Literature Discussions and Book Reviews
Marcel Heijnen is a Dutch photographer who has lived and worked in Asia since 1992. He now divides his timeContinue Reading
No Plan B is the most recently published Jack Reacher novel. Ignore, as you should, that suspect line on theContinue Reading
I stumbled on an announcement this week – as happens when you are mindlessly browsing the Interweb, that a newContinue Reading
Leonard Cohen, the famous musician, poet and lyricist, wrote the stories collected in A Ballet of Lepers in his youngContinue Reading
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be Jenny Lawson, the witty author and “Bloggess“, this book will explainContinue Reading
What are my favourite authors doing next? My favourite authors have new works in the works, pardon the pun, soContinue Reading
It’s the end of the first half of the year, and so far my reading time has been reduced byContinue Reading
The concept on which Altered Carbon is based is ingenious – it was futuristic and fantastical when Richard Morgan wrote theContinue Reading
Sad news – Albert Uderzo has died. He passed away on 24 March 2020 at the age of 92 at hisContinue Reading
Which Sci-Fi devotee is not looking forward to the debut of Star Trek: Picard? (Roll on, January 23, 2020!) IContinue Reading
“Anonymous”, also known as “Hendrik Groen” (a pseudonym) is famous for his creation of a gang of crotchety old folksContinue Reading
In the last of this series of posts on Fictional Fiction, I look into those famous authors whose invented booksContinue Reading
Since I’m a devoted Sjón fan, I duly sat down and ordered the novels on this Top 10 list ofContinue Reading
Writer Nicholas Tucker said about Richard Adams’ 50-hankie-bunny-weepie, Watership Down, “Adams … has bravely and successfully resurrected the big picaresque adventureContinue Reading
Jo Nesbo’s famous “Harry Hole” detective novels, and his other works for adults, bear the marks of contemporary Scandinavian NoirContinue Reading
The teaser trailer for the new film based on the Mary Poppins books by P.L. Travers was released to coincideContinue Reading
You could be tempted to dismiss Roger Moore’s autobiography, My Word Is My Bond, as a bit of a joke,Continue Reading
On day 2 of Worldcon 75 in Helsinki, I finally got to have a word with one of the “insider”Continue Reading
This novel is on the shortlist for the 2017 Hugo Awards which will be handed out at Worldcon 75 inContinue Reading
I did not like Backman’s previous novel, A Man Called Ove, but was spurred on to buy book no.3, Britt-MarieContinue Reading
The court cases continue Update – May 4, 2021 The Hergé Foundation, known in French as Moulinsart, and formerly knownContinue Reading
To continue the discussion on fan fiction versus copyright, here follows the case of the two “Alephs”, one by Jorge Luis BorgesContinue Reading
Sjón: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Reader of Sjón. Her current mission: to explore strange new worlds,Continue Reading
Like it says on the title page, this novella, This Census-Taker, is mystery fiction. I could not figure out, evenContinue Reading
Laura Ingalls Wilder – Pioneer Girl, the Annotated Biography by Pamela Smith Hill, et al I grew up with the LauraContinue Reading
In part 2 of good reads for the festive season, my choice is Island of Wings, by Karin Altenberg, which hasContinue Reading
For the festive season reading list, I’d like to get back to books that can stand up to frequent re-readings.Continue Reading
Let’s pretend this never happened by Jenny Lawson I laughed ’til I cried when I read this book. I reallyContinue Reading
Death is a difficult subject to write about, but particularly when it is not coincidental but core to a book’s theme orContinue Reading
After Terry Pratchett’s death (my previous post), his daughter Rhianna tweeted from her father’s Twitter account: “AT LAST, SIR TERRY, WE MUSTContinue Reading
Terry Pratchett (Sir Terence David John Pratchett, OBE) died on 12 March 2015. Last week Thursday. He was only 66Continue Reading
Three novels I recently read have a plot in common: an individual’s urge to ferret out the truth, come hellContinue Reading
Death is a difficult subject to write about, but particularly when it is not coincidental but core to a book’s theme orContinue Reading
Grand old man of Canadian literature dies Just last week I gave my copy of Farley Mowat’s Eastern Passage to a friendContinue Reading
The Last Policeman Series To my surprise, I liked both books in “The Last policeman” series rather a lot. IContinue Reading
It’s the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, who is traditionally believed to have been born today, 23Continue Reading
South African author, poet, lyricist and playwright Hennie Aucamp died on 20 March 2014, aged 80 years, from a heartContinue Reading
Man Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood is famous, celebrated, much awarded, and justly so. One comes to expect that everythingContinue Reading
The best way to express my best wishes to my family, friends, followers and fellow book lovers for the newContinue Reading
Doris Lessing, the Zimbabwean-raised author who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2007, died on 17 November 2013. Luckily forContinue Reading
– (Penguin Books Canada, 2012) The significant moments in Alice Munro’s latest collection of short stories tend to creep upContinue Reading
Dylan Thomas would’ve been 99 today. Born 27 October 1914, he died 9 November 1953, only 39 years old, muchContinue Reading
SEVEN CIRCUMSTANCES