Oh dear. It's all gone a bit wrong this month. No idea why, although it's probably something to do with it being too cold to sit outside and read now winter has finally arrived in the UK. Turning pages is just too tricky with freezing fingers!
So, by way of an apology and to say I've not forgotten you, here are some reviews I wrote before starting this blog. Hope you enjoy them!
'Cautionary Tales for Grown-Ups' by Chris Addison
`Cautionary Tales...' is a collection of humorous rhymes, each of which deals with a different 21st century `sin' and wreaks terrible (and often grotesque) vengeance on the perpetrator. The crimes against society include browsing in bookshops rather than buying, NIMBY-ism, reality TV shows, littering, driving 4x4s in town, excessive Christmas lights and nude charity calendars among many others.
After reading this book, I have very mixed feelings. I liked the idea of it very much, but was disappointed that the stories were in rhyme rather than prose. It has the unfortunate effect of making the tales seem insubstantial, as if the author had been knocking up a poem or two every time he got bored and had a spare five minutes. I found them amusing rather than funny and it did make me wonder whether they would have been funnier if developed into full short stories. Also, this is a very middle class book and some of the morals did come across as a bit patronising. On the plus side, there were some poems which did make me laugh out loud, although there were also some punishments which made me wince!
Overall, this book feels like it may be the start of something interesting which could be developed, but it also feels like a throw away doodle and isn't really worth the £7.99 price tag. It could, however, be just the right gift to bring a smile to the wound-up whinger in your life.
'The Vampire Lestat' by Anne Rice
When I wrote my review of `Interview with the Vampire', the first of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, earlier this year, I ended hoping that its sequel would be less ambiguous. I am delighted to say it is, although it almost goes to the other, indepth extreme!
`The Vampire Lestat' is a hefty tome which principally follows the life, creation and afterlife of the enigmatic Lestat de Lioncourt, a minor French nobleman who dreams of more than the futile existence dictated by his position as the younger son in a poor but arrogant family. But this book is also about so much more. This second Chronicle is a lot thicker than the first for the simple reason that it not only contains the `life' story and personal development of Lestat himself, but also the histories of two older vampires, the elegant Marius and the lost Armand, as well as legends of the race's origins and the first vampires, Enkil and Akasha. Like the first book, `The Vampire Lestat' continues to ponder life and death, good and evil and where vampires fall in the grand scheme of things, but there is also a lot of action and adventure which give the overall tale much more bite than the first and greatly improve its pace.
Although I enjoyed this much more than `Interview...', I believe that both books should be read rather than one or the other. `The Vampire Lestat' casts a great deal of light on the events of `Interview...', placing it in the context of Lestat's existence and explaining much of the what happened between Lestat, Louis, Claudia and Armand. It's almost as if `Interview...' is a taster for `The Vampire Lestat' rather than a novel in its own right.
In short, although its length made it hard to keep momentum towards the end and I feel a bit cheated because it's now clear that the second and third Vampire Chronicles are really one book/story rather than two, I feel that my perseverance has been rewarded and I am keen to continue reading. `The Vampire Lestat' is exciting and interesting, just as its predecessor verged on the depressing and perverse, and it really is a great read. Just try not to be put off by the size of it!
'Demelza' by Winston Graham
This is the second of the twelve Poldark novels. As such, I began it a little worried that, like far too many sequels, it wouldn't live up to expectations.
`Demelza' begins a few months after `Ross Poldark' and with the birth of Ross and Demelza's first child, Julia. It covers a turbulent time for the couple, as poverty and illness ravage Cornwall and relations with cousin Francis are once again become strained. As Demelza spreads her wings and begins to find a place in society, Ross becomes involved in a venture that threatens the Warleggan's financial stranglehold on the county, putting the young family in danger from their shadowy influences. Meanwhile, there are developments between cousin Verity and the disgraced Captain Blamey and a love triangle develops between the new doctor Dwight Enys, miner Daniel Martin and his new wife Keren.
I'm delighted to say that this book was as far from a disappointment as you can get. Once again, Mr Graham evoked a powerful sense of time and place which was completely absorbing. The plot is a rollercoaster of joys and misfortunes which culminates with a dramatic description of two ships being storm-wrecked and looted, a pivotal event which is intrinsic to the next book.
I would thoroughly recommend this book to any fan of Cornwall-set or historical fiction. Unlike much historical fiction, the world that this author creates feels all the more realistic because it doesn't shy away from tragedy nor exclude the humour of everyday life. As such, both `Ross Poldark' and `Demelza' stand out for me and, once again, I hope that the remaining ten books in the series do not disappoint!
'Angels: A History' by David Albert Jones
`Angels: A History' is an excellent, if rather brief, introduction to the subject of these celestial beings and their origins in Jewish, Christian and Islamic scripture. Although the text is quite dry at times and can read like an edited essay, it manages to cover a lot of ground in a very simple, factual way which meant that I learned quite a lot from a relatively short book. This book would not be out of place in the excellent Oxford `Short Introductions to...' range, which, if you are familiar with this series, gives an indication of its style.
My only criticism of this book is that its title is a bit of a misnomer. It is not really a history of the angels, more a summary of the original sources on the subject and what they tell us about these beings. In a way, it feels like the first few chapters of a longer book. Although more modern representations of angels, including on film and in art, are mentioned, it is always to support a point made rather than as part of a linear, chronological narrative.
