Angury

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Milkman. Interestingly I find stream of consciousness novels difficult to get on with as well but loved Milkman. What did you think of the overall plot and how the story dealt with The Troubles?

Once again I am getting ready to move house; the third time in two years. Having packed and re-packed the same things, finding random pieces of paper under my bed and unopened notebooks lying in the corners, I've decided to [try and] go paperless. I recently bought the Notability app for my iPad and this started off my journey. I am now able to scan documents using just my phone or iPad, edit them online which includes writing on them with my Apple Pencil () and store everything that is important in my life on Google Drive where I know they won't become lost. Even better, I can take them with me everywhere just by carrying my phone. I started by scanning all my important documents on to Google Drive. Some of these are documents I need a paper copy of anyway but I'd rather have both. I then changed all my magazine subscriptions to online-only, and my bills to paperless (which most of them are anyway). I am currently studying a part-time LLM in Mental Health Law so I now upload all the books I need as eBooks - which again I can edit using my Apple Pencil (). I read all my lectures online and save them on my Google Drive. I've started reading almost all my books on my Kindle although do prefer to keep paper copies of my favourites as I like having a pretty bookshelf. Finally, I've turned to Google Calendar for my everyday life and this fantastic app called Notion for basically everything else; to-do list, recipes, finances, inspiration, books to-read etc. And now I feel so light. I never realise how many unread magazines and notebooks I have until I start to pack, but I hope this will help to keep all that hoarding at bay. I've also found it so, so much easier to keep everything online. Anyway, I wanted to hear other people's experiences. Are you guys paperless? Half and half? How do you organise your lives - diaries, calendars.. nothing?

What is it about that quote that stands out to you as unique? (Not arguing with you, just interested in your point of view!).

Apologies, I didn't clarify the context. The article was for a question entitled "What is the purpose of children?" So I wasn't arguing against having children, I was talking/writing about their purpose in modern society, which from my PoV is to give meaning to our lives, but that meaning can come from a lot of different places and as more people receive these opportunities we have less children. That was the gist of the argument anyway. I have now added a new author to be favourites list - James Baldwin. Not sure if any of you guys have heard of/read his work, he seems to be quite well-known. I came across his book "Giovanni's Room' in Waterstones. To be honest the two main things that struck out were 1. How short it looked (I was travelling at the time) 2. The cover: How can that not attract your attention? I'm a sucker for book covers. Anyway, I read it during my train journey and was hooked. I've never had such a quick journey before. The writing is eloquent without being overly detailed and the characters are vivid. I found Baldwin was particularly good at iliciting emotions from the reader; despite such a short book you become very involved in the story. The novel is a tribute to the power of words imo. After this first date with Baldwin I picked up 'Go Tell it on the Mountain' which is one of his more popular books. Again, the writing is exquisite and I've underlined several sentences that are unique and create such a vivid image in your head. The plot reminds me of The Grapes of Wrath by Steinbeck and I can see why it's such a famous book. Anyway, I had initially moved on to 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn' by Betty Smith which is a book that has been on my TBR list for a long, long time but then came across this: I don't read self-help books but one of the Youtubers who I follow recommended it. He said that it motivated him to go from being a typical university student to taking the leap and sharing his creative work online. I think this is a fear many people identify with, and despite the advantages of the Internet it is daunting to open your work to others. So I'm in between two books at the moment which is what I normally do anyway. I often have certain 'reading moods' - for example, I might have a day where I feel like reading a story and will turn to Smith's novel and other times where I feel like I can't concentrate on a plot and want to read something in non-fiction. Not everyone seems to read multiple books on the go though - would love to hear what other people do!

As you've said, at the moment it would be better if we adopted/fostered children who have no family of their own rather than have children ourselves. I basically argue that the purpose of having children for (some) people is to have meaning in their lives and is a selfish act (which is not a bad thing!) but that you can find meaning in your life in other ways as well.

I thought the finale was magical. It tied together loose ends without making things appear dramatic; despite the end of the series it felt like the characters lives were just beginning. Lovely music, beautiful scenery and some nostalgia from the first series.

Well my argument was mainly against having children so may be a bit unpopular. I just finished reading Becoming by Michelle Obama. I'm not one for autobiographies and even less enthusiastic about celebrities but I came across an interview with Michelle and became drawn in to what she was saying about life as a woman/ethnic minority/from a poor background and the constant question through life of "am I good enough?" This is exactly what her autobiography covers. It's not an advertisement of her glamorous life in the White House or her celeb friends - it's a very touching and personal book about what it means to grow up being loved and fighting the stereotypes from others and ourselves. I think a lot of us can empathise with her. My next to-read is Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. I actually have no idea what it's about - it just came up on my Instagram feed and the reviews are overwhelmingly positive so I thought I'd see what all the hassle was about.

