The archive is divided into sections, some discussions have been saved into the board's archive, others have merely been recorded to give you some ideas about what we have discussed in the past. Feel free to initiate a new discussion about a book or author which has previously been discussed.

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Authors

Alcott, Louisa May – the doings of the March family rank high amongst out childhood favourites
Austen, Jane - in a CBB poll P&P came out in first place with Persuasion second, but we found it very hard to choose our favourite
Barr, Nevada – especially the Anna Pigeon series, marvellous settings and a well-drawn protagonist
Biggs, Margaret – best known for the Melling books though “you might find the Head a surprise after Miss A”!
Bolton, Judy – a forgotten favourite but soon to be re-published!
Cameron, Eleanor – the Mushroom Planet books even had one CBBer building and inhabiting a cardboard spaceship...
Christie, Agatha – we love the books, film and TV adaptations leave us unconvinced though ARCHIVE
Darch, Winifred - GGBP are reprinting "The New School and Hilary" as part of their "Fun in the Fourth" series
Dickens, Charles - Do we appreciate his works more as we grow older?
Du Maurier, Daphne- often seen as a writer of women's romance but her work actually spans a vast range of genres and she was a bestseller during her lifetime. “Rebecca” is one of her best known and best loved books.
Feist, Raymond E. – pure fantasy with several self-contained mini-series set in the same universe, although the perfectionists amongst you may wish to start at the beginning in order to appreciate the full historical development of Midkemia…
Fforde, Jasper - “funny books for clever people”
Forest, Antonia – not that we’re addicted to boarding school stories at all, but there’s life beyond Kingscote to be explored
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Godden, Rumer - her children's books come highly recommended
Goudge, Elizabeth[/url] – we don't think there are many authors “with her ability to evoke a scene" or maybe it's gone out of fashion, but definitely books to savour
Grafton, Sue – A is for Awesone….no, wait, it’s actually Alibi … very Nancy Drew-esque light reads ARCHIVE
Gregory, Phillippa – historical fiction with strong female characters but we think quality varies from book to book. It’s worth taking a chance on though, there are worse ways to waste a few hours!
Grenfell, Joyce - her monologue “Writer of Children’s Books” will have you laughing.
Heyer, Georgette – we recommend both her romances and the detective fiction and if you've read one but not the other "the humour's the same when you get right down to it"
Horowitz, Anthony - best known for Alex Rider but his other books have a more mystic twist. Also try his adult novel The Killing Joke
Huff, Tanya – we like her modern fantasy with a detective, a vampire with an interesting parentage and werewolves who run a sheep farm
Hughes, Shirley & Edwards, Dorothy - "They may be meant for small children - small girls, really, but there is something very comforting about them..." and we just can't imagine them without the pictures
Ibbotson, Eva – both children's and adult books. “The Secret Countess” is well written, and has a lovely central character and satisfying baddie.
Johnston, Norma – for the Sterling/Albirght series
Magorian, Michelle - beautifully written stories aimed at young adults set during and after World War II
Marillier, Juliet – for fans of “historical, thrilling romance (nothing *soppy* lol) and the Celtic folktales” ARCHIVE
Martyn, Harriet – the Jenny school stories for a more modern take on boarding school life
McCaffrey Anne & Todd – dragons! dragons!
McKay, Hillary - "amazing brilliant wonderful hysterically funny"
McKinley, Robin – fantasy, vampires and rather unconventional takes on fairy stories
Montgomery, LLM – we love Anne of Green Gables, but do you know her other books too?
Moss, Nancy – “couldn’t be more unlike the CS but certainly worth trying”
Norling, Winifred – good old GO fare but worth a read
O’Brien, Kate - particularly for The Land Of Spices with its similarities to the CS, an author with "a very penetrating psychological insight into her characters"
Oxenham, EJ – the Abbey universe is waiting to be explored and that’s just the beginning
Peters, Elizabeth – very amusing reads with central characters Amelia Peabody, Jacqueline Kirby and Vicky Bliss and even a cameo by the author in one book (see if you can spot which one!). Elizabeth Peters also writes as Barbara Michaels
Peyton, KM - excellent writing style if you're in the mood for something which isn't your average happy-pony-book
Phinn, Gervase - “sort of James Herriot of school inspectors”
Pierce, Tamora – fantasy with some compelling female heroes (yes, girls can be heroes too, read them to find out more!) ARCHIVE
Pratchett, Terry – he definitely deserved that knighthood but what’s your favourite?
Rowling, JK – Potter, Potter, Potter…..has anyone NOT read it? But did you read one and hate it or are your copies falling to pieces because you love them that much?
Sykes, Plum – not too taxing chick lit, definitely recommended for flights or train journeys
Trollope - Where to start?
Voigt, Cynthia – aimed at young adults but with pretty mature themes, we love both her series and the stand alone books too
Wrede, Patricia C./Caroline Stevermer – find out who used the term “Ministry of Magic” before J.K Rowling got hold of it ARCHIVE

