Mar 28, 2008
It Isn’t The Death of The Book Quite Yet
There is much talk nowadays about books going the same way as music, and electronic book readers replacing traditional paper books. Because of the iPod revolution, very few people are still buying CDs (or records…remember them?) and along with the changes have come the battles over copyright, illegal downloads and file sharing. An article that I recently read in Business magazine suggested that what... read more
Mar 28, 2008
Plea Of Insanity – Jilliane Hoffman
This is a courtroom drama with a difference. It is a courtroom drama with a definite purpose. The author actually seeks to teach the reader something and open their eyes as well as entertain them. It was an interesting combination which I really enjoyed, but which could take the average reader who is just looking for a bit of escapism by surprise. Plea of Insanity starts out as a story of a rookie... read more
Mar 25, 2008
The Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd
I took a book off from World War I while I waited for my next Amazon delivery. I swear I keep Amazon in business. Even my postman has commented on the number of Amazon parcels that arrive at my door. In the meantime, I finished a book which had been chosen this month by my reading group which I had read before but was quite happy to revisit. The first time I read The Secret Life of Bees I was at a... read more
Mar 20, 2008
A Farewell To Arms – Ernest Hemingway
A Farewell to Arms is an unusual book. The storyline is simple enough, but the style of writing took some time getting used to. This is the first Hemingway novel I had ever read so I wasn’t prepared for it, but after reading the introduction in the edition which I own, the word ‘detachment’ stood out to me. The story began and I felt like I was outside looking in. Despite being written... read more
Mar 18, 2008
All Quiet on the Western Front – Erich Maria Remarque
I would hail this book as one of the most evocative accounts of the First World War ever written. I was almost speechless when I finished it. There were passages which I found myself reading a second and third time because of their beauty. The story itself is similar to so many others – a young man grows into an old man as he experiences the war. His comrades become his only family and by the end,... read more
Mar 13, 2008
Regeneration – Pat Barker
I studied World War I in my final year at school, and after finishing A Long Long Way, I wanted to continue my reading on it. Fortunately, my book club then selected Regeneration by Pat Barker which gave me another opportunity to read about the same war, from a different viewpoint and with a completely different atmosphere. Much has been written about this book. It is a novel based around fact – in... read more
Mar 13, 2008
Get Into Bed With Google – Jon Smith
This is less a complete book and more a ‘pithy little reader’. It offers no verbosity – just 52 simple rules to remember for optimising websites for the ubiquitous Google. It is a difficult book to ‘review’ so probably just an overview and an impression will do it justice. From a ‘how-to’ point of view (which is essentially the genre it fits within) it does... read more
Mar 10, 2008
What makes a great book review?
I am breaking away from my regular list of books because I have been thinking quite a lot recently about what makes a great book review? There was an interesting, albeit somewhat controversial article in the February 2008 Prospect Magazine called Critical Condition by William Skidelsky which discusses the demise of the book review in both Britain and the United States. In the article, Skidelsky pointed out... read more
