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Anticipated Books for Spring 2023

14/12/2022 / Paul / 12 Comments

I have been through all of the spring 2023 publishers’ catalogues that could lay my hands on (24 so far). I have listed all the books that I really like the look of. The majority on this list are non-fiction, as you have probably come to expect by now, but there is a smattering of fiction, sci-fi and the odd poetry in there.

Abacus
Hidden Valley: Finding freedom in Spain’s deep country – Paul Richardson

Migrants: The Story of Us All – Sam Miller

Follow the Money: How much does Britain cost? – Paul Johnson

Glowing Still: A woman’s life on the road – Sara Wheeler

Edgeland – Sasha Swire

Spies: The epic intelligence war between East and West – Calder Walton

Allen Lane

The Crisis Of Democratic Capitalism – Martin Wolf

Crack-Up Capitalism: Market Radicals And The Dream Of A World Without Democracy – Quinn Slobodian

Free And Equal: What Would A Fair Society Look Like? – Daniel Chandler

Twelve Words For Moss: Love, Loss And Moss – Elizabeth-Jane Burnett

Fancy Bear Goes Phishing: A Story Of The Information Age, In Five Parts – Scott J. Shapiro

Bloomsbury

The Half Known Life – Pico Iyer

The Core Of An Onion – Mark Kurlansky

Operation Chiffon – Peter Taylor

The Book Of Wliding – Isabella Tree

The North Will Rise Again – Alex Niven

The Deadly Balance – Adam Hart

Into The Groove – Jonathan Scott

One Thousand Shades Of Green – Mike Dilger

The Bridleway – Tiffany Francis-Baker

Avocado Anxiety – Louise Grey

Gathering Places – Mary Cowell

Cuddy – Benjamin Myers

Bodley Head

Attack Warning Red – Julie McDowall

Being Human – Lewis Dartnell

Calon

Shaping the Wild – David Elias

Canongate

We Are Electric: The New Science Of Our Body’S Electrome – Sally Adee

Grounded: A Journey Into The Landscapes Of Our Ancestors – James Canton

Wolfish: The Stories We Tell About Fear, Ferocity And Freedom – Erica Berry

Why Women Grow: Stories Of Soil, Sisterhood And Survival – Alice Vincent

Beastly: A New History Of Animals And Us – Keggie Carew

The Memory Keeper: A Journey Into The Holocaust To Find My Family – Jackie Kohnstamm

Homelands: The History Of A Friendship – Chitra Ramaswamy

Cacophony Of Bone – Kerri Ní Dochartaigh

Black Ghosts: Encounters With The Africans Changing China – Noo Saro-Wiwa

Chatto & Windus

In Her Nature – Rachel Hewitt

Constable

It’s Not About Whiteness, It’s About Wealth: How the Economics of Race Really Work – Remi Adekoya

Corsair

Wounded Tigris: A river journey through the cradle of civilisation – Leon McCarron

Métropolitain: An Ode to the Paris Métro – Andrew Martin

Duckworth

The Case for Nature – Siddarth Shrikanth

The Possibility of Life – Jaime Green

Ebury Press

AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future – Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan

British Woodland: Discover the Secret World of Our Trees – Ray Mears

The Russia Conundrum: How the West Fell For Putin’s Power Gambit – and How to Fix It – Mikhail Khodorkovsky (with Martin Sixsmith)

The Bleeding Tree: A Pathway Through Grief Guided by Forests, Folk Tales and the Ritual Year – Hollie Starling

Elliott & Thompson

And Then What? Inside Stories of 21st Century Diplomacy – Catherine Ashton –

The Future Of Geography: How Power And Politics In Space Will Challenge Our World – Tim Marshall

Taking Flight: A Celebration Of The Miraculous Phenomenon Of Flight – Lev Parikian

A Day In the Life Of The Global Economy – Dharshini David

Europa Editions

Free to Obey: How The Nazis Invented Modern Management – Johann Chapoutot Tr. Steven Rendall

Faber & Faber

Enchantment: Reawakening Wonder in an Exhausted Age – Katherine May

Shy – Max Porter

Emotional Ignorance – Dean Burnett

On Being Unreasonable – Kirsty Sedgman

Ten Birds That Changed The World – Stephen Moss

Floodmeadow – Toby Martinez De Las Rivas – Male

Fly On The Wall

We Saw It All Happen – Julian Bishop

The Naming Of Moths – Tracy Fells

Fum D’Estampa Press

In Yellow Evenings – Jordi Larios Tr. Ronald Puppo

Pharmakon – Almudena Sánchez Tr. Katie Whittemore

Harvill Secker

Spring Rain – Marc Hamer

Stone Will Answer – Beatrice Searle

Head of Zeus

Quantum Radio – A.G. Riddle

The Best of World SF Volume 2 – Various

Alien Worlds: The Secret Life Of Insects – Steve Nicholls

Stuck Monkey: How The Things We Love Are Killing the Environment – James Hamilton-Paterson

