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Bit late in posting my first version of this for 2026. I'm not reading as many books as a year ago. But I have now finished a fair number.
The graphic novel version of The Hobbit was quite enchanting and engrossing in its approach, though it took me a few pages to get used to how the characters were depicted visually. Bilbo in particular had an extremely pudding bowl haircut!
Hamnet is one of the most astonishing novels I have read for a long time. I wrote a fuller review of it here a few weeks ago.
And A Venetian Bestiary was a gift for any lover of Venice, myth and legend, and animals and more fantastical creatures.
The Tom Cox novel was a 4-star read for me. A strange book to describe, a mix of life story and magical realism, set in the West Country. A lot felt autobiographical, knowing the author's life, e.g. the setting and frequent references to old vinyl records. Also the travails of living a peripatetic renters life, and difficulties finding a place to rent with pets. But it's also remarkably imaginative, and moving too. And very, very strange, while still being refreshing in its approach. Recommended.
The Rivers of London book, the Doctor Who collection and the Robin Ince book were all 3-star reads for me.
The Rivers of London book had an original Scottish setting for a change, in Aberdeenshire, but felt rather scrappy in its plotting and storytelling, and the relocation of Peter and so very many of the other core "cast" to from London to Scotland also felt forced and unrealistic. I also found some of the storytelling too predictable, especially nearer the end of the book.
The Doctor Who book is presented as a storyteller telling folk tales, but is more retellings of Doctor Who adventures from the past. Many of these retellings were fresh in their approach, but not nearly enough of them. And it didn't work so well for me if I didn't recognise which TV story it was retelling, especially when I struggled to visualise some of the creatures described.
And the Robin Ince was an interesting read about neurodiversity, but not general enough for me. Though I appreciated a lot of the insights into ADHD (which Martin clearly has) and anxiety (which I have - generalised anxiety disorder) particularly. It was just too tied to the author's own life story, and framed through that, in a way that wasn't generally applicable enough for me.
- The Hobbit: Graphic Novel by JRR Tolkien, illustrated by David Wenzel
- Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
- Stone & Sky (Rivers of London) by Ben Aaronovitch
- A Venetian Bestiary by Jan Morris
- Doctor Who: 1001 Nights in Time and Space by Steve Cole and Paul Magrs
- Everything Will Swallow You by Tom Cox
- Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal: My Adventures in Neurodiversity by Robin Ince
The graphic novel version of The Hobbit was quite enchanting and engrossing in its approach, though it took me a few pages to get used to how the characters were depicted visually. Bilbo in particular had an extremely pudding bowl haircut!
Hamnet is one of the most astonishing novels I have read for a long time. I wrote a fuller review of it here a few weeks ago.
And A Venetian Bestiary was a gift for any lover of Venice, myth and legend, and animals and more fantastical creatures.
The Tom Cox novel was a 4-star read for me. A strange book to describe, a mix of life story and magical realism, set in the West Country. A lot felt autobiographical, knowing the author's life, e.g. the setting and frequent references to old vinyl records. Also the travails of living a peripatetic renters life, and difficulties finding a place to rent with pets. But it's also remarkably imaginative, and moving too. And very, very strange, while still being refreshing in its approach. Recommended.
The Rivers of London book, the Doctor Who collection and the Robin Ince book were all 3-star reads for me.
The Rivers of London book had an original Scottish setting for a change, in Aberdeenshire, but felt rather scrappy in its plotting and storytelling, and the relocation of Peter and so very many of the other core "cast" to from London to Scotland also felt forced and unrealistic. I also found some of the storytelling too predictable, especially nearer the end of the book.
The Doctor Who book is presented as a storyteller telling folk tales, but is more retellings of Doctor Who adventures from the past. Many of these retellings were fresh in their approach, but not nearly enough of them. And it didn't work so well for me if I didn't recognise which TV story it was retelling, especially when I struggled to visualise some of the creatures described.
And the Robin Ince was an interesting read about neurodiversity, but not general enough for me. Though I appreciated a lot of the insights into ADHD (which Martin clearly has) and anxiety (which I have - generalised anxiety disorder) particularly. It was just too tied to the author's own life story, and framed through that, in a way that wasn't generally applicable enough for me.
