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| unknown
| May 04, 2023
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it was amazing
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For the purposes of transparency, I'll state that I've been anti-monarchist for my entire adult life. It is with the death of Elizabeth that I became
For the purposes of transparency, I'll state that I've been anti-monarchist for my entire adult life. It is with the death of Elizabeth that I became ardently anti-monarchist. I wish Smith's book had been around much earlier, I would not have wasted time waiting to take up the cause; I would have started years ago. Even in my most evangelical of days as a teenager (I really must have been insufferable in my religious fervour) I could see that the belief the monarchy was somehow 'God-given' was simply not true. There is no biblical basis for it whatsoever. Charles, even before Diana's death, was clearly a selfish fool and his father was already infamous for his foul faux pas. In more recent times we've seen Charles can't even deal with a pen without having a hissy fit. But I held off any strong public declaration of wanting to see the monarchy abolished out of respect for Elizabeth whom, I had already been led to believe, was doing a great service for the country in all the work she did with leaders around the world. Plus, there were always the arguments that the monarchy bring in huge revenues in tourism and that the British public overwhelmingly loved the royal family. And in the end, they don't have any power, surely, so it does no harm to keep them. All good stuff, right? Wrong. Graham Smith's book systematically dismantles all the classic arguments including those I've mentioned above. With accurate statistics, primary source material and interviews where he and his team have faced up to the relevant authorities and gleaned the truth out of them, Smith demonstrates how all the classic excuses for keeping the monarchy are not just mistaken - they're plain wrong. I found myself saddened that I waited so long to join groups like Smith's Republic. I should have done this years ago. Elizabeth was not doing the good work I thought she was, and in all this time, the royal family have definitely wielded power. But it isn't that any of them did anything bad, per se - although Smith points out that at times they definitely did - it is that there is no moral, economic, political or even historical reason why we need to keep this corrupt institution in place. Indeed, if anything, it is imperative we get rid of them as soon as possible. The monarchy, Smith argues, is hindering our democracy. If there is a weakness, in my view, where Smith can be attacked, it is in the presentation of an agenda for change and how our constitution can be prepared for a republican democracy. He sets out a vision for the future that I could see easily dismissed by critics because he isn't a politician and so can't possibly know how the parliamentary machine could work. Just for fun, I looked at some reviews criticising this book. In every case it was obvious the reviewer had never read the book at all and had just decided that Smith must have ignored all these classic arguments (because they're so strong, right?). But in most cases too, they accused him of offering no alternative - again showing they hadn't read the book - but also showing his outline for the future isn't a weakness at all. It is exactly what royalists are claiming isn't possible. They're wrong, and Smith's notions are compelling. Again, he draws on primary sources to demonstrated that the shift from monarchy to republic would be a relatively simple task. It is hard not to be convinced. This book then is the ultimate tool for anti-monarchists like myself to use. My only wish is that the author will produce a cheat sheet of all the stats and arguments summarised and ready to either draw on - when doing demonstrations or in discussions on the streets - or, better still, commit to memory. Luckily I have a book which will help anyone wanting to do that! Perhaps what is most encouraging about this book is Smith's arguments against the contention that most people want the monarchy to continue. The figures have come down over recent years so that even royalists admit it is close to half the country wanting to be rid of the institution. Their argument is the old classic 'now is not the time' when it comes to demands for a referendum. Wait until the consensus is much greater and don't make a fuss now, they argue, ignoring the fact that much of the change in opinion has come through the efforts of people like Graham Smith, campaigning for years. Smith counters this argument brilliantly in essence showing that there is a great difference between being actively in favour of something and passively being ok with it continuing. This is the crux of the matter: it is likely that those who truly want to keep the monarchy are actually now in the minority. So the time is now, Smith tells us. He's not wrong, and this book is the weapon you need if you want to join the growing call for ending this abhorrent institution. ...more |
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Sep 23, 2023
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Kindle Edition
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| 0008378274
| 9780008378271
| 0008378274
| 3.88
| 333
| unknown
| Feb 07, 2023
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really liked it
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I'm not a great fan of 'self-help' books when it comes to medical or mental health. Often they fit in the same category of new-age books by self-style
I'm not a great fan of 'self-help' books when it comes to medical or mental health. Often they fit in the same category of new-age books by self-styled gurus who spout, at best, pseudo-science and, at worst, complete bullshit. But this book caught my eye. Firstly, it is written by an actual expert - the author is a former clinical lead for the UK's NHS. For me, this is just about as high a credential as you get. It means he isn't just some academic expert teaching it at university and therefore probably rather distanced from the realities of therapy. This is a guy who used to walk the walk and be in charge of a team of others who did the same. To be a clinical lead usually takes years of experience and O'Kane certainly has that. This is no pie-in-the-sky theory. Secondly, this fits with my views of therapy - very much as espoused by Jeffrey Masson in his classic 'Against Therapy' - that often the 'traditional' therapy sessions are not really that helpful if the therapist becomes a crutch and the patient/client doesn't own their own progress to towards recovery. Most decent holistic practitioners will, these days, attempt to guide their clients towards finding their own solutions and restore themselves. In other words, empower the client rather than dominate in the client-therapist relationship. The therapist does this by training the client in techniques and guiding them to shift their perspectives and reframe situations: in essence the very things O'Kane teaches in this book. And thirdly, there is a real crisis of need in the NHS right now with nothing like enough therapists. I have to speak personally here although I have friends in the profession who confirm the situation. I have experienced extreme trauma twice in my life (possibly three times but two more or less came together). The first time as in my late childhood and early teens. The second was about nine years ago soon after returning to the UK from living in Bangladesh. Both will be separate books one day - they are on my hitlist to write. The latter trauma didn't just affect me. It took down my entire family. All of us ended up having separate therapy sessions. We needed help immediately, but it didn't come. We all had to wait many weeks, if not months, for sessions (my son is only just getting them now, nine years later despite best efforts). When they finally come, you're limited to just a handful of sessions - typically three I think - and that's it. And in my case, I got a change of therapist after the first session because the original one had moved on to another job elsewhere. I never finished my sessions; they were a waste of time. In effect, what I ended up doing is exactly what I had to do the first time: I fixed myself. It helps that I am trained in psychology and counselling so I do have a good understanding of the principles although I am no expert by any means. I function well and lead a pretty contented life thanks to my own ways of learning to deal with things. That doesn't mean it is perfect though. There are still certain kinds of stressors that bring me down. I still get occasional bouts of what I call 'the black dog'. I know how to make it sit and not cause any damage, but still it can hang around for several days before going away again. I don't know if I have the resilience to cope with anything majorly traumatic happening again in my life. I hope I don't get to find out, but it does worry me. So, O'Kane's book looked a good fit. Techniques I could use for myself, at home, without need for therapy sessions impossible to come by and probably not appropriate anyway. I don't need recovery work; I could do with maintenance and strengthening. That's just what O'Kane promises. He stresses the need to seek professional help if you are going through intense trauma. He does not claim his book can help those in desperate need. This book is aimed at people like me: needing someone to talk to but functioning just fine in general. O'Kane is partly successful. He offers short mental work outs that are supposed to happen through the day - namely beginning, middle and end of your day. They are mostly reflections on aspects of the day - the good, the bad and the ugly, as it were - and allow you to focus on what you need to reframe the day and build what some psychologists call 'positive self regard'. This is good stuff. O'Kane himself is very likable. He's open and honest about his own traumas including growing up gay in very Catholic Northern Ireland and dealing with all the shit that comes with that. He is a gentle soul and someone you feel you can instinctively trust. I suspect he was very good at his job and helped a lot of people. Yet, somehow, these techniques and O'Kane's style, lovely though it is, doesn't work for me. Fundamentally, he's developing your ability to be ok with who you are and not be hard on yourself. I'm generally already a pretty positive guy. I like my life, I like me, I'm ok with being flawed. I can be self-critical where deserved and immediately turn to how I can improve myself or what I do. I wasn't always like that. I understand self-loathing and seeing nothing but blackness about yourself. The journey was long and hard to get out of that but I did it. So these techniques don't really hit the spot. I'm already there. I know and I'm grateful for the good in my life and I don't have (generally) crushing worries or issues in my life. I recognise that this makes me a little unusual in many ways but I'm not egotistical enough to think that makes me unique (and I'm not thinking of writing a book on it!). There must be many others like me and therefore that means there are many out there for whom this book won't fit either. Thus, I can't quite give it a full five-star rating. Nevertheless, I have already suggested this book to others - particularly the audio version which has the the author himself reading and is particularly useful for the technique side itself. It is a little like listening to a meditation podcast but without the mystical stuff. This is just pure therapy. You could almost like back on that couch (which no therapist uses, by the way) and let the therapy do the work. This is good stuff then. It's not for those in the middle of deep trauma - that still needs your doctor's help - and nor does it quite reach all our needs. But if you know that you need help to see things - yourself, your situation and so on - in a better, more positive way, then O'Kane's method is as good as any; and you can get it now - right now -rather than wait months for a handful of sessions that may, or may not, help you at all. ...more |
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Sep 16, 2023
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Hardcover
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| 0571377610
| 9780571377619
| 0571377610
| unknown
| 3.64
| 11
| unknown
| Apr 20, 2023
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liked it
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Having just attended a reading by Simon Armitage in Grasmere, I immediately bought the main book from which he was reading - Never Good with Horses. I
Having just attended a reading by Simon Armitage in Grasmere, I immediately bought the main book from which he was reading - Never Good with Horses. I've liked his poetry for a long while and, as an English teacher, I've been grateful for his work many a time. His poems are direct, accessible, deep and, very often, quite funny. He's a great gateway into poetry for young, uninterested minds. I was a little disappointed then by this collection. It was an interesting idea: collecting lyrics for published songs or ones that never made it to the recording studio. This should work. The Beatles' collected lyrics have been available for decades and rightly regarded as excellent poetry in their own right. Lyrics are, arguably, the poetry of the modern times. What became clear is that at the reading Armitage read the best stuff. And it is very good on second (silent reading). Poems like Redwings, Lockdown, I'm Not Really a Waitress and others are really strong - full of that depth and humour I like so much about our Poet Laureate. But other stuff was much less effective. To be fair, it did help to read the notes at the end which gave rather necessary explanations to some of the more enigmatic poems. I wish I'd realised there were notes before I got to them at the end. A word to the wise - stick a finger in the notes page and be ready to check if the poem you're reading happens to be mentioned. But there's nothing bad here and, when talking of 'best' stuff, Armitage does set the bar really high. All the poems are good, all well written. Some of the ones he didn't read are actually brilliant. For instance, there's one which is clearly a kind of rap and I loved it (which is odd as I don't like rap as a musical work). It is just that compared to his outstanding ones, generally they don't come close. I'm used to reading his poems and going 'wow' at the end. Many of these I just found myself turning the page without comment. The problem is that Armitage has been around so long and had such prolific output (at least eighteen books of poetry just from scanning the list in this book) that we're so used to reading his best works in collections or used online in some way. You could spend many, many readings just going through his top drawer material and never read a dud. But every book has a selection of whatever he's just written and so you get a more full range of the kind of things he likes. Not all of it works so well. So my verdict is a little harsh but I think that fair enough for a man who has enjoyed great success for decades and will, I am sure, continue to enjoy success with this latest tome. There is something to be said for reading collected works rather than individual books, and with that in mind I'm now reading one of his. I'll let you know how it goes. ...more |
