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Willoyd's Reading 2019


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That's very well done, Willoyd! So glad you've found something that works for you. I agree  that complex carbs can be a problem too.

5 hours ago, bookmonkey said:

A healthy diet can mean different things to different people.  Our local sports arena has recently implemented "healthy food" at their food stalls, and no outside food allowed.  it really annoys me as due to health issues my son needs a high salt, high fat diet.  Not what is usually considered "healthy".  It now means we can't attend sports events as they won't allow anything outside in, even for health reasons, and it only takes an hour or so of inadequate sodium for him to become very ill.  I really don't like when people try to push their idea of "healthy" on to others, whether that's low fat, paleo, low carbs or whatever else the latest fad diet is.

 

That's ridiculous bookmonkey! Can you take him in a drink that's high in sodium? Such a pity for him to miss out on sports events because of a blanket rule for everyone. I'm annoyed with our local hospital which has stopped selling fruit juice in their cafe. They do however sell very sweet cakes and biscuits and allow us to have as many sugars as we want in our coffee or tea!

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19 hours ago, bookmonkey said:

A healthy diet can mean different things to different people.  Our local sports arena has recently implemented "healthy food" at their food stalls, and no outside food allowed.  it really annoys me as due to health issues my son needs a high salt, high fat diet.  Not what is usually considered "healthy". 

 

That's interesting: in my situation, 'low carb' is only half the equation, the other half being 'high fat', not least because in the absence of carbohydrates, fats are needed as the main source of energy (and saturated fat is an essential part of that).  Low carb also leads to an increase in the loss of sodium and water by the kidneys, so an increase in salt uptake is recommended too.  So, whilst high salt, high fat may not be regarded by some as 'healthy', there are an awful lot of people taking both as part of a diet aimed at improving health, even if, as you say, it's not what is usually considered 'healthy'!

 I can understand the arena only selling certain foods, but to not allow anything else is plain wrong (if increasingly common); it'd be interesting to see the arena's menu, as some so-called 'healthy' food is anything but. Backing up your theme,  I have a very good friend, a Type 1 diabetic, who always carries something sugary round with him in case he goes hypo.  Again as you say, healthy means different things to different people in different circumstances.

BTW, what about salt tablets?  Not a food per se, more like a medication.  Much more difficult to say no to, I would have thought.

 

 

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16 hours ago, poppy said:

That's very well done, Willoyd! So glad you've found something that works for you. I agree  that complex carbs can be a problem too.

 

That's ridiculous bookmonkey! Can you take him in a drink that's high in sodium? Such a pity for him to miss out on sports events because of a blanket rule for everyone. I'm annoyed with our local hospital which has stopped selling fruit juice in their cafe. They do however sell very sweet cakes and biscuits and allow us to have as many sugars as we want in our coffee or tea!

 

Can only take empty bottles which can be filled at water fountains.  Their rules are ridiculous even if you don't have health needs.  

 

Willoyd,  I haven't been able to find salt tablets here and I don't know if he'd eat them.  They should be a bit more flexible for health issues.   He has type 1 diabetes (as well as other conditions) and they tell us he can just buy fizzy at their stalls if he needs sugar.  Not always possible if you're in your seat and suddenly go low.  Some of the foods they have are things like kebabs and wraps and Chinese food.  They still sell fizzy drinks too. 

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On 7/29/2019 at 5:00 AM, poppy said:

We have been given so much conflicting advice about diet over the years, often with long claimed healthy diets suddenly being turned on their heads. I don't think one diet fits all and we have to find what suits us in particular. As I've gotten older, I definitely notice carbs are what puts the weight on whereas when I was younger, it wasn't a problem. I've recently read some evidence that the type of calories you eat have a clear effect on the calories you burn.  Eating a diet high in simple, processed carbs can disrupt the hormone balance of insulin and glucagon which can increase hunger and slow metabolism.  Those with abnormal insulin function are more likely to put on weight with this kind of diet.

Also when you were younger you were more active than you are at age 45. Perhaps your activity at the younger age helped to keep the weight off. :)

btw, perhaps this topic belongs in another thread like the debating thread rather than Book Blogs.:)

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On 31/07/2019 at 2:39 AM, muggle not said:

Also when you were younger you were more active than you are at age 45. Perhaps your activity at the younger age helped to keep the weight off. :)

 

Speak for yourself ;) - I've just completed my longest ever bike ride! But you are right, the single biggest cause of middle-age weight gain is reduced activity.

 

Quote

btw, perhaps this topic belongs in another thread like the debating thread rather than Book Blogs.:)

 

It's here because it stems from reviews of a couple of books I read on the subject; I'm just delighted that a book topic can provoke a discussion.  It would certainly be a good subject for the debating thread, but I've not any problems with it here for the moment as long as nobody else has either.  But if admin would like it moving, fine with that too.