Registrations opened tonight for Tolkien Society's Oxonmoot in Oxford, which since 2020 has offered online as an option. I've attended online ever since, getting to watch an amazing range and quantity of Tolkien-related talks, and for months after on catch up.
It's not the same as being there in person, but the Tolkien Society offering online as an option for Oxonmoot has let me watch and enjoy a huge number of talks in the previous 6 years, and feel like an active member of the society more than I ever have in decades before, too ill to attend in person.
It's not the same as being there in person, but the Tolkien Society offering online as an option for Oxonmoot has let me watch and enjoy a huge number of talks in the previous 6 years, and feel like an active member of the society more than I ever have in decades before, too ill to attend in person.
Tolkien's birthday
Jan. 3rd, 2026 09:15 pmTook part in a Tolkien Society celebration just now of JRR Tolkien's birthday today. Rather nice, with nearly 200 people Zooming in. Very chaotic at the unmuted toast though! I bailed out when it switched after that to chatty break out rooms in Zoom. I was happy to have been there for the reading + toast. Now having a lie down. Meanwhile Martin continues to work on his latest photos.
My end of year full reading recap will be posted on my main blog - and a link to it posted here - by Hogmanay. In the meantime, here is my complete list of books finished this year, including 4 newly finished since my last post.
Of the newly finished ones, Alice's Oxford was a little bit too speculative for my taste, and plagued with an overly small font. But I did find a lot to enjoy, and am very glad I read it. Though I wanted clearer maps, to understand the geography. I've only been to Oxford a couple of times.
Wintering promised so much but was ultimately extremely disappointing. It stretched the concept of "wintering" to breaking point, and was repeatedly too self indulgent and written from a position of great privilege which the author seemed quite unaware of. Some good bits in there, and at times her writing was truly beautiful. But in the end, nope, not good. And a very poor ending.
The Doctor Who book about River Song's introductory episodes is one in the "Black Archive" series of episode analysis books from Obverse Books. I liked a lot about this, but was frustrated by how much the author ended up writing about things outside the two episodes, including River Song's wider arc, Steven Moffat's writing more generally, and paraphrasing rather too many science books. In the end I gave it 3/5 stars, but it's not one of the best "Black Archive" books for me.
The King of Elfland's Daughter was my book club read for December. I'm very glad I read it. It's a classic fantasy, which has influenced many other authors, including Tolkien. But it had flaws. It's more descriptive-driven than either plot-driven or character-driven. And with a positively glacial pace of story I found it hard to stay engaged and keep reading through to the end. Yet overall glad that I read it. And I loved one character especially. But I don't think I will ever reread it.
- ( earlier books )
- Alice's Oxford: People and Places that Inspired Wonderland by Peter Hunt
- Wintering: How I learned to flourish when life became frozen by Katherine May
- Silence in the Library / The Forest of the Dead by Dale Smith
- The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany
Of the newly finished ones, Alice's Oxford was a little bit too speculative for my taste, and plagued with an overly small font. But I did find a lot to enjoy, and am very glad I read it. Though I wanted clearer maps, to understand the geography. I've only been to Oxford a couple of times.
Wintering promised so much but was ultimately extremely disappointing. It stretched the concept of "wintering" to breaking point, and was repeatedly too self indulgent and written from a position of great privilege which the author seemed quite unaware of. Some good bits in there, and at times her writing was truly beautiful. But in the end, nope, not good. And a very poor ending.
The Doctor Who book about River Song's introductory episodes is one in the "Black Archive" series of episode analysis books from Obverse Books. I liked a lot about this, but was frustrated by how much the author ended up writing about things outside the two episodes, including River Song's wider arc, Steven Moffat's writing more generally, and paraphrasing rather too many science books. In the end I gave it 3/5 stars, but it's not one of the best "Black Archive" books for me.
The King of Elfland's Daughter was my book club read for December. I'm very glad I read it. It's a classic fantasy, which has influenced many other authors, including Tolkien. But it had flaws. It's more descriptive-driven than either plot-driven or character-driven. And with a positively glacial pace of story I found it hard to stay engaged and keep reading through to the end. Yet overall glad that I read it. And I loved one character especially. But I don't think I will ever reread it.
