Stuart Aken's Blog, page 295

Summer Idyll with Weapon of Mass Destruction.

This is one of aseries of blog posts under the heading of #100blogfest.
After war reduced our city home torubble, we lived in a converted wooden railway wagon, perched on cliffsoverlooking the sea on the coast of East Yorkshire. A paraffin hurricane lamplit the main room where our parents slept after we were in bed; candlesilluminated the rest. Oil in drums fired the cooker. There was no electricity,and therefore no TV. It was heaven.Our makeshift home on its metalwheels stood two paces from the cliff edge. A mile north lay a shallow ravineguarded by tank traps; though we had no idea what they were. Over a dozen hugerough concrete cubes wedged lopsidedly in soft yellow sand: giant sugar lumpsforming a playground for fantasies of every kind. My big brother could scale thelowest blocks without help. The rest of us needed hands below or above; both inmy case. Long evenings in May, June andearly July were our favourite times. The beach was ours until summer holidaysbrought day-trippers with soft-soled feet and skin that reddened under sun. Noshoes for us. We walked the beach to school and swam in surf until winterturned the blue-brown sea grey. Even at that age, I tended to thestudious and would take a library book with me. I'd rest my back against atilted block of sun-warmed concrete and lose myself in words. Sometimes I readalone: often I relayed printed words to those who gathered round to listen. Andmy imagination led our games of make-believe as I transformed the monstrousblocks into pirate galleon, tree house, warship, fort or forest as the playrequired.  One bright soft day of ripplingon-shore winds, a sphere of black corroded metal washed in on gentle waves, itsrusting spikes menacing. There was enough of the sinister in that orb to makeus wary. But my brother, defender of the gang, saw it off with a long barestick of driftwood and pushed it back out to sea. The tide returned it. Charlie, the skipper of an ex-armyamphibious landing craft, had been at Dunkirk and often regaled us with talesof the landings, as he treated us to free rides in the bay before the summerhordes arrived to pay their fares. He seemed to come from nowhere that day,long white mane flowing behind him. He grabbed my brother's stick and pushedhim away. 'Leave it! Get away from 'ere, allo' you! Bugger off. Go on! Or you'll not ride Duck again!'Charlie never raised his voice orshouted. This rage was alarming in a man respected for his gentle ways. But histhreat to stop our rides in his DUKW was enough to make us leave, puzzling athis strange behaviour. Later, describing the scene to parents and learningtheir alarm, we understood how kind Charlie had been to chase us off. Next day, we occupied the cliff topand watched soldiers build walls of sand around the mine, whilst one brave manfastened wires to its bulk. The explosion, even at that distance, hurt ourears. It scooped a crater big enough for us to hide in, till the sea invadedand removed all trace.These blogs are all about fun and sharing.Thank you for reading a '#100blogfest' blog. Please follow this link to findthe next blog in the series: http://martinkingauthor.com/blog/7094550076

The Jawbone Gang, by Penny Grubb, Reviewed.

The Jawbone Gang, thethird crime novel by Penny Grubb to feature her P.I, Annie, brings more insightinto the complex character of this Scot, working in the city of Hull and thesurrounding East Riding of Yorkshire for this story. Penny's familiarity withthe area and some of its less well-known parts, adds detail to the text, as shehas her sleuth investigate, work and relax. The plot of the novel takes on unexpectedtwists, with secondary characters and events weaving complexity into the story.Penny deals with reallife issues in her detective series, eschewing gloss and glamour to give herreaders insights into experiences closer to home. Her descriptions entertainwith their detailed vibrancy and her characters leave the page as real people.She builds tension convincingly and the air of menace that prevails on herprotagonist at key moments is skilfully contrasted with more basic dailyworries assailing Annie as she attempts to modernise the agency in spite of thecomplacency and indolence of her bosses.The denouement isexpertly handled, with the near chaos of a local event acting as bothbackground and pivot to a conclusion that has the reader turning the pages todiscover the outcome. If you haven't read anyof Penny's crime novels, I urge you to do so. And, if you have, you'll find TheJawbone Gang as intriguing and enthralling as the other two.   

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: in or at?

