There can be no doubt that my reading of Michael Ondaatje's marvellous "The English Patient" benefited from me having seen the film. It was as if the story he was sketching was being laid down on pre-tinted paper which made his images and backdrop all the more convincing. It was reading "Warlight" that made me … Continue reading “The English Patient”
Category: Reading
Free books this weekend!
For this weekend - 1st - 4th November - Amazon is offering three of my books in Kindle version absolutely free! Take a look and help yourself! "An Infinity of Mirrors" Given his profession as a Historian, it was inevitable that Mark would find himself one day writing the story of his late father, the … Continue reading Free books this weekend!
“The Gravity Wave”
There is much to admire in Peter Sirr's "The Gravity Wave", a range of subjects, of styles that keeps the collection from becoming - as so many can be - a little bit repetitive. Having said that, however, I found myself not quite 'grabbed' by it; to my taste it was a book that felt … Continue reading “The Gravity Wave”
“The Shipping News”
It's probably quite rare that you can legitimately praise a book for being bleak, but "The Shipping News" is one such book. Not only through the medium of the story and the sparse picture painted of Killick Claw, the somehow elemental nature of the people who live there, but also through the language she uses. … Continue reading “The Shipping News”
“Now We Shall Be Entirely Free”
I never read historical novels, so why I chose Andrew Miller's "Now We Shall Be Entirely Free" is consequently a little beyond me. It must have been a review somewhere, or being seduced by the fact that it was shortlisted for a prize and Miller was already a Costa winner. Indeed, when I started reading … Continue reading “Now We Shall Be Entirely Free”
“Unknown Soldier”
I confess that in the beginning I struggled with Seni Seneviratne's "Unknown Soldier". There was something about the two voices in the first section that didn't quite work for me, and I wonder if using the photographs (from the third section, 'Album') proved as much a straitjacket as an inspiration. However, in the second section, … Continue reading “Unknown Soldier”
“Nocturnes”
One of the things at which Kazuo Ishiguro excels is writing first person characters who have flawed views of themselves; they believe they are perfectly rational, charming, intelligent, while all the while they are something other. And he depicts them in such a way as to allow us to see both sides, permitting us to … Continue reading “Nocturnes”
Goodreads ‘Giveaway’ – 2 days left!
For my friends in the U.S., Goodreads.com is currently running a 'Giveaway' where 100 copies of my novel "At Maunston Quay" are available for free. The 'Giveaway' runs until 15th September - so just two days to go! To be in with a chance of a free Kindle version of my book all you need … Continue reading Goodreads ‘Giveaway’ – 2 days left!
“The Diary of a Bookseller”
Given the format of this book - the daily diary over a year of a second-hand bookseller - there should be much repetition in "The Diary of a Bookseller". And there is. But one of the things that gives Shaun Bythell's book its quality is that this never gets in the way; he handles it … Continue reading “The Diary of a Bookseller”
“The Million-petalled Flower of Being Here”
Vidyan Ravinthiran's "Million-petalled Flower" may well be a Poetry Book Society Recommendation, but I'm afraid it didn't work for me; a little too flat and uninspiring. So much so that I couldn't finish it. I dislike abandoning poetry books, but there you go... It - and a number of other recent dissatisfactions with my own … Continue reading “The Million-petalled Flower of Being Here”
Ian Gouge - Writer 