{"id":841,"date":"2025-11-20T12:35:59","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T20:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/?p=841"},"modified":"2025-11-20T16:04:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T00:04:14","slug":"2025-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/2025-2\/","title":{"rendered":"2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

A very chaotic year, but these are the books I have read this year.<\/em><\/p>\n

1421\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Gavin Menzies.\u00a0 The year China discovered America.<\/h2>\n

This is absolutely fascinating and a sequel to his previous book, but this is far more detailed about how several enormous Chinese fleets, often of 500 boats, composed of huge Junks and lesser boats, discovered almost the entire world, from California as well as the East Coast of the USA, South America, Europe, Africa and even Australia.\u00a0 It is a total rewriting of the European history of discoveries, which of course was kicked off by versions of the highly detailed maps the Chinese made. It’s an odd irony that Confucianism put an end to the explorations.<\/p>\n

Faceless Killers\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Henning Mankel<\/h2>\n

The first Kurt Wallander Mystery and I guess there are a lot more.\u00a0 Easy reading.<\/p>\n

The Stepdaughter \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Caroline Blackwood<\/h2>\n

I may have read this before, but she is a fine writer and far more than the reputation she has earned.<\/p>\n

Universality\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Natasha Brown<\/h2>\n

This is the genuine article.\u00a0 A very fine novel by a very fine young British novelist of whom we will hear a lot more.\u00a0 A definite must read.<\/p>\n

Table for Two.\u00a0\u00a0 Short stories\u00a0\u00a0 Amor Towles<\/h2>\n

I am not a fan of this writer.\u00a0 I think he writes pastiches of other writers.\u00a0 This book did nothing to change my mind.<\/p>\n

The Pregnant Widow\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Martin Amis<\/h2>\n

I did enjoy a re-read of this though.\u00a0 Martin Amis is always readable, always fascinating.\u00a0 And sadly no longer with us.<\/p>\n

Some Hope\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Edward St. Aubyn<\/h2>\n

The third of the Patrick Melrose novels.<\/em><\/p>\n

I re-read it out of desperation for something new.\u00a0 This quartet is magnificent as is his writing.<\/p>\n

The Carter of Providence\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m running out of Maigret\u2019s to read.\u00a0\u00a0 Oh no.\u00a0\u00a0 They are such a perfect length and so fine.<\/p>\n

The Actual\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A novella \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Saul Bellow<\/h2>\n

I know some people think Bellow is the best writer but I am not one of them.\u00a0 Some of his books I admire a lot, others less so.\u00a0 This may fall under the latter category but since it is very short and about sex it is quite readable.<\/p>\n

Paris in Turmoil.\u00a0\u00a0 A city between past and future.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Eric Hazan<\/h2>\n

A book written by a Publisher, which is far less interesting than the city it is about.<\/p>\n

I had A Chateau in Provence\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Iain McGarvie-Munn<\/h2>\n

Since I happen to know this chateau and it features a little in my forthcoming book on Provence (out next year, I was delighted to find this personal memoir by the son of the man who bought and renovated it absolutely fascinating.\u00a0\u00a0 He also writes very nicely.<\/p>\n

Foundation\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Peter Ackroyd<\/h2>\n

The History of England from its earliest beginnings to the Tudors.<\/em><\/p>\n

And that pretty much describes it.\u00a0\u00a0 Interesting early beginnings in pre-history through the Romans to the more familiar Kings.\u00a0 I have read a few of his later books too.<\/p>\n

We could be\u2026.Bowie and his heroes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Tom Hagler<\/h2>\n

With help from Tony Visconti this is a highly readable romp through the many extraordinary and talented people that David experienced and enjoyed throughout his life.\u00a0\u00a0 He was an intellectual, an artist, a musician and a very very funny man.\u00a0 Simple and enjoyable.<\/p>\n

Midnight Mass\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Paul Bowles<\/h2>\n

Very enjoyable short stories.<\/p>\n

Philip Larkin Poems\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Selected by Martin Amis<\/h2>\n

Brilliant selection and brilliant foreword.<\/p>\n

Read on Kindle<\/u><\/em><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Tenth Man\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Graham Greene<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m a fan but I found this almost unreadable.<\/p>\n

Life Sentences\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Martin Mull<\/h2>\n

A preview copy for which I was proud to write a Foreword.\u00a0\u00a0 Lovely short stories from my late friend, actor, guitarist and artist, whom I miss a lot.<\/p>\n