Who's excited?

Quite a lot of fans are annoyed about Jaime abandoning Brienne and returning to Cersei (as it's 'not in his character') and Cersei's death (I think they wanted something a bit more horrific for her). I actually really liked the fact that Jaime returned to Cersei. I feel like having him 'go to the good side' and completely change his path is so.. cliche? Cersei is one of my favourite characters in GoT; I think she is very complex and clever to have lived so long as a woman in that world. Arya though.. I feel she's too easy to like..

Thanks vodkafan! I have just finished reading 'A History of Capitalism according to the Jubillee Line' by John O'Farrell. It's a short fiction novel that uses a story of being trapped in the london underground to explain the idea of capitalism. It's brilliantly written and hilarious. You can easily read it in a day and I would highly recommend it to anyone who just needs a bit of a laugh (and to learn a bit about capitalism as well). I've got my eyes on 'How we Think' by John Dewey which I might read next. I've got a few novels on my TBR which I've been wanting to read for a while so it's a bit of a balancing act deciding what to read next. On the other hand my writing is coming along nicely. I have just had another article accepted for publication in a journal which was a nice confidence-boost and am just finishing an article for a magazine which has an upcoming themed issue entitled 'What is the purpose of having children?' which made for some fun writing!

I haven't heard of those two books before - interesting reading your review. Which psychotherapy books have stood out for you?

I decided to take a break from non-fiction and read some short novels. The first was Sum: Stories of the After Life by David Eagleman which was incredible. It is filled with 40 very quick and simple stories about what the afterlife might look like. The stories not only reflect the lateral thinking of Eagleman's mind but also make you pause about your own goals and dreams: would things really be better if you got everything you wanted? The book is a reflection of the type of stories I would love to be able to write; unique, creative and insightful. The second novel was just as good: Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. It tells the story of a man with the IQ of approx 60-70 who dreams of being smart. He undergoes a scientific experiment where his IQ progressively gets higher and higher. The novel is written via 'progress reports' which the protagonist writes himself. The writing style changes as his IQ becomes higher and higher; vocabulary, punctuation, grammar all change but so do his views on life and the people around him. It's actually a very sad novel but one that is told so beautifully. I have come across some fantastic books this year even though it's only March. My writing is also growing. I have written 8 articles in the past month, some of which I have submitted to magazines etc. I'm really enjoying myself and have got myself into a routine where I write everyday. My aim is for my writing is: 1. To get published in a magazine 2. To complete a short story Reading-wise, I am just about to start The Colors of Purple by Alice Walker and then possibly move on to some short stories to get some inspiration & delve into the genre a bit more. 

I always recommend Lydia Davis for short stories. She is one of the most original writers out there and the winner of the 2013 Man Booker International Prize. Shes' been described as 'the master of a literary form largely of her own invention.' Some of her stories are only a sentence or paragraph long - I have always been fascinated by Davis's ability to play with words. I don't think I've ever read a writer like her. You can find some of her short stories online if you want to get an idea of her style before diving in.

I've just finished reading both the guidebooks to Wittgensteins Tractatus & Philosophical Investigations and the original works themselves. It was far easier that I expected it to be; the guidebooks were very clearly written and I don't think I would have been able to interpret the original works without them. They also offered stimulating discussion points which I've still been pondering. What struck me most about Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations is not so much the content but the way he goes about arguing his point. It's a different way of thinking i.e. understanding the meaning of a word based on how it is used and the idea of language games themselves. Particularly interesting is the link (or lack thereof) between language and our representation of the world. It certainly brings a different perspective on the idea of Newspeak from 1984. I have now started reading A Very Short Introduction to Philosophy of Science by Samir Okasha before moving onto Thomas Kuhn and Karl Poppers works. This all makes me feel rather intelligent..