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9 hours ago, bookmonkey said:

Can only take empty bottles which can be filled at water fountains.  Their rules are ridiculous even if you don't have health needs.  

Willoyd,  I haven't been able to find salt tablets here and I don't know if he'd eat them.  They should be a bit more flexible for health issues.   He has type 1 diabetes (as well as other conditions) and they tell us he can just buy fizzy at their stalls if he needs sugar.  Not always possible if you're in your seat and suddenly go low.  Some of the foods they have are things like kebabs and wraps and Chinese food.  They still sell fizzy drinks too. 

 

Given all that, I suspect it's actually about making money rather than any real health promotion.  Shows they have absolutely no understanding of true health issues, if that's their response to your son's needs.  I wonder if they are actually guilty of discrimination.

 

Salt tablets are available through amazon etc.  Look for sports electrolyte or rehydrating tablets with a high sodium content.

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I think so too, Willoyd.  The crowd numbers at events have dropped since these new regulations have come in, so it's backfired on them a bit.

 

Edited to add: Not being able to take in even water is definitely a money thing.  They charge way too much for drinks, including water, at their food stalls. 

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Money making and probably being overly PC.  NZ's getting good at telling everyone what they should and shouldn't do and shaming people when they don't conform :roll: 

 

Good point about the discrimination, willoyd, it's something you could challenge them about, bookmonkey. Or write to Fair Go :D

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  • 4 weeks later...

Book Review Catch-Up

I don't think I've every got quite as far behind on reviews as I have recently, exacerbated by the fact that I've been reading rather more than usual this month.  My last review was back in the middle of July sometime, so the first three are all from that that month's reading:

 

I Claudius by Robert Graves ****

This month's selection for one of my book groups, although it's been on my bookshelf for years waiting to be read!  I never saw the TV serial, so have had nothing to prejudice me either way, other than having read Graves's autobiographical Goodbye to All That - which I actually can't remember much about.

The premise is that the Roman Emperor Claudius's autobiography has been discovered, and it gives a rather different perspective on the history of the Caesars to what is conventionally included in histories.  Of course, we're seeing it from Claudius's point of view, so things may not be quite what they appear.  However, Graves/Claudius makes a convincing story, the first part of Claudius's life up to the point where he is acclaimed Emperor being covered in this volume, with his imperial life the focus of the next volume, Claudius the God

This took a bit of getting into.  The style is fairly old-fashioned, at times almost plodding, even pedantic, but with some persistence it gradually grew on me.  I knew enough of some of the history to be able to compare some of the story with other historians' interpretations, but as much again or more was completely new to me.  As a result, I was never quite sure when Grave was being controversial or otherwise (subsequent reading has been rather eye-opening!), but, bearing in mind that I needed to take everything with a pinch of salt, I was happy to roll along with the narrative. 

Whatever the truth or otherwise, the story itself did become rather overwhelming at times - or at least the bloodshed did.  Not that Graves indulged in gore, far from it, but basically anybody who was anybody whatsoever seems to have got killed off (Livia, the second wife of Augustus, being the exception it seems, mainly because Graves reckons she was responsible for most of the killing!). I know it was historicaly based, but it did get rather monotonous and predictable.

However, Claudius himself was a fascinating character - I was particularly intrigued by the way Graves managed to turn (twist?) the story to make him the 'good' protagonist.  That alone made it worth reading, but even without that, I found myself more and more immersed and less and less willing to put the book down - so overall a good read, although I was one of only 3 amongst the group of 9 who positively enjoyed this choice.

 

Six Lives of Fankle the Cat by George Mackay Brown *****

Having read and really enjoyed Beside the Ocean of Time for a book group read, I was keen to follow up on some of his other prose.  This was the only one available through our library service, so, even though it is strictly speaking a children's book, I took it on loan.  

Well, it might well be labelled a children's book, and I am sure a relatively young child would read and enjoy it, but there is actually far more here than that genre allocation would imply.  Somewhat like the previous read, it's basically a series of short stories linked together by a narrative thread, and it works a treat.  Brownis primarily a poet, and each story reads almost like a prose poem; his language flows beautifully. I'm not normally a fan of short stories, but this bridges the divide so well, with the overall narrative arc of a novel satisfied, whilst each chapter/verse work on its own.  There is also a wonderful sense of place, and the characters, even those on the periphery, come alive in just a few phrases.

I'm turning into a real GMB fan - and will just have to buy the books given the lack of library material. A writer who I am delighted to have discovered through my book group - which is after all half the point, isn't it?