The Known Unknowns: The Unsolved Mysteries of the Cosmos – Lawrence Krauss

The Granite Kingdom: A Cornish Journey – Tim Hannigan

The Vanished Collection – Pauline Baer de Perignon Tr. Natasha Lehrer

Headline

Between the Chalk and the Sea – Gail Simmons

The Long View: Why We Need to Transform How the World Sees Time – Richard Fisher

The Queen of Codes – Jacki Ui Chionna

Who Cares – Emily Kenway

The Red Hotel – Alan Philps

Steeple Chasing – Peter Ross

Rivets, Trivets and Galvanised Buckets – Tom Fort

Hodder & Stoughton

If Nietzsche Were A Narwhal: What Animal Intelligence Reveals About Human Stupidity – Justin Gregg

Defeating The Dictators: How Democracy Can Prevail In The Age Of The Strongman – Charles Dunst

Nuts And Bolts: Seven Small Inventions That Changed The World (In A Big Way) – Roma Agrawal

Echolands: A Journey In Search Of Boudica – Duncan Mackay

Hands Of Time: A Watchmaker’S History – Rebecca Struthers

Undercurrent: A Cornish Memoir Of Poverty, Nature And Resilience – Natasha Carthew

The Tidal Year: A Memoir On Grief, Swimming And Sisterhood – Freya Bromley

Hurst Publishers

Plotters: The UK Terrorists Who Failed – Lizzie Dearden

Proving Ground: The Untold Story of the Six Women Who Programmed the World’s First Modern Computer – Kathy Kleiman

How To Fight A War – Mike Martin

Hutchinson Heinman

Hermit: A memoir of finding freedom in a wild place – Jade Angeles Fitton

Sea Bean: A Beachcomber’s Search for a Magical Charm – Sally Huband

How to Build Impossible Things: Lessons in Life and Carpentry – Mark Ellison

Icon Books

Wise Gals: The Spies Who Built The CIA And Changed The Future Of Espionage – Nathalia Holt

Unravelling The Silk Road: Travels And Textiles In Central Asia – Chris Aslan

The Jay, The Beech And The Limpetshell: Teaching My Kids About Wild Things – Richard Smyth

Across A Waking Land: A 1,000-Mile Walk Through A British Spring – Roger Morgan-Grenville

India Uniform Nine: Secrets From Inside A Covert Customs Unit – Mark Perlstrom And Douglas Wight

Here Comes The Fun: A Year Of Making Merry – Ben Aitken

The Life Cycle: 8,000 Miles In The Andes By Bamboo Bike – Kate Rawles

Jonathan Cape

Elixir: In the Valley at the End of Time – Kapka Kassabova

Urban Jungle: Wilding the City – Ben Wilson

One Midsummer’s Day: Swifts and the Story of Life on Earth – Mark Cocker

Little Toller

List to follow!!

Lund Humphries

What is it that will last?: Land and tidal art of Julie Brook – “Julie Brook, Simon Groom, Alexandra Harris, Kichizaemon XV, Raku Jikinyū and Robert Macfarlane”

Oneworld

Sleeping Beauties: The Mystery Of Dormant Innovations In Nature And Culture – Andreas Wagner

Black Ops And Beaver Bombing: Adventures With Britain’s Wild Mammals – Fiona Mathews And Tim Kendall

The Battle For Thought: Freethinking In The Twenty-First Century – Simon Mccarthy-Jones

Goodbye Eastern Europe: An Intimate history of a Divided Land – Jacob Mikanowski

Particular Books

Chicken Boy: My Life With Hens – Arthur Parkinson

Pelagic Publishing

Invisible Friends: How Microbes Shape Our Lives and the World Around Us – Jake M. Robinson

Reconnection: Fixing our Broken Relationship with Nature – Miles Richardson

Profile Books

Common Or Garden: Encounters With Britain’S Most Successful Wild Plants – Ken Thompson

Tree Stories – Stefano Mancuso

The Observant Walker: Wild Food, Nature And Hidden Treasures On The Pathways Of Britain – John Wright

George: A Magpie Memoir – Frieda Hughes

Is Maths Real?: & Other Questions That Reveal Mathematics’ Deepest Truths – Eugenia Cheng

The Invention Of Essex: The Making Of An English County – Tim Burrows

Quercus

My Russia: War Or Peace? – Mikhail Shishkin Tr. Gesche Ipsen

Reaktion Books

Astray: A History of Wandering – Eluned Summers-Bremner

Travellers Through Time: A Gypsy History – Jeremy Harte

Wind: Nature And Culture – Louise M Pryke

Yew – Fred Hageneder

Red Dog Books
Brittany: Stone Stories – Wendy Mews

Saraband

The Nature Chronicles – Ed. Kathryn Aalto

Singing Like Larks – Andrew Millham

September Publishing

Two Lights: Walking through Landscapes of Loss and Life – James Roberts

Seren Books

Real Dorset by Jon Woolcott

Souvenir Press

One Hundred Saturdays: Stella Levi And The Vanished World Of Jewish Rhodes – Michael Frank And Maira Kalman

Summersdale

Lost In The Lakes: Notes From A 379-Mile Walk In The Lake District – Tom Chesshyre

Transworld

Blue Machine – Helen Czerski

Virago

Mother Tongue: The surprising history of women’s words – Jenni Nuttall

W&N

On Savage Shores: How Indigenous Americans Discovered Europe – Caroline Dodds Pennock

