vivdunstan

Finished a bunch more books since last month, so time for another update.

( earlier books )

Insomniacs After School volume 8 (manga) by Makoto Ojiro
Shakespeare: The World as a Stage by Bill Bryson
The Book of Life (Discovery of Witches book 3) by Deborah Harkness
A Hat Full of Sky (Tiffany Aching book 2) by Terry Pratchett
Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book by Bill Oddie
Echolands: A Journey in Search of Boudica by Duncan Mackay

Continuing to enjoy Insomniacs After School manga, though volume 8 felt more of a filler volume than usual. The story continues to delight though, as do the lead characters. Good art too.

Bill Bryson's Shakespeare biography is very compact and concise, but well done, and covers the key issues. Also suitably analytical about the evidence and different perspectives. Recommended.

I reread the third Discovery of Witches book, a couple of years after rereading the second. The third book is by far my least favourite, with too much gratuitous violence, and also a rambling plot that needed tightening up. But it does provide a good resolution to the opening trilogy.

A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett was another reread, as I work my way through the Witches subset of Discworld books. Tiffany is delightful, and here is combined with Granny Weatherwax plus the Nac Mac Feegles. Solidly 5/5, though it's not my absolute favourite Tiffany book.

Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book was recommended to me by a birding friend, who knew it would give me an insight into the psychology of birders like Martin. Excellent stuff, though it was originally written back in 1980, and much is very dated now in terms of how birders operate. But still insightful, and ever so amusing. I read lots of bits out loud to Martin.

Duncan Mackay's Echolands book about Boudica is a voyage of discovery, digging into her story and the landscapes in which the story unfolded. On the downside I struggled an awful lot with the numerous descriptions of places and landscape. I probably have aphantasia from my neurological disease, and it's worsened over the years as the disease has progressed further. I couldn't picture enough what was being described, though I think the written descriptions were fair. I was also frustrated by footnotes in the Kindle version not being hot linked, so pretty useless in that format. But it was an evocative read, and the discussion of the archaeological evidence was gripping.

Bumped this up my viewing list, because the play is going off streaming through National Theatre at Home at the end of this month. It can be viewed before then by people like me who subscribe to the service (I was lucky to nab a reduced price offer before Christmas), or on a short-term rental view.

The play was staged in early 2024 and is a dramatisation of the life of Aneurin 'Nye' Bevan, who spearheaded the launch of the National Health Service in the UK in 1948. The play tells Bevan's life, looking back from his final days in hospital, as sedated he dreams back to his youth as a miner's son in Wales, early political life, his courtship of his wife, Westminster politics of WW2, and then the fight to found the NHS.

The staging is creative, being set largely in a hospital ward, but repurposing the props - including beds - as well as patients and staff to take on the various roles of people Nye encountered in his life. This staging took a little getting used to, and the play runs briskly along. But it certainly grabs the viewer's attention.

The central performance of Michael Sheen as Nye Bevan is riveting, and ably matched by Sharon Small as his Scottish wife and fellow Labour politician Jenny Lee. Their relationship feels vital to the play as a whole, but is surprisingly underdeveloped after their first striking meeting.

The foundation of the NHS happens near the end of the play, and feels surprisingly rushed, and a story only partly told. There is very effective staging of a group of doctors seen above, debating whether to join the new NHS. The toing and froing here between Bevan and the doctors is gripping. But then it's over, the NHS is founded, and the play finishes soon after.

An admirable theatre experience, though I think the play script could have balanced some aspects of the story better. However the performances are gripping, and the staging held my attention throughout. Recommended.

Festive reading - so much Tolkien. John Hendrix’s new graphic novel biography “The Mythmakers” about Tolkien and Lewis. And Tolkien’s own “Letters from Father Christmas”, which I have never read.

Covers of The Mythmakers and Letters from Father Christmas books

I started watching this film while Martin was away, and only finished it the other night.

I enjoyed it, but it felt like too little story over stretched. It tells the life of young Tolkien, from young boy, through school and university, experiences in the Great War, and a little after. It just felt too much like a series of vignettes, with things often under-explored that could have merited further depth.

