Wednesday 31 August 2016

Good Housekeeping Cookery Compendium + Giveaway


Good Housekeeping Cookery Compendium
First published by the National Magazine Co in 1952.

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy from independent booksellers via Alibris
Buy the book from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk

How I got this book:
Received as a gift

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

'Here, in one handsome volume, is a true Home Cooking Companion. It is produced with an eye to the needs of every member of the family and presented in attractive pictorial form so that young daughters can be shown all the basic processes of cookery, and their elders can embark on ambitious recipes in the certain knowledge of success.'

As Great British Bake Off fever is sweeping the country again, I thought I might join in by blogging this review of my favourite cookery book, the wonderfully dated Good Housekeeping Cookery Compendium. It's a solid, sturdy tome in three sections - Basic Cookery, Picture Cookery and Cake Making - and is illustrated with 2000 mostly black-and-white photographs and sixty-four pages of colour photographs. I love the matter of fact instructions which cover absolutely every dish that the 1950s British housewife might have wanted to serve from the so-obvious-it-doesn't-need-a-recipe to the life's-too-short-for-that-much-faff!

I have previously blogged a couple of recipes which originated in this book - Quick Biscuits and a classic Fruit Cake. It was my Mum's go-to recipe book and she made sure that my sister and I both got our own copies too although, now I come to think about it, I'm not sure what happened to Mum's original. If you're into vintage style, classic British cookery, or even Great British Baking, you need a copy of the Good Housekeeping Cookery Compendium in your kitchen!


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Good Housekeeping / Diet and food books / Books from England


And now for the Giveaway!

This week's prize departs from the usual literary theme and is cookery-related instead. You could win a new duo of VonShef silicon baking tools - a pastry brush and a spatula. I have also departed from my usual 'just comment' entry method and am trialling the Gleam giveaway widget which allows entries to be counted not only for commenting, but also for tweeting, following Literary Flits and visiting my Facebook page. Hopefully I have set everything up correctly. Let me know how you get on!

Here's the Giveaway! Start by commenting your favourite thing to bake, then hit that Enter Giveaway button for more chances to win ...

Baking tools giveaway

The Giveaway is open worldwide from noon today until midnight (UK time) on the 7th September. I will be checking that the winning entry did complete whatever task they claim they have before awarding the prize.

Good luck!

Sunday 28 August 2016

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell


The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell
Published in September 2014.
Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2014 and winner of the 2015 World Fantasy Award.

Where to buy this book:
Buy the book from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Purchased the ebook.

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Bone Clocks is a sweeping epic of a novel, told from multiple viewpoints and covering over half a century in time from 1984 until the 2040s. Everyday events are blended with an overall fantasy good-against-evil arc and several heavy lectures about how mankind is destroying the Earth and our own futures. We first follow young Holly Sykes, a fifteen year old runaway from Gravesend, in a Black Swan Green-like storyline with lots of nostalgic 1980s detail. Holly was easily the most believable of all Mitchell's characters and I enjoyed her segment of the book. The fantasy element introductions here are intriguing, but peripheral. A time jump later we meet privileged Cambridge student Hugo Lamb and are whirled into drunken parties, skiing trips and underhand machinations. We also begin to understand more about the supernatural forces at work. I was still quite happy with The Bone Clocks at this stage, but when we had to spend many pages with jaded fading author Crispin Hershey, I began to lose interest. This segment might be hilariously funny if you're part of the literary in crowd, but I just found it self-indulgent and patronising. It's followed by an anti-Iraq occupation harangue that, to me, read like a synopsis of Imperial Life In The Emerald City and then Mitchell goes all Ben Elton on us in his near-future dystopia where there's No Internet. Scream!!!

I did read The Bone Clocks all the way through to the end and there were significant parts of it that I thought were brilliant, hence my overall three star rating. I liked the nods to previous Mitchell books such as Black Swan Green and Thousand Autumns Of Jacob De Zoet and caught myself wondering what other nods I might have spotted had I read more Mitchell books - neat marketing ploy! However the storyline rambles around too many Important Issues leaving me feeling distinctly hectored on several occasions and I wasn't convinced by the supernatural thread. All that effort to save four lives a year yet leaving a higher body count in their wake!