2023 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Shortlist

12/12/2022 / Paul / 4 Comments

It’s back! One of my favourite prizes has just announced its shortlist of books for the award. They have scaled back the number of categories this year, I guess they are feeling the pinch along with everyone else. But I am thrilled that they are still going, even in a lesser form. So here are the books:

The Last Overland – Alex Bescoby

In 1955, Attenborough, then a young TV producer, was approached by six recent university graduates determined to drive the entire length of ‘Eurasia’, from London to Singapore. It was the unclimbed Everest of motoring – many had tried, none had succeeded. Sensing this time might be different, Attenborough gave the expedition enough film reel to cover their attempt. The 19,000-mile journey completed by Tim Slessor and the team captivated a nation emerging from postwar austerity. Tim’s book, The First Overland, soon became the Bible of the overlanding religion. Inspired by the First Overland, Alex made contact with now eighty-six-year-old Tim and together they planned an epic recreation of the original trip, this time from Singapore to London. Their goal was to complete the legendary journey started more than sixty years ago in the original Oxford Land Rover. In awe of the unstoppable Tim, and haunted by his own grandfather’s decline, Alex and his team soon finds themselves battling rough roads, breakdowns and Oxford’s constant leaky roof to discover a world changed for the better – and worse – since the first expedition.

I am really looking forward to reading this. It ticks three boxes for me, travel, Land Rovers and epic adventure. Didn’t realise that it was a C4 series until a friend let me know., and I am going to have to get hold of the first book to read too!

High: A Journey Across the Himalayas Through Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Nepal and China – Erika Fatland

The Himalayas meander for more than two thousand kilometres through many different countries, from Pakistan to Myanmar via Nepal, India, Tibet and Bhutan, where the world religions of Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism are interspersed with ancient shamanic beliefs. Countless languages and vastly different cultures exist in these isolated mountain valleys. Modernity and tradition collide, while the great powers fight for influence.

We have read about climbers and adventurers on their way up Mount Everest, and about travellers on a spiritual quest to remote Buddhist monasteries. Here, however, the focus is on the communities of these Himalayan valleys, those who live and work in this extraordinary region. As Erika Fatland introduces us to the people she meets along her journey, and in particular the women, she takes us on a vivid and dizzying expedition at altitude through incredible landscapes and dramatic, unknown histories. Skilfully weaving together the politics, geography, astrology, theology and ecology of this vast region, she also explores some of the most volatile human conflicts of our times.

With her unique gift for listening, and for storytelling, she has become one of the most exciting travel writers of her generation.

I have her first two books and this was on my TBR already, but I am probably going to buy a copy of this

The Po: An Elegy for Italy’s Longest River – Tobias Jones

A captivating journey along the iconic River Po and through Italian history, society and culture.

The Po is the longest river in Italy, travelling for 652 kilometres from one end of the country to the other. It rises by the French border in the Alps and meanders the width of the entire peninsula to the Adriatic Sea in the east. Flowing next to many of Italy’s most exquisite cities – Ferrara, Mantova, Parma, Cremona, Pavia and Torino – the river is a part of the national psyche, as iconic to Italy as the Thames is to England or the Mississippi to the USA.

For millennia, the Po was a vital trading route and a valuable source of tax revenue, fiercely fought over by rival powers. It was also moat protecting Italy from invaders from the north, from Hannibal to Holy Roman Emperors. It breached its banks so frequently that its floodplain swamps were homes to outlaws and itinerants, to eccentrics and experimental communities. But as humans radically altered the river’s hydrology, those floodplains became important places of major industries and agricultures, the source of bricks, timber, silk, hemp, cement, caviar, mint, flour and risotto rice.

Tobias Jones travels the length of the river against the current, gathering stories of battles, writers, cuisines, entertainers, religious minorities and music. Both an ecological lament and a celebration of the resourcefulness and resilience of the people of the Po, the book opens a window onto a stunning, but now neglected, part of Italy.

I read this back in September and thought it was really good. My review is here

The Slow Road to Tehran – Rebecca Lowe

One woman, one bike and one richly entertaining, perception-altering journey of discovery.

In 2015, as the Syrian War raged and the refugee crisis reached its peak, Rebecca Lowe set off on her bicycle across the Middle East. Driven by a desire to learn more about this troubled region and its relationship with the West, Lowe’s 11,000-kilometre journey took her through Europe to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, the Gulf and finally to Iran.

It was an odyssey through landscapes and history that captured her heart, but also a deeply challenging cycle across mountains, deserts and repressive police states that nearly defeated her. Plagued by punctures and battling temperatures ranging from -6 to 48C, Lowe was rescued frequently by farmers and refugees, villagers and urbanites alike, and relied almost entirely on the kindness and hospitality of locals to complete this living portrait of the modern Middle East.

This is her evocative, deeply researched and often very funny account of her travels – and the people, politics and culture she encountered.

