My May Reads

It's been a busy month as we have started the slog around the country known as "University Open Day", that's my excuse for being a little  tardy with my May reads.

"Death Comes To Pemberley" by P.D James was our book club choice this month. Written as a"follow on" to Pride and Prejudice, the action takes place after Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years and a murder mystery occurs at their family seat. I haven't read any other P.D James books before and I'm in two minds about this one. I did enjoy the way it was written, it flowed along and it was a page-turner. However, I couldn't really see the POINT of it and far from being the sparky heroine she was, Elizabeth has turned into a bit of a bore. Maybe it's because I ( like millions of others) hold a special place in my heart for P&P, but this was a pale shadow and doesn't make me want to rush and read any more P.D James.

I do like Nick Hornby's novels and "Juliet, Naked" was another good read. Duncan is obsessed with an American singer who has become a recluse and his long suffering girlfriend, Annie, is starting to despair that their fifteen year old relationship is going anywhere. When she begins an email correspondence with the elusive star, it is the start of a relationship which profoundly affects all those involved. Hornby's writing is very funny and warm, he reminds me of Anne Tyler in the way he brings magic to everyday mundanity. He has been quoted as saying Tyler is a great influence on his work and it does show.

"Whatever You Love" by Louise Doughty was a Costa Book Award short-lister a couple of years ago. It is a disturbing story of the effect the death of a nine year old girl and her friend in a hit and run accident has on Laura and her ex husband, David. Doughty does write quite beautifully, you really do feel Laura's pain acutely and it did make me tearful more than once, especially at the end. Laura tries to take revenge on who is responsible for her daughter's death, whilst her husband's new wife has her own problems which culminate in a dramatic ending. I'm not sure I would describe myself " enjoying" the book as the material is so raw, but it certainly is a powerful account of an unimaginable loss.

Finally, summer means Italy, so to get me in the mood I read "Elements of Italy" by Lisa St Aubin De Teran. I've had this book a while, I'm a big fan of her fiction but had never got round to reading these snippets of writing about Italy, where De Teran lived for many years. It's a lovely book, including descriptions of all aspects of Italy from authors such as Eric Newby, D. H Lawrence, Truman Capote and Guiseppe Di Lampedusa. It really put me in the mood for my holidays!

A Day Trip To London Town

I thought a day trip to London would be a nice distraction for my teen who is mired deep in AS level revision. Her boyfriend came too, so as they went to explore the delights of Camden, I visited The National Portrait Gallery. I loved the pictures of Florence Nightingale, Mrs Pankhurst and the Brontes but deary me, the recently commissioned portrait of the Duchess of Cambridge was not at all impressive. Stark and hugely unflattering, it was the face of a tired, middle-aged women staring out, I bet she was secretly mortified.
The weather was kind, and I walked up to Bloomsbury for a nice lunch at Beas of Bloomsbury, then I went to Persephone Books on Lambs Conduit Street. This is such a beautiful shop, they publish books by largely forgotten or over-looked women authors and their covers are a distinctive grey. I treated myself to The Persephone Book of Short Stories and look forward to dipping in.
I met up with the teens in a busy Covent Garden and we walked back up to Bloomsbury to the British Museum. We had a good mooch around the Greek and Roman antiquities then we went around the Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition. This was simply brilliant, the exhibits were fascinating; carbonised bread complete with the baker's stamp, olive oil still in a glass bottle. The casts of those who died were very moving, caught forever in their death throes, as was the carbonised cradle whose tiny occupant perished.
For my daughter, who is a huge Harry Potter fan, the highlight of the day was a visit to King's Cross and Platform 9 3/4, we didn't catch the Hogwarts Express though, merely the Virgin Pendolino back home to Manchester and back to revision.

My April Reads

Spring is finally here, hurrah! Soon I'll be able to sit out on the patio with a good book, bliss.