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Sep 02, 2023
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Hardcover
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| 067972477X
| 9780679724773
| 067972477X
| 4.24
| 64,854
| 1934
| Oct 23, 1989
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it was amazing
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I, Claudius is another of those classic books that appears on every 'Must Read' list. Regular readers of my reviews might guess this would immediately
I, Claudius is another of those classic books that appears on every 'Must Read' list. Regular readers of my reviews might guess this would immediately make me suspicious regarding the quality. 'Classics' are very much a hit and miss affair. Initially, I was not much impressed. Almost the entire book is in reported speech: Claudius narrating that so-and-so did this and such-and-such said that. It's not a satisfying way to write a book in my opinion. I suspected fairly early on that this was going to be no more than a three-star review. If I really wanted to trudge through the lives of three Roman emperors in reported speech, I might just as well read an actual history textbook. But then something strange occurred. It happened gradually and in stages. First, I was impressed by Graves writing style. For all the issues of reported speech, the prose flowed and was enticing. Then the research was evidently excellent. I'm no Roman historian, but I've read far more literature on Roman history than I wish I had, not least because it is still the go-to, staple diet for schoolchildren. I happen to know a fair amount about Caligula (the last of the emperors whose story is told in this book) so I was particularly able to nod in approval as the author got his facts right. This is all okay, but it went further. By the time I was halfway through the novel, I had warmed to the characters - especially Claudius himself, the stammering historian who manages to survive by playing the fool for decades. More than that, I began to get excited by the plot. With all the bizarre paranoid behaviours of the key characters, it was an exciting whirlwind of plots and counterplots. You never knew who was going to be executed or exiled next. I felt like a schoolboy again! And, of course, by the end of the book, I wanted to know what happens to Claudius next. Indeed, unusually for me, I've already obtained the sequel. 'Claudius, the God'. An amusing side note is that this one is an audio book narrated by - those of certain age will be able to guess - Derek Jacobi, the actor who many decades ago was well known for his portrayal of this titular character. I never watched the TV series from the late 1970s, but it was all but impossible not to know Jacobi associated with Claudius. As I read the book, I saw Jacobi throughout. That side note does remind me actually that when reading this book, I heard all the key characters with British voices - especially when they were at their most pathetic (usually when they've gained tyrannical power). I don't know if it is the the fault of Jacobi et al for this or whether the British voice lends itself to camp, whiny, psychotic behaviour. I suspect it is a combination of the two. Either way, I just can't imagine Roman emperors with Italian accents. It has to be British and it has to sound like it is straight out of a Monty Python movie. Overall then, I have chastised myself for my arrogant dismissal of reported speech. In the hands of a master writer like Graves, it works wonderfully well. I, Claudius was truly delightful and has given me a new-found love for all things Roman. How long it will last, we'll have to see. I'll update you when I've finished the sequel. ...more |
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Aug 19, 2023
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| B08KP85JVG
| unknown
| 4.00
| 1
| unknown
| Oct 03, 2020
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really liked it
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Sometimes, books can take you by surprise. 'The Spittle of Zimolax' is one such novel. It is a very underrated work which has as much to do with the a
Sometimes, books can take you by surprise. 'The Spittle of Zimolax' is one such novel. It is a very underrated work which has as much to do with the author's lack of confidence as anything, I suspect. Criticisms first - and they are mostly cosmetic. This is a self-published novel by the author. As an editor who works with lots of clients who often want to self-publish, I wish I could have got my hands on this manuscript before publishing. There are some typos and editing errors but I see enough of those in traditionally published books and in almost every news article I read online from the major news media, so this is no biggie. Certainly, the errors are little slips and don't irritate me (I've read plenty of books with errors that do). More importantly, the format of the book is all wrong. It would be a much more convincing and readable book if produced in a traditional fashion for novels. This I did find irritating because it is so easy to fix and produce a book which feels good to hold - as books should. I suspect this will only irritate people like me however. Most 'normal' readers won't notice anything wrong at all. Beyond these crits, this novel is brilliant. I'm not a great lover of detective fiction - especially period fiction - but this book had me gripped. Parsons is a natural storyteller and his attention to detail and authenticity is more than excellent. I'm no expert in 1930s British history and I'm sure someone who is might find faults, but it is obvious Parsons knows his stuff and has researched the material very carefully. The novel is entirely convincing. Set in England, 1932, the novel follows the exploits of Sergeant Geraldine Chapman as she investigates what ends up being a murder inquiry. Everything seems to centre around an unusual statue of an ancient god, Zimolax - but why would someone kill for this seemingly unimportant statue? I'm not a fan of whodunnits on the whole. If you happen to guess the murderer early, you can easily be frustrated or bored. As it happens, I knew who the killer was the instant they appeared but I honestly can't say if that was just pure luck or if others would guess it too. But Parsons' writing is so good - and the substance of the novel so well-conceived - that it didn't matter. I was gripped to the very last page, long after the denouement. As regular readers of my reviews know, the acid test (pun intended, if you read the book) of a good novel is: do I care what happens to the characters after the last page is turned? In this case - yes, by God, yes. Parsons originally conceived this book as the first in a series but, to my knowledge, he's never produced the rest. He should. He really should. Chapman is a cracking character and it is very clear at the end of the story that there is much more learn about the whole conspiracy theory world that he has built. There is more I could say but I don't want to spoil the ending. I will just say that buried in the acknowledgements is a clue what's to come. If you like spoilers and a hint of what might come, you can find the acknowledgements on the very final page. I liked the ending very much indeed, all the more for being rather unexpected. In short, despite the oddities of presentation, if you like between-the-wars whodunnits with a flavour of archaeological Indiana Jones to them, this is for you. I cannot emphasise enough just how good the writing is and how well thought out the plot. I do hope the author will write more. This book deserves to be read. ...more |
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Jul 28, 2023
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Kindle Edition
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| 1800241054
| 9781800241053
| 1800241054
| 4.16
| 495
| Feb 04, 2021
| Feb 04, 2021
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really liked it
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This is a fascinating book written by a well-respected and established journalist who has his own roots in three out of the four nations that make up
This is a fascinating book written by a well-respected and established journalist who has his own roots in three out of the four nations that make up the so-called 'United' Kingdom. That the kingdom is anything but united is the very point of Esler's book. He sees the end of the union coming soon. He's not the only political commentator who thinks this. Much of this prediction is, of course, centred around Brexit - which immediately raises the heckles of all Brexshitters and not a few of them have given poor customer reviews on various sites. Even the more learned and academically talented of those still reject any criticism of Brexit and its effects and go for the tired and boring personal attacks on the author rather than present any reasoned defence of a different position. For everyone else, this is a really thought-provoking book. Disclaimer: in case you hadn't already guessed it, I am definitely a remoaner/rejoiner (yes, I like remoaner because I bloody well will moan to all those who voted leave about what they've done to this country and no, I don't forgive or forget). But while I will point the finger of blame strongly out of a sense of justice, I gave up on this silly English nation years ago, so I'm not really a staunch remainer. The words 'petard' and 'hoist' come firmly to mind in this respect. I couldn't care less what happens to us all now - I'm just permanently angry. That said, I am confident that, eventually, it will all settle down and our economy and life will improve - but only back to some form of what it was before 2016; it's an absolute shot in the foot - or perhaps even the knee or thigh. We'll always limp, but things have a habit of balancing out eventually. This is all fine as a background, but while much of Esler's hypothesis rests on the results of Brexit and the deep divisions it has caused, it is only as the 'straw that breaks' as far as Esler is concerned. The damage to the union has been going on for decades and even centuries, he claims. I don't think he's wrong. Esler presents a strong argument for claiming that nationalism is behind the current surge in the direction of both Northern Irish and Scots wanting independence (and arguably Welsh too). But it isn't their nationalism he's talking about: it's English nationalism. He's absolutely on the nail here. The English have never given up their colonial instincts and superior elitism. We like to pretend we're the fairest, most welcoming, tolerant and non-judgemental of people. The truth is, we're anything but those things and we've always told ourselves these lies. Esler points out that this extends as far as using the term 'British'. There's nothing British about being British. We mean English almost every single time and the other nations are, understandably, getting annoyed about it. Who can blame them when we have such abhorrent extremist behaviours which are now so commonplace white English people don't bother to hide it much any longer? We really don't represent who the Scots, Welsh or Irish are. We never have. Esler is a writer like Harari, for me: he writes what I was already thinking but hadn't put into words in such succinct ways. For years I've called myself English first, British second. Actually, scratch that. I've called myself English first, European second, father, husband, writer, teacher...almost anything else next...and British last of all as, technically, I can't avoid it as a truth at least legally. But I've never felt it exists in reality. Esler gives it a name. Given what I've been saying it may seem odd that I call myself English first - as those that do are almost inevitably nationalists. But I hold it as a truth. There is no 'British' any any moral or ethnological way. I'm English and I like being English for the few - but very special - things that make us so (some of which we do indeed share with our neighbours). I like English pubs. I like our vast countryside. I like our classical music and our great writers. I like Wimbledon. I like how we queue! I LOVE our sense of humour. All this is good stuff. I just don't like our 'we're better than everyone else and we're the only ones who are hard-working and honest' crap we believe to our very core. For Esler, everyone is fed up of it and it will see the breakdown of the union. Brexit makes it no longer a viable option to stay together. Indeed, the Irish border problem is unlikely to ever be solved without a united Ireland. But, in the final analysis, I think Esler it wrong. I don't think the union is going to come to an end - not unless something even more catastrophic comes along. And that's because, despite everything he says being really very true, he's not accounted for the one thing we might just call 'British': inertia. We claim a history that avoided bloody revolutions (it's not entirely true either but lets roll with it for now); when the French and Russians etc. were all busy killing each other, the 'British' made changes largely peacefully and kept a government together than can trace a recognisable form back to at least Elizabethan England, if not before. Why? I think because of inertia. We will moan and complain about things changing and/or being bad (the two are often confused) but we will tolerate them for a considerable length of time. It takes a lot to push us to the edge. It is the same now. Brexit, effectively, happened seven years ago at the time of writing. It came into force properly two years ago. We've gone though multiple prime ministers and even the Scottish parliament has had a changeover with Sturgeon's reputation currently in tatters. As the face of the Scottish referendum, this means the taste for independence has diminished. We're going through the worst financial crisis since 2008 and we never actually got over the last one. More than decade of tory misrule - some of it borderline criminal - and we still haven't rioted on the streets, metaphorically or otherwise. The Brits grumble and moan, but we don't do anything about it. That's exactly what I'm doing now. And once finished with this, I'll go make myself a cup of tea and be satisfied (that's another English thing I like!). As I said earlier, I think things will balance out. We will come out of our near-recession. Businesses will find new ways to survive in a post-Brexit world. The economy will, eventually, stagger into something half decent. And with each passing day, week, month and year, we're less and less likely to think things are bad enough to warrant splitting up. It really will take a return to 'the troubles' or something of that ilk to threaten that. Without a crisis (and I mean a real whopper because we're all already totally 'crisised out') the union will stagger on. Better the devil you know and all that - even if he's white and English. ...more |