‘Terrifically compelling … bursting with humour, adventure and insight into the rich landscapes and history of the Middle East. Lowe recounts the beauty, kindnesses and complexities of the lands she travels through with an illuminating insight. A wonderful new travel writer.’ Sir Ranulph Fiennes

I thought that this was another really good book when I read it back in July, but I still haven’t typed my notes up into a review as yet! Oops

Crossed Off the Map: Travels in Bolivia – Shafik Meghji

Blending travel writing, history and reportage, Crossed off the Map: Travels in Bolivia journeys from the Andes to the Amazon to explore Bolivia’s turbulent past and contemporary challenges. It tells the story of the country’s profound and unexpected influence on the wider world over the last 500 years – fragments of history largely forgotten beyond its borders. Once home to one of the wealthiest cities on Earth, Bolivia kickstarted globalisation, helped to power Europe’s economic growth and trigger dynastic collapse in China, and played host to everyone from Che Guevara to Butch Cassidy.

The book also explores how ordinary Bolivians in and around the world’s highest city, largest salt flat, richest silver mine and most biodiverse national park are coping with some of the touchstone issues of the 21st century: the climate emergency, populism, mass migration, indigenous rights, national identity, rapid urbanisation, and the ‘war on drugs’.

In its pages, award-winning journalist and travel writer Shafik Meghji illuminates the dramatic landscapes, distinct cultures and diverse peoples of a country that – in the words of one interviewee – ‘was the building block of the modern world, but is now lost in time’.

This looks really good, but haven’t got a copy of this as yet. Might have to buy this one too.

Walking with Nomads – Alice Morrison

Adventurer and TV presenter Alice Morrison takes the reader on three remarkable and inspirational journeys across Morocco, from the Sahara to the Atlas mountains, to reveal the growing challenges faced by our planet.

Accompanied only by three Amazigh Muslim men and their camels, Scottish explorer Alice Morrison set off to find a hidden world. During her journey along the Draa river, she encountered dinosaur footprints and discovered a lost city, as well as what looked like a map of an ancient spaceship, all the while trying to avoid landmines, quicksand and the deadly horned viper.

Few places better illustrate the reality of climate change and the encroachment of the desert than a dried-out riverbed, but this also means a constant search for the next source of water. Meeting other nomads as they travel, Alice also gets to hear a side of their lives few ever access, as the women would never be allowed to speak to men from outside their community. They explain the challenges of giving birth and raising children in the wilderness. As the journey continues, Alice learns to enjoy goat’s trachea sausages, gets a saliva shower from Hamish the camel as he blows out his sex bubble, and shares riddles round the camp fire with her fellow travellers.

Walking with Nomads reveals the transformative richness of the desert and the mountains, providing a total escape from everyday concerns, but it also shows how the ancient world of the nomad is under threat as never before.

I really enjoyed her first book, My 1001 Nights that I reviewed here. I have this from the library and I am going to bump it up my list to read

My Family and Other Enemies: Life and Travels in Croatia’s Hinterland – Mary Novakovich

My Family and Other Enemies is part travelogue, part memoir that dives into the hinterland of Croatia. Mary Novakovich explores her ongoing relationship with the region of Lika in central Croatia, where her parents were born.. ‘Lika is little known to most travellers – apart from Plitvice Lakes National Park and the birthplace of Nikola Tesla’ she says. ‘It’s a region of wild beauty that has been battered by centuries of conflict. Used as a buffer zone between the Habsburg and Ottoman empires for hundreds of years, Lika became a land of war and warriors. And when Yugoslavia started to disintegrate in 1991, it was here where some of the first shots were fired.’
Shipped off to Lika as a child during the supposedly golden years of Tito to stay with relatives she barely knew, Novakovich has been revisiting Croatia ever since, researching the story of her family’s often harrowing life: in 1941 her aunt was the only survivor of Serbs massacred by Croatian fascists; and her mother saved her grandmother from being buried alive when she was thought to be dead from typhus.
Amidst adversity there is resilience and laughter, too, with plenty of light to balance the shade. Eccentric and entertaining characters abound, showing typically sardonic Balkan humour. And, this being the Balkans, much of daily life revolves around food, which features prominently. Throughout, aspects of Croatian history that relate to Lika are woven into the narrative to give the story some much-needed context. And in recounting her own family’s tumultuous history, Novakovich opens up a world that is little known outside the Balkans, telling the stories of people whose experiences weren’t widely reported at the time, when the devastation in Croatia was superseded by the Bosnian conflict and media attention moved elsewhere.

More of a family memoir than strictly travel, Mary’s book is still worth reading for a good insight into the people of Croatia. My review for this is here.

In The Shadow of the Mountain – Silvia Vasquez-Lavado

You don’t conquer a mountain. you surrender to it one step at a time.

Despite a high-flying career, Silvia Vasquez-Lavado knew she was hanging by a thread. Deep in the throes of alcoholism, and hiding her sexuality from her family, she was repressing the abuse she’d suffered as a child.

When her mother called her home to Peru, she knew something finally had to change. It did. Silvia began to climb.

Something about the sheer size of the mountains, the vast emptiness and the nearness of death, woke her up. And then, she took her biggest pain to the biggest mountain: Everest. The ‘Mother of the World’ allows few to reach her summit, but Silvia didn’t go alone. Trekking with her to Base Camp, were five troubled young women on an odyssey that helped each confront their personal trauma, and whose strength and community propelled Silvia forward…

Beautifully written and deeply moving, In the Shadow of the Mountain is a remarkable story of compassion, humility, and strength, inspiring us all to find have faith in our own heroism and resilience.

This has been on my TBR for a while now. My library has a copy which I have ordered now.

