The Day That Went Missing by Richard Beard Earlier this month I wrote about an evening with Richard Beard at my local indie bookshop, it was a very special experience for an author event. I went away from the evening with my signed copy of his new book of memoir and started reading it there Read More
Book Group Report: Medicine
Our topic for discussion this month was medicine. Two months ago, when we were choosing which medical book to read, the nominations were varied – from real surgeons and psychiatrists or psychologists to fictional surgeons and psychiatrists or psychologists… Saturday – Ian McEwan Outbreak by Robin Cook Not a red hair in sight – Read More
How I’ve Read – Revisited
Nurturing my reading habit I’ve been adding old book reviews that failed to transfer over from my old blog to this one in the hope that I can finally erase the old blog. I came across a post which I wrote in March 2010, which I felt was definitely worth revisiting, so I’ve edited my Read More
Two books about Learning to Drive…
While reading the first of this pair, I was perusing my shelves and found another book that was nominally about starting late in ‘learning to drive’ so the obvious thing was to read both and review them together. These books were especially appropriate to my own situation – I didn’t take my car driving test Read More
Meanwhile, at Shiny…
Here are links to my recent posts over at Shiny New Books… Abigail’s Party by Mike Leigh This is one of my most-loved TV programmes ever, and the original play is now 40 years old. Penguin have reissued it with a new intro by Leigh – and it still holds up today! Little top up? Read More
The Six Degrees of Separation Meme: The Slap
Hosted each month by Kate at Booksaremyfavouriteandbest, the Six Degrees of Separation meme picks a starting book for participants to go wherever it takes them in six more steps. This month’s starting point is: The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas I’ve not read this book, but shall go with nationality of the author as my first link. Read More
An evening with Richard Beard at Mostly Books
Last night I was at a rather special author event at my local indie bookshop Mostly Books with local(ish) author Richard Beard. Mark in the shop had long ago persuaded me to buy Beard’s last novel, Goldsmith Prize shortlisted, The Acts of the Assassins, but sadly I’ve not read it yet – I know I’ll have a Read More
Reviewed by my mum…
Radcliffe by David Storey My late mum and I used to swap bags of books, and she used to leave short pithy comments on post-it notes stuck to them for me once she’d read them. I still find the notes occasionally as I sort out her old books. I came across Radcliffe while sorting out some Read More
‘It’s not about the money, money, money’ – Oh yes it is!
Wake up Happy Every Day by Stephen May Last year, when I hosted my second Beryl Bainbridge Reading Week, Stephen May wrote a lovely guest post for my blog about the time he met BB and ended up giving her a piggyback! (Do click HERE to read it.) It was immediately obvious that May is great Read More
The man they couldn’t kill…
Nomad by James Swallow Swallow’s espionage thriller comes blazoned with a sticker saying ‘For fans of I am Pilgrim‘ – a 900+ page, but apparently brilliant, book I’ve yet to read. The veteran author Wilbur Smith says it’s ‘Unputdownable’ and it has an intriguing cover blending Arabic and circuit boards. It got me Read More
In Short – some capsule reviews
A pair of shorter reviews for you today – both books are short and begin with G. That’s where their similarity ends though, they couldn’t be further apart in their style! Grief is the Thing With Feathers by Max Porter This prize-winning book from 2015 is hard to categorise, other than short – it’s as Read More
‘Don’t go breaking my heart…’
Fragile Lives by Professor Stephen Westaby I love doctors’ memoirs and those of surgeons in particular. Stephen Westaby’s contribution to the oeuvre, while I’m not accusing him in any way of lacking humanity – far from it, his book is full of emotion and care for his patients – his approach to the challenge of Read More
Hit? Or Miss? – The juke box jury is out…
The Forensic Records Society by Magnus Mills Magnus Mills’ new novel is a beautifully produced thing. It’s seven inches square, and the die-cut dust-jacket is just like a single record sleeve. Underneath, the front and back covers have all the blurb and publishing details on the record label of the seven inches of black vinyl Read More
Wellcome Book Prize Tour – Mend the Living
Today, I’m delighted to be the first stop on the blog tour for the Wellcome Book Prize 2017. This year’s winner will be announced in London on Monday 24th April – sadly I won’t be able to go to the ceremony – I’ll be doing my first aid training at school, instead of getting Read More
A dead-pan but touching graphic novel …
Mooncop by Tom Gauld Mooncop is a short graphic novel which can be ‘read’ in 10 minutes with its 96 pages, many of which have no text at all. It’s worth taking much more time over though to savour the wit and pathos behind the simple yet complex drawings. I finished it the first time Read More
Book Group choice for April: Egypt