“The Bovadium Fragments” by JRR Tolkien
Oct. 31st, 2025 03:14 pmToday’s arrival, a new book by JRR Tolkien. A satirical fantasy from the future looking back at the fragmentary remains of somewhere rather heavily inspired by Oxford.
I got me a signed copy (normal RRP) from Blackwells in Oxford. Signed by the head of the Bodleian, who wrote the accompanying essay in the book.
I got me a signed copy (normal RRP) from Blackwells in Oxford. Signed by the head of the Bodleian, who wrote the accompanying essay in the book.
Productivity in between sleeps
Oct. 20th, 2025 01:29 pmPleased to manage stuff between neuro illness sleeps. Prodded usefully at academic journal paper final rewrites, making notes in the Word file of how to rework paras. And just now finally framed a LOTR art poster (Jimmy Cauty) in a huge poster frame with a newly arrived mount to make it look spiffy.
And now for more sleep ...
And now for more sleep ...
Finally watching Wednesday season 2
Aug. 23rd, 2025 12:40 amHave just managed episode 1, but hoping to get through an episode a week together, if not more often.
I’m very relieved to have watched this because ( casting spoiler for season 2 episode 1 ) I also have a sequence coming in episode 3 stuck in my head (( spoiler for season 2 episode 3 )) but I can’t talk about that to him yet! Maybe in a few weeks.
I also considered us starting tonight watching Rings of Power season 2 or Sandman season 2. But the Rings of Power episodes are *so* very long. I'll struggle to stay alert throughout them. And Sandman has a rather glacial pace, which I gather is even more glacial this year. Wednesday at least is a moderately acceptable length, and full of content. It also doesn’t have a huge number of episodes.
I’m very relieved to have watched this because ( casting spoiler for season 2 episode 1 ) I also have a sequence coming in episode 3 stuck in my head (( spoiler for season 2 episode 3 )) but I can’t talk about that to him yet! Maybe in a few weeks.
I also considered us starting tonight watching Rings of Power season 2 or Sandman season 2. But the Rings of Power episodes are *so* very long. I'll struggle to stay alert throughout them. And Sandman has a rather glacial pace, which I gather is even more glacial this year. Wednesday at least is a moderately acceptable length, and full of content. It also doesn’t have a huge number of episodes.
Blogging through 1982 "The Hobbit" game
May. 9th, 2025 10:16 amGood read for Tolkien and retro computer gaming fans: Jason Dyer's "All the Adventures" blog plays through The Hobbit 1982 text adventure / interactive fiction game from Melbourne House.
Finally arrived, my hardback copy of The Hobbit translated into Scottish Gaelic. Looks superb, and includes Tolkien’s original full page illustrations.
The printing/delivery was slow. I ordered two weeks ago. But finally have it! There's no way I can read the text consistently yet. My Gaelic learning is still much too rudimentary. But viewing it as a life goal!
The printing/delivery was slow. I ordered two weeks ago. But finally have it! There's no way I can read the text consistently yet. My Gaelic learning is still much too rudimentary. But viewing it as a life goal!
Gaelic Hobbit
Mar. 22nd, 2025 08:46 pmDelighted to see the imminent publication announced of the Scottish Gaelic translation of The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien. A must buy for me.
Had fun at my first go playing the Fellowship of the Ring trick-taking card game in solo mode. It's about 40 years since I've played a trick-taking card game ... Didn't score well enough to pass the opening chapter of the game, but happy getting more fluent with the cards. Great for a Tolkien/LOTR/card game fan.
One big relief with the card game try was my neurological illness hands were cooperating today! And my new folding table was big enough - just! - to accommodate the cards. Also very pleased with my William Morris designed tablecloth, which provided a good surface to play on, and a sturdy weight too.
One big relief with the card game try was my neurological illness hands were cooperating today! And my new folding table was big enough - just! - to accommodate the cards. Also very pleased with my William Morris designed tablecloth, which provided a good surface to play on, and a sturdy weight too.
Still struggling not to type 2024 at the top of these posts!
