Sue Fairhead's Blog, page 16

A Family Affair (by Mary Campisi)

(Amazon UK link) Over a decade ago I downloaded the ebook ‘A Family Affair’ by Mary Campisi for my Kindle. I regularly used to check the free offers, and was happy to try new authors that sounded interesting if they offered their books at no cost. 
However it’s taken me this long to decide to read it. It’s the story of a young woman called Chrissie - she’s in her late 20s and works as a businesswoman in Chicago, for her father’s company. We meet her in the first chapter as she’s deciding whether t...

The Naughtiest Girl is a Monitor (by Enid Blyton)

(Amazon UK link) I re-read ‘The Naughtiest Girl in the School’ by Enid Blyton a few months ago, after starting to read it to my granddaughter. Then I read its sequel, ‘The Naughtiest Girl Again’ in June. I’ve just finished reading the third (and last) in the original series, ‘The Naughtiest Girl is a Monitor’. 
I didn’t have much recollection of this book, which I probably haven’t read in thirty years or more. Just that Elizabeth, the hot-heated rebellious girl of the first book has been made a ‘m...

My Man Jeeves (by PG Wodehouse)

(Amazon UK link) I was introduced to PG Wodehouse by my father when I was in my early teens. Like him, I immediately loved the ‘Jeeves’ books. Set in the early part of the 20th century, they feature the independently wealthy, kind-hearted and somewhat gormless Bertie Wooster. They also feature his highly intelligent valet Jeeves. 
Since these books are now out of copyright, I have downloaded many of them from Project Gutenberg, and often read one of them on my Kindle when I’m travelling. I decided...

Midnight Train (by Sally Quilford)

(Amazon UK link) I have a large collection of Kindle books by Sally Quilford, most of them downloaded free when she made them available as a special offer. I usually read at least one when I’m travelling. This time I decided that ‘Midnight Train’ looked interesting; I acquired it eight years ago but had not previously read it. Apparently it was originally published as a magazine pocket novel.
I had no idea what to expect, as the author writes in a variety of genres. I quickly discovered that this ...

Pat of Silver Bush (by Lucy Maud Montgomery)

(Amazon UK link) I first read LM Montgomery’s book ‘Pat of Silver Bush’ twenty years ago. I liked it sufficiently that I tried to find the sequel, but it was out of print and hard to source. So I forgot about it. However, I managed to download the books for my Kindle, so have just finished re-reading ‘Pat of Silver Bush’. I had entirely forgotten what it was about, and had no recollection of any of the characters other than Pat herself.
The book is set on Prince Edward Island in Canada. Pat Gardin...

A Man Called Ove (by Fredrik Backman)

(Amazon UK link) Nearly two years ago I read the book ‘Anxious People’ by the Swedish author Fredrik Backman. In discussion with the local book group, I learned that they had previously read another book by this author, ‘A Man Called Ove’. They had all liked it, and were pleased that it was being made into a film starring Tom Hanks, albeit moving the setting to the United States and the name to ‘Otto’. 
So when I saw the book available inexpensively for download on my Kindle, it was an easy decisi...

A Little Princess (by Frances Hodgson Burnett)

(Amazon UK link) As a child, I had a short book called ‘Sara Crewe’, which I read regularly. It wasn’t until I was in my teens that I learned that the author, Frances Hodgson Burnett, had written a much longer novel called ‘A Little Princess’. I read it then, and don’t recall if I read it again as a young adult. The last time I know I read it was in 2004. 
Since I had a version of this book on my Kindle, and like re-reading children’s classics from time to time, I decided to read ‘A Little Princes...

Ivy Lane (by Cathy Bramley)

(Amazon UK link) On the whole I’ve liked the books I have read by Cathy Bramley over the past few years. So when I saw ‘Ivy Lane’ available inexpensively for the Kindle, it was an easy decision to download it. I’m away from home at present, so my Kindle is invaluable. 
Ivy Lane, like many of this author’s books, was apparently written in four separate parts as ebooks. I would have found it a bit frustrating reading just one part at a time, so I always make sure I acquire complete editions. But it’...

The Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass, Christian Speaker, aged 45 3/4 (by Adrian Plass)

(Amazon UK link) I recently re-read Adrian Plass’s original ‘Sacred Diary’ trilogy. I have loved them since I first read them in the early 1990s, and dip into them regularly. I find them funny, poignant and thought-provoking every time. So it was evidently time to re-read the first sequel, ‘The Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass, Christian Speaker, aged 45 ¾’.  I last read this in 2014.
The idea of the book is that the fictional Adrian Plass has decided to resume his diary, charting a few months in the ...

Abba's Child (by Brennan Manning)

(Amazon UK link) I always appreciate the thoughtful books written by the late Brennan Manning. I have acquired many of them over the past couple of decades, and every so often I re-read one of them. Recently I’ve delved into ‘Abba’s Child’, which I last read in 2014. It’s a tad heavy-going in places, so it’s taken me a few weeks but I finished it this morning.
The subtitle is ‘The cry of the heart for intimate belonging’, and that’s really the theme of the book. Manning’s books mostly focus on the...