 

Mrs Moreau's Warbler by Stephen Moss ****

I was given this book by a neighbour recently who, being a Guardian newspaper on-line supporter, had received it as a freebie.  His words were pretty much, "Here, I've just finished this, really enjoyed it, and think it'll be right up your street."  Of course, he was right.  I've read books by Stephen Moss before, and he's one to look out for - straightforward and well-balanced, and very informative.  Always an easy read, and this was no exception.

Essentially, the book looks into the history of how birds get their names , in particular at those people, mostly ornithologists, after whom birds are named (there is, indeed, a bird called Mrs Moreau's Warbler). It was particularly interesting given that one unwritten rule is that you can't name a bird after yourself - so a fair bit of story was based on the links between those who did the naming and those whose names birds now carry.

There is a lot of fascinating material in this book, even if, I would guess, you're not a bird fan - it's as much about the development of our language (and some histories are not quite as obvious as one would think - eg the derivation of blackbird....no, I'm not going to explain it, but it's not just because the male is black!). I was certainly enthralled.  Trouble is, it's all too easy to forget too - there's so much and my detailed retention isn't what it should be. But, then, unlike my neighbour, I'm not going to give this book away - this is definitely one to sit to hand on the shelves and be dipped into and referred to. 

 

So...those three reviews get to me to the beginning of August.  Hope to get a few more done of this month before we move into the next month. Finger crossed!

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  • 1 month later...

More Book Reviews

In my last post (a month ago!) I commented that I don't think I've ever been quite as behind on my reviews.  Well I have now!  Almost two months behind now, to be precise.  So, to try and catch up at least a bit, a series of mini-reviews, the following covering all those books read in August (an unusually prolific reading month for this time of year)

 

Stasiland by Anna Funder ****

In post-unification Germany, the author investigates what life was like in the old East Germany.  Having grown up with East Germany and the Iron Curtain the norm, and having read a number of books,  I thought I was reasonably aware, at least as much as anybody who didn't experience it first hand, but, of course, I wasn't (and almost certainly am still not), but this was an eye-opener.  1984 in real life. The book gripped throughout, although  there were times when it seemed to bump around, a bit like railway carriages being shunted - or at least that's how it felt!  A book that needs to be read though.

 

Dynasty by Tom Holland **

The story of the early Caesars, of the Julio-Claudian dynasty.  I struggled with this and didn't finish it: far too sensationalist in style, ridden with cliches and woolly generalisations.  Not a patch on his brother's work. I should have known - it received a rave review from Boris Johnson in the Daily Mail; 'nuff said.

 

A Walk Along the Wall by Hunter Davies ****

Hunter Davies explores Hadrian's Wall.  Read whilst staying virtually on the wall (overlooking Vinlandia, and the vallum at the bottom of the drive!), and four days to explore the area, this was a readable account that proved all the more interesting at being some 40 years old - both for the contrasts and the similarities.  I'm not always at one with his opinions, but there was much that provided interest and education.  It certainly proved a welcome companion.

 

A Death in the Dales by Frances Brody ***

Fairly straightforward, pleasantly readable, murder mystery set in the Dales using real settings apart from individual buildings (an OS map proved a welcome accompaniment!).  A  holiday read, one I will probably follow up on simply because of the locations (the jury's out on the characters), but not a huge much more than an enjoyable time filler, not that there's anything wrong with that! 

 

The Descent of Man by Grayson Perry ***

The central premise is of the damage to men and the rest of us by over-masculine expectations, a premise that I completely agree with.  Unfortunately, it all felt a bit muddled, and lacked flow - it so needed some clear structuring - probably a stronger editor.  In such a short book there should be no need for repetition, and there was plenty!

 

The Beginning of Spring by Penelope Fitzgerald *****

Comfortably the best book of the summer season.  British ex-pat, Frank Field, has in fact been born and brought up in pre-WW1 Russia, where he still lives and runs a business.  The story opens with his wife taking off, nobody quite knows where, leaving hime to cope with household and work.  Will he? There's plenty of misunderstandings and misadventures on the way.  Fitzgerald apparently nails the setting (or so the experts say - I'm certainly not familiar with Russia, but it feels very real) and the characterisations are, as ever, beautifully drawn in minimal fashion, accepting the fact that one or two appear deliberately to be more caricature than 'real'.  As is typical with Fitzgerald, events conspire to spiral (almost) out of control - and there are one or two slightly surreal moments - with a final sentence ending that is distinctly unexpected.  As one reviewere so appositely put it: "By the time you reach the end of the journey, you're not quite sure where you've been or how you've ended up here, but you're sure it's been a worthwhile experience"!

 

Felicie by Georges Simenon ****

Characterisation, atmosphere, setting are always top notch, the variations in star ratings really down to plotting.  This one was OK, but didn't quite work for me as well as other Maigrets.

