I’ve been trying to write book reviews recently as part of my reading record to encourage me to engage critically with the books. But I’ve found that sometimes there isn’t a great deal to say about a book, and sometimes I go through phases of not reading as much as I would like. So, to … More Book Reviews: April to May
“Never judge a book by its cover.” The stern adage rang in my head as I picked this book out of the library sale with what was probably an audible gasp. This book is stunning to behold, with its purple-edged pages and features picked out in gold. If anything it is even more beautiful once … More Book review: The Binding
Unsettled Ground is a novel by Claire Fuller, published in 2021. I picked it up as a daily deal on my e-reader, purely because I read the blurb and thought it sounded interesting. In the end I found it strangely compelling, but so depressing that I struggled to dredge out the valuable messages that it … More Book review: Unsettled Ground
I have previously written about re-committing to the habit of reading. I wanted to share a couple more changes that I have made in the last year which have assisted in this endeavour. The first is that I bought a Kobo e-reader. In my previous post, I said that I was “more inspired by the … More Reading with Ease
Recently I won a National Book Tokens competition and received an advance proof copy of a book. The book was No One Round Here Reads Tolstoy by Mark Hodkinson. I had no idea what to expect. This was exacerbated by the fact that I literally hadn’t been expecting the book in the post – I … More Book review: No One Round Here Reads Tolstoy
On any given night this week, you would have found me sitting at my desk long past my bedtime, fingers clicking at the mouse erratically, eyes wide and fixed on a colourless monitor full of flickering numbers. No, I haven’t been stressing over PhD work. I have been playing a truly excellent, highly addictive game … More The Paperclip Apocalypse
When I was writing essays at school and university, I always began by defining my terms. This was no great hardship – I find words and etymology terribly interesting. It also served me well. There is a reason that it is a staple of essay-writers everywhere: through definitions, key issues and points of contention come … More What (On Earth) is AI?
Here is a common tale. Once upon a time, there lived a voracious little reader. Every week she and her sister would get new books out of the library. She used to read past her bedtime by the glow of the landing light – how she strained her eyes! She went through phases: an Enid … More Reviving a Bookworm
Cryptic Meg 