Janet's Log - Stardate 2014

[Janet]

Book #19 acquired.  For Book Club 

[Alexi]

Will be interested in your review of this, J. I picked it up on a daily deal because I liked the synopsis and it counted for Netherlands in the world Challenge but my review was less than complimentary...

[Janet]

Oh dear! 

[Alexi]

Think it could be a bit marmite, lots of 5* reviews on Amazon! Good one to discuss at BC whatever you think of it I would say, but I hope you enjoy it of course

[Athena]

I hope you enjoy it ! I haven't read nor do I own this book, I can't remember if it's on my wishlist or not (I think it might be). Alexi, there are lots of other good Dutch literary works that are great in my opinion, though I don't know how many have English versions. How are you doing on your challenge?

Edited May 3, 2014 by Athena

[Janet]

 

The True Confessions of Adrian Albert Mole, Margaret Hilda Roberts and Sue Townsend by Sue Townsend

 

The ‘blurb’

True Confessions of Adrian Mole, Margaret Hilda Roberts and Susan Lilian Townsend is the third book in Sue Townsend's brilliantly funny Adrian Mole series.

 

Monday June 13th.

 

I had a good, proper look at myself in the mirror tonight. I've always wanted to look clever, but at the age of twenty years and three months I have to admit that I look like a person who has never even heard of Jung or Updike.

 

Adrian Mole is an adult. At least that's what it says on his passport. But living at home, clinging to his threadbare cuddly rabbit 'Pinky', working as a paper pusher for the DoE and pining for the love of his life, Pandora, has proved to him that adulthood isn't quite what he expected. Still, without the slings and arrows of modern life what else would an intellectual poet have to write about…?

 

Included here are two other less well-known diarists: Sue Townsend and Margaret Hilda Roberts, a rather ambitious grocer's daughter from Grantham.

 

This, the third instalment of Adrian Mole’s diaries, left me feeling a bit underwhelmed.  It didn’t seem to me to be as amusing as the first two books and in fact I preferred the Margaret Hilda Roberts part of the diaries to the Adrian Mole books.  It’s only been a few days since I finished the book but I have found the Mole bits have faded and I don’t really know what to write about them!  It won’t let it put me off the next of the series, but I’m hoping for an improvement on this one.

 

The paperback edition is 240 pages long and is published by Penguin.  It was first published in 1989.  The ISBN is 9780141046440.   

 

3/5 (It was okay)

 

(Finished 02 May 2014)

[Janet]

I finished book #24 of the year today.   Set in Basutoland, southern Africa, I'm using it for my World Challenge book for Lesotho which is what that country has been called since gaining full independence.  This is my review:
 

Green Mountain Doctor by Colin Smith

 

Colin Smith, the author, was my GP from when I was a little girl until I got married just before I was 22.  He also sang in the choir at my wedding!  When he retired, Colin moved from Kent to Dorset, but kept in touch with my in-laws.  I last saw him at my father-in-law’s funeral about 8 years ago!  However, I didn’t know until recently that he’d written and self-published books.  Some are fiction, but this book is factual and is about his time as a young newly-qualified doctor who went to work in Basutoland – at the time a British Protectorate – as a Government Medical Office.  Wikipedia define a British Protectorate as “a territory under the British Empire which is not formally annexed but in which, by treaty, grant or other lawful means, the Crown has power and jurisdiction.”  Basutoland is now, since gaining full independence, called Lesotho.

 

The book starts by detailing some of Colin’s childhood and his training before moving to Africa.  Whilst there he decided that he should be married – his letter of proposal is very funny – it’s amazing his wife said yes!   He then goes on to speak about personal and medical matters, some of which I found rather difficult to read due to their rather descriptive nature (but that’s me – I have to watch programmes like Holby City from behind the sofa!    ).   The African surgeries and hospitals which Colin served in during his time in Basutoland were very basic, and Colin’s training slightly inadequate for the challenges he faced and therefore he had his fair share of very sad failures, but throughout he speaks with compassion and humour – the tone is informal and easy to read and I very much enjoyed it, although having personal experience of the author probably helped!

 

 

In the 1970s, Colin Smith and his children - and my father-in-law and his children - took part in a televised documentary about Higham Marshes in protest at some potential development (a battle that would happen again in the 2000s with talk of an airport) - my father-in-law played Charles Dickens and Peter (my husband) played Pip! 

 

This is them - Colin Smith is the adult on the right - Peter is the dark haired child in the centre of the photo! 

 

 

[Athena]

It's a shame you didn't like The True Confessions of Adrian Albert Mole, Margaret Hilda Roberts and Sue Townsend as much as some of the other books. Congrats on finishing 24 books !

[pontalba]

Book #19 acquired.  For Book Club 

 

 

 

Will be interested in your review of this, J. I picked it up on a daily deal because I liked the synopsis and it counted for Netherlands in the world Challenge but my review was less than complimentary...

 

My husband read The Dinner, and was underwhelmed. 

