As those who read my review of Nin's novel A Spy in the House of Love will know, I have always heard of this strange and exotic writer but have never known much about her. This edition of a section of her unexpurgated (uncensored) diary therefore promised to teach me more about the elusive Anais.… Continue reading Henry and June: The Unexpurgated Diary of Anais Nin
Not my usual literary hoohah but I have a great respect and girly love for Marilyn, mad as her life may have been. She was a mess, and she was wonderful. And damn it she was really, really beautiful.
Marilyn Monroe.
What a diamond. Champagne lover, literature fiend, blonde bombshell, femme fatale, one woman wonder, super star and all round beauty queen.
Here’s the best of Miss Marilyn Monroe. Those curves, that smile and some precious pearls of wisdom that should make you loud, proud and ready to shine. Life is short. Get out there and grab it.
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‘The Cellist of Sarajevo’, Steven Galloway
This book was one of several I bought in what I now admit to being a binge on Amazon. I bought it because I liked the cover and the title sounded interesting. Plus, I had never heard of it and thought it might be worth a go. How naive I was. Firstly, when it arrived,… Continue reading ‘The Cellist of Sarajevo’, Steven Galloway
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In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (Guest Post)
This is a guest post written by Hannah Gillow Kloster. When I picked up (by which I mean downloaded for free and converted to Kindle) my copy (file) of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood, I knew almost nothing about the book. I knew about Truman Capote, of course. I also saw Phillip Seymour Hoffman in London once.… Continue reading In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (Guest Post)
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Penguin Bloggers Night, Thursday 8th March 2012
A rather splendid moment in any book blogger's blogging career is being invited to brilliant events like this one. Penguin holds a special night for book bloggers every year and this year, for the first time, I was invited. In typical me fashion I arrived late, but luckily it was all chat, wine and canapes for a… Continue reading Penguin Bloggers Night, Thursday 8th March 2012
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Nightwood by Djuna Barnes
I came to hear of Djuna Barnes when I started reading Anais Nin, who was influenced by her. I read a little about Barnes and liked what I read - she was an American in Paris in the 1920s, wrapped up in the Modernist scene. I read recommendations from TS Eliot. This was enough to… Continue reading Nightwood by Djuna Barnes
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Blue Nights by Joan Didion
Blue Nights is a funny little book. The hardback is beautiful, with a blue background and lettering, a black and white photograph of a young Quintana covering the back. Beautiful, but funny. It is several things; but should not be viewed as a sequel to The Year of Magical Thinking. The earlier book was the literary actualisation of… Continue reading Blue Nights by Joan Didion
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This is Life by Dan Rhodes (Guest Post)
This is a guest post written by Hannah Gillow Kloster. The day Dan Rhodes' last work, Little Hands Clapping, was released I hopped on a train to London and went straight to Waterstone's at Trafalgar Square. Upon arrival I cast a cursory glance around the shop, marched up to the counter and demanded "Do you have… Continue reading This is Life by Dan Rhodes (Guest Post)
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Little Hands Clapping by Dan Rhodes (Guest Post)
This is a guest post written by Hannah Gillow Kloster. Dan Rhodes' latest novel, Little Hands Clapping, was published amid great expectations in 2010,following successes such as Little White Car, Timoleon Vieta Come Home and Gold, perhaps my personal favourite. I have had the good fortune to have met Dan a few times, and he is one of… Continue reading Little Hands Clapping by Dan Rhodes (Guest Post)
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The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (Guest Post)
This is a guest post written by Meg Hayes Fisher. ‘It is curious how sometimes the memory of death lives on for so much longer than the memory of the life that it purloined. Over the years, as the memory of Sophie Mol ... slowly faded, the Loss of Sophie Mol grew robust and… Continue reading The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (Guest Post)
These Little Words 