Andrea Montgomery's Blog: Andrea Montgomery's Blog, page 3

James by Percival Everett

James by Percival Everett is the retelling of a story first published in 1884 – Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain – only this version tells the story from the point of view of Jim, the runaway slave who accompanied Huck on his adventure.

Telling the story through Jim’s eyes brings a whole new perspective to this classic story and pulls no punches in recounting what life was like for an African American slave in the early nineteenth century. But as always, Everett’s sharp wit als...

Having Writer’s Doubt

I seem to be having a minor attack of writer’s doubt.

I am just over halfway through the first draft of my current w.i.p (work in progress), a historic fiction novel, and just as I’m nipping at the heels of the novel’s biggest story arc, I find myself almost scared to commit word to screen.

I can’t decide if it’s because I’ve done so much work leading up to this point that I’m now anxious I’ve got here before I’m ready or if I’m worried that my skills as a writer and a resear...

The Kindness of Strangers

“…I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” Blanche DuBois, A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams

We should have been home by now, sharing a bottle of beer and reflecting on what a grand day it had been. Instead, we’re standing by a busy road less than five miles from home with a shredded front tyre and no spare.

Walking in the Quantocks & Bossington

We had spent the morning with one of my cousins, Jax, following a delightful trail along the Coleridge Wa...

Read Carefully

How many times have we seen the imperative ‘read carefully’ on medication instructions or an installation guide? I can only speak for myself here but when I see those words, I immediately concentrate harder than I might otherwise have done to ensure I don’t miss some vital piece of information.

But do we make the same effort to read carefully when we pick up a novel?

Write Carefully

Any author who uses writers’ forums or goes on writing courses will tell you that editing is ...

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

I often rue the turning of the final page of a novel, but in this case, the end came long before I was ready to accept it. At just 114 pages of good-sized print, Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan is just a novella yet its impact is larger than many novels four times its length.

I was not familiar with Keegan’s work at all before I read this Booker Prize 2022 winner. Now I’m on a mission to read as much of her writing as I can get my hands on.

Synopsis of Small Things...

Why Camping is So Addictive

W hen I was in my twenties, camping did not appeal in the slightest. “If I can’t plug my hairdryer in, I’m not going,” was my mantra.

Then in around 1988, Jack and I were persuaded to spend an August weekend under canvas in Builth Wells, mid Wales. We bought a festival tent, a camping stove, and a couple of canvas chairs and pitched on a small site just outside the town. That night, it rained heavily.

By morning the campsite looked like a wet Glastonbury and everything we had...

A Stormy Night at the Vienna Mozart Orchestra

It was the night of the Vienna Mozart Orchestra Concert, a night I had been looking forward to ever since we booked our trip and, having been disappointed with dining choices to date, we had decided to try a Middle Eastern restaurant in easy walking of the venue. The weather forecast had been warning us all day that a storm was coming and would hit the city around 3pm and last for an hour. All day the storm clouds gathered but nothing happened and eventually the clouds dissip...

Impressions of Vienna

Beginning in Vienna and travelling by train, in early July Jack and I toured three European capital cities. We spent four nights in each city which gave us three full days and one-half day to explore at leisure. I have no doubt there are many more things we missed than things we found but these are my impressions of each city, starting with Vienna.

Things I loved about Vienna:Art & Architecture

It’s impossible to describe the size and grandeur of the Imperial Palace, Burggar...

Small Island by Andrea Levy

Small Island by Andrea Levy is essentially about the Windrush generation and how their lives were affected by their decision to make their home in Britain.

Centred around Jamaican, Gilbert Joseph, and his new wife, Hortense, who arrive on our shores with hearts full of hope and expectations straight from the fairy tale book of life, the harsh reality of living in post-war Britain shatters their dreams. Believing they were part of the British family, they risked and sacrificed...

Stockport Isn’t Sh*t

“Where are you from?”

“Stockport.”

Sharp intake of breath… “Unlucky. I suppose someone has to be.”

“That’s a bit rich coming from a Scouser…”

And so began my uneasy relationship with Ken. To be fair, he had a point.

G rowing up in the South Manchester mill town whose industrial revolution wealth came from the high-quality silk produced in its ‘dark Satanic mills’, and whose town centre air had a permanent whiff of sour hops billowing from Fred Robinson’s brewery, I loved grow...