[Janet]

Oh dear, that doesn't bode well!

[Janet]

 
Buster’s Diaries as told to Roy Hattersley
 
The ‘blurb’
Buster became famous in 1996 after he defended himself against a goose in St James’s Park – a goose which, unfortunately, belonged to the Queen.  Pursued by the press ever since, he has sought solace in writing.  Buster’s Diaries is a heart-warming story of triumph over adversity, as the author describes his rise from living rough on a Paddington waste ground to nights spent in a sheepskin (fake) lined bed.  It reveals – with reckless honest - the secrets of the strange relationship between dog and the Man on the other end of the lead.
 
Buster sprang to fame after attacking one of the Queen’s geese in a royal park in London.   It wasn’t really Buster’s fault though, but it meant the Man had to go to court.  Despite this, and other such adventures, the Man loved Buster almost more than anything else in the world.
 
After the famous adventure with the goose, Buster started dictating diary entries to the Man and this book is the result.  Buster’s insights into his life with his beloved human are very humorously written.  After a disastrous spell of dog-ownership a few years ago I have come to the conclusion that I’m not really a dog person (in terms of not wanting another dog – I do like dogs but not as an owner) but whether you own dogs or not, this is a really well-written and funny book which made me laugh out loud in places and I definitely want to read the sequel, Buster’s Secret Diaries.
 
The paperback edition is 187 pages long and is published by Warner Books.  It was first published in 1998.  The ISBN is 9780751533316.   
 
5/5 (I loved it)
 
(Finished 07 May 2014)

[Athena]

Nice review, the book sounds interesting .

[Janet]

Thanks.    I've read one of his books before (autobiographical) and have another on my shelf.  I like his writing style. 

[Janet]

I finished Trouble with Lichen by John Wyndham a few days ago.   I enjoyed it, although not as much as the others of his I've read.  This is still a 4/5 though.

 

I received this lovely parcel in the post last week...  see if you can guess who sent it?

 

 

Isn't it gorgeously wrapped...

 

 

And inside...

 

 

Which is right up my street!   

 

Thanks so much...

 

 

Kay. I love it. As you know, I love visiting literary sites and this book covers some great ones. I can't wait to try some out.

 

[pontalba]

Beautiful book! I was almost fooled......no spots........

[Athena]

That's a beautifully wrapped package! I hope you enjoy the book .

[Janet]

Thanks, guys. It was a lovely surprise.

[Janet]

Trouble with Lichen by John Wyndham

The ‘blurb’
It was Diana Brackley who put the milk out for the cat; who dropped a speck of lichen in it by mistake; who noticed how the lichen stopped the milk turning.

But it was Francis Saxover, the famous biochemist, who carried on from there; who developed Antigerone, the cure for ageing; who then tried to suppress a discovery which was certainly in the megaton range.

And so it was Diana Brackley who went to town with Antigerone in one of Wyndham’s gayest most satirical forays into the fantastic.

Two biochemists, Francis Saxover and Diana Brackley, who work together at a research centre owned by Saxover are surprised by an unexpected reaction to some milk that had lichen dropped in it. Francis Saxover suppresses his results fearing what might happen if the discovery is revealed and Diana leaves the centre and sets up a beauty clinic – but both continue to experiment with Antigerone in private. When one of Diana’s clients suffers an allergic reaction to a treatment at the clinic, it seems that the secret of Antigerone will be revealed, with potentially catastrophic results…

This is the fourth Wyndham book I’ve read, and I was expecting it to be of a similar theme, but there are no aliens in this book! Instead it explores the moral dilemma of whether the discovery of an anti-aging ‘cure’ would really be as good as one might think. It seems to me to be a departure in the writing style of the other books too. There are excerpts from newspapers and television reports which also give it less of a sci-fi feel. It does, of course, feel rather dated in places but despite that it’s an enjoyable read and I will definitely be reading more of Wyndham’s works – I already have Web and The Crysalids on my to read pile.

The paperback edition is 204 pages long and is published by Penguin. It was first published in 1960. The ISBN is 9780140019865.

3½/5 (I liked it)

(Finished 15 May 2014)
 

[Athena]

Great review, it sounds like quite an interesting premise.

[Kidsmum]

What a lovely surprise pressie & so nicely wrapped 

 

I've yet to read any John Wyndham although i do remember watching The Day of The Triffids when it was on the TV, i suppose it would seem really dated now though especially with modern special effects 

[Janet]

Thanks, both. 

 

I watched The Day of the Triffids in the 1980s.  I think it was on TV around the time I studied the book for my English CSE all those years ago...!   I like vintage sci-fi when it's set on Earth - it appeals more than the idea of reading something set on another planet somehow. 

[Janet]

 

The Wind in the Willows  by Kenneth Grahame

 

The ‘blurb’

When Mole goes boating with the Water Rat instead of spring-cleaning, he discovers a world he never knew about.  As well as the river and the Wild Wood there is Toad’s craze for fast travel – which leads him and his friends on a whirl of trains, barges, gipsy caravans and motor cars, into a lot of trouble, and even a battle.

