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- Third strike and you’re out… April 5, 2016
- “Angela’s Ashes” by Frank McCourt (1997) – a blistering if controversial tale of an unforgettable childhood March 28, 2016
- Baileys’ Women’s Prize for Fiction – Longlist (and shortlist) 2016 March 8, 2016
- Wish List old and new : March 2016 March 6, 2016
- “L’Amica Geniale” / “My Brilliant Friend” by Elena Ferrante (2011) – taking the world by storm February 24, 2016
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Category Archives: Books on the Big Screen
“Room” by Emma Donoghue (2010) and “The Collector” by John Fowles (1963) – giving ‘small but perfectly formed’ a whole new dimension
The brilliant Baftas were just upon us again, and another baby star is coincidentally born, with the heart-stopping performance of Jacob Tremblay as five year-old Jack. When I read “Room” for the first time, my own daughter was 12 and we were … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Books on the Big Screen
Tagged Brie Larson, Emma Donoghue, John Fowles, Room, The Collector
15 Comments
“War & Peace” by Leo Tolstoy (1869) – whatever am I going to do with myself now?
All good things, so so sadly, must come to an eventual end. It’s been a roller coaster of a ride trying to gallop alongside the heinously cropped 6-hour adaptation of this epic novel, and I almost came out of the saddle … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Books on the Big Screen, Classics Club Challenge
Tagged Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
23 Comments
Colm Tóibín – a man for all seasons? – the jury’s out…
Having spent a not inconsiderable amount of time over previous days proposing wildly romantic things for people to do in Paris over the Saint Valentin period, it struck me that the main character of Colm Toibin’s recent novel “Nora Webster” … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Books on the Big Screen
Tagged Brooklyn, Colm Toibin, Nora Webster, The Master
17 Comments
“Lady Chatterley’s lover” by D.H. Lawrence (1928) – taking the John Thomas, sorry, the mickey – and welcome to “Whoar”, oops “War & Peace”
Back in the autumn, the BBC revisited Lady Chatterley and strapping Oliver Mellors, and after watching the rose-tinted version with a certain sense of bafflement, was tickled to pick up the battered (complete and unexpurgated) copy on the shelf and … Continue reading
“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett (2009) – a whole new take on ‘keeping up with the Jones’s’
It’s taken me all this time to watch the film of the book I enjoyed reading so much the year it was published, with its Stepford Wives’ flavour and heady swipe at the treatment of the hired help in Jackson, … Continue reading
Baileys’ Women’s Prize for Fiction Best of the Decade OR “What a blinkin’ performance!”
It took an imminently expiring passport (you know that sinking “how did you let this happen” feeling?) and a belligerent bloke at the British Consulate here in Paree – “Désolé, Madame, mais le système a changé…” – to force a welcome … Continue reading
“The Go-Between” by L. P. Hartley (1953) – between the devil and the deep blue
The BBC has a lot to answer for. All those carefully and lovingly prepared piles of books to be read in a certain order keep getting re-arranged, as not a week seems to go by without another new adaptation of … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Books on the Big Screen, Classics Club Challenge
Tagged L.P. Hartley, Rebecca, The Go-Between
21 Comments
“Persepolis 1 & 2” by Marjane Satrapi (2003-4) – a fundamental revelation
I am supposed to be busy reading Man Booker shortlist titles and the Classics Club “spin” choice, but have been completely railroaded by a couple of stop-you-in-your-tracks reads. As a spunky adolescent, Marjane Sartrapi was not one to set store … Continue reading
“Let The Great World Spin” by Colum McCann (2009) – if you can keep your head…
A spinning kaleidoscope of a novel that keeps you teetering on the edge and your head literally spinning: I was unable to put this book down once I’d delved into it. What could a tightrope walker, an Irish monk and … Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, Books on the Big Screen
Tagged Colum McCann, Let the Great World Spin, New York City, Philippe Petit
6 Comments
“Middlemarch” by George Eliot (1871) – joining the mile high club…
Deep rapture, euphoria, beatitude and other superlatives. Veneration, wonderment and general doffing of caps. Have finally joined the several mile high crowd of fan club of all things Mary Ann Evans, and what’s even better is that there is still … Continue reading