding that to my library request list today. 🙂
I’m very sorry to hear that you have to have an operation but happy to hear that this will give you significant reading time. I just finished Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. It’s lovely– very quick-witted and light. It’s probably the perfect book for convalescing and would go very well with a biscuit or two.
I also recommend Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, Brock Clarke’s An Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England, Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, and Jonathan Lethem’s Motherless Brooklyn. All are funny enough to keep your spirits up while you are stuck in bed but substantial enough to keep you interested.
Best of luck with the exercising and surgery! And thanks again for posting on my blog!
If you want to get through a fortnight without even noticing that time went by – The Wheel Of Time series by Robert Jordan (& Brandon Sanderson). Time will stand still….
oh and best of luck for your surgery and your speedy recovery 🙂
Yay running! I just recently read one of Kate Atkinson’s detective novels, Started Early, Took My Dog — I raced through it, and thoroughly enjoyed it. If I wasn’t destitute (thanks to my running habit stealing all my money) I would buy the others in the same series. Good luck with the operation!
My favorite books I’ve read this year have been A Brief History of Montmaray and Sarah’s Key. Actually, I’ve enjoyed all of the books on my “Read in 2011” page, which only reflects books I’ve actually managed to finish. :p
If you like urban fantasy, then the Hollows by Kim Harrison. They’re fun books to read and are about a witch who is a bounty hunter and has a foul-mouthed pixy for a sidekick. There are currently nine books in the series, with each book better than the last.