Sam's bookshelf: all en-US Thu, 10 Apr 2025 09:23:55 -0700 60 Sam's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg Restless 72148
Three decades later the secrets of Sally’s past still haunt her. Someone is trying to kill her and at last she has decided to trust Ruth with her story. Ruth, meanwhile, is struggling to make sense of her own life as a young single mother with an unfinished graduate degree and escalating dependence on alcohol. She is drawn deeper and deeper into the astonishing events of her mother’s past—the mysterious death of Eva’s beloved brother, her work in New York City manipulating the press in order to shift public sentiment toward American involvement in the war, and her dangerous romantic entanglement. Now Sally wants to find the man who recruited her for the secret service, and she needs Ruth’s help.

Restless is a brilliant espionage book and a vivid portrait of the life of a female spy. Full of tension and drama, and based on a remarkable chapter of Anglo-American history, this is fiction at its finest.]]> 336 William Boyd 0747589372 Sam 4 3.88 2006 Restless
author: William Boyd
name: Sam
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2006
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/04/10
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review:
The archetypal page-turner. I feel this was less sensationalist than your average spy book and as a result more of genuine historical interest. The twin perspectives through time is a very straightforward device but used excellently. I found myself devouring the chapters and being invested in the characters and what had transpired. A great entertaining read.
]]> Lolita 9216051 The most famous and controversial novel from one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century tells the story of Humbert Humbert’s obsessive, devouring, and doomed passion for the nymphet Dolores Haze."The conjunction of a sense of humor with a sense of horror [results in] satire of a very special kind." �The New YorkerAwe and exhilaration—along with heartbreak and mordant wit—abound in Lolita, which tells the story of the aging Humbert Humbert's obsession for the nymphet Dolores Haze. Lolita is also the story of a hypercivilized European colliding with the cheerful barbarism of postwar America. Most of all, it is a meditation on love—love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation.]]> 376 Vladimir Nabokov Sam 2 3.86 1955 Lolita
author: Vladimir Nabokov
name: Sam
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1955
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2025/04/02
shelves:
review:
I didn’t find this clever, interesting, or entertaining. I didn’t care for the wordplay, which was tedious. Overall I think this is a book that is better to discuss than to read. The plot is alright but is obscured in any number of ways by dense and pointless passages. One of the few things I took from it was that the controversy is justified as the main character is genuinely disgusting. It’s just not a very enjoyable or enlightening read.
]]> Orbital 123136728
Contudo, mesmo tão distantes do mundo, os seis astronautas não conseguem escapar à sua constante influência. Chegam notícias da morte de uma mãe, trazendo pensamentos de regresso e de saudades de casa. A fragilidade da vida humana torna-se um tema central nas suas conversas, nos seus medos e nos seus sonhos.

Apesar de tão longe da Terra, nunca antes se haviam sentido tão protetores dela, tão parte dela. Começam a refletir: o que será a vida sem a Terra? O que será a Terra sem a humanidade?]]> 207 Samantha Harvey 0802161545 Sam 3 3.56 2023 Orbital
author: Samantha Harvey
name: Sam
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves:
review:
I didn’t quite get the acclaim for this book. It’s very short but I still found it a bit of a chore. Seems to be a bit of a wasted opportunity - a good setting and some interesting messages that nevertheless seemed a bit half-formed to me. Overall the book didn’t feel very cohesive to me - there is no plot to speak of and overall it feels very ‘loose�. It is certainly quite well written with some lovely passages describing Earth from orbit. Worth reading for anyone interested in space but I wouldn’t expect it to change your life.
]]> <![CDATA[How Much Land Does A Man Need?]]> 149704851
A pair of short stories about greed, charity, life and death from one of Russia's most influential writers and thinkers.

Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries. They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California and the Russian steppe. Here are stories lyrical and savage; poems epic and intimate; essays satirical and inspirational; and ideas that have shaped the lives of millions.

Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910). Tolstoy's works available in Penguin Classics are Anna Karenina, War and Peace, Childhood, Boyhood, Youth,The Cossacks and Other Stories, The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories, What is art?, Resurrection, The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories, Master and Man and Other Stories, How Much Land Does A Man Need? & Other Stories, A Confession and Other Religious Writings and Last steps: The Late Writings of Leo Tolstoy.]]> 64 Leo Tolstoy Sam 4 upon whom it might have more impact. ]]> 4.17 How Much Land Does A Man Need?
author: Leo Tolstoy
name: Sam
average rating: 4.17
book published:
rating: 4
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date added: 2025/02/28
shelves:
review:
My first dip into Tolstoy and whilst hard to properly rate such short pieces of work, I enjoyed this. They read like parables rather than stories but the simplicity is part of the attraction. I feel this could be read by young adults
upon whom it might have more impact.
]]> Plainsong (Plainsong, #1) 77156
In the small town of Holt, Colorado, a high school teacher is confronted with raising his two boys alone after their mother retreats first to the bedroom, then altogether. A teenage girl—her father long since disappeared, her mother unwilling to have her in the house—is pregnant, alone herself, with nowhere to go. And out in the country, two brothers, elderly bachelors, work the family homestead, the only world they've ever known.

From these unsettled lives emerges a vision of life, and of the town and landscape that bind them together—their fates somehow overcoming the powerful circumstances of place and station, their confusion, curiosity, dignity and humor intact and resonant. As the milieu widens to embrace fully four generations, Kent Haruf displays an emotional and aesthetic authority to rival the past masters of a classic American tradition.

Utterly true to the rhythms and patterns of life, Plainsong is a novel to care about, believe in, and learn from.]]> 301 Kent Haruf 0375705856 Sam 3 4.02 1999 Plainsong (Plainsong, #1)
author: Kent Haruf
name: Sam
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1999
rating: 3
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date added: 2025/02/27
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review:
Not quite sure I understand the praise for this book. On the one hand it’s very easy to read and the prose is warm and subtly endearing. On the other, I don’t think this book says very much about anything. Yes the relationships between the characters reveal some generally wholesome themes but in my opinion there is too much left unsaid. I think it’s fine (good even, artistically) to let the reader infer but when the narrative is deliberately focussed on ordinary lives and so little happens in the plot, there are some big gaps to fill, thematically. It’s a nice enough book. Just not for me I don’t think.
]]> Mr Salary 34234631 My love for him felt so total and so annihilating that it was often impossible for me to see him clearly at all.

Years ago, Sukie moved in with Nathan because her mother was dead and her father was difficult, and she had nowhere else to go. Now they are on the brink of the inevitable.

Sally Rooney is one of the most acclaimed young talents of recent years. With her minute attention to the power dynamics in everyday speech, she builds up sexual tension and throws a deceptively low-key glance at love and death.]]> 33 Sally Rooney 0571351956 Sam 4 3.76 2016 Mr Salary
author: Sally Rooney
name: Sam
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2016
rating: 4
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date added: 2025/02/20
shelves:
review:
Hard to rate something so short but this is pretty good. Sally Rooney’s hallmarks are there and it’s impressive to convey so much about characters over what is basically a 15 minute read. Interesting.
]]> Great Circle 54976986 An alternate cover edition for ISBN 9780525656975 can be found here.

Spanning Prohibition-era Montana, the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, New Zealand, wartime London, and modern-day Los Angeles, Great Circle tells the unforgettable story of a daredevil female aviator determined to chart her own course in life, at any cost.

After being rescued as infants from a sinking ocean liner in 1914, Marian and Jamie Graves are raised by their dissolute uncle in Missoula, Montana. There—after encountering a pair of barnstorming pilots passing through town in beat-up biplanes—Marian commences her lifelong love affair with flight. At fourteen she drops out of school and finds an unexpected and dangerous patron in a wealthy bootlegger who provides a plane and subsidizes her lessons, an arrangement that will haunt her for the rest of her life, even as it allows her to fulfill her destiny: circumnavigating the globe by flying over the North and South Poles.

A century later, Hadley Baxter is cast to play Marian in a film that centers on Marian's disappearance in Antarctica. Vibrant, canny, disgusted with the claustrophobia of Hollywood, Hadley is eager to redefine herself after a romantic film franchise has imprisoned her in the grip of cult celebrity. Her immersion into the character of Marian unfolds, thrillingly, alongside Marian's own story, as the two women's fates—and their hunger for self-determination in vastly different geographies and times—collide. Epic and emotional, meticulously researched and gloriously told, Great Circle is a monumental work of art, and a tremendous leap forward for the prodigiously gifted Maggie Shipstead.]]> 608 Maggie Shipstead Sam 5 4.06 2021 Great Circle
author: Maggie Shipstead
name: Sam
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2021
rating: 5
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date added: 2025/02/20
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review:
A brilliant book. Yes it probably could be a bit shorter and in the final third I was thinking it’s a solid but ultimately not-that-remarkable 4-star offering, but the ending soars (perhaps deliberately, given the subject matter?) to a higher level. One of the story’s biggest successes for me is the way peripheral cast members are treated. You get just enough of everyone to sense the wider stories and personalities at play. The narrative is pleasing and the ‘twist� towards the end was a gleeful moment. Perhaps a little meandering at times, both philosophically and narratively, but for a book about journeying, so what? I’m a big fan of Greenwood by Michael Christie and this felt similar in a lot of ways. Both brilliant multi-generational tales with worthwhile insights into human life, planet Earth, and how each crossover.
]]> The Old Man and the Sea 2165 Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found here

This short novel, already a modern classic, is the superbly told, tragic story of a Cuban fisherman in the Gulf Stream and the giant Marlin he kills and loses—specifically referred to in the citation accompanying the author's Nobel Prize for literature in 1954.]]> 96 Ernest Hemingway 0684830493 Sam 4 3.81 1952 The Old Man and the Sea
author: Ernest Hemingway
name: Sam
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1952
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/02/09
shelves:
review:
I enjoyed this far more than A Farewell To Arms, which was my only other experience of Hemingway. Perhaps the lack of dialogue in this made it more readable but overall it’s exactly that; a readable and captivating account of a man catching a fish, with a bit of a parable-esque twist. I don’t buy into the need for extensive critical analysis of what is a very short book; all I know is that I enjoyed it and think it’s a unique and well-written story.
]]> Notes From Deep Time 50353808
Helen Gordon turns a novelist's eye on the extraordinary scientists who are piecing together this planetary drama. She gets to grips with the theory that explains how it all works - plate tectonics, a breakthrough as significant in its way as evolution or quantum mechanics, but much younger than either, and still with many secrets to reveal. And she looks to the future of our world, with or without us.

On the cusp of what may be Earth's next cataclysmic transformation, it's time to understand how we fit into the big picture.]]> 320 Helen Gordon 1788161637 Sam 4 4.08 2021 Notes From Deep Time
author: Helen Gordon
name: Sam
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves:
review:
This book was actually a little less philosophical than I was expecting (it’s essentially ‘just� a book about geology) but I still very much enjoyed it. There were several concepts that were eye-opening for me (e.g. urban geology, how the fossil record and division of geological time works, and how to communicate the dangers of nuclear waste far into the future) and even the sections that meandered slightly off-topic (e.g. why kids lose interest in dinosaurs) were interesting. Recommended for anyone remotely interested in history beyond human experience.
]]> The Romantic 60049861
Moving from County Cork to London, from Waterloo to Zanzibar, Cashel seeks his fortune across continents in war and in peace. He faces a terrible moral choice in a village in Sri Lanka as part of the East Indian Army. He enters the world of the Romantic Poets in Pisa. In Ravenna he meets a woman who will live in his heart for the rest of his days. As he travels the world as a soldier, a farmer, a felon, a writer, a father, a lover, he experiences all the vicissitudes of life and, through the accelerating turbulence of the nineteenth century, he discovers who he truly is. This is the romance of life itself, and the beating heart of The Romantic.]]> 451 William Boyd 0241542030 Sam 4 4.03 2022 The Romantic
author: William Boyd
name: Sam
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves:
review:
Another great ‘whole-life� novel from William Boyd that I think is all the better for covering the 19th rather than 20th century. This stops some of the repetition I felt was evident in the New Confessions and Any Human Heart although the trade-off here is that the phases and exploits of the main character’s life are significantly less believable and grandiose. Obviously travel and opportunity were opening up during that time but I found it hard to believe in the sheer geographic and thematic diversity that Cashel’s life revolves through. The African section in particular seemed over the top. It’s entertaining though and reflective stuff. Well-worth reading, either as a standalone book or in comparison with other Boyd works.
]]> My Time 16116138
Outspoken, honest, intelligent and fearless, Wiggins has been hailed as the people’s champion. In My Time he tells the story of the remarkable journey that led to him winning the world’s toughest race. He opens up about his life on and off the bike, about the personal anguish that has driven him on and what it’s like behind the scenes at Team Sky: the brutal training regimes, the sacrifices and his views on his teammates and rivals. He talks too about his anger at the spectre of doping that pursues his sport, how he dealt with the rush of taking Olympic gold and above all what it takes to be the greatest.]]> 308 Bradley Wiggins 022409212X Sam 2 3.54 2012 My Time
author: Bradley Wiggins
name: Sam
average rating: 3.54
book published: 2012
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2025/01/11
shelves:
review:
Bradley Wiggins is a great personality but this book is dull. Very repetitive and virtually nothing of any surprise or interest.
]]> A Christmas Carol 5326
Introduction and Afterword by Joe Wheeler
To bitter, miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, Christmas is just another day. But all that changes when the ghost of his long-dead business partner appears, warning Scrooge to change his ways before it's too late.

Part of the Focus on the Family Great Stories collection, this abridged edition features an in-depth introduction and discussion questions by Joe Wheeler to provide greater understanding for today's reader. "A Christmas Carol" captures the heart of the holidays like no other novel.]]> 184 Charles Dickens 1561797464 Sam 4 4.06 1843 A Christmas Carol
author: Charles Dickens
name: Sam
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1843
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/12/29
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review:
A classic for a reason. Perfect to whiz through in a day or two around this time of year. What I like about Dickens is the relative ease of reading the prose, unlike other authors of the time. That is definitely the case with A Christmas Carol, all the more so given its familiar themes.
]]> Hangover Square 133238 334 Patrick Hamilton 1933372060 Sam 4 4.15 1941 Hangover Square
author: Patrick Hamilton
name: Sam
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1941
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/11/29
shelves:
review:
A very readable book about a bleak state of affairs all round. My impressions are that the story is simultaneously original yet recognisable in many others with a doomed anti-hero. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at how well it holds up despite its age. A good insight into England on the cusp of war, even aside from the main story.
]]> Goodnight Tokyo 201072367 A symphony of interconnected lives that offers a compelling reflection on life in modern-day metropolises at the intersection of isolation and intimacy.