Some thoughts

I thought that this is a really good shortlist. There are five women authors this year compared to two on last year’s shortlist. There are also eight books rather than five too. Of the three that I have read so far, Rebecca Lowe’s is my favourite, but I am going to get hold of the others to make a considered opinion. I have been a judge twice on these awards and picking a winner is not always easy, so I am not going to commit to a favourite until I have read them all.

Has anyone else read any of these? If so what did you think of them?

Does anyone fancy forming a little group to shadow-judge these?

The Raven’s Nest by Sarah Thomas

07/12/2022 / Paul / 2 Comments

4.5 out of 5 stars

Iceland is a place of ice and fire, it has a brief summer before the long winter draws in again and the winter storms bring the snow back. It sits above two of the tectonic plates and this means there are continuous earthquakes and volcanos. The landscape is devoid of trees and it can look alien in appearance, I have seen amazing photos of the black sand beaches there.

She was only supposed to be in Iceland for a week or so, but when the anthropologist and filmmaker, Sarah Thomas went there in 2008, little did she know that she would be for another five years. She was seduced by its bleak and beautiful landscapes and whilst that was hooking her in, she fell in love.

She makes a home there, learning the language and the culture and understanding that the Icelandic people have a unique perspective on the world and life. They made her welcome, but being an outsider meant that it was a struggle at times especially when Bjarni was working on a trawler.

A significant part of the book is her relationship with Bjarni, he is like the island she has chosen to live on, slightly strange and enigmatic and their relationship builds with intensity until the point where it unravels. She writes with both passion and awe about the elemental place that she has chosen to live. There was something touching about this beautifully written travel memoir that really got to me, I felt that I saw the people and the place through different eyes with her insight. Well worth reading.

On Travel and the Journey Through Life Ed. Barnaby Rogerson

05/12/2022 / Paul / 5 Comments

4 out of 5 stars

A copy of this was provided free of charge from the publisher in return for an honest review.

I have travelled a little but not a huge amount for a variety of reasons, so have always enjoyed the view of another traveller from the comfort of my own armchair with a glass of something cold to hand. Of course. The stories that I have read over the years have varied from the fairly tame, where someone moves to another country with the grand aim of building a new life to those who live life right on the edge…

Tourists don’t know where they’ve been
Travellers don’t know where they are going – Paul Theroux

Each of those writers have put pen to paper to share those experiences and hopefully some of the things they have learnt they can impart to us. Eland have been scouring the out of print travel books for the past forty years and bringing them back to life in their wonderful editions. In the process of resurrecting these books, they have collected quotes from the very best travel writers and compiled them in this slender volume.

There are no foreign lands
It is only the traveller who is foreign – Robert Louis Stevenson

A wonderful selection of quotes and pearls of travel wisdom from many of the authors that I have read and many that I haven’t quite got to. They have been loosely grouped them into themes such as The Pleasures of the Road and Monotony and Excitement. I really liked them, there are some brilliant quotes in this book, some serious ones as well as others that made me chuckle a lot. If you know someone who loves travel writing, this is an essential book for their collection.

The worst trips make the best reading – Paul Theroux

November 2022 Review

02/12/2022 / Paul / 2 Comments

Books Read

Wild: Tales From Early Medieval Britain – Amy Jeffs – 3 stars

What Abigail Did That Summer – Ben Aaronovitch – 3.5 stars

My Life in France: The Classic Memoir Of Food And French Living – Julia Child – 3.5 stars

Tree Glee: How and Why Trees Make Us Feel Better – Cheryl Rickman – 3.5 stars

The Sloth Lemur’s Song: Madagascar from the Deep Past to the Uncertain Present – Alison Richard – 3.5 stars

Burn: A Story of Fire, Woods and Healing – Ben Short – 4 stars

No Country For Eight-Spot Butterflies – Julian Aguon – 4 stars

Black Lion: Alive in the Wilderness – Sicelo Mbatha – 4 stars

Eric Ravilious: Artist And Designer – Alan Powers – 4 stars

Wild Nephin – Sean Lysaght – 4 stars

A Still Life: A Memoir – Josie George – 4 stars

The Consolation of Nature: Spring in the Time of Coronavirus – Michael McCarthy, Peter Marren, Jeremy Mynott – 4 stars

Book(s) Of The Month

I have chosen two books of the month this month. The first book is a terrifying account of how hacked the web is, how we are at the mercy of rogue, and what we would like to think are good governments. Read it and weep.

This Is How They Tell Me The World Ends: The Cyber Weapons Arms Race – Nicole Perlroth – 4.5 stars

My second book is a travel memoir set in Iceland and it is just a beautiful piece of writing.

