Michael J. Ritchie's Blog, page 19
February 13, 2021
“Black Dogs” by Ian McEwan (1992)
“Ever since I lost mine in a road accident when I was eight, I have had my eye on other people’s parents.”
Ah, the black dog. This was the term that Winston Churchill gave his depression, and it’s since entered the public sphere and become a regular term for it. As someone who has struggled with his black dog during the last year, I wondered whether it was right to pick up this book now. However, I can’t ever resist an Ian McEwan novel for long when it’s on my shelf, so it seemed right.
Our narr...
February 10, 2021
“Let’s Do It” by Jasper Rees (2020)
“She had an adoring female audience long before she drew her first breath.”
There are few people I admire and adore more than Victoria Wood. To my money, the funniest writer we ever had, and probably ever will. After forty years in the spotlight, she died aged 63 – far too young – leaving behind a body of work that would be impressive at a tenth of the size, and more ideas that we would never get to see. She was one of those who died in 2016, the year many of our cultural touchpoints left us, bu...
February 5, 2021
Six Of The Best … Podcasts You Need To Know About
When I’m not reading, I’m powering through podcasts at an astonishing rate. I love a good podcast, and there are so many amazing ones out there to get through. Obviously I’m a fan of the big players – Answer Me This, My Dad Wrote a Porno, No Such Thing as a Fish – but already in just a short few years, the podcast world has become dominated by big names and those with the star power and funding to advertise themselves heavily. What else are you missing?
Here are six podcasts that I don’t see peo...
February 4, 2021
“The A. B. C. Murders” by Agatha Christie (1936)
“It was in June of 1935 that I came home from my ranch in South America for a stay of about six months.”
When explaining to my girlfriend about this book last week, she mocked me for claiming that every time I pick up an Agatha Christie, I say, “It’s one of Christie’s best”. I won’t be saying that come the ones from the seventies, but back in the thirties, she was at her peak. They’re all wonderful right about how. On with one of the best…
When Captain Hastings returns from Argentina to do busin...
February 3, 2021
“Stranger Than We Can Imagine” by John Higgs (2015)
“In 2010, the Tate Modern gallery in London staged a retrospective of the work of the French post-impressionist painter Paul Gauguin.”
Ah, the twentieth century. Some of us are still not quite comfortable with the fact that it was over twenty years ago. As it recedes into memory, history and legend, what do we remember about it? I was only around for the last twelve years of it, so I don’t think it’s my place to start analysing the whole damn thing. Fortunately thousands of history books have be...
January 27, 2021
“The Seven Doors” by Agnes Ravatn (2019)
“Berg slinks along the walls, just as the two surveyors did the week before.”
I missed the influx of Nordic noir that took the world by storm last decade, which may seem surprising given my fondness for a good crime story. Something about the Nordic regions lends itself rather well to the mystery genre. The countries are cold and dark for great swathes of the year, there’s a certain mystery about the places, and they’re supposed to be very happy and settled nations, which makes the cold-bloodedn...
January 22, 2021
“The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t With Her Mind” by Jackson Ford (2018)
“On second thoughts, throwing myself out the window of a skyscraper may not have been the best idea.”
Telekinesis is one of the staples of the superhero genre. Being able to move things without touching them has always seemed like a neat power to have. You could pick up cars and throw them at whatever villain is coming your way, and then when you get home you can grab a beer without getting up from the sofa. In this fun novel, we find out what the realities are of having such a power.
Teagan Fro...
January 17, 2021
“Diary Of A Somebody” by Brian Bilston (2019)
“My resolution will be diarised.”
Remaining as I do somewhat sceptical of poetry, it’s refreshing to find someone who makes me appreciate it. Brian Bilston, although he really remains something of an enigma, is the man to do that. Last year I read a book of his poems and adored them for their blend of silliness, creativity and intelligence, so I thought I’d embark on the novel, which gives a fictional biography to the man himself.
Brian Bilston is in a job he hates, with a small social circle, a...
January 14, 2021
“Red Rosa” by Kate Evans (2015)
“Saturday, March 18th, 1871. The people of Paris rise up and seize control of their city.”
Women have been shunted from history for as long as there has been history. While we could probably name a decent number of leaders, writers and a few scientists, I bet very few if any of us can name a single female philosopher. I certainly couldn’t before this week, which is why I’m grateful for Kate Evans and her exploration of the life of Rosa Luxemburg.
This beautifully illustrated graphic novel tells ...
January 10, 2021
Top Ten Books of 2020
In no particular order, here are the ten best books I read in 2020.
1. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
We find our heroine serving as a companion for the bad-tempered and status-obsessed Mrs Van Hopper in Monte Carlo. She finds herself interested in the quiet, brooding gentleman who dines next to them every night. Mrs Van Hopper informs her that this is Maxim de Winter, who owns the exquisite country seat of Manderley and has never got over the death of his devoted wife, Rebecca. By the time the ho...