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by David Mitchell / Fantasy / Books from England

Saturday 27 August 2016

Where I Was From by Joan Didion


Where I Was From by Joan Didion
Published in September 2003 by Knopf

One of my ReadingWomen selections

How I got this book:
Purchased the ebook

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Where to buy this book:


The Book Depository
Wordery
Waterstones : unavailable
Amazon

A memoir of land, family and perseverance from one of the most influential writers in America.

In this moving and surprising book, Joan Didion reassesses parts of her life, her work, her history - and America's. Where I Was From, in Didion's words, "represents an exploration into my own confusions about the place and the way in which I grew up, misapprehensions and misunderstandings so much a part of who I became that I can still to this day confront them only obliquely."

The book is a haunting narrative of how her own family moved west with the frontier from the birth of her great-great-great-great-great-grandmother in Virginia in 1766 to the death of her mother on the edge of the Pacific in 2001; of how the wagon-train stories of hardship and abandonment and endurance created a culture in which survival would seem the sole virtue. Didion examines how the folly and recklessness in the very grain of the California settlement led to the California we know today - a state mortgaged first to the railroad, then to the aerospace industry, and overwhelmingly to the federal government.

Joan Didion's unerring sense of America and its spirit, her acute interpretation of its institutions and literature, and her incisive questioning of the stories it tells itself make this fiercely intelligent book a provocative and important tour de force from one of America's greatest writers.

My partner, Dave, chose Where I Was From for our Kindle so I didn't read any blurb prior starting the book. I was vaguely expecting an autobiography of a journalist's youth and certainly not the wide ranging evaluation of California that Joan Didion has so eloquently penned.

There are elements of her own family history mixed in with every Californian family's history, whether 'original' or recent settlers. We also learn in detail about the political life of the state and I was amazed to realise how much of the economy is, or at least was, based on Government money and Defence contract production lines. There are definite echoes of the collapse of the old British mill towns in the current Californian situation. I have only travelled through this part of the world once - by Amtrak from Los Angeles to Santa Clara to San Francisco, a fortnight in all with a few days in each city - but found Didion's book fascinating even though many of the places are unfamiliar to me. I love the way she has melded her storylines to make every word feel personal.

This is very much a book of her struggling to identify and come to terms with her roots and their contradictions. I suspect most of us have a mental image of our home that isn't necessarily truthful about what is really there. Didion has made a brave stand to speak of both the good and the bad of her home state.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Joan Didion / Reportage / Books from America

Friday 26 August 2016

Istanbul: Memories Of A City by Orhan Pamuk


Istanbul: Memories Of A City by Orhan Pamuk
First published in Turkish in 2003 as İstanbul: Hatıralar ve Şehir. Translated into English by Maureen Freely in 2005. Canongate audiobook edition narrated by John Lee published in 2013.
One of my WorldReads from Turkey.
This one of the books I planned to read as part of the 2016 TBR Pile Reading Challenge.

Where to buy this book:
Buy the audiobook from Audible via Amazon.com / Amazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Purchased the audiobook from Audible

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

'Turkey's greatest living novelist, Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk, guides us through the monuments and lost paradises, dilapidated Ottoman villas, back streets, and waterways of Istanbul - the city of his birth and the home of his imagination.'

Istanbul: Memories Of A City wasn't how I expected it to be and I did find myself drifting away from the book at times, although being completely engrossed in other sections. Pamuk jumps from childhood memories to his thoughts on writings by mostly Western authors, to famous Istanbul characters, to the drift of the city over the past couple of centuries from the heights of the Ottoman Empire to relative global obscurity and creeping Westernisation. John Lee is a competent narrator with a good grasp of the various Turkish names.