A particular strength was in the portrayal of Tolkien's closest group of school friends, and their TCBS or "Tea Club and Barrovian Society". This carries through to their war experiences, and was very moving in places. I was also impressed by the actors playing the younger versions, including a young Ty Tennant.

The romance between Tolkien and Edith is well acted by both - I was especially impressed by Lily Collins - but again it felt sketched in too faintly. And then set aside for a long period.

The guest cast is strong. I was particularly delighted to see Derek Jacobi pop up as a key university lecturer in Tolkien's story. Though again he was underused, and this story not explored sufficiently for me.

A lot of the emotional heft was in the war and its consequences, but I found the war scenes overlong, especially the frequent more artistically slow motion versions, which were clearly trying to draw analogies with later characters and scenes in Tolkien's own books. I suppose I just wasn't engaging in the way the film makers hoped the audience would. But these scenes for me padded what was already a too underdeveloped story.

This sounds really critical reading it back! I did like a lot. But it was I suppose ultimately disappointing for me. Too little, stretched too far. I can't comment on the historical accuracy, and gather from prior reading that the film takes a lot of liberties. That doesn't trouble me so much as poor writing, pacing and in places directing, that even a strong cast couldn't lift.

Rating 2.5/5. I don't usually go for half scores, but 2/5 would be too low for me, and 3/5 too high!

Browsing this year's Hugo Awards winners. Excited to check out more of them soon. I already have the novel winner Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher lined up to read soon. Also pleased to see Travis Baldree (Legends & Lattes) win Best New Writer. And Rob Wilkins win for his Terry Pratchett biography.

In some past years - quite a while ago now - I'd have tried to read some of the Hugo shortlisted books and stories, and cast my votes for the awards. This year I didn't even remotely try. The only books on the shortlist that I've read already are Legends & Lattes and the Terry Pratchett biography. Both of which won their Hugo categories. And both of which were 5-star reads for me. Oh and I've read some Rivers of London books. But I do hope to read some of the other titles in the coming year.

A new month, time for another infographic showing the books I am mainly reading. A mix of fiction and non fiction, biography, computing and poetry.

The image shows 6 book covers, a row of 3 above another row of 3. All are vibrant and colourful. The books are Yellowface by Rebecca F Kuang, Little Dorrit (Penguin Classics edition) by Charles Dickens, There’s a Hole in My Bucket A Journey of Two Brothers by Royd Tolkien, iWoz by Steve Wozniak, Scottish Poetry 1730-1830 edited by Daniel Cook (Oxford World’s Classics), and the manga version of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.

I’m nearly finished with the time travelling movie making scifi novel (it’s good!), so am looking ahead to what long fiction I will be reading next. Here are my main planned reads for early June 2023. Most of which are already underway. 1/ reread Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens; 2/ continue Patrick Troughton biography; 3/ continue family tale of two Tolkien brothers; 4/ continue Luther Arkwright graphic novel reread; 5/ read a rail travel book; and 6/ continue reading the large print Fall of Numenor book.

Grid of 6 book covers in 2 rows of 3. In the top row are the Dickens book with a black and white design, the Patrick Troughton book showing him as the Second Doctor playing the recorder, and two young Tolkien brothers side by side on their book cover. On the bottom row are a brightly coloured comic book cover for Luther Arkwright, a scarily hot orange looking cover to Not Cool Europe By Train in a Heatwave, and the Fall of Numenor book has a simple blue and white drawn design against a black background.

I still have a few books on the go to finish off, but here are two more that I've just loaded onto my Kindle. Harry Harrison's sci-fi tale of Hollywood film makers filming real Vikings in the 11th century Orkney Islands. And Michael Troughton's biography of his dad. Which I have had in print for years, bought direct from Michael, but haven't been able to read much before. Now I have it on my Kindle, so should make better progress.

I'm nearing the end of two solid 5-star reads to open the year with. Maritime archaeologist Mensun Bound's account of the discovery of the wreck of Shackleton's ship Endurance. And Rob Wilkins' biography of his boss Terry Pratchett. Both absolutely brilliantly written and total page turners. Both thoroughly recommended.