3.5 out of 5 stars

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

People seem to be getting much, much ruder at the moment. Not only in what they say, but the things that they do, but some of this rudeness is the way that people say it and the outraged responses back from people who had never considered themselves rude.

It feels like a race to the race to the bottom at the moment.

All started with what Wallace calls the Hot Dog Incident though. His five-year-old son was hungry, as most small boys are, and they had spotted somewhere for lunch. Being asked to pay up front was a bit off and it was expensive for what is a simple food item, but needs must, and they took their seats. Twenty-five minutes later and there was nothing forthcoming, so he headed back to the counter to be fobbed off with some sort of an excuse and a promise of ten minutes more. After one hour still nothing so he headed back again to be given curt and what he considered frankly rude excuses, but still no food or a time when it would be available. It reached the point where they were arguing and he was rude back to her, something that he never thought he’d ever do.

To try and understand why, Danny Wallace starts talking (nicely) to all sorts of people who are looking at why society keeps getting worse, travels to the states to talk to scientists and psychologists, persuades a friend to join a Radical Honesty group with him and even confronts a guy in a pub who trolled him online once. He contemplates the effects of the ASBO, learns about the naked rambler, discusses cultural differences where one man’s wave would be considered quite rude elsewhere. He even goes as far as commissioning his own survey to gain further insight into how rude people are.

There are not as many laugh out loud moments in this book as there are in others, but this is an important and actually really serious book about the way that society is changing. Some of the blame can be firmly attributed to social media, where a certain amount on anonymity means that people can let rip with all sorts of threats and feel that it won’t come back to haunt them, yet… This is not a book for the answers though, those need to be addressed by society on a wider scale, and this is well worth reading about this worrying trend.

4 out of 5 stars

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

As a child, I spent a lot of time at Normans Bay in Sussex. The beach there was a mix of pebbles, shingles and sand when the tide was out. I swam, sailed, made sandcastles and I could not even begin to count the number of pebbles that I have picked up off a beach and thrown into the sea or scoured the shoreline looking for the flattest so I could skim them. Mostly they were just a there, I remember it was painful to walk across the mostly brown pebbles in bare feet to get to the sea. Every now and again I would find a shell or an unusually coloured stone which would be used on the sandcastles for decoration.

Until I picked this up it never even crossed my mind that you could learn so much from a single stone. There is a chapter on how a pebble is formed and a basic lesson on geology. There is another in depth on the kinds of pebbles that you are likely to find on which beaches around England. Ellis explains the meaning of terms swash and backwash, longshore drift and how shingle beaches behave with the relentless waves. He moves onto semi-precious stones and the types that you are likely to find around the UK.

It is a book that I wish I had first had as a child, something that Robert Macfarlane was fortunate to find on his grandparent’s shelf when he was growing up as he explains in the new foreword to the book. The language is a little dated, but then it is a reprint of a classic book that is over 65 years old now, however, it is still a delight to read. Given that you are dealing with small items of geology, the details of what to look for are not going to be changing for a long time. The fold out cover is beautifully illustrated by the artist Eleanor Crow and it is worth buying just for that alone.

5 out of 5 stars

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

For a lot of people landscape is something they travel through or past, barely acknowledging it in the maelstrom of modern life, unless it is something spectacular. Hathershelf Scout above the Yorkshire town of Mytholmroyd is one of those places that most would consider unremarkable. It lacks some of the photogenic qualities of the dales, has been a place where criminals and coin clippers hid in the 18th Century, has a drawn for those with suicidal thoughts was once a tip and hides a lethal secret. 

However, Benjamin Myers would disagree. Not only is it his home patch of landscape, but he can walk through tangled woods that lead up onto a crag that has its own stark beauty, its brooding gritstone seeping into his psyche as he uncovers the geological and personal histories of the place that run deep into the bedrock. Entwined with the landscape that he walks every day he can, he starts to discover that the remarkable exists in the mundane and ordinary, the imperceptible daily changes that slowly build to make the seasons feel like they have arrived in a rush.

His writing is split into the four elements that make up the view he can from his window, wood, water, earth and rock and he uses these to explore all manner of other subjects as he walks with his dog, Heathcliff. Nothing escapes his gaze or thought process, he considers the invasive species alongside the natural, acknowledges the life of the animals that cross his path as much as their deaths. History is as important to him as the modern political issues of the day. He swims regularly in the wild and shockingly cold waters in the local pools and plays a part in helping in the community with the floods in 2015 when Mytholmroyd partially disappeared beneath the brown waters of the River Calder after days of rain and watches as a landslide takes a sizable chunk of the hillside away. It doesn’t stop him exploring though as he snags his coat on the keep out sign as he climbs over the fence.

