She-Wolves was one of those books that I had heard about for ages, and kept meaning to read, but for some reason never got around to - laziness, too many other books to read, a million reasons. So I decided to put it on my wish list for Christmas and birthday books last year, and… Continue reading She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth by Helen Castor (2011)
Tag: 2011
Reading and watching: Room by Emma Donoghue
Room is one of those books that 'caused a stir' when it came out, and everyone was talking about it. I always meant to read it, but never got round to it; and then the movie trailers came out. It was time to read the book before seeing the film! I whizzed through the book… Continue reading Reading and watching: Room by Emma Donoghue
The Blue Tattoo by Margot Mifflin (2009)
I came across The Blue Tattoo by chance, when author Peggy Riley tweeted about it (so long ago that I'm afraid I can't find the original tweet). As soon as I heard about it I knew I wanted to read it. It was unlike anything I had ever read before, but it instantly appealed to… Continue reading The Blue Tattoo by Margot Mifflin (2009)
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides (Guest Post)
This is a guest post written by Hannah Gillow Kloster. As a huge fan of Jeffrey Eugenides' previous works, I was looking forward to reading his latest major novel, The Marriage Plot. On its blurb, the book purports to be about an English Major writing her thesis on Jane Austen and George Eliot, whilst around… Continue reading The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides (Guest Post)
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? by Jeanette Winterson
The dictionary defines 'truth' as several different things, the first of which is 'quality or state of being true', which seems logical enough. However, it also defines 'truth' as 'honesty; sincerity; genuineness'. These are the aspects of truth that apply most to what one may call a human truth - the truth of things as… Continue reading Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? by Jeanette Winterson
Perlmann’s Silence by Pascal Mercier
For his first novel, originally published in Germany in 1995 and only now being published in English, Pascal Mercier chose the academic world of linguistics as the background for the story. More specifically he chose a small group of professors meeting for a conference on the Italian east coast, in a seaside town not far… Continue reading Perlmann’s Silence by Pascal Mercier
Tides of War by Stella Tillyard (2011)
Stella Tillyard is primarily an historian; it is therefore unsurprising that Tides of War, her debut foray into fiction, encapsulates every aspect of the Peninsula War of 1812 – 1815 from the social impact in England to the daily life of the soldiers fighting in Spain. The novel’s title is extremely fitting, though at first… Continue reading Tides of War by Stella Tillyard (2011)