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Jul 15, 2023
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| 1487007795
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| 4.51
| 3,919
| Oct 01, 2020
| Oct 27, 2020
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it was amazing
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I had been introduced to Macfarlane's writing just recently, via 'my other job' - writing theatre reviews for Northern Arts Review - when I was commis
I had been introduced to Macfarlane's writing just recently, via 'my other job' - writing theatre reviews for Northern Arts Review - when I was commissioned to review the theatrical production, at Keswick's Theatre by the Lake, based on this book and 'The Lost Words'. I was really touched by the message of the production - fundamentally one of encouraging children 'of all ages including old' to re-find the magic of nature before it is gone forever. And not knowing the names of things means you never know they were there in the first place. I recall days of youth watching children's programmes that would often teach knots, names of wild flowers, birds, stitching...all sorts of things that just aren't taught any longer. They're disappearing - quite literally - and I didn't notice. I had forgotten their names. My former gig was that of a classroom teacher. One thing good teachers tell you when you're a trainee is: learn their names. We know there is power in names when you're in the classroom. Call a child by their name and you know them; you see them - and they know it. Don't know a name and they become anonymous and can do anything. No wonder it is a longtime favourite prank of kids when they have a new (young) teacher to invent names or swap names in the register call. A wise teacher knows this game and quickly takes that power away. So names are important and Macfarlane knows this. But what do you get in this book? Two very magical things. Firstly, you get awesome pictures from Jackie Morris. They fill the book with a very special power. Somehow, you can hear every sound the birds and animals make, every rustling in the trees, every blow of the wind. A great sense of peace and beauty pervades. It is the closest thing to nature you can find in a book. Secondly, you get the poems of Macfarlane himself. They are light, easy, delightful to hear, delightful to speak. They are clever, but not esoteric. They are engaging and childlike, but not childish. There's a simple joy here and yet it is deep. The result is a book I will keep on a shelf awaiting the (hoped for) coming of grandchildren in the next few years to come. I am going to read these to and with my grandchildren and I am going to rediscover the joys and mysteries of nature with them. I can't wait. It'll be magic. ...more |
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Jun 20, 2023
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Hardcover
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| 1786072165
| 9781786072160
| 1786072165
| 3.86
| 1,455
| Oct 10, 2017
| Oct 10, 2017
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really liked it
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Regular readers of my reviews will know well that I'm not keen on the 'secret' methods for gaining wealth, health or happiness that become successful
Regular readers of my reviews will know well that I'm not keen on the 'secret' methods for gaining wealth, health or happiness that become successful and, more or less always very quickly, fade away back into the nothingness whence they came. In short, I have no time or energy for bullshit. Anthony Warner (AKA The Angry Chef) is a kindred spirit in this regard. He is, quite definitely, ANGRY about the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow and others who peddle pseudo-science and other kinds of nonsense, giving people false hope which, at times - as Warner points out - can lead to death. He's had enough of diet celebrities who make a fortune peddling their elixirs and lifestyle methods which simply often feed the emotional turmoil of many and makes their lives an even greater misery. What is refreshing from this critique is that Warner doesn't really offer his own alternative version of lifestyle and dieting and admits that it may well turn out that some - not many - might turn out to have a grain of truth about them. His point is that they are presented as though well-researched and give countless unverifiable anecdotes that all but the extremely well trained will be taken in by, but they are not well researched at all; far from it. And so he takes an epic voyage dissing multiple different diet and lifestyle gurus and presents varied ways to spot bullshit. He does so with reasonably good humour and his final message is a pretty sage one: have a GOOD relationship with food and enjoy it, always in moderation, always sensibly and always in conjunction with getting good advice from actual doctors where you might have health issues. It's always with the aim to have a healthy happy relationship with food. He's not wrong. That said, his mocking and jeering does tip over into condescending and I could do without the inane conversations in his own head and his 'Science Columbo' routine which is vaguely amusing once but quickly become boring after a while. And so, for that reason, I'm knocking off a star. Is this a life-changing book? Possibly, if you've become fixated with diets and you're convinced the state is lying to you or even that packeted food is bad for you or that you shouldn't eat potatoes. Definitely if you believe in a 'caveman diet' or anything silly Paltrow comes up with. This book just might restore joy to your life. For the rest of us, it is good to confirm what most of us know - that a little of what you like does you good and if we've survived hundreds of years eating it, it is probably ok to continue with. Just avoid indulgence. And health gurus. ...more |
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| 1982181478
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| 13,704
| Feb 03, 2022
| May 03, 2022
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really liked it
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I do enjoy Monica Ali's books. Brick Lane was superbly written and I read it at a very poignant time in my life when I was leaving Bangladesh after ma
I do enjoy Monica Ali's books. Brick Lane was superbly written and I read it at a very poignant time in my life when I was leaving Bangladesh after many years of living there, so it is close to my heart. Ali had been criticised by many for effectively being a British girl who knew nothing about real life in Bangladesh. Ironically, I'd heard this from the Bangladesh diaspora - British Bangladeshis - who considered themselves more knowledgeable about Bangladesh life despite coming from exactly the same mixed heritage background. I don't think it is fair, but I can see why the issues were raised. Still, after a very long time of waiting, Ali seems to have answered that criticism with 'Love Marriage'. Set in the UK and largely based around Yasmin Ghorami, who is a Muslim British Indian marrying a white man, the story deals with their preparations for marriage and the interactions with her family and the mother of Joe, her fiancé, who is a very different kind of person. There is much that is praiseworthy about the style and plot. Ali is a natural storyteller and her characters exude...well, character. Everything is fast paced and there's no drag, even for a moment as we find out about the weaknesses, the strengths and the past histories of all the main characters. Ali manages to make her characters entirely believable. I've met these people, known them and even loved them over the years. As a semi-side note, she has also clearly really done her research into medical facts - something which proves vital to the story in the end. It is a clear a lot of work went to to crafting these people. There are faults, however. Ali indulges in too much character introspection and moralising for the benefit of the reader. She tries to hard to make a lesson to learn from all of this, albeit disguised as Yasmin's journey of discovery. There is also far too much trust in the work of Joe's therapist, who plays such a monumental role in the story. I did not find this kind of psychotherapy convincing. A behaviourist view would have been so much more appropriate (or at least CBT) and wreaked less havoc on the characters who, in the end, find their own way. I would have preferred it had he been shown that his 'helping' was very much the opposite. Instead, he comes out (quietly) as the hero. None of this detracts significantly from the book however. Ali, as I've said, is a natural storyteller and the pages gush with love and interest. Without a doubt, when the last page was turned, I wanted to know what happens to all of the characters next. This is always my litmus test and 'Love Marriage' passes it with flying colours. These characters have their flaws, and the story explores all of them, but they don't become 'ugly' (something I always hate about many modern characters); instead, they remain human, lovable and worth sympathising with. Unlike Brick Lane, I don't think 'Love Marriage' is a classic. It lacks that certain filmic quality and expression of monumental truths. Nevertheless, this is definitely a book that should be read and loved. It's a novel for our time and our culture which needs reading before both things move on, as they inevitably will. ...more |
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May 20, 2023
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| 1577316967
| 3.25
| 587
| Feb 15, 2011
| Feb 15, 2011
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did not like it
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I'll be blunt: this is a ridiculous book. I had a real vested interest in learning from this author. My autistic son, last year, got a German Shepherd I'll be blunt: this is a ridiculous book. I had a real vested interest in learning from this author. My autistic son, last year, got a German Shepherd puppy to train as an autism assistance dog. GSDs are not the best choice of dog for this kind of profession. They make good guard dogs and police dogs because they generally have a suspicious nature whose first instinct is to lunge at whatever is making them fearful. Not what you need, however, when you're trying to train a dog to be able to go into shops, pubs and restaurants and cope with unwanted pats on the head and fussing from people, let alone interest from other dogs. But we got what we got (our son insisted - part of his autism you see) and, to be fair, she is a beautiful, kind and loving dog. We wouldn't be without her. The downside though is she is also, even for a GSD, highly anxious and terrified of everything and everyone. While she's never ever bitten anyone, her bark is huge and scary and her lunge looks aggressive. Strangers don't get to see she's a dufus without a mean bone in her body. With family, she's adorable. We really want everyone to see that. The result is: every single trainer in the area and dog training course known to man. I've done them all (it's largely me because I'm nerdy like that and research, plus I'm the one in the house all the time). What I've learned is two things: Firstly, just like growing children - be consistent. Your dog will eventually get it and will learn. Be patient and be kind and you'll get a good dog. Secondly, all dog trainers are very weird and most don't realise they are probably on the neurodiverse spectrum somewhere along the line. I say this as someone with ADHD and two kids with autism and having taught many, many students with either or both. You get to recognise undiagnosed neurodiversity eventually. These people are all on that side of things. This is important here because often autistic people have very little awareness of others and tend to hyperfixate on theories. Hence, you get these dog trainers telling you that 'games are the answer' or 'being the Alpha is the answer' or 101 other methods for making your dog perfect. There is always some reductionist theory which promises the earth. Kevin Behan's answer though, takes the biscuit. In essence, he tries to claim that all dogs simply know 'emotion' and nothing else. They 'read the room' as it were and reflect back what you're giving to them. There's elements of this which are true and perceptive. Dogs do note the emotion of the room and react to it. They can tell when you're sad or upset or angry. They can be funny with someone in the family because they know there's some tension having arisen from them with others. This is all well-known stuff. But Behan tries to psychoanalyse everything and make all dog behaviour issues about the dog owners. Fix yourself, he seems to say, and you fix your dog. It gets embarrassing, as time goes on, because it becomes obvious that it is Behan himself who needs fixing. He spends the lion's share of the book telling us his life story and never quite admitting to himself that he has huge daddy issues. Instead, he attempts to reject all standard understanding of biology and psychology - and fails there too, falling into pseudo-science instead - and tries to play the psychiatrist on his clients. If you look carefully, you find little to no evidence that his theory has worked with any of them. He keeps talking about clients who just 'stopped coming'. I'm not surprised! They clearly saw he was off his rocker... Indeed, even if you do subscribe to his theory, it offers no real, tangible help to dealing with a dog that has problem behaviours. He gives no practical advice. Instead, the whole book seems to be an exercise in 'victim blaming' - that is, when he's not semi-blaming his father for his own failures. You are the reason your dog is dreadful, he says. Get therapy and your dog will be fine. Anyone who has had even just a couple of dogs can tell this is absolute nonsense. It is instantly demonstrable if, like me, you have two dogs simultaneously. If Behan's theory is right, both should behave, or respond, in similar ways because YOUR emotion or issues are the same. They don't. Our GSD has barked and lunged at strangers and dogs since the day she came to our house no matter which of the five adults in the house has her (and we can't ALL have the same trauma or hang-ups, right?). Yet our eight-year-old Cocker Spaniel tolerates dogs, mostly quietly, and adores ALL humans whether or not she knows them. If your fear of rape (a genuine interpretation the author threw at one of his clients) is causing your dog to attack strangers, it should cause all your dogs to behave similarly. Clear, a dog's individual personality has to a have a play here as well as the general character make-up of their breed. It's not all about you. And that last point is where I'll leave it. To accuse your clients of issues that are none of your concern is offensive bordering on abusive. 'Your dog is a problem because of your past traumas' is just such an horrific piece of victim blaming. Not only is this book not worth buying but Kevin Behan shouldn't be allowed anywhere near people or dogs. Seriously, avoid this guy. As for our GSD puppy? Consistent love, acceptance of who she is and continuous small steps mean that she's now a lot more confident, happier with people (still working on dogs) and is getting there. We may not end up with a perfectly trained dog (although all the signs are that she's still getting there and we're hopeful) but she is loved and accepted whatever she proves to be, just as all members of our family are. No blame, no accusations, no therapy needed. Just love and respect. That's the way you get the best out of your dog. ...more |