My bad read award this month goes to "The Pilgrimage" by Paulo Coelho. This was a book club choice and it's fair to say it got the thumbs down from all the group. I did enjoy "The Alchemist" but this is a rambling mish mash of mysticism and travelogue. Coelho is travelling across Spain on the road to Santiago De Compostela, accompanied by his guide. He is aiming to find a sword ( we never find out what this is for) and he is taught RAM exercises ( no, me neither) as part of his journey of self-discovery. This was really badly written, just mumbo-jumbo, glad I bought it second-hand!

I have really enjoyed Marina Lewycka's three previous books and "Various Pets Alive and Dead" continued this trend. She has tackled the thorny contemporary subject of immigrant workers ( in Two Caravans) whilst this book is a biting satire of the banking industry. Doro and Marcus are children of the sixties who lived in a commune and brought their children up to embrace the ideals of a free society. However, their children live very different lives and there is a lot of humour in how the whole family interacts, especially their son who desperately tries to keep his existence as a city trader a secret from them. Lewycka writes so well, her characters really sparkle and it manages to be both a funny and very touching book.

Esther Freud's "Lucky Break" was a bit of a disappointment, a real "meh" read. It follows a group of students at a drama school in London over the years, but nothing really happens. Some make it "big" but most do not. There are cliched characters galore and I really didn't care about any of them. I've read a couple of her books and had high hopes for this, but it didn't add up to much at all.

Barbara Trapido is another author I enjoy and "Sex and Stavinsky" was a real delight. Her books always contain such great characters whose lives intertwine and come together at the end like a Shakespearian comedy. The settings of Oxford and South Africa are beautifully drawn and I couldn't wait to find out what will happen to Josh, Hattie, Caroline and her truly awful mother. It is hard to describe the plot really but trust me, it's a good read!

Charlotte Rogan's debut novel "The Lifeboat" was another excellent read. A ship sinks in the Atlantic in 1914, and forty people make it onto one of the lifeboats. We first encounter Grace as she stands trial for murder. How she survives and how she ends up in jail is truly gripping and does make you think about how you would behave faced with extreme circumstances. I did like the Irish Times review "just don't read it on a cruise"! It is a very well written book and the characterisation is excellent, I couldn't put it down.

A Few Thoughts On Mrs T

I was thirteen when Mrs Thatcher became Prime Minister and twenty four when she was ousted by her own party. As a teenager, I became actively involved in the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and fervently anti-Thatcher, much to the bemusement of my true blue parents. I have to report I WAS that earnest young woman in the John Lennon specs, wearing my badges to school and scribbling "CRUISE FREE 83" on my school bag. Whilst all my classmates in their O level English talk, gave presentations on their Spanish holiday or five-a-side football, I lectured on the CND equipped with handouts AND slides. I was so utterly convinced I was RIGHT ( still do!) with that self-righteous conviction of teenhood!
I had great times travelling the country, Greenham Common, Aldermaston, London and Barrow-in-Furness. I was a bit of a rubbish demonstrator though. I collapsed into fits of giggles when a bloke in Barrow told me to "Gerrup ya daft bugger" when I part of a "die-in" against trident missiles and at Greenham Common my symbolic red balloon did not soar away but landed, sadly in a field and was stamped on by a BLOODY FASCIST ( whom I now realise was probably a fed-up farmer!)
After rattling a few buckets for the miners, I started work in an NHS already in the midst of the disastrous reforms that have wreaked such havoc since. I joined a union, but slowly my days of political activism died away. So my hey-day of political awareness coincided with Mrs Thatcher's premiership. This was not a coincidence and I am grateful to her for politicising me, admittedly in opposition. I will always be a Labour supporter and to the left of the political spectrum, so how do I feel about the death of my nemesis of my youth?
My eighteen year old self would probably have said "good" but even then I would have winced at the terms "bitch" and "witch" that are being bandied around. There is a strong undercurrent of misogyny in these insults, which is utterly abhorrent.
My forty seven year old self also feels it is wrong to gloat over the death of an elderly woman, who died alone and in the grip of dementia. She died with only her doctor and paid help to keep her company. Both her children, knowing their mother must be close to the end, chose to be on holiday. Could they not have arranged for at least one of them to be with her?
I had a very fractious relationship with my father, whose behaviour over the years had alienated us all. Yet, in his last weeks he was never alone, I moved into his flat until he was admitted to a hospice. At the end, he died clutching the hands of myself and my brother. Mrs Thatcher would forget her husband had died, when reminded she would say, "oh, were we there?". Well, no one was there for her.
So, whilst I can understand those who lives and communities were irrevocably wrecked by her premiership raising a glass to her passing, I do think a bit of compassion is also called for. Maybe I'm getting soft, maybe I'm also recognising a major figure of my youth has gone. Maggie, Maggie, Maggie, over and out.