I've written reviews of Captive Queen, the Midsomer Murders gamebook and Eerie East Anglia.
Of the others, the Tolkien paintings book was nice, though there were some curious choices, especially re the hobbits. The Shakespeare book was great in parts, but had an almost total blind spot on detailed coverage of the many plays, which felt like a huge omission. Our Mutual Friend was a delight for me, as always. And The Principle of Moments, the first in a planned trilogy, was a heady mix of fantasy, space opera and time travelling shenanigans. Probably more ambitious in its goals than it ultimately achieved. But still a riveting read, and I will read the other books.
- ( earlier books )
- Captive Queen: The Decrypted History of Mary, Queen of Scots by Jade Scott
- A Middle-earth Album: Paintings by Joan Wyatt Inspired by Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings by Joan Wyatt
- Could You Survive Midsomer? – A Winter's Murder: An Official Midsomer Murders Interactive Novel by Simon Brew
- Eerie East Anglia: Fearful Tales of Field and Fen by Edward Parnell
- Introducing Shakespeare: A Graphic Guide by Nick Groom
- Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
- The Principle of Moments by Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson
I've written reviews of Captive Queen, the Midsomer Murders gamebook and Eerie East Anglia.
Of the others, the Tolkien paintings book was nice, though there were some curious choices, especially re the hobbits. The Shakespeare book was great in parts, but had an almost total blind spot on detailed coverage of the many plays, which felt like a huge omission. Our Mutual Friend was a delight for me, as always. And The Principle of Moments, the first in a planned trilogy, was a heady mix of fantasy, space opera and time travelling shenanigans. Probably more ambitious in its goals than it ultimately achieved. But still a riveting read, and I will read the other books.
Oxonmoot 2025
Jan. 31st, 2025 10:22 amHave booked me an online ticket for Oxonmoot 2025 in September. Buying early because I can get a chunky early bird discount. I also get a discounted online ticket as a Tolkien Society member. I have been watching Oxonmoot online, mostly on catchup after, since they offered streaming in 2020. They are very very good at doing the technology side of things, and it works extremely smoothly. And there is always a fascinating range of talks and events to enjoy, even at a distance, and even if like me watching it potentially months later! Anyway booked.
Sleeving cards
Jan. 21st, 2025 05:04 pmA third of the way through sleeving cards in my new Fellowship of the Ring card game, and it’s a tight fit, but they do fit sleeved (there are 3 slots in the box for 48 cards each). Relieved to have managed the first batch - hands cooperating well there today despite my progressive neurological illness. But definitely leaving the rest to later this week! P.S. You don't have to sleeve the cards, but I prefer to in this case. I'm using Gamegenic 66 x 91 mm "Gray" code Standard Card Game Matte Sleeves (3 x 50 packs). But there are other options too.
Fellowship of the Ring card game rules
Jan. 20th, 2025 05:53 pmWatching the rules for my next card game to try, The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game. This is going to take a while to get my head around! But should be fun. You don't have to play it right through all the way. I'd hope to manage a chapter at a time (there are 18 chapters).
Here's my final post of these for 2024. I intend to continue into 2025, though obviously resetting the count. I will also be posting my end of year full reading blog later this week, so probably into the start of 2025.
In this latest batch of newly finished books there were 3 rereads (the Sherlock Holmes, Discovery of Witches book 2, and The Dark is Rising). All great as always. The Wood at Midwinter and Booker-winner Orbital were reads for my book club. Both flawed, though I preferred the latter. Always Never was a graphic novel with gorgeous art but a somewhat troubling plot. The Alice in Wonderland gamebook was fun. And I'd never read the Tolkien Letters from Father Christmas book before, and loved it.
In this latest batch of newly finished books there were 3 rereads (the Sherlock Holmes, Discovery of Witches book 2, and The Dark is Rising). All great as always. The Wood at Midwinter and Booker-winner Orbital were reads for my book club. Both flawed, though I preferred the latter. Always Never was a graphic novel with gorgeous art but a somewhat troubling plot. The Alice in Wonderland gamebook was fun. And I'd never read the Tolkien Letters from Father Christmas book before, and loved it.