 

Pandemic 1918 by Catherine Arnold ***

Fascinating subject, with huge implications for today, but disappointingly handled here.  Too repetitive and disjointed, with plenty of dramatic scenes but little sense of overall development or chronology.  Several writers suggested trying an alternative history, Pale Ride by Laura Spinney. I will!

 

This Is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay ***

The author is a comedian, but ex-doctor, and this purports to be his diary from the days when he was working in hospitals.  A strong dose of black humour and anecdotes, as one would expect with this format, with an underlying message that tells of the stresses on the people who make up the NHS, and the damage caused by politicians.  I have complete sympathy with the points he is making, but I have to admit I found the book itself increasingly tedious, mainly through its repetitiveness - one story after another with no sense of development or progression until the denouement at the end, where it did seem to come together at last.  Read for my book group.  There is a sequel coming out, but I won't be bothering.

 

Billy Liar by Keith Waterhouse ***

A reading group choice, I was really looking forward to this.  However, slim as it was, I found it hard work.  Occasionally gently humorous, it on the whole felt simply dated, whilst most of the characters were not particularly likeable, or even relatable to.  But then I was never a fan of the whole genre of 1950/60s and later northern working class novels, from the Angry Young Men to Kestrel for a Knave, and this seemed largely to occupy the same sort of slot, even if trying to apply humour rather than anger!  As other reviewers have said, this is one of the rare occasions where the film is better than the book.

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9 hours ago, willoyd said:

Stasiland by Anna Funder ****

In post-unification Germany, the author investigates what life was like in the old East Germany.  Having grown up with East Germany and the Iron Curtain the norm, and having read a number of books,  I thought I was reasonably aware, at least as much as anybody who didn't experience it first hand, but, of course, I wasn't (and almost certainly am still not), but this was an eye-opener.  1984 in real life. The book gripped throughout, although  there were times when it seemed to bump around, a bit like railway carriages being shunted - or at least that's how it felt!  A book that needs to be read though.

 

 

I'm glad you liked this so much. Stasiland was the book which really sparked my interest in all things Cold War related.

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2 hours ago, Brian. said:

 

I'm glad you liked this so much. Stasiland was the book which really sparked my interest in all things Cold War related.

 

I can see why.  What I didn't mention, but which was very pertinent to its strength, was how personal it was.  It was the anecdotal experience that really drove the issues home, and not just of those who were glad to see the back of the old GDR.  Obviously, one needs the more scientific evidence based history, but it's the anecdotal stuff that makes it 'real'.

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September reading

Continuing in my efforts to catch up on reviews, a set of mini-reviews covering my September reading.  September has traditionally been a poor month's reading for me, mainly because it's the first month of the academic year, and I haven't had much time to read with school work predominant, but that's changed the past couple of years!  Five books in the month represents one of my best Septembers, especially as it included the chunky Old Curiosity Shop.

 

The Ionian Mission by Patrick O'Brian ****

The eighth volume in O'Brian's substantial 'extended novel', covering some twenty volumes, about the adventures and relationships of brothers-in-arms, Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin, sees the pair return to the scenes of their first meeting in the Mediterranean, this time extending into Greek waters, thus the title.  The quality of writing, the characterisation, and the sense of time and place, are as great as ever - this really is an outstanding series - but the book itself felt rather transitionary, almost like the middle volume of a trilogy. Thus, a good read, but not as great as some of those that have gone before, although I am no less keen to continue the series!

 

Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers ****

The first Lord Peter Wimsey novel, and a decently satisfying one, this is a fairly traditional pre-war whodunnit, with what feels like a tad more depth in character and body than the average.  Perhaps not quite as engaging as the only other Wimsey I've read to date (Nine Tailors), but an enjoyable introduction to the character, one that confirms that the other Wimsey novels are worth following up. 

 

The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens ***

After a five year hiatus (where has that time disappeared to?!), this represents a resumption of my chronological reading of all the Dickens novels.  It was good to sink back into his rich loquacity, and rediscover some of his brilliant characters, but this was definitely a novel of two halves, running side by side.  On one side is the story of Little Nell and her grandfather, as they lose the shop and venture out into a wider world beyond London; on the other is that of Kit and others trying to track them down, set mostly in London itself.  I so much preferred the latter, populated by a range of classic Dickens characters, villains and heroes alike, some almost absurd in their grotesqueness, others straightforwardly human.  In the meantime, the former was burdened down by Dickens's huge blindspot, his complete inability to 'write' a heroine, with Little Nell almost buried under the gushing sentimentality that Dickens is all too prone to when it comes to writing about (young) women who aren't 'characters' - something that seems to have influenced his relationships with women in the real world too, reflected by the fact that apparently Nell was modelled on his much lamented sister-in-law. 