I was surprised at Pamuk's assertions of so much post-Ottoman Istanbul history and life being only written about by Western tourists thereby leaving the city without its own voice. The crushing of minority groups within the traditional multicultural population as the nationalist Republic gained its feet however was depressingly familiar. Pamuk talks a lot about depression, melancholy and the wonderful Turkish word 'huzun' which describes a kind of national melancholy apparently felt across Istanbul as a result of continuously living in the ruins of the former great Empire. It sounds a beautifully romantic concept and I would have loved to have visited Istanbul at the time of the great French writers such as Andre Gide, when evidence of this epic and exotic history was still widespread. I wonder how much does remain now and how much has been irretrievably Westernised and globalised in the names of progress and profit.

I thought the anecdotes from Pamuk's childhood provided the most evocative moments of this book and I enjoyed picturing this 1950s and 1960s Istanbul. The importance of the Bosphorus river is clearly illustrated with Pamuk's artist eye picking out obscure details for his readers. At the time of writing, he had lived there for fifty years but also widely read authors who only visited so manages to see and portray Istanbul as both native and outsider providing a unique viewpoint.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Orhan Pamuk / Biographies and memoirs / Books from Turkey

Friday 19 August 2016

Pierced By The Sun by Laura Esquivel


Pierced By The Sun by Laura Esquivel

First published in Spanish as A Lupita le gustaba planchar by Casa Del Libros in Mexico in 2015. English translation by Jordi Castells published by AmazonCrossing in 2016.

My first book for the Goodreads-Bookcrossing Decade Challenge 2016-17. Featured in Cover Characteristics: Eyes and WorldReads: Mexico

How I got this book:
Received a copy from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review

My rating: 4 of 5 stars 


'Lupita’s hard-knock life has gotten the better of her time and time again. A childhood robbed of innocence set off a chain of events that she still has not managed to control, no matter how hard she tries. Every time she thinks she has a handle on things, unexpected turns make her question everything, including herself.
When Lupita witnesses the murder of a local politician whom she greatly admires, the ghosts of her past resurface as she tries to cope with the present. She quickly falls back into her old self-destructive habits and becomes a target of Mexico’s corrupt political machine. As the powers that be kick into high gear to ensure the truth remains hidden, Lupita finds solace in the purity of indigenous traditions. While she learns how to live simply, like her ancestors, she comes to understand herself and rediscovers light within a dark life. And if there is hope for Lupita’s redemption, perhaps there is hope for Mexico.'

I enjoyed this Mexican take on the dysfunctional detective mystery novel and particularly the way Esquivel slowly reveals the life of our 'heroine', Lupita. A policewoman who witnesses a murder, her alcoholism is described in such knowing detail that I am sure Esquivel must have been close to someone who similarly suffered. At the same time, we explore the economic destruction of Mexico whose only significant industry appears to be drug production to satisfy northern gringo addicts. Against this squalor and despair, hope is ultimately revealed through revisiting the mysticism of ancient Mexico and I appreciated the factual asides briefly explaining aspects of Aztec deities and rituals. The dual storylines make for a surprisingly rich novella.

I liked the structure of beginning chapters with 'Lupita Liked ...' and using these character insights to advance the story. I felt I completely understood her and certainly could empathise with her struggles to heal both herself and her country. As a novella though, Pierced By The Sun does fall somewhat between two stools. I didn't experience the same degree of mysticism as I have in longer Latin American works, and it's not a standard fit for the crime genre either. I wonder if this is the cause of the truly awful reviews I found of the book? I was nearly put off reading it altogether, but am glad I did so because I was impressed by Esquivel's unique voice.

Etsy Find!
by Molly Jo Silhouette in
Texas, USA

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop


Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Laura Esquivel / Crime novels / Books from Mexico

Thursday 18 August 2016

Mandela: An Audio History produced by Joe Richman


Mandela: An Audio History produced by Joe Richman

Published by Highbridge Audio on the 19th February 2014

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy from independent booksellers via Alibris
Buy the audiobook download from Audible via Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk

How I got this book:
Downloaded as part of the AudioSYNC summer programme in 2016

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

'Recognized as one of the most comprehensive oral histories of apartheid ever broadcast (NPR, BBC, CBC, SABC), Mandela: An Audio History tells the story of the struggle against apartheid through rare sound recordings. The series weaves together more than 50 first-person interviews with an unprecedented collection of archival sound: a rare recording of the 1964 trial that resulted in Mandela’s life sentence; a visit between Mandela and his family secretly taped by a prison guard; marching songs of guerilla soldiers; government propaganda films; and pirate radio broadcasts from the African National Congress (ANC). Once thought lost forever, Radio Diaries producer Joe Richman unearthed a treasure trove of these historic recordings in the basement archive of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. Ultimately, over 50 hours of archival recordings and many more hours of contemporary interviews with the living witnesses to South Africa’s turbulent history have gone into the creation of one of the most moving audio documentaries ever produced.'

