Category Archives: Books

Read Scotland 2016 Challenge

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I’ve reached my goal of reading 21 Scottish books for the Read Scotland 2016 Challenge. So here they are, in no particular order.

1. Beneath the Abbey Wall by A.D. Scott
2. The Factory on the Cliff by A. G. MacDonell
3. Lament for a Maker by Michael Innes
4. Night and Silence by Aline Templeton
5. A Life, Josephine Tey by Jennifer Morag Henderson
6. Fatty O’Leary’s Dinner Party by Alexander McCall Smith
7. Murder at the Loch by Eric Brown
8. The Moon King by Neil Williamson
9. Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart
10. Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell
11. Water on the Brain by Compton Mackenzie
12. Fair Helen by Andrew Greig
13. Cork on the WaterMacdonald Hastings
14. The Hangman’s Song by James Oswald
15. Wildfire at Midnight by Mary Stewart
16. Crossriggs by Jane and Mary Findlater
17. A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson
18. The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett
19. Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
20. Murder of a Lady by Anthony Wynne
21. Candleshoe by Michael Innes
22.Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
23.The Land the Ravens Found by Naomi Mitchison
24.England Their England by A.G. Macdonell
25.Kate Hardy by D.E. Stevenson
So I’ve completed the Isle of Skye level and I’m heading for the Orkney level. I’m not sure how many more books I have to read to get there though!

Candleshoe by Michael Innes

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Candleshoe cover

Candleshoe by Michael Innes was a very recent purchase by me. I bought it when I was down in the Scottish Borders a couple of weeks ago. I hadn’t even heard of this book before but Peggy knew about it and she has seen the film that Disney made of it. In fact the book was originally called Christmas at Candleshoe but my copy is a later tie in to the film. The book has nothing to do with Christmas the festival at all, it’s someone’s first name. As you can see from the book cover David Niven starred in the film, I don’t know how I managed to miss seeing it. Possibly it was released during one of the several times that our local fleapit in Dumbarton was closed due to fire damage. The Rialto,the last surviving cinema was forever going on fire for insurance purposes it was rumoured!

It’s a bit confusing as although the film is apparently aimed at kids, being made by Disney, the book definitely wasn’t written for children. Michael Innes had a habit of using the art world as part of the plot in his books – as he does with this one but it bears no resemblance to his Inspector Appleby mysteries.

A very wealthy American woman tourist is in Britain touring the usual country stately homes. As her son is a student at Oxford and she is very keen on all the ancient history of England, she’s on the lookout for an estate to buy and refurbish. When she stumbles across a house that has been completely bypassed by the 20th century she’s enchanted.

Her son fears that she’s determined to buy the ancient pile and Jay a teenager who seems to be keeping the whole place going is also worried that the very elderly owners would be happy to sell up. Jay believes an old story that there is treasure somewhere in the house and he’s not surprised when the house comes under attack from thieves.

The whole thing is a bit crazy and I have to say that this definitely isn’t one of Michael Innes’s best books. He was always very keen to shoehorn literary elements into his books, I suppose because for his day-job he was a university lecturer in English, but I don’t think that mentioning Meredith and numerous other literati does much for the pace of a mystery. He drops in Latin phrases in much the same way as Dorothy L. Sayers did, which is fine if like me you were lucky enough to do Latin at school, but I suspect that it’s just an annoyance for many people. At least he doesn’t switch to Greek as Sayers did at times!

This is my 21st book read for the Read Scotland 2016 Challenge. That level was originally being named ‘Back O’ Beyond’ but since visiting the Isle of Skye recently with Peggy, I think it is now going to be called Skye, or Isle of Skye – it’s up to Peggy. Any levels beyond that being named Orkney and then the ultimate – Shetland.

I think I’ll be giving this one a three on Goodreads.

Goodreads Challenge Completed

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A couple of weeks ago I realised that I had overshot my Goodreads Challenge goal. I had only signed up to read 80 books this year so that I wouldn’t be under any pressure come the end of the year, and end up only reading slim volumes in order to reach my goal. You can have a look at what I’ve read so far this year here. For some reason Rumer Godden’s Battle of the Villa Fiorita appears twice.

I think I’m now at around 90 books read. It sounds like an awful lot but I do read every word and don’t read that quickly, it’s just that I’m now at that stage in life when I have the luxury of time to sit down and read more or less when I want to, reading certainly comes before housework!

