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Article 24
A Writer and his Notebook: The Forging of a RebelFor four Friday evenings in January I was at the Instituto Cervantes watching 'La Forja de Un Rebelde' (The Forging of a Rebel). It's a very well-made,...
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Article 23
New Technologies and the Reinvention of the Author at the LSE Literary Festival Feb 16th -19th 20011In 1987 my husband complained about changes in his work place - his employers,BT, had plonked...
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Article 22
What makes them Modern? Guy de Maupassant: The Best Short StoriesI was delighted when a book of short stories was the month's choice for my local reading group. For a while now I've been reviewing...
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Article 21
Literary Links: Orozco at the Tate ModernIt came as no surprise to learn that Mexico-born Gabriel Orozco studied for a while in Madrid. Transforming ‘found’ objects in an often surreal way that echoes...
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Article 20
Comfort ReadingA Monday hospital admission last month made me reach for something to distract me over the weekend. Nothing on my shelves promised an instant solution, but a Saturday afternoon trawl of...
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Article 19
The Art of Serendipity: Vermilion Ink by David Su Li-Qun and Diana GoreEarlier in the year, I was asked to review a book about an Italian Jesuit, Guiseppe Castiglione, who was a court artist in...
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Article 18
Homeswaps and Holiday HumourAs a teacher, I was blessed with plenty of holiday time but not much money, so homeswaps were the ideal solution. I registered online every year with a company called...
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Article 17
An Everyday Story of Bindle Stiffs: Of Mice and Men at the Brockley Jack Studio.As a teenager, I read Steinbeck's 1939 American novel, The Grapes of Wrath , for which he won the Pulitzer Prize, with...
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Article 16
Buried too deep: John Sandford's crime novel: Buried PreyAll last week I was on a demanding immersion course in Spain, so I put the lacklustre nature of the first half of this book down to...
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Article 15
An Unfortunate Encounter : Truman Capote's In Cold BloodI enjoyed reading the Lewisham Library Crime Reading Group's choice for March. It's a shame I missed the discussion because the book raised...
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Article 14
Old Filth by Jane GardamThe title refers to an anachronism: 'Failed in London; try Hong Kong'. 'Old Filth is a nickname that the main character. Sir Edward Feathers, acquired during his distinguished...
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Article 13
World Book Night 2012 at Manor House LibraryThere was a good turn-out at Manor Park Library, and I spotted some reading-group members among the standing-up throng. They should have come earlier, I...
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Article 12
Almost Promethean: U3A London Region Creative Writing Study Day at Canada Water Library 19/4/2012 Had Lewis Carroll and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn been partners in building design they might well have...
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Article 11
Favourite Things : Launch of Linda Stratmann's The Daughters of Gentlemen Some people like a good funeral. I prefer a nice book launch :It's an excuse to visit a (usually) posh part of LondonThe...
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Article 10
Pretentious in Florence: Mark Mills' The Savage GardenPersonally, I like my crime to have a more literary flavour than your average Agatha Christie affords , but Mark Mills could take a few tips from...
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Article 9
A Novel of Two Halves: Until it's Over by Nicci FrenchThe experience of discussing this book with members of my local crime reading group made me realise the importance of structure. I go to see so...
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Article 8
Reading Like a WriterI don't buy many books these days - partly because like most people I know I've run out of room in the flat, and I've about twenty sackfuls in the garage. But I couldn't resist...
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I Should Live so Long: One Hundred Years of Solitude
I learn foreign languages with the aim of reading the literature. The drawback is it takes years. In fact, the only language with which I feel confident with is French, which I learned at school. I...
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Acting Shakespeare: Roger Rees at The Apollo, Shaftesbury Avenue
This evening was memorable for the kerfuffle involved before we even arrived at the theatre. Nothing to do with transport delays, either. I don't as a rule eat out before going the theatre - having...
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The Original and Best :The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
Some members of the library crime reading group were put off by the length of this book. For me and others Wilkie Collins'The Moonstone was such an enjoyable read that length wasn't a problem -...
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