This Radio Diaries programme provides a concise overview of the apartheid years in South Africa. It lasts one hour fifteen minutes and and includes iconic moments such as an original recording of Mandela's 'Prepared to die' statement at the conclusion of his trial speech. Snippets of African protest songs link other recordings of news broadcasts and interview segments. I found the audiobook interesting to hear and felt that this would have been a suitable introduction to the other South Africa history book I recently read, The Road To Soweto. However I was disappointed that there wasn't more to it. If this really is 'one of the most comprehensive oral histories of apartheid' I am left wondering how many others have been produced.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Joe Richman / History books / Books from America

Wednesday 17 August 2016

From The Blue by James Cole + Giveaway

Scroll down for the new Giveaway!


From The Blue by James Cole 
Published by Oversteps Books in 2002

I registered my copy of this book at Bookcrossing

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy the book from Amazon.co.uk

How I got this book:
Purchased from OXFAM

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

'James Cole was born in Torquay and has lived in the west country for all his life. He has been writing for some years and is a member of The Company Of Poets, a group of Devon-based writers and has had some of his poems published in their anthologies. He gets much of his inspiration from walking Dartmoor and from the sea and coastline of the south west. He has attended courses run by The Arvon Foundation at Totleigh Barton, north Devon. Other interests include painting. He currently lives in Totnes. This is his first collection of poetry.'

Having now lived in Torquay for a few weeks, I am interested to discover the local arts and culture scene so was very pleased to spot this slim volume of poetry in the OXFAM bookshop. James Cole's inspiration by the seasons and natural landscapes of Devon shines through many of his poems and I can completely understand his love for this area. Poems such as Caliburn and Out To Sea seem to demonstrate a real yearning and I loved the simple yet vivid imagery of Horses and The End Of The Day. Other poems I found a little heavy-handed and I wasn't sure about the order in which they appear. I struggled to maintain a sense of atmosphere as we jumped around in time. From The Blue does have a strong sense of location and I also felt a loneliness to the work. Poems do say 'we' for their narrator, but human influence is absent from the natural spaces leaving me easily imagining the poet in these wild places alone.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by James Cole / Poetry / Books from England


And now for the Giveaway!

I have my paperback copy of From The Blue to giveaway simply for answering the following question on this blog post. How easy is that?!

The Question:
Name another poetry book you have enjoyed?

Comment your answer on this post before midnight (UK time) on the 24th of August to be in with a chance of winning.

This paperback book is my copy so not new, but still in very good condition. The book has been registered on Bookcrossing and you are welcome to add your stage of its journey or ignore the label as you prefer.

The Giveaway is open worldwide. Answers must be commented by midnight (UK time) on the 24th August and I will randomly pick a winner on the 25th. The winner will be notified by replying to their Comment so if you think you might miss this response please also include other contact info such as your blog URL, twitter name or FB page. If the winner does not respond within 7 days, they will forfeit the prize.

Good luck!

This giveaway is listed on:

Beck Valley Books 

Tuesday 16 August 2016

The Faraday Cage edited by Steve Turnbull


The Faraday Cage edited by Steve Turnbull
Published in May 2016.
Stories written by Peter A Smalley, Katy O'Dowd, Robert Harkess and Virginia Marybury.

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Received an advanced review copy from the editor

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Faraday Cage is a collection of five short stories all set in Turnbull's Voidships steampunk universe and each written by a different author. I believe Turnbull originally envisaged his creation as a place for collaborative writing, but I think The Faraday Cage is the first publication with multiple authors. I am already familiar with the setting having read Turnbull's first two Maliha Anderson mysteries, Murder Out Of The Blue and Blood Sky At Night, however previous knowledge isn't needed in order to understand and enjoy The Faraday Cage so starting with this collection would be just as good an introduction to the Voidships world.