I plan to get stuck into some hefty classics between now and Christmas, including some Anthony Trollopes and Walter Scotts. I think I’m getting close to completing my Classics Club Challenge of 50 classic books. I hope to get that finished by the end of the year but I will still continue with reading classics after that and just keep adding to my list.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz cover

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum was one of those children’s classics that I hadn’t got around to reading, until last week. Of course I have seen the film umpteen times, but the book is quite different which is just as well as it would have to have been double the length otherwise.

The first time I saw Toy Story it struck me that it was just a remake of The Wizard of Oz. It had the same moral.

There’s not much else to say about the book other than it’s well written and an enjoyable read and I will read the sequels. I was surprised that the book was first published in 1900, I hadn’t realised it was that old.

Otherwise I was really chuffed to discover that Baum was of German/Scottish/Irish and English ancestry. I have a theory that the vast majority of children’s classic literature has been written by people with Scottish blood in them, a consequence of what happens to people when they are brought up in a strict Presbyterian atmosphere, the imagination goes into overdrive. In Baum’s case he was brought up a Methodist, a similarly strict variety of Christianity.

I read this one as part of the Classics Club Challenge. I wasn’t sure if I should count it towards it as it’s a children’s book – but then I thought – why not?!

A Game of Hide and Seek by Elizabeth Taylor

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A Game of Hide and Seek cover

A Game of Hide and Seek by Elizabeth Taylor was published in 1951 and I was lucky enough to find an old Book Club copy with a perfect dust jacket which I think is lovely, but I’m drawn to covers that feature a house.

Harriet and Vesey are teenagers who have been friends since early childhood. Harriet’s mother’s best friend is Vesey’s aunt and he spends a lot of time with his aunt and uncle as his mother isn’t exactly the caring type. Harriet’s mother and Vesey’s aunt had been suffragettes who had even ended up being imprisoned in their young days. Harriet’s mother had believed that as women had got the vote then her daughter would be able to do anything she wanted, maybe become a doctor or judge. But as Harriet wasn’t good at passing exams she had ended up by being a huge disappointment to her mother.

Harriet has always been in love with Vesey but he blows hot and cold and she ends up getting married to Charles, a man much older than she is, more to get away from her ever disapproving mother than for any other reason. Charles is a damaged soul having been jilted at the altar previously and his mother can never let him forget it. Harriet and Charles have a daughter Pauline and the mother – daughter relationship isn’t any better than that which had been between Harriet and her mother.

It all goes a bit Brief Encounter-ish (actually mentioned in the book) when years later Harriet and Vesey meet up again and start seeing each other. Vesey has become an actor but his career hasn’t been a success. Harriet is ready to pick up the relationship where it left off in their teenage days – it’s not going to be good for anyone involved.

This book came after Elizabeth Taylor’s ‘widely acclaimed’ Wreath of Roses which I read decades ago so I can’t compare them now, but it is certainly a good read.

Elizabeth Taylor

Bookish Links to the Guardian

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There are quite a few interesting bookish articles in this Saturday’s Guardian.

You might be interested in reading le Carre on le Carre from the Weekend section. I think we have all of his books but I have yet to read any of them.

If you’re a fan of Val McDermid you can read an article by her here.

There’s an article on Ann Patchett here.

There’s an article about a biography of Beryl Bainbridge here.

There’s an article on a book about Monet’s waterlily paintings, read it here if you’re interested.

I have a feeling that most bookish people are inclined to be shy, as I am, so if that describes you too you might like to read this article – Shrinking Violets: A Field Guide to Shyness by Joe Moran.

20 Books of Summer

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I was doing well with 20 Books of Summer, until August came along and then I was just too busy running around in the Scottish Borders and Highlands to be able to get much reading done. Also I had four books that I had requested from the library arriving all at once – why does that always happen?! So I just had to read those ones as I had asked for them. Anyway, my list is below with links to what I thought of the ones that I did manage to read.

Thank you Cathy @ 746 Books for setting the challenge up.

1. An Autumn Sowing by E.F. Benson
2. Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
3. Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart
4. Madam, Will You Talk by Mary Stewart
5. A View of the Harbour by Elizabeth Taylor
6. A Place to Stand by Anne Bridge
7. The Moon King by Neil Williamson
8. Runyon from First to Last by Damon Runyon
9. Resorting to Murder – Holiday Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards
10.The Suspect L.R. Wright
11. Noble Descents by Gerald Hanley
12. Silence for the Murderer by Freeman Wills Crofts
11. Lament for a Maker by Michael Innes
12. Kim by Rudyard Kipling
13. The Prince Buys the Manor by Elspeth Huxley
14. Headless Angel by Vicki Baum
15. The Weeping Wood by Vicki Baum
16. Justine by Lawrence Durrell
17. Fillets of Plaice by Gerald Durrell
18. Daniel Plainway by Van Reid
19. Love at all Ages by Angela Thirkell
20. A Desert in Bohemia by Jill Paton Walsh

Heat Wave by Penelope Lively

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Heat Wave cover

Heat Wave by Penelope Lively was first published in 1996.