To War With Whitaker The Wartime Diaries of the Countess of Ranfurly 1939-45 This month, our topic to choose a title was ‘Egypt’ – any book set in or about anything to do with the country. The nominations were: Death on the Nile – Christie Ice Cold in Alex – Christopher Landon Palace Walk by Read More
Graham Greene for the 1951 Club
The 1951 Club… …is the fourth in Simon and Karen’s reading years series – and I must say, I’m looking forward to the next decades! 1951 produced a plethora of books on my shelves. I could pick from Asimov, Bradbury or Wyndham in SF&F and there was Mitford’s Blessing, Du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel, Taylor’s A Read More
4 3 2 1 – Go! At last, a review…
4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster This is the book I’ve been most excited about since I got my hands on it before Christmas, yet, it has taken until now to review it. My reading of this wonderful, ‘big fat book’ (Auster’s words) has history: I was invited to join an online book group Read More
Busy, busy, busy… and meanwhile at Shiny…
My poor blog – I’ve been neglecting it of late, life’s been so busy! The next couple of weeks should be easier, although my priority will be supporting my daughter in her GCSE revision. Still, we did manage to get to IKEA earlier this week, and I now have a rather lovely new armchair/rug/coffee table Read More
The Horrible History of Historical Hospitals
A Cabinet of Ancient Medical Curiosities by J.C. McKeown I’ve been dipping into this book for some weeks since it arrived unannounced, and each time I’ve picked it up it has entertained magnificently. I took heed and loved the warning at the end of McKeown’s introduction: For best results, read not more than two chapters Read More
The Six Degrees of Separation Meme: Room
Hosted each month by Kate at Booksaremyfavouriteandbest, this meme picks a starting book for participants to go wherever it takes them in six steps. This month’s starting point is: Room by Emma Donaghue This is a book that I haven’t read (nor have a particular desire to read). However, if the movie adaptation came on Read More
Is this how others view Little England…
English Animals by Laura Kaye Reading this sparkling debut, in which Mirka, a young Slovakian woman, finds herself working for an English couple in the depths of the countryside, I couldn’t help thinking of what it was like to listen to The Archers for the first time. All those posh folk going on about pheasant Read More
Meet Martine McDonagh…
Martine McDonagh is more than a little bit rock ‘n’ roll – she was manager of British indie pop band James for nearly ten years – designed their daisy logo, and sang backing vocals on their big hit ‘Sit down‘. When Myriad editions offered me a copy of her first novel I have Waited and Read More
‘The honey and cider-vinegar way to health’
Folk Medicine by D.C. Jarvis M.D. Sorting through a pile of old small size paperbacks that came from my mum’s, I came across this gem. My mum was fascinated by health matters in the press, and prone to believing in all sorts of fringe medicine. She had her hair tinted several shades lighter because she Read More
A new imprint from Head of Zeus and a lovely launch title for it…
The White Hare by Michael Fishwick Head of Zeus, not content with launching their Apollo imprint for reprints last year, have now launched another. Zephyr will be for children’s books and I’m delighted to be the penultimate stop on the blog tour for its launch title, The White Hare, a novel for 12+ by Michael Fishwick. It’s Read More
Reading Ireland Month
March is Reading Ireland month, hosted by Cathy at 746 Books and Niall at The Fluff is Raging. Being half-Irish (my mum was from Belfast) and thus eligible for an Irish passport should the UK go totally to the dogs, I couldn’t not join in, especially after my post about Irish actor James Ellis’s later Read More
Meanwhile at Shiny…
…I’ve had several reviews published recently. In the Name of the Family by Sarah Dunant Sarah Dunant’s latest novel chronicles the last year of Pope Alexander VI’s life. He was, of course, head of the Borgia family in Renaissance Italy. His mad and vicious soldier son Cesare, and daughter about to be thrice-married Lucrezia complete Read More
The World of Ephemera: Before Z Cars…
Time for some more ephemera, Found in amongst a pile of old theatre programmes, this edition of the school mag of M.C.B. – Methodist College Belfast from June 1949. My mum went there, and must have been in the sixth form when this edition was published. Sadly, despite being a classics scholar and singer she Read More
Hurrah! Jackson Lamb and the Slow Horses are back
Spook Street by Mick Herron A new Jackson Lamb novel from Mick Herron is a cause for celebration. Spook Street is the fourth in this fabulous series. (See my reviews of the first, Slow Horses and third, Real Tigers.) Every person who works in the secret service backwater of Slough House is a character, from Lamb, their farting, Read More
It’s been a busy week…
I am nearly in possession of a newly rebuilt conservatory. The old one was single glazed and rotting away – you could see the outdoors at the corners of some windows where the wood was falling off. I managed to get a good deal to have all the glass replaced with UPVC, latest technology with Read More