The five stories are The Haemophage by Robert Harkness, Taking The Cure by Peter A Smalley, The Iron Curtain by Virginia Marybury, Dear Prudence Katy O'Dowd with Steve Turnbull, and The Computationer by Steve Turnbull. I loved that they cover such a wide range of situations and locations, each interestingly described and well-evoked within short story limitations. Harkness's mining voidship in outer space is a claustrophobic and intimidating murder mystery whereas The Iron Curtain shows us extravagant luxury in pre-Revolutionary Russia. Taking The Cure flies us to the moon and back - well, hopefully we will get back! - then romance Dear Prudence pits a newspaper agony aunt against the family of her beloved, a wealthy heir met by pure chance, before we see then-small town Perth, Australia through the eyes of The Computationer. This is a well-balanced collection which I think has something rewarding to offer most readers. The stories are nicely observed, atmospheric and entertaining and I appreciated the title page illustrations, drawn by Maria Oglesby, which beautifully set the scene for each tale.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Short stories / Steampunk / Books from England

Monday 15 August 2016

Book Blogger Survey by Barb Drozdowich


Book Blogger Survey by Barb Drozdowich
Self published on August 9th 2016

Where to buy this book:
Buy the book from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk

How I got this book:
Received a copy from the author as thanks for participating in the survey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'Interested in learning more about the world of blogging and book promotions? As the saying goes – get the information right from the horse’s mouth! Thirty-eight questions were asked of bloggers in the largest survey of bloggers carried out in recent memory. The answers are shared and analyzed in this book. Barb Drozdowich, author of numerous books focused at helping authors and bloggers, repeats her 2012 survey which led to the creation of her first book – The Author’s Guide to Working with Book Bloggers. Find out what has changed, what hasn’t. Get some tips on the best way to get those coveted reviews from bloggers. Pick up a copy of this informative book today and start planning your strategy based on the findings shared.'

I was surprised to receive a copy of Barb Drozdowich's new book, the Book Blogger Survey, because I had completely forgotten about taking part in the survey several months ago! She asked a range of insightful questions which over 500 of us book bloggers responded to and I found the gathered information to be fascinating. Admittedly I am a closet statistician! Drozdowich primarily analyses responses by bloggers' gender and nationality, by the genre of books they blog about, and by the length of time they have been blogging. Many results were counter intuitive so I think this analysis would be incredibly helpful not only for agents and marketers wanting to tap into blogger networks, but also for existing and potential book bloggers wondering 'is this just me?' Certainly I was relieved and reassured to see my experiences reflected by other book bloggers and I enjoyed reading through the extensive free-form answers to open questions, all of which are reproduced in appendices after the analysis. I found the Book Blogger Survey very interesting and would recommend it as being well worth its 99p price tag.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Barb Drozdowich / Books about blogging / Books from Canada

Wednesday 10 August 2016

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein + Giveaway


Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Published in 2012. Bolinda audiobook edition published in June 2012.

Featured in Cover Characteristics: Aeroplanes

How I got this book:
Downloaded as part of the AudioSYNC 2013 summer season

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


'Code Name Verity is a compelling, emotionally rich story with universal themes of friendship and loyalty, heroism and bravery. Two young women from totally different backgrounds are thrown together during World War II: one a working-class girl from Manchester, the other a Scottish aristocrat, one a pilot, the other a wireless operator. Yet whenever their paths cross, they complement each other perfectly and before long become devoted friends. But then a vital mission goes wrong, and one of the friends has to bail out of a faulty plane over France. She is captured by the Gestapo and becomes a prisoner of war. The story begins in Verity's own words, as she writes her account for her captors.'

I enjoyed Code Name Verity far more than I expected to, even eagerly anticipating my commutes TO work as much as those from, just so I could listen to the next 45 minutes of the story!

