Meredith hasn’t left her house for 1,214 days. Why? Well, that’s what the book is about. The thing is, although we might think Meredith is trapped, she’s been trapped before, and she got out. Meredith is a great protagonist. I really liked that, although she has retreated from the world, she still invites people to… Continue reading Review: Meredith Alone by Claire Alexander
Category: reading
May reading round up
It’s May and it’s just a little too chilly for me. And I know that irritating saying and I don’t need to hear it again thanks. I have many jumpers available still. Here’s to a warmer June! What’s been on the reading pile this month? Sister, Mother, Husband, Dog (Etc) – Delia Ephron Regular readers… Continue reading May reading round up
Review: His Other Woman by Sarah Edghill
Lucy is at the supermarket buying dinner when she gets a mysterious text from her husband Tom. “I need to go away. Please don’t try to get in touch. I can’t explain right now.” Lucy, predictably, dumps the shopping, rushes home to find Tom is not there (and he didn’t even clear the table before… Continue reading Review: His Other Woman by Sarah Edghill
Not for you: a brief rant about libraries and public services
I ordered a book from the library recently. In itself it shouldn’t sound that surprising but I had to be reminded about the service itself by members of my reading group. I’m used to having the library as a place to browse but a part of me didn’t like to order books in, it felt… Continue reading Not for you: a brief rant about libraries and public services
Review: Take my Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Well this couldn’t have been published at a more appropriate time. As I write, the current clampdown on reproductive freedom in the US is getting more and more extreme; there are ongoing race relations issues all across the world and discussions about how we tell the stories of past atrocities are still being hotly debated;… Continue reading Review: Take my Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
April reading round up
Spring is here! I am always conflicted by the coming of spring – on the one hand, as a cold person I love to see the spring flowers and every year remember anew how much joy they give, and it is great to anticipate shucking off layers of woollens and being free of heavy winter… Continue reading April reading round up
Review: At The Table – Claire Powell
What an accomplished debut novel this is. It is set across the space of a year and features the Maguire family, mum Linda, dad Gerry and their grown up children Nicole and Jamie. Every scene is set around a meal or drinks of some kind and in the opening, the family gather to celebrate Linda’s… Continue reading Review: At The Table – Claire Powell
Review: And A Dog Called Fig by Helen Humphreys
The sub-title of this book is Solitude, Connection, The Writing Life. Having said that, this is mainly a book about dogs, and less about writing. This is not a bad thing; there is a space for examining relationships with animals and nature and how these can impact on our comfortable routines. Humphreys seems to be… Continue reading Review: And A Dog Called Fig by Helen Humphreys
February reading round up
The shortest month which, until the last week or so, did start to feel like a hopeful month with the days getting noticeably longer and we filled the house with £1 bunches of daffodils. How was your reading this month? My resolution to not buy any books this month to try and beat my backlog… Continue reading February reading round up
January reading round up
Before we start, I published December’s reading round up and then promptly finished reading another book that I hadn’t included. So in the interests of completion, here is one further book I read last year: A Winter Away – Elizabeth Fair This is a reissue of a book published originally in the 1950s and one… Continue reading January reading round up
Susan E Barsby 