Went out for a walk yesterday morning as it was just such a beautiful day and the air had that lovely crisp autumn feel about it.  I love autumn, it is about my favourite season.  I love the feeling of vague melancholy about it, the summer is over (ha what summer I hear you cry),…

About 18 months ago BBC4 had a series of programmes under the title Reader I married Him and the point of this programme was to correct the slightly condescending view on Romantic Fiction which seems to be held by the literati.  I said at the time and have managed to pull up my post on…

For the last twenty years I have attended a book sale held each October in Colchester in aid of the NSPCC.  It is well supported and always packed out and over the weekend in 2007 nearly £20,000 was raised.  Books are donated throughout the year and can be left at various designated holding areas and…

Well I have finally managed to sit down and finish Becoming Queen by Kate Williams and I loved every minute of it.  As I said in an earlier post, Kate writes with great panache and verve and I am sure she won’t mind me saying that she has a lovely gossipy, chatty style that makes…

Sorry folks, busy day, tired, going to bed, no post tonight and I am simply dying to finish Becoming Queen and getting very frustrated because other things are getting in the way.  Back tomorrow

Opened up the Radio Times the other day and what do I find?  There is a new series of Spooks starting. It is now in its seventh series and for the past six I have read about it with total indifference and no desire to watch at all.  After seeing Penry Jones from the series…

Yes I am.  I have to face up to it.  Middle aged spread (or should I say  Senior Citizen Spread) is taking over my body.  The body that for years I have kidded myself is nearer to Twiggy than Nigella is now rapidly assuming Mr Blobby proportions and I have to face up to the…

I have just received an email from the company I wrote to yesterday informing them that they had a Moron on the staff.  Many apologies and an assurance that the driver of the van has been ‘reprimanded’.  I immediately wrote back and said that in this case I hoped reprimand meant b********g. Just thought you…

Delighted with this lot I can tell you and, as mentioned in a previous post, am thoroughly enjoying  Becoming Queen and will write about it later on in the week.  The Hensher book, which came to me from the Amazon Vine programme, is ENORMOUS and 500+ pages in length.  This is going to take some…

I do wonder about people sometimes.  I really do.  I nipped over to Ipswich this afternoon to see my ma and was happily trundling down the A12 when it became clear there was a major tail back ahead.  This turned out to be due to a three car pile up in the right hand lane…

In 1964 I worked in a library at Highgate where the readers who came in to borrow books were an interesting and well read bunch.  When I look back I can trace my reading journey back to the summer of that year when I read two books recommended to me by a Mr Smith and…

And I have that glorious feeling once more of not having to go to work until next Wednesday. I know I keep going on about it, but after so many years of working non-stop it really is such a joy to have this extra time.  So feet up tonight and no reviewing but as I…

I have to thank Simon over on Stuck in a Book for the subject of my post today.  He constantly inspires me to write about all sorts of topics and I could not resist this quiz.  If you want to do it, please blog about it yourself or if you want to leave any of…

After my post last nigh on Jane Eyre and the Graphic Novel, I was idly doodling and writing down the names of the films etc I have seen of this book and as the list was getting longer and longer, I thought I would do a  bit of a hunt on Amazon and see what…

Right, I hope that now the job is settling down a bit I can get back to normal on Random and start reviewing books again and not just stick in a photo to keep you all happy.  I let Sunday go by in sloth and idleness with the satisfying knowledge that I did not have…

This year’s Strictly Come Dancing has been going for about four weeks now and I have refrained from inflicting my burblings on you all with a self control I can only admire and be amazed by as this series is shaping up nicely.  I know I use that phrase every year and every year I…

Thought I may as well wrap up the week the same way as the other days.  I have finished my first foray at my new job. As I said, three days training and two days at my desk and coming to grips with things.  Went quite well I think, managed to produce work and get…

My thanks to those of you who have visited and left comments which I am seemingly ignoring, but not, I promise.  I am going to have a blogging and responding session on Saturday but am going to close up laptop early tonight as my eyes are still so sore and aching with all the screen…