I was a little uncertain when the story switches viewpoints in the middle as I felt it had come to a natural close. However, within a few minutes we were swooping off again, surely much like being in Dympna's Puss Moth! The characters are great and brilliantly narrated by Morven Christie and Lucy Gaskell in the Bolinda audio version I heard. I loved the twisting plot which has its very dark moments, but is a joy as it begins to unravel, and Elizabeth Wein does a great job of making her locations both real and atmospheric. At the end, Wein herself talked briefly about her inspirations and research and, believe me, that research shows through in the authenticity of her tale.

Code Name Verity is feminist historical fiction that manages to entertain and inform without preaching or being dry. Highly recommended to younger and older adult listeners/readers.


And now for the Giveaway!

Hand woven book sleeve 
I have my this pretty hand woven book sleeve to giveaway simply for answering the following question on this blog post. How easy is that?!

The Question:
Name another novel of women at war?

Comment your answer on this post before midnight (UK time) on the 17th of August to be in with a chance of winning. And while you wait to find out who's the lucky recipient, why not take a look through my other handmade wares listed in my Etsy shop?!

Hand-woven by me from a blue and grey toned acrylic yarn. I love the depth created by the colours and the extra interest provided by occasional orange and white flecks in this yarn. The covered warp threads are purple acrylic yarn which can just be glimpsed on the top edges and this Sleeve features a reclaimed striped fabric-covered heart button. The Sleeve when closed measures 5 inches / 13 cm across and 7.55 inches / 19 cm from top to bottom. For illustration purposes only, it is shown snugly enclosing a 11 cm by 18 cm book with 222 pages.

Book Sleeves are designed to protect your current paperback book from damage while you are not reading. They are great for travellers, commuters or shoppers - anytime you need to stash that can't-put-it-down book into a larger suitcase, tote bag or briefcase and don't want to discover dog-eared corners and creased covers later on! The Book Sleeves will fit standard sized paperback books, but can of course also be used for appropriately sized tablets, journals or simply to keep knick-knacks safely corralled.

The Giveaway is open worldwide. Answers must be commented by midnight (UK time) on the 17th August and I will randomly pick a winner on the 18th. The winner will be notified by replying to their Comment so if you think you might miss this response please also include other contact info such as your blog URL, twitter name or FB page. If the winner does not respond within 7 days, they will forfeit the prize.

Good luck!

Etsy Find!
by Contrail Art in
Truro, England

Click pic to visit Etsy Shop

Search Literary Flits for more:
Books by Elizabeth Wein / Young adult books / Books from Scotland

Tuesday 9 August 2016

Giordano Bruno by Alois Riehl


Giordano Bruno: In Memoriam of the 17th February 1600 by Alois Riehl
First published by Leopold in 1905. Translated by Agnes Fry. ForgottenBooks edition published on the 5th July 2012.

One of my WorldReads from Austria

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository

How I got this book:
Free download when it was the ForgottenBooks book of the day

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This potted biography of the Italian Dominican friar and philosopher Giordano Bruno, written by Austrian philosopher Alois Adolf Riehl, is just 100 pages long. It is a swift read, giving an outline of Bruno's life together with an overview of his remarkably accurate insights into the make-up of the universe.

Bruno has turned up in two historical fiction novels - Name Of The Rose and Prophecy - I read last year so this short book helped to fill in factual details for me. I think I now understand the main gist of his discoveries too. The writing is quite formal and old-fashioned, but once I got into its flow, the book was an interesting read and I was amazed at the modernity of the ideas being discussed during the time of Elizabeth!

The great shame is the fear with which Bruno's ideas were widely greeted and the religious intolerance that killed him. What other ground breaking theories might he have developed if allowed to live his full lifetime?


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Alois Riehl / Biographies / Books from Austria

Monday 8 August 2016

Edwin by Edoardo Albert


Edwin: High King of Britain by Edoardo Albert
Published by Lion Fiction in March 2014

Where to buy this book:
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the paperback from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Purchased the ebook

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I discovered Edoardo Albert's Northumbrian Thrones series through a review of the second novel on Jax Blunt's blog. Regular readers of my blog will know that we have been exploring historical sites in Northumberland over the past few weeks so I hoped that reading Edwin would enhance my understanding of the early peoples. It fits nicely into my historical reading line too, sitting between Skin by Ilka Tampke and A Brief History of The Vikings by Jonathan Clements.