- ( earlier books )
- The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
- Always Never by Jordi Lafebre (graphic novel)
- Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness
- The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke
- Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland by Jonathan Green (gamebook)
- Orbital by Samantha Harvey
- Letters from Father Christmas by JRR Tolkien
- The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper
Note there are spoilers in this post. Scroll past if you don't want to know some quite specific details.
Earlier this year I mentioned here that I was intending to watch some of the animated Tolkien films from 1977-1980 soon. As I said then I'd never seen The Hobbit (1977) or The Return of the King (1980), though I have seen the doesn't-tell-the-whole-story The Lord of the Rings (1978), which I watched on Channel 4 one afternoon before Christmas in 1988 ...
It's taken us a while to get started. But first up last night was The Hobbit (1977), which I'd sourced a Spanish-released DVD copy of. After changing the settings to English language audio and no subtitles we were good to go with the 77 minutes long animated movie.
I knew going in that it was an extremely condensed retelling of the story. But I was honestly surprised by how much they packed into the running time. And the opening sections charmed me, with the pre titles sequence where Bilbo meets the dwarves and Gandalf, and the rather nice folk-inspired song "The Greatest Adventure". The other songs were more of a miss for me though. The dwarves are introduced phenomenally quickly, but that wasn't a problem for me. I find the original book overly long on this, never mind Peter Jackson's take on it.
The character design choices are a mix of good or curious to downright strange. Gandalf is as you would expect. Bilbo perhaps a bit Disney. The dwarves are a mix, some rather disturbing. Trolls ok. Elrond has a beard. Mmmm. Though I was pleased they managed to include that portion - I thought they'd skip it. Goblins suitably disturbing. Gollum very strange, but it sort of works. Wargs awesome. Ditto eagles. Mirkwood spiders suitably terrifying. Wood elves very very strange, and more scary looking than the goblins. Not sure about the Lake-town men. And Smaug looks more like a big cat (I've seen "bobcat" used to describe him) than a dragon, at least in facial features. Nice thrush though. The animation is generally good, with some particularly impressive visual moments. The animation work was done by a Japanese company linked to the future Studio Ghibli.
The voice acting is variable. Bilbo and Gandalf are fine. Gollum suitably disturbing. I liked Elrond's voice. But why does the elven king have an Austrian accent? And Smaug sounds strange. I wasn't familiar with the actor voices already, so didn't make connections with other roles. But just responded to how they sounded.
As I said I was impressed by how much they fitted in, including the trolls section, Rivendell and Elrond, the Misty Mountains and goblins and Gollum and riddles (good allowance of time for this key bit), then wargs (but no Beorn), Mirkwood spiders, the wood elves and barrel escape (to be fair that's phenomenally condensed into a couple of minutes), Lake-town, Lonely Mountain and Smaug, death of Smaug, Battle of the Five Armies, and Bilbo's return. The Battle bit was the only bit that dragged for me. I suppose after the hasty earlier sections its slightly more leisurely pace felt too slow. They also made a curious choice to depict some of the battle using dots viewed from overhead moving around. Which might be how someone at a distance - in this case Bilbo - might see things. But wasn't entirely successful.
They certainly missed other parts of the story, including some key moments, like Bilbo deciding not to kill Gollum. Nor did he steal the Arkenstone, and the emotional ending with Thorin was reduced as a result. Much was there though, just accelerated/edited hugely. And I'm still stunned by how much they did cover in the time.
The thing I liked least about the film is the ending, where Gandalf says some words to Bilbo, hinting that the ring he found is important, and in the future there will be more adventures involving other members of his family. Mmmmm. I can see why they did that. It's a quaint nod to them hopefully continuing the story (which the same team sort of did with The Return of the King animated movie in 1980). But to suggest that Gandalf has an awareness of or even hint of the importance of this ring at this time, never mind other foresight about its future, just feels so very wrong for this viewer/Tolkien fan at least.
However overall I enjoyed it. I think they got more things right than wrong. And I would far, far prefer to watch this 77 minutes version than the nearly 9 hours of Hobbit movies from Peter Jackson ...