The photos are of me and my friends at Greenham Common in 1983. I'm the short one with a red balloon.

My March Reads

Well, spring is taking its time springing but I became more mobile this month. I'm back behind the wheel, which feels fab, and I've been increasing the lengths of my daily walks. Luckily the weather has been dry and the woods are on my doorstep, so I have no excuses not to get out in the fresh air and build up my strength.
I read four good books in March. "You Had Me At Hello" is the debut novel by Mhairi McFarlane.It is set in Manchester and tells the story of Rachel, a court reporter, who breaks up from her long-term boyfriend, only to have an old university flame arrive back in town. I enjoyed the story and thought the characters were very well written. Maybe I liked it so much as I live in Manchester and my other half knows the courts very well indeed! I did tweet the author to tell her I liked the book although I didn't think any northern bloke would say he was cooking "dinner" at "tea time". She gamely replied I was right, (of course!) I do like authors who take the time to reply to you on twitter. I've had interactions with JoJo Moyes, India Knight, Judith O'Reilly, Mary Beard, Amanda Foreman, Emma Kennedy and others. I never expect a reply but it's always nice when people take time to engage with their readers.
I read Judith O'Reilly's book on doing an act of kindness every day at the beginning of the year and enjoyed it so much I bought her earlier book, "Wife in the North". The author was pregnant with two young children when her husband persuades her to move from her beloved London, to a small village in Northumbria. Judith does write so vividly, she is very funny but can also move you to tears. The reader does feel part of this chaotic but loving family, I love the parts about her aged parents. She writes an excellent blog also called Wife in the North, well worth a read.
"Sleep With Me" by Joanna Briscoe started off really well. Richard and Leila are expecting their first child when a mysterious woman enters their lives, Sylvie ingratiates herself subtly with the couple and their friends, with disastrous consequences. I did think it lost its way, from being quite eerie and unsettling, the plot became a little too preposterous. I thought it was well written though, quite poetic and the air of unease caused by such a seemingly benign presence as Sylvie is very effecting.
My vintage read this month was "The Last of the Wine" by Mary Renault. Published in 1956, this is a novel set in Athens during the thirty year Peloponnesian war. It tells the story of Alexias and his love for Lysis. The story of his blossoming from a youth to young manhood is beautifully described and real historical figures such as Socrates, Plato and Xenophon are included in the action. I sometimes find historical fiction quite badly written and a tad "dumbed down" but this is good stuff. The prose can be quite dense at times, but it paints a very vivd picture of the golden age of ancient Athens

Tales From The Tearooms

It's been a while since I have scribbled about an afternoon tea. It was a great treat to get out over the Easter weekend and even better to go out for tea somewhere I hadn't been before.
The Edwardian in Manchester used to be The Free Trade Hall, a beautiful Victorian building built on the site of the infamous Peterloo Massacre. Until recent years it was Manchester's premier concert venue; the Halle orchestra had their home there, Bob Dylan was called a "Judas" for playing the electric guitar there and the Sex Pistols kicked off punk there.
In many ways it is sad to think a building that was such an iconic symbol of civic pride, is now a Radisson hotel, but better that than falling into decay and disrepair.
Afternoon tea is served in the Opus restaurant at the front of the building and if you are having champagne ( goes without saying) you can sit in the atrium area directly overlooking Peter Street. This is great for people-watching and on Easter Saturday hordes of hopefuls were auditioning to be extras in The Rocky Horror Show at The Opera House. Needless to say we had fun waving to the fabulously attired crowd.
The tea was utterly delicious. For £26, I had the traditional tea with champagne. This consisted of four delicious finger sandwiches, two scones with jam, an elderflower jelly, a mini lemon meringue tart, a blueberry tart and a white chocolate tart. Pots of tea were topped up on request at no extra charge. The cakes were exquisite and even I had to admit defeat and leave one scone.
My friend had the Gentleman's Tea, this included sandwiches, a mini pork pie, a mini Yorkshire pudding, mini fish, chips and mushy peas plus scones. It looked fabulous and I will order that next time. The waiters and waitresses were very friendly and attentive.
I think it is advisable to book at weekends, and I can thoroughly recommend The Edwardian for an afternoon treat that will not disappoint.

