Books and Stuff

What I've been reading this week....

I finished Men Whose Fathers Were Men: The story of a hobby by Centurion (Col Reginald Branwhite Jay).  The hobby of the subtitle is medal collecting, and this 1925 book is a lovely period-piece.  It takes the form of one decent chap telling another about collecting in a series of after-dinner chats in his den, during which he expounds on the C19th history of the British Army (particularly in the Peninsular and the First Afghan War).  Very theatrical!

So I've now started Matthew Paris & Andrew Bryson, Parting Shots, which was one of the things I bought last week.  It a selection of extracts from ambassadors' valedictory despatches from abroad.

 

What I've bought this week...

Sam Willis, The Admiral Benbow: The life and times of a naval hero - £3.99
Richard Sale & Eugene Potapov, The Scramble for the Arctic: Ownership, exploration and conflict in the far north - £2.99

Peter F Hamilton, Manhattan in Reverse - £3.99

 

Books and Stuff

A regularish update of my book news.

What I've been reading this week...

I seem to have very little time to read these days, but this week I had to sit in a waiting room for an hour and a half, so I managed some more of Men Whose Fathers Were Men.

The problem I've had with this is that it's uncut, so I've been reading it in bed and found myself stymied when I've come across uncut pages.  I did take a paper-knife with me to the hospital, and it wasn't until I got there that I realised that I might have awkward questions to answer!

What's sitting by my bed half-read...

This is a very annoying habit:  I start a book and after a while get distracted and leave it, starting another.  I must make an effort to polish these off..

 

What I've bought...

Diana Wynne Jones, Howl's Moving Castle - £2.81
Diana Wynne Jones, The Chronicles of Chrestomanci - £2.80
Stanley Martin, The Order of Merit: One hundred years of matchless honour - £6.01

 

This was a nice illustration of the pitfalls of buying second-hand copies through Amazon.  Howl was fine and (as described) like new, but the Chronicles was a very dog-eared ex-library copy I wouldn't have bothered with if I'd seen it.

Depressing book news....

Is that Iain (M) Banks is dying, as the whole blogosphere is aware now.  Given what he's always said about about his 'genre' writing being ignored, it was ironic that the coverage the BBC gave it only mentioned The Wasp Factory and The Crow Road, although the reporter was standing in front of a table piled high with his 'M' books.

Books and Stuff

A regular(ish) round-up of my book news.

What I've bought this week...

Doreen J Waugh, The Faces of Orkney: Stones, Skalds and Saints - £1.99

Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book - 99p

What I've been reading this week...

Stephen Hunt, The Kingdom Beyond the Waves
Joseph Wambaugh, Hollywood Crows
'Centurion' (Reginald Branwhite Jay)  Men Whose Fathers Were Men: The Story of a Hobby