Set over several nights, between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 4:30 a.m., in and around Tokyo, this mind-blowingly constructed book is an elaborate, energetic fresco of human nocturnal existence in all its mystery, an enigmatic literary mix of Agatha Christie, Teju Cole, and Heironymous Bosch.

On this journey through the labyrinthine streets and hidden corners of one of the world’s most fascinating cities, everybody is searching for something, and maybe searching in the wrong places. Elements of the fantastical and the surreal abound, as they tend to do in the early pre-dawn hours of the morning, yet the settings, the human stories, and each character’s search are all as real as can be.

Goodnight Tokyo offers readers a unique and intimate take on Tokyo as seen through the eyes of a large cast of colorful characters. Their lives, as disparate and as far apart as they may seem, are in fact intricately interconnected and as their fates converge against the backdrop of the city’s neon-lit streets and quiet alleyways, Yoshida masterfully portrays in captivating, lyrical prose the complexities of human relationships, the mystery of human connection, and the universal quest for meaning.]]> 176 Atsuhiro Yoshida Sam 4 3.55 2018 Goodnight Tokyo
author: Atsuhiro Yoshida
name: Sam
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/11/18
shelves:
review:
I don’t really know why I liked this book but I did. A lot of surreal content but equally very readable. Presumably a combination of the original whimsy and exceptional translation. It didn’t seem to matter to me that the ‘narrative� was so loose as the overall picture of a late-night Tokyo was there. The afterword in particular was a nice touch in explaining how the author envisages it all working together. An interesting and original read.
]]> A Farewell to Arms 10799 A Farewell to Arms is the unforgettable story of an American ambulance driver on the Italian front and his passion for a beautiful English nurse. Set against the looming horrors of the battlefield - the weary, demoralized men marching in the rain during the German attack on Caporetto; the profound struggle between loyalty and desertion—this gripping, semiautobiographical work captures the harsh realities of war and the pain of lovers caught in its inexorable sweep. Ernest Hemingway famously said that he rewrote his ending to A Farewell to Arms thirty-nine times to get the words right.]]> 293 Ernest Hemingway 0099910101 Sam 2 3.83 1929 A Farewell to Arms
author: Ernest Hemingway
name: Sam
average rating: 3.83
book published: 1929
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2024/09/24
shelves:
review:
My first Hemingway novel and I was not impressed. I’d heard about his distinctive style and, whilst it’s certainly that, very often it is just inane. Characters just repeating the same pointless sentiments to one another. I suppose there is a decent representation of the atmosphere of the Italian front in WWI but, plot-wise, I found very little to care about. The ending is moderately shocking and memorable but for me that was too little too late. I’ll think twice before reading any other Hemingway, as if it’s like this then it’s not for me.
]]> <![CDATA[Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things?: A Comedian's Guide to Autism]]> 204881333 The Goon Show?
Why don't people ever say what they mean?
And... Why is everyone chewing so loudly?

Comedian Pierre Novellie was on stage when a heckler suggested he was autistic. Usually, this disruption would be water off a duck's back but two things made this heckler first, he was himself autistic. Second, he turned out to be absolutely right.

This random encounter led to a diagnosis of autism at the age of 31 that unravelled his world, explained his struggles and answered questions that had bothered him for his entire life.

At once a hilarious and insightful journey through autism and neurodivergence, an entertaining explainer for the uninitiated and observational comedy for the neurodiverse, this is the perfect read for anyone who has ever asked why can't I just enjoy things?]]> 293 Pierre Novellie 1785121030 Sam 4 4.48 2024 Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things?: A Comedian's Guide to Autism
author: Pierre Novellie
name: Sam
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/08/28
shelves:
review:
I’m a big fan of Pierre and have seen his recent shows where he discusses his autism diagnosis. I found this book to be heavier on the informative and lighter on the funny than I was expecting but that’s no bad thing. It certainly covers all the angles and my overall understanding of the complexities of autism was certainly improved by reading this. Probably actively recommended more for those interested in or associated in some way with autism (although everyone ought to read at least a precis, of course) rather than comedy fans.
]]> Resolution (Ray Lennox, #3) 175416214
Former detective Ray Lennox is determined to start a new life. He has left Edinburgh Police behind for a fresh career and a fresh relationship in Brighton. Then he meets Mathew Cardingworth. Rich, smooth-talking and immaculately dressed, he is seemingly a pillar of the local community - yet he soon draws Lennox back to a past that he's desperate to forget. As Lennox identifies the links between Cardingworth, a series of violent attacks and the disappearances of a group of foster care boys, he is forced to ask what must he sacrifice to expose the truth?]]> 384 Irvine Welsh 1529918618 Sam 2 3.92 2024 Resolution (Ray Lennox, #3)
author: Irvine Welsh
name: Sam
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2024
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2024/08/07
shelves:
review:
Poor again from my one-time favourite author. That’s two books in a row that I really didn’t enjoy and it’s the same issues all over - rushed plot with characters and ‘twists� flying around all over the place. GCSE-level cringe-worthy action scenes that add nothing, and pointless introspection on the part of the main character. Perhaps it’s just the Lennox series that’s generally weaker but I’ll certainly think twice about reading any future offerings, unless they return to the legendary Trainspotting cast or similar.
]]> <![CDATA[New Finnish Grammar (Dedalus Europe 2011)]]> 11465331
New Finnish Grammar won three literary prizes in Italy in 2001: Premio Grinzane Cavour, Premio Ostia Mare and Premio Giuseppe Desi and has received critical acclaim across Europe.]]> 187 Diego Marani 190351794X Sam 3 3.53 2000 New Finnish Grammar (Dedalus Europe 2011)
author: Diego Marani
name: Sam
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2000
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2024/07/15
shelves:
review:
Very nearly a superb book. It certainly got in my head and made me think, but there are too many rambling passages that don’t make much sense. I was glad that the plot, such as it was, was satisfactorily resolved in the final few pages otherwise I would have been left very disappointed. As it stands I’m torn between giving it 4 stars but there were several sections that I just had to push through.
]]> <![CDATA[Mountains of the Mind: A History of a Fascination]]> 839157 320 Robert Macfarlane 1862076545 Sam 4 4.10 2003 Mountains of the Mind: A History of a Fascination
author: Robert Macfarlane
name: Sam
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/06/07
shelves:
review:
Rob MacFarlane’s first book albeit one I’ve delayed reading despite loving his other offerings. This one too is excellent and I feel had it been the first of his I’d read I’d be given it a full 5 stars, such is the uniqueness and character of all his writing. This is a lot more focussed than some of his other books but at the same time has a more academic feel with what seems like more liberal use of quotations rather than individual thoughts. There is still ample of the latter though and I note in the acknowledgments that this was the main advice of his editor. It’s a great read overall for anyone who has any interest at all in landscape or nature. A particular highlight is the semi-dramatised account of George Mallory’s Everest expeditions, which I read through voraciously it was that compelling. A superb book.
]]> <![CDATA[The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance]]> 16171221 Now a New York Times Bestseller! With a new chapter added to the paperback. 

In high school, I wondered whether the Jamaican Americans who made our track team so successful might carry some special speed gene from their tiny island. In college, I ran against Kenyans, and wondered whether endurance genes might have traveled with them from East Africa. At the same time, I began to notice that a training group on my team could consist of five men who run next to one another, stride for stride, day after day, and nonetheless turn out five entirely different runners. How could this be?

We all knew a star athlete in high school. The one who made it look so easy. He was the starting quarterback and shortstop; she was the all-state point guard and high-jumper. Naturals. Or were they?

The debate is as old as physical competition. Are stars like Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, and Serena Williams genetic freaks put on Earth to dominate their respective sports? Or are they simply normal people who overcame their biological limits through sheer force of will and obsessive training?
The truth is far messier than a simple dichotomy between nature and nurture. In the decade since the sequencing of the human genome, researchers have slowly begun to uncover how the relationship between biological endowments and a competitor’s training environment affects athleticism. Sports scientists have gradually entered the era of modern genetic research.

In this controversial and engaging exploration of athletic success, Sports Illustrated senior writer David Epstein tackles the great nature vs. nurture debate and traces how far science has come in solving this great riddle. He investigates the so-called 10,000-hour rule to uncover whether rigorous and consistent practice from a young age is the only route to athletic excellence.

Along the way, Epstein dispels many of our perceptions about why top athletes excel. He shows why some skills that we assume are innate, like the bullet-fast reactions of a baseball or cricket batter, are not, and why other characteristics that we assume are entirely voluntary, like an athlete’s will to train, might in fact have important genetic components.

This subject necessarily involves digging deep into sensitive topics like race and gender. Epstein explores controversial questions such as:
Are black athletes genetically predetermined to dominate both sprinting and distance running, and are their abilities influenced by Africa’s geography?
Are there genetic reasons to separate male and female athletes in competition?
Should we test the genes of young children to determine if they are destined for stardom?
Can genetic testing determine who is at risk of injury, brain damage, or even death on the field?
Through on-the-ground reporting from below the equator and above the Arctic Circle, revealing conversations with leading scientists and Olympic champions, and interviews with athletes who have rare genetic mutations or physical traits, Epstein forces us to rethink the very nature of athleticism.
ձ> 338 David Epstein 1591845114 Sam 4 4.19 2013 The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance
author: David Epstein
name: Sam
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/04/17
shelves:
review:
This was a really interesting dive into the subject matter. My only criticism would be it didn’t seem to have a central argument or point - it’s more of a dive around all the key salient factors with reference to specific cases. It’s the latter that make the book interesting though - this is the first non-fiction book I’ve read in a while where pretty much every chapter I would recount some interesting fact or event to my other half. Well worth reading for anyone interested in physical performance.
]]> They And I 6355566 172 Jerome K. Jerome 1419189565 Sam 4 3.86 1909 They And I
author: Jerome K. Jerome
name: Sam
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1909
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/03/18
shelves:
review:
By no means a classic Jerome K Jerome offering so I’m rounding this rating up. Still a nice mix of characters, loose plot, funny set pieces and philosophical elements. This felt more cohesive than some of the other novels of his I’ve read but even so the context is really just there to link together the anecdotes. For my money the very first one regarding billiards is the best part of the book - that bit in particular is definitely classic Jerome K Jerome and had me laughing out loud.
]]> <![CDATA[The Running Grave (Cormoran Strike, #7)]]> 139399948 In the seventh installment in the Strike series, Cormoran and Robin must rescue a man ensnared in the trap of a dangerous cult.

Private Detective Cormoran Strike is contacted by a worried father whose son, Will, has gone to join a religious cult in the depths of the Norfolk countryside.

The Universal Humanitarian Church is, on the surface, a peaceable organization that campaigns for a better world. Yet Strike discovers that beneath the surface there are deeply sinister undertones, and unexplained deaths.

In order to try to rescue Will, Strike's business partner, Robin Ellacott, decides to infiltrate the cult, and she travels to Norfolk to live incognito among its members. But in doing so, she is unprepared for the dangers that await her there or for the toll it will take on her. . .

Utterly pulse-pounding, The Running Grave moves Strike's and Robin's story forward in this epic, unforgettable seventh installment of the series.]]> 960 Robert Galbraith 0316572101 Sam 3 4.56 2023 The Running Grave (Cormoran Strike, #7)
author: Robert Galbraith
name: Sam
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2024/02/24
shelves:
review:
I enjoyed this for the most part but for a book so long the rapid unravelling of the truth towards the end makes the key twists barely comprehensible. It’s certainly not the kind of clever reveal from earlier books. Too many characters to keep track of. As ever the most interesting aspect, and in truth the reason I still read these books, is the ongoing will-they-won’t-they storyline of Robin and Strike, which develops nicely here.
]]> The War of the Worlds 8909
Inspiring films, radio dramas, comic-book adaptations, television series and sequels,The War of the Worlds is a prototypical work of science fiction which has influenced every alien story that has come since, and is unsurpassed in its ability to thrill, well over a century since it was first published.]]> 192 H.G. Wells 0375759239 Sam 4 3.84 1898 The War of the Worlds
author: H.G. Wells
name: Sam
average rating: 3.84
book published: 1898
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/12/05
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The most remarkable thing about this book is it’s age. In its own right it is interesting and readable enough (albeit at times a bit repetitive) but considering it was written in the 19th century, it must have been outright incredible at the time. Well worth reading for this appreciation alone.
]]> The New Confessions 77844
From his birth in 1899, Todd was doomed. Emerging from his angst-filled childhood, he rushes into the throes of the twentieth century on the Western Front during the Great War, and quickly changes his role on the battlefield from cannon fodder to cameraman. When he becomes a prisoner of war, he discovers Rousseau's Confessions , and dedicates his life to bringing the memoir to the silver screen. Plagued by bad luck and blind ambition, Todd becomes a celebrated London upstart, a Weimar luminary, and finally a disgruntled director of cowboy movies and the eleventh member of the Hollywood Ten. Ambitious and entertaining, Boyd has invented a most irresistible hero.]]> 480 William Boyd 0375705031 Sam 3 4.10 The New Confessions
author: William Boyd
name: Sam
average rating: 4.10
book published:
rating: 3
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date added: 2023/11/02
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I was disappointed with this having read Any Human Heart before. The similarities between the two are distractingly obvious - it’s almost like this was an earlier draft. If it wasn’t for that I’d be tempted to give it 4 stars but the final quarter of the story is also listless with an unnecessary number of characters drifting forgettably in and out of the tale. Probably better if your first Boyd novel.
]]> Sheepshagger 223271
Robbed of his ancestral home -- a near-derelict hovel in the mountains of west Wales -- Ianto pledges revenge not only on the English yuppies who have turned his grandmother's cottage into a weekenders' barbecue party but on all those who have violated him and the land that is his. The oppression and abuse that Ianto has faced triggers his lurid imagination into unspeakable savagery -- embodying the most primal fears of physical threat and a world beyond his control.