The Demon of Unrest\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Erik Larson<\/h2>\n

I had to abandon this history beginning in Savannah just before the Civil War because it so reflected today\u2019s headlines and what is happening again in America that I found it impossibly depressing and I was unable to continue.\u00a0 I hope America can survive again without losing another half a million men.<\/p>\n

Earth to Moon\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Moon Unit Zappa<\/h2>\n

I have known her since she was a young girl in Vacation 2 and the family since the death of Frank, whom I did not know.\u00a0 She writes wonderfully and her book is totally sad because as the eldest and the nicest she suffers the most from her mother, who was very bizare and who behaved monstrously at the end, leaving the two eldest kids with almost nothing.\u00a0\u00a0 Moon\u2019s father too, bringing home mistresses and paying little attention to the kids, was also some kind of monster.\u00a0 I hope this book helps Moon find herself and a pathway to a decent life.\u00a0 She has the brains and the writing skills and the modesty to do all that.\u00a0\u00a0 Remembering always the words of the poet Larkin: \u201cThey fuck you up your mum and dad.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Fatal Shore\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Robert Hughes<\/h2>\n

One of my favourite books and I re read it because of course I was in Australia which is where I would like to be most days.<\/p>\n

Homo Sapiens:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A brief history.<\/h2>\n

Doesn\u2019t seem to mention an author, but is a fairly brief romp through the beginnings of mankind.\u00a0 Highly readable and a useful reminder of what and where we came from.<\/p>\n

The Beautiful and the Damned\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 F. Scott Fitzgerald<\/h2>\n

I had to have a quick re-read.\u00a0 Not my favourite but this is his first and fairly incredible for that.<\/p>\n

California Fire and Life.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Don Winslow<\/h2>\n

It was the first of his I read so thought I\u2019d give it another go.\u00a0\u00a0 Enjoyed it again.<\/p>\n

When the going was good\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Graydon Carter<\/h2>\n

I like him as an editor.\u00a0 Found this going not so good\u2026.\u00a0 Oops.<\/p>\n

A few words in defense of our Country.\u00a0 Robert Hilburn<\/h2>\n

The Biography of Randy Newman.\u00a0\u00a0 Of course I loved it.\u00a0 Though he might have mentioned I gave him his star on the Walk of Fame \u2013 outside Musso\u2019s.\u00a0 !!<\/p>\n

Gun Street Girl \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

Falling Glass\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

Loved them both.\u00a0 In fact all his work except his two best sellers!!<\/p>\n

The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Henry Gee<\/h2>\n

Loved it.<\/p>\n

Lorne .\u00a0 The Man who invented Saturday Night Live\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Susan Morrison<\/h2>\n

Of course I found it fascinating.\u00a0 Though I must say it made me a little anxious.\u00a0 Is that the secret to Lorne\u2019s control?<\/p>\n

Broken\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Don Winslow<\/h2>\n

As always readable and gripping.<\/p>\n

The Wide Wide Sea.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hampton Sides.<\/h2>\n

Imperial Ambition , First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook. Readable and fascinating<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Summer Reading.\u00a0 2025<\/u><\/h1>\n

Travelling to England and on to Europe for a summer away from the madness of North America.<\/em><\/p>\n

I regret Everything\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Keith McNally.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Kindle)<\/h2>\n

The legendary restaurateur reveals everything.\u00a0 Well almost.\u00a0 Including the fact that he is British, had an affair with Alan Bennet and other naughty details of a life well spent opening many of New York\u2019s finest and most popular restaurants and nightclubs \u2013 from The Odeon to Nells.\u00a0 He writes well and honestly and I enjoyed his company.<\/p>\n

The Zone of Interest\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Martin Amis \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Kindle)<\/h2>\n

Quite the most enjoyable and startling and beautifully written novel I have ever read.\u00a0\u00a0 He is often pre-occupied with evil, and as this is set in Auschwitz, which only gradually dawns on you, evil is everywhere.\u00a0 Doll, the commandant, insists he is just a normal man, as his wife slowly and gradually recognises the sheer horror in which she now lives with their children.\u00a0\u00a0 I think it is a masterly piece of work and enjoyed every minute of it, including his brief notes at the end on the nature of Hitler, who turns on his own people and seeks their own destruction.<\/p>\n

The Absent One\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A Department Q novel.\u00a0\u00a0 Jussi Adler-Olsen.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Kindle)<\/h2>\n