Albert has obviously spent a lot of time researching the Anglo Saxon period in which his novel is set and authenticity runs through every page. I enjoyed reading his descriptions of daily life and religious practice as well as the savage realities of battle scenes. It was interesting that the 'victorious' religion of Christianity did seem to be given a more sympathetic portrayal, even though its adoption as the more powerful supernatural support for warfare was explored in detail.

The characters we meet are well written and believably rounded and I liked how Edwin, already old for the times at the beginning of the novel, noticeably ages in his attitudes and desires. The religious influence of Edwin's new Queen, Aethelburh, was reminiscent of Anne Boleyn and Henry many centuries later. Edwin is a strong novel in its own right and also, hopefully, a good taste of other titles in the series as I enjoyed gaining an understanding of the varied immigrating peoples and ideas that made up Britain before it became the country we know today.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Edoardo Albert / Historical fiction / Books from England

Saturday 6 August 2016

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck


Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Published in 1945. Hachette audiobook narrated by Trevor White published in 2011.

Where to buy this book:
Buy the audiobook download from Audible via Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository
Buy the audio CD from Waterstones

How I got this book:
Purchased from Audible

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I downloaded Cannery Row from Audible three years ago so this is my second time of listening and I am glad to say that the book is just as good as I remembered it to be. Trevor White does an excellent job of the narration. I love how Steinbeck can get the essence of a character across in just a few sentences and the residents of Cannery Row are a memorable bunch. Even brief appearances such as Mrs Malloy, Franky and the lonely gopher are instantly recognisable. And I am so envious of Steinbeck's talent for poetic and gripping descriptive prose!

Set in a distinct period of American history, I got a very real sense of these people eking out their lives on the margins of mainstream society, yet, other than the put-upon Doc, I never felt sorry for them as they rarely seemed to pity themselves. Doc's speech about Mac and his boys being the only true philosophers gave an interesting perspective on their lifestyle and reinforced that it was essentially a free choice decision.

While the minutiae of daily life makes up much of the book, it never feels mundane so I was engrossed throughout the five and a half hours of listening. This is definitely one of my top favourite audiobooks.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by John Steinbeck / Audiobooks / Books from America

Wednesday 3 August 2016

The Peculiar Life Of A Lonely Postman by Denis Theriault + Giveaway

Scroll down for the new Giveaway!


The Peculiar Life Of A Lonely Postman by Denis Theriault 
First published in French as Facteur Emotif in Canada in 2005 by XYZ Editeur. English language translation by Liedewy Hawke first published in 2008. Hesperus Press English edition published in 2014.

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy the book from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from Speedyhen
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository

I registered this book at Bookcrossing

How I got this book:
Purchased from the book sale at Arlington Gets Cajun

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'Secretly steaming open envelopes and reading the letters inside, Bilodo has found an escape from his lonely and routine life as a postman. When one day he comes across a mysterious letter containing only a single haiku, he finds himself avidly caught up in the relationship between a long-distance couple, who write to each other using only beautiful poetry. He feasts on their words, vicariously living a life for which he longs. But it will only be a matter of time before his world comes crashing down around him. Denis Thériault weaves a passionate and elegant tale, comic and tragic with a love story at its heart. Philosophical, rich in description and detail, it cannot fail to move.'

I was very lucky to pick up a practically new copy of this novella when a local village library was closing down. It is set in French Canada which makes a nice change from Toronto-based books (If you've read my WorldReads - Canada blog post, that comment will make more sense!) and I love that it also draws together themes from two other books I have read fairly recently. Our eponymous Lonely Postman, Bilodo, teaches himself to write the Japanese poetry form, haiku, which I enjoyed in Caroline Gourlay's haiku collection, Across The Silence. Plus, I learned about master poet Matsuo Basho when following Lesley Downer's travels across rural Japan in On The Narrow Road To The Deep North.