An extraordinary prose amalgam of Old Testament prophecy and demotic slang, of Faulkner and Cormac McCarthy, Sheepshagger is written in a language charged to the highest lyrical and hieratic, saturated -- like nature -- in beauty and violence. And the spirit of its place, Ianto, at once both Caliban and Prospero, will hang in the memory of all who read his story like a devil or a god.]]> 288 Niall Griffiths 0312300735 Sam 4 3.87 2001 Sheepshagger
author: Niall Griffiths
name: Sam
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2001
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/09/27
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review:
More of a novella, this is incredibly dark in places and near the end there are scenes so uncomfortable as to be borderline unreadable. I enjoyed it though. Again a Welsh Irvine Welsh - interesting characters and context from the mid-90s.
]]> <![CDATA[Next to Nature: A Lifetime in the English Countryside]]> 62315730
Beginning with the arrival of snow on New Year's Day and ending with Christmas carols sung in the village church, Next to Nature invites us to witness a simple life richly lived. With gentle wit and keen observation Blythe meditates on his life and faith, on literature, art and history, and on our place in the landscape.

It is a celebration of one of our greatest nature writers, and an unforgettable ode to the English countryside.]]> 472 Ronald Blythe 1399804669 Sam 3 3.96 2022 Next to Nature: A Lifetime in the English Countryside
author: Ronald Blythe
name: Sam
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2022
rating: 3
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date added: 2023/09/09
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review:
I wanted so much to like this. I should have liked it. However, to my sadness, I just didn’t find it very readable. There are some lovely passages and overall Ronald Blythe is an immense figure in his field but this is best reserved for those who share his Christian ways as first and foremost this is a book about his day to day religious thoughts.
]]> <![CDATA[Saving the Planet Without the Bullshit: What They Don’t Tell You About the Climate Crisis]]> 61312186 304 Assaad Razzouk 1838954635 Sam 3 3.92 Saving the Planet Without the Bullshit: What They Don’t Tell You About the Climate Crisis
author: Assaad Razzouk
name: Sam
average rating: 3.92
book published:
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2023/07/09
shelves:
review:
Mostly the same few points repeated ad infinitum. Some interesting facts though and the chapter on bitcoin was particularly enlightening.
]]> <![CDATA[The Swimmer: The Wild Life of Roger Deakin]]> 61067814 BEST BOOK OF 2023 ACCORDING TO THE NEWSTATESMAN AND OBSERVER

'The Swimmer is a wonderful, original achievement; teeming with stories, glittering with images, and experimental in form and tone' Robert Macfarlane

Roger Deakin, author of the immortal Waterlog, was a man of many maverick ad-man, cider-maker, teacher, environmentalist, music promoter and filmmaker. But, above all, he was the restorer of ancient Walnut Tree Farm in Suffolk, the heartland where he wrote about all natural life � with rare attention, intimacy, precision and poetry.

Roger Deakin was unique, and so too is this joyful work of creative biography, told primarily in the words of the subject himself, with support from a chorus of friends, family, colleagues and lovers. Delving deep into Deakin’s library of words, Patrick Barkham draws from notebooks, diaries, letters and recordings to conjure his voice back to glorious life in these pages.

'A rich, strange and compelling work of creative memoir that beautifully honours and elevates the life and work of its subject' Alex Preston, Observer ]]> 369 Patrick Barkham 0241471494 Sam 4 4.03 The Swimmer: The Wild Life of Roger Deakin
author: Patrick Barkham
name: Sam
average rating: 4.03
book published:
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/06/30
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review:
They say never meet your heroes and for partly that reason I have mixed opinions on this book. On reflection I think this is the first actual biography I’ve read (as opposed to autobiography) so maybe I just have some discomfort about the genre. At times though it made me doubt my reverence for the man whose books I count amongst my absolute favourites. Patrick Barkham captures brilliantly though the magic of Walnut Tree Farm, made all the more telling for me by reading the first two thirds whilst staying there. I also found it strange to read some parts in first-person, reconstructed as they were from Roger’s notes and diaries. Therein lies what I think I found most difficult - the intimacy laid bare of things that were probably never meant to be published. He was clearly a complex character and I was relieved in part by his son’s assertion towards the end that he himself did not want this book to be a hagiography. It certainly is not that. Ultimately this is a must-read for anyone interested in Roger Deakin. Just be prepared to be challenged on your ideals and preconceptions of him.
]]> Conversations with Friends 32187419 A sharply intelligent novel about two college students and the strange, unexpected connection they forge with a married couple.

Frances is twenty-one years old, cool-headed, and darkly observant. A college student and aspiring writer, she devotes herself to a life of the mind--and to the beautiful and endlessly self-possessed Bobbi, her best friend and comrade-in-arms. Lovers at school, the two young women now perform spoken-word poetry together in Dublin, where a journalist named Melissa spots their potential. Drawn into Melissa's orbit, Frances is reluctantly impressed by the older woman's sophisticated home and tall, handsome husband. Private property, Frances believes, is a cultural evil--and Nick, a bored actor who never quite lived up to his potential, looks like patriarchy made flesh. But however amusing their flirtation seems at first, it gives way to a strange intimacy neither of them expect. As Frances tries to keep her life in check, her relationships increasingly resist her control: with Nick, with her difficult and unhappy father, and finally even with Bobbi. Desperate to reconcile herself to the desires and vulnerabilities of her body, Frances's intellectual certainties begin to yield to something new: a painful and disorienting way of living from moment to moment.

Written with gem-like precision and probing intelligence, Conversations With Friends is wonderfully alive to the pleasures and dangers of youth."]]> 304 Sally Rooney 0451499077 Sam 4 3.74 2017 Conversations with Friends
author: Sally Rooney
name: Sam
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2017
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/05/30
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review:
Just about a four for me. Very well written but towards the end in particular the pretentiousness of the characters starts to grate. Overall though a good example of a novel that isn’t plot-driven but more about observing the human condition.
]]> Novel Notes 1833991 232 Jerome K. Jerome 1421839784 Sam 4 3.90 1893 Novel Notes
author: Jerome K. Jerome
name: Sam
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1893
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/05/14
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review:
By no means JKJ’s best work but amusing nonetheless. Half the conceit being this is no novel at all, so beware anyone suspecting otherwise. Very dark in places too.
]]> An Unfolding Soul 42976046 Ian Morris lies in a coma in Bath's Royal United Hospital, mind and body shattered, with nothing remaining of his hard-earned fortune... Can he recover to re-build his property empire? Will he be part of the greed-driven destruction gripping historical Bath in the swinging sixties? Or will he soften his rapacious desire for profit and recognise how to change his own destiny and restore the city's fortunes?
An Unfolding Soul continues Wescott's sweeping, coming of age saga, painting a shocking portrait of Bath, and shining a spotlight on little-known aspects of the city's colourful past. Business, politics and history are interwoven in this page-turning tale, with Westcott's engaging prose filled with moments of cultural interest, humour, and ultimately, hope.]]> 387 Douglas Westcott 099263976X Sam 1 3.29 An Unfolding Soul
author: Douglas Westcott
name: Sam
average rating: 3.29
book published:
rating: 1
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date added: 2023/04/27
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review:
This book is a hot mess. I can’t believe it got published with its litany of basic spelling errors (e.g. principle and principal for God’s sake) not to mention appalling writing. I’m sure the author has some insight and interest in the history of Bath and property development but here it comes across as a clumsy train of thought with no narrative skill whatsoever. Each conversation between the characters lasts about 20 seconds before the scene lurches incoherently into something else. The whole thing is just all telling and no showing at all. Thing is, what we’re being told isn’t worth reading, being just the author’s rambling thoughts on historic events. Disappointed too with the lovely Bath bookshop in whose ‘local fiction� I found this. Surely they can’t be aware of the dross they’re stocking?
]]> <![CDATA[The Ink Black Heart (Cormoran Strike, #6)]]> 60144955
When frantic, disheveled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn’t know quite what to make of the situation. The co-creator of a popular cartoon, The Ink Black Heart, Edie is being persecuted by a mysterious online figure who goes by the pseudonym of Anomie. Edie is desperate to uncover Anomie’s true identity.

Robin decides that the agency can’t help with this—and thinks nothing more of it until a few days later, when she reads the shocking news that Edie has been tasered and then murdered in Highgate Cemetery, the location of The Ink Black Heart.

Robin and her business partner, Cormoran Strike, become drawn into the quest to uncover Anomie’s true identity. But with a complex web of online aliases, business interests and family conflicts to navigate, Strike and Robin find themselves embroiled in a case that stretches their powers of deduction to the limits � and which threatens them in new and horrifying ways . . .]]> 1391 Robert Galbraith 0316473537 Sam 4 4.07 2022 The Ink Black Heart (Cormoran Strike, #6)
author: Robert Galbraith
name: Sam
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2022
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/03/23
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review:
As with the last few instalments this is several hundred pages too long and the best bits concern the longer term will-they-won’t-they plot of Robin and Strike. I did find myself more gripped by this plot than the last few though, even if the attempt at replicating online dialogue was a bit ham-fisted. It would also be a good change for an ending not to comprise a violent confrontation. A decent enough page-turner at least.
]]> Any Human Heart 77866
Mountstuart's sorry tale is also the story of a British way of life in inexorable decline, as his journey takes in the Bloomsbury set, the General Strike, the Spanish Civil War, 1930s Americans in Paris, wartime espionage, New York avant garde art, even the Baader-Meinhof gang--all with a stellar supporting cast. The most sustained and best moment comes mid-book, as Mountstuart gets caught up in one of Britain's murkier wartime secrets, in the company of the here truly despicable Duke and Duchess of Windsor. Elsewhere Boyd occasionally misplaces his tongue too obviously in his cheek--the Wall Street Crash is trailed with truly crashing inelegance--but overall Any Human Heart is a witty, inventive and ultimately moving novel. Boyd succeeds in conjuring not only a compelling 20th century but also, in the hapless Logan Mountstuart, an anti-hero who achieves something approaching passive greatness. --Alan Stewart, Amazon.co.uk]]> 480 William Boyd 1400031001 Sam 4 4.27 2002 Any Human Heart
author: William Boyd
name: Sam
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2002
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2023/02/16
shelves:
review:
I had heard many great things about this book and generally speaking it is very good and enjoyable. The whole-life narrative naturally lends itself to meaningful reflection and themes but I found the final third of the book pretty weak compared to the rest. The author seemed in a rush for Logan to be depicted in various locations and scenarios in later life, unnecessarily so in my opinion. Still, well worth reading.
]]> Landmarks 23597544 Landmarks is Robert Macfarlane's joyous meditation on words, landscape and the relationship between the two.

Words are grained into our landscapes, and landscapes are grained into our words. Landmarks is about the power of language to shape our sense of place. It is a field guide to the literature of nature, and a glossary containing thousands of remarkable words used in England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales to describe land, nature and weather. Travelling from Cumbria to the Cairngorms, and exploring the landscapes of Roger Deakin, J. A. Baker, Nan Shepherd and others, Robert Macfarlane shows that language, well used, is a keen way of knowing landscape, and a vital means of coming to love it.]]> 387 Robert Macfarlane Sam 4 4.24 2015 Landmarks
author: Robert Macfarlane
name: Sam
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2022/10/25
shelves:
review:
I love Rob Macfarlane’s work so picked this up without knowing anything about its premise. I was slightly surprised at the form it takes, being in large parts a kind of literature review and a glossary/compendium of words. It was therefore also a fair bit more academic than I was expecting, with constant references to other works and less focus on his own original thoughts. That’s by no means a criticism, as Macfarlane is an excellent guide to take the reader through the themes explored and he certainly enthused me to go away and read certain pieces that form the focus of different chapters. So, in summary, probably not the most accessible of his books and if you’re put off by the list format at the end of each chapter then it won’t be recommended, but it’s still superbly well-written and interesting.
]]> The Outsider 15686 'The sky seemed to rip apart from end to end to pour fire down upon me'

Meursault will not conform. When his mother dies, he refuses to show his emotions simply to satisfy the expectations of others. And when he commits a random act of violence on a sun-drenched beach, his lack of remorse only compounds his guilt in the eyes of society and law.

Albert Camus' portrayal of a man confronting the absurdity of human life became an existentialist classic. Yet it is also a book filled with quiet joy in the "tender indifference" of the physical world, and Sandra Smith's new translation based on listening to a recording of Camus reading aloud, sensitively renders the subtleties and dreamlike atmosphere of The Outsider.]]> 119 Albert Camus 0141182504 Sam 4 4.01 1942 The Outsider
author: Albert Camus
name: Sam
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1942
rating: 4
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date added: 2022/10/17
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review:
I did enjoy this although I think I probably regarded it as less than profound than I expected due to the themes having been dealt with in other media more extensively than at the time this was published. A short punchy read that did surprise me at times and still thought-provoking enough to be worth reading.
]]> Cider with Rosie 292314 Cider With Rosie is a charming memoir of Laurie Lee's childhood in a remote Cotswold village, a world that is tangibly real and yet reminiscent of a now distant past.

In this idyllic pastoral setting, unencumbered by the callous father who so quickly abandoned his family responsibilities, Laurie's adoring mother becomes the centre of his world as she struggles to raise a growing family against the backdrop of the Great War.

The sophisticated adult author's retrospective commentary on events is endearingly juxtaposed with that of the innocent, spotty youth, permanently prone to tears and self-absorption.

Rosie's identity from the novel Cider with Rosie was kept secret for 25 years. She was Rose Buckland, Lee's cousin by marriage.


From the Paperback edition.]]> 231 Laurie Lee Sam 3 3.91 1959 Cider with Rosie
author: Laurie Lee
name: Sam
average rating: 3.91
book published: 1959
rating: 3
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date added: 2022/10/12
shelves:
review:
I’ve read my share of historic accounts and literature from the early 20th century and earlier so perhaps that’s why I didn’t find this particularly enthralling. I didn’t learn a great deal about the times and whilst Lee’s family and day to day life were moderately interesting, I’m not quite sure why this is so acclaimed. His writing is slick enough and there are some nice phrases but perhaps this is one best left to studying in youth than reading later in life.
]]> <![CDATA[The Long Knives (Ray Lennox, #2)]]> 59701028 384 Irvine Welsh 1787334104 Sam 2 3.65 2022 The Long Knives (Ray Lennox, #2)
author: Irvine Welsh
name: Sam
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2022
rating: 2
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date added: 2022/09/21
shelves:
review:
I hate to rate an Irvine Welsh book so low but this is poor from one of my favourite authors. It feels like it was written in one-take and generally is a blur of characters and events that lurch wildly along without any cohesion. The cliched “character thinking� passages in italics were cringey, as were the capitalised sections of shouting. Trans issues seem inserted as a token gesture to contemporary issues and are treated with neither sensitivity or insight. Overall I couldn’t really say what this story was about. It’s sadly just a bit of a mess.
]]> A Passage to India 45195 A Passage to India compellingly depicts the fate of individuals caught between the great political and cultural conflicts of the modern world.