Having enjoyed the Netflix Scottish Adaptation of the first volume of these books by the Danish writer I was naturally tempted to read more of them.\u00a0\u00a0 This was Book Two and although well written, I found the level of violence in this book way too much for me and I abandoned it for the sake of my own mental health.\u00a0\u00a0 He does conjure cruel monsters and they may well exist like this, but I had to turn away.\u00a0\u00a0 And read:<\/p>\n

Maigret and The Headless Corpse\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

Yes I know it\u2019s mellow and set in a Paris that has long gone, nevertheless he writes so well and plots so well that I am unashamedly a fan.\u00a0\u00a0 This is one of the very best of his.\u00a0 And I immediately followed up with:<\/p>\n

Maigret\u2019s Revolver\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

Which I had the vague memory I had read before.\u00a0\u00a0 That after all was originally the point of keeping this Reading Diary, but now I am older I find I can re-read quite happily, and if it is a great book or even a good book, it just keeps better.\u00a0 So I read on and don\u2019t look back, wishing I could join the Inspector in a glass of pastis on the way home, but sadly my drinking days are behind me.\u00a0\u00a0 In fact most of my days are behind me, but it doesn\u2019t matter as long as I can still read (and play guitar.) I share my love of Maigret with Jules Holland, though he is a real fan and visits the arrondisements mentioned in the book including the Boulevard Richard Lenoir where Maigret lives with the endlessly patient Madame Maigret.<\/p>\n

Four Seasons in Rome\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Anthony Doerr<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m a huge fan of his and spotted this unlikely travel book in a brief race through Foyles.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Of course Doerr writes wonderfully, he is one of the best of the current writers.\u00a0 He and his wife Shauna leave Idaho shortly after she gives birth to twins.\u00a0 A difficult birth, and they fearlessly head off to Italy with no Italian.\u00a0\u00a0 One of my motto\u2019s is \u201cNever let children outnumber you\u201d and the sheer bravery of travelling to Rome with twins for an unsought, but nevertheless awarded, one year writing scholarship is a fascinating story.\u00a0\u00a0 Of course he hardly gets any writing done, the twins (boys) are still in their first year, need endless attention and the exhausted couple struggle through a dream like Rome. Of course throughout their stay they are praised, helped and adored by the Italians who do love children.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>They manage to make day trips to see various sites in Tuscany from their flat in Trastevere and more locally in Rome itself.\u00a0 He always has something interesting to share from the two and a half thousand years of Roman history. Coincidentally, they are present for the death of Jean Paul 2, the huge funeral and the subsequent election of the German Ratzinger, who actually remains in the Vatican long after his resignation as Pope.\u00a0 Doerr is a great observer of people, and despite his lack of the language he manages to bring to life all the local people they meet in their extraordinary year.\u00a0 It\u2019s fascinating to me that at this point in his life he still hasn\u2019t written All The Light We Cannot See <\/em>and refers to it as the historical novel he hasn\u2019t finished.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Two shelves of books and a stacked Kindle I\u2019m ready for my summer reading and the road.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I realize I couldn\u2019t do without reading.\u00a0 I hardly watch movies any more, though I do like lots of the mini-series on the Streamers.\u00a0 Binge watching is the best.\u00a0 Too bad they have killed the cinema and don\u2019t pay royalties.<\/em><\/p>\n

Summer Books<\/h2>\n

The Thin Man\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dashiell Hammet<\/h2>\n

One of my favourite books.\u00a0 It moves so fast, almost all dialogue, more like a movie. The characters live and breathe through dialogue and cocktails.\u00a0 Obviously Nick is him and Norah Charles is Lillian Hellman.\u00a0 He really keeps the pace up.\u00a0 Love it.<\/p>\n

The Lock-Up\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 John Banville<\/h2>\n

How very different novels can be.\u00a0 In this the action starts very dramatically and then slows down.\u00a0 Almost everything extraneous is described, several different stories appear to start up.\u00a0 Reflections on doorways are described, landscape, trees, Dublin, clothes, but this does slow the action down and in the end the mystery isn\u2019t only superfluous, there is an addendum which is both unexpected and unnecessary.\u00a0 The book is quite readable but quite slow.<\/p>\n

Tourist Season\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Carl Hiassen<\/h2>\n