The Ravens Nest – Sarah Thomas – 4.5 stars

Top Genres

Natural History – 35

Travel – 23

Poetry – 15

Memoir – 14

History – 14

Fiction – 9

Science – 9

Environmental – 7

Science Fiction – 6

Photography – 5

Top Publishers

William Collins – 8

Faber & Faber – 8

Gollancz – 6

Bloomsbury – 6

Unbound – 5

Little Toller – 5

Eland – 4

Canongate – 4

Picador – 4

Elliott & Thompson – 4

Review Copies Received

Haunters at the Hearth: Eerie Tales For Christmas Nights – Ed. Tanya Kirk

Polar Horrors: Strange Tales from the World’s Ends – Ed. John Miller

Library Books Checked Out

The Consolation Of Nature: Spring In The Time Of Coronavirus – Michael McCarthy

Wild: Tales From Early Medieval Britain – Amy Jeffs

Cornerstones: Wild Forces That Can Change Our World – Benedict Macdonald

Hothouse Earth: An Inhabitant’s Guide – Bill McGuire

England’s Green – Zaffar Kunial

Ephemeron – Fiona Benson

Eating to Extinction – Dan Saladino

36 Islands – Robert Twigger

Books Bought

Cocaine Train: Tracing My Bloodline Through Colombia – Stephen Smith

The Wind At My Back: A Cycling Life – Paul Maunder

The Swallow: A Biography – Stephen Moss

Ancient Stones Of Dorset – Peter Knight

Old Calabria – Norman Douglas

A Life in Car Design – Oliver Winterbottom

Mariana – Monica Dickens

Engineers of Victory: The Problem Solvers who Turned the Tide in the Second World War – Paul Kennedy

Elisabeth’s Lists: A Life Between the Lines – Lulah Ellender

The Olive Farm – Carol Drinkwater

Squirrel Pie (and other stories): Adventures in Food Across the Globe – Elisabeth Luard

Walking the Woods and the Water: In Patrick Leigh Fermor’s footsteps from the Hook of Holland to the Golden Horn – Nick Hunt

Thinking Again – Jan Morris

Trees & Woodland in the British Landscape: The Complete History of Britain’s Trees, Woods & Hedgerows – Oliver Rackham

The Manor Houses of Dorset – Una Russell & Audrey Grindrod

The Songs of Trees: Stories from Nature’s Great Connectors – David George Haskell

I think that is it! Any that you have read or that takes you fancy? Let me know in the comments below

December 2022 TBR

30/11/2022 / Paul / 7 Comments

Here is my December TBR. Yes, I know it is much shorter than usual, but I am focused on getting what I need to read for the Good Reads challenge and the Natural History book reading challenge. It may change as inevitably library books that I have out, get reserved by others…

Reading Through The Year

A Poem for Every Night of the Year Allie Esiri

Word Perfect: Etymological Entertainment For Every Day of the Year – Susie Dent

Finishing Off (Still!)

The Travel Writing Tribe: Journeys in Search of a Genre – Tim Hannigan

Blog Tour

None this month!

Challenge Books

The last six for the nature reading challenge:

I Belong Here: A Journey Along the Backbone of Britain – Anita Sethi

Swifts and Us: The Life of the Bird that Sleeps in the Sky – Sarah Gibson

The Consolation of Nature: Spring in the Time of Coronavirus – Michael McCarthy, Peter Marren, Jeremy Mynott

The Book of Trespass: Crossing the Lines that Divide Us – Nick Hayes

The Overstory – Richard Powers

True North – Gavin Francis

Review Books

What Remains?: Life, Death and the Human Art of Undertaking – Rupert Callender

West Cumbria Mining: The Silence Between The Shadows – David Banning

Smelling the Breezes: A Journey through the High Lebanon in 1957 – Ralph Izzard & Molly Izzard

The Wheel of the Year: A Nurturing Guide to Rediscovering Nature’s Seasons and Cycles – Rebecca Beattie

On Travel and the Journey Through Life – Ed. Barnaby Rogerson

Haunters at the Hearth: Eerie Tales For Christmas Nights – Ed. Tanya Kirk (Kind of a Christmassy read…)

Library

Who knows this month? All the books I had planned to read were passed as I had five other reservations!

Big Books

When I have finished the Good Reads challenge, I like to start on some big books that I don’t always get around to reading in other months with the intention of finishing them in January. I have some huge books to get through from the library and review copies and these are some that I am going to pick from:

Gnomon – Nick Harkaway
Endurance: 100 Tales of Survival, Endurance and Exploration – Ed. Levison Wood
Iconicon: A Journey Around the Landmark Buildings of Contemporary Britain – John Grindrod
Seveneves – Neal Stephenson
The Night Lies Bleeding – M.D. Lachlan
Hunted – G X Todd
Red Moon – Kim Stanley Robinson
Thin Air – Richard Morgan
Shadow Captain – Alastair Reynolds
Horizon – Barry Lopez
The Human Swarm: How Our Societies Arise, Thrive, and Fall – Mark W. Moffett
The Warehouse – Rob Hart
The Cruel Stars – John Birmingham
The Solar War – A.G. Riddle
Cage of Souls – Adrian Tchaikovsky
Broken Stars: Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction in Translation – Ken Liu
The Border – A Journey Around Russia: Through North Korea, China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, … Finland, Norway and the Northeast Passage – Erika Fatland Tr. Kari Dickson
Britain Alone: The Path from Suez to Brexit – Philip Stephens
Survival of the City: Living and Thriving in an Age of Isolation – Edward Glaeser, David Cutler
The Serpent Coiled in Naples – Marius Kociejowski
From Utmost East to Utmost West: My life of exploration and adventure – John Blashford-Snell

Any that you have heard of or like the sound of? Let me know in the comments below

Small Press Big Stories

29/11/2022 / Paul / 2 Comments

This blog post came from an idea from the master book tempter, Runalong Womble and you can read more about his idea in his blog post here. In essence, it is to highlight the magnificent work that the small publishers and presses do in bringing books that the big five see as too risky or not commercial enough. Independent publishers are great and they were the subject of a series of posts that I did a few years ago, just search for Publisher Profiles on here.