In his introduction, Pankaj Mishra outlines Forster's complex engagement with Indian society and culture. This edition reproduces the Abinger text and notes, and also includes four of Forster's essays on India, a chronology and further reading.]]> 376 E.M. Forster 014144116X Sam 3 3.69 1924 A Passage to India
author: E.M. Forster
name: Sam
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1924
rating: 3
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date added: 2022/09/09
shelves:
review:
This may be a renowned work but I didn’t particularly enjoy it or find it especially enlightening. A lot of the prose is impenetrable in terms of it’s meaning and whilst sometimes it does reveal some lovely poetic imagery, I found a lot of it to be needlessly cryptic. I understand it’s importance in being one of the first texts to present an ‘unknowable� orient but, even so, certain passages come close to being non-sequitur. The characters are well crafted though and certainly the middle part of the book was genuinely page-turning in terms of wanting to know its plot outcome. In general though I was disappointed and wouldn’t recommend reading for leisure; perhaps one for in-depth study instead.
]]> <![CDATA[Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics]]> 25135194 Geography shapes not only our history, but where we're headed...

All leaders are constrained by geography. Their choices are limited by mountains, rivers, seas and concrete. Yes, to follow world events you need to understand people, ideas and movements - but if you don't know geography, you'll never have the full picture.

If you've ever wondered why Putin is so obsessed with Crimea, why the USA was destined to become a global superpower, or why China's power base continues to expand ever outwards, the answers are all here.

In ten chapters and ten maps, Prisoners of Geography looks at the past, present and future to offer an essential insight into one of the major factors that determines world history.

It's time to put the 'geo' back into geopolitics.

Ten maps; ten chapters:

Russia * China * United States of America * Latin America * the Middle East * Africa * India and Pakistan * Europe * Japan and Korea * the Arctic]]> 256 Tim Marshall 1783961414 Sam 4 4.18 2015 Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics
author: Tim Marshall
name: Sam
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2022/08/01
shelves:
review:
An interesting overview of how the works works, basically! A little repetitive in places but full of a good mix of history, geography and politics that told me a lot about the world I didn’t know. It’s well-spread around the globe so something for everyone I would imagine. Well worth a read.
]]> Fever Pitch 4264
For Nick Hornby, his devotion to the game has provided one of few constants in a life where the meaningful things - like growing up, leaving home, and forming relationships, both parental and romantic - have rarely been as simple or as uncomplicated as his love for Arsenal.

Fever Pitch is his tribute to a lifelong obsession. Part autobiography, part comedy, part incisive analysis of insanity, Hornby's award-winning memoir captures the fever pitch of fandom � its agony and ecstasy, its community, and its defining role in thousands of young men's coming-of-age stories. Fever Pitch is one for the home team. But above all, it is one for everyone who knows what it really means to have a losing season.]]> 247 Nick Hornby 1573226882 Sam 3 3.78 1992 Fever Pitch
author: Nick Hornby
name: Sam
average rating: 3.78
book published: 1992
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2022/06/07
shelves:
review:
I am a sports fan but not that into football but thought I’d give it a go. I think really you need a specific football interest to relate, otherwise it can be a bit tedious and repetitive. Still, some good observations and definitely a must-read for any football obsessive or arsenal fan, I should think.
]]> The Stone Gods 883195 207 Jeanette Winterson 0241143950 Sam 3 3.70 2007 The Stone Gods
author: Jeanette Winterson
name: Sam
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2022/05/17
shelves:
review:
I think on face value this book is probably only worth two stars but, as a piece of writing, I have given it the benefit of the doubt as it has ambitions that are profound. Sadly those ambitions aren’t fulfilled. Structurally this book is an absolute mess. It’s all over the place. It’s like a stream of consciousness crossed with sixth-form philosophy. There are some funny and interesting sections but they’re over in a flash before we’re back to pointless conversations and fraught metaphors. A shame as there is the potential for a really striking book but as written it is well wide of the mark.
]]> <![CDATA[My Name'5 Doddie: The Autobiography]]> 42398450 288 Doddie Weir 1785302248 Sam 3 4.37 2018 My Name'5 Doddie: The Autobiography
author: Doddie Weir
name: Sam
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2018
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2022/04/21
shelves:
review:
A good book by an inspiring man. Some good tales and I couldn’t not donate to Doddie’s foundation having read it.
]]> <![CDATA[A Spotter's Guide to Countryside Mysteries]]> 56756742
One of Britain's best-known naturalists, John Wright, describes and explores fifty of the natural (and unnatural) puzzles of the countryside that might confound the ever-curious. He reveals the histories and practicalities of those that are human-made and the astounding and intricate lives of the natural wonders around us. From the enormous to the truly tiny he illuminates the oddities that pepper our countryside and reveals the many pleasures of spotting and understanding them. Informative, entertaining, and beautifully illustrated, this is for anyone who has ever gone outside and wondered.]]> 240 John Wright 1788168267 Sam 4 3.88 A Spotter's Guide to Countryside Mysteries
author: John Wright
name: Sam
average rating: 3.88
book published:
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2022/04/02
shelves:
review:
A humorous and easy-to-read summary of many things encountered in the British countryside. I can’t say that I had personally wondered before about most of the mysteries that are explained but that doesn’t diminish the value in learning about them and indeed I’ll be keeping an eye out for many of the phenomena and species John Wright covers. Well worth reading for anybody remotely interested in British naturalism.
]]> Fungus the Bogeyman 996278 48 Raymond Briggs 0140542353 Sam 4 4.11 1977 Fungus the Bogeyman
author: Raymond Briggs
name: Sam
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1977
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2022/03/25
shelves:
review:
I missed out on this as a child although I have to say it would have probably have gone over my head. There were bits that made me laugh out loud and whilst the premise ends up being predictable (it’s a kids book after all), it looks amazing and it’s easy to see why it’s a classic.
]]> The Wild Places 2688775 "An eloquent (and compulsively readable) reminder that, though we're laying waste the world, nature still holds sway over much of the earth's surface."
Bill McKibben

Are there any genuinely wild places left in Britain and Ireland? That is the question that Robert Macfarlane poses to himself as he embarks on a series of breathtaking journeys through some of the archipelago's most remarkable landscapes. He climbs, walks, and swims by day and spends his nights sleeping on cliff-tops and in ancient meadows and wildwoods. With elegance and passion he entwines history, memory, and landscape in a bewitching evocation of wildness and its vital importance. A unique travelogue that will intrigue readers of natural history and adventure, The Wild Places solidifies Macfarlane's reputation as a young writer to watch.]]> 340 Robert Macfarlane 0143113933 Sam 5 4.27 2007 The Wild Places
author: Robert Macfarlane
name: Sam
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2022/03/24
shelves:
review:
An excellent book for anyone remotely interested in places or nature. I am a massive Roger Deakin fan but for some reason had never gotten round to reading Robert MacFarlane until now. I was aware of his association with Deakin but I was delighted at how closely this book follows their relationship and adventures. His observations on the meaning and substance of the wild in the British Isles are erudite and truly thought-provoking. I can’t wait to read his other books.
]]> The Sea, the Sea 11229
In exposing the jumble of motivations that drive Arrowby and the other characters, Iris Murdoch lays bare "the truth of untruth"--the human vanity, jealousy, and lack of compassion behind the disguises they present to the world. Played out against a vividly rendered landscape and filled with allusions to myth and magic, Charles's confrontation with the tidal rips of love and forgiveness is one of Murdoch's most moving and powerful novels.]]> 528 Iris Murdoch 014118616X Sam 2 3.95 1978 The Sea, the Sea
author: Iris Murdoch
name: Sam
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1978
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2022/03/11
shelves:
review:
Tortuous. I willed this to end but it just went on and and on and on. I found it so maddening for such a long book to have barely any plot, and the one it did have seemed to have been thrown together without any prior thought. I get that the book is about the egotism and misguided nature of the main character but I would suggest it is possible to create an unlikeable character without creating an unlikeable book. As it stands the reader is subject to an endless series of rhetorical questions and unintelligible personal philosophy. Completely unbelievable that this won any kind of award. Tedious. Avoid.
]]> Pour Me: A Life 27867882 Pour Me is about the black-outs, the collapse, the despair: 'Pockets were a constant source of surprise - a lamb chop, a votive candle, earrings, notes written on paper and ripped from books,' and even, once, a pigeon. 'Morning pockets,' he says, 'were like tiny crime scenes.' He recalls the lost days, lost friends, failed marriages ...But there was also 'an optimum inebriation, a time when it was all golden, when the drink and the pleasure made sense and were brilliant'.

Sobriety regained, there are painterly descriptions of people and places, unforgettable musings about childhood and family, art and religion, friendships and fatherhood; and, most movingly, the connections between his cooking, dyslexia and his missing brother. Full of raw and unvarnished truths, exquisitely written throughout, Pour Me is about lost time and self-discovery. Lacerating, unflinching, uplifting, it is a classic about drunken abandon.]]> 256 A.A. Gill 0297870823 Sam 4 4.00 2014 Pour Me: A Life
author: A.A. Gill
name: Sam
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/12/16
shelves:
review:
A well-written an enjoyable account of a troubling man’s life. I wouldn’t say I liked him any more as a result of this but the self-reflection and anecdotes are interesting and easy to read. Gill has an excellent grasp on language, as you’d expect, so to be frank he could write about almost anything and it’d be readable. I definitely couldn’t have stomached a full-on autobiography but this short collection of memoirs and personal philosophy is worth reading.
]]> Grits 702033 496 Niall Griffiths 0099285177 Sam 4 3.88 2000 Grits
author: Niall Griffiths
name: Sam
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/11/08
shelves:
review:
I really struggled to know how to rate this book. As an avid Irvine Welsh fan it’s difficult to not conclude this is a blatant rip-off in so many ways. It’s inferior too in the weaker way it tackles it’s themes and the general lack of coherence. But at the same time I found myself wanting to pick it up and read, which is typically the mark of a 4 star book for me. I do think in the final third it does develop into a subtly different take on the ‘underclass� life that is Welsh’s typical domain. It’s slightly less sensationalist (i.e. arguably more boring) but it’s there. The book is too long though and I think ultimately I only upgraded it from a three star because I loved the setting of Aberystwyth, being a big fan of the place myself. So, perhaps just about worth reading as a Welsh fan if you are open-minded about originality, and definitely worth reading if you’re also a fan of Aber the place. Otherwise if you have doubts though then avoid.
]]> <![CDATA[Akenfield: Portrait of an English Village]]> 296710 287 Ronald Blythe 1585790095 Sam 3 4.11 1969 Akenfield: Portrait of an English Village
author: Ronald Blythe
name: Sam
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1969
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/10/05
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review:
This book is clearly important and for the most part I found it quite interesting. However I did find it hard to finish and I was expecting there to be a little bit more commentary or ‘colour� to add to the recollections of the interviewees. As it stands the book read like raw material for some kind of academic research paper.
]]> Labyrinth (Languedoc, #1) 14975 515 Kate Mosse 0425213978 Sam 3 3.62 2005 Labyrinth (Languedoc, #1)
author: Kate Mosse
name: Sam
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2005
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/08/12
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review:
I found this a somewhat frustrating read as an interesting subject and intriguing plot were coupled with subpar execution. I felt that readers were not dripfed information enough to the point that we had endless references to the main characters half-remembering ‘familiar� things, like a teaser repeated over and over and over again. Some of the language was also hamfisted and repetitive (two characters ‘hissed� at each other about three times in two sentences and other times there were cringeworthy ‘let’s get out of here!� moments). It’s a long book but to do it justice I think it could have been a Game of Thrones type series as one point we skip forward 20 years in a few pages for no apparent reason than to shorten the plot. On the plus side I learnt about some lesser known history and the plot was like a better version of a Dan Brown novel. Overall though it’s still sadly a case of what could have been.
]]> Magic Spanner 43263250 Mr Cycling, Eurosport commentator Carlton Kirby, offers an expert, behind-the-scenes view of the world's greatest cycling races, including the Tour de France, Vuelta a Espana, Giro d'Italia and the classics.

Written with a candid and amusing authority that comes from over 25 years of sports commentary with Eurosport, Carlton Kirby gives an insider's view of competitive cycling delivered in the inimitable, humorous, and at times outspoken style for which he has become globally famous.

Peppered with hilarious anecdotes of life on the road with Tour legend Sean Kelly, Kirby indulges in some soap-box moments to lambast his various bugbears, from crazy spectators in mankinis and lazy Italian monks to the more serious issues of rider safety, team strategies and questionable ethics.

With his mix of expert opinion and trademark wit, Carlton covers the funny, the serious, the heartbreaking, and the more bizarre moments of professional cycling.]]> 240 Carlton Kirby 1472959868 Sam 3 3.89 2019 Magic Spanner
author: Carlton Kirby
name: Sam
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2021/06/27
shelves:
review:
This ought to be 2 stars if it weren’t for the few paragraphs of insight scattered throughout the book. I’m ambivalent about Kirby as a commentator but this is a good example of why he’s so divisive. Large parts of this are pointless drivel and more than one anecdote is clearly total rubbish or exaggerated for ‘comic� effect. It’s easy enough to read though so probably worth breezing through in a couple of days for anyone that follows cycling.
]]> Greenwood 39328584
It's 2008 and Liam Greenwood is a carpenter, fallen from a ladder and sprawled on his broken back, calling out from the concrete floor of an empty mansion.

It's 1974 and Willow Greenwood is out of jail, free after being locked up for one of her endless series of environmental protests: attempts at atonement for the sins of her father's once vast and violent timber empire.

It's 1934 and Everett Greenwood is alone, as usual, in his maple syrup camp squat when he hears the cries of an abandoned infant and gets tangled up in the web of a crime that will cling to his family for decades.