This was almost my favourite novel of the summer.\u00a0 A very funny book about some utterly detestable characters.\u00a0 I loved every minute of it.\u00a0\u00a0 Florida of course but boy does he keep it going with many laugh out loud passages.<\/p>\n

The Revenge Club\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kathy Lette<\/h2>\n

She describes this as a book for women but I think she does herself an injustice.\u00a0 Kathy can write with the best of them.\u00a0 And this is a great summer read, even for we poor men who are also not entirely averse to wanting vengeance on an ex-partner\u2026<\/p>\n

Maigret\u2019s Revolver\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

The perfect palate cleanser.\u00a0\u00a0 A perfect Maigret book.\u00a0\u00a0 How far we have come with murder mysteries since the almost innocent world of Simenon\u2019s criminal Paris\u2026.\u00a0 It feels safely nostalgic.<\/p>\n

Maigret\u2019s Christmas\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m also dipping in and out of a bumper Christmas book of nine stories which I keep by my bedside for desperate times.\u00a0 They are all great reads and desperation departs.<\/p>\n

I used to be charming\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Rest of Eve Babitz<\/h2>\n

And who wouldn\u2019t want Eve Babitz by your bedside?\u00a0 Always funny, always inciteful and a superb writer. I prefer the stories of her life and the people she meets to the novels, and this is jam packed with wonders.\u00a0 I may well have read it several times.\u00a0 I never get tired of her.<\/p>\n

So late in the Day\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Claire Keegan<\/h2>\n

And then there is Claire Keegan the perfect miniaturist, the shortest of books and yet nothing is wasted or out of place.\u00a0 I loved this.<\/p>\n

James \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Percival Everett<\/h2>\n

And this I adored.\u00a0 Just a superb rendition of the world of Huckleberry Finn seen through the eyes of a runaway slave.\u00a0\u00a0 He made me laugh, he made me cry.\u00a0\u00a0 Boy what a tyranny that world of slavery was.\u00a0 And now this weird president is trying to remove its impact!\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe Smithsonian\u201d we are told \u201cfocuses too much on how bad slavery was.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 As if you could possibly remove that stain? It\u2019s like saying Dachau wasn\u2019t so bad.\u00a0\u00a0 Disgusting.\u00a0\u00a0 Read this book you\u2019ll love it.<\/p>\n

State of Fear\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Michael Crichton<\/h2>\n

I always find him the best of popular page turners.\u00a0 He writes well and keeps you gripped and enthralled.<\/p>\n

The Origins of Creativity.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Edward O. Wilson.<\/h2>\n

How little we know about ourselves and the origins of what goes on inside our enormous homo sapiens crania.\u00a0 I found this short book about the birth of the humanities, the origins of creativity, language, art, science, religion and music, so totally absorbing and fascinating, particularly in our relationship to nature, that I read it twice.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dominion\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Peter Ackroyd<\/h2>\n

And I\u2019m ploughing on through Volume V of Peter Ackroyd\u2019s great History of England.\u00a0 I surprise myself by how little I know of the great age of industrialism and the political figures who exhausted and sometimes killed themselves, trying to deal with the problems of the age, Peel, Palmerston, Disraeli etc from the end of the Regency to the end of Victoria\u2019s life in 1901.\u00a0\u00a0 So like our own modern times and yet so not.<\/p>\n

Mrs. Dalloway.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Virginia Woolf<\/h2>\n

Re-reading this novel after, what? \u00a0well this paperback on my shelf says 1969, after all those many years anyway, I found it to be the most delightful, beautifully written and exquisite novel that I had looked down on from a distance for decades.\u00a0 I could hardly put it down.\u00a0 I found her grasp of characters delightful, her prose exquisite, and myself a snobby old bastard.\u00a0 What a joy.\u00a0\u00a0 Do we change, or do they?\u00a0\u00a0 Quite the most wonderful read of the summer.\u00a0 I am delighted to have been proven quite wrong and I unashamedly advise you to read it if you have now, like me, grown old enough.\u00a0 I am now no longer afraid of Virginia Woolf.<\/p>\n

The Professor of Desire\u00a0 Philip Roth<\/h2>\n

This on the other hand has not survived the test of time.\u00a0 It has sat on my bookshelf since 1978 and has only grown old and sad.\u00a0 Rather like a bad Henry Miller.\u00a0\u00a0 I have some virtually unreadable notes scribbled in the back that suggest about half way through that I felt it had become soap opera so I don\u2019t think I liked it all that much even back then.\u00a0 I have been a great admirer of Roth and think I must be careful about re-reading in future.<\/p>\n

