"Every knight needs a squire. And you look like you need one more than most.”

This book took me by surprise. I loaned it from our local library in Sandy because it was short and in among the classics. I'd never heard of it, nor the author, Irmgard Keun. I checked out reviews on Goodreads and it struggles with diverse ratings, a text for study in Germany it seems - not much loved by many students, whilst at the same time scoring highly among many readers. Now having read it, I think I understand why. Originally published in 1932, The Artificial Silk Gi

Took me longer than a week, closer to two weeks, but I managed to finish a novel.

I'm on a roll. I finished another book.

Two years since I last wrote a piece for my blog. One year since I last wrote anything. But now I intend to return. Today is January 25th, 2026, and I don't believe the world will ever be the same. Yesterday an ICU nurse was shot - nay, executed - in Minneapolis for trying to help two women. His name is Alex Pretti, just 37 years of age and quite clearly a good and innocent man. On January 7th, 2026, it was a wife and mother of three Renée Good who was murdered by ICE and the

And so I come to the final instalment of this blog inspired by a Threads game where one is challenged to name twenty books you'd read...

So this is the third in an instalment on my blog inspired by a Threads thing where one was challenged to name twenty books that you'd...

I recently participated in a Threads thing where you were challenged to name twenty books that you'd read that had greatly influenced you...

I recently participated in a Threads thing where you were challenged to name twenty books that you'd read that had greatly influenced you...

This novel by Stephen King was released in 2011 and I bought it straight away. I remember because I think it might have been one of the...