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Books, Audiobooks, Courses - January 2022
Jan. 29th, 2022 01:43 pmBegin as you mean to go on! 7 books which means I'm on track.
A Small Person Far Away by Judith Kerr
The third in the Berlin trilogy, which began with When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit. Anna is now an adult and married, when her mother's serious illness means she must return to Berlin. In a way it's the least positive of the books, but a lot of what she was feeling and her frustrations resonated so much with things I have experienced that I identified with her, despite our history being very different. For me it was the best way to finish the trilogy, because it shows Anna moving on. [A1]
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
The Shedunnit book of the month wasn't available from the library, and copies were more than I was prepared to pay for something I might not enjoy, so I went for a classic Christie. Yes, I had read it many years ago, but only remembered part of the story, and I was pleased to have read this Poirot story that is slightly different. [E1]
Close Quarters by Michael Gilbert
I read, and enjoyed, many of Michael Gilbert's books 30+ years ago, so I'm delighted to be rereading a number. Unlike some I've tried again I'm enjoying the plotting and the action. This book, set in a cathedral close, continues to ring very true with a number of the characters, plus some who are delightfully unexpected. [C1]
Tyler's Row by Miss Read
The next in the Fairacre series, which I shall be continuing to read this year. Some new characters are introduced and the reader sees how they interract with the older characters. A pleasant gentle read. [D1]
Gossip from Thrush Green by Miss Read
Having finished a Fairacre book I moved into Thrush Green and also enjoyed the events which affected the village. It's very pleasant there, but it doesn't exist in a microcosm of its own. I think this is one reason why I like the stories - they do bring to life the way villages work both within themselves and with the outside world. [F1]
Goncharova: Stage Designs and Paintings by Mary Chamot
SM gave me this book a couple of Christmases ago after I had visited an exhibition of Goncharova's paintings and designs in the Tate Modern. It was interesting reading about her life, and looking at many of the plates. However, most of them had been reproduced in black and white, so lacked the vibrancy of the originals. I do however also have a set of postcards which are in colour. [B1]
The Madonna of Bolton by Matt Cain
Borrowed mainly because the local branch of the library had a copy. I didn't enjoy it as much as Albert Entwistle, which was probably my book of 2021, but it's still a good story of a boy growing up gay in the Bolton of the 1980s and his moving first to Cambridge for university and then to London. Well worth reading for the descriptions of life at the time. [F2]
[Letters refer to which reading list each book belongs to]
Audiobooks
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, read by Tim Jerome. I've read a couple of other books by Robinson, so when this came up in a 2for1 sale I got a copy. It's different from the other two books, being a letter written to an elderly pastor to his young son, and I felt it dragged a bit at times. However, as the strands came together and the history of the town and occupants grew it gave a good read with a real feel for the time.
Courses: FutureLearn
Zoroastrianism: History, Religion & Belief (SOAS, University of London). A subject I knew absolutely nothing about, so I was interested to learn a bit more, especially since I've read books which involve the Parsis in India. The final week, learning some Avestan, the language of the literature, didn't appeal, but I now have a basic grasp of the place of this religion within history.
( book bingo card )
A Small Person Far Away by Judith Kerr
The third in the Berlin trilogy, which began with When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit. Anna is now an adult and married, when her mother's serious illness means she must return to Berlin. In a way it's the least positive of the books, but a lot of what she was feeling and her frustrations resonated so much with things I have experienced that I identified with her, despite our history being very different. For me it was the best way to finish the trilogy, because it shows Anna moving on. [A1]
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
The Shedunnit book of the month wasn't available from the library, and copies were more than I was prepared to pay for something I might not enjoy, so I went for a classic Christie. Yes, I had read it many years ago, but only remembered part of the story, and I was pleased to have read this Poirot story that is slightly different. [E1]
Close Quarters by Michael Gilbert
I read, and enjoyed, many of Michael Gilbert's books 30+ years ago, so I'm delighted to be rereading a number. Unlike some I've tried again I'm enjoying the plotting and the action. This book, set in a cathedral close, continues to ring very true with a number of the characters, plus some who are delightfully unexpected. [C1]
Tyler's Row by Miss Read
The next in the Fairacre series, which I shall be continuing to read this year. Some new characters are introduced and the reader sees how they interract with the older characters. A pleasant gentle read. [D1]
Gossip from Thrush Green by Miss Read
Having finished a Fairacre book I moved into Thrush Green and also enjoyed the events which affected the village. It's very pleasant there, but it doesn't exist in a microcosm of its own. I think this is one reason why I like the stories - they do bring to life the way villages work both within themselves and with the outside world. [F1]
Goncharova: Stage Designs and Paintings by Mary Chamot
SM gave me this book a couple of Christmases ago after I had visited an exhibition of Goncharova's paintings and designs in the Tate Modern. It was interesting reading about her life, and looking at many of the plates. However, most of them had been reproduced in black and white, so lacked the vibrancy of the originals. I do however also have a set of postcards which are in colour. [B1]
The Madonna of Bolton by Matt Cain
Borrowed mainly because the local branch of the library had a copy. I didn't enjoy it as much as Albert Entwistle, which was probably my book of 2021, but it's still a good story of a boy growing up gay in the Bolton of the 1980s and his moving first to Cambridge for university and then to London. Well worth reading for the descriptions of life at the time. [F2]
[Letters refer to which reading list each book belongs to]
Audiobooks
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, read by Tim Jerome. I've read a couple of other books by Robinson, so when this came up in a 2for1 sale I got a copy. It's different from the other two books, being a letter written to an elderly pastor to his young son, and I felt it dragged a bit at times. However, as the strands came together and the history of the town and occupants grew it gave a good read with a real feel for the time.
Courses: FutureLearn
Zoroastrianism: History, Religion & Belief (SOAS, University of London). A subject I knew absolutely nothing about, so I was interested to learn a bit more, especially since I've read books which involve the Parsis in India. The final week, learning some Avestan, the language of the literature, didn't appeal, but I now have a basic grasp of the place of this religion within history.
( book bingo card )
