Gran Torino starring the one and only Clint Eastwood Newly out on DVD, we watched this on Saturday. I’ve always loved Clint and his films, from those where he was young and so handsome to his later ones where he is grizzled but still steely underneath. He’s been in the business for over five decades Read More
A young woman’s A to Z
Something Beginning With by Sarah Salway At first glance you might write this book off as chicklit with a gimmick – for it is written in an A to Z format with entries under key words and phrases. The longest entries are no more than a couple of pages, and they’re all cross-referenced with an Read More
Another brilliant dystopia in this coming of age novel
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness This novel for early teens+ was short-listed for the 2009 Carnegie Medal, and won the vote of the boys shadowing the award at the school where I work. I have to say it was a fantastic read for adults too, being multi-layered and thought-provoking – putting Read More
Quality debunking of poor scientific thinking
Bad Science by Ben Goldacre This is an important book with two main themes. The first is what really goes on behind medical trials – the placebo effect; how many trials are poorly designed; how their data is reported and manipulated; and then how the media takes it, twists it and sensationalises it. The second Read More
The UK ABC of Amazon
I’m picking up on an item I saw in Gwen Dawson’s blog Literary License, where she refers to the predictive searching now on Amazon. Another US blogger came up with a list made by typing in the letters of the alphabet and seeing which books came up first. I thought I’d do the same for Read More
Feeding my inner geek
I’m still on my space kick, and this is one book I’d really like to have – Apollo 11 – Owner’s Workshop Manual. I’ve not actually seen it, but being a Haynes Manual, I would expect some detailed technical drawings, articles about the evolution of the design of the Lunar Module, and the Saturn V Read More
Boldly Going …
There are lots of great programmes on the TV at the moment celebrating the 40th anniversary of landing on the moon. I was nine when it happened, and remember watching the landing on the telly and being entranced by the whole event. I will still watch anything about space and I have many books on Read More
Grim but gripping …
Once Upon a Time in England by Helen Walsh This book was totally gripping from the outset – the life experienced by the working class family within is truly grim; an unremitingly bleak existence, reinforced by a series of poor decisions and having to live with the consequences. Each time they pick themselves up, something Read More
A three-hanky novel…
If I Stay by Gayle Forman I came to this novel knowing nothing at all about the plot other than it was a family drama; but I had read several recommendations of the book from respected sources. They all said that it was a novel best encountered fresh, that knowing would spoil the enjoyment of Read More
Moviewatch: An American city girl in the English countryside is not good for one’s stiff upper lip!
Easy Virtue This adaptation of a Noel Coward play was great fun. It was full of great performances from an all-star cast, and some brilliant set pieces – involving a chihuahua, the can can, and a fabulous tango from Colin Firth, but I digress … The roaring twenties are in full flow when John Whittaker Read More
A vivid dissection of middle-class life
In a Summmer Season by Elizabeth Taylor Many have told me that I should read the books of Elizabeth Taylor – an author I’d not heard of until the publication of Nicola Beauman’s recent biography The Other Elizabeth Taylor by the wonderful Persephone Books. Published in 1961, it follows one summer in the lives of a Read More
A page-turning and fun Victorian melodrama
The Equivoque Principle by Darren Craske Firstly, a word of explanation – Equivocation is the magician’s art making an outcome seem intended when in reality there are several – but all of which are prepared for. The punter doesn’t know this of course, and so is fooled every time when a card is forced on Read More
A book quote for the weekend
I’m currently halfway through a massive chunkster of a non-fiction book. I am enjoying it though, but it’ll take me a few days to finish. So today, instead of a book review, I offer you an interesting quote I found on http://www.brainyquote.com/ from someone I’ve never heard of called Erma Bombeck, (an American journalist who Read More
When in Rome …
For those of us voting in the MEP elections in the South East yesterday, weren’t you just a little bit tempted to waste your vote in voting for ‘The Roman Party. Ave!’? I was, then reason overcame me and I voted more conventionally instead. I was intrigued however to look up The Roman Party. Ave! Read More
An great adventure read for 11+
The Secret Ministry of Frost by Nick Lake This novel for older children of about eleven upwards was our book group choice for May/June. As a group, we haven’t read a novel aimed primarily at a younger audience since the penultimate Harry Potter, (as opposed to adult books that are great for younger readers too). Read More
A beautiful and quirky journey
The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet by Reif Larsen This book is a thing of beauty. It stands out being an oversized hardback and invites you to pick it up and look inside … whereupon you’ll see all the intricate illustrations, sidebars and marginalia. Then reading the blurb, you’ll find out that it is the Read More
Moviewatch – Coraline (3D)
I read Neil Gaiman’s wonderful children’s novel Coraline last month and blogged about it here, knowing the movie was out this month. Given a choice, I prefer to read the book and then see the movie. So yesterday my daughter and I went to see the film… It was also our first movie in 3D. Read More
One of the best book quotes …
Hunting out a book to lend to a friend, I stumbled over Melvyn Bragg’s excellent biography of Richard Burton Rich: The Life of Richard Burton. This in turn reminded me of a wonderful quote of Burton’s I read in the newspaper absolutely ages ago. Apparently the Burtons didn’t travel light – Richard always took a Read More
This novel snaps, crackles and pops with electricity
The Invention of Everything Else by Samantha Hunt This Orange prize short-listed novel has had some mixed reviews. To be honest, it’s a bit of a mixture itself, refusing to be easily genrified being: part fictionalised biography of mad physicist Nikola Tesla, part love story, part time-travel SF/fantasy, and part mainstream novel set in New Read More
What did mother do in the war?
