Resurrected and rewrote this one. Although I never found it easy reading given its complicated, disjointed style, for many years I shared the widespread delusion that Wuthering Heights was a love story. Won over by the brooding Laurence Olivier performance in the film, I too thought that the darkness permeating the entire novel related to […]
Monthly Archives: September 2018
Escaping your comfort zone
For most people, escaping their comfort zone means adrenaline sports or bungee jumping, but often it can be small-scale, uneventful to most onlookers, a seemingly minor shift in habit. Take books. I love, love, love attending Appledore Book Festival, yet one day this week, I left my comfort zone to attend something that really wasn’t […]
The importance of research
Listening to Dr Helen Rappaport discussing her latest book, The Race to Save the Romanovs, her account of her detailed research was impressive and striking. Certainly, as a historian, she needs to be factual yet also to weave a fascinating, engaging story. Fortunately for Ms Rappaport, she is a linguist, a fluent Russian speaker having […]
Review: Henry Marsh’s brain surgery books
As a reader, I have eclectic tastes. At Fowey book festival, Henry Marsh’s book on neurosurgery, Do No Harm, was a recommended read, so I tried it. At first sight, tales of brain surgery may not seem terribly inspiring, but the surgeon, Henry, who at times had a difficult relationship with his brilliant father (who […]
Friendship
There is a great deal said and written about friendship. It is really hard to define, meaning different things to different people. Given the universality of social media, many of us have Facebook ‘friends’ who are people with whom one largely shares an interest (or several) and in whose lives you are interested. It does […]
Review: Pamela Colman Smith – The Untold Story
This book on Pamela Colman Smith (PCS) by Stuart Kaplan et al is an impressively hefty tome. Its feel reminded me of those comforting Reader’s Digest books of old, but instead of an eclectic combination of miscellaneous tales, this is all about Pamela, the versatile artist whose story managed to take over my life for […]
Social media – why self promotion bores us all
Many writers, especially self-published ones who need to self promote more than others, use social media to get their message out. It’s the obvious call for it is free (except for time) to use. We are all told we must use social media to the max. How often do you sigh with irritation when someone […]
Pimp Your Prose
“One pearl is better than a whole necklace of potatoes,” so said the French mime artist, Etienne Decroux. In writing, the same applies. One descriptive gem beats a hundred mundane words. My writing students have been writing descriptively and imaginatively; they have come up with some stunningly strong visual images. One great rule to remember […]
A cut too far …
Another one from the article archive: When I once commented on Twitter about Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) being different to and worse than, male circumcision, I did not expect the response I got, which included a couple of papers to read from Brian Earp, a research fellow at the University of Oxford. This is based […]
Overhyped?
Most of my deleted unread emails talk about changing my worldview, developing my intuition, and becoming mindful, my best self. No offence to those who find navel gazing useful (and I have been guilty of doing too much of it myself) but it strikes me that all this contemplation of self, this constant sense of […]
Feel the vibe
A friend mentioned seeing this film which made me dig out an old article once written for the now extinct Ms-Demeanour website. Given Ann Summers is said to have a turnover of £150 million, it seems that pleasure toys are big business, but how did it all begin? Well, it’s not something I’d ever really thought […]
Which season?
Had a little chat about the seasons yesterday, how autumn kills the summer with ‘the softest kiss’. Not my words, far too evocative and poetic, but apt. Autumn is beautiful, despite working towards death, as the leaves speed towards their fall. For many, autumn is their favourite season, a time to hunker down and recalibrate, […]
Flash fiction. Buying Back Dreams
Seeking something to wear, my iPad operating at 5.30 a.m. while he sleeps, I work my way through the clearance bargains on the Next site, the stuff no one wants, the equivalent of book remainders, so they are selling it off. The burgundy suedette pinny dress catches my eye. Available in all sizes, it is […]
Review – The Mighty Redcar BBC 2
It’s a rare event for me to watch television, but there is something about a serious social documentary focusing on the real lives of real people that has me hooked. Celebrity razzmatazz leaves me cold but social realism grips me. The same applies to books! Mum and daughter Kat and Kaitlyn have had a tough […]
Review: Snap – Belinda Bauer
It came as a shock to me just how many crime novels Belinda Bauer has written as I only encountered her work a couple of years ago on first reading Rubbernecker. Snap is her latest, a cracking read containing some stereotypical police characters of the type we all recognise, but also some tear-jerking and ‘edge […]