And throughout, there are trees: thrumming a steady, silent pulse beneath Christie's effortless sentences and working as a guiding metaphor for withering, weathering, and survival.

A shining, intricate clockwork of a novel, Greenwood is a rain-soaked and sun-dappled story of the bonds and breaking points of money and love, wood and blood—and the hopeful, impossible task of growing toward the light.]]> 528 Michael Christie 1984822004 Sam 5 4.34 2019 Greenwood
author: Michael Christie
name: Sam
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2021/06/05
shelves:
review:
An absolutely fantastic story. Any novel that successfully attempts the kind of multi-generational story arcs on show here is normally well worth reading and this is no exception. The multiple characters are superb and I actually quite enjoyed how asymmetric the focus is - the book is unquestionably about two particular protagonists but a great of other characters get a decent showing and are fully fleshed out. The language is a pleasantly easy-read but that’s not to say the book is without its depths and meaning. Christie weaves no small amount of parable and metaphor into various aspects and the 100+ year period covered allows plenty of callback to things that had been forgotten or at least not thought of as relevant. A true joy to read and fully recommended to everyone, whether naturalists or not.
]]> <![CDATA[Heart of Dart-ness: Bullseyes, Boozers and Modern Britain]]> 42959226 288 Ned Boulting 1788700473 Sam 4 3.97 Heart of Dart-ness: Bullseyes, Boozers and Modern Britain
author: Ned Boulting
name: Sam
average rating: 3.97
book published:
rating: 4
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date added: 2021/05/13
shelves:
review:
I am a massive darts fan and, coincidentally, like Ned Boulting am also a follower of cycling so I was familiar with his work and do really enjoy it. In general I loved this book; darts deserves an impassioned deep-dive written in a way that does not pander to the lowest common denominator. However at times this does go too far the other way. The long-words and wistful descriptions are perfectly fine, but I started to find the forced comparisons with Conrad’s novel a bit overwrought. Furthermore there are bits of the book that are frustratingly pointless. I’m sure, for example, the in-depth history of Dick Allix’s music career are intended to flesh out his background and character, but I couldn’t care less what their hits were, where they played etc, all absolutely nothing to do with darts. Similarly digging out obscure references to darts from history is nothing to do with the modern game, which is what the rest of the book does so well to describe and characterise. Nevertheless a must-read for the discerning darts fan.
]]> Doggerland 42363317
‘His father’s breath had been loud in the small room. It had smelled smoky, or maybe more like dust. ‘I’ll get out,� he’d said. ‘I’ll come back for you, ok?� The boy remembered that; had always remembered it. And, for a time, he’d believed it too.�

In the North Sea, far from what remains of the coastline, a wind farm stretches for thousands of acres.

The Boy, who is no longer really a boy, and the Old Man, whose age is unguessable, are charged with its maintenance. They carry out their never-ending work as the waves roll, dragging strange shoals of flotsam through the turbine fields. Land is only a memory.

So too is the Boy’s father, who worked on the turbines before him, and disappeared.

The boy has been sent by the Company to take his place, but the question of where he went and why is one for which the Old Man will give no answer.

As the Old Man dredges the sea for lost things, the Boy sifts for the truth of his missing father. Until one day, from the limitless water, a plan for escape emerges�

Doggerland is a haunting and beautifully compelling story of loneliness and hope, nature and survival.]]> 248 Ben Smith 0008313369 Sam 4 3.67 2019 Doggerland
author: Ben Smith
name: Sam
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/05/01
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review:
A great short read that I really enjoyed. The premise is simple and isn’t overcomplicated by anything - it’s just full of atmosphere that comes from a believable yet bleak future reality. Normally I can be quite frustrated with books that don’t quite provide a full resolution for their characters or their background but here I felt that what was left unsaid was for the better; it leaves room for the reader to interpret their own themes and meaning, which I thought was done in a skilful rather than conceited way. Comparisons to The Road are very worthy but this does have its own charm due to the different (and unique) world a dystopian wind farm in the North Sea provides. Well recommended.
]]> Poptastic! My Life in Radio 1805292 Tony Blackburn 1844036006 Sam 2 3.64 2007 Poptastic! My Life in Radio
author: Tony Blackburn
name: Sam
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2007
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2021/04/17
shelves:
review:
Appalling. This book is the concept of arrogance, distilled to 100% purity, and turned into written word. It only avoids 1 star due to the outrageous non-sequiturs that lead to unintended laugh-out-loud moments. Sadly though it seems John Robins covered most of these on the show, PCDs beware - there are few others worth reading this dross for.
]]> Politically Homeless 54703667
Matt Forde has been obsessed with politics ever since he was 9 years old. Raised by a single mum on benefits in inner city Nottingham, he joined the Socialist Workers Party as soon as he could, foisted issues of Marxism Today on innocent bystanders and attended his first political party conference. From then on, despite some career suicide moments such as chatting to the Prime Minister at Number 10 while badly drunk, Matt's whole future looked wedded to the Labour Party as he started working for MPs in dingy back rooms in Nottinghamshire.

But then Labour started to fall apart, and so did Matt's sense of purpose. With the rise of Corbyn, Brexit and Trump, his love for politics that had been so profound began to quickly crumble.

Exploring themes such as tribalism, the curse of complacency and why some politicians refuse to speak normally, Politically Homeless is a hugely entertaining book of (often hilarious) personal stories and thought-provoking insights into this complicated world. And despite everything, Matt's passion is still there. Through hosting his award-winning weekly podcast, 'The Political Party' (over 5 million downloads) involving interviews with some of politics' most powerful and notorious figures including Tony Blair, Nicola Sturgeon, Sadiq Khan, Michael Heseltine, Nigel Farage and Jacob Rees-Mogg and performing critically acclaimed stand-up comedy shows, Matt has been able to keep enough faith that politics will get better. Maybe.]]> 320 Matt Forde 1529412773 Sam 4 3.82 Politically Homeless
author: Matt Forde
name: Sam
average rating: 3.82
book published:
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/03/27
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review:
I enjoyed this book. My only criticism is that it seemed on the short side, not that further expounding on its message would have been worthwhile, but more anecdotes would have been fine. It’s also more overtly Blairite than even I was expecting (being of a broadly similar persuasion and already being aware of Matt Forde’s politics), so for some readers I imagine that could be offputting. I still think the points made are compelling though and it’s funny enough to be worth reading regardless of your politics.
]]> The Mill on the Floss 20564 'If life had no love in it, what else was there for Maggie?'

Brought up at Dorlcote Mill, Maggie Tulliver worships her brother Tom and is desperate to win the approval of her parents, but her passionate, wayward nature and her fierce intelligence bring her into constant conflict with her family. As she reaches adulthood, the clash between their expectations and her desires is painfully played out as she finds herself torn between her relationships with three very different men: her proud and stubborn brother, a close friend who is also the son of her family's worst enemy, and a charismatic but dangerous suitor. With its poignant portrayal of sibling relationships, The Mill on the Floss is considered George Eliot's most autobiographical novel; it is also one of her most powerful and moving.

In this edition writer and critic A.S. Byatt provides full explanatory notes and an introduction relating Mill on the Floss to George Eliot's own life and times.

Edited with an introduction and notes by A.S. BYATT]]> 579 George Eliot 0141439629 Sam 4 3.82 1860 The Mill on the Floss
author: George Eliot
name: Sam
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1860
rating: 4
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date added: 2021/03/25
shelves:
review:
Despite being slow-paced and quite a dense read at times (typically towards the end of chapters where Eliot often gives a mini philosophical essay, which whilst interesting can be hard to understand), I enjoyed this. It felt as though almost nothing had or was happening until the end of the book, which suddenly becomes more narrative driven, although at that point I realised I had inadvertently built up a real affinity and interest in the characters, so that is definitely to the writing’s credit. It’s genuinely funny and thought-provoking in places too, and even the parts that descend into what I’d call melodramatic romance are enjoyable as obviously being typical of the time. It’s generally a bleak book from the outset though with little reprieve throughout. Well worth a read for anyone interested in older literature though. As an aside, I read the 80-year old copy that my grandfather gifted to my great-aunt one wartime Christmas according to the message on the inside cover. So an extra bit of sentiment for me with this one, particularly given the themes of sibling relationships and family throughout the book.
]]> <![CDATA[A Tale Etched in Blood and Hard Black Pencil]]> 289172
Put on your uniform and line up in an orderly fashion for the funniest and most accurate trip back to the classroom you are likely to read, as well as a murder mystery like nothing that has gone before it. Forget the only once you've been through school with this painfully believable cast of characters will you be equipped to work out what really happened decades later. Even then, you'll probably guess wrong and be made to stand in the corner.]]> 352 Christopher Brookmyre 0316730106 Sam 4 4.02 2006 A Tale Etched in Blood and Hard Black Pencil
author: Christopher Brookmyre
name: Sam
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2006
rating: 4
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date added: 2021/01/21
shelves:
review:
My second Brookmyre book and again very enjoyable. The plot becomes surprisingly engrossing later on whereas conversely I felt it took the first half of the book to really grasp the individual characters. Probably a result of the flashback nature of the storytelling but I’d regard it as a positive that I immediately wanted to flick back to the start to re-read character perspectives having ultimately learned more about them. I found the reflectiveness and adult-like assessment of social situations by the characters as children to be a bit weird but assume this was a deliberate style that was nevertheless funny and revealing. Well worth reading.
]]> Americanah 15796700 477 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Sam 4 4.32 2013 Americanah
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Sam
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/01/03
shelves:
review:
This was a really smooth-reading book that I enjoyed. The themes and characters were engaging and the only slight deduction in my mind is that it doesn’t quite tie together in one coherent whole - it seemed to me that 85% of the book was context to characters� lives and the will-they-won’t-they storyline only played out in the final few chapters of the book. Not much of a criticism as the ‘context� was very enjoyable even if it wasn’t integral to the plot. Still very much recommended.
]]> The Rider 657466 Not a dry history of the sport, The Rider is beloved as a bicycle odyssey, a literary masterpiece that describes in painstaking detail one 150-kilometer race in a mere 150 pages. We are, every inch of the way, inside amateur biker Tim Krabbé's head as his mind churns at top speed along with his furious peddling. Privy to his every thought-on the glory and vagaries of the sport itself, the weather, the characters and lineage of his rival cyclists, almost hallucinogenic anecdotes about great riders of the past-the book progresses kilometer by kilometer, thought by thought, and the reader is left breathless and exhilarated.
A thrillingly realistic look at what it is like to compete in a road race, The Rider is the ultimate book for bike lovers as well as the arm-chair sports enthusiast. <]]> 152 Tim Krabbé 1582342903 Sam 2 4.26 1978 The Rider
author: Tim Krabbé
name: Sam
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1978
rating: 2
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date added: 2020/11/27
shelves:
review:
This came recommended to me in more than place and so I’m majorly disappointed to have found it so uninteresting. Fictionalised sport (even if it’s based in experience) tends to be hit and miss and whilst in terms of realism the book seems legitimate, I found it frustratingly dull. The odd non-sequiturs, pointless flashbacks, and half-baked references (why are we meant to care what number race a particular recollection is from?) all grated on me. The only part I found a bit easier to read was the end where the race had finished, and even then the actual end of the book was so abrupt that it capped off a poor experience for me. I have probably missed something that others see in it, or the translation could have been better, but I definitely wouldn’t recommend this and probably wouldn’t have got to the end if it wasn’t so short.
]]> <![CDATA[This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor]]> 35510008 Scribbled in secret after endless days, sleepless nights and missed weekends, Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt provides a no-holds-barred account of his time on the NHS front line. Hilarious, horrifying and heartbreaking, this diary is everything you wanted to know � and more than a few things you didn't � about life on and off the hospital ward.

As seen on ITV's Zoe Ball Book Club

This edition includes extra diary entries and a new afterword by the author.

]]> 285 Adam Kay Sam 4 4.40 2017 This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor
author: Adam Kay
name: Sam
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/11/24
shelves:
review:
This is a great and genuinely hilarious account of life on the UK’s labour wards. For me the humour and comic touch stood out more than any political message (as strongly as that was made), so it’s no surprise that Adam Kay is now a comedy writer. I’d go so far to say that this is probably a must read for anyone vaguely interested in the NHS.
]]> <![CDATA[Troubled Blood (Cormoran Strike, #5)]]> 51807232
Strike has never tackled a cold case before, let alone one forty years old. But despite the slim chance of success, he is intrigued and takes it on; adding to the long list of cases that he and his partner in the agency, Robin Ellacott, are currently working on. And Robin herself is also juggling a messy divorce and unwanted male attention, as well as battling her own feelings about Strike.

As Strike and Robin investigate Margot's disappearance, they come up against a fiendishly complex case with leads that include tarot cards, a psychopathic serial killer and witnesses who cannot all be trusted. And they learn that even cases decades old can prove to be deadly . . .]]> 944 Robert Galbraith 0751579939 Sam 4 4.32 2020 Troubled Blood (Cormoran Strike, #5)
author: Robert Galbraith
name: Sam
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/11/12
shelves:
review:
This was great. Better than lethal white, which I also gave 4 stars but it didn’t astonish me enough to get a perfect score. It is also definitely too long as a lot of people have remarked, although having said that what I was gripped by was the sheer number of leads and investigative forks, which I guess need ample pages to play out. In the end it’s a classic whodunnit twist, which I though was well-executed and not the disappointing anticlimax they often are. As ever though it is the ongoing development of Strike and Robin as characters that I mostly enjoyed. A great addition to a great series.
]]> <![CDATA[Butcher, Blacksmith, Acrobat, Sweep: The Tale of the First Tour de France]]> 35400103
Dreamed up to revive struggling newspaper L'Auto, cyclists of the time were wary of this 'heroic' race on roads more suited to hooves than wheels, riding hefty fixed-gear bikes for three full weeks. 'With a few francs you could win 3,000', the paper declared in desperation, eventually attracting a field comprising a handful of the era's professional racers and, among other hopefuls, a butcher, painter and decorator, and a circus acrobat.