Earlier this year I mentioned here that I was intending to watch some of the animated Tolkien films from 1977-1980 soon. As I said then I'd never seen The Hobbit (1977) or The Return of the King (1980), though I have seen the doesn't-tell-the-whole-story The Lord of the Rings (1978), which I watched on Channel 4 one afternoon before Christmas in 1988 ...
It's taken us a while to get started. But first up last night was The Hobbit (1977), which I'd sourced a Spanish-released DVD copy of. After changing the settings to English language audio and no subtitles we were good to go with the 77 minutes long animated movie.
I knew going in that it was an extremely condensed retelling of the story. But I was honestly surprised by how much they packed into the running time. And the opening sections charmed me, with the pre titles sequence where Bilbo meets the dwarves and Gandalf, and the rather nice folk-inspired song "The Greatest Adventure". The other songs were more of a miss for me though. The dwarves are introduced phenomenally quickly, but that wasn't a problem for me. I find the original book overly long on this, never mind Peter Jackson's take on it.
The character design choices are a mix of good or curious to downright strange. Gandalf is as you would expect. Bilbo perhaps a bit Disney. The dwarves are a mix, some rather disturbing. Trolls ok. Elrond has a beard. Mmmm. Though I was pleased they managed to include that portion - I thought they'd skip it. Goblins suitably disturbing. Gollum very strange, but it sort of works. Wargs awesome. Ditto eagles. Mirkwood spiders suitably terrifying. Wood elves very very strange, and more scary looking than the goblins. Not sure about the Lake-town men. And Smaug looks more like a big cat (I've seen "bobcat" used to describe him) than a dragon, at least in facial features. Nice thrush though. The animation is generally good, with some particularly impressive visual moments. The animation work was done by a Japanese company linked to the future Studio Ghibli.
The voice acting is variable. Bilbo and Gandalf are fine. Gollum suitably disturbing. I liked Elrond's voice. But why does the elven king have an Austrian accent? And Smaug sounds strange. I wasn't familiar with the actor voices already, so didn't make connections with other roles. But just responded to how they sounded.
As I said I was impressed by how much they fitted in, including the trolls section, Rivendell and Elrond, the Misty Mountains and goblins and Gollum and riddles (good allowance of time for this key bit), then wargs (but no Beorn), Mirkwood spiders, the wood elves and barrel escape (to be fair that's phenomenally condensed into a couple of minutes), Lake-town, Lonely Mountain and Smaug, death of Smaug, Battle of the Five Armies, and Bilbo's return. The Battle bit was the only bit that dragged for me. I suppose after the hasty earlier sections its slightly more leisurely pace felt too slow. They also made a curious choice to depict some of the battle using dots viewed from overhead moving around. Which might be how someone at a distance - in this case Bilbo - might see things. But wasn't entirely successful.
They certainly missed other parts of the story, including some key moments, like Bilbo deciding not to kill Gollum. Nor did he steal the Arkenstone, and the emotional ending with Thorin was reduced as a result. Much was there though, just accelerated/edited hugely. And I'm still stunned by how much they did cover in the time.
The thing I liked least about the film is the ending, where Gandalf says some words to Bilbo, hinting that the ring he found is important, and in the future there will be more adventures involving other members of his family. Mmmmm. I can see why they did that. It's a quaint nod to them hopefully continuing the story (which the same team sort of did with The Return of the King animated movie in 1980). But to suggest that Gandalf has an awareness of or even hint of the importance of this ring at this time, never mind other foresight about its future, just feels so very wrong for this viewer/Tolkien fan at least.
However overall I enjoyed it. I think they got more things right than wrong. And I would far, far prefer to watch this 77 minutes version than the nearly 9 hours of Hobbit movies from Peter Jackson ...
Festive reading
Dec. 20th, 2024 11:46 pmFestive 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.
Today's arrivals
Dec. 4th, 2024 03:20 pmSome real treats, from independent shops (Hampton Hobbies and Games, Toppings and The Bookhouse in Broughty Ferry). Will mainly play Forbidden Island in solo mode. The Tolkien and Lewis graphic novel looks astonishing. And the signed (!) Susanna Clarke is a read for my book group.
