Category: Bookends
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May 2024
There was a time, many years ago now, when I was quite an authority on children’s books. I read widely and voraciously, led reading groups to extend the stamina, experience and variety of children’s reading and mentored those who were ready to move onto adult literature. Writers that I used included Penelope Lively, John Rowe […]
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April 2024
So this book was a bestseller in 2009. It is back in the windows of bookshops now because of a new Netflix series, closely based on this story. Every newspaper, journal and magazine I have read of late has had excited reviewers waxing lyrical about everything David Nicholls. I understand the buzz and the enthusiasm. […]
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March 2024
On my hall windowsill is a group of old Pan paperbacks by Nevil Shute. There are nine of them. Many years ago I went through a phase of collecting these mid-20th century stories and became a little obsessive about finding editions of each book that had matching artwork on the front. I trailed charity shops […]
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February 2024
I watched Lessons in Chemistry on Apple TV. I had no idea what it was all about but I was soon absorbed in the story. The first part was outrageous in its misogyny and rampant sexism and after that it was simply tragic. However, 2 people who had read the book confidently reported that the […]
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January 2024
I’m not altogether keen on hardback books: very expensive, very heavy and somehow they feel very self important. They are certainly not books that I can read in the bath! The problem is that I have to wait usually at least 6 months for a new book to appear in paperback. Normally I can be […]
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December 2023
The Virtual Christmas Bookshop Welcome to my bookshop; a pop-up shop just open for the festivities. Please do come in. A book is surely the perfect gift. Not too big and really re-usable; again and again if required. A paperback is not too heavy if you have to post it. It is easy to make […]
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November 2023
Recently I was in Normandy, Northern France where we were based in the small town of Lisieux. I had heard of the saint: Therese of Lisieux but apart from that I was quite ignorant about the area. I learnt that in the Second World War the Allies bombed Lisieux as it was a vital point […]
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October 2023
I came to Ian Rankin late, even though I had known the name and his reputation for a long time. So there are now 24 books about his detective John Rebus. I started at the beginning as I like to do and have now just read book number 8: ‘Black and Blue.’ Rebus lives and […]
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August 2023
A few weeks ago, I went to see Aspects of Love in London, a West End revival of this Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Originally it opened in 1989 and I would have seen it soon afterwards. It was the beginning of the singing and acting career of Michael Ball and he played the young romantic […]