Stuart Aken's Blog, page 17
October 15, 2023
Elusive Folk Tales of the Peak District, by Mark P Henderson: #BookReview.
Having read Mark’s novels, Perilaus II and Con, I was keen to see what this collection might have to offer. I was not disappointed. The variety is wide-ranging from the darkest and most murderous to the lightest and most laugh-out-loud humour. I read this under a hot sun in Greece, but could feel the damp, …
Continue reading Elusive Folk Tales of the Peak District, by Mark P Henderson: #BookReview.
October 14, 2023
#ScenicSaturday 14th October 2023
My photos in this continuing series show our beautiful world. Maybe I can encourage viewers to help save it from human carelessness. I was unable to post one of these for last Saturday. We’d just returned from a two week break from online activity, and also had our ‘Flu and Covid boosters on the Saturday. …
October 13, 2023
The Umbrellas of Hamelin, by Sue Knight, Reviewed.
Literature? Fantasy? Science Fiction? Magical Realism? All of these appear in this anthology of remarkable short stories. Sometimes the style borders on the surreal, sometimes stream of consciousness is employed, but all the tales are imaginative and thoughtful, managing to capture mood and emotional turmoil, some are terrifying cross-genre pieces that stir emotions and ideas. …
Continue reading The Umbrellas of Hamelin, by Sue Knight, Reviewed.
October 11, 2023
Riding the High Road, by Penny Frances: #BookReview.
Through the varied voices of Pat, a mother with a difference, her son, Gethin, and Jez, a young woman with a troubled past, we take journeys both intertwined and separate as they try to come to terms with their own lives. This is a turbulent ride where love, gender, complex relationships, drugs, and alcohol all …
Continue reading Riding the High Road, by Penny Frances: #BookReview.
October 9, 2023
Do You Remember the Barn Owl? by Barbara Lorna Hudson: #BookReview.
This collection of short stories, which vary in length and style, reflects the skill and themes of interest to the author. It’s a diverse array, well-written and constructed, and includes some stories that have been previously published in various literary journals. There is great variety here, with many subjects and themes explored, always with emotional …
Continue reading Do You Remember the Barn Owl? by Barbara Lorna Hudson: #BookReview.
September 30, 2023
#ScenicSaturday 30th September 2023
My photos in this continuing series show our beautiful world. Maybe I can encourage viewers to help save it from human carelessness. Today I give you a shot taken on Lake Maggiore in Italy in September 2018, when we celebrated our 30th Wedding Anniversary. We’d booked our tickets for the voyage at the office in …
September 23, 2023
#ScenicSaturday 23rd September 2023
My photos in this continuing series show our beautiful world. Maybe I can encourage viewers to help save it from human carelessness. Today’s photograph is from our trip to the Isle of Wight in September 2021, after a longish spell of lockdown due to Covid. The hotel was still recovering from that event and many …
September 16, 2023
Is Amazon’s Book Search Algorithm Deliberately Rubbish?
This is an update on a post I placed on Medium called ‘Searching On Amazon’ I’d found a book on Goodreads that seemed something I might be interested in, so I used Goodreads’ buying link to take me to it on Amazon. It took me nowhere near the book I wanted. So, I searched for …
Continue reading Is Amazon’s Book Search Algorithm Deliberately Rubbish?
#ScenicSaturday 16th September 2023
My photos in this continuing series show our beautiful world. Maybe I can encourage viewers to help save it from human carelessness. Today, brings a photograph of a lone tree standing in arid ground and giving shade for sheep on the Greek island of Rhodes. Our walk, in September 2017, took us from Pefkos to …
September 14, 2023
Tatty Cat and the Wonderful Whiff, by Mella May, Illustrated by George Utton: #BookReview.
74 pages, Children’s Books A riotously illustrated book for children telling a hilarious tale of mischief in rhyme that works surprisingly well.Children will love this story of the tatty cat in pursuit of a whiff of such tempting delights he’s willing to risk all sorts to get to the source and dine on it. The …