Theriault evokes Japanese philosophy and literary style in what felt to me to be a very French book so I liked the blend of cultures. His portrayal of Bilodo is wonderfully complete considering the complexity of his character and the short length of this novella. I found myself sympathising with the man despite his rather creepy behaviour. The Peculiar Life is a beautifully emotional read and the poetry exchange has to be one of the best interpretations of passionate sex I have ever read! Obsessional behaviour often makes for a fascinating novel and The Peculiar Life Of A Lonely Postman is a great example of this genre.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Denis Theriault / Novellas / Books from Canada


And now for the Giveaway!

I have my paperback copy of The Peculiar Life Of A Lonely Postman to giveaway simply for answering the following question on this blog post. How easy is that?!

The Question:
Name another book which features haiku or Japanese poetry? (If you need a clue, I've mentioned two in my review above!)

Comment your answer on this post before midnight (UK time) on the 10th of August to be in with a chance of winning.

This paperback book is my copy so not new, but still in very good condition. The book has been registered on Bookcrossing and you are welcome to add your stage of its journey or ignore the label as you prefer.

The Giveaway is open worldwide. Answers must be commented by midnight (UK time) on the 10th August and I will randomly pick a winner on the 11th. The winner will be notified by replying to their Comment so if you think you might miss this response please also include other contact info such as your blog URL, twitter name or FB page. If the winner does not respond within 7 days, they will forfeit the prize.

Good luck!

This giveaway is listed on:


Monday 1 August 2016

Ali And Ramazan by Perihan Magden


Ali And Ramazan by Perihan Magden
First published in Turkish in 2009 by Dogan Kin as Ali Ile Ramazan. English translation by Ruth Whitehouse published in 2012 by AmazonCrossing.

Featured in 5Books1Theme: Pride Month and WorldReads: Turkey

Where to buy this book:
Buy from independent booksellers via Abebooks
Buy the ebook from Amazon.comAmazon.co.uk
Buy the paperback from The Book Depository

How I got this book:
Purchased the ebook from Amazon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

'Based on a true story, this novel follows Ali and Ramazan, two boys from very different backgrounds who land in the same Istanbul orphanage. They quickly see eye to eye and fall into a loving relationship as children, bringing light to one another and to the other orphans in their dreary adopted home. Ramazan is a charmer, the school master's unfortunate favorite, the clown among the boys, and the only one with access to the world outside the orphanage's walls. He takes naïve, sweet, and quietly intelligent Ali under his wing, and together they blossom in a world all their own. However, at age 18 they are released into the streets of Istanbul to find their own way without the support of the state. Faced with an unaccepting world in which they have no one but each other, Ali and Ramazan each make choices that cannot be reversed, with tragic consequences.'

Ali And Ramazan is not a happy novella. Abandoned orphans struggle to overcome the mental scars of their childhoods against a background of sexual, physical and mental abuse. Neglected and deprived by the incompetence of the orphanage's Master, they grow up cold and hungry before being summarily expelled on their eighteenth birthdays. It's a bleak image and all the more shocking for Magden's matter-of-fact prose. This book shows a dark side of Istanbul where child prostitution is rife and almost 'normal'. Yet amongst the gloom, we see sparks of happiness by was of Ali and Ramazan's intense romance. The two are inseparable as boys and lovers as men, but the strength of their love isn't enough to lift them out of their sordid lives.

Magden's prose reminded me of another Turkish book, Aylin by Ayse Kulin, in that I often felt detached from the story whilst reading. Both books tell reality-based stories of lives and with both I found it difficult to really get into the emotional aspects of the writing. Magden writes often of the great love between Ali and Ramazan, but I felt the third-person narration style got in the way of really putting this across to the reader. Also, I thought while reading that this book was far too short. Ali and Ramazan's lives are glimpsed so briefly that I didn't think I had time to really get to know them. However, now that I am thinking about the story in order to write this review, I wonder if brevity is a deliberate ploy on Magden's part - a reflection of the curtailed potential she shows being wasted.


Search Lit Flits for more:
Books by Perihan Magden / LGBT books / Books from Turkey