Let Me Tell You What I Mean\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Joan Didion.<\/h2>\n

A good quarter of the book is a Foreword which tends to suggest the Publisher is trying too hard, but these are quite agreeable bits of journalism, about Nancy Reagan and Martha Stewart, Hemingway and even Robert Mapplethorpe, but often before they became more interesting.\u00a0 Quite old pieces then but nicely written.<\/p>\n

Small Things Like These\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Claire Keegan<\/h2>\n

Another exquisitely written tiny classic.\u00a0 This one feels like it should be a Christmas film.\u00a0 How rarely do books get written about good men?\u00a0 I loved it.<\/p>\n

The Eye in the Door\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Pat Barker<\/h2>\n

The Ghost Road\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Pat Barker<\/h2>\n

And I finished the last two books in the Regeneration Trilogy with great delight.\u00a0\u00a0 Exceptionally fine writing (she has a fine eye for men and their ways) and no wonder she won the Booker Prize. The shattered world of the first world war, and the unbelievably awful nightmare of the trenches which caused such havoc in the minds of everyone involved, is here intertwined with the struggles of the real men (Rivers) who tried so hard to heal them.\u00a0 The story involves many of the major writers (Siegfried Sassoon, Rupert Graves) and Poets (Wilfred Owen, Rupert Brooke) and their generation of lost youth, of whom the most tremendous sacrifice was demanded.\u00a0\u00a0 Superb writing.\u00a0 I could read them again.<\/p>\n

Reading on the road.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Always Look on the Bright Side of Live, Live)<\/h1>\n

Mrs. Dalloway\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Virginia Woolf<\/h2>\n

A 1969 paperback I found in my library in France.\u00a0 As I say above, I absolutely adored it and couldn\u2019t understand its total lack of appeal to my younger self.\u00a0 It is a masterpiece.\u00a0 I left the slightly old and worn copy with its torn cover by my bedside in Birmingham for someone else to stumble across.\u00a0 This is my policy on the road, which I started last year in Australia.\u00a0 Let someone else find it. Don\u2019t carry what you\u2019ve read\u2026<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

An emergency visit to Waterstones in Birmingham produced two books<\/p>\n

The Predicament\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 William Boyd<\/h2>\n

The new novel by William\u00a0 Boyd a favorite writer I found disappointing and uninteresting.\u00a0 I found this signed edition in Birmingham but although I am a big fan of his this is a sequel to another book of his which I also did not like much.\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019m afraid I discarded it half way through – signed and all – and gave it to a fellow traveller along with Times Arrow<\/strong> by Martin Amis which I had bought but can never get into. I left that in Brighton.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A second visit to Waterstones in Brighton was more fertile. There is never a possibility of being disappointed by Maigret and a slim paperback by Simenon, kept me very happy resting on a huge bed in a bowed bedroom with three windows overlooking the sea with a view of the wrecked iron structure of the old burned down pavilion.\u00a0\u00a0 A ferocious wind made it hard to even walk along the promenade.<\/p>\n

Stan the Killer\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon<\/h2>\n

A fine Maigret in a nice new edition of Penguin.\u00a0 Three short stories in the new Penguin Archive Series.\u00a0 Includes The Inn of the Drowned and Madame Maigret\u2019s Suitor.\u00a0\u00a0 Fabulous as usual.\u00a0 Three short tales.\u00a0\u00a0 I gave it to someone in Brighton.<\/p>\n

So long, see you tomorrow\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 William Maxwell<\/h2>\n

An odd sort of tale, about friendship and murder that for me didn\u2019t really catch fire.\u00a0 I left it in Manchester.<\/p>\n

Betty\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Georges Simenon.<\/h2>\n

Simenon but sadly not a Maigret.\u00a0 Started fascinating but then stopped.\u00a0\u00a0 I left it in Manchester.<\/p>\n

Play it as it lays.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Joan Didion<\/h2>\n

I haven\u2019t read it for a long time.\u00a0\u00a0 And it has the advantage of having Eve Babitz on the cover in the nude playing chess with Marcel Du Champ.\u00a0 I found the novel really good.\u00a0 Smart, sharp, mordant and funny.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The very best of Didion for me.\u00a0\u00a0 Left it in Glasgow.<\/p>\n

The Blue Room\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Simenon<\/h2>\n