I want to talk about two books and two publishers in my post today. The first is the mighty Little Toller. There are based on the other side of Dorset to me and have two main themes of books that they publish. The first is the reprinting of nature classics that have gone out of print and they now also publish modern and contemporary books on the natural world. You can read more about their story here.

The book that I want to bring to your attention today is brother. do. you. love. me. by Manni and Ruben Coe.

Reuben, aged 38, was living in a home for adults with learning disabilities. He hadn’t established an independent life in the care system and was still struggling to accept that he had Down’s syndrome. Depressed and in a fog of anti-depressants, he hadn’t spoken for over a year. The only way he expressed himself was by writing poems or drawing felt-tip scenes from his favourite West End musicals and Hollywood films. Increasingly isolated, cut off from everyone and everything he loved, Reuben sent a text message: ‘brother. do. you. love. me.’

When Manni received this desperate message from his youngest brother, he knew everything had to change. He immediately left his life in Spain and returned to England, moving Reuben out of the care home and into an old farm cottage in the countryside. In the stillness of winter, they began an extraordinary journey of repair, rediscovering the depths of their brotherhood, one gradual step at a time.

Combining Manni’s tender words with Reuben’s powerful illustrations, their story of hope and resilience questions how we care for those we love, and demands that, through troubled times, we learn how to take better care of each other.

This is a wonderful and heartwarming tale of how Manni rescues Ruben and they rekindle their deep brotherly friendship. My review is here

The second publisher that I want to talk about is one of those that inspired Little Toller, Eland. They have been publishing travel books for forty years now, and whilst they do have some modern travelogues, their primary aim is to bring back to life the travel books that were considered great and can now be found in second-hand bookshops. There is more on their story here.

The book that I want to bring to your attention today is On Travel edited by Barnaby Rogerson.

On Travel presents a pyrotechnic display of cracking one-liners, cynical wordplay and comic observation, mining three thousand years of global wit and wisdom: from Pliny to Spinoza and from Albert Einstein to Aunt Augusta. Beyond the mad diversity of opinions and ideas, there is a gradually emerging consensus: that other people are crucial to our understanding of ourselves and that there is more than one right way to be.

It also offers occasional practical tips to make the most of your trip, ranging from advice on choosing your companions to the importance of tethering your camel. And it proves that travel – far from being an indulgent escape – is real preparation for the journey through life.

I haven’t read this yet, it is one I have lined up for December!

Do follow the hashtag #SmallPressBigStories on Twitter and Mastodon

Runalong Womble can be found on Twitter and on Mastodon

With the possible demise of Twitter, I can now be found on Mastodon and Instagram

Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang

28/11/2022 / Paul / 2 Comments

3 out of 5 stars

Qian Julie Wang arrived in America in 1994 at the age of seven and has gone from being a privileged and relatively wealthy family in China to a family below the poverty line. They moved because of persecution by the state and t life that she knew there, she would never know again.

She couldn’t speak a word of English when she arrived and her parents were forced to work in the sweatshops of the city just to be able to survive. They lived hand to mouth, avoiding all people in authority with the hope of beginning a new life there. She is a bright girl and she is quick to learn the language, but most of the children in her class shun her, so she loses herself in between the pages of books.

Staying out of the gaze of the authorities isn’t easy though, and the family have some close calls, none more so when her mother is taken really ill. The family reached a point where not doing anything will cost her life and if they do seek help, it could fracture the family completely.

This is an interesting account of a girl growing up in America as an illegal immigrant. She somehow manages to find a path through childhood and has to grow up really quickly to be able to help her parents. It is quite a sad read in lots of ways, they were taken advantage of by all sorts of people and made to work for a pittance. Somehow they found a path through and this book is the result of her tenacity and desire to work for a top law firm in New York.

What’s For Dessert by Claire Saffitz

23/11/2022 / Paul / 3 Comments

Welcome to Halfman, Halfbook for my stop on the Blog Tour for What’s For Dessert by Claire Saffitz and published by Murdoch Books.

About the Book

Claire Saffitz returns with 100 recipes for all dessert people―whether you’re into impressive-yet-easy molten lava cakes, comforting rice pudding, or decadent chestnut brownies.

In this all-new collection, Claire shares recipes for icebox cakes, pies, cobblers, custards, cookies and more, all crafted to be as streamlined as possible. (No stand mixer? No problem! You won’t need one.)

To keep the recipes straightforward and simple, Claire makes sure each recipe is extra efficient, whether you’re making a Whipped Tres Leches Cake with Hazelnuts or Caramel Peanut Popcorn Bars. Fans will find all the warmth, encouragement, and deliciously foolproof recipes with loads of troubleshooting advice that they’ve come to count on from Claire.

