Title: HousekeepingAuthor: Marilynne RobinsonPublisher: Faber and FaberDate: 2005 (1980)Genre: FictionSummary: Housekeeping is the story of Ruth and Lucille, orphans growing up in the small desolate town of Fingerbone in the vast northwest of America. Abandoned by a succession of relatives, the sisters find themselves in the care of Sylvie, the remote and enigmatic sister of their… Continue reading Book Review: Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
Title: Invisible CitiesAuthor: Italo CalvinoTranslator: William WeaverPublisher: Vintage ClassicsDate: 2019 (1972)Genre: FictionSummary: As Marco tells the khan about Armilla, which “has nothing that makes it seem a city, except the water pipes that rise vertically where the houses should be and spread out horizontally where the floors should be,” the spider-web city of Octavia, and other… Continue reading Book Review: Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino
I cannot tell you how it was; But this I know: it came to pass Upon a bright and breezy day When May was young; ah, pleasant May! – from May by Christina Rossetti Água Viva by Clarice Lispector Translator: Stefan Tobler Summary: In Água Viva Clarice Lispector aims to ‘capture the present’. Her direct, confessional and… Continue reading May 2021 TBR
April was hectic for me! I almost started a new job but that didn’t work out in the way that I wanted it to and then I did start a new job but that job is technically a month-long project rather than an actual job. I finished all of the training for the second job… Continue reading #MonthlyWrapUp: April 2021
Title: MortAuthor: Terry PratchettPublisher: CorgiDate: 2012 (1987)Genre: FantasySummary: Death comes to us all. When he came to Mort, he offered him a job. After being assured that being dead was not compulsory, Mort accepted. However, he soon found that romantic longings did not mix easily with the responsibilities of being Death’s apprentice… Mort is the fourth… Continue reading Book Review: Mort by Terry Pratchett
I thought I’d take a look at my five most recent reads and give mini reviews of them. All of them will get full-length reviews at some point in the distant future but these are my initial thoughts from my reading diary. Aurora Leigh by Elizabeth Barrett Browning Read: 20th to 30th March 2021 Intricate,… Continue reading Five Recent Reads
Happy Saturday! Last week I wrote an overview of the life and works of Thomas Middleton – one of Shakespeare’s contemporaries and one of my favourite playwrights – and I’m focusing on one of his plays this week: A Game at Chess (1624). I think this is the first time I’ve ever written a Shakespeare Saturdays… Continue reading Shakespeare Saturdays: A Game at Chess by Thomas Middleton
Title: Murder in MesopotamiaAuthor: Agatha ChristiePublisher: HarperCollinsDate: 2015 (1936)Genre: Crime & Mystery / ClassicsSummary: An archaeologist’s wife is murdered on the shores of the River Tigris in Iraq… It was clear to Amy Leatheran that something sinister was going on at the Hassanieh dig in Iraq; something associated with the presence of ‘Lovely Louise’, wife of celebrated… Continue reading Book Review: Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie
The Classics Club Spin number was revealed yesterday and it was number 11! Click here to see my spin list. I’m just going to give a quick summary of the book in this post and a few stats like the number of pages, the edition I’m using, and other stuff. London Labour and the London… Continue reading #CCSpin 26 Reveal – Which Book Will I Be Reading?
Happy Saturday! I have three favourite playwrights from the early modern era: Christopher Marlowe, John Webster, and Thomas Middleton. I haven’t written about any of them yet in this series about Shakespeare’s contemporaries, which is a shame, but I’m correcting that error today by focusing on the life and work of Thomas Middleton. I’m also… Continue reading Shakespeare Saturdays: Thomas Middleton (Shakespeare’s Contemporaries #7)
