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Book Reviews
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Editor24 February 2010
This tale is told entirely through the eyes of the dead girl, Suzie. The behaviour of her family following her death is described through Suzie's understanding of the natural behaviour of her loved ones, explaining to the reader why the characters behave and react the way that they do. It is Suzie's extra-ordinary insight and graceousness that is the charm of this absolute gem of a story. It is a gripping and compelling read, which leaves you sad but uplifted by the fragility of life, ability to cope with loss, and the sense that our lost loved ones remain ever present. The perspective of the pain of the departed is an interesting slant on this aspect of death and subsequent grief.
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Robert Thomas23 February 2010
Thomas Pynchon's debut novel, 'V.', follows the deranged exploits of both former U.S. Navy sailor Benny Profane as he attempted to reconnect with the pseudo-bohemian artists and hangers-on that form New York's Whole Sick Crew and aging traveller Herbert Stencil as he attempts to identify and locate the mysterious entity he knows only as 'V'. The novel alternates between episodes featuring Benny, his sidekick Pig Bodine and the Whole Sick Crew and the generation-spanning quest of Stencil as he attempts to unravel the clues relating to the existence of 'V'. Each of the Stencil chapters takes place during different periods of historical unrest with the narrative involving Stencil himself, his father's journals and 'V' weaving the fiction of the novel together with the real-world history. Towards the end of the novel, the two strands of story begin to come together so that their converging plotlines form a metaphorical V shape when Stencil hires Benny to travel with him to Malta.
The quest for 'V' sweeps the reader along on a mind-bending journey through sixty years and from Alexandria to Paris, New York to Africa, reality to fable. In a delightfully nonsensical way, 'V.'is a truly immense novel and a puzzling delight to read. While the action twists and turns in such unpredictable ways as to almost dare the reader to try and keep pace, the characters are well-developed and the situations convincing if improbable.
An interesting side note: there is a persistent rumour swirling around the interwebs that JD Salinger and Thomas Pynchon were in fact one and the same person - effectively, that Thomas Pynchon was the pen name that Salinger used from 1963 onwards. Although both authors were/are noted for their reclusive natures and both exhibit similar style and themes in their works, the idea of them being the same person does seem rather outlandish. However, now that JD Salinger has died, it will be interesting to see when, and indeed if, Thomas Pynchon releases a new novel. -
Robert J. Thomas17 February 2010
It might seem redundant to have just written a review of a book which was first published in 1961 but, having heard of the death of JD Salinger just over a week ago, I felt compelled to reread 'Franny and Zooey', my favourite of the four Salinger books that are currently in print in England, and was struck once again by just how sublime a literary work it is. While 'The Catcher in the Rye' is rightly lauded and copies of it still sell in their tens of thousands each year, Salinger's collected works of stories and novellas featuring the Glass family are often overlooked despite being, in my opinion at least, Salinger's most accomplished works.
Franny and Zooey are the two youngest members of the Glass family and the two stories that comprise the book 'Franny and Zooey' chronicle their exploits over the course of a long weekend in November 1955. The first and shortest of the stories, 'Franny', takes place in an unnamed US college town and tells the tale of Franny's disenchantment with the selfishness and inauthenticity that she perceives in all those around her as they become obsessed with the significance of the big football game against Yale that is about to be played. The second story, 'Zooey', picks up Franny's story as she returns to her parent's home in New York while undergoing an existential breakdown. Zooey is Franny's older brother, an emotionally stunted former child protégé, who does his best to offer Franny brotherly love and sage advice.
'Franny and Zooey' features two of the most exquisitely crafted short stories that I have ever had the pleasure to read. While the members of the Glass family might at first appear to be unashamedly, self-centredly eccentric, after a close reading of 'Frannie and Zooey' the undeniable warmth of their family relationships and their passionate quests for spiritual and intellectual enlightenment come to the fore in such a way as to highlight the bravery and tenaciousness in their desire to become "real". Rather than concentrate on the cynicism that hounded Holden Caulfield in 'The Catcher in the Rye', with 'Frannie and Zooey' Salinger chooses to examine the spectre of nervous breakdown and to emphasise the existence of a path to happiness through spiritual enlightenment and self-realisation. I'm so glad that I was inspired to read this book again, I certainly won't be waiting so long next time. -
The Fabulous Girls' Book: Discover the Secret of Being Fabulous
Keya Brown09 February 2010
This book is pure GOLD!!!, it's all a girl ever needs to be FABULOUS!!!
