Category: Books

#723 theoldmortuary ponders

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What book are you reading right now?

A little extra ponder for the weekend. I am currently reading Mothers Boy by Patrick Gale.

Normally I might not answer this prompt but this particular book, author and subject are almost the foundation of my love of reading . The Mother’s Boy at the centre of this novel is the poet Charles Causley who wrote a poem called Timothy Winters.

At the heart of the poem is a disadvantaged boy living in post-war Britain. Someone whose opportunities the Welfare State was designed to improve. It was probably the first working class poem I had ever been exposed to.

I have stuck with Causley ever since.  Then I moved near to Launceston where he lived and became familiar with the geography of his home town.  This beautiful portrait of him was done by an artist I know.

http://www.faithchevannes.com

I have read many factual books about Charles Causley but this fictional version, based on facts, of his life is so enjoyable. By an author who never puts a foot wrong, in my opinion. I am having a good weekend in my bookish moments

#670 theoldmortuary ponders

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Book clubs are funny things. A well run one will push readers out of their comfort zones. I did not enjoy this book at all, but as so often happens it made me think, and because of that I may remember it more effectively than all the books that I have really enjoyed that have come my way via my bookclub.

Part of me is still a little angry that an accomplished female composer and singer would be depicted in such a way by a contemporaneous artist in the 17th Century. The link below is far more erudite than I could ever be about her and this painting.

https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/barbara-strozzi/

But it is hard to look at this portrait and not think that this is a woman who has been around the block a few times and sometimes taken her pleasure in the alleyways between the blocks. Hard not to see the exposed breast or her grasp of the neck of her instrument.

Male composers of the time with equally vibrant private lives are all, without fail represented in a reverant and respectful style. Just google 17th century male composers. No wardrobe malfunctions for them.

The book further created this ranty blog because in the narrative the protagonist was in search of a woman who looked like this portrait. Not a clever, accomplished musician. He wanted a woman who could fuel his fantasy in a more fleshed out way.

Reading! It makes you think

#619 theoldmortuary ponders

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This quote appears on the back of a book that I am about to read. Just reading it exercises me greatly. What would be the purpose of my three hearts if I were so lucky.

One would certainly be my actual anatomical heart, working hard keeping me alive.

The second I think would be a super resilient heart to house all heartbreak, sadness and grief that life serves up.

But number three, well that would be the heart of love, the one that makes every day special, the one that expands as required. The one that looks into a sunset and concludes that another day has been well-lived.

#351 theoldmortuary ponders

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When this book was recommended to me a colleague warned me that I would need to take a break every now and then to calm down.

She was not wrong, I am only a quarter of the way through. Suddenly some things are blindingly obvious but not perhaps in the way I expected. From a historical perspective women often appear invisible because men took the credit for their work. I did not expect that simple fact to appear in my contemporary life this weekend. I was searching on line for a range of bone china that was designed a few years ago by a woman in collaboration with some art students. The design was easy enough to find using her name but when I thought about ordering some I noticed her name was nowhere to be seen. Instead the whole range was branded with her husband’s name. I am pretty certain I would have noticed this without being immersed in this wonderful book but now I am acutely aware and can’t quite bring myself to order the china.

Then today I was at a training afternoon and the course leader was trying to upscale a philosophy for children scheme * to engage with adults. I’m not entirely sure his plan was quite working as well as he had hoped, for anyone, when I also realised he had customised a visual aid by putting words in the shape of a male face with a moustache. The default male face as I now know these things are called.

So the warning on the book turned out to be a good one. Unfortunately real life is every bit as capable of winding me up now this book is my bed time reading. I also have the sequel. This could be a long week bookwise!

*P4C. Do not attempt to use on adults unless you are really sure of your material!

http://www.p4c.org.cn/en/About.aspx?ID=0

#320 theoldmortuary ponders

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Wordle reminded me of the irony of my travel plans. Long haul travel is one of my great undisturbed reading moments. Prior to this North American adventure I had a physical book planned and three on Kindle . My physical book is of the heavy duty variety.

The Kindles are more recreational. Crossing the Atlantic I made a good enough start on it. Then I watched a film, Belfast by Kenneth Branagh, leaving me three hours or so to doze or crack on with history. My fingers however had different plans and took me to the TV section of the entertainment screen. Heading for Chicago my eyes were immediately drawn to a series based in Chicago. Hmmm well, Chicago Meds is about as medically accurate as a childs play set, the actors are super easy on the eye and the storylines delightfully improbable. Livers were transplanted with barely a wash down between donor and recipient. Doctors pondered over how they could possibly have missed Coronary Artery disease on a chest X-ray. Confidential data was shared and improbable blood tests were performed with instant results that cured patients of racism. Three hours was not enough, I was hooked.

What I had hoped for was some location filming of iconic Chicago architecture. Each episode featured the same 10 seconds of the Loop. The overhead railway. I know this because I watched all of the five episodes available, American History got the brush off. I was seduced by attractive actors and something intangible. I laughed, hugely inappropriately, in moments of high drama and was completely hooked half way though episode one. As I write this I am hopping across the border to Canada, there is no in flight entertainment. Belatedly I am returning to American history just as I leave the country. With some intellectual integrity left I have to admit that the first thing I do when I get home is check the TV listings for Chicago Meds, some comedies are less amusing.

#94 theoldmortuaryponders

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Is the 10th of January 2022 a little late to conclude the reading and viewing plans of the 2021 Festive season?

Even the 10th of January is pushing the truth a bit as my piles of to-be- read books are nicely replenished by the festive season. Just a nice number to revel in rather than overwhelm me.

