Apparently there's a challenge going around the interweb to read fifty books in a year. I'm not going to rise to the challenge as i think it would be impossible for me unless i gave up doing anything else completely for the whole year. However, i would be interested to see how many books i do read in a year and therefore i have decided to keep a record of it. I reckon it will be about twenty. I shall write the title of the book, a record of when i started and finished, the synopsis from the back and my verdict out of ten. The criteria is that it has to be any book that i finished in 2007, so if i start it this year but don't finish it then it won't count. On the other hand, if i started it in 2006 and finish it this year then it counts. I am fully aware that this probably holds no interest to anyone but myself, but i have to keep the record somewhere.

So here goes:

1- The Dead Zone- Stephen King- December 2006- 02/01/2007
Synopsis: Recoil in horror as you are touched by a young man cursed with the power to perceive the evil in men's souls. And whose ability to see into the future forces him into a terryfying confrontation with a charismatic, power-hungry and infintely dangerous man.

Verdit: It was excellent. One of King's better books. The synopsis makes it sound a bit naff but it's a very engaging, yet tragic story and as usual i held out for the happy ending that never arrived. 9/10.

2- Michael Palin Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years- Michael Palin- 02/01/2007- 25/01/2007
Synopsis: Michael Palin's diaries begin in the late 1960s when, newly married and struggling to make a name for himself in the world of television comedy, he began writing for hugely popular programmes, such as "The Frost Report" and "The Two Ronnies." But "Monty Python" was just round the corner.....

In this first volume of his diaries he tells how Python emerged and triumphed. Enjoying an unlikely cult status early on, the group then proceeded to tour in the United States and Canada, appearing, like pop stars, at sold-out stadiums coast to coast and on national chat shows. They even stayed in hotels newly trashed by Led Zeppelin, later investors in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail".

With this growing fame in the United States came the move from local public broadcasting to national television there and battles over censorship followed as up to one line in four was cut from the Python sketches, rendering them incomprehensible. Eventually both Terry Gilliam and Michael Palin took the stand in the Federal Court in New York to defend the Python's position.

As their popularity grew, so Palin relates how, individually, the Pythons also went their separate ways. John Cleese wrote and acted in the now classic "Fawlty Towers", which Michael Palin acted in an adaption of "Three Men in a Boat" as well as creating, with Terry Jones, the memorable "Ripping Yarns" series. But, at the same time, Michael and the others were working to help keep the group together so they could reform for stage shows and the now celebrated series of films including "The Holy Grail" and "The Life of Brian", many of whose lines are known by heart by a considerable proportion of the English-speaking world.

The birth and childhood of his three children, his father's growing disability, learning to cope as a young man with celebrity, his friendship with George Harrison, living through the three-day week and the miners' strike, andall the trials of a peripatetic life are also essential ingrediants of these diaries. A perceptive and funny chronicle, the diaries are a rich portrait of a fascinating period.

Verdict: Thought this would seem neverending because it's a breezeblock of a book, but by the end i was looking forward to next block, presumably 1980-1990, as it was so interesting to learn about the inside working of the group and a life in British comedy. 8/10

3- The Devil in Amber- Mark Gatiss- 25/01/2007- 31/01/2007
Synopsis: At last! Lucifer Box, His Majesty's most daring- and dissolute- secret agent returns in a mystery set some twenty years after the scandalous events of the bestselling "The Vesuvius Club".

This time he faces treachery within his own service and a fascist messiah with a peculkarly Satanic design...

Verdict: Like the first of the triology it's a very easy read and moves at an astonishing pace with a cliff-hanger at the end of every chapter. I prefered it to the first book as I found the narrative more engaging. Fascists, devil-worship and plenty of good old spying, what more could you want? 9/10

4- What Not To Drive- Richard Hammond and Andy Wilman- 31/01/2007- 01/02/2007
Synopsis: Thirty years ago, buying a car was a white knuckle ride. Will it rust? Will it break down? Will it go round a corner? Today, cars are safe and reliable and much better to drive, but the challenge of buying the right car remains as formidable as it ever was.

The big questions today are: will i look cool in it? Will my mates laugh? Will i pull in it?

"What Not To Drive" is a valuable and moving account of how to solve the thorny problem of choosing the right car. Top Gear presenter and leading motoring expert Richard Hammond guides you through the minefield of the rubbish wedding car, the family car that could break up your family, the embarrassing classic and the car that could ruin your chances of ever finding a life partner.