The result was a novel where, for the first time with Dickens, I found myself wanting to skip pages, and where I internally groaned or sighed with relief at the end of each chapter depending on the switch of narrative in the next.  Another result was that, frankly, I almost cheered at the outcome!  Not the best of his novels to date, in fact my 'least favourite', although I did very much enjoy half of it, and loved the Charles Keeping illustrations that punctuated the edition I read - his work is perfect for Dickens!  Barnaby Rudge next; it had better not take another five years to get around to this one!

 

The Eight Week Blood Sugar Diet by Michael Mosely ***

Read as part of my background reading to the dietary changes I've taken on this year.  Much of this made a lot of sense, although there's no way I'm going down to the calorific levels he advocates (and now don't need to).  It's also a bit thin on the background science, with one or two important loose ends left dangling, not least the role, and control or otherwise, of carbohydrate in his regime, given that this is about reducing blood sugar levels.  Maybe he believes that weight loss alone will effect the changes needed (by losing visceral fat), and that subsequent blood sugar levels aren't an issue?  I don't know, and that's the problem. Needs to be more specific and more detailed.

 

Inspector Cadaver by Georges Simenon *****

I'm not sure why I write a separate review for each Maigret story (this is number 25, or is it 26?), they are all of such a consistent standard.  Having said that, this was a slighly more satisfying plot than some, so earns itself an extra star.  Compulsive reading, and a good way to finish the month off.

 

 

 

 

 

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Book acquisitions.

I've not listed my acquisitions for a while, so a list to update with those from the last three months; it's quite a long list, including a batch of biographies  (listed separately).  Most are charity shop purchases - there are a couple of really good ones specialising in books near us.

 

Fiction

Vinland - George Mackay Brown

Magnus - George Mackay Brown

Shorter Fiction- Edith Wharton

Ventoux - Bert Wagendorp

Science Fiction - HG Wells

The Overstory - Richard Powers

A Love Story - Emil Zola

Mason and Dixon - Thomas Pynchon

Once Upon a River - Diane Setterfield

 

Biography and Memoir

John Clare - Jonathan Bates

Einstein, His Life and Universe - Walter Isaacson

John F Kennedy, The Unfinished Life - Robert Dallek

George Eliot, A Life - Rosemary Ashton

Thomas Cromwell - Diarmid MacCulloch

Inheritance - Dani Shapiro

In My Mind's Eye - Jan Morris

First Man - James Hansen

 

Other non-fiction

Sextant - David Barrie

The Way We Eat Now - Bee Harrison
Curlew Moon - Mary Colwell

The Wandering Vine - Nina Caplan

The Fatal Shore - Robert Hughes

Ventoux - Jeremy Whittle

A Short History of Europe - Simon Jenkins

Divided - Tim Marshall

Kings of the Yukon - Adam Weymouth

The Dark Valley - Piers Brendon

Berlin 1961 - Frederick Kempe

The Body - Bill Bryson

Quiet - Susan Cain


 

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Two classics

 

The first few days of this month saw me read two somewhat different classics back to back:

 

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier *****

This was a book group choice.  In fact it was my nomination, because, believe it or not, I've actually got this far in life (mature adulthood shall we say?) without reading this classic of mildly gothic mystery, and I thought it about time I put that right!

 

Even though I've not read it before, the first line is all too familiar - it's one of the greats.  But that's about as far as I've ever read, or at least as far as I knew - the only other prior piece of trivia knowledge being that we never learn the name of the narrator (although we do find out that her name is often spelled incorrectly). In fact, my only reading experience of du Maurier at all has been Jamaica Inn, from a couple of years ago.  I very rapidly realised, that this was a completely different animal, as we are plunged into a dream sequence that beautifully establishes setting and atmosphere.  From here on, even in the rather toe-curling presence of Mrs van Hopper and the clear light of the Mediterranean that takes up the rest of the early chapters, there is a rather unsettling background chill and direction. 

This is one of those books where to know anything beyond the absolutely barest of introductions would ruin one's initial reading.  It's a book that I will almost certainly go back to - the writing alone is worth that - but it'll never be quite the same.  I'm not normally a fan of plot driven novels, and to a large extent this is not one of those, with the characters (and I include the house of Mandalay as a character!), their traits and interactions (with other characters and the setting) at the very heart of everything that happens, but the plot is an important element (du Maurier balances the three story elements - plot, setting, characters - superbly), and the twists and turns not only kept on coming, but, even more important, never felt contrived - they were a natural extension of what was happening, what had been established, and, perhaps most importantly, who was involved, even if our eyes were opened to their real natures.

