Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2008, 240 pages. “I had imagined that my life story, if and when I wrote it, would have a great first line.” These are the words of a voracious reader, a hopeless romantic in love with Ginger Rogers—and a rat. Firmin is born in the basement of Pembroke Books, a …
Continue reading Firmin—The Adventures of a Metropolitan Lowlife: Sam Savage
Published by Picador, 2015, 60 pages. These are poems written by a man who is sick and dying. But, surprisingly, this is not a depressing book. Clive James—a writer, critic, broadcaster and more—looks at his life and imminent death with honesty, clarity and a sense of humour. As he says in the acknowledgements, “you can …
This article by Gail Rebuck is really preaching to the converted as far as this blog is concerned—if you're reading this, then you do not need to be told that reading is not only a pleasure but it's also good for you. But it made some important points, and I thought it was worth sharing. …
Continue reading Humans Have the Need to Read: Gail Rebuck (from the Guardian)
Published by Doubleday / Thorndike / Black Swan, 2015, 416 pages. Rachel takes the train to and from London, like any other commuter. The train always stops at the same signal, opposite a house with a young couple. She is fascinated by them, this perfect couple, whom she calls Jess and Jason (who are, in …
Published by Titan Books, 1986, 414 pages. It is 1985, and Richard Nixon is into his fifth term as president of the United States. The superheroes (the watchmen), who have been helping the country, are outlawed. They are now in hiding, retired or secretly working for the US government. One night in October, a watchman, …
Continue reading Watchmen: written by Alan Moore and drawn by Dave Gibbons
I found this 2013 article on the University of Cambridge website. Four writers—Sarah Burton, Trevor Byrne, Malachi McIntosh and Helen Taylor—talk about how reading and writing shaped their childhood, the power of fiction, what makes good literature. Here are some extracts from their their thoughts on the power of fiction: Sarah Burton: "The power of …
Series published by Sphere. Monks and murder in the Middle Ages—an irresistible formula! Maybe it's the mixing of piety and nefarious doings that makes it so attractive. And a reason why this is one of my favourite crime series. It is set in Cambridge in the 14th century, and the detective is Matthew Bartholomew, a young physician …
Continue reading The Matthew Bartholomew Chronicles: Susanna Gregory
An article from the New Yorker by Ceridwen Dovey about bibliotherapy, healing through books, something readers have known about for a long time. "Bibliotherapy is a very broad term for the ancient practice of encouraging reading for therapeutic effect. "The first use of the term is usually dated to a jaunty 1916 article in The …
Continue reading What Readers Have Known All Along: Reading Can Make You Happier
Published by Alfred A. Knopf / Penguin, 2013, 491 pages. This is one of the scariest books I’ve read—a dystopian novel for our hyperconnected times. A young woman, Mae, joins the Circle, a Google-like firm. She starts out in Customer Experience (Customer Service in the real world), and rises quickly through the ranks. The culture …
Are certain works of fiction valid for the study of development? The premise of this working paper by David Lewis, Dennis Rodgers and Michael Woolcock is that they are. This paper is a challenge to development practitioners and academics "to include fictional representations of development issues within the scope of what they consider to be 'proper' forms of development knowledge". From …
Talking About Books 