 

I started listening to an audio book version of this whilst walking (my first proper experience of listening to an audio book), but it quickly became apparent that it was an abridged version (which was such a shame – it was read wonderfully by Derek Jacobi).  Luckily I came across the book in the back of a cupboard a few weeks ago (I must have bought it about 18 years ago!) so I went back to the beginning and read it myself. 

 

Toad is a proud animal.  He is wealthy and of high status and regard amongst the animals he associates with and he is always an aficionado of the latest fad – a fact which sometimes gets him into trouble.  Toad’s latest craze is that of the motor car.  But Toad is also very impetuous and when he spies a car in a local hostelry he decides to borrow it, which leads him into a lot of trouble.  Can his friends Mole, Badger and the Water Rat help save the day and make Toad see the error of his ways?

 

I can’t believe I’ve got to the grand old age of virtually 48 without reading this book! And what a wonderful book it is!  The prose is simply beautiful.  For example:

"...remembering the stranger’s origins and preferences
he took care to include a yard of long French bread, a sausage out
of which the garlic sang, some cheese which lay down and cried, and
a long-necked, straw-covered flask containing bottled sunshine
shed and garnered on far Southern slopes."

 

Doesn't that conjure up such a beautiful image?! 

 

I really enjoyed the story, the characters and the writing of this.  I have The Golden Age on my Kindle, and if the writing is anything like it is in this book then I’m sure I’ll enjoy that too.

 

The paperback edition is 242 pages long and is published by Puffin.  It was first published in 1908.  The ISBN is 9780141321134.   

 

4/5 (I really liked it)

 

(Finished 22 May 2014)

[Janet]

 

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry  by Rachel Joyce

 

The ‘blurb’

When Harold Fry nips out one morning to post a letter, leaving his wife hoovering upstairs, he has no idea that he is about to walk from one end of the country to the other. He has no hiking boots or map, let alone a compass, waterproof or mobile phone. All he knows is that he must keep walking. To save someone else's life. 

 

Despite having the paperback, I borrowed this on audio book from the library and listened to it over the course of a week whilst walking.  Actually, it was quite an apt book for that purpose!

 

Harold Fry lives with his wife Maureen in Kingsbridge, Devon.  Since retirement his life has become very mundane and he and Maureen barely talk any more.  One day a letter arrives for Harold.  A letter he finds very difficult to respond to.  Clutching the envelope containing his rather lame reply, Harold tells his wife he is going to the post box at the end of the road – but when he gets there he keeps on walking, resolving to deliver the letter by hand.  However, the destination is more than 450 miles away and Harold has no training whatsoever.  In spite of this, and despite Maureen’s assertion that he’ll never manage it, he keeps on walking. 

 

On the way he reflects upon various subjects including his marriage to Maureen, work, his son David with whom he always had a faltering relationship and Queenie, the woman who wrote the letter – and back in Devon Maureen’s side of the story also unfolds.

 

During his journey Harold meets up with various people who offer help and, as Harold tells his story, he finds that each of them has a story of their own.   As he travels further, Harold experiences a gamut of emotions from abject grief to euphoria.   At times he is ready to give up, but there is always something that makes him continue on his quest.

 

The story is told from both Harold and Maureen’s perspectives.   I liked following Harold’s progress up the country – he mentions places near where I live, which I think helped to add to my enjoyment of the book.  The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a complex story which unfolds gently but never slowly.

 

 

At first I didn’t like Maureen at all (which I guess was the idea!), but as her story unfolded I started to have sympathy for her.

 

I fleetingly wondered if their son had died when, at the start of the book, Maureen was tidying his room and ensuring it was always kept tidy, ready for when David came home – but I dismissed that idea as the story progressed!  I loved the way Maureen and Harold’s fractured relationship repaired as his journey unfolded and although it was sad that Queenie died, that was inevitable, but Harold and Maureen’s rediscovering of each other balanced that sadness. 

 

 

I’m fairly certain that listening to the audio book is what made it such an enjoyable story for me – it’s narrated by by Jim Broadbent and he did an excellent job – just the right quality of melancholy in his voice when he voiced Harold! 

 

The paperback edition is 368 pages long and is published by Black Swan.  It was first published in 2012.  The ISBN is 9780552778091.   

 

5/5 (I loved it)

 

(Finished 23 May 2014)

 

[Athena]

Great reviews! I also quite enjoyed The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, I can imagine it working quite well as an audiobook to listen to while walking .

[Alexi]

I never read The Wind in the Willows either Janet. In fact, about 70% of the counties challenge is "books I feel I should have read already and haven't!"

 

Glad you enjoyed it, that's normally an indication I will too...except I really didn't like The Unlikely Pilgrimage...! I think I was in the minority though, and I suspect listening to it as you're wandering is simply the perfect way to digest it!