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Apr 10, 2023
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| 3.73
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| Mar 21, 1985
| Aug 20, 1997
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really liked it
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Jeanette Winterson is roughly twelve years older than me. We both grew up in northern towns and, assuming the 'Jeanette' of the novel bears enough rel
Jeanette Winterson is roughly twelve years older than me. We both grew up in northern towns and, assuming the 'Jeanette' of the novel bears enough relation to the author (they are NOT the same person, as the author points out in her introduction), we both grew up in religious homes, in communities which were 'zealously' religious. I was in the early years of my religious fervour when 'Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit' came out. We were all told about it, prayed against it, hated it but didn't read it, of course. It encouraged nothing but sin and debauchery. Read it, and you might catch gay from it. Pray God keeps you safe from such damnation. I kept away. I would probably have maintained that stance for very many years - perhaps decades - but times change. While I always had my own mind and I was a rebel (frequently in trouble with church members and leaders), I was happy to consider this 'not a novel for me' even after reading and enjoying similar 'coming of age' and 'awareness of sexuality' novels such as 'The Color Purple'. Through university years I read many novels which critiqued religion and introduced me to quite extreme themes and ideas. I enjoyed them all. But it has only been in recent times that the idea of reading Winterson's great novel has come to mind. It is considered a modern classic even if it is an early work and many consider her more mature works to be better. I guess I felt that after all these years it has stood the test of time and is worth reading. So, last year I did. I don't know whether I could kick myself for taking so long to read it, or if I am pleased I didn't read it back when I really wouldn't have accepted it. Either way, the book resonated with my own soul and experiences of growing up in those suffocating (albeit well-meaning) times. I had expected it to be a novel attacking the church, belittling Christians and espousing homosexuality as the better way. I wouldn't have been able to accept such ideas. I'm not gay, so that's not a lifestyle that interests me (I believe I'm referred to as an 'ally' in LGBTQ+ circles - someone who is straight but supports gay rights) and I found the church to be a mostly loving and welcoming place. I can honestly say I would not be alive today - nor half the man I hope I am perceived to be - were it not for the love and support of evangelicals in my hometown. I was delighted to see that Winterson didn't write such a book. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit is a warm, kind and often funny book as much about northern life in the Sixties and Seventies (and still identifiable in the Eighties) as it is about sexuality and religion. Although Jeanette's life choices are not compatible with her church's ideology nor with her mum's, she finds supporters and friends throughout the novel. Her life is not made hell, even though there are conflicts and traumatic times. Some of the events are so quirky that they make you smile at just how silly religious people can be. Some events are more disturbing and abusive. But that was life back then. You didn't need to be religious to be abused or to suffer the plainly daft ideas that people had back then. Just being gay or non-white - or even have a different accent - would be enough, for a start. Perhaps what is most beautiful is how there is a sense of her mother growing, quietly, imperceptibly, and without anything other than just age and life events happening to her too which changes who she is. She doesn't stop being religious and the two of them avoid talking of Jeanette's preferences for females. But they find a kind of peace between them; a thawing and breaking down of barriers. In my life there have been many battles: some won, some lost. There have been fall outs and pain. But over the decades there has also been those times of thawing, re-finding each other, acceptance and growing. It is easy to be pompously religious and condemn those who don't do as you do when your life has been sheltered and naïve. But sooner or later life happens to you and bad things occur. Then you have to rethink what you believe and how you live it. We all mature, eventually. At the time, Winterson's book was all about being a lesbian, as far as everyone was concerned - including the press. But the truth is, it is only tangentially about that. It is about the relationships of women - of all kinds. It is about unbridling creativity and its relationship with mental health. It is about the ridiculous nature of community but it is also about the warmth found therein. Winterson doesn't try to champion one and condemn another. Somehow she successfully avoids presenting any ideological theme as right or wrong. It really is a remarkable book for all of that. I'm very grateful for the upbringing I received. I went through considerable abuse, huge traumas and got into some pretty bad scrapes. But I was 'saved' by the church and, for a while, clung to every teaching steadfastly before I eventually matured and found that the road is a little more grey and less black or white. Or perhaps, to borrow from the metaphor of the novel, I discovered there are plenty of fruit out there I can enjoy - but I still like oranges. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit is a gentle companion to all of that. I'm glad I finally found it. ...more |
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| 0449213943
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| 4.06
| 440,559
| 1928
| Jan 01, 1928
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it was amazing
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While my reading list is eclectic and deliberately as wide-ranging as possible, I do try to make room for 'classic' books - novels I should have read
While my reading list is eclectic and deliberately as wide-ranging as possible, I do try to make room for 'classic' books - novels I should have read decades ago but somehow didn't - to 'catch up' on all of those before it is too late. Regular readers of my reviews will probably note that I don't always look favourably on the classics. The world has changed considerably in my half a century plus lived so far. What was great when I was a young man is now often tacky, dreary or borderline unacceptable. There are only a handful of the great classic books I would recommend others to read these days. I didn't have high hopes then for Remarque's one great novel. Written long before the second world war, by a German whose side had just lost what, at the time, would have been seen as the 'Great European War' rather than 'World War One' as it was destined to become, and read only in translated form - even the title is wrong, though it has become so much a part of the English language that it is unlikely ever to change. It looked set up for a fall. Here was a one-star review on its way. Well. I couldn't have been more wrong. From the very first page to the last, I was enthralled, horrified and deeply moved. I had to check I hadn't accidentally picked up some modernised version. The writing is so good, so compelling, it feels entirely new, modern, written yesterday. This was surely a brilliantly written novel imagined by someone who had never lived through the war - a 'Saving Private Ryan' kind of story. Moving, but ultimately, rather false. But again I was wrong. There's no wonder that Remarque's novel was banned by the Nazis when they came to power not too long after the publication of the book. And there's little wonder that the book has remained on the list of classic 'must-reads' ever since. By strange coincidence, shortly after finishing the book (and telling everyone who would listen just how bloody good it was) Netflix announced a new movie version was coming out. I told my GCSE History students that they needed to see it, if it was any good, to really get a feel for what life was like on the Western Front. I knew it was unlikely I'd get any of them to read the story; I hoped the movie would do it justice and not make a hash of it. It would turn out that the movie did exceptionally well - and won well-deserved accolades as a result. While it can't capture all of the storylines nor completely recreate the atmosphere and intensity of the book, it comes a very fine second. If you enjoyed the film, I do recommend you read the book anyway. There's still more to experience within the printed words. I can't imagine what it took for Remarque to write such a beautiful, tragic anti-war story. No matter how many books you read, films you watch, or war poetry you read, unless you've gone through it, you can't possibly entirely 'get it'. What I do know is that I was appalled, gasped and, at the right moments, wept for the characters as the story progressed. When the final page was turned the author gave me no opportunity to long to know what happened to the characters next. I already knew what was their fate. I still feel that loss, months after finishing the novel. I don't know if I will ever be able to read the All Quiet on the Western Front again. Some books are just too painful. I do know that I will always treasure those pages and will, for the rest of my life, strongly recommend - to anyone who might ask - that they read this brilliant, bloody and brilliant, novel. We all become a little more human through these lives. That's no bad thing and is exactly the point of the book. ...more |
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| 4.04
| 218,041
| Sep 20, 2005
| Sep 26, 2006
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it was amazing
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It is hard - very hard - to go wrong with Neil Gaiman. He's an almost perfect storyteller and the worlds he conjures up are interesting, thoughtful an
It is hard - very hard - to go wrong with Neil Gaiman. He's an almost perfect storyteller and the worlds he conjures up are interesting, thoughtful and vibrant. Anansi Boys is up there with the best of his work. It is a delightful novel. Partly a form of sequel to American Gods - but only in so much as the character of Anansi appears in both and so one could say we are in the same universe as the American Gods -there is a very different feel to this novel. Firstly, there's more of a 'British' feel to it, as opposed to the 'American'-ness of the other. The character of Fat Charlie is a modern-day Arthur Dent - someone who simply wants to lead an dull ordinary life without interruption from his father and definitely with no singing. Needless to say, Fat Charlie doesn't get his way - despite the novel opening with his father having just died. What ensues is part murder mystery, part fantasy, part farce. What a dreadful combination this would be in the hands of a lesser writer - me, for instance - but Gaiman doesn't put a foot wrong. Not only does it work well, but my personal acid test - do I care what happens to the characters when the last page is turned - is wholeheartedly passed. If ever Gaiman was to write a true sequel to something, this would be it. I want to know what happens after the inevitable 'ever-after'. I am sure it would be more mayhem for poor Charlie. It is possible not to like Neil Gaiman (although I would warn my children to stay away from you if you do) and I would say that if American Gods, Norse Mythology, The Sandman or Good Omens left you unmoved then Anansi Boys is not for you. But may the gods have pity on your soul, if so. For the rest of you: it's a must-read - especially if you really enjoyed American Gods. Yes, it is very British in its rendering and humour, but (and I don't often praise the British) this is what we're good at; and Gaiman is exceptionally good at it. My understanding is that the BBC has had a stab at broadcasting the novel and, by all accounts, made a right hash of it. This is a pity because this kind of story is exactly what the Beeb are good at doing. It is a pity when cutbacks and bad editorial decisions get in the way of what should have been a match made in heaven. But then, making a hash of things is very much a British characteristic to so...I guess I shouldn't be surprised. The book isn't a shambles. It is a rare thing. A light, good-humoured book with just the right level of darkness, intellect and plot to avoid becoming a trashy, throw-away book, while at the same time avoiding the heaviness of, say, The Sandman or even American Gods itself. Fat Charlie and all the characters he meets as a result of his father's death, is a joy to be around. Go spend some time with him; but stay away from his brother (and don't listen to his dad). ...more |