Verdict: Entirely vacuous and i haven't agreed with a Hammond car choice for the last 5 years and this isn't going to change my mind. However, it is a nice, good, clean, fun bit of fluff and it's quite funny in places. 6/10

5- Cujo- Stephen King- 01/02/2007- 10/02/2007
Synopsis: Cujo is a two-hundred pound Saint Bernard, the best friend Brett Camber has ever had. One day Cujo chases a rabbit into a bolt-hole- a cave inhabited by some very sick bats. What happens to Cujo, how he becomes a horrifying vortex inexorably drawing in all the people around him, makes for one of the most heart-stopping novels Stephen King has ever written.

Verdict: One of the most tense novels i have ever read, which, as a horror book, would suggest it is very well written. Not a pleasant read by any stretch of the imagination but a sickeningly entertaining one nonetheless. 7/10.

6- Marley & Me- John Grogan- 10/02/2007- 20/02/2007
Synopsis: John and Jenny, just beginning their life together, were young and deeply in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly, yellow furball of a puppy.

Life would never be the same again.

Marley quickly grew up into a dog like no other, an unstoppable ninety-seven pound steamroller of a Labrador retriever. He crashed through screen doors, stole women's underwear, and ate anything he could get his mouth round- including furniture and fine jewellery. Marley was expelled from obedience school. Even the tranquillisers prescribed by the vet couldn't stop him.

And yet Marley's heart was pure. He shared John and Jenny's happiness at their first pregnancy, and their heartbreak when Jenny miscarried. He was there when babies arrived and when a girl was attacked in the neighbourhood. He managed to get a public beach shit down and caused chaos when he landed a role in a film. Through it all, he won hearts and remained a steadfast model of devotion to his family, even when they were at their wits' end. Unconditional love, they would learn, comes in many forms.

Verdict: I chose this book as the next to read as I thought it might be a cheery tonic to Cujo and I wasn't wrong, it's a really feel good book. Also, anyone who has ever owned a dog, especially a labrodor as I have, will recoginse something from just about every chapter from this book, and anyone thinking of getting a dog should read this book too. It just about sumarises all the highs and lows of life with a dog without trying to sugarcoat it. Oh, and it very nearly made me cry at the end, and that is a very rare occurance. An excellent read. 9/10

7- The Victorian House- Judith Flanders- 20/02/2007- 09/03/2007
Synopsis: Judith Flanders' irresistible book chronicles the extraordinary rules, routines and backbreaking effort that accompanied the Victorians on their journey through daily life from childbirth to deathbed. In so doing, Flanders brings an intricate but lost world back to fascinating life.

Verdict: Considering I only decided to read this book to vary the genre of books I've been reading, and then only because I saw it was dedicated to someone with the fantastic name of Kappy Flanders, I actually found this really interesting. However, it has dispelled my romantic view of Victorian life and my idea that I might have been able to live during that time. I certainly couldn't have, it would have driven me insane. Anyway, very interesting and enjoyable, but I'm going to leave the next history book for the summer, it was a bit too much of an overdose during term time. 7/10

8- Have I Got News For You- Ged Parsons- 09/03/2007-  10/03/2007
Synopsis: In lazily-conceived A-Z format, Have I Got News For You wedges recycled elements of the programme alongside the half-arsed jottings of the show's embittered gag-writers. Cleverly relying on the fact that you have forgotten the jokes from when they were originally broadcast. All the trademark features of each programme (from Odd Ones Out to Caption Competitions and Missing Words) reappear with grim familiarity.

We've invented a coat-of-arms, cobbled together a Sudoku puzzle and included lots of interactive elements (gaps for the reader to fill in) such as: Guest Publication Name Generator and Stop Press. We've exposed TV's self-serving work practices by bravely asking the people who work on the show what it is they actually do, and even included the answers.

Verdict: Good for a bit of mild satirical laughter but not much more. After about 100 pages i was beginning to get a bit bored of it. 5/10

9- The Sound of Laughter: The Autobiography of Peter Kay- Peter Kay- 10/03/2007- 22/03/2007
Synopsis: Peter Kay is, without doubt, one of Britain's funniest and best loved comedians. And for the first time in his own words, he tells us how he came to achieve his extraordinary success and the hilarious journey that got him there.