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Books

Abdel-Fattah, Randa Does My Head Look Big In This? – a brilliant insight into Islam from the point of view of a 16 year old girl
Bailey, Jenna – Can Any Mother Help Me? – a beautiful collection of letters, well-selected and sympathetically edited
Boyce, Frank Cottrell Millions – 2 boys find a bag of cash, the Euro is about to be introduced and they embark on a mission to spend the lot!
Brooks, Geraldine March – ever wondered what happened to the head of the March family in Little Women? Find out here
Chadwick, Elizabeth Children of Destiny – a better alternative to Labyrinth
Clune, Jackie Extreme Motherhood – we know Joey had triplets, but what was it really like?
Dahlquist, G W Glass Books of the Dream Eaters - a historical adventure, set in a nineteenth-century-like city and country that could have been a changed London and England, but an alternate reality of Europe
Durant, Sarah The Birth of Venus – a rich historical story set in 15th Century Florence
Elder, Josephine Evelyn Finds Herself – a story written in 1929 set in a girl’s day school and written by a practicing GP
Euphan-Todd, Barbarai Miss Ranskill Comes Home - frothy, fun and unchallenging but it is shot through with irony and poignancy, and makes some very thoughful comments about war, deprivation and class
Fellowes, Julian - Past Imperfect - along the lines of Mitford, about debutante society in 1968
Filleul, Liz To All Appearances Dead – a murder mystery written by our very own lizarfau!
Garfield, Simon Our Hidden Lives - snippets from the Mass Observation diaries (1945-1948)
Gilbreth, Frank B. Cheaper by the Dozen – 2 effiency experts for parents and 12 children, very funny with some good points about finance
Glyn, Caroline Don't Knock The Corners Off - a story about a girl trying to retain her individuality in a school that tries to make everyone fit the mould
Gruen, Sara Water for Elephants - Set in the depression of the 30s and the present day
Hale, Shannon The Goose Girl – very loosely based on the Grimm Brother's Fairy Tale
Heazelwood, Anne The Marlows & Their Maker – an essential companion for anyone who adores Antonia Forest and her books
Holloway, Adrian The Shock of Your Life - “very interesting but slightly odd”
Howard, Elizabeth Jane Slipstream - An autobiography of an authoress who would have been contemporary with Joey Bettany.
Kessler, Liz The Tail of Emily Windsnap - a lovely down-to-earth children's story with a magical twist
Kuroyanagi, Tetsuko Totto Chan: The Little Girl at the Window – childhood memories of a rather unusual school in WWII Tokyo
Lambert, Angela No Talking After Lights - set in a 1920s girls boarding school with 3 very different main characters
Le Guin, Ursula Lavinia – an excellent book based on Virgil’s Aenead telling the story of Aeneas’s second wife