My February Reads

As I couldn't do much else this month, I read quite a bit. Nothing too taxing on the old post-anaesthetised brain, and I was prone to falling asleep many times mid-sentence. However, there is nothing more relaxing than snuggling under a cosy cover with a book, several pillows and a restorative cuppa.
My Anne Tyler read this month was an early novel, first published in 1974, "Celestial Navigation". It is the story of Jeremy Pauling, an artist who is agoraphobic and has serious issues which appear Asperger-like. He owns a boarding house and in 1961, a beautiful woman with a young child comes to stay. The story spans thirteen years, Mary and Jeremy never marry but have several children together until Jeremy's fragile state of mind, forces Mary into a decision. Once again, Tyler writes so well, you feel as if know these people, and I felt such pity for Jeremy, a man who navigates life as if by the stars, the celestial navigation of the title.
I've mentioned before that I enjoy the Isabel Dalhousie series by Alexander McCall-Smith. The latest about the Edinburgh based philosopher is called "The Uncommon Appeal Of Clouds". Isabel is asked to help investigate a case of a missing painting. I do like these gentle stories, I like the character of Isabel with her younger partner and her endless lapses into musing on the meaning of almost everything. The stories are not at all dynamic, but like an old slipper, they are comfortable to return to when required!
Barbara Kingsolver is another author I really enjoy. Her latest book, "Flight Behaviour" is excellent. Dellarobia is a young wife and mother, smothered by boredom and poverty in rural America. She accidentally discovers an environmental phenomena which brings scientists and the media to her door with life-changing consequences. Kingsolver is never didactic but I felt informed and educated by her writing on the effect global warming and other environmental issues are having on, in this case, Monarch Butterflies. By using the story of Dellarobia, the larger subject is 'humanised' and brought into every-day relevance. Farmers, like Dellarobia's in-laws, desperate to scratch a living, can earn money by de-logging but this quick fix solution leads to devastating mud slides and the further annihilation of the natural habitat of species, such as the butterfly. Increasingly wet weather, caused by global warming, adds to the air of gloom that pervades the novel. I thought it was written very well, the characters were vividly drawn as was the landscape of back-woods America.
Whilst I was in hospital, I read "I Remember Nothing" by Nora Ephron, a series of reflections on getting older. This is a particularly poignant read as Ephron died not too long after publication. It is very funny and full of bathos. It concludes with a list of things she will miss and not miss when she dies. She won't miss washing her hair or Fox TV but oh, butter and pie...I totally concur!
I also read "Maine" by Courtney Sullivan whilst in hospital and it was an ideal book for the occasion, easy to read and not too demanding! It tells the story of a family who own a holiday home in Maine, the elderly matriarch decides to bequeath it to the church, and the novel explores why she came to this decision and the effect it has on her dysfunctional family. I liked the characters, thought it was well written and it kept my interest to the end. It would make an ideal holiday read.
"Alys, Always" by Harriet Lane was another good read. When Frances, a young woman with a fairly unexciting life, comes across a car accident involving the wife of a novelist, she is drawn into the bohemian world of the bereaved family. Frances is quite a chilling character, her metamorphosis from mouse to arch manipulator is compelling, a real page turner.
Finally, to cheer myself up, when I came home, I read "Moranthology" by Caitlin Moran. This had me straining my stitches, she really is a very funny writer. I enjoyed being able to dip in and out of these essays, mostly previously published columns in The Times.