On the bedside table

I have a big stack of books on the bedside table, some read some unread. I'm sorting them out today. This is the list:

Jane Eyre (1847) by Charlotte Bronte. This book has been on the table since mid last year when I finished reading it, inspired by seeing the new film. What a wonderful novel it is.

The Conformist, a novel by the Italian writer Alberto Moravia. First published in 1951, the copy I'm reading is an American paperback published by Steerforth Italia, Vermont, U.S. in 1999. I'm reading this to prepare for viewing the film later this term (The Conformist directed by Bernardo Bertolucci in 1970). I've started on the novel and find it fairly slow-going so far; not a difficult read but rather flat and schematic.

State of Wonder (2011) by the American, Ann Patchett. Boy can she spin a yarn! Great female characters and a terrific story. Can't wait to read more of her books. This book has to be returned to the library.

Also borrowed from the library:

Reading Madame Bovary (2010), a collection of short fiction by Amanda Lohrey. Strong stories with interesting themes. I'm still dipping into this one.

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. This famous novel was first published in 1856. I first read it decades ago and I'm looking forward to reading the new translation by Lydia Davis (2010).

Other books I can now return to the shelves are The Acolyte (1972), a novel by Thea Astley and Minitudes (2000) a book of diary entries for the period 1974 - 1997 by Barry Oakley.

Meanwhile I continue to dip into Cold Mountain Poems, the poems of Han Shan in a lovely edition by Shambala Publications.

There, I have cleared up the bedside table muddle. Now there's room for a few more books.