2015 has blown in with blustery gales and lashings of resolutions. An old friend of mine makes a point of noting his New Year’s resolutions in the back of his diary each year. On December 31 he re-reads them, checking which ones he’s kept and which ones he’s failed hopelessly at. I’ve never copied his trick – and have no intention of starting now. New Year’s Day should be a ...keep reading
Nathan Filer pulled off an amazing feat last night by winning the 2013 Costa Book of the Year prize with his very first novel. The Shock of the Fall, is, as I said in my recent Daily Express review, an “extraordinary” book. It describes teenager Matthew’s guilt about his older brother’s death and his own descent into madness. The story is told in the first person and is poignant, funny ...keep reading
I’m a big fan of audiobooks. With two children at university I spend loads of time on the motorway – which means heated discussions about what we should listen to en route. My daughter likes garage and house music (I don’t know what either of those are either), my son’s partial to The Doors and I’m a Radio Four addict, so it’s hard to please us all. Audiobooks are the ...keep reading
It’s New Year’s Eve, so what better time to look back over a year of brilliant reads? I love reading about other people’s favourite books of the year, so as 2012 draws to a wet and windy close, here is my list. The Light Between Oceans by ML Stedman Australian ML Stedman’s first book is the moving account of a young lighthouse keeper and his wife in the 1920s. The ...keep reading