Growing up in his beloved Bolton, Peter spent his school days under the watchful eyes of the nuns who taught him as he whiled away the years trying to amuse the children around him. Peter dreamed of being a comedian from an early age and never had any doubt as to his true calling, whether it was performing impressions of Louis Armstrong and Frank Spencer for his family around the tea table or playing the role of the Lion in the school production of "The Wizard of Oz", everybody knew what Peter's destiny would be.

Whilst struggling to break into the world of comedy Peter held down a variety of part time jobs, all of which proved essential in providing him with an assortment of comedic material and eccentric characters that would later appear in both his stand-up and his award-winning tv series. Working in a factory packing toilet rolls, as a garage attendant, in a bingo hall, as a cinema usher and mobile disc jockey, all helped shape his vivid, funny, endearing observations of everyday life along with his unerring gift for finding the comedy in family life with all its tragic and hilarious elements. Elderly relatives and DVD players, dads dancing at weddings, pet cremations, Right Said Fred, learning to drive and Jim Morrison haircuts all share their place in the world of Peter Kay.

Within a year of launching himself onto the comedy circuit, Peter Kay had won the 1997 Channel 4 "So You Think You're Funny" competition and was later nominated for the Perrier Award. Fomr then on, his rise to the top has been meteoric.

Eagerly anticipated, "The Sound of Laughter" is an unpretentious, warmly nostalgic and brilliantly funny look into the life of Peter Kay.

Verdict: This was fantastic. I can't remember the last book I read that made me laugh out loud, but this did on just about every page. Really unpretentious and something anyone can relate to, instead of the normal ridiculous autobiographies by 20 year old footballers and Big Brother nobodies. I cannot recommend it more highly. 10/10.

10- Richard Hammond's Car Confidential- Richard Hammond and Andy Wilman- 22/03/2007- 27/03/2007
Synopsis: Not everyone can be a full-bore car anorak. Fortunately, Richard Hammond does it all for you in this witty compendium of everything car-related- with hints, tips and advice from the sublime to the ridiculous and beyond. Car Confidential takes you through all the key stages in your motoring life: passing your driving test, buying your first car, even choosing the coolest hearse to make that last journey. There are driving games for long trips and a spotter's guide to other motorists you might encounter on the way.

And that's not all. Why feel left out when talk turns to motors in the pub or, indeed, in the playground? With a guide to the best and worst in motoring history- the most amazing stunts, ridiculou car names, gorgeous concepts, noble failures and crazy foreign laws- Richard Hammond's Car Confidential is the easy way to win new friends and dazzle your enemies with your new-found motoring genius.

The odd, the mad, the bad and the curious all have their place in this wonderful, witty and surprisingly useful collection of everything to do with cars and their drivers- truly all you ever needed to know to be a modern motorist.

Verdict: Short, sweet, colourful, completely vacuous, yet fun. This book pretty much reflects Hammond himself then. A better read and more informative than What Not to Drive but not good enough to do more than bask in the glow of the mighty Clarkson and May who I'll be reading more of in the coming months. 7/10

11- The World According to Clarkson Volume 2: And Another Thing....- Jeremy Clarkson- 27/03/2007- 03/04/2007
Synopsis: Jeremy Clarkson finds the world a perplexing place. So much so, in fact, that he wrote a book about it. But despite the appearance of the bestselling "The World According to Clarkson", things don't seem to have changed much. And so Jeremy's having another go.

In "And Another Thing", our exasperated hero discovers that:
He inadvertently dropped a bomb on North Carolina.
We're all going to explode at the age of 62.
Russians look bad in speedos. But not as bad as Brits.
No one should have to worry about being Bill Oddie's long-lost sister.
Cooking a Sunday roast is one thing. Gravy is quite another.
He should probably be nicer about David Beckham.

But while these things play on his mind, the world remains Jeremy's favourite place to be. On the whole, it's brilliant. It's just the idiots, meddlers and do-gooders who spoil it for the rest of us. Laugh-out-loud funny and as straight-talking as ever, Clarkson bursts their pointless little bubble, while celebrating the special things that we shold hold dear. Sit back and enjoy as Jeremy puts the world to rights....