It is a difficult book to characterise as it encompasses so much within its pages. It is as much about the natural world and the landscape of that part of Yorkshire and Myers covers subjects as diverse as political discourse to folklore, industrial music to slugs, asbestos to ravens. Most of all it, this book is about place; that small part of our small country that he has grown to love since moving out of London. I have read two of his other books, Beastings and The Gallows Pole, just before I got to this one and I found his writing in those captivating. This is no different, his mastery of the language means that you feel you are alongside him as he looks out over the valley, or clambering up the same path behind him as the water runs down through the rock. I really liked the Field Notes at the end of each section, these are short and elemental poems as well as a small number of black and white photos that add so much to the rest of the book. If you have read Strange Labyrinth or 21st Century Yokel then this should be added to your reading list. Brilliant book and highly recommended.

4 out of 5 stars

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

In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari.

Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has been brought up on the legends about dragons since she could first listen. But the stories of the Old Ways still have great power, they were responsible for her mother losing her life and even when she whispers them, they still have the power to draw dragons to the city causing murder and mayhem.

The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer; Iskari

If she could kill the ancient dragon Kozu, the Old Ways will no longer have the grip that they currently do. Every dragon she conquers she brings it’s head to her father, but Kozu is the prize that may release her from her betrothed, Jarek, a horrid man who almost has her in his grasp and keeps a secret over her and her family. Little by little she feels that she has become the Iskari. Dabbling in the Old Ways brings dangers that she won’t be able to control, but she knows she may have no other choice other than to release them.

This is Kristen Ciccarelli’s debut novel and apart from the odd minor flaws, it is pretty accomplished overall. It is fairly fast paced at times, only slowing at the points where the story needed it. She has written a good backstory to the book which gives it the depth that a fantasy needs and I liked the way that it is revealed slowly through the book as the Old Way stories, and unlike some flashbacks they didn’t really intrude into the story, just added a certain gravitas. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

4 out of 5 stars

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

What is Europe?

Is it straight bananas and red tape or a serious effort by a continent to see if the can actually make a collection of countries with some common aims but disparate views actually work together. The EU isn’t perfect by any manner, it has deep flaws that need addressing and is ripe for wholesale reform to correct. This part of the world had two major wars last century that was responsible for millions of deaths has to make it work. However, it does work, to a fashion, the amount of prosperity in the region is proof of that.

Anyone with any rational sense would see that Brexit is a really bad idea, but I can see why some people voted for it at the time. The feeling that we would get our sovereignty back and not be ruled by a bunch of anonymous autocrats, has a lot of appeals, but it was also a protest vote against the political establishment that had for years ignored all outside the Westminster bubble except when they need their votes.

This collection of essays and poems is a response to that vote. T the disparate voices of politicians, EU nationals, poets and even financiers tell us what they think of the result, what they think will happen, possible flaws and problems we will probably have as the changes begin to take effect. The most worrying trend is the rise of nationalism and fascism as the various interested parties push their agendas. The Leave party is now discredited with the ruling by the electoral commission that their campaign was illegal, but still, May pushes ahead egged on by the ultra-right elements of her fractured party. For a change a fundamental as this that potentially could take 50 years (yes 50) for us to ‘see the benefits’, there has to be something wrong with it.

Will this book make a difference though? I fear it won’t. This, though, is the voice of the 48% who didn’t want to leave, the people who care about the future of families, our culture and nation and still deserves to be heard over the shrill from the far-right.

3 out of 5 stars

In this Britain, the Equals control everything, wealth, politics, land and their power over the other 99% is absolute. Regardless of who you are you owe them 10 years service as a slave. As the saying goes, do those years when you’re old, and you’ll never get through them. Do them young, and you’ll never get over them. It is the Hadley’s time to do their 10 years slavedays and they have fortunately been offered positions at the estate of the Jardines.

All except Luke that is, at the last minute they find out that he is being sent to Millmoor, a tough industrial city that very few survive. Luke settles in as best he can, but when he comes across Abi he discovers a whole new underground network of people that are doing their best to help those in the slave town and the source of some of that help is from an unexpected quarter.