Would this ramshackle pack of cyclists draw crowds to throng France's rutted roads and cheer the first Tour heroes? Surprisingly it did, and, all thanks to a marketing ruse, cycling would never be the same again. Peter Cossins takes us through the inaugural Tour de France, painting a nuanced portrait of France in the early 1900s, to see where the greatest sporting event of all began.]]> 362 Peter Cossins Sam 4 3.87 2017 Butcher, Blacksmith, Acrobat, Sweep: The Tale of the First Tour de France
author: Peter Cossins
name: Sam
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/09/02
shelves:
review:
A book that does a great job of illustrating the background and overall cultural context of the first Tour de France. At first I was sceptical about the stage reports that are plainly subject to a degree of poetic license, but in the end I thought it was a nice touch to ‘report� on them in such retrospective detail. Some of the administrative background in terms of who organised what or where obscure riders abandoned the race makes it slow going at times but overall well-worth reading for anyone interested in history or sport.
]]> Girl, Woman, Other 41081373
Girl, Woman, Other follows the lives and struggles of twelve very different characters. Mostly women, black and British, they tell the stories of their families, friends and lovers, across the country and through the years.

Joyfully polyphonic and vibrantly contemporary, this is a gloriously new kind of history, a novel of our times: celebratory, ever-dynamic and utterly irresistible.]]> 453 Bernardine Evaristo 0241364906 Sam 4 4.27 2019 Girl, Woman, Other
author: Bernardine Evaristo
name: Sam
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/08/02
shelves:
review:
A very readable account of types of characters who aren’t given much of a voice in mainstream literature. In my view its message is subtle but profound - as a a white middle class straight man, it should be prescribed reading to people like me. Hopefully that’s not a patronising thing to say!! My only minor criticism is that by the end there are so many characters to keep track of that I ended up not drawing the links between them.
]]> <![CDATA[Swallowdale (Swallows and Amazons, #2)]]> 979765
On summer holiday, the Swallows (John, Susan, Titty and Roger Walker) and the Amazons (Nancy and Peggy Blackett) meet up on Wild Cat Island. Unfortunately, though, the Amazons have a their Great Aunt Maria has come to visit and she demands that the Amazon pirates act like “young ladies.� Things get worse when the Swallows discover a very high hill that just begs to be climbed...

How the Amazons escape the Great Aunt, arrange a rendezvous, and mount an expedition to sleep under the stars on the summit makes a very exciting and satisfying story.

Friendship, resourcefulness, and sailing, Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons series has stood the test of time. More than just great stories, each one celebrates independence and initiative with a colorful, large cast of characters. Swallowdale (originally published in 1931) is the second title in the Swallows and Amazons series, books for children or grownups, anyone captivated by a world of adventure and imagination.]]> 448 Arthur Ransome 0879235721 Sam 4 4.24 1931 Swallowdale (Swallows and Amazons, #2)
author: Arthur Ransome
name: Sam
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1931
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/07/08
shelves:
review:
Almost exactly as magical as the first with no real discernible difference in style or content. I liked the references back to ‘last year� as that in itself lent an extra layer of nostalgia to a story that is a wonderfully innocent depiction of a bygone age.
]]> Plume 36386192
Jack Bick is an interview journalist at a glossy lifestyle magazine. From his office window he can see a black column of smoke in the sky, the result of an industrial accident on the edge of the city. When Bick goes from being a high-functioning alcoholic to being a non-functioning alcoholic, his life goes into freefall, the smoke a harbinger of truth, an omen of personal apocalypse. An unpromising interview with Oliver Pierce, a reclusive cult novelist, unexpectedly yields a huge story, one that could save his job. But the novelist knows something about Bick, and the two men are drawn into a bizarre, violent partnership that is both an act of defiance against the changing city, and a surrender to its spreading darkness.

With its rich emotional palette, Plume explores the relationship between truth and memory: personal truth, journalistic truth, novelistic truth. It is a surreal and mysterious exploration of the precariousness of life in modern London.]]> 352 Will Wiles 0008194416 Sam 4 3.28 2019 Plume
author: Will Wiles
name: Sam
average rating: 3.28
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/06/15
shelves:
review:
This book is a great example of a novel weaving together several seemingly different themes into a coherent whole. The commentary on alcoholism, the socioeconomic state of London, and social media are each valid and interesting. Plot-wise the story is gripping but doesn’t end satisfactorily and there are certain parts (the middle third) where it seems to meander aimlessly. Overall it’s an excellent read for modern times though.
]]> <![CDATA[How I Won the Yellow Jumper: Dispatches from the Tour De France (Yellow Jersey Cycling Classics)]]> 11446058 316 Ned Boulting 022408335X Sam 5 3.95 2011 How I Won the Yellow Jumper: Dispatches from the Tour De France (Yellow Jersey Cycling Classics)
author: Ned Boulting
name: Sam
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2011
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2020/06/03
shelves:
review:
I loved this book. It was such a great depiction of both falling in love with a sport and the sheer character of everything Tour de France. Ned Boulting is an insightful and very amusing writer whose turn of phrase is often poetic enough to engage on a general literary level. I can’t wait to read his other books.
]]> The Bell Jar 6514 294 Sylvia Plath 0571268862 Sam 3 4.05 1963 The Bell Jar
author: Sylvia Plath
name: Sam
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1963
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2020/06/03
shelves:
review:
I was surprised how bleak this book was given it’s age. It has that characteristic I’ve found in other books from around that time though where the reader is launched into the the protagonist’s train of thought without much fleshing out of the context or other characters. This makes it a bit longer to get into, which in a short book doesn’t really work! I read it was completed quickly with barely any editing, which definitely shows, as does the author’s poetry background. Overall I didn’t feel it was quite as seminal as most people seem to think. It’s a jarring insight and particularly of its time but there wasn’t a great deal of imagery or narrative that intrigued me, other than the ‘revelation� as to what The Bell Jar refers to.
]]> Tampa 17225311 "Smart and biting" —New York Journal of Books

"Laced with dark, sometimes savage humor and juicy riffs on consumer culture and its twin obsessions, youth and beauty" �Plain Dealer (Cleveland)

Celeste Price is twenty-six years old, beautiful, smart, married to a handsome man with money, and starting a new job as a junior high school teacher in suburban Tampa. Yet she harbors a dark secret. She is driven by a singular sexual obsession—fourteen-year-old boys. As the school year begins, Celeste has chosen and seduced the naive Jack Patrick, a quiet, thoughtful boy in awe of his teacher. But when her lustful frenzy begins to spiral out of control, the insatiable Celeste bypasses each hurdle with swift thinking and shameless determination.

"Impeccably written, full of smart cultural observations, and no small amount of wit . . . A very bold book." —Daily Beast]]> 266 Alissa Nutting 0062280562 Sam 3 3.36 2013 Tampa
author: Alissa Nutting
name: Sam
average rating: 3.36
book published: 2013
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2020/05/09
shelves:
review:
Probably a prime example of an average book using controversy to its advantage. It’s not particularly insightful or clever, and I can certainly see why some people would be grossly offended by it. My own view is that framing the main character as quite clearly an unrepentant predator is probably preferable to some sort of guilt-ridden paedophile, as the latter would not doubt confer a degree of sympathy. As it stands, as repulsive as the book is, it is taken into territories that are so far within the realms of fiction that I don’t see the point in any great protests. *of course* the protagonist is ridiculously good looking and *of course* the first time they are discovered is dealt with by way of a timely heart attack. All in all, it’s a bit of a silly book that reads easily enough but offers nothing other than scandal really.
]]> <![CDATA[Behind the Mask: My Autobiography]]> 50187111
THE PEOPLE’S CHAMPION.

Like all the greatest stories, though, there is redemption and Tyson defies all the odds and literally drags himself to his feet. 10 million people around the globe watched Fury fight Wilder in the biggest fight of the boxing calendar. Speaking candidly about his struggles with mental health, this is Tyson Fury as you have never seen him before.

A BRITISH ICON.
________________________________

Behind the Mask is an unflinching autobiography from the greatest boxer of our time and a man who has demonstrated strength of a very different kind by conquering his demons.
________________________________ ]]> 304 Tyson Fury 1529124867 Sam 3 3.90 2019 Behind the Mask: My Autobiography
author: Tyson Fury
name: Sam
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2020/04/11
shelves:
review:
I don’t know what I expected from this - it’s not as though self-aggrandisement is out of character for Tyson Fury. However, there are no particular stories of note and on the whole it’s all a bit repetitive and a bit cringey. Despite that though it could be more poorly written and it does what it says on the tin in charting the background to all his fights. One can’t doubt the severity of the mental health issues he explains either. Not recommended for a casual reader but probably worth it if you’re a fan.
]]> Holes (Holes, #1) 38709
It doesn’t take long for Stanley to realize there’s more than character improvement going on at Camp Green Lake. The boys are digging holes because the warden is looking for something. But what could be buried under a dried-up lake? Stanley tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment—and redemption.]]> 272 Louis Sachar 0439244196 Sam 4 4.01 1998 Holes (Holes, #1)
author: Louis Sachar
name: Sam
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1998
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2020/04/04
shelves:
review:
A surprisingly complex and fascinating young adult’s book that I somehow missed when it originally came out. I think I better appreciate it now that I would have done though. The wonderful connecting stories through history and slightly left field tone of the plot make it one of the most original books I’ve ever read. I thought to myself that if Tom Robbins wrote stories that weren’t for adults, they’d be a bit like this.
]]> <![CDATA[Not Out First Ball: The Art of Being Beaten in Beautiful Places]]> 15958450 226 Roger Morgan-Grenville 1903071666 Sam 5 3.90 2012 Not Out First Ball: The Art of Being Beaten in Beautiful Places
author: Roger Morgan-Grenville
name: Sam
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2020/02/07
shelves:
review:
This book is genuinely laugh-out-loud funny, which is not something I can often say. You only really need a rudimentary knowledge of cricket or any interest in amateur sport to appreciate it too. It's so endearing and charming that I really feel it's a 5-star book (again not something I can say often!). Absolutely fantastic.
]]> <![CDATA[Middle England (Rotters' Club, #3)]]> 40175320
As acutely alert to the absurdity of the political classes as he is compassionate about those who have been left behind, this is a novel Jonathan Coe was born to write.]]> 424 Jonathan Coe 0241309468 Sam 4 3.88 2018 Middle England (Rotters' Club, #3)
author: Jonathan Coe
name: Sam
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2019/08/27
shelves:
review:
Once again I have inadvertently started reading a trilogy in the wrong order. I get the impression this makes little difference to this book; if anything it was nice to have characters that were so obviously already fleshed out. I found the book an interesting portrayal of the causes of Brexit that did make me reflect. It’s not the most sophisticated analysis but it must be impossible to write a ‘state of the nation� book in detail without becoming excessively complicated. If nothing else I mostly appreciated the inclusion of those characters I myself would be the polar opposite of purely so I could appreciate the difference in mindsets that exist in British society. Plot-wise not much really happens of note but it’s so easy to read and of such topical interest that it’ll be well worth reading for years to come.
]]> <![CDATA[The Sudden Arrival of Violence (Glasgow Underworld Trilogy, #3)]]> 18652088 288 Malcolm Mackay 023076973X Sam 4 4.13 2015 The Sudden Arrival of Violence (Glasgow Underworld Trilogy, #3)
author: Malcolm Mackay
name: Sam
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2019/08/10
shelves:
review:
A fitting conclusion to the trilogy that ties things up neatly and offers a bit more than the first two books in terms of plot twists and relationships between characters. As ever a great portrayal of the attitudes and mindsets of the criminal underworld and grittily entertaining. Well worth reading.
]]> <![CDATA[The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter (The Glasgow Trilogy, 1)]]> 22875100
A meeting at a club. An offer. A target: Lewis Winter, a necessary sacrifice that will be only the first step in an all-out war between crime syndicates the likes of which hasn't been seen for decades.

It's easy to kill a man. It's hard to kill a man well. People who do it well know this. People who do it badly find out the hard way. The hard way has consequences.]]> 353 Malcolm Mackay 0316337307 Sam 4 3.76 2013 The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter (The Glasgow Trilogy, 1)
author: Malcolm Mackay
name: Sam
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2019/07/23
shelves:
review:
I’d read the middle book of the trilogy first for some reason but eventually picked this up and was pleased to see it was just as good. Tight and well-paced with a lot of intrigue even if ultimately not much actually happens! Feels a bit like an adapted short story but well worth reading to set up the rest of the trilogy.
]]> Normal People 41057294
A year later, they’re both studying at Trinity College in Dublin. Marianne has found her feet in a new social world while Connell hangs at the sidelines, shy and uncertain. Throughout their years in college, Marianne and Connell circle one another, straying toward other people and possibilities but always magnetically, irresistibly drawn back together. Then, as she veers into self-destruction and he begins to search for meaning elsewhere, each must confront how far they are willing to go to save the other.

Sally Rooney brings her brilliant psychological acuity and perfectly spare prose to a story that explores the subtleties of class, the electricity of first love, and the complex entanglements of family and friendship.]]> 273 Sally Rooney 1984822179 Sam 4 3.81 2018 Normal People
author: Sally Rooney
name: Sam
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2019/07/18
shelves:
review:
There is lot unique about this book, not least the style. I loved the overall content and sentiment but it did seem a bit short and ‘informal� to be truly meaningful. Still really interesting to see contemporary ‘youth� emotions and relationships tackled without descending into a overly-dramatic teen-style novel. Memorable.
]]> All the Light We Cannot See 18143977
In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments and is enlisted to use his talent to track down the resistance. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another.

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the stunningly beautiful instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

An alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here]]> 544 Anthony Doerr 1476746583 Sam 5 4.31 2014 All the Light We Cannot See
author: Anthony Doerr
name: Sam
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2019/05/06
shelves:
review:
One of the most beautiful books I have ever read. Too many wonderful passages to mention, all wrapped up in a plot that is so meaningful yet gripping. The stand-out feature is the extremely short chapters that keep the attention, all the while building towards a shared conclusion. There is so much to reflect on here in terms of individual experience of life, with a range of themes and symbols that were really thought-provoking; the power of radio technology in the 1930s and 40s, the role of science and nurture in developing ourselves and how society as a whole was affected by WWII. I can’t begin to do this book justice with a review; the author is clearly supremely gifted. Even the title is perfect and sums up the overall sentiment of the book as a reflection of what life is all about.
]]> <![CDATA[The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Hercule Poirot, #4)]]> 16328
The peaceful English village of King’s Abbot is stunned. The widow Ferrars dies from an overdose of Veronal. Not twenty-four hours later, Roger Ackroyd—the man she had planned to marry—is murdered. It is a baffling case involving blackmail and death that taxes Hercule Poirot’s “little grey cells� before he reaches one of the most startling conclusions of his career.

