Okay, nothing Albert Camus writes is ever likely to be a bundle of fun - and "Exile and the Kingdom" is no exception. But what it is (as usual) is compelling. In the short stories in this book, Camus digs deeply - and remorselessly - into the psyche of his characters, laying them bare for … Continue reading “Exile and the Kingdom”
Category: Reading
New Podcast Episode
I have just posted a new podcast episode containing five of the sonnets recently shared. You can find them here along with a raft of other material
New Podcast episodes
I have just posted a new episode on my podcast. You can find it here.
“Trio”
When I started reading William Boyd's "Trio" I thought it was some kind of joke. The characters' names were first to ring alarm bells: Elfrida, Troy, Cornell, Talbot. Indeed, 'Elfrida' is the first word. And the style of the opening read a little like an uninspired 1940s or 1950s Hollywood melodrama - a notion that … Continue reading “Trio”
Orienteering – a sonnet
I am writing a long sequence of sonnets that will see publication in 2023. I thought it might be fun to share some of them in advance. A sonnet is included below, along with an audio recording of me reading it. Orienteering The map offers no clues to where we are. You’d said “let’s get … Continue reading Orienteering – a sonnet
“Novelist as Vocation”
Published this month, Haruki Murakami has pulled together a collection of eleven articles all covering the subject of what it is to be a novelist. Some of these have been previously published, some are new. A keen reader of Murakami's fiction, I was lucky enough to get my hands on a pre-publication edition of the … Continue reading “Novelist as Vocation”
Defenceless Against Time – a sonnet
I am writing a long sequence of sonnets that will see publication in 2023. I thought it might be fun to share some of them in advance. A sonnet is included below, along with an audio recording of me reading it. Defenceless Against Time I never found the time to comprehend the passage of night, … Continue reading Defenceless Against Time – a sonnet
Unrequited Love – a sonnet
I am writing a long sequence of sonnets that will see publication in 2023. I thought it might be fun to share some of them in advance. A sonnet is included below, along with an audio recording of me reading it. Unrequited Love You offered nothing to suggest how love might grow. Love - you … Continue reading Unrequited Love – a sonnet
On Being Asked to Prove Love – a sonnet
I am writing a long sequence of sonnets that will see publication in 2023. I thought it might be fun to share some of them in advance. A sonnet is included below, along with an audio recording of me reading it. On Being Asked To Prove Love This fog, dense as any in living memory, … Continue reading On Being Asked to Prove Love – a sonnet
In Mourning – a sonnet
I am writing a long sequence of sonnets that will see publication in 2023. I thought it might be fun to share some of them in advance. A sonnet is included below, along with an audio recording of me reading it. In Mourning There used to be a sparkle in your eye fired by a … Continue reading In Mourning – a sonnet
Ian Gouge - Writer 