What I will say about the book is that it does develop slowly, deliberately so. Time is definitely needed to create the platform upon which the second half of the book depends and from which it suddenly takes off and accelerates away, fast.  That's not to say it's boring in the early stages - it is anything but - but be prepared to hang on tight later on.

I usually hate 'psychological thrillers' (actually any sort of thriller!), and some may not regard this as such, but it is a model of how to write one. Plot, setting and character development all combine superbly to create a story that kept me on the edge of my seat, and totally immersed in the narrative.  They also led to one of the longest and most rewarding discussions of a book in my book group we've had - there is a lot there!  Little wonder this is widely regarded as a 'classic', it's an outstanding read even if it doesn't quite make my favourites list.  5/6 stars.

 

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton ***

For a writer of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Wharton, at least on the evidence of this, the first novel of hers I've read, reads very much like a modern author, suffering none of the verbal convolutions that some of her prestigious contemporaries do (Henry James jumps to mind!).  Ethan Frome, a short novel of barely one hundred pages, thus initially comes over as a rather simple tale, not particularly attractive at that, one which, in its early stages, left me rather unimpressed (struggling farmer with hypochondriac wife falls for wife's younger and destitute cousin who is brought into the household as a live-in servant).  However, as the story progressed, it also began to grow on me rather more, even if I neverquite felt  fully engaged.  We have some knowledge of the conclusion - we're effectively told much of it in the opening pages with the bulk of the novel told in extended flashback - but, of course, we find that it isn't the whole story.

It's often been described as an unremittingly grim book; being short and a reasonably accessible classic it is apparently regular on school study lists in the US, and other reviewers suggest that is has a certain reputation as a result.  It may well deserve that reputation, but as a study of the nature of human relations and how material and mental constraints can frustrate irrational optimism, it deserves to be read, but maybe needs to be left until later in one's own development.

 

(This was the 14th book in my tour of the United States, representing Massachusetts.  This review as written a few weeks after finishing the book. Another, more immediate, reaction is on my Tour of the US thread in Book Challenges, here )

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On 28/08/2019 at 4:59 PM, willoyd said:

I Claudius by Robert Graves ****

This month's selection for one of my book groups, although it's been on my bookshelf for years waiting to be read!  I never saw the TV serial, so have had nothing to prejudice me either way, other than having read Graves's autobiographical Goodbye to All That - which I actually can't remember much about.

The premise is that the Roman Emperor Claudius's autobiography has been discovered, and it gives a rather different perspective on the history of the Caesars to what is conventionally included in histories.  Of course, we're seeing it from Claudius's point of view, so things may not be quite what they appear.  However, Graves/Claudius makes a convincing story, the first part of Claudius's life up to the point where he is acclaimed Emperor being covered in this volume, with his imperial life the focus of the next volume, Claudius the God

This took a bit of getting into.  The style is fairly old-fashioned, at times almost plodding, even pedantic, but with some persistence it gradually grew on me.  I knew enough of some of the history to be able to compare some of the story with other historians' interpretations, but as much again or more was completely new to me.  As a result, I was never quite sure when Grave was being controversial or otherwise (subsequent reading has been rather eye-opening!), but, bearing in mind that I needed to take everything with a pinch of salt, I was happy to roll along with the narrative. 

Whatever the truth or otherwise, the story itself did become rather overwhelming at times - or at least the bloodshed did.  Not that Graves indulged in gore, far from it, but basically anybody who was anybody whatsoever seems to have got killed off (Livia, the second wife of Augustus, being the exception it seems, mainly because Graves reckons she was responsible for most of the killing!). I know it was historicaly based, but it did get rather monotonous and predictable.

However, Claudius himself was a fascinating character - I was particularly intrigued by the way Graves managed to turn (twist?) the story to make him the 'good' protagonist.  That alone made it worth reading, but even without that, I found myself more and more immersed and less and less willing to put the book down - so overall a good read, although I was one of only 3 amongst the group of 9 who positively enjoyed this choice.

 

If you enjoyed reading this I can recommend the BBC series.

 

Although it has dated, and is a little bit old school - in that it was filmed entirely in the studio, there is no location filming like you would get today - that kind of works in its favour because it feels like a piece of theatre. 

 

It also has an outstanding cast (and one of the most shocking scenes on TV I think I have ever seen).

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23 hours ago, Raven said:

If you enjoyed reading this I can recommend the BBC series.

 

My library has a a copy of the DVD, so I intend to watch it in the not too distant future.  As you say, the cast looks amazing.

 

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The Making of the British Landscape by Nicholas Crane ***

This should have been good, very good.  I've previously enjoyed the author's work, both as a writer, and as a presenter, and here he's writing about a subject he obviously knows well, a subject which I've always had a particular interest in.  It should have been a no-brainer.