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| 4.59
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| Apr 15, 2018
| Apr 12, 2018
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it was amazing
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I had the delight of watching Romany Romany (so good, they named her twice!) at the end of last year. Her book was on sale afterwards and I very much
I had the delight of watching Romany Romany (so good, they named her twice!) at the end of last year. Her book was on sale afterwards and I very much had to get a copy. What a character this lady is! Both on stage and off, she is larger than life. A conundrum, yet also an open book, she defies definition. How did such an effervescent personality come to be the magical diva she is today, having performed all over the world and entertained thousands? Her life story is really quite remarkable. A chubby girl, born in humble circumstances, but with a desire and flair to perform on stage, Romany almost seemed destined to be on the stage from the very first ballet lesson. Alas, not that simple. Her weight was perceived as a problem and this would prove to be her nemesis her whole life. She is open and brutally honest about her eating disorder and yet avoids ever getting heavy even in the darkest of times in her life. And there we see where Romany the performer and Romany the real person meet. She is a genuinely lovely, bubbly and glass-half-full kind of person. Hope and love are her middle names. Much of this comes from her spiritual beliefs which leads her to believe there is a purpose and a plan that the universe has for you and you simply need to stop trying to grab the wheel; just sit back and let the universe guide. Such beliefs are not for everyone and this magicienne can come across a little bit away with the fairies at times if you're sceptical of the spiritual realm. For me, I am sceptical, but I think being off the wall a little is a very healthy thing and I've been around the clock enough - and believed some crazy things in my time - to give the benefit of the doubt to anyone. Nevertheless, I think the many spiritual-seekers I have as friends would be quite at home with Romany's ideas and philosophies. What I come away with, more than anything, is that Romany is a brave soul with a very innocent heart in many ways. It's not often you can find someone who has known fame and adulation yet somehow retains that wide-eyed wonder about life and people. There's nothing brash or obnoxious about here. She's really quite sweet without, for one minute, suggesting she's anybody's fool. It is immensely endearing. Obviously, this woman is very talented. Less obvious - until you read the book - is how hard she has worked to make that talent seamless and appear natural. Her craft is well-honed and she's comfortable in her own skin - even with the demons which beset her at times. Romany believes as much in magic as she appears to on stage but works hard behind the scenes as though it doesn't. The result is a person as well as a performer who is truly magical. You have to admire her for that. ...more |
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Mar 29, 2023
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| 4.67
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| Aug 28, 2022
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it was amazing
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This is a beautifully written novel by the erudite Nicholas Graham. Set in Biblical times, this is absolutely not a book that staunchly evangelical Ch
This is a beautifully written novel by the erudite Nicholas Graham. Set in Biblical times, this is absolutely not a book that staunchly evangelical Christians are going to enjoy but everyone else will. There is much that you will recognise from the Gospel stories and, of course, many of the same characters appear. But Graham manages to give us a very different story to that which we are traditionally told. This is a deeply political world full of spies and secret plots waiting to be uncovered. While it is a whodunnit - the body of Yehuda is just the start - the reader is actually far more interested in Solomon, our hero of the piece. In this sense, the book is a beautiful work of art. As I've often said in my reviews, a good novel is one where I care about the characters after the last page is turned. My goodness, with this novel I was instantly reaching for the sequel through the ether, trying to clutch a book that does not (yet) exist because I HAVE to know what happens to Solomon. It is to be hoped that the author will embark on more books covering this protagonist as we've not had enough of Solomon and his vineyard yet! As historical fiction, the novel is as flawless as any other I've come across no matter the genre. I am reasonably schooled in Biblical history and theology and while no expert I am very familiar with the turf. Graham knows his stuff and it tells in the incredible details he scatters liberally - yet never intrusively - throughout the story. I feel like I'm there when reading the story. There's never a moment where the magic is lost; never a time when you can't believe you're in Palestine. It takes quite some skill to pull that off. Has Graham succeeded in pulling the wool over all our eyes all of the time? Well, he has succeeded with this reader, that's for sure. Highly recommended for anyone interested in Biblical era fiction which gives alternative meaning to events of the Gospels that is utterly convincing and compelling. Whodunnit fans will enjoy it but so will anyone who just wants to read well-written fiction which is beautiful in the telling. Gripping and moving to the very end. ...more |
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Aug 23, 2022
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really liked it
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Audible - my very favourite way to do audio books - keeps doing lots of free deals for me at the moment and this means I end up getting a load more bo
Audible - my very favourite way to do audio books - keeps doing lots of free deals for me at the moment and this means I end up getting a load more books than I can keep up with. Sometimes, I just need something short, easy and enjoyable to give me a break from heavier, more thought-provoking works. The result (and I'm sticking to this excuse) is that I'm getting through more books by James Felton than I would normally. I guess I can add to this that there was something of a time-sensitive issue for this particular book seeing as there's not too much point looking at a retrospective about 2021 in, say, 2024 (and that, for me, is getting to a book on the to-read list REALLY quickly). So Felton's overview, month by month, of the year got bumped up to the top of the list. As it is really quite short, this wasn't a problem. And it did provide light relief. Like 'Failures of State', 'The Year Was 2021' was enjoyable in part because everything mentioned was memorable and, if I did miss anything, in the public domain and easily checked for accuracy. There was pretty much nothing Felton writes about that I couldn't remember. But, also like 'Failures of State' it's when this stuff is put together, relentlessly, in chronological order, that you truly appreciate the enormity of it all. This is where Felton's value comes in. That and the obscenities, the toilet jokes and the humorous metaphors you won't scrub out of your mind very easily. Yes, the author is strongly on the left, a socialist at heart, 'woke' if you so wish, and does bash Boris Johnson and the Tories at every opportunity (and they give him lots). But aside from his jokes and criticisms, history speaks for itself. He never allows hyperbole to get in the way of facts and it is relatively easy to see when the former is used (for humour). Unlike most government ministers, Felton doesn't need to hide truths which are uncomfortable. It's not that he misses out 'the other side of the story'; it's that this side of the story shouldn't be there in the first place. I don't need to know if Boris is kind to puppies and actually did a couple of days work (without partying) to say 'oh well, that's okay then'. I can see, thanks to Felton, and be reminded, of what was going on week after week, month on month and - quite frankly - it wasn't on. It's not all Tory-bashing. While many of the 'Twat of the month' awards go towards Johnson's cronies, not all do. Felton also includes 'Hero of the Month' which, on the whole, isn't an ironic term. He celebrates those who hold a mirror up to those in power and says "You really are being a plonker. Stop it." Such positives, along with the general upbeat feel of Felton's writing means that TYW2021 never gets depressing. It's fun - as long as you like the 'F word' and numerous humorous images the author uses to describe exactly what he thinks of most of these people. So, while there's no denying that Felton rants in the book, it's a rant few of us can disagree with - especially if we lean to the left as I, unashamedly, do. If you're more on the right, you will inevitably hate it and dismiss Felton and everything he writes as nonsense, usual socialist claptrap etc. Unusually for me, I caught a glimpse of a review by someone else (I normally avoid all reviews so I can write my own unadulterated thoughts). A scathing one-star review scorning Felton, his 'lame' jokes and poorly researched work (which it never, ever is). I couldn't help but smile at a comment someone had added to the review. "Which are chapter are you in?" they asked. I could have high-fived them. The point couldn't be more apt. My only gripe - and it isn't a small one - is that the book actually ends in November and doesn't do December. Yes, I get that there are tight publishing deadlines and it is remarkable I'm listening to it in January just days after the year has ended, but maybe it could have come out later and include the last month? Anyway, Felton gives is his predictions instead and some of these are quite funny while some are already aging. But it did seem a bit of a downer on what was otherwise a wonderfully and bluntly funny book. Nevertheless, if you like coarse humour with your facts, buy it. ...more |
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| 0552555703
| 4.19
| 70,865
| Jan 15, 2001
| Oct 03, 2006
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really liked it
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On the face of it, this series of books is a really good idea. Inverting the whole white/black supremacy dynamic so that white people can really get a
On the face of it, this series of books is a really good idea. Inverting the whole white/black supremacy dynamic so that white people can really get a sense of what black people have gone through. I've thought of doing something similar. I have considered writing a novel based around England being conquered - perhaps by India or some African country - and the people being subjugated because of their 'race'. Mine would be set in the current 'real' world though whereas Blackman's novel is set in a parallel 'dystopian' version of reality. This allows the author to explore much of the racial prejudices and politics that were in existence in America from the time of the end of the civil war through to the early 70s. In particular, the scenario of post-'Little Rock Nine', where the white 'Noughts' are only newly allowed into schools with the darker 'Crosses' and the system is stacked against them. More generally, references to the Jim Crow laws and the protests of Malcolm X et al abound. It all comes out pretty well and it is no wonder the book series has become a bestseller and, at least, a minor classic. I wasn't a huge fan of the first book but found it interesting that when I mentioned the book to my family, my daughter's fiancé - in his twenties - erupted with his love and fond memories of studying the book for GCSE English. He had the same reaction I have when someone mentions Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men' which brings back happy memories of my (ahem) O Level English days, and I realised that it wasn't inappropriate to equate the two. That said, the book didn't really gel for me. I wasn't keen on either of the two characters - teenage Romeo and Juliet as they are - and couldn't care less what happened to them in the end. I won't give away the end (be aware I'm about to hint at it), but I found the final chapter laughably flat despite its attempts to recreate the type of ending you get in 'Of Mice and Men' or 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'. It just wasn't convincing. But then, I have to remember this book is for young adults. Would Steinbeck's novel shock me now? Possibly not. 'The Color Purple' rocked my world on the very first page thirty years ago. Would it now? Probably not. I can imagine students studying this book in school and being totally unprepared for what is to come. If so: good for them! It has done its job (and it certainly seems that is the case). So perhaps this book is simply telling me I'm too old to appreciate YA fiction any longer? I hope not, considering my latest book is YA itself… It might simply be that I did not engage with the characters. Callum seems permanently angry, not with the political world around him (justified) but with everyone including those closest to him. Sephy is very naïve and it is difficult to believe the twists and turns in her development as she matures. Neither warrants much in the way of praise. I may just be expecting too much. In the end, this is a very good book for engaging teenagers who, on the whole, just don't read anymore. With the current anti-immigrant hatred rife in the UK right now, it has its parallels which probably weren't apparent to the author when the book was published in 2001. It is certainly a book that doesn't just bring alive modern American social history; it is a book that is of our time here in the UK too. It is gripping and toes the line carefully between moralising to the readers and letting the story reveal its own truths. For that, I hope it brings fond memories and (more importantly) changed attitudes to young people for years to come. ...more |
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Jan 17, 2022
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Jan 17, 2022
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| 9781785787751
| 1785787756
| 4.30
| 447
| Jun 10, 2021
| Aug 10, 2021
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really liked it
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Jeremy Williams is one of the top writers on climate change. His website - The Earthbound Report - is recognised as one of the best on climate issues.