So, do you write: 'She's in Australia.' or 'He's atMelbourne.'?
Fowler, in his 'Modern English Usage', which, by the way,was first published in 1926 and (for my edition) last revised, withcorrections, in 1974, has a little to say on this issue. He quotes the OxfordEnglish Dictionary, that unquestionable authority on matters of Englishlanguage, as suggesting that 'at' should be used of all towns except the capitaland that in which the speaker dwells, if of any size. But he suggests that thisis too narrow a usage and goes on to say that we now speak as readily of being 'in'any town as we do of being 'at' it. He goes on to say that any difference, ifit actually exists, lies in the fact that 'in' suggests something beingphysically within, whilst 'at' does not. His given examples are as follows:'New College is in Oxford.''The new term at Oxford begins this week.'And I have no argument with that analysis. However, it doesn'treally answer the question adequately and I wonder if it really comes down to amatter of taste.
I would never use 'at' to describe someone being in anytown. Always preferring 'in' for this sort of sentence; thus:
'I live in Driffield.' 'The Tower of London is in London.'  'Billy does his studying in Belfast.'
And I would generally use 'at' when referring to some placewithin the town; thus:
'I shop at Driffield market.'  'Parliament sits at Westminster, London.'  'Billy studies at Belfast University.'
I hope this helps, but I suspect that both locally andglobally there are colloquial takes on this usage. I suggest you adopt the formthat most pleases your ear and hope that it doesn't offend those of yourreaders.
Pic: A small valley in East Yorkshire, called Deep Dale.

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: Sobriquet

Sobriquet: noun – anepithet,  nickname.
Sobriquets are nicknames that most people know when they comeacross them; common examples are:
'The Big Apple' for New York City.'The Iron Lady' for the disastrous former British PrimeMinister, Margaret thatcher.'Auntie/Aunty' for the British Broadcasting Corporation or the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.'The Bard' for William Shakespeare, possibly the world'sgreatest playwright.'The Big Yin' for Billy Connolly,a very funny Scottish comedian.'The Boss' for BruceSpringsteen, a great US musician'The City' for the City of London, which is the central businessdistrict of London or for San Francisco, California'The Dark Continent' for the muchneglected and exploited continent of Africa'The Fab Four' for The Beatles,possibly the most famous pop band ever.'The Golden Bear' for Jack Nicklaus,the American golfing hero'The Great White North' for Canada; nosurprises here, especially for those who live there.'The Holy Land' for Israel / Palestine;possibly the least appropriate sobriquet, given the determination of itsinhabitants to continue an unholy fight that could have ended decades ago withthe application of tolerance and common sense.'Joltin' Joe' for Joe DiMaggio,USA Baseball playerand former husband of Marilyn Monroe'The King' for Elvis Presley,a very popular rock artist from the States.'The Land of the Long White Cloud'for New Zealand;a meteorological reference to possibly the world's most picturesque collectionof islands.'Madge' for Madonna; a singularly terse name for one ofpopular music's most enduring and creative artists'Old Nick' for Christianity's Devil; a mythical creationdeveloped to frighten the gullible by those who wish to have power over them.'Pommy', 'Pom' for an English person;Australian name,vaguely affectionate except when preceded by 'whingeing' or succeeded by 'bastard''The Red Planet' for Mars; a result of theplanet's appearance when viewed through a telescope'Satchmo'for Louis Armstrong; possibly the greatest jazzmusician to come out of the USA'The Smoke' for London; and nolonger appropriate, since the pollution has largely disappeared'The Sultan of Swat' for Babe Ruth,a Major league Baseball player from USA 'Tinseltown' forHollywood,California, USA, where triviality and superficiality reign supreme'Tricky Dicky' for Richard Nixon,37th President of the United States, after his involvement in the Watergatescandal'Westminster' for the British Parliament,because of the location of the Houses of Parliament.'Yankee' for an American of European ancestry unsympatheticto the South, originally only from those states that fought the Confederacy inthe Civil War but now from any non-Southern state. Used outside the USA for anyAmerican, along with 'Yank' and often derogatory.
2 August 1911 Einstein urged all scientists to refuse to domilitary work.

Pic: A track just outside North Dalton, East Riding of Yorkshire.

New Source of Books from Emerging Writers

Developed from a Facebook group , a new website for readers to find new books from emerging writers has opened today at  http://www.book-junkies-library.com/  . The Book Junkies Library is a brand new venture, featuring writers of all genres and pointing the their books. Visitors can quickly choose an author from those listed and the link takes them to a page describing their book(s) and giving links to those places where they can be bought. It serves as a jumping off point for readers looking for something different. Have a look and decide whether there's anything there for you.

