I am supposed to be in the deepest part of my marathon training but we’re away in Ribblesdale for a long weekend with family and although I brought my kit, I’d also brought a pair of trainers that were technically retired. I’d had a vague plan to go to Clitheroe for their parkrun, but I… Continue reading Novice Self-Publisher Learns Some Hard Truths
Tag: Books
Limbo Land
I feel like I’m in a state of limbo. Having had a week away last week for Anne’s birthday, the plan was to come back and get back into writing mode. However. My book is still with the editor and has been for six weeks and counting. The holdup has been for various reasons, the… Continue reading Limbo Land
Rónán Hession – Leonard and Hungry Paul
I had no recollection that I had read this book before. The front cover - probably more exciting than the book Up until the moment where the Chamber of Commerce competition is mentioned I read it as a wholly new experience. Even when I remembered the incident with the box of chocolates, the words around… Continue reading Rónán Hession – Leonard and Hungry Paul
Hay Festival 2024 – Part Two
Obviously, because we were here on a Saturday, I looked for the nearest Parkrun. ‘There’s one in Hay-on-Wye’ itself! You two can have a pootle around the town while I go run.’ Angela, our friend and instigator of this trip, did not look as excited as me, about leaving the house at 8.20am on her… Continue reading Hay Festival 2024 – Part Two
The Blind Assassin – Margaret Atwood
I know what I should have done this morning. I should have got out of bed, and on my bike, and joined the PROBs group for a cycle ride. I would have really enjoyed it too. But I made the mistake of picking up the book that had been on my bedside table for about… Continue reading The Blind Assassin – Margaret Atwood
Shirley Jackson – The Lottery
This morning, I read a short story by Shirley Jackson. She’s famous for The Haunting of Hill House. Today’s story was called The Lottery. It apparently elicited the biggest post bag the New Yorker magazine had seen for a piece of fiction. Jackson said, later, that there were only a few positive ones, and they… Continue reading Shirley Jackson – The Lottery
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Haruki Murakami
I think that Murakami is an acquired taste. If you like surreal; if you like David Lynch movies; if you like Kafkaesque craziness, then you may like this. I’ve read a couple of his fiction books before: Norwegian Wood and 1Q84, and I remember the second one in particular being very strange indeed. It begins… Continue reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Haruki Murakami
The Salt Path – Raynor Winn
For one of my pieces of coursework I was trying to find examples of travel writing when Anne handed me this book. And then I started underlining passages within it before she told me she’d borrowed it from a friend. Oops, sorry! A slightly bent cover - sorry about that too I was going to… Continue reading The Salt Path – Raynor Winn
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running – Haruki Murakami
The book, scribbled notes and all I’ve just finished reading, or should I say re-reading, this book. Because my writing course will focus on creative non-fiction, I’m trying to pick up a few more of that kind of book to learn how the professionals do it. Normally Murakami writes novels and I’ve enjoyed many of… Continue reading What I Talk About When I Talk About Running – Haruki Murakami
The Halloween Tree – Ray Bradbury
The front cover of The Halloween Tree I have just finished a book that was recommended to me by a friend and fellow blogger, Kat. It’s a small book and could be finished off in just a half day if you have that to spare, but it took me three smaller sessions. To me, Ray… Continue reading The Halloween Tree – Ray Bradbury
theleadlesspencil 