This book gave me this particular deadline as it is the Bookworms Book Group read and the meeting is today. For completeness I also watched the BBC 4 part dramatisation. Link below.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/p08qf8md/us

I enjoyed both, David Nichols writes books that have emotional depth even if some of his characters lack it, deliberately. The BBC drama had the added benefit of giving me 10 minutes when I could enjoy the acting talents of my lovely next door neighbour, Keith,who had, unknown to me, a small part in episode 3.

I say ‘unknown to me’ as if I insist on knowing where my neighbour has his small parts. This is not the case!

Us gave me light relief after an ill advised Christmas read. My favourite historical period to read is what is known in English speaking worlds as The Jazz Age or Roaring Twenties or in French Années Folles.

My book of choice was-

On Christmas Eve I commented that I was unsure where the book was going. By Christmas Day I was all to aware that the destination was Jersey in World War 2. Even more of a surprise and grimly shocking was that I was actually reading a Biography. It is not that the book wasn’t well written or that I am not glad to have read it but maybe not my usual subject matter for the Yuletide!

Let the reading of 2022 commence.

Pandemic Pondering #517

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©The Box. A shard from a North Devon Pottery, excavated from a Colonial site in New England

My leisure reading life and my work life are intersecting currently and in truth a little bit late. I spend a lot of time in the Mayflower Exhibition when I am working in the museum.

Both the exhibition and the book have the same constraint. Very little is known about the actual Mayflower Voyage. Difficult for Historians but good for me as the original source material is the same. The curators of the exhibition do a brilliant job of explaining and expanding the known facts and illustrate them well with actual artifacts. The 60 years following the voyage of the Mayflower is the significant part of the narrative for history and probably the least accurately portrayed by the Thanksgiving myth and beyond. As I read the book my mind is illustrated with the items and documents I spend my day with.

©The Box

This makes my reading of the book jog along very nicely. Neither the exhibition nor the book allow sentimental and fictional nostalgia, the darkness and brutality of the settlement and the impact on the indigenous people is all part of the story of European Colonisation. In reality the book is not a comfortable or easy read, but I didnt expect it to be.

© The Box

Here is the book I am currently reading.

The Exhibition is at The Box Plymouth.

Pandemic Pondering #475

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Yesterday the hardware for our domestic WiFi was installed. Today at some point we should be back in the world of Broadband.

©Debs Bobber

The last three weeks have been frustrating. When we told our network at the old house that we had a moving date the company switched us off immediately. Installation at the new house has not been a smooth operation. Coupled with a very poor 3/4g signal at the new house we’ve been out of the loop. All news and entertainment was provided by a radio. We blagged our way into a friends house to watch the Euro 21 final on TV. Curry, football and a discussion about African Wax cloth was a great experience.

Emails and WhatsApp arrived in a bunch whenever we left home. It has been a great leveller, we are as out of touch with people a mile away as we are with friends and family all over the world. Face to distant face chat outdoors has been our most reliable form of contact.

©Debs Bobber

Yesterday more than 6 book group readers met in a garden to talk about a specific book. This is going to hurt by Adam Kay. ( mixed reviews) Then we shared our good reads of the past month.

All the lovely pictures in this blog were provided by Debs, a Bobber. Bobbing has probably kept us in the loop more reliably than anything else over the last few weeks. Three days a week, at least, regardless of the weather we all meet up at Tranquility Bay and swim and natter. Last night the bay reflected its name.

©Debs Bobber

And there may have been underwater seal activity.

Is this a seals eye. ©Debs Bobber

We await activation!

Pandemic Pondering #347

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Yesterday was International Book Day. Serendipity put this book into my hands. I ordered it because I like the input this psychotherapist brings to a TV art programme. Graysons Art Club on Channel 4. Eponymously named for her husband, ceramacist Grayson Perry.

We have a lot of Grayson’s books @theoldmortuary. He is an original thinker. We go to his exhibitions and his live performances. I’m sure Philippa will not have written a bog standard self-help book.

https://g.co/kgs/BYLCwC

This might seem like an odd book for me to read . @theoldmortuary our parents are long dead and the Pandemic has rendered us theoretical relations. No hands on parenting, grandparenting , or siblinging in this house currently.

To be honest I just fancied something that wasn’t a novel, biography or a book club essential. I’ve had a great pandemic year of reading , hardly a moment wasted on a below par book. So why not take some time with a book that is not exactly aimed at me. I love reading books by wise women regardless of the theme or its relevance to my life, there is always nuggets of information to be be gleaned and used for the benefit my mind management.

Wise women will also be significant in my next reading project. I’m writing a review for this fascinating book about women who have relocated to Italy.

LostandfoundinItaly.com

Just as with Philippa Perry there is an arty connection. Linda Winter, a friend of mine who lived a similar London/Tamar Valley life as me, relocated to Italy two years ago and is the illustrator of the book. I can’t wait to get a copy in my hands, how delicious to read it with real purpose and a chance to write about art again.

Pandemic Pondering #325

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Book club reading gave me the perfect word for the current Pandemic. Perturbation! The word came from Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. Time to find some Welsh landscape.

Perturbed is a very useful word but I had never expanded it to perturbation.

It works so well with Pandemic and encapsulates our current times without too much jingle jangle alarm.

This months book choice is anything Welsh. I chose Dylan Thomas mostly because I remember Richard Burton narrating Under Milk Wood very effectively. Our next meeting is scheduled for March 1st St Davids Day the Patron Saint of Wales hence the theme.

This blog has accidentally become a book club blog, possibly the only sort of place I could share this odd photograph.

Here I am finishing last months Book Club book, inadvertently dressed to match.

Pandemic Perturbation in a nutshell.