Mackail, Denis Greenery Street – if it’s good enough for PG Wodehouse, it’s good enough for us McGreevy, Norman Must Try Harder – we all know how the English language gets accidentally mangled….well here’s a book guaranteed to have you weeping with laughter filled with the funniest howlers
Meyer, Stephanie Twilight - Meyer has created a vampire lore all of her own
McKinley, Robin Chalice – from the author of Sunshine another book to read many times
McNish, Cliff Angel – imagine you were obsessed with angels…and then you found you were one, such is the life of one teenage girl
Mitchell, David Cloud Atlas - six linked stories reaching from the nineteenth century South Pacific to a post-apocalyptic future
Mosse, Kate Labyrinth - disappointing...
O’Connor, Joesph Star of the Sea – a brilliant historical novel about emigration following the Irish potato famine
Pasternak, Boris Dr Zhivago – worth persisting with if you don't get into it at once
Pullman, Philip His Dark Materials – a fantastic adventure trilogy but pretty thought provoking too
Potter, Alexandra Me and Mr Darcy – could it possibly be that Mr Darcy really exists, or is it some kind of delusion?
Raabe, Tom Biblioholism: The Literary Addiction – for booklovers everywhere
Robinson, J: Bluestockings - the first women to fight for an education
Rowling, JK Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - our hopes and fears for the latest HP novel
Sansom, CJ Winter In Madrid – a historical spy novel/love story set in Madrid following the Civil War
Sebold, Alice Lovely Bones – it’s not easy reading but definitely compelling
Shaffer, Mary Ann The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society - a story of Guernsey life during the occupation
Sykes, Pamela Come Back Lucy/Lucy Beware – children’s fantasy about a girl called Lucy and Victorian reflection named Alice
Streatfield, Noel The Whitcharts - a novel for adults, somewhat dark and cynical
Tallis, Frank Fatal Lies – “historical fiction with a bit of psychoanalysis”
Uttley, Alison Traveller in Time – a beautiful book, narrated by a seven year old, about second sight in the 1930s
Watson, Winifred Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day – a wonderful story, written in the 1930s about how a simple mistake turns a spinster’s live upside-down
Webster, Jean Daddy Long-Legs – an interesting novel about a young American girl at college, written in 1912
Weir, Alison Innocent Traitor - a sensitive novel about Lady Jane Grey from a well-respected Tudor non-fiction writer
Wharton, Edith Ethan Frome – if you enjoy this you may like to try some similar books recommended on the same thread ARCHIVE
Wynne Jones, Diana House of Many Ways – “well-written, light-hearted, intelligent fantasy”
Zusak, Markus The Book Thief – set in Germany during the Second World War and is about a small girl who goes to live with foster parents. It's narrated by Death... Have a box of hankies standing by.