Jeremy Williams is one of the top writers on climate change. His website - The Earthbound Report - is recognised as one of the best on climate issues. Williams is particularly skilled at writing short, comprehensible pieces packed with facts and figures which educate rather than bore. In many ways, this latest book from Williams is an extension of this kind of writing. Indeed, it often feels like and extended academic essay - a PhD thesis if you like - albeit one which is a joy to read. It is short (for a book), clearly structured and not a word is wasted, as though a word count was secretly in play. This is no bad thing. William's book has a use beyond just reading once; you can easily refer back to it and pick up information swiftly with each chapter fully referenced. One might ask, what is a white, educated and privileged British man doing writing a book concerning racism? Williams deals with this from the start, not just detailing his own fight with the issue, but also his own experiences of living in Madagascar. He doesn't cry #metoo in doing so, but leads us on a short journey explaining why it is BECAUSE he is a white, educated, privileged British man that he needed to write this book. Indeed it becomes the crux of his message. So what is that message? In essence: white people caused this mess and white people need to take the lion's share of fixing it. There's more to it than that, of course, and when put so bluntly, it sounds like another round of 'white bashing', instantly turning off empire supporters and those on the fence. Williams tackles the issue more carefully. He gives overwhelming evidence to support the view and (in some ways much more importantly) demonstrates how many - if not most - of the former colonies are suffering the effects of white industrial revolution systems right now. It's hard to come away from his arguments and not believe that Britain, Europe and USA are wholly responsible for the mess we're now. This would be academic - a case of arguing whose fault is it in an abstract way and just for the sake of it - if it were not for William's most cutting point: it's the non-white man today but it will be the white man tomorrow. Asia and Africa particularly are feeling the effects of climate change now with famines, droughts, floods etc. creating suffering and havoc throughout the year but we in the west hardly hear of it. Rarely is a flood in Bangladesh deemed newsworthy. It's only when fires ravage Australia or floods wipe out an inhabited area of America that we take note and the scientists take the opportunity (again) to tell us this is climate change. But very quickly we have the likes of Matt Ridley (with whom Williams opens chapter 7, Climate Privilege') who tell those of us from rich nations that it's all actually really good stuff and we can all enjoy nice warm summers now (I kid you not). Williams argues that while we are so distanced (at least for much of the time) from the effects of climate change, it will get to us eventually. And when it does, then that's really game over for the human race experiment. Again, his arguments are convincing. Climate change is real and it is coming this way. It is time, he says, to grow up and accept our responsibilities. That's not his whole fight on the cause of ending racism. Williams is far more nuanced than I'm portraying here. Racism is wrong even if somehow climate change was never going to affect us. But it is the major takeaway to use for those who want to deny there's any racism in climate change issues at all. No one likes to be told they (or their ancestors) are wrong and that they need to cough up the cash to fix past sins. But the fact of the matter is: we need to. Not just for the benefit of the many peoples who are suffering now, but for ourselves too. Time is short. The academic arguments need to cease. Williams' book is a call to arms. But that call is made intelligently, rationally and with a ton of careful research behind it. Quite simply: it's a must-read. ...more |
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| 0679405631
| 9780679405634
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| 4.00
| 150,367
| Nov 26, 1859
| Oct 15, 1991
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liked it
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Yet another of those 'classic books' sat on my shelf for a long period of time (decades, in fact) with the utmost intention to 'read one day'. Finally
Yet another of those 'classic books' sat on my shelf for a long period of time (decades, in fact) with the utmost intention to 'read one day'. Finally, last year, I got around to it. This was helped along by the fact that the famous scene - where Walter Hartright, the main protagonist, meets the titular woman herself - has been used as an analysis extract for GCSE students and I have regularly taught from that particularly paper. It is always useful to know what actually comes next in such cases. This is rather important with The Woman in White as that scene gives a very wrong impression of what the story is going to be about. It sets up as a ghost story. It turns out to be more of a Scooby Doo tale. The famous scene was apparently inspired by a true event which happened to Collins in Cumbria. Perhaps that is what makes it so vivid. Alas, for me anyway, the direction the novel takes after that doesn't really live up to the same standard. To be fair, this turns out to be what many consider the first detective novel. Furthermore, there's no detective involved; merely amateur sleuths who all have a vested interest in the events and who all tell their part(s) of the tale. The main ideas of slowly uncovering the evidence and clues to unravel the mystery have remained the way to do it ever since (Colombo aside, of course). Likewise, there'd be no Famous Five or Miss Marple with such a story. Collins was good friends with Dickens and, for a while, was more popular. That history has favoured his friend and relegated Collins to simply (and solely) the author of The Woman in White, might be seen as unfair. I do not agree. Collins isn't half the writer that Dickens is, although you can see much of the same kind of style and flair. Still, this novel remains near the top of most Top 100 books. I'm not sure staying in the top 100 is unfair, but I would certainly place this down at the bottom of any such list. As much as anything, there's just too much coincidence. That Hartright just happens to be employed by a family that are connected to this strange woman he met by chance is borderline believable. That she happens to look exactly the same as one of the sisters he is to teach and that she is to marry a man whose history involves the strange woman is simply too far a stretch. All I can say is: the Victorians must have been very gullible readers. Such criticisms aside, despite being a lengthy book, it is very readable. There's no feeling of wading through endless descriptions such as you might find with Thomas Hardy. The plot pace is fairly swift and there's enough excitement and danger to keep you, if not on the edge of your seat, definitely not leaning back and getting sleepy. If you like Dickens and want something light to enjoy - a literary equivalent of the 'trashy novel' perhaps? - then The Woman in White is for you. Personally, I'd have preferred a damned good ghost story, as that opening scene so strongly suggests. Now Victorians were VERY good at their gothic tales... ...more |
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Apr 06, 2023
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Dec 02, 2021
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| 1529009944
| 9781529009941
| 1529009944
| 4.22
| 3,790
| 2020
| Apr 30, 2020
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it was amazing
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The anonymous 'Secret Barrister' is back with another hard-hitting and surprisingly emotional roller-coaster ride of a book about exactly what's going
The anonymous 'Secret Barrister' is back with another hard-hitting and surprisingly emotional roller-coaster ride of a book about exactly what's going wrong in law. In the first book, the author looked at the legal system and demonstrated all but unequivocally that government under-funding and distinctly iffy traditions (don't ever go to Magistrate's Court if you can help it) have led to a system on its knees. In this latest book, SB turns a sharp eye to the media and how MPs utterly trash the reputation of the courts and legal practitioners with huge detrimental impact on everyone - and often creating situations of considerable danger. While it doesn't matter in terms of judging quality, I continue to believe SB is a woman simply because, again. the author writes so compassionately and sympathetically it is hard to imagine a man so skilled. I'll be impressed if, one day, it turns out the unmasked SB is indeed a male of the species. I raise my prediction only because this is no dry tome about law. It is beautifully written, wonderfully easy to get through and written so vividly that you often feel like you're in those courtrooms or actually chatting with the author over a cup of tea in their kitchen. This book has been lovingly crafted and is clearly no intended money-spinner; it is a labour of love, written with conviction. But what a perverse love it is. The stories within make me weep. The way the British public are led by the nose by the Press and scurrilous MPs trying to make names for themselves (or look like they're doing something useful to hide the fact they're utterly pointless) just brings one to despair. I get depressed thinking about it. God knows how SB (a working barrister) manages to cope. Perhaps this book is cathartic for the author. I'm no fan of the rabble that currently occupy No. 10, and I'm well aware of many of the crass, cruel and downright stupid things Patel and others have said over the years regarding law and order. Still, even I was shocked to see just how often those ministers who promise to 'crack down on crime' either do nothing or actually make things worse. I'm now certain that ministers should have to be suitably qualified to be given certain jobs - such as being responsible for the Ministry of Justice (although SB also shows that being qualified in law doesn't always make certain ministers competent). So where do we go from here? Another of SB's remarkable talents is the ability to give us those 'Empire Strikes Back' vibes. Yes, the enemy might be winning, the chips are down, the walls breached and all other metaphors and analogies you might come up with; but the rebels are still fighting in, still scoring victories, still causing the bad guys to clench their black-gloved fists and growl about crushing 'lefty human rights lawyers' with not a little hint (if you forgive the switch of analogy) of complaining about how they would have got away with it 'if it wasn't for those meddling kids'. I soup it up deliberately. SB, both in the books and on their Twitter account, is wonderfully funny, irreverent, playful - and downright nice. Even when attacking the idiots at Whitehall or Fleet Street, SB is gentle, speaking gracefully but never with diminished force. If you don't follow the Twitter account, I suggest you do. If you enjoy those daily moments of cutting through the crap while also entertaining delightfully, then 'Fake Law' is absolutely a book for you. ...more |
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| 0751580791
| 9780751580792
| B08XQ6F9BT
| 3.72
| 493
| Oct 07, 2021
| Oct 07, 2021
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really liked it
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James Felton is one of those writers who don't just call a spade a spade: they call it a fecking great shovel. And when I say 'fecking', that's not th
James Felton is one of those writers who don't just call a spade a spade: they call it a fecking great shovel. And when I say 'fecking', that's not the word he's really using, obviously. It's a close cousin. He uses it a lot. Combine this with the actual subject matter (which includes the behaviour of penguins which will convince you never to give a soft toy one to a child again) and you've got a book which really comes close to its title. This is not for the squeamish. Of course, fans of Felton's previous books (and I am one) know exactly what he's like and love him for it. With titles like '52 Times Britain Was a Bellend' you know you're not getting something flowing in academic prose. This is, frankly, boys' toilet humour. Felton is coarse, gross and insulting. He's rather wonderful. Behind the jokes and rudeness, lies impressive research. His previous books stand up to scrutiny. I know this because there were occasional times I cried "that can't be true!" and went to check for myself. I was wrong: it can and it was. This book is no different. With a range of topics - from the origins of chainsaws and breakfast cereal to debunking myths such as the death of Rasputin and what happens if you sneeze with your eyes open - Felton covers a ridiculous amount of the weird, wonderful and, honestly, just ridiculous. It is a smorgasbord of stuff to make you go "Ew!". I do have a criticism however. I've collected books like this ever since I was a young lad (I still have the first I bought called "What A Way To Go" on my shelves). From Heroic Failures to Darwin Awards and QI books galore, I collected, read and loved them all. But the death of Rasputin features in several of them and here is Felton debunking it. That's nothing new. I recall in the early 2000s the 'facts' about what it means when you see statues of horses standing on four, three or two legs. Supposedly this told us whether the rider died in battle or not. It was nonsense and eventually a trivia book debunked that. Yet, for a while, it was one of those "I didn't know that" moments. And that's just what Felton's book is like. I can't help but wonder if, at some point in the future, many of these stories he tells here will prove to be false (I certainly hope so when it comes to the penguins. I really, really hope so). But that uncertainty does taint the enjoyment. His previous books on the British and the Sun newspaper are rooted in solid historical fact. You can look up any of our bellend moments for yourself and the pictures of the Sun's front pages are easy to obtain. But this current material is more difficult to pin down. The sources Felton uses may well turn out to be spurious one day. Nevertheless, I'm pretty certain most of it will hold up over time. After all, most of the content of those books I've collected over forty years still holds up too (it's just disappointing when sometimes it doesn't). And as such, I'm more than happy to share these tales with friends and family, shamelessly presenting it as though it was my own earnest discovery and feeling pretty certain no one is going to say "Wait a minute, penguins really don't do that. And I should know because I just happen to have a Phd in Penguinology." I kind of wish someone would, to be honest. Penguinologists aside, its a cracking book; lots of fun and enough to intrigue and amaze anyone. Not for the squeamish and not for young children (ye gods, don't make that mistake) but otherwise a perfect Christmas or birthday gift for anyone who wants to read about painful amputations, stupid deaths, weird science or a range of things about animals you didn't want to know. Especially penguins. ...more |
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Nov 18, 2021
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Dec 02, 2021
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Nov 18, 2021
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Kindle Edition
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| 000100039X
| 9780001000391
| 000100039X
| 4.23
| 288,492
| 1923
| Apr 13, 2003
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it was amazing
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The dual combination of being both short and one of those books which appears on more or less every 'Must Read' list meant I finally picked up this sl