The Spy Game by Georgina Harding The direct gaze of the woman sipping a cup of tea on the dustjacket of the UK hardback really caught my eye – a spendid cover and evocative title too. Reading the blurb, I fully expected an espionage story straight out of John Le Carre, but this thoughtful and Read More
An evening with Marina Fiorato
Last night, we were treated to an Italian evening at Mostly Books in Abingdon to celebrate the publication of Marina Fiorato’s second novel which I blogged about here, her first novel having been a hit with us. We had antipasti, biscotti, amaretti, and plenty of Amaretto to wash it all down. I’ve only had Amaretto Read More
When friendship is put to the test …
The Spare Room by Helen Garner Helen’s old friend Nicola is coming to stay with her for three weeks while she undergoes an alternative cancer treatment – everything is ready for her. When Nicola arrives, it’s immediately clear that she’s in a really bad state and that even though she won’t admit it, she hasn’t Read More
What do you do when love is the only thing left?
The Road by Cormac McCarthy The Road by Cormac McCarthy is the third novel I’ve read this year that is set in a post-apocalyptic world. The others were Far North by Marcel Theroux (reviewed here) and Riddley Walker by Russell Hoban (reviewed here). In the post-nuke timeline, The Road is set in the years immediately Read More
An Afternoon with Sally Gardner
I was lucky enough to be able to visit the school of St Helen & St Katherine in Abingdon today, where children’s author Sally Gardner came to talk to the girls. Her new book is The Silver Blade, the follow-up to her brilliant novel The Red Necklace which I reviewed here last month. Having so Read More
Back to normal book blogging soon – promise …
Sorry everyone, I’ve not been getting much reading done during the past couple of days as my lovely other half got me my own laptop for my birthday – and it’s red – very important that! Consequently I’ve been too busy playing and transferring files on my new toy – trying out how it plays Read More
Pocket Money
Most bloggers do it because they have something to say, they want to share their opinions and hear yours. I’ve found that the blogosphere is a fantastic way of making virtual friends.It is nice to get a bit of pocket money on the side though, so most of us are affiliated to one or more Read More
Magazine addiction
I love magazines – at one time I used to subscribe to about 25 or more. Nowadays I prefer to read more books and less monthlies, but I’m not a casual picker-up of occasional issues in general – I always subscribe to get the best deal, (this has been made a lot easier by using Read More
From bitter almonds comes sweet romance …
Madonna of the Almonds by Marina Fiorato I was delighted to meet Marina a couple of months ago as I had so enjoyed her debut novel, The Glassblower of Murano, which I had blogged about last autumn here. She’s a real character! – half-Italian with a mass of red Titian hair, a northern accent and Read More
A difficult and challenging read – stay with it to be rewarded!
Riddley Walker by Russell Hoban Let’s face it, my book group is probably thinking (to use Sir Alan’s phrase from this week’s Apprentice) there must be “a village looking for an idiot”, for I chose this book as our monthly read. No disrespect to them intended for, although we are a quite literary lot, this Read More
The Childrens’ Laureate’s choices
There was much on the news and in the papers about the Childrens’ Laureate’s choices of best children’s books to celebrate 10 years of having the post – Long may it continue. The five Laureates, past and present, each chose about twelve books which were whittled down to seven. In the media, much is being Read More