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Poems

Poems on the Underground Series published by The Poetry Society

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Series

Bodley Head “Career Novels” - the likes of Cherry Ames, Sue Barton and Kathy Martin ARCHIVE
The Saddle Club – horse mad girls and their lives outside of the stables
Trebizon – a nice mix of boarding school and more modern topics, but are the story lines completely unrealistic?
The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency – Alexander McCall Smith’s excellent writing and a rather unusual central character make these books unmissable
Children of the Red King – it’s a bit like Hogwarts but more supernatural than magic with a very complicated family tree!
Darkover – a huge number of books set in the fictional world of Darkover, this is what happens when humans set out from Earth to colonise space and crash-land on their way
MacDonald Hall – it’s boys boarding school but certainly not Jennings!
Conquerer – a novelized biography of Genghis Khan by Conn Iggulden
The Elsie books – remember Joey Bettany’s obsession with these? We know where you can get them!

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Film

Dr Zhivago – classic version or modern? Why not try both?
Garden State – special mention for the soundtrack here
Pirates of the Carribean – mmmm, Johnny Depp.... suspend reality and enjoy!
Stormbreaker – yes we know it's aimed at pre-teen boys but it's fab, even if it deviates from the book a tad...
Strain Andromeda The – it's The Andromeda Strain but backwards, recommended if you like your films a little different!
The Da Vinci Code – we'd probably rather read the book but the soundtrack is brilliant
Water – “very good but very sad”
Juno - a touching and funny story about teenage pregnancy
Wild Child - an 'American Princess' is thrown into an English boarding school that sounds suspiciously like the CS!
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - some loved it, some hated it - film adaptions will never be the book but we love to watch them anyway, and the special effects were very pretty
Prince Caspian – well worth watching, even though it’s not entirely true to the book. Watch out for the pouting!
The Queen – Helen Mirren excels in this blend of fact and fiction following the Royal family’s reaction to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales
Casino Royale – it’s a totally new era for Bond…but do we like it?
Happy Feet – a penguin who can’t sing finds a novel way to express his love, just the thing to watch with all the family
ChestNut – a very sweet children’s move, slightly predictable but well done with some hilarious lines
Waterloo Bridge – an absolute classic we will watch time and time again
The Prestige – as the publicity rightly says “be prepared to watch it again and again”
Spiderman 3 – well if you liked Spidermans 1 & 2 then 3 will complete the set but we wouldn’t rush out to see it if you never got into them in the first place
Stardust – a truly modern fairy-tale, perfect escapism
Nancy Drew – everyone’s favourite girl sleuth in her first feature length film, the question is will you dare to see the film or are you content with the books of your childhood?!
Mamma Mia! - recommended, but probably only if you're an Abba fan!
The Half Blood Prince - mixed reviews for this Harry Potter film, but worth a watch

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

TV

Big Brother – love it? Hate it? Do you find it sociologically interesting or are you just nosy?
CSI – poll results say we like Vegas best, but Miami and NY have their devotees
Farscape – for those sci-fi devotees out there
Grey's Anatomy – doctors galore, who wouldn't?
Spiral – police/political thriller set in Paris, BBC4
Anthea Turner – Perfect Housewife – it’s not designed as a comedy but most of us find it quite funny! You can pick up some interesting tips though…
The West Wing – 7 series of American political drama, very addictive!
Jane Eyre – do you watch the TV adaption or would you rather leave it in your imagination?
Grand Designs – amazing houses we’d like to own, but without the hassle of building them please!
Torchwood – are you a Dr Who fan? Come over to the dark side…
Strictly Come Dancing – anyone else inspired to take up ballroom dancing yet?
Summerhill School – Britain’s “most controversial private school” explored in a BBC1 drama
The Wartime Kitchen and Garden – a fascinating look at what growing and eating food was like during the war with some interesting recipes
Child of Our Time –following children born in the year 2000 as they grow up, the first generation of the new millennium
Cranford - Some of Britain's best actresses working together, worth watching whether you've read the book or not and now available on DVD from the BBC shop!
Charlie and Lola – Here’s one for the little ones, but we wouldn’t flick straight over if it happened to be the first thing which came on!
Dr Who – Does the new series live up to the original? Does David Tennant live up to the role? What do you make of the new companions? And what’s this about a new Doctor?
Criminal Justice – A drama about the UK justice system. Compelling, if disturbing, viewing.
House - Hugh Laurie makes this programme very special, and it's just back for a new season too.
Lost in Austen - recommended, even if you're not an Austen fan!
Little Dorrit - the latest BBC Dickens dramatisation.
Strictly Come Dancing - the 2008 show
Upstairs Downstairs - a classic costume drama

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Theatre

Paradise Lost – particularly the production by the Oxford Stage Company
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat – like most of Britain, Any Dream Will Do brought this musical back to mind and we wonder why we ever forgot it in the first place
Wicked - we love this West End sensation!
Daisy Pulls it Off - A girls own spoof. Jolly hockey sticks!