For published writers, this is another opportunity to spread the word about your books.

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: Fabulinus

Fabulinus: this is another of my occasional gods from thevarious religions of the world; listed in the hope that those who don't knowmight become acquainted with both the variety and the history of religiousmyth.
Fabulinus, as you've no doubt guessed, was a Roman god. Hewas considered responsible for the first words of a child and offerings weremade to him on the occasion that a child first spoke. Although a figure fromthe popular religion of ancient Rome, he failed to appear in literary Romanmythology, but was one of the 'little gods', dear to the Roman home. Thesesmall gods were placed on the sacred list of the Indigitamenta, and invoked tohelp on special occasions.
Pic: Barley mixed with wheat.

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: Historic or historical?

Historic: adjective- famous or important in history; having great and lasting importance; known orestablished in the past; dating from or preserved from a past time or culture.
Historical: adjective- of, relating to, or having the character of history; based on history; usedin the past and reproduced in historical presentations; famous in history.
As can be seen, there is a slight element ofinterchangeability here. However, the primary use of each of these alternativesis as follows:
If it's historic, it's something of note that happened inthe past.If it's historical, it's something based on the past.
So:
'The Battle of Trafalgar, culminating in the defeat of theFrench and the untimely death of Admiral Lord Nelson, was an historic event inthe Europe of the early 19th century.'
'Jean Plaidy is a well-known writer of historical novels.'
Pic: A field of ripening barley.

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: Roman a clef

Roman a clef: This is French for 'a novel with a key', anddescribes a novel about real life, overlain with a façade of fiction. Fictitiousnames actually represent real people, and the 'key' works through therelationship between the reality and the fiction. This 'key' may be producedseparately by the author, or deduced through the use of literary devices like epigraphs.
Examples of Roman a clef novels are:
Glenarvon (1816) by Lady Caroline Lamb: chronicles her affair with Lord Byron,who is thinly disguised as the title character.The Carpetbaggers (1961) by Harold Robbins: fictionalizedversion of Hollywood exploits of Howard Hughes and actress Jean Harlow.The Ghost (2007) by Robert Harris: the character of AdamLang is loosely based on former Prime Minister Tony Blair. The Ghost Writer isa movie by Director Roman Polanski who turned the book into a film with PierceBrosnan playing the character. 
Pic: Farm drive above North Dalton, East Yorkshire.

A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin, Reviewed.

A Game of Thrones, fantasy in thestyle of swords and dragons, transcends the genre on a number of levels. Imaginativeuse of the conventions allows aficionados to appreciate the set pieces, whilstgiving rein to a wider range of events than is commonly the case in such works.The cast of characters is extensive and the names link well with the feel ofthe novel: that feel is mediaeval, without being specific to any country'shistory. This is a tale of knights, jousting,battles, tourneys, sword play and courtly honour in all its variety. But themany 'Houses' of power and influence that drive the various story themes ofintrigue, plotting, ambition and duty, are each representative of the majorcharacteristic of their 'heads'. So, the Starks are as much driven by duty asthe Lannisters are impelled by ambition.Behind and beneath the layers ofstory that pit knight against knight, King against usurper, is a greater andvery much older power. As petulant youth defies wise maje, the power gameproceeds, teaching lessons to those with the humility to learn.This book is the first in a seriesand cleverly ends by bringing several climaxes together, whilst introducing anelement that lets the reader know there is much more to come. The denouement,whilst inevitable, comes at a pace that takes away the breath. I look forwardto the sequels.I read this novel on holiday inCrete, on my Kindle. The one missing element that would have made the read moreinteresting and rendered the plot easier to follow, was a map of the fantasyworld. I can only hope that Amazon get their act together and make thepublishing and viewing of such maps easy in the near future.

Stuart's Daily Word Spot: Early

Early: adjective -designating, belonging to, existing or occurring close to the beginning of a timeperiod, e.g. morning, day, evening, etc.; belonging to, designating, orrelating to the initial phase of an epoch, personal development, history of apeople, or the world etc.; ancient; at the beginning in serial order; happeningbefore it is too late; arriving or occurring before the due time; former,foremost, first in time.
'Unable to sleep, Gloria spent the early hours watching thesun rise blood red from a field of pinks, oranges, flame and gold.'
'Harold was so nervous about being late for his interviewthat he turned up an hour early and had to kill time in a local café, drinkingcopious amounts of coffee.'
Pic: Staithes, North Yorkshire.