Rooted : an Australian History of Bad Language by Amanda LaugesenIn 1821, the Reverend Robert Cartwright, an Anglican minister who had arrived in Sydney in 1810, provided testimony to the Bigge Commission, which was investigating how effective transportation was in deterring crime. The Crow Trap by Ann CleevesIf you were looking for Baikie's Cottage on … Continue reading My Reading – April 2021
Books
My Reading – March 2021
Ross Poldark by Winston Graham Joshua Poldark died in March 1783. In February of that year, feeling that his tenure was becoming short, he sent for his brother from Trenwith. Beware the Lizard Lurking by Vivienne Brereton Snow-laden clouds lay low on the evening sky, threatening to release their heavy burden at any moment. Black … Continue reading My Reading – March 2021
My Reading – February 2021
A Woman's Lot by Carolyn HughesLuke blasphemed and Arthur whimpered as they tripped and stumbled over jutting roots and fallen branches, or lost their footing in the dips and hollows of the woodland floor. The Burning Girls by CJ TudorWhat kind of man am ?
Should I read on?
Some people judge a book not by its cover but by the opening lines, or perhaps the first page or two. It is wonderful when a brilliant beginning is followed by an equally sparkling book but often the momentum slows. At other times, the opening of a story is serviceable but the storytelling strengthens with … Continue reading Should I read on?
My Reading – January 2021
Thomas Cromwell: A Life by Diarmaid MacCulloch A time there was when a son was born to humble parents in the Surrey village of Putney, a place of little account, at a ferry crossing on the bank of the Thames, 6 miles upstream from the King's Palace of Westminster. The Dry by Jane Harper It … Continue reading My Reading – January 2021
My Reading – December 2020
Grace by Paul Lynch This flood October. And in the early light her mother goes for her, rips her from sleep, takes her from a dream of the world. Bone China by Laura Purcell Love is fragile, my mother once said. It can break. Strange Flowers by Donal Ryan All the light left Paddy Gladney's … Continue reading My Reading – December 2020
My Reading – November 2020
A Plague on Mr Pepys by Deborah Swift Bess Bagwell clung to the seat as a wash of freezing river water sluiced over the side of the wherry. She had to shift fast, to avoid a drenching. Expectation by Anna Hope It is Saturday, which is market day. It is late spring, or early summer. … Continue reading My Reading – November 2020
My Reading – October 2020
Singapore Sapphire by A M Stuart 'Hello,' she called, her voice vanishing into the dark bowels of the house. Moominvalley in November by Tove Jansson Early one morning in Moominvalley Snufkin woke up in his tent with the feeling that autumn had come and that it was time to break camp. Moominpappa at Sea by … Continue reading My Reading – October 2020
My Reading – September 2020
The Devil's Dye by Jeni Neill 'The hog can be smelt from the street for Lord's sake!' The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue Still hours of dark to go when I left the house that morning. A Murder By Any Name by Suzanne M Wolfe 'God's bollocks, girl! I'm freezing my tits off!' … Continue reading My Reading – September 2020
Book Review – This is Happiness by Niall Williams
This is Happiness begins with the sky clearing and the rain stopping just after 3 o’clock on the Wednesday afternoon of Holy Week in 1958 while the people of Faha in county Clare are at Church. This is a rare occurrence in Faha as rain 'was a condition of living'. Seventeen-year-old Noel Crowe, known as … Continue reading Book Review – This is Happiness by Niall Williams
Catherine Meyrick 