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Music

The Best Worship Songs..Ever – and there's More Best Worship Songs too!
Anthems in Eden – a folk anthology
Comfort Songs – What we listen to when we need cheering up
Favourite Songs and Pieces of Music - CBB members have a diverse taste in music
Classical Music Recommendations - If you want to broaden your musical horizons, start here for some recommendations for classical listening
Favourite Musicals - The musicals we all know and love
Favourite Christmas Songs

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Websites

Harry Potter, the musicals anyone?
http://www.paperbooks.co.uk - a publishing house
http://www.pandora.com customise your radio to suit your musical tastes, discover some new gems and get reacquainted with bands you forgot
Audio books for Children’s Lit (please check licensing laws for your own country)
Molesworth meets Harry Potter
another music website
e-texts for all, first recommended for a school story by Mrs George Horne de Vaizey but with many other treasures
Noel Streatfield forum set up by a CBBer
and another Streatfield website
free vintage knitting patterns
http://www.librarything.com "sort of a myspace or facebook for your library"
an archive of poems published on the tube

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Recommendation threads

For 7 year old girls ARCHIVE
Top 10 children’s books (2006)
Weepie films ARCHIVE
Our worst-favourite films ARCHIVE
Fantasy authors: See the archived discussion on Feist in author recommendations
Christmas ARCHIVE
Our top 5 books – our top 5 most lived and most hated books
Books with bad endings - see what really disappoints CBBers when they come to the end of a book
For book-mad teens
Easy Reads ARCHIVE
Our favourite musicals ARCHIVE
Favourite Christmas Songs – Do you prefer “modern” Christmas songs, or the classics? Read our thoughts here.
Favourite Crime Fiction – The CBBers are a bloodthirsty lot. Check out our favourite crime books here.
Favourite Christmas Reads (or things to watch)– our recommendations for festive reading and viewing.
Help:– I’ve Run Out of New Books to Read! – If you’re stuck for something new to read, you might find some of these suggestions helpful.
Easy to Read Recommendations – Suggestions for easy-to-read and easy-to-get-hold-of books.
Pre-School Recommendations – For your little ones, the collective knowledge of the CBB can recommend such titles as “Mr & Mrs Pig’s Evening Out” and “Can’t You Sleep, Little Bear?”
Fiction Set in India – If you’re interested in the history and culture of India, we can recommend “Two Chalet Girls in India”, “Midnight’s Children” and “The Far Pavilions”.
Holiday Reading– “The Lord of The Rings” trilogy will keep you going throughout a long flight, and there will still be plenty left for you to read on the beach.
Other Boarding School Books – Of course, no-one writes school stories like EBD, but we also like Enid Blyton, Antonia Forest, Margaret Biggs, Anne Digby and “Jennings”.
Recommendations for a 13 year old
Books set in Venice
Must reads
Re-naissance Recommendations
Desert island books
Anti recommendations
Immediately Post WW2 Germany
Comfort Reads
Place Themed Holiday Reading
For long plane trips
Chinese Fiction
1930s History
Year 9 History Recommendations - a reading list of history books suitable for Year 9s.
Guardian/Observer 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read
If you enjoy reading Books About Large Families try these
Books set in country houses
Recommendations for Years 7 & 8
Books Involving Lots of Snow
World War 2 Fiction
Puffin Books 70th Anniversary List of Top 70 Children's Books
School Novels
Girlsown-esq type novels about university
School Novels for Grown Ups
Historical Novels

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Other odds and bobs we think are interesting

What makes a good title?

Bookshop Guide

Classic Novels Via Email daily installments of those classics you've always meant to read straight to your in-box

Nursing History and First Names - two sites where you can read up on the history of nursing and the popularity of first names from 1938 onwards in England and Wales

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of course I don't look busy - I did it right the first time

Book Club Discussions

Atkinson, Kate - Behind the Scenes at the Museum
Waters, Sarah - The Little Stranger