Pauline is a middle aged lady, mother of Teresa who is married to Maurice and Teresa is mother of Luke who is a toddler. Maurice is a writer and is years older than Teresa. He’s wrapped up in his own writing career and really doesn’t even have much interest in his son.

Pauline works in publishing as an editor and she has moved out of London and has bought two adjoining rural cottages called World’s End. Originally she had rented out one of the cottages, but when Teresa and Maurice married Teresa was given the use of the larger cottage as a weekend retreat for her small family.

Maurice has decided that World’s End will be the ideal place to finish his travel book so Teresa has them as neighbours for the whole of a very hot summer. When Maurice needs help from a colleague, he and his girlfriend come to stay at World’s End off and on. It gives Pauline an opportunity to observe Maurice closely and she doesn’t like what she sees.

Pauline hasn’t liked Maurice from the beginning and unfortunately she was the one who introduced her daughter to him at a party in her London home. She has the horrible experience of watching her daughter fall for him and as Maurice reminds Pauline so much of her self-obsessed and serial philandering ex-husband she fears for Teresa, but is completely powerless to protect her daughter from what she knows is going to happen. It seems that despite having virtually no contact with her father Teresa is attracted to the same type.

This is a good read with for me a satisfying ending. I do like Penelope Lively’s writing and will be reading more of her books in the future. Nine years before writing this book she won the Booker prize with Moon Tiger.

Wigtown – a book town

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Wigtown is in a fairly remote and rural area of Scotland, and that’s the reason why we hadn’t got around to visiting it, despite both Jack and myself being keen readers. Anyway, Peggy arranged for us all to have a few days down in that general direction at Auldgirth.

We didn’t have high hopes of Wigtown after our severe disappointment at Hay-on-Wye where neither of us managed to find anything we wanted to buy, obviously like-minded bookish people had got there before we did.

Jack made one bookseller’s day when he bought a book in his shop, and told him of his Hay-on-Wye experience. But Jack only managed to buy one book, I came back with thirteen books! although I did buy a few of those elsewhere.

books 1

Unexpected Adventure by M.E. Atkinson
Midwinter by John Buchan
The Avenue Goes To War by R.F. Delderfield
The Ringed Castle by Dorothy Dunnett
Man Missing by M.G. Eberhart
Cool Repentance by Antonia Fraser
The Cavalier Case by Antonia Fraser
The Photograph by Penelope Lively
Pied Piper by Nevil Shute
Kate Hardy by D.E. Stevenson
The Mark of the Horse Lord by Rosemary Sutcliff
The Listening Eye by Patricia Wentworth
Out of the Past by Patricia Wentworth

A good haul I think with some really nice covers. Have you read any of them?

There aren’t as many bookshops in Wigtown as I thought there would be, but I can’t complain and feel I was very lucky to pick up the books I did. I can imagine though that some people might go all the way there and be a bit disappointed by the place as there isn’t much in the town at all shop wise. If you enjoy mooching around old graveyards though then make sure you visit the one by the church, it’s very interesting.

You an see images of the town here.

The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths

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The Janus Stone cover

The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths was published in 2010 and is the second book in the series.

Archaeologist Ruth Galloway has been called in to investigate bones which have been found buried in a doorway in an old villa in Norwich. Just how old are they? They were only uncovered because most of the house is being demolished to make way for new homes, but it transpires that the old house had been used as a Catholic children’s home in the past and some members of the police force are jumping to conclusions. Children had gone missing years ago, perhaps they had been murdered and buried there.

In the first book in this series, The Crossing Place, Ruth had a one night stand with Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson and she now realises that she’s pregnant, for her it’s a bonus, but she’s not sure how Nelson will react to the news, and to make matters worse she has now met Nelson’s wife and has become a friend.

Ruth is still living in her remote cottage and someone is trying to frighten her – and succeeding.

I’m enjoying this series and will definitely continue with it. Apart from anything else, I want to know what is going to happen in the personal lives of the main characters. It could be very messy.