Book Reviews 2013

I downloaded a number of books this summer, including some classics. The ones I have read most recently are still in my memory and will be briefly reviewed here:

• Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson
• Rushed - Brian Harmon
• Officer Jones - Derek Ciccone
• The Travel Auction - Mark Green

I had the Treasure Island book as a child but couldn't get into it. As an adult, I enjoyed reading it. Possibly some of the hero's feats are dubious but a good story and a happy ending puts this on my recommended book list. (UK)

The humorous telephone banter in Rushed kept me company during my journey with the main character, who was on a mystery quest that came to him in a recurring dream. The story itself was mostly interesting, as were most of the other characters who were introduced in the story-telling. Personally, I thought that the mystery should have been left as such at the end of the book because I felt that the explanation was a let-down. However, the 'hero' is worth getting to know and I would recommend this book as a worthy read - you may even like the ending. (USA)

A well-written novel about a TV news journalist who travels to the world's trouble spots and decides to cover one more job... after which he returns to his home town and the story focuses on Officer Jones, an exemplary cop with a perfect military and police background, apparently. It's a good investigative journalist story with a bit of a love interest. Formulaic, perhaps, but don't let that put you off, it's a good read and the characters in the book are so well described that they become people you feel you know. I wouldn't be surprised to see this as a TV mini-series. (USA)

The Travel Auction by Mark Green is a breath of fresh air. It's boy meets girl with a difference. I felt like a privileged friend to both as they shared their travel experiences and thoughts throughout the book. Amazingly, no - brilliantly - there was no gratuitous sex throughout the book, which some authors feel compelled to use in lieu of confident story-telling (I'm not saying that there's no sex). It has humour, drama and plot set in a travellers' guide to South America. I loved this book and thoroughly recommend it. According to the author's website, the paperback version may be available now/soon - a great stocking filler! (UK)

A Tale of 3 Hot Water Bottles

1. Waking up in the middle of the night, soaking wet, is a bit of a shock. First thought: Did I wet myself? A hot water bottle is very comforting if you live in an old house with draughty windows and no heating but beware of old hot water bottles with perished rubber.

2. How can a hot water bottle be so hot that it sets the curtains on fire? If someone has a mental health problem, this seems quite reasonable to them. Naively, I tried to calm our elderly neighbour, reasoning that the heat would burst the hot water bottle and the water would put out the fire. Next problem: "Flood! We're going to drown..."

3. If you're trying to keep heating costs down, putting a HWB in bed while you get ready to join it is a good idea. However, ensure that you replace the stopper correctly and, just in case, move the bottle and feel the sheet before you leap into bed. Last night, I had to strip the bed and leave the mattress to dry overnight, spending the remaining hours in the spare room. Still tired... Zzzzzzz

♪ ♫ Don't Let Me Down vs Don't Let Me Down ♪ ♫

About 5 years after The Beatles released Don't Let Me Down, Bad Company released a song with the same title - the 'Don't Let Me Down' chorus bit is quite similar too. Both are good but judge for yourselves:

Don't Let me Down

The Beatles (1969)

Bad Company (1974)

Beebopalula

 

 

Dude, Where's my 'phone?

We were staying with some friends one summer when they saw their friend and neighbour get out of a car, his face bruised and stitches above his eye.

The previous evening, he (let's call him 'Vic' - short for victim!) and his friend who had been staying with him, got drunk and started arguing; the friend (no longer a friend) attacked Vic and walked out.

Vic walked several miles to hospital and, after receiving treatment in the early hours, hitch-hiked home.

After he told us his story, his cell-phone rang. Vic thought it was his girl-friend calling but it was the violent ex-friend. Angry, upset and emotional, Vic hurled the cell-phone across the garden. We politely suggested that he might want to retrieve it in case his girl-friend tried to contact him.

It was no-where to be found, not on the grass or in the shrub borders. Thinking that it couldn't possibly have reached the road beyond, we looked, nevertheless, but couldn't see it anywhere. Our friends called the number and we listened carefully - yes! Following the sound, we stood in the middle of the road above a drain and could see it, maybe a foot (30 cms) below the surface, through a grid. Incredible! Even Vic was laughing at how ludicrous this situation had become.

The cell-phone, thanks to a young girl's long and skinny arm, was retrieved! Vic is now fine and the ex-friend has never returned.

Going up in a Stairlift

I was looking at the London Stair-Lifts website when I was reminded of an amusing story.

My aunt and uncle lived in a first floor apartment with a private ground-floor entrance hall. They would unload the shopping from their Yaris then one would take the stair lift up, followed by relays of bags of shopping, then the other person.

Just like a kid, I wanted to be allowed to use it too but was too embarrassed to ask!

I'm not convinced that they actually needed a stair-lift for themselves at the time but having one already installed enabled them to easily transport heavier shopping items to their upstairs apartment with its massive balcony and excellent views of the coastline.

Remember that scene from Gremlins?

Nice Road in 9th Best Town

10th October: I've just walked along Wellingham Avenue, off the Bedford Road in Hitchin - the 9th best town in England (maybe you saw me - black ski jacket and jeans, fair hair, cool sunglasses - it's cold but sunny this morning).

Wellingham Avenue is a lovely quiet road set around three sides of a rectangle and has an open, spacious feel with almost no cars parked in the road (or on pavements). There are probably about 100 houses altogether (I didn't check).

Starting at the northern end and running east-west, there are well kept 60s-style semi-detached family homes, set well back from the road, until you reach the first corner where there is a small cluster of bungalows (a couple, unfortunately have their gardens overshadowed by a 4-story building on an estate behind them, which should probably never have received planning permission - or maybe it was there first but it looks newer).

Turning to the south, there are houses on the right and bungalows on the left. There was a cold east wind this morning but this part of the walk was beautifully sheltered. As you turn into the final section of Wellingham Avenue, the properties are more varied, a blend of bungalows, houses and chalet-bungalows. Most are semi-detached but some are detached properties.

I found this to be a thoroughly pleasant road, a 'nice' neighbourhood, yet less than ten minutes' walk from the edge of the town centre.

Bern.

On behalf of the Sensible Party

Do we have too much information about other people's lifestyles? Instead of enjoying our own lives, are we comparing and envying the lives of others?

All political parties seem to class-obsessed (assuming class is now based on money rather than a person's character, which was a more admirable aspiration). That's no way to govern, yet it seems to be associated with all democracies.

      On class & equality:
          Conservative - every one should be almost as equal as we are
          Liberal - we are all equal but there's some balancing to be done
          Labour - let the poor rise up and destroy the rich, until we are the rich

On the bright side, if there is an apocalypse, there will be a chance to start over.
:-)
      And...
          Always look on the bright side of life ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫
          Always look on the bright side of life ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫

political fence-sitter