Verdict: Ignore what the environmentalists say, because if there were more people like Clarkson the world would be a better place. There would be less meally-mouthed cretins telling everyone what they shouldn't be doing and everyone would be left in peace to enjoy the important things in life. My only criticism is that he hasn't written more books because I only have one left to read. I love this man, nuff said. 10/10

12- Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze? And 114 Other Questions- Mick O'Hare- 04/04/2007- 28/04/2007
Synopsis: The New Scientist magazine's ever-popular "Last Word" column produces an endlessly fascinating array of questions and answers from its readers. For all those who relish its mixture of wit, insight and scientific curiosity- not to mention those who have read and enjoyed "Does Anything Eat Wasps", the brilliantly successful previous collection- this new volume will be irresistible.

"Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze" includes recent answers never before published in book form, as well as old favourite from the column's early days. This bumper collection brings toegther the highlights of the "Last Word" in another wise, weird and wacky compendium that is guaranteed to amaze, inform and delight.

Verdict: It's probably me just being thick but it was all a bit too scientific for me. There were a few questions that interested me but otherwise it just seemed to be full of questions from people with far too much time on their hands. Also, its a bit too technical to read in anything other than short snippets. So, a book for science geeks or bathroom readers then. Sadly it did not hold me attention. 3/10

13- The Interpretation of Murder- Jed Rubenfeld- 28/04/2007- 25/05/2007
Synopsis: On the morning after Sigmund Freud arrives in New York on his first- and only- visit to the United States, a stunning debutante is found bound and strangled in her penthouse apartment, high above Broadway. The following night another beautiful heiress, Nora Acton, is discovered tied to a chandelier in her parents' home, viciously wounded and unable to speak or to recall her ordeal. Soon Freud and his American disciple, Stratham Younger, are enlisted to help Miss Acton recover her memory, and to piece together the killer's identity. It is a riddle that will test their skills to the limit, and lead them on a thrilling journey- into the darkest places of the city, and of the human mind.

Verdict: This book seemed to take ages for me to finish but I think that's probably more due to me being quite busy for the past month rather than the book being slow. It was actually quite good, but is actually much more of a murder mystery than the psychological thriller that the synopsis claims it to be. It's also got a very interesting historical slant with a vivid setting of 1909 Manhattan, including its social problems and construction of the modern New York. Overall it was a reasonably good read, but in places it could have been wirrten slightly better which shows the fact that its the author's first novel. 7/10

14- Top Gear: Motor Mania- Ivan and Nik Berg- 25/05/2007- 30/05/2007
Synopsis: Did you know that Jasons and Tracies crash more cars than Jacquelines and Damons? Or that a boomerang can be used to repair a knackered clutch? Have you ever wanted to visit a naked car show, wondered what it's like to drive on the world's most dangerous road, or receive the world's most expensive speeding ticket?

Want to read about flying cars, amphibious cars, or atomic cars? What about the Accord that can actually strike a chord, or the love car park? Dip inside to find all these plus stacks of other stuff, including cars in films, cars on TV, cars in songs- even cars as coffins.

This is a car book like no other. It's full of the strangest stories, fascinating facts and spectacular stats- a must for any car nut.

Verdict: I like books full of interesting but useless information so this is just my thing really. Funny, informative and interesting without ever becomming boring. It's like a long version of one of my favourite parts of Top Gear Mag. 9/10

15- Consuming Passions: Leisure and Pleasure in Victorian Britain- Judith Flanders- 30/05/2007- 31/07/2007
Synopsis: Imagine a world where just one in ten people has a knife or a fork, where five out of six do not possess a cup. This was Britain in the early eighteenth century yet, by the close of the nineteenth century, lives were completely transformed, now centring around urban living, industrial employment, shopping and professional entertainment. The Industrial Revolution brought with it factories, railways, mines and machines. It also brought travel, department stores, leisure and pleasure.

Consuming Passions tells the fascinating story of how, over two centuries, leisure became an industry, offering a cornucopia of entertainment for a new mass audience, as demand was fuelled by newspapers, by advertising, by publicity- all eighteenth-century creations. Josiah Wedgwood invented money-back guarantees and celebrity endorsements; in the following century Charles Harrod and Gordon Selfridge aggressively extended the possibilities of marketing and publicity for their departments stores.

Professional leisure had long existed, but easy access for the masses was new. Now technology brought elaborate theatrical extravaganzas, with dramatic special effects, hundreds of extras and even animals- one theatre staged a running of the Derby, with real horses; another recreated the battle of Waterloo, complete with a baggae wagon on fire, frightened horses bolting and, the popular finale, the flight of Napoleon.