Thanks Hayley! I've just finished reading Wittgenstein's Tractatus with the help of two guidebooks: A Very Short Introduction to Wittgenstein By AC Grayling and a Companion Guide written by Michael Morris. Wittgenstein was a philosopher who wrote about the philosophy of language and how it relates to reality. It's a very interesting field of study and while I had read around the subject I felt too daunted to read the original works themselves. The Short Introduction & Companion Guide were fantastic though, and not only helped me to understand what Wittgenstein was actually saying, but also gave me an idea of how his works have affected the world today and continue to do so. There are a number of areas of philosophy which I have read around (a little) but have always felt too daunted to read the original works. This has now given me a bit of a boost. I've made a little collection of works which I now would like to finish by the end of this year: Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations alongside a Companion Guide (I will be reading this next). Kuhn's Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and Poppers three works: Realism & the Aim of Science, The Logic of Scientific Discovery and Conjectures and Refutations alongside the short introduction books of science. Idealism: A History of Philosophy & Routledge Guidebook to Berkley's Three Dialogues (with the original works) alongside the short introduction series to Berkley, Heidegger, Hegel & Schopenhauer. Barthe's Lovers' Discourse & On Fine Writing, Nabaokov's Lectures on Literature alongside a Companion Guide on Derrida's Deconstruction and the short introduction series on Critical Theory, Structuralism & Post-Structuralism & Hermeneutics. What an exciting year it's going to be..

Hi Abir. Interesting list of books so far. What type of genres do you enjoy reading? I have to say, To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my all-time favourite novels. I've read a couple of the others on your list but can't say I was a big fan otherwise.

Oh dear. What made you disappointed with White Teeth? It's on my TBR. I have such started both the Tractatus by Wittgenstein and the Routledge Companion Guide at the same time to hopefully help me understand what I'm reading.

A PhD on Finnegan's Wake! That sounds like a great conversation starter. Do you find you're still able to enjoy reading works which you are also studying? (Just curious as I did very badly in English Literature!) Anyway, welcome to the forum - I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

I was hoping to bring this fascinating discussion back to life. I have had my eye on Ulysses for a while now but I am in two minds; should I try and read Ulysses 'on my own' or with a companion guide? I've heard that Ulysses is best enjoyed reading aloud and taking in the prose. But I'm also aware it's a book I will stumble over and having a companion guide as back up might be helpful. Any thoughts?

I've got some days off and was planning on diving into my books but am really struggling with Elliot's Adam Bede.

I've spend two months on my A&E rotation so far and it has given me a lot to reflect about. I find myself becoming more and more distant as a doctor and seeing patients in the terms they present in e.g. 'headache' 'abdominal pain' etc. I have so little time to see each patient and so many to see that in a way I think this is a defence mechanism. This ties in quite closely with the book Milkman that I just finished and our discussion above. It's interesting to have such a different perspective when you're so far away from the action. Having had these thoughts swirl around in my head for a while, I decided to write them down. Now, more than ever, I feel like I view the human body as a machine more than anything else. I never thought I would say that. Fluid goes up and down and round and round, in the hole and out the sides, down the glass and past the eyes, Side to side and up and up, I watch the bubbles as they fall, numbers rise and fingers flash, wires stiffen and alarms go off. Here I stand with skin and blood, the pulse of man beating through the mud, liquid squirts and curtains wobble, shoes slide on floors as blue men struggle. Here I stand in the land of men, tools in hand as God repents. https://www.angury.co.uk/the-mechanic/

Yes, I think that had a lot to do with it. There are some strong characters in the books and I think their identities do come through, but you don't really feel close to them. It almost feels like the people the narrator is talking about aren't really people.. like they don't matter.. which I guess is what the author was aiming towards. It's incredible how Burns was able to do all this through such simple language. I think the novel is a testament to the power of language.

Your comment actually got me thinking Hayley. As I was reading the book I didn't feel like it was a sad or difficult read. I can't say I felt many emotions at all. Thinking about it, I'm not sure if it was because of the style of writing - informal and from the perspective of someone for whom this is normal - or my own desensitisation. I think it's mainly the style of writing, which again makes it such a good book. And it's only after you made that comment that I realised, hang on! this is actually a horrific topic to write about! I think I found To Kill a Mockingbird more emotional as we were viewing the world from perspective of an innocent child whilst still holding our own understanding of the past. Whilst with Milkman I felt that I was really drawn into the plot and things like segregation and sexism were normal in this world.

What an inspiring read; especially the encouragement for writers. It's interesting to hear things from a publishers perspective and how they work. Thanks for the interview Hayley, it has stirred my thoughts.

I just google'd this - it's exactly the type of thing I'm looking for, thanks Hayley. I've just bought it so I'll let you know my thoughts soon.