Librarian's note: the first fifteen novels in the Hercule Poirot series are 1) The Mysterious Affair at Styles, 1920; 2) The Murder on the Links, 1923; 3) The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, 1926; 4) The Big Four, 1927; 5) The Mystery of the Blue Train, 1928; 6) Peril at End House, 1932; 7) Lord Edgware Dies, 1933; 8) Murder on the Orient Express, 1934; 9) Three Act Tragedy, 1935; 10) Death in the Clouds, 1935; 11) The A.B.C. Murders, 1936; 12) Murder in Mesopotamia, 1936; 13) Cards on the Table, 1936; 14) Dumb Witness, 1937; and 15) Death on the Nile, 1937. These are just the novels; Poirot also appears in this period in a play, Black Coffee, 1930, and two collections of short stories, Poirot Investigates, 1924, and Murder in the Mews, 1937. Each novel, play and short story has its own entry on ŷ.]]> 288 Agatha Christie 1579126278 Sam 3 4.26 1926 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Hercule Poirot, #4)
author: Agatha Christie
name: Sam
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1926
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2019/02/16
shelves:
review:
It feels harsh giving this book just three stars when it’s key plot twist was meant to be revolutionary. The last few pages certainly took me completely by surprise and were well worth the read overall. For the most part though the story is a bit dull and never quite seems to build up a head of steam. The characters and setting are nicely reflective of the era but not particularly memorable. It can be hard to follow at times as well. Worth reading for the twist but I feel I have read better crime/mystery novels.
]]> A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away 289168 502 Christopher Brookmyre 0349116849 Sam 4 4.05 2001 A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away
author: Christopher Brookmyre
name: Sam
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2019/01/18
shelves:
review:
I am new to Brookmyre and this was a superb introduction. I love the general ‘attitude� of his writing and the fullness of his characters. The only small disappointment was that the plot descended towards the end into Bond-like levels of preposterousness. I always feel a ‘gritty� and sardonic writing style like this is better suited to the mundane with the odd outburst of outrageousness....not casually throwing in geopolitics and one-man rescue missions as plot devices!
]]> <![CDATA[The Holy Vible: The Book the Bible Could Have Been]]> 39301224
Comedians Elis James and John Robins have captured the hearts and minds of a generation, and it's time those hearts and minds had a book.

Elis and John met in 2005 performing stand-up comedy in a pub called The Yellow Kangaroo in Cardiff. They eyed each other suspiciously before Robins offered the limpest handshake in the history of the world.

'It was a power play,' says Robins. 'I may even have raised it for him to kiss.'

James 'It was one of the weirdest things I'd ever experienced, but having known John now for over a decade, it was the tip of the iceberg. I can honestly say he's the oddest man I've ever met.'

Little did they know that ten years later they would be presenting a radio show together that would make them comedy royalty...

Ok, radio comedy royalty...Ok, commercial digital indie radio royalty...But with a podcast!

Now, The Elis James and John Robins' Show has become cult listening, and that cult has registered for charitable status, published quarterly accounts and been given a full blessing by the Archbishop of Broadcasting. It's Elis and John are a religion, and this book is their Holy Vible.

Have you ever failed to Keep It Session? Is your new flatmate a complete coin? Have you ever eaten Space Raiders on the toilet and written 'Grief Is Living' in your journal? Then this book is for you. If not, don't worry, it won't be long before you're making up games, looking at Freddie, or facing your own personal farthing-gate.

Our obsessions make us what we are, and though you may never have addressed a will to Brian May or cried watching Ronnie O' Sullivan make a 147, you'll have done something similar, and Elis and John are here to tell you that you're not weird, so come on in, and taste the vibe! Or should I say, READ the vibe!]]> 304 Elis James 1409182371 Sam 4 4.18 The Holy Vible: The Book the Bible Could Have Been
author: Elis James
name: Sam
average rating: 4.18
book published:
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/11/20
shelves:
review:
For the first half I was less than impressed despite being a big fan of the show. The constant footnotes were irritating and some of the humour seemed very forced. However some of the latter chapters recounting well known incidents on the show had me in stitches. A must read for fans. To the uninitiated only select chapters will appeal.
]]> <![CDATA[Lethal White (Cormoran Strike, #4)]]> 28170940 “I seen a kid killed…He strangled it, up by the horse.�

When Billy, a troubled young man, comes to private eye Cormoran Strike’s office to ask for his help investigating a crime he thinks he witnessed as a child, Strike is left deeply unsettled. While Billy is obviously mentally distressed, and cannot remember many concrete details, there is something sincere about him and his story. But before Strike can question him further, Billy bolts from his office in a panic.

Trying to get to the bottom of Billy’s story, Strike and Robin Ellacott—once his assistant, now a partner in the agency—set off on a twisting trail that leads them through the backstreets of London, into a secretive inner sanctum within Parliament, and to a beautiful but sinister manor house deep in the countryside.

And during this labyrinthine investigation, Strike’s own life is far from straightforward: his newfound fame as a private eye means he can no longer operate behind the scenes as he once did. Plus, his relationship with his former assistant is more fraught than it ever has been—Robin is now invaluable to Strike in the business, but their personal relationship is much, much trickier than that.]]> 650 Robert Galbraith 0751572853 Sam 4 4.19 2018 Lethal White (Cormoran Strike, #4)
author: Robert Galbraith
name: Sam
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/10/27
shelves:
review:
Overall I enjoyed this albeit more for the ongoing plot between Robin and Strike. It was also far too long and should have been at least 150 pages shorter. Nevertheless the unravelling of the case towards the end was still far from straightforward and seemed poorly explained even with the 600 pages of buildup.
]]> Hot Milk 26883528 Plunge into this hypnotic tale of female sexuality and power

Two women arrive in a village on the Spanish coast. Rose is suffering from a strange illness and her doctors are mystified. Her daughter Sofia has brought her here to find a cure with the infamous and controversial Dr Gomez - a man of questionable methods and motives. Intoxicated by thick heat and the seductive people who move through it, both women begin to see their lives clearly for the first time in years.

Through the opposing figures of mother and daughter, Deborah Levy explores the strange and monstrous nature of womanhood. Dreamlike and utterly compulsive, Hot Milk is a delirious fairy tale of feminine potency, a story both modern and timeless.]]> 218 Deborah Levy 1620406691 Sam 2 3.49 2015 Hot Milk
author: Deborah Levy
name: Sam
average rating: 3.49
book published: 2015
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2018/08/21
shelves:
review:
At its best this is dreamlike poetry with symbolic meaning and emotion. Unfortunately that is a far too fragmented occurrence and for the most part what you get is frustratingly incoherent and abstract prose that meanders around with barely any plot and characters with plenty of depth but no breadth whatsoever. A very short book but nonetheless one I rushed through just so I could be done with it. Very disappointing.
]]> Once a Runner 98250 248 John L. Parker Jr. 0915297019 Sam 4 4.10 1978 Once a Runner
author: John L. Parker Jr.
name: Sam
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1978
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/07/29
shelves:
review:
Once A Runner had taken on an almost mythical quality to me having been an avid runner for a number of years and devouring everything to do with the sport. I’m pleased that the book was everything I was expecting it to be, although no more than that. There’s nothing I can really add to the countless reviews out there. It’s inspiring and encapsulates the dedication an mentality of those that take training and racing seriously. The story itself stutters slightly at times and occasionally seems secondary to the descriptions of running and all it entails. In my view though that it is no bad thing....if you don’t like it then you have a different take on what it means to be a runner to me, the author, and countless other devotees.
]]> <![CDATA[Animal: The Autobiography of a Female Body]]> 29623290 Take a funny and illuminating tour of the female body with award-winning comedian Sara Pascoe

Women have so much going on, what with boobs and jealousy and menstruating and broodiness and sex and infidelity and pubes and wombs and jobs and memories and emotions and the past and the future and themselves and each other.

Here's a book that deals with all of it.

Sara Pascoe has joked about feminity and sexuality on stage and screen but now she has a book to talk about it all for a bit longer. Animal combines autobiography and evolutionary history to create a funny, fascinating insight into the forces that mould and affect modern women.

Animal is entertaining and informative, personal and universal � silly about lots of things and serious about some. It's a laugh-out-loud investigation to help us understand and forgive our animal urges and insecurities.]]> 328 Sara Pascoe 057132522X Sam 4 4.14 2016 Animal: The Autobiography of a Female Body
author: Sara Pascoe
name: Sam
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/07/22
shelves:
review:
Good to see the reviews on the back cover being true as this really is a book that would be superb to put in the hands of all teenage girls and boys. Found it really interesting and readable, thought provoking too with a few things I don’t necessarily agree with (not why it loses a star I hasten to add). On occasion Pascoe takes the silliness a bit too far and instead of charming it can be annoying. But in general it’s a fresh and funny way of presenting really serious interesting stuff. Must read.
]]> <![CDATA[The Tree Climber’s Guide (English and English Edition)]]> 28792708 304 Jack Cooke 0008153914 Sam 3 3.57 The Tree Climber’s Guide (English and English Edition)
author: Jack Cooke
name: Sam
average rating: 3.57
book published:
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/07/13
shelves:
review:
I heard a talk by Jack and he was fantastic. Some time later I got round to picking up his book and I feel bad saying I found it hard work at times. Would definitely work better as something to dip in and out of rather than read cover to cover. It’s at its best when he’s talking about climbing in general, which is a shame as most of the book is about individual trees where there is a frustrating technique of describing inconsequential happenings in the background. I assume this is intended to set the scene and make it seem real, but I just found it odd! Overall a wistful and rather poetic book that a lot of time has clearly been invested in. Just a shame it doesn’t grab and pull you in more easily.
]]> Estates: An Intimate History 912517 256 Lynsey Hanley 1862079099 Sam 3 3.81 2007 Estates: An Intimate History
author: Lynsey Hanley
name: Sam
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/04/29
shelves:
review:
I first read this as part of a university course and was inspired to reread it 10 years later after recalling it was an interesting take on council housing. My memories were broadly accurate - it is interesting and well written, with the personal insights lending it less of an academic feel. Credit where it’s due, it also concedes certain points where it’d be easily to be doggedly and overtly political in its agenda (although the guardian style angle is still highly obvious). However, it was far too repetitive and could have made the same points in half the time. A bit of a grind to finish therefore, despite not being a long book to start with.
]]> Dubliners 11012 I regret to see that my book has turned out un fiasco solenne.' James Joyce's disillusion with the publication of Dubliners in 1914 was the result of ten years battling with publishers, resisting their demands to remove swear words, real place names and much else, including two entire stories. Although only 24 when he signed his first publishing contract for the book, Joyce already knew its worth: to alter it in any way would 'retard the course of civilisation in Ireland'.

Joyce's aim was to tell the truth � to create a work of art that would reflect life in Ireland at the turn of the last century and by rejecting euphemism, reveal to the Irish the unromantic reality the recognition of which would lead to the spiritual liberation of the country.

Each of the fifteen stories offers a glimpse of the lives of ordinary Dubliners � a death, an encounter, an opportunity not taken, a memory rekindled � and collectively they paint a portrait of a nation.]]> 352 James Joyce Sam 4 3.86 1914 Dubliners
author: James Joyce
name: Sam
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1914
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/04/15
shelves:
review:
Would be just 3 stars but for the stellar final story, “The Dead�. Most of the tales to that point seemed to finish before they built up a head of steam and generally speaking had little narrative and certainly not particularly insightful or twist-like endings. Nevertheless I found the depictions of the people and society and it’s issues of the time interesting and it definitely made me want to read more Joyce. I don’t have the classical background to appreciate it all but he is clearly a thought-provoking author that stands the test. Given room to roam in The Dead, an absolute masterpiece results. Poetic and inspiring as well as heavily laden with the atmosphere of the Christmas party setting. Will read that particular story over and over I think.
]]> Dead Men's Trousers 35823649
Sick Boy and Spud, who have agendas of their own, are intrigued to learn that their old friends are back in town, but when they enter the bleak world of organ-harvesting, things start to go so badly wrong. Lurching from crisis to crisis, the four men circle each other, driven by their personal histories and addictions, confused, angry � so desperate that even Hibs winning the Scottish Cup doesn’t really help. One of these four will not survive to the end of this book. Which one of them is wearing Dead Men’s Trousers?

Fast and furious, scabrously funny and weirdly moving, this is a spectacular return of the crew from Trainspotting.]]> 336 Irvine Welsh 1787330788 Sam 4 4.01 2018 Dead Men's Trousers
author: Irvine Welsh
name: Sam
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/04/03
shelves:
review:
As reliable as ever, another entertaining page turner from my favourite author. A bit like the previous book I found it hard to buy into the characters� circumstances at times but it got easier as it went on and at the end of the day it was still a decent plot with good narrative weaving everyone together. Not the five stars as there’s no real messages - some interesting spiels on neoliberalism etc but nothing that ties the book together. If anything it might try a bit hard in this regard, e.g. a section title referencing Brexit which is literally just a marker of the time it’s set, nothing more! Good to see graphical experimentation again like in Skagboys and Filth too. New readers should start elsewhere but Welsh aficionados dive right in!
]]> <![CDATA[James Acaster's Classic Scrapes]]> 33538599 THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER and 2017 Humour Book of the Year pick

'Laugh-out-loud hilarious' - Chortle

'I don't think I've ever read a book that has made me cry with laughter as much as this one. It was very difficult reading it in public as I looked like a madman' - Richard Herring

'James Acaster has a brilliant comic mind, crackling with energy every bit as much as his corduroy slacks' - Milton Jones

James Acaster has been nominated for the Edinburgh Comedy Award five times and has appeared on prime-time TV shows like MOCK THE WEEK, LIVE AT THE APOLLO and RUSSELL HOWARD'S STAND UP CENTRAL.

But behind the fame and critical acclaim is a man perpetually getting into trouble. Whether it's disappointing a skydiving instructor mid-flight, hiding from thugs in a bush wearing a bright red dress, or annoying the Kettering Board Games club, a didgeridoo-playing conspiracy theorist and some bemused Christians, James is always finding new ways to embarrass himself.