It's technicly a guide to looking and feeling gorgeous!, it has loads and loads of fabulous ideas, eg. How to appear fabulously confident, how to make your hair work for you,how to give your face a work-out etc,etc.
It has loads of spectacular things to make a girl feel and look FABULOUS!!!
thank you,
By Keya Brown -
A Short History of Linguistics (Longman Linguistics Library)
Gary Dicks03 February 2010
The fourth edition of 'A Short History of Linguistics' does what it says on the tin, so to speak. Concise would be a fair way to describe it but conciseness is relative and if you're expecting a short history of linguistics in three easy steps, this is not for you. However, if you want a balanced and in-depth account of the history of linguistic thought, this book is possibly the only one you'll find that can do it all seamlessly, meaning you won't necessarily have to scrabble through half a dozen other books too.
Robins writes as a linguist, an historian and an overall intellectual, which some will find off-putting, but, with reference to his field, it seems very apt to me. -
Ursula Blake03 February 2010
Before we discovered this book, my 7 year old boy would only read coloured picture books with limited words. I have been searching for over a year to find a substantial fiction book that captured his imagination. This is the book!! He has never read a book more than 10 pages long, yet this one has over 300 pages and he cannot put it down. His reading skills have improved overnight. He is even acting out the story in the playground at school with his friends (who he has also introduced to the book)!
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John Piper, Myfanwy Piper: Lives in Art
Chris Mawson28 January 2010
This is a superb book, well illustrated throughout, and very substantial at over 500 pages. Spalding has spent years researching this book, covering as it does the joint lives of the British artist John Piper (1903-92) and his wife Myfanwy, the latter perhaps best known as one of John Betjeman's many muses. The many facets of Piper's work (artist, potter, stained glass designer, author, editor etc, etc) are covered in clear chronological detail, drawing on interviews with the Piper's friends and relatives. This book offers excellent value for money and is thoroughly recommended.
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Edward Bowhill28 January 2010
This book might have been better titled 'Seaside Piers from the Air', as many of the piers covered are illustrated with black and white photos from the early 20s through to the 60s. The use of aerial shots is this book's innovation, as such photos haven't been used in pier books before, and it's fascinating to see images of piers that have long gone, such as Folkestone, Rhyl, Lytham and Brighton West. The book is arranged in a clear gazetteer format (A-Z) and each pier has a concise history and several illustrations. Sadly the book was rendered out of date soon after publication with the serious fires at Weston and Fleetwood, making the archive photos of them herein all the more poignant. A worthy addition to the small number of pier books available.
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Thomas Mawson: Life, Gardens and Landscapes
Chris Mawson28 January 2010
Thomas Mawson (1861-1933) has long dwelt in the shadows of more popular garden designers such as Gertrude Jekyll and this book is an overdue assessment of his life and work. Extensively researched and illustrated, it deserves to be the standard work on Mawson alongside the books published during his lifetime i.e. 'The Art & Craft of Garden Making' and 'The Life and Work of an English Landscape Architect'.
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A Laboratory Manual for Schools and Colleges
Matthew Hutchinson28 January 2010
A really good book, a must for all budding science technicians. Very helpful for making general science chemical solutions. Although at present it is out of print, it would be good if it were put back into print. I swear by this book as a biology technician myself. It has straight forward information involving safety, educational technology, care of animals, greenhouse management, chromatographic techniques, laboratory solutions, electronics, workshop processes, hand tools, drills and grinders, lathes, workshop tables, laboratory tables, sources of equipment materials and information.
Although this book as been out of print since the 1980's and although there is some information that is out of date, a vast majority of it is still very useful. I would strongly recommend it. It is possible to get hold of a decent copy but be warned, shop around, some companies are asking for over £100 for it. I was able to get a copy for little over £20.