Change was fuelled by the railways, creating a mass leisure market. Only a decade after the first ever passenger train, regular services carried eager crowds to racetracks across the country; by the end of the century sporting events could draw tens of thousands of spectators. In 1883 football truly became the people's game when Blackburn Olympic, a team consisting of three weavers, one loomer, one gilder, two iron-foundry workers, one clerk, one plumber, one grocer and one dental assistant, wrested the FA cup away from the hitherto dominant Old Etonians.

The seaside and tourism, newspapers and novels, concerts, museums and shopping arcades- all were part of the new consumer world. From Aston Villa's origins in a Sunday-school to Thomas Cook's temperance tours, from Aquascutum to W.H.Smith, Judith Flanders reveals how, building on revolutions in science, technology and industry, an entirely new world was created, a world of thrilling new shopping sensations, lavish spectacle and wild theatricality- the world, in fact, of today.

Verdict: Well.....2 months to finish a book is not very good is it? Although it was quite a long book and I did go on holiday for 2 weeks and fail to read anything. On the whole, interesting enough but the chapter on music went a little over my head but that's just my ignorance not the author's failings. 6/10

16- Drive On! A Social History of the Motor Car- L.J.K Setright- 12/07/2007- 15/08/2007
Verdict: Very interesting. Helped with my special study too. 8/10

17- Jeremy Clarkson's Planet Dagenham: Cars in Film, TV, Music and Sport- Jeremy Clarkson- 31/07/2007- 11/08/2007
Synopsis: Planet Dagenham is a collection of Jeremy Clarkson's thoughts, opinions and observations on cars, their owners and the world in which we drive them. Hilarious, shocking and revelatory (honest), this book spills the beans on the drive-styles of the rich and famous.

Divided into four sections: Film, Music & Modelling, Sport and Television, Planet Dagenham addresses some pretty fundamental questions such as: Why are all film car chases wrong? What is the best film with cars in it? Why don't supermodels drive? What is the greatest TV car of them all? And where would Mercedes be without footballers?

Packed full of car trivia, such as "The Top Ten Rock 'n' Roll Automobile Accidents", and Clarkson's own "Top 20 drives", Planet Dagenham is a fully illustrated treasure-trove of anecdote and information for all car enthusiasts.

Verdict: Greatness personified as usual. A bit dated now, seen as it was written in 1998, but still funny. 10/10

18- Pirates of the Caribbean: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies- Jason Surrell- 12/08/2007- 16/08/2007
Synopsis: Dead men tell no tales.....until now, that is. After appearing in one of the most popular E-Ticket attractions at the Disney theme parks for almost forty years, and starring in a blockbuster hit film (with the promise of more to come), the wildest crew that ever sacked the Spanish Main is ready for its own unique tell-all tome.

Along the journey, readers will learn how the attraction made the voyage to all four corners of the world- with rare early concept sketches, never-before-published original story concepts, and spectacular development artwork- and will take a virtual tour through the attraction showcasing variations and enhancements at each Disney theme park. Never before has the Walt Disney Company revealed so much history, debunked so much mystery, and told the true "below-the-seas" tale of the swashbuckling scalawags.

With such rich source material and a permanent place in pop culture, Pirates of the Caribbean was a natural for the big screen. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, directed by Gore Verbinski, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Orlando Bloom, Kiera Knightley, and Academy Award-nominated Johnny Depp as the irrepressible Captain Jack Sparrow, was one of the top-grossing movies of 2003. Get an insider's view of the motion picture that launched a franchise, including: an exclusive look at the earliest story concepts; a front row seat at location shoots in the Caribbean and on Disney Studio soundstages; cast and crew recollections; and the birth of the cursed buccaneers inside a computer at Industrial Light & Magic.

If it's a pirate's life for you, then it's " Yo-ho-ho" for Pirates of the Caribbean: From the Magic Kingdom to the Movies.

Verdict: Lots of interesting information on both my favourite ride and my favourite film, including lots of great artwork. Aye, me hearties, tis good. 8/10

19- Coldheart Canyon- Clive Barker- 16/08/2007- 01/10/2007
Verdict: It's got everything. A haunted house, dead celebrities and utter, utter filth. What more could you want from a good yarn? 9/10

20- Notes From the Hard Shoulder- James May- 02/10/2007- 26/10/2007
Verdict: Top class as usual. 9/10

21- The Secret of Crickley Hall- James Herbert- 27/10/2007- 12/12/2007
Verdict: Best James Herbert I've read. 9/10