 

I certainly enjoyed much of the writing, Crane writes in an easily readable style, I learned a lot, and I never didn't want to finish the book, which is why it just about scraped 3 stars rather than anything lower, but beyond that this was a distinct disappointment.

 

First and foremost: Nicholas Crane is a geographer, a fellow of the RGS, indeed he's currently its president.  He's writing about a strongly geographical subject.  So what is the primary tool of the geographer?  The map!  This book was absolutely crying out for maps and diagrams - every page provided an opportunity, indeed required their use.  Yet there was not a single map in the entire 517 pages of this book.  Their omission was stark, staring bonkers, and horribly, horribly, obvious.  I managed to compensate a bit by sitting next to my laptop and using the OS map app, but there were plenty of times when it didn't really work, and anyway I shouldn't have had to, but that's how desperately this book needed them.  There was a good selection of colour photos, both relevant and usefully illustrative, although even here the publishers couldn't get it totally right, and managed to reverse one of the images completely (aerial view of Edinburgh).  Typos abounded as well.

 

Equally, there are no footnotes.  That was a deliberate exclusion apparently, to enable the 'clean story' to be told, but that meant that no quote was attributed and no theory or evidence was substantiated, no specific follow-ups provided.  Weak.

 

The book is very southern orientated, indeed it's heavily loaded towards London, to the extent we get individual streets mentioned where some cities barely get a look-in. The author does attempt to justify this in places (massive population compared to elsewhere, where most migrants arrived, blah, blah, blah) but the fact is that every time we reverted to London I found myself groaning internally (and I am a bit of a London history geek).  This was exacerbated by the fact that the main concentration in terms of landscape influences was on the built environment.  Thus, pages of technical detail on prefab and other cheap post-war housing, yet no mention of the Forestry Commission or the impact of shooting estates as a couple of examples.

 

Two other characteristics also niggled.  The first was that in all the chapters on historical influences, little mention was made, if any, of their impact on the modern day landscape. So what is left today?  How did things affect the landscape today?  If this is the 'making' of the British landscape, then in what ways did all these factors actually influence the landscape we see today?  We don't know (again, maps would have helped!).  The other is that the author developed the horrible habit of not actually telling you the modern day name of locations discussed, or leaving them until right at the end. It wasn't so bad when, for instance, talking about a small Pennine village called 'Hutherffeld', we're not given its modern name until the third reference 50 pages later, as guessing that he's talking about Huddersfield is fairly straightforward, but other ancient names are more obscure (Bremischam?), especially where there is no geographical context provided.

Overall, this book proved easily readable, and there was much in the text that made the read worthwhile, but as a book it was unfortunately spoiled by too many omissions and irritations .  When I compare this to outstanding works such as WG Hoskins's Making of the English Landscape, Eric Wood's Historic Britain and, one of my all-time favourite non-fiction books, Oliver Rackham's History of the Countryside, there, frankly, is no comparison, and this book falls badly by the wayside.  I also have Francis Pryor's book of the same title to read; it'll be interesting to see how it measures up, but, just glancing through, it does at least include maps. Good grief, what were Nicholas Crane and his publishers thinking about?!

 

 

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Great review of Rebecca, Willoyd. I must must must read it soon, though from what you've said I'm assuming having seen the old black and white film will spoil it somewhat. I'm currently enjoying Du Maurier's Frenchman's Creek at the moment. I'd recommend My Cousin Rachel as another of hers you might enjoy: an intelligent and well written dark romantic drama with a touch of the thriller about it (without being overly thriller-ish).

 

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1 hour ago, Madeleine said:

I agree with you re My Cousin Rachel, very much a psychological drama, Frenchman's Creek is much lighter than Du Maurier's usual work.

 

Yes FC is quite a light read actually, more of a romantic adventure story so far.

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On 27/10/2019 at 5:16 PM, ~Andrea~ said:

Great review of Rebecca, Willoyd. I must must must read it soon, though from what you've said I'm assuming having seen the old black and white film will spoil it somewhat.

 

Thank you.  Having not seen the film, I can't help much, but my experience is that if I've seen film adaptations prior to reading the book, I'm almost always pleasantly surprised as to the extra depth/detail and more complex narrative of the book - films by their very nature have to miss out so much. From what I've been told, I do know there is at least one very significant difference between film and book, which does put a different complexion on things. 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Reviews of October books (second half).

I do seem to struggle keeping up with these - so another batch of mini-reviews to bring me up to the start of November.