Also not a Maigret.\u00a0 Also not as good.\u00a0 Also left in Glasgow.<\/p>\n

The Prime of Miss Jean Brody\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Muriel Spark<\/h2>\n

Re-read it appropriately in Edinburgh.\u00a0\u00a0 The perfect book to read in that beautiful city.\u00a0 I sat reading, \u00a0looking at the Castle through the window of my posh hotel. \u00a0It\u2019s still a wonderful novel and she is still a wonderful writer.\u00a0\u00a0 I left it in the Caledonian Hotel.<\/p>\n

Since I enjoyed it so much I started to binge on her, and have put them all together on my return.\u00a0 Each is worth a re-read.<\/p>\n

A Far Cry From Kensington\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Muriel Spark<\/h2>\n

The Ballad of Peckham Rye\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Muriel Spark<\/h2>\n

Loitering with Intent\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Muriel Spark<\/h2>\n

The Stories of Muriel Spark<\/h2>\n

Vagabond\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Tim Curry<\/h2>\n

Tim\u2019s publisher sent me an early copy for a quote, for which I was very grateful and I read with delight.<\/p>\n

\u201cTim Curry is perhaps the finest baritone gardener in this business they call show.\u00a0 He is also, as far as I\u2019m concerned, the King of Broadway \u2013 and forever my King.\u00a0 I love and adore Tim and all things Curry, including Vagabond.\u00a0\u00a0 This is his thoroughly enjoyable memoir, a legend writing as honestly as one can about life behind the curtains.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Hero\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thomas Perry<\/h2>\n

My friend Tom Perry died suddenly and all I could do was reach for a novel to remind myself just what we will all miss.\u00a0\u00a0 He was a very fine man, and father, and we were co-parents at Oakwood, when he kindly gave me a copy of a book of his, and immediately I became addicted.\u00a0 He sent me a new one every year.<\/p>\n

Annihilation\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Michel Houellebecq<\/h2>\n

I am a fan of his and I had been eyeing this very large hardback book, waiting for it to appear in paperback, but when it did it appears I didn\u2019t finish it.\u00a0\u00a0 I shall leave it on a shelf near my bedside to try and see if the second half improves.<\/p>\n

It Girl.\u00a0 The Life and Legacy of Jane Birkin\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Marisa Meltzer<\/h2>\n

The life and legs of this beautiful and highly attractive British girl, who cleverly escaped to France and made a very fine life in cinema and in song.\u00a0 Nicely described and written. \u00a0I for one, did not know she had made so many films, but she seems to have enjoyed her life and her notoriety in a healthy and satisfactory way, which ends sadly, as all life does.<\/p>\n

Picket Line\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Elmore Leonard.\u00a0\u00a0 The Lost Novella.<\/h2>\n

A fine short tale and a fine diversion at an important period of his life, before he became a legend.<\/p>\n

The Professor and The Siren\u00a0\u00a0 Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa<\/h2>\n

Very short tales, but he writes so singularly well that he could write a menu and keep you gripped.\u00a0 With a foreword by Marina Warner.<\/p>\n

Read on Kindle<\/u><\/h2>\n

Crooks\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lou Berney.<\/h2>\n

A fascinating American crime saga, written through a family, the parents first and now the kids. Normally Sagas are one kind of genre and crime thrillers are another but here he has combined the forms so that a crime thriller about two crooks in Vegas magnificently becomes a saga about their children.\u00a0 This gives it a depth and a width which is quite fresh and totall originalu.\u00a0 Quite brilliant in concept and execution and a wonderful read.<\/p>\n

Pax\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Tom Holland<\/h2>\n

War and Peace in Rome\u2019s Golden Age<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Wonderfully written brilliant history.\u00a0 The best and most fascinating book I have ever read of the early Caesars.\u00a0 The death of Pliny in the maelstrom that was the entire Bay of Naples exploding is enough to remind us that it wasn\u2019t just Pompeii and Herculaneum that disappeared, it appeared to be the whole world coming apart, and the richest and most opulent part of it.\u00a0\u00a0 As if California disappeared one weekend.<\/p>\n

Star Island\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Carl Hiassen<\/h2>\n

To say that this family has become addicted to Carl Hiassen is an understatement.\u00a0 Tania and I are both chuckling our way through the many hilarious books \u2013 largely set in Florida \u2013 that this man has written. This is Book 6 of 7 in this series.<\/p>\n