The rest of the family have is relatively easy compared to Luke, but they are still subject to the whims of the family and the power play that is going on within. There are winds of change beginning to blow through the society though, the age-old spell of silence and quiet that have kept the secrets within the elite have been broken and the techniques of suppression are being eroded.

It was an enjoyable read of a fairly horrifying vision of a dystopian Britain with the feudal system of slavery still happening. It is fast paced too, I raced through each chapter and read the entire book on a ferry journey. Liked it enough to read the rest in the series.

3 out of 5 stars

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

The history of the of the decisive battles, the crucial moments that led to the defeat of the Axis powers in the Second World War is really well documented now. What is starting to emerge though is the personal family stories, the individuals who in their own way contributed or played some part in the global conflict.

Hamish Brown was born shortly before the war in Colombo, Ceylon, now Sri Lanka before moving to Japan. He was still living there with his parents when war erupted in the far east placing the family in danger. This book tells of the story of their time there and the journey that they made from Japan to Singapore via China and the Philippines when they had to flee. There is also an account of his fathers escape from Singapore to safety

The books is a combination of his recollections from that time and selected letters from his mother that were sent to his grandmother who was still living in Scotland. They were custodians of his eldest brother, Ian, who was at school near where they lived. His mother wrote to Ian regularly too, and there were brief annotations from his father on the back of them.

The letters add that insight and personal touch to a war that killed so many. They are almost always positive and upbeat, the British ‘stiff upper lip’ belies the truth of how much peril they were really in. East of West, West of East is in the same vein as Dadland and Stranger in my Heart, both of which tell the stories of their fathers who had significant involvement in World War 2. This is different as we are hearing about a family affected by the War in the Far East and their passage to a safer place, but the letters give it a real-time feel to the events.

3 out of 5 stars

Even in these days of 24/7 news, a world of knowledge at your fingertips and the ability to talk to almost anyone else on the planet, there are still things that we do and say that can trace their origins back hundreds of years. Some of the stranger ones have sadly vanished from the common vernacular, but thankfully we have people like Dee Dee Chainey who has scoured the legends, crept past the giants and kelpies and learnt about the customs and included them in this charming little book.

So if you want to know who the green man was, which tree it is rumoured to be safe to stand under in a thunderstorm and when in the farming year they would shout  ‘Hurrah! Hurrah for the neck. As you’d expect, there are hounds, white harts and fairies. You can discover which fairies like to help and which use blood to dye their caps. The supernatural gets a section to itself as well as the hatched, matched and despatched themes that still dominate life today.

It is a good overview of the weft and weave of folklore that permeates our lives even today. If it does lack a little depth, but it is a concise summation of all things folklore. That said, there is an extensive bibliography and references and more importantly a comprehensive list of places to find folklore for those that want to uncover much more about this fascinating subject. I loved the bold woodcut illustrations by Joe McLaren too, they are a certain gravitas to the book

5 out of 5 stars

In the dead of night a teenage girl lifts the baby she is caring for out of the cot and walks out of the house and up into the Cumbrian Hills. Her desire to be far far away from that place drives her and she has taken very little possessions and almost no protection against the elements.

When the householder discovers her absence he heads to speak to the local priest, as she came from the workhouse under his charge. The incensed priest calls on the services of the local poacher and his dog to help him track the girl down.

She walks up into the hills, sleeping rough, staying out of sight, getting help from those that can see a vulnerable girl in need. Living on almost nothing the child and her begin to suffer. She takes risks, some of which pay off. All to put distance between her and the baby and the man she knows will be following.

Poacher and priest march on relentlessly. Seeking, tracking, following trails and finding where they slept. They are wary of each other though, constantly battling through their dialogue. The priest claims the moral high ground, the poacher goading, before getting a glimpse of what obsesses the priest.

Two Benjamin Myers books in a week is a baptism by literary fire. Thought the Gallows Pole was brilliant, but this is another level of intensity again. The sparse prose emerges deep from within the landscape they are traversing and it seeks into your psyche capillary style. The characters are not two dimensional, rather they are stark and raw like a grainy black and white picture. I thought that the juxtaposition between who you would perceive as good and who actually was, was really cleverly done. It deals with some very dark disturbing themes, as one pair chase the other across the hills and the ending does not pull any punches at all.

Shocking. Brilliant. If you liked the Wasp Factory, this is another book like that.