 

Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar *****

A biographical novel (or is that a novel biography?) of the Stephens sisters: Vanessa (later Bell) and Virginia (later Woolf) told through Vanessa's totally fictional diary (she never kept one) and other Bloomsbury Group letters, postcards etc - all equally fictional. This is important to remember, as it would be (and was) very easy to slip into believing this telling to be real.  It isn't, very deliberately so, and tells the story of their relationship in the decade from around 1905 from a very specific point of view - Virginia's jealousy of Vanessa's marriage, relating it to her mental health issues and personal insecurity.  Vanessa is very much the 'good' half of this relationship too.

Having read Hermione Lee's substantial (and superbly readable) biography, this came as some surprise, but whatever the verity of this perspective, the book itself was beautifully written and enthralling - one I struggled to put down.  I also loved the style (epistolary), and the piecing of the story together from the 'evidence'.  Really only missed out on a full 6/6 because I did have concerns about the angle taken, and the danger of it being somewhat unfair to some of the characters involved.  However, it was a fascinating take, and a lovely read.

 

Icebreaker by Horatio Clare *****

The author spends some time on a Finnish icebreaker working the upper reaches of the Gulf of Bothnia midwinter.  A fascinating insight into the work (both of icebreaker and the ships for whom they work), the lives of the crew, and the environment they work in, inevitably linked in with the increasing effect of climate change.  Read in only a couple of sittings.

 

Black Diamonds by Catherine Bailey ***

Read as a book group choice. Purporting to be the story of the 'rise and fall of an English dynasty', the research that went into this large (almost 500 page) tome was indisputably awesome, and the material presented was never less than interesting.  A wee bit more accurately this should have been 'the decline and fall', as the rise occured decades well before the start of the period she covers.  However, even then, this would not have been completely accurate as thrown in with the story of the Fitzwilliams and their loss of Wentworth Woodhouse was loads of other social history, centred on the surrounding Yorkshire pit villages and the coal mining industry in general.  For me, the author wandered round far too much, diving off at tangents, getting bogged down in unnecessary and often trivial detail (often whilst 'painting' pictures), whilst overloading on the melodrama (and repeating herself).  She had a good story to tell, but needed a good editor to help her stay focused - very much my feelings after reading her other big tome 'Secret Rooms' last year.  I was in a minority in my group on this one, most of whom thought it excellent social history, although I never though it poor enough not to want to finish it - just more soap opera than history.

 

Dolly by Susan Hill ***

Read as a book group choice.  Fairly slim volume.  Bog standard, and rather cliched, ghost story fare: isolated and bleak location (fens)? check; grim weather? check; orphan? check; spoiled child? check; single elderly relative (aunt)? check;  grim, suspicious housekeeper? check; spooky doll? check; mysterious toy shop? check; and so on and so on.  Maybe slightly different combinations, but whilst this was never less than very readable (this is Susan Hill after all), it was all so utterly predictable.  Three stars, rather than two, for the readability, but half a star for originality.

 

Dissolution by CJ Sansom ****

The first in the Shardlake series, and a reread as want to get my teeth into the series but couldn't remember how the story panned out (read about 10 years ago).  Cracking read, lots of atmosphere, believable setting and characters.  I like the fact that, by modern standards, Shardlake is at times somewhat unsympathetic (hardened Protestant reformer), whilst remaining a human being.  If had any doubts about reading others in the series, this certainly removed them.  Looking forward to the next one.

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo ******

I picked this up to browse in our local bookshop simply because it had won the Booker - I'd not even heard of it before the announcement, although I had come across the author before.  Within a few seconds, I was reading avidly, found myself buying a copy there and then, taking it home, and carrying on!

 

Written in 12 chapters, each focuses on one individual, all women, mostly black, all linked, even if some of the links are more tenuous than others.  Across the twelve they vividly describe what life is like in Britain for them. There is no overall plot as such - although there is a distinct narrative - but through these twelve lives the author vividly describes what life in the UK is like for these women. 

 

I'm not always at one with the judges in the Booker (that's an understatement!), but on this occasion they hit the nail absolutely smack on the head: this is simply superb. The writing is lively, lyrical, even uplifting. the characters come brilliantly to life, almost literally bursting off the page.  It's one of the most exhilarating reads I've had in a long time. Oddly enough, one aspect of this that I thoroughly enjoyed almost put me off even starting: there is virtually no full stop anywhere. Instead, the author uses paragraph breaks as her primary punctuation, which initially is quite off-putting, but which you soon realise actually helps her develop a more poetic tone, enabling her to more effectively control the rhythms of reading. I found it very different, but very soon really enhancing the reading experience.

 

In short, this is a serious contender for my book of the year.  If it's even half as good, The Testaments must be pretty special too!  I'm sure it is, but I have a strong suspicion (having dipped into the latter), that I'm actually not completely at one with the Booker judges this year either!

 

 

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