The dual combination of being both short and one of those books which appears on more or less every 'Must Read' list meant I finally picked up this slender volume recently. Having seen the book quoted innumerable times in various forms across social media, I took a little time out to actually digest the story properly. Perhaps instinctively realising what story writers are trained to know now - that no one likes to be lectured by the narrator - Gibran presents a philosophical treatise on how to live an upright and peaceful life under the guise of telling the story of the titular Prophet leaving the town where he has lived many years to return to his own home at long last. Before he can go, the adoring crowd asking him for last words of wisdom on a range of issues. Over twenty chapters covering, love, children, money, clothes, friendship, pleasure, religion and many others. The Prophet gives his pithy conclusions before setting sail. I was not expecting much, I have to admit. While those many memes I've seen trot out semi-trite truisms which sound good but have very little use, I figured the whole would be worse, not least because Gibran wrote the book in 1923. A lot as happened since then and it is hard to believe a naïve and simplistic book could offer anything of worth a century later. Initially, I felt my suspicions justified. Stylistically somewhere between a tacky Paulo Coelho novel and a pompous teaching from the Bible/Qur'an, the book had all the trappings of an empty set of words, albeit beautifully written. Inside, my heart's arms were well and truly folded with scepticism. But after just a few chapters, said arms began to unfold and began to focus a little more. What this Prophet said actually made sense and seemed in tune with much of my own philosophy. As time went on, I found myself nodding vigorously. The words were soothing and messages conveyed meaningful. Far from being full of fluffy nonsense, these passages were truly helpful. I immediately began thinking of people I know who would benefit considerably from reading this book. I can see why 'The Prophet' became the Sixties Bible in many ways. The philosophies do boil down to the premise of 'do nothing wrong to thy neighbour' but don't restrict the enjoyment of pleasure. That is not to say this is a collection of hedonist sayings. Some are hard - your children are not your children: they belong to life; joy and sorrow are inseparable - and so on. Gibran was a convert to the Baha'i faith and the maturity of a theological view shows through. These are not trite sayings for teenagers who want easy things to believe. These are comforting and wise words for the mature who want to better understand the nature of the world and how to ride its ups and downs. In short, this is an ideal book for anyone who considers themselves thoughtful and wants to ponder the world. Short enough to be given as a gift which might actually be read, 'The Prophet' is, at its worst, harmless. At its best, I suspect it is life changing. This book is one of the few I really wish I'd read when I was much younger. It might well have been a major influence. As it is, I'll take comfort in it while sitting in my garden on a calm, peaceful spring day. ...more |
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Nov 01, 2021
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| 1782437576
| 9781782437574
| 1782437576
| 4.07
| 60
| Sep 01, 2010
| Jun 01, 2018
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really liked it
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Bought on a whim while at the British Museum, I picked up this little gem in the hope that I might glean some useful simple analogies and explanations
Bought on a whim while at the British Museum, I picked up this little gem in the hope that I might glean some useful simple analogies and explanations to use with my science students. I wasn't disappointed. Jeff Stewart is as funny as he is well informed. Dealing with the laws of Physics, Stewart covers much of the ground needed for GCSE science and not a small amount of the principles required for at least the 'bigger picture' ideas encountered with A level Physics. Very accessible, it makes an ideal introductory book for students to read, perhaps over the summer before starting their respective courses. Certainly, after reading it, if you found it boring then Physics probably isn't for you. It is a relatively short book, with ten chapters each covering a particle area of science and never lasting longer than twenty pages. That makes it easy to digest in small chunks. This is certainly a book I will dip into from time to time when I have a student that just isn't getting it and I need to be reminded of good visual demonstrations and thought experiments that will get the principle across. Knowing me, in researching that, I'll get lost in the gentle humour of the author again and read far more than I need to! ...more |
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it was amazing
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| 4.19
| 35,532
| Sep 01, 1985
| Mar 01, 2003
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really liked it
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With the final book in the quadrilogy that is The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, I was surprised just how this got to me considering I wasn't convinced
With the final book in the quadrilogy that is The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, I was surprised just how this got to me considering I wasn't convinced at first. 'Talking to Dragons' presents very differently to the previous three books; not a surprise in some ways considering this was the original story to be written and published. Wrede was persuaded later to turn this into a series and she decided to write the back story. This is the only one of the four which is written in first person - the story is told from the point of view of Cimorene's teenage son, Daystar -and is slightly odd in that we are presented with characters we know and love as though 'new' (which, of course, they were when the book was originally published). Initially then, I didn't feel I was going to like this. I was less than convinced with the third book and felt the plot ending a little contrived. As 'Talking with Dragons' is also the longest of the series, I thought this was going to be a bit of a hard slog to plough through. Then, somehow, I found myself halfway through the book in something of an instant. "How did that happen?" I asked myself, and felt a little bit of a panic. While it was a jarring oddity how the book started, still it had all those characters I'd enjoyed for the last three books. By the time I reached I the three-quarter mark, I was both delighted with the story and saddened by the impending final page. There would be no more Cimorene, no more Kazul, nor any of the others. Cue upside down face. The series may lack the intense excitement and sense of 'adultness' of the Harry Potter stories, but for a younger audience who enjoy jolly escapades, this is a really lovable set of books. If you're wanting to introduce your eight-year-old to fantasy but feel Rowling or Tolkien is just not going to be appropriate yet, then the Enchanted Forest Chronicles is perfect. There's nothing harmful or offensive in any of the books; just excitement and lots of fun. Now I'm left wondering what to do to replace these adventures I've so enjoyed a second time around. In my review of the first book 'Dealing with Dragons', I referenced reading these books to my children when we lived in Bangladesh and they were very young. They are grown up and live in their own homes now and the nest is relatively empty (though not quite as much as it should be - the little birds keep coming back to steal the worms and nesting material). Reading the Enchanted Forest Chronicles allowed me to go back to a time when I was a younger man, the kids found everything exciting and princesses could live with dragons. If only we could keep that forever... ...more |
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Jul 22, 2021
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Aug 13, 2021
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Jul 22, 2021
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| B01N10UUUT
| 4.25
| 2,652
| Sep 29, 2016
| Feb 14, 2017
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really liked it
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Everything you could want to know about astrophysics - and way, way more...(no, really) It is difficult to go wrong with a book on this subject written Everything you could want to know about astrophysics - and way, way more...(no, really) It is difficult to go wrong with a book on this subject written by these three authors, all at the top of their respective trees. Tyson et al do a good job of applying Feynman rules to teaching a complex subject; for half the book, at least, they keep it simple and start at the premise that the reader is a complete novice in physics. By the end, they have reached material that goes beyond GCSE level and pretty much covers most things to do with astrophysics and subatomic theory at the A level stage. They get you close to not even noticing when you reach such heights. There comes a point though where the sheer amount of maths and complexity of thought is overwhelming. I struggled at times - and I teach this stuff to A level students! You certainly have to give your full concentration or you will be lost. In part I found this was because I listened to the book through Audible rather than read a hard copy. I don't recommend this. Firstly, because the aforementioned maths and complex ideas are hard to visualise when just listening to the book (there is a pdf of illustrations but I'm not sure it helps). Mostly though I don't recommend it because the narrator - Michael Butler Murray - is horribly condescending, sneering his way through many a joke and generally making you feel like you're the class idiot. I didn't enjoy his style at all. For these two reasons, I can't grant a full five stars. Nevertheless, with an actual hard copy, I think this book is an excellent and comprehensive introduction to astrophysics which would benefit any would-be physicist or A level student. The book is entertaining and the authors clear and precise. If maths is anathema to you, however, and working hard to concentrate is not your thing: I would avoid. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jun 30, 2021
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Nov 02, 2021
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Jun 30, 2021
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Audiobook
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| 0152046925
| 9780152046927
| 0152046925
| 4.18
| 42,322
| Mar 01, 1993
| Mar 01, 2003
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really liked it
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The third instalment of Patricia C. Wrede’s Enchanted Forest Chronicles takes yet another character’s perspective – this time, Morwen the Witch and (m
The third instalment of Patricia C. Wrede’s Enchanted Forest Chronicles takes yet another character’s perspective – this time, Morwen the Witch and (more importantly) her very many cats. Here we find Cimorene, who began our adventures in book one, has now moved on to become queen of the forest and is pregnant – preparing us for the fourth and final book which was (as the author explains in all her introductions) actually the first of the series to be written and published. She’s not absent in this story: far from it. Nor are the pesky wizards very far away too. But our focus remains mostly with Morwen as she tries to work out what has happened to the magic sword which belongs and in the Enchanted Forest and threatens to destroy it if not returned. There is something of a different feel to this book. For a start, it doesn’t end happily with everything nicely tied up. Instead, having given us two complete stories previously, Wrede now gives us the cliffhanger which will come to a head in the fourth book. Considering this was originally published in 1993, that's quite ahead of its time really. Nevertheless, ahead of time or not, it can bring something of a disappointment – at least to me as an adult reading these for old times’ sake rather than reading to my children. I’m sure we were all thrilled and delighted the first time around – seeing as we had the fourth book to hand ready to move on to, so we didn’t have to wait long for resolution. I’m sure children will be delighted by it all too. But for me, I found myself less than convinced by the calmness with which everyone faces the final predicament – Cimorene most of all, as it happens. There's no real sense of urgency, crisis or emotional turmoil. I guess that makes it a safe book for younger children though. Still, these are characters that I’ve come to know and love and I care about what happens to them. Hence, I’m looking forward to the fourth – and longest – book. I’ll report back what I think when I’m done! ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jun 21, 2021
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Jul 22, 2021
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Jun 21, 2021
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Paperback
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| 1598035843
| 9781598035841
| 1598035843
| 4.19
| 556
| Jan 01, 2009
| unknown
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liked it
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Patrick N. Allitt comes across, in this series of audio lectures, as a very pleasant, easy-going and genial academic. His voice absolutely sounds like
Patrick N. Allitt comes across, in this series of audio lectures, as a very pleasant, easy-going and genial academic. His voice absolutely sounds like it belongs to a British comedian though I can't, for the life of me, think who he makes me think of. Overall, the lectures feel quite lively - almost fun; certainly they're easy to follow. But - oh dear - despite what I think were the best of intentions, Allitt (quite literally) whitewashes British colonial history. It's obvious he doesn't intend to. He tries to present the 'warts and all' aspects of the British history and states right at the beginning about the importance of setting aside political goals and behaving as good historians should: to look objectively as the evidence. Alas, what Allitt has fallen foul of here is 'researcher bias', unconsciously passing over that which needs much greater emphasis. Amritsar gets barely a mention and, when it does, his final point is one of how the British praised Dyer for his horrific orders rather than the revulsion they felt. Churchill, while some negatives are expressed modestly, is not mentioned at all when it comes to the great Bengal famine and his role in deliberately letting Indians starve is glossed over. Where the British did bad things, mitigating circumstances are presented. Allitt presents the Opium Wars as an understandable result of the British wanting to trade opium in China where there were plenty of addicts desiring the product. He fails to mention that before the British started illegally pushing the drug, there were no, or few, known addicts in the country. There was no market for drugs until the British created one. And surrounding these omissions? Lots of glowing reports of how good the Empire was. Whole lectures on colonial literature which glows with pride. Post-colonial literature - while often praising non-white authors - has more than a hint of condescension to it when Allitt suggests it is all coming along very well and slowly 'catching up' with white literature. He completely ignores Rabindranath Tagore in this context, which is inexcusable. All in all, you come away from these lectures with the feel that the British Empire was an exciting and glorious time which really, all things considered, was pretty spiffing even if not always perfect. This would be too ghastly to bear if it wasn't for the fact that the lectures are really quite fascinating, well researched, enjoyable and do present some fantastic information about the 'white lands' - the histories of America, Canada, Australia and so on. Personally, I know very little about Canada and Australia, so I particularly enjoyed learning about these nations. Again, there is a sense of whitewashing - we're told very little about the original peoples of the various lands where the British (and, to be fair, other Europeans) went - but it isn't quite as tortured as his angle on African and Indian history. There are nice little oddities along the way though. The lecture on cricket was brilliant and has ensured that I never want to see the game again; not that I was ever a fan before...but now I'm morally opposed! Overall then, I could recommend Allitt's lectures as a starting point for researching colonial history but then make sure you dive straight into something else which gives you better perspective. For this, you could do worse than go to Sathnam Sanghera's excellent 'Empireland' which is both gentle and balanced in critiquing the nature of the British in other countries. I do feel a little sorry for Allitt. He admits he's a product of the Empire. He was born just as the empire was collapsing, when socialism was on the rise and the idea of empire was abhorrent, yet an entire British population, bruised by WWII, was mourning the loss and believed - as one - that the Empire was great and glorious. He's no apologist for colonialism; his intentions to present it as bad just as much as good were pure and just. It's just that there is a very clear and obvious bias which, I suspect, is completely hidden to him. It's much easier for myself, born a couple of generations later where - despite the inherent racism and continued love for the empire and belief in the greatness of Britain - socialism was, nevertheless, in ascendency, the empire was no more a lived experience and we all believed in the equality of all. From such a vantage point, it's much easier to stand back and reflect. Indeed, anyone born after 1970 should be able to do so. It's a pity then that so few actually do. For that reason, Allitt's lectures are a little bit dangerous. There's still too many Brits who mourn a loss of a 'great empire' they never actually knew and never really existed. On their own then, the lectures should be avoided; as part of a greater package, they really quite useful. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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Jun 08, 2021