Appearing on Josh Widdicombe's radio show to recount these stories, the feature was christened 'James Acaster's classic scrapes'. Here, in his first book, James recounts these tales (including never-before-heard stories) along with self-penned drawings, in all their glorious stupidity.]]> 320 James Acaster 1472247183 Sam 4 4.21 2017 James Acaster's Classic Scrapes
author: James Acaster
name: Sam
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/03/18
shelves:
review:
A well-written account of tales I’d largely heard before. James Acaster is one of the greatest stand-ups, I think the written word slightly dulls his powers but gives some background as to where his humour and perspective comes from. Worthwhile reading for any comedy fan.
]]> Kafka on the Shore 4929 Kafka on the Shore, a tour de force of metaphysical reality, is powered by two remarkable characters: a teenage boy, Kafka Tamura, who runs away from home either to escape a gruesome oedipal prophecy or to search for his long-missing mother and sister; and an aging simpleton called Nakata, who never recovered from a wartime affliction and now is drawn toward Kafka for reasons that, like the most basic activities of daily life, he cannot fathom. Their odyssey, as mysterious to them as it is to us, is enriched throughout by vivid accomplices and mesmerizing events. Cats and people carry on conversations, a ghostlike pimp employs a Hegel-quoting prostitute, a forest harbors soldiers apparently unaged since World War II, and rainstorms of fish (and worse) fall from the sky. There is a brutal murder, with the identity of both victim and perpetrator a riddle—yet this, along with everything else, is eventually answered, just as the entwined destinies of Kafka and Nakata are gradually revealed, with one escaping his fate entirely and the other given a fresh start on his own.]]> 467 Haruki Murakami 1400079276 Sam 3 4.14 2002 Kafka on the Shore
author: Haruki Murakami
name: Sam
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2002
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/03/03
shelves:
review:
I’m highly sceptical of this book. I read the various post-read analyses saying it requires multiple reading and that unanswered questions are part of its charm along with how it forces readers to make their own connections. Do I find this entertaining? No. Do I find this interesting? A little bit. I can appreciate the imagination that went into this and to some extent I appreciate it is an artistic endeavour. However, I discerned only glimpses of beauty within it whilst the overall dreamlike tone did not captivate me like it evidently does others. Disappointing.
]]> <![CDATA[Don't Stop Me Now: 26.2 Tales of a Runner’s Obsession]]> 29539192 This is a celebration of running, and what lots of us think about when we run. Part escape, part self-discovery, part therapy, part fitness. Part simple childlike joy of running when you could be walking.Vassos Alexander shares the highs and lows of falling in love with running, from his first paltry efforts to reach the end of his street to completing ultra marathons and triathlons in the same weekend. Each of the 26.2 chapters also features a fascinating insight into how others first started, from Paula Radcliffe to Steve Cram, the Brownlees to Jenson Button, Nicky Campbell to Nell McAndrew.Funny, inspiring, honest - the perfect read for anyone with well-worn trainers by the door (or thinking of buying a pair...)]]> 234 Vassos Alexander Sam 4 4.04 2016 Don't Stop Me Now: 26.2 Tales of a Runner’s Obsession
author: Vassos Alexander
name: Sam
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/02/01
shelves:
review:
I have to begrudgingly admit that this was a pretty good book about my favourite pastime. A lot of the sentiment rang true despite the middle-aged and painfully middle-class context providing some cringey moments. A recommended read for anybody who runs seriously.
]]> <![CDATA[Parsnips, Buttered: How to baffle, bamboozle and boycott your way through modern life]]> 29639825 Dear Reader,

Life is hard. We are a bombarded generation: Facebook, billboards, Twitter, Instagram, taxes, newspapers, watches monitoring our sleep, apps that read our pulse, terrorism. There's such an onslaught to the senses these days it's a marvel any of us manage to get out of bed. I love bed.

While we are overwhelmed and confused by the miasmic cloud of information, there are those that seek to take advantage: there are parking fines, hate Tweets, Nigerian email scams and Christmas newsletters from old school friends about their ugly kids. And just as we're getting round to doing something about it, we're distracted again.

I, Joe Lycett, comedian, wordsmith, and professional complainer, am here to help. During my short life of doing largely nothing I've discovered solutions to many of life's problems, which I impart to you, dear Reader. Containing a centurion of complaint letters to unsuspecting celebrities, companies and anyone brave enough to clog up my phone, as well as illustrations, one-liners , jokes and life hacks, this little gem offers you a collection of tips and advice* for all manner of modern woe. By the time you have finished reading this book you will have learnt how to:

- Reverse a parking fine
- Manipulate the tabloid press
- Navigate social media
- Respond to hate mail
- Out-weird internet trolls
- Contest a so-called ripe avocado
- Send the perfect Christmas newsletter
- Defeat ISIS
- Take down multi-national companies
AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!

Joe Lycett x

* If you are looking for guidance with taxes, quitting smoking, moving house, love, divorce, education, healthcare or anything actually important may I recommend speaking to friends or family members and not consulting a book by a comedian who eats halloumi at least twice a day.

]]> 304 Joe Lycett Sam 3 4.07 2016 Parsnips, Buttered: How to baffle, bamboozle and boycott your way through modern life
author: Joe Lycett
name: Sam
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2016
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/01/25
shelves:
review:
The book doesn't quite do Joe justice and a lot of the jokes don't translate well from stand-up to the written word. In terms of content there is too much taken verbatim from his shows and also stuff that is clearly a bit of filler. Funny enough but I was a bit disappointed. I will say I'm almost scared writing this though in case he takes it upon himself to run with my review and incorporate into something similar to the book...!
]]> Mystic River 21671
Twenty-five years later, Sean is a homicide detective. Jimmy is an ex-con who owns a corner store. And Dave is trying to hold his marriage together and keep his demons at bay -- demons that urge him to do terrible things. When Jimmy's daughter is found murdered, Sean is assigned to the case. His investigation brings him into conflict with Jimmy, who finds his old criminal impulses tempt him to solve the crime with brutal justice. And then there is Dave, who came home the night Jimmy's daughter died covered in someone else's blood.

A tense and unnerving psychological thriller, Mystic River is also an epic novel of love and loyalty, faith and family, in which people irrevocably marked by the past find themselves on a collision course with the darkest truths of their own hidden selves.]]> 416 Dennis Lehane 0060584750 Sam 3 4.17 2001 Mystic River
author: Dennis Lehane
name: Sam
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/01/20
shelves:
review:
I can't quite understand all the love for this book. Don't get me wrong, on the whole I enjoyed it but I've read much better books with lower ratings. This stretches itself too thin in trying to be a whodunnit thriller, a deep examination of the characters' pasts, and a commentary on blue-collar American places. In my opinion it did each of this adequately but hardly in revolutionary style! I found the epilogue particularly poor with overwrought descriptions of exactly how Jimmy was meant to feel. The 'mystery' of the killer had a reasonable if a little underwhelming conclusion. The plot twists, if they can be called that, are quite subtle and introduced in a matter of fact way that fail to really capture the imagination. Not only that but I felt it was too long with too much filler aimed at bulking out the characters, which would have been better achieved by seeing them 'do' more in the plot. I guess my review is quite negative because I was surprised at its rating on here. It's an ok book but I definitely won't read again or actively recommend.
]]> <![CDATA[The Hobbit, or There and Back Again]]> 5907 Written for J.R.R. Tolkien’s own children, The Hobbit met with instant critical acclaim when it was first published in 1937. Now recognized as a timeless classic, this introduction to the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the wizard Gandalf, Gollum, and the spectacular world of Middle-earth recounts of the adventures of a reluctant hero, a powerful and dangerous ring, and the cruel dragon Smaug the Magnificent. The text in this 372-page paperback edition is based on that first published in Great Britain by Collins Modern Classics (1998), and includes a note on the text by Douglas A. Anderson (2001).]]> 366 J.R.R. Tolkien Sam 4 4.29 1937 The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Sam
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1937
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/12/24
shelves:
review:
Hadn't read this since I was a child. Surprised to see a lot of kids-literature phrases ('as you will see' etc) that I wouldn't have previously noticed. On the flip side though the epic world building is also there to see. Only reason this isn't five stars is because a lot of this introduced without being fully fleshed out. Obviously that is understandable. Still a great story and adventure though.
]]> Three Men on the Bummel 324296
So do these heroes of THREE MEN IN A BOAT, only on this occasion, a cycling trip through the Black Forest, it seems they may cycle on forever, such are their problems. Whether it's George attempting to buy a cushion for his aunt or Harris's harrowing experience with a road-waterer, not to mention the routine problems with language and directions, things get very confused indeed!

"A delightful excursion in a world which, alas, exists no longer--and indeed may only have been found in the author's lively imagination." (B-O-T Editorial Review Board)]]> 207 Jerome K. Jerome 0140063927 Sam 4 3.79 1900 Three Men on the Bummel
author: Jerome K. Jerome
name: Sam
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1900
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/12/06
shelves:
review:
This is just about 4 stars on the basis of a few brilliant pieces of humour. However these are far less frequent than the first book and overall it can be hard going with quite dense reflections on not very much. In general the travel writing itself is also interesting but in summary there is more filler here than three men in a boat. A shame but still worth reading.
]]> <![CDATA[Three Men in a Boat (Three Men, #1)]]> 4921
"We agree that we are overworked, and need a rest - A week on the rolling deep? - George suggests the river -"

And with the co-operation of several hampers of food and a covered boat, the three men (not forgetting the dog) set out on a hilarious voyage of mishaps up the Thames. When not falling in the river and getting lost in Hampton Court Maze, Jerome K. Jerome finds time to express his ideas on the world around - many of which have acquired a deeper fascination since the day at the end of the 19th century when this excursion was so lightly undertaken.]]> 185 Jerome K. Jerome Sam 5 3.86 1889 Three Men in a Boat (Three Men, #1)
author: Jerome K. Jerome
name: Sam
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1889
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2017/11/26
shelves:
review:
One of my all time favourites. Very rarely do I laugh out loud at any book but it happens a lot with this one, no matter how often I read it, so to think the humour is the best part of 150 years old is astonishing. I love the history aspect itself and unlike some the 'purple prose' sections are, to me, quite touching and demonstrate this isn't just some throwaway jape. The only thing missing is a slightly longer arc with an actual message, but when it is as funny as it is, that doesn't matter.
]]> <![CDATA[The Way of Kings, Part 1 (The Stormlight Archive, #1, Part 1 of 2)]]> 9329354 Speak again the ancient oaths. Life before death. Strength before weakness, Journey before destination. And return to men the shards they once bore. The knights radiant must stand again.

Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars are fought for them, and won by them.

One such war is about to swallow up a soldier, a brightlord and a young woman scholar.]]> 594 Brandon Sanderson 0575097361 Sam 4 4.64 2010 The Way of Kings, Part 1 (The Stormlight Archive, #1, Part 1 of 2)
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Sam
average rating: 4.64
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/11/12
shelves:
review:
Not sure whether to review this individually but don't know when I'll be picking up the second part. Overall suitably intrigued to carry on but certainly got the impression as per the reviews I read beforehand that this was a scene-setting exercise. Not sure I fully buy into the world Sanderson has created - seems the mix of magic, history, fantasy and sci-fi is a bit 'off'. The history side of things seems the most promising though. The characters are solid albeit understandably not fully developed yet. Overall a lot of pages to tell not much story though!
]]> <![CDATA[Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players]]> 8954 400 Stefan Fatsis 0142002267 Sam 4 3.82 Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players
author: Stefan Fatsis
name: Sam
average rating: 3.82
book published:
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/10/15
shelves:
review:
This is a 3.5 star review rounded up to 4. Quite enjoyed this but felt quite bloated with a fair amount of repetition and the chunks of history seeming a bit out of place with the character-based writing (undoubtedly the highlight and main purpose of the book). The ending in particular is twice as long as it needs to be! All in all though quite inspiring and makes me want to play!
]]> Sons and Lovers 32071 "She was a brazen hussy."

"She wasn't. And she was pretty, wasn't she?"

"I didn't look ... And tell your girls, my son, that when they're running after you, they're not to come and ask your mother for you - tell them that - brazen baggages you meet at dancing classes"

The marriage of Gertrude and Walter Morel has become a battleground. Repelled by her uneducated and sometimes violent husband, delicate Gertrude devotes her life to her children, especially to her sons, William and Paul - determined they will not follow their father into working down the coal mines. But conflict is evitable when Paul seeks to escape his mother's suffocating grasp through relationships with women his own age. Set in Lawrence's native Nottinghamshire, Sons and Lovers is a highly autobiographical and compelling portrayal of childhood, adolescence and the clash of generations.]]> 654 D.H. Lawrence Sam 4 3.65 1913 Sons and Lovers
author: D.H. Lawrence
name: Sam
average rating: 3.65
book published: 1913
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/09/30
shelves:
review:
This was the first 'classic' book I've read in a while and I quite enjoyed it. As usual the quite dense prose was hard to get through at times but overall the themes of this book and the characters and made it interesting. Any book that makes you want to go away and read about interpretations and critiques must have something going for it. I must admit that I missed some of the less obvious imagery and metaphors but even so this was a book that made me think about relationships and how it must have been in working class England at the start of the 20th century. Well worth reading and studying. My one criticism is that I didn't actually like Paul Morel and, whilst a valid point throughout, I found it repetitive how often one character was described as both loving yet almost hating another.
]]> <![CDATA[Rhinos on the Lawn and the people who made the Cotswold Wildlife Park]]> 25449371 182 Matthew Jones 1905315503 Sam 4 4.00 2012 Rhinos on the Lawn and the people who made the Cotswold Wildlife Park
author: Matthew Jones
name: Sam
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/08/28
shelves:
review:
I confess that this sat in my shelf for the best part of 18 months following an impulse buy that I didn't revisit until my next trip to the wildlife trip. I was pleasantly surprised to find not an esoteric documentation of facts about the parks history but instead a well-written and authoritative account of what makes it so special. I found this particularly enlightening not just for what it revealed about the actual history of the park, but also for how it helped me put my finger on what it meant to my own formative childhood. I have visited countless times over the last three decades and took no small amount of pleasure in recognising developments described over that time and in being one of the groups of school children often referred to. A must read for anyone who knows and loves the park.
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