The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro It seems increasingly likely that I really will undertake the expedition that has been preoccupying my imagination now for some days. Shattered Anzacs: Living with the Scars of War by Marina Larsson ‘Our cup of sorrow has been filled to the brim.’ The Star from Calcutta by … Continue reading My Reading – October 2026
Books
My Reading – September 2026
Little Siberia by Antti Tuomainen Warm Koskenkorva vodka scours the inside of his mouth, sets his throat ablaze. Dark Eyes by Nina Romano Leningrad Monday, December 17, 1956 I awoke from my dream of snow falling softly, amassing next to the twisted dead body of a woman wearing a red and green floral babushka partially … Continue reading My Reading – September 2026
My Reading – August 2026
The Peppermint Tea Chronicles by Alexander McCall Smith (44 Scotland Street #13)Domenica Macdonald, anthropologist, resident of Scotland Street, and wife of Angus Lordie, portrait painter and longstanding member of the Scottish Arts Club, sat in the kitchen of her flat in Scotland Street. A Promise of Ankles by Alexander McCall Smith (44 Scotland Street #14)Standing … Continue reading My Reading – August 2026
My Reading – July 2026
The Absolutist by John Boyne Seated opposite me in the railway carriage, the elderly lady in the fox-fur shawl was recalling some of the murders she had committed over the years. Howl by Howard Jacobson This is what will happen.
Well Begun – Some Books I Love
Every story has a beginning, an opening line. With some novels that the first sentence contain resonances for the whole novel, echoes or hints of what will come. Others reveal their themes slowly, line by line, over the first few paragraphs. Whatever the style of opening, the best offer a tantalising invitation to read on. … Continue reading Well Begun – Some Books I Love
My Reading – June 2026
A Month in the Country by J.L. Carr When the train stopped I stumbled out, nudging and kicking the kitbag before me. My Story by Peter Cosgrove On the afternoon of 28 July 1947, Warrant Officer Class 2 John Cosgrove was sitting on a tank turret in the middle of the Puckapunyal firing range in … Continue reading My Reading – June 2026
My Reading – May 2026
Three Reasons for Revenge by Dervla McTiernan The beach was where they went to play. A Profitable Wife by Kat Christensen The first time I heard this infamous family lore I was about nine years old, perched on a footstool next to my grandmother’s rocking chair.
My Reading – April 2026
Venetian Vespers by John Banville Dusk, a deserted room, a scrap of black silk on a marble table, darkening waters beyond. There and Back: The Story of an Australian Soldier 1915-35 by A Tiveychoc Edward Rowland, born of Australian parents at Sydney on the 20th of June 1899, was working in his father’s factory when … Continue reading My Reading – April 2026
My Reading – March 2026
The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson People like to say they seek the truth. Sometimes they even mean it. The truth is they crave the warm embrace of a lie. The Last Fairy Witch by Jean M Roberts A thin mist rose from the ground, shrouding the sentinels in a ghostly veil.
My Reading – February 2026
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell A boy is coming down a flight of stairs. Too Far Standing Still by Lisette Brodey It’s been a long day. I’m weary. Things that appear normal on the outside feel as though they’re rotting on the inside. Departure(s) by Julian Barnes The other day, I discovered an alarming possibility. No, … Continue reading My Reading – February 2026