Henry \u2018Chip\u2019s Cannon\u00a0\u00a0 The Diaries 1938-43\u00a0 Edited by Simon Heffer.<\/h2>\n

Gossipy political diaries about life amongst the Upper Classes during war time. Amusing and entertaining and a reminder that they are not like us.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In the days when people still wrote letters to each other.\u00a0 For instance:\u00a0 I am slightly off Rab.\u00a0 He is bourgeois and a don at heart, and I only like princes and great gentlemen and flaneurs and even, if need be, pansies!\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>And another example of this weirdly wonderful world at war about his wife.\u00a0\u00a0 Mustering my courage I drove to Southend to have a confidential conversation with my ever loyal agent, Bailey. He had heard no hints or rumours of my marital difficulties.\u00a0 But he spoke out frankly: said that Honor was no loss to me in the constituency as she was personally unpopular, even disliked: many people had <\/em><\/p>\n

asked him whether she drugged.\u00a0 Her rudeness and vacant expression had offended and puzzled people.\u00a0\u00a0 I finished <\/em>Anna Karenina and went sadly to bed.\u00a0\u00a0 Mrs. Nimmo tells me that old Sir Drummond Smith, a decayed farmer of 80 who lives nearby at Suttons, is courting her 18 year old daughter.\u00a0 I advised her to encourage the marriage.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Battle for Leningrad has begun.\u00a0 It is eight weeks since Germany invaded Russia.<\/em><\/p>\n

You really can\u2019t make this stuff up and I must remember to dip into it again from time to time!<\/p>\n

Bad Monkey \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Carl Hiassen.\u00a0 Book 1.<\/h2>\n

The Wayfinder\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Adam Johnson<\/h2>\n

I was very find of this writer but found this to be very hard going and I abandoned it.<\/p>\n

Nobody\u2019s Girl\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Virginia Roberts Guiffre<\/h2>\n

The poor victim in the appalling world of Ghislaine Maxwell and his saliva hammer.\u00a0 The most unfortunate story.\u00a0 I mean if you are victimised by your father what chance do you have?\u00a0\u00a0 One feels a mixture of pity and indignation that she fell into such a world amongst such people.\u00a0 I feel we have not heard the last of this.<\/p>\n

Nature Girl\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Carl Hiassen<\/h2>\n

I did warn you.<\/p>\n

Skin Tight\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Carl Hiassen<\/h2>\n

My only excuse is they are perfect books for travel.\u00a0\u00a0 Especially on Kindle.\u00a0\u00a0 And they are very funny.<\/p>\n

Clown Town\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Mick Herron<\/h2>\n

I have read practically every word by this extraordinary writer and this was the first book to disappoint me.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure why.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s to do with television.\u00a0 It spoils all writing.<\/p>\n

All About Eve\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Sam Staggs<\/h2>\n

Interesting enough.\u00a0 Th\u00a0 complete Behind the Scenes Story of the Bitchiest Film Ever Made.\u00a0\u00a0 I didn\u2019t finish it but watched the movie instead.<\/p>\n

The Accidental Species.\u00a0\u00a0 Misunderstandings of Human Evolution. Henry Gee<\/h2>\n

Always fascinating and often controversial.\u00a0\u00a0 And a jolly good read.<\/p>\n

Gun Street Girl\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

Rain Dogs. Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

Police at The Station and they don\u2019t look friendly. Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

Hang on St. Christopher.\u00a0 Adrian McKinty<\/h2>\n

I reminder to myself I also read these on Kindle.\u00a0 The Sean Duffy Series are terrific.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The trouble with Kindle reading is you tend to lose touch with what you read, because when you carry on reading it pops them back to the front of the queue and then annoyingly and condescendingly congratulates you on being on a reading streak.\u00a0 My whole life is a reading streak so fuck off you Amazonian twats.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s very annoying when you re read something on Kindle and then it\u2019s all over the place.\u00a0 I keep them in case I am stuck somewhere without a decent book, so they are in a chaotic order and I am going to abandon trying to decide what I read recently!<\/p>\n

And now it\u2019s November.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A very chaotic year, but these are the books I have read this year. 1421\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Gavin Menzies.\u00a0 The year China discovered America. This is absolutely fascinating and a sequel to his previous book, but this is far more detailed about how several enormous Chinese fleets, often of 500 boats, composed of huge Junks and lesser […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-841","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-reading"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/841","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=841"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/841\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":852,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/841\/revisions\/852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ericidle.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}