I first read Malorie Blackman's Noughts and Crosses years and years ago and, of course, was excited to watch the TV show last month. Noughts and Crosses is an alternative reality in which the native African people colonised the Europeans. Set in an alternative 21st century Britain in which the Crosses (darker skinned people) dominate…
Altogether it takes seven billion billion billion atoms to make you. No one can say why those seven billion billion billion atoms have such an urgent desire to be you. Bill Bryson's latest book takes us on a journey through the human body. Starting at the top with the head and the brain right down…
If anyone else, like me, has been stuck in self isolation for a week and only managed to reread Harry Potter and other old favourites, here is a short list of books to try out: Persepolis Satrapi's graphic novel tells the story of her childhood in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution. It is part of…
It's impeccable how brutal the truth can be at times. You can only admire it. Usually, we walk around constantly believing ourselves. 'I'm OK,' we say. 'I'm all right.' But sometimes the truth arrives on you, and you can't get it off. Even now, I wonder how much of my life is convinced. Zusak writes…
Whilst I was initially put off by the 525 pages of this book, wondering how many bus trips to work it would take me to finish this, it turned out to be well worth it. If anything, it ended too soon and I would have liked another 100 odd pages. I'm amazed that this book…
Wakenhyrst is the gothic tale of Maud Stearne's childhood growing up under the tyrannical hand of her father, a man descending into madness. The book starts with a journalist article of 'the first outsider who's met Maud and been inside Wake's End' for 50 years. Following this is a series of letters between Maud and…
The Colditz Story is a short but interesting book detailing Pat Reid's time as a prisoner of war at the German prison Colditz and his many attempts at escape. Colditz - the dreaded German P.O.W. camp had the reputation for being totally escape-proof. I was unaware when beginning the book that Pat was not yet…
I've been getting more and more into reading non fiction recently. I used to be a hard and fast fiction only kinda gal. But then I discovered biographies and memoirs can be fun. And a few years ago I got really stuck into reading Melvyn Bragg's The Adventure of English. More recently I read Bill…
Dead Papa Tootworth chews the noise of the place and waits for his favourite taste. Lanny tells the story of a young boy and his family living in a small village outside of London. Lanny is a strange child and takes art lessons with Mad Pete. There are also ghosts. I read Max Porter's Grief…
For such a historically common condition as outliving your own child, the vocabulary is curiously thin. This small book is a sad tale of grief. Denise Riley writes without limits. Riley writes in such a way that makes me stop after every sentence because I have to appreciate how beautifully she strings words together. Time…
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