Baking recipes include:

Salty Cashew Blondies
Blood Orange Pudding Cake
Easy Apple Galette
Mango-Yoghurt Mousse
Sticky Pumpkin-Chestnut Gingerbread
Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cake
No-Bake Strawberry Ricotta Cheesecake
Banoffee Pudding

About the Author

Claire Saffitz is the bestselling author of Dessert Person and host of the eponymous cookbook companion series on YouTube with nearly 1 million followers. She lives in and out of New York City with her husband, two cats, and her chickens.

My Review

I have a lot of cookery books at home, a whole bookshelf and others scattered elsewhere around the home. The shelf needs a bit of a tidy-up, but amongst the shelves are books that are well-thumbed and splattered; these are the ones that we most often turn to for everyday meals and special occasions. Some of them we have had for over thirty years now and they are part of our home.

When we head out as a family to eat we often have a starter, but rarely have them at home. What we do have at home a lot though, is cake and desserts. My daughter, Lauren, who is a brilliant baker will make something most weekends when she is home from university and this is a joint review with her cooking some of the cakes and me (and the rest of the family) eating them. It is great but it doesn’t help the waistline…

Anyway, to the book. The layout is very clear and the format is used on each of the recipes, making it easy to follow the process and find the ingredients. I particularly liked the grid at the beginning of the book that had each recipe with difficulty and time so if you wanted a dessert that took about an hour and was moderate in difficulty, you’d find one quickly. Each recipe has an introduction with anecdotes about ingredients or why it was chosen. Also useful is the equipment list and essential techniques that are used across a number of recipes in the book.

There are some lovely cake and dessert recipes in here, though as with any cookery book there are some that we felt that we would never make. We selected about 20 or so that really appealed and my daughter picked the ones that she wanted to make from that selection. I have taken pictures of two of the deserts that she made, Salty Cashew Blondies and Flourless Chocolate Meringue Cake:

Both were delicious and didn’t last long.

I think that this will be a book that we will return to again and again to cook our favourites.

Don’t forget to visit the other blogs on the blog tour

Buy this at your local independent bookshop. If you’re not sure where your nearest is then you can find one here

My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for the copy of the book to read and cook from.

Tree Glee by Cheryl Rickman

18/11/2022 / Paul / 2 Comments

Welcome to Halfman, Halfbook for my stop on the Blog Tour for Tree Glee by Cheryl Rickman and published by Welbeck.

About the Book

Written by Positive Psychology practitioner and long-time tree-lover Cheryl Rickman, Tree Glee explores how trees can become an essential tool in our wellbeing toolkit, helping us to feel better in a variety of different and fascinating ways.

Looking at the psychology behind our fascination with trees, and the science behind how they comfort, restore and revitalise us, Tree Glee examines what we can learn from the wisdom of woodlands to improve our own wellness. Alongside this, Cheryl explores the importance of trees in our leafy suburbs and urban landscapes, sharing magical stories of remarkable ancient trees across the globe and invites readers to reflect on their own personal ‘treestory’.

Featuring captivating photos and chapters on forest bathing and nature therapy, woodland wellbeing and tree mythology, creative activities and conservation initiatives, Tree Glee is part ode and love letter to trees, part practical wellbeing guide and nature-connection manual and part call to action. The book explores how by deepening our appreciation and connection to trees and by celebrating and protecting them, we can flourish together.

About the Author

Cheryl Rickman is a proud tree-hugger and advocate for the power of nature as a healer and energy-giver. She is also a Sunday Times best-selling author and a qualified positive psychology practitioner. Cheryl specializes in writing empowering, practical books to help people fret less and flourish more and is a well-being ambassador for the Network of Wellbeing. She owns a small parcel of ancient woodland in the Hampshire countryside with her partner.

My Review

There are two places that I know I will always find relaxing, being alongside water and in the middle of a woodland. I don’t know exactly why that is, it may be that the sound of water and the susurration of the wind as it passes through the leaves or something else entirely. I love the way that the light is dappled by the leaves in the summer. Even when I am in a woodland in winter, I love the structure of the trees with their starker shapes against a crisp blue sky.

Another tree and woodland enthusiast is Cheryl Rickman. In this book, she takes us on a journey through a tree-lined path. Beginning with why we need trees, especially in the digital age and why we have such a strong association with them. Even having pictures of them in a room or on a screen can have a beneficial effect on a person’s well-being. They are not just for looking at though, touching and smelling trees and leaves can have similar effects. It is thought that this is because of deep-rooted neural wiring that reminds us how they have fed, sheltered and kept us warm for thousands of years.

The second section is about how we connect again with the natural world and trees in particular. This part is more about practical things that you can do to increase this, including making time to notice the tiny details as well as games and fun things to do with small children and families. The final part of the book is talking about what we can do to help maintain and improve the environment for them, after all, we are all interlinked and our longevity depends on them.

I liked this a lot. It has got the balance right between inspirational writing, solid scientific basis and practical well-being suggestions. I know that not everyone is for me, but I have made a note of a few things to do in 2023. Her enthusiasm for her woody subjects is evident throughout the book, and I am slightly jealous of her as she even owns a little piece of ancient woodland. If, like me, you don’t own your own copse, then grab a copy of this book and head to your nearest woodland to luxuriate in the natural cathedral of trees.

Don’t forget to visit the other blogs on the blog tour