I'm reading 50 of the World's Greatest Short Stories...

A Surprising Literary Journey This book took me by surprise. I loaned it from our local library in Sandy because it was short and nestled 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. It seems to be a text for study in Germany, not much loved by many students, while at the same time scoring highly among numerous readers. Now, having read it, I think I understand why. Original

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 Later: A Return to Writing and Reflection ===================================================== A Moment of Reflection Two years have passed since I last wrote a piece for my blog. It's been a year since I put pen to paper—or fingers to keys, as it were. But now, I intend to return. Today is January 25th, 2026, and I genuinely believe the world will never be the same. Just yesterday, an ICU nurse was shot—nay, executed—in Minneapolis for trying to help two women. Hi

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 that had greatly influenced you - without commenting why or how. At first I didn't think much of it, but as I progressed I realised it was really quite interesting - possibly more so personally - to think whether or not... These authors and works, Have they influenced me as an author? So I figured as a blog I'd consider them in more detail, lo

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 read that had greatly influenced you - without commenting why or how. At first I didn't think much of it, but as I progressed I realised it was really interesting - possibly more so personally - to think whether or not... These authors and works, Have they influenced me as an author? So I figured as a blog I'd consider them in more detail, loo

I recently participated in a Threads thing where you were challenged to name twenty books that you'd read that had greatly influenced you - without commenting why or how. At first I didn't think much of it, but as I progressed I realised it was really interesting - possibly more so personally - to think of these authors and works. These authors and works, Have they influenced me as an author? So I figured, as a blog, I'd consider them in more detail, looking at how and why t

I recently participated in a Threads thing where you were challenged to name twenty books that you'd read that had greatly influenced you - without commenting why or how. At first I didn't think much of it, but as I progressed I realised it was really interesting - possibly more so personally - to think of these authors and works. These authors and works, Have they influenced me as an author? So I figured, as a blog, I'd consider them in more detail, looking at how and why t

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 last books I read before I got ill (crazy stuff) and my world changed forever; a bit like how the world changed forever when JFK was assassinated in Dallas on the 22nd November 1963 - which provides the crux around which this novel revolves, and the contentious question of... If you could change the past, would you? Should you? It's a great q