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Jul 07, 2021
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Jun 08, 2021
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Audio CD
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| 0152045651
| 9780152045654
| 0152045651
| 4.27
| 43,525
| Oct 15, 1991
| Nov 01, 2002
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it was amazing
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Continuing on from enjoying the 'Enchanted Forest Chronicles' which began with 'Dealing with Dragons', returning to the series thirteen years after fi
Continuing on from enjoying the 'Enchanted Forest Chronicles' which began with 'Dealing with Dragons', returning to the series thirteen years after first reading them to my young children, I was delighted to find that the second book was every bit as entertaining as the first. Wrede's rather wonderful idea (accidentally hit upon, the author freely admits) of taking a different character viewpoint for each book, means that you get a sense of 360-degree viewing of the world these characters inhabit. There's no sense of a same old plot ploy being rehashed. While the characters remain the same and, inevitably, it is the wizards who reappear as the enemy, the different lifestyle we come to know of a new hero(ine) for the each book means the whole plot approach feels fresh and original. There's nothing complicated in the stories - in this one the premise is the mystery of why great chunks of the forest seem to have died or gone missing and where Kazul, the king of the dragons, has disappeared to. It's a good, fantastical romp and would absolutely delight older children who are, perhaps, not quite ready for the darkness of Harry Potter and the like. Wrede writes with a light, whimsical touch but isn't simplistic. Her characters and dialogue are intelligent and interesting. The no real sense of hidden agendas or condescension in her style - something many children's authors fail to avoid. I do wonder why the author and her books are not better known. She's enjoyed a reasonable amount of fame in the States but somehow these books just haven't come over to Europe or the UK in a big way and I think that's a real shame. For a modern society wishing to encourage equality of the sexes among children without having to push a hard-line feminist agenda, the 'Enchanted Forest' books press all the right buttons. Certainly - so far, at least, into the four-book series - I can't recommend the books enough. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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May 26, 2021
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Jun 21, 2021
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May 26, 2021
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 015204566X
| 9780152045661
| 015204566X
| 4.16
| 89,604
| Sep 18, 1990
| Nov 01, 2002
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it was amazing
|
I will confess a considerable bias in writing this review. Let me tell you a story... Once upon a time there was a young(ish) man who took his family o I will confess a considerable bias in writing this review. Let me tell you a story... Once upon a time there was a young(ish) man who took his family off to a strange and bizarre land, where they settled - for a few months - in the home of a family who were away visiting strange(r) lands of their own. With two small children in tow also having to deal with a world which was bewildering and magical in its own way, the young(ish) man and his wife did their best to make their children's world as safe as possible. And so, every night, the man and his two children would sit in a HUGE cauldron of a chair, pull out a book from the nearby shelf, and read stories to help the children to sleep easily in their strange beds. The first book he pulled out happened to be about a princess and dragons but it was not at all what they all expected. It wasn't at all...'proper'. They loved it and devoured all the remaining books before their time in that home was over. And so that's how I came to know and love Wrede's brilliant and hugely underrated series of books about Princess Cimorene and her dragon, Kazul. For three months, both my kids and I loved sitting in that huge bamboo chair reading the 'Enchanted Forest Chronicles' in Dhaka, Bangladesh while we did our language training. We spent five years after that living in rural Bangladesh, but never forgot those few weeks dealing with the nightmare that is Dhaka. Wrede's books helped make it rather magical. Well, we've been back in the UK for seven years at the time of writing and the children are now adult-sized and grown up, but I've never forgotten those wonderful books even though I had forgotten the names and details. Having just reached the age of fifty recently, I'm getting horribly nostalgic as I feel my age and keep trying to escape back to yesteryear. Hence, I began the (Google) search for these books. I only succeeded in locating them a few weeks ago and immediately bought the series for myself. This first in the series introduces Cimorene, the princess who does NOT want to get married and be 'proper'. So she runs off and becomes 'the princess' of Kazul, a fierce but wise female dragon. There's much here that seems to be quite feminist: the independence of Cimorene, the uselessness and lack of intelligence of the knights who attempt to save her, her ability to stand up for herself even with dragons, and of course, the way she saves the day when it matters. And Kazul, for that matter, is female and yet, it turns out, is eligible to be the 'King' of the dragons (but not 'queen' - that's an entirely different job). But as the author herself explains in the introduction, she didn't set out to write a feminist novel for young people. Cimorene may have run off to live with a dragon, but she still does all the cooking and cleaning. She's house proud and isn't averse from wearing pretty frocks when the need arises. She's no tomboy who needs 'taming', nor no closet lesbian who hates all men. These stereotypes are avoided. She's actually just very normal and down-to-earth in this fantasy land. This, of course, makes her a brilliant role model - especially for girls - which is probably why my daughter and I liked it so much the first time around. She's not Hermione Granger - an impossible character to emulate. Nor is she Anne of Green Gables - naive and forever getting into clumsy scrapes. This hero is intelligent, thoughtful, capable and absolutely believable (or as much as you can be as a princess living with magical dragons in an enchanted forest). Wrede herself writes with gentle wit and light-heartedness. The book is exceptionally easy to read (I womped through it in little more than a train journey to London and back to Cumbria) but isn't childish. While my daughter would have been eight when we read it together and she loved it, I think this book is ideal as a transition into YA literature. Not unlike the Harry Potter books, it is good for young teenagers while charming enough for adults. Or, at least, charming enough for THIS adult. For I am thoroughly looking forward to reading the second instalment of four. After the heaviness of politics and history I've been reading recently, these are simply delightful books, the analogous equivalent of a nice cup of tea and a sit down. I like Cimorene and Kazul, I care about them, and I want to continue on in their company. Read it to your children; read it to your grandchildren; get them copies to read for themselves; do any of this, but read 'Dealing with Dragons' for yourself too. ...more |
Notes are private!
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May 22, 2021
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May 26, 2021
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May 22, 2021
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| 4.38
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it was amazing
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not set
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Sep 23, 2023
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| 3.88
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really liked it
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not set
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Sep 16, 2023
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| 3.64
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liked it
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not set
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Sep 02, 2023
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| 4.24
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it was amazing
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not set
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Aug 19, 2023
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| 4.00
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really liked it
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not set
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Jul 28, 2023
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| 4.16
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really liked it
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not set
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Jul 15, 2023
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| 4.51
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it was amazing
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not set
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Jun 20, 2023
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| 3.86
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really liked it
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not set
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Jun 03, 2023
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| 3.94
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really liked it
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not set
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May 20, 2023
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| 3.25
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did not like it
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not set
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Apr 10, 2023
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| 3.73
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really liked it
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not set
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Apr 08, 2023
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| 4.06
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it was amazing
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not set
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Apr 08, 2023
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| 4.04
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it was amazing
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not set
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Apr 04, 2023
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| 4.59
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it was amazing
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not set
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Mar 29, 2023
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| 4.67
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it was amazing
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Aug 24, 2022
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Aug 23, 2022
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| 3.81
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really liked it
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not set
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Jan 17, 2022
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| 4.19
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really liked it
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Jun 22, 2023
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Jan 17, 2022
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| 4.30
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really liked it
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not set
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Jan 06, 2022
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| 4.00
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liked it
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Apr 06, 2023
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Dec 02, 2021
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| 4.22
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it was amazing
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not set
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Nov 18, 2021
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| 3.72
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really liked it
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Dec 02, 2021
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Nov 18, 2021
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| 4.23
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it was amazing
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not set
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Nov 01, 2021
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| 4.07
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really liked it
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not set
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Oct 20, 2021
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| 5.00
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it was amazing
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not set
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Aug 30, 2021
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| 4.19
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really liked it
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Aug 13, 2021
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Jul 22, 2021
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| 4.25
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really liked it
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Nov 02, 2021
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Jun 30, 2021
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| 4.18
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really liked it
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Jul 22, 2021
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Jun 21, 2021
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| 4.19
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liked it
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Jul 07, 2021
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Jun 08, 2021
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| 4.27
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it was amazing
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Jun 21, 2021
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May 26, 2021
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| 4.16
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it was amazing
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May 26, 2021
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May 22, 2021
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