If you follow bookish social media, this quote (usually with some inspiring background picture) pops up every so often. It is praising the importance of books, yet I just can’t get on board with the whole concept. If you break it down in parts, there are the two worrying components of this quote. “Books are … Continue reading
Life Lessons from John Steinbeck’s “Travels with Charley”
Travels With Charley is a travel memoir written by the famous Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck. Steinbeck piles some books, shotguns, tinned food, and his poodle Charley into a truck/camper van and sets off around the U.S. The book was first published in 1962 which was an interesting time for the U.S. and the … Continue reading
A Review of Raymond Carver’s “Fat”
The beauty of the short story is that it is short. If you want some fantasy, fiction, drama, suspense, or action but don’t have the time, then the short story is actually perfect. You can often read them in one sitting. Collections of short stories are very rare in popular fiction. If an author writes … Continue reading
A review of Kate Bolick’s “Spinster”
I’m married. Yet after reading Kate Bolick’s book I proudly call myself ‘Spinster’ in all its glory. Glory might seem like a strong word for a term that is often associated with old wrinkly women and hundreds of cats, but being a spinster is so much more. A very dear friend of mine sent me … Continue reading
A defence of Nancy: rethinking poverty and “The Craft”
It is easy to think of Nancy as a bitch who deserves everything she gets in the end. But that is the same type of thinking that blames people for being poor as though those people actually want to have no money. Continue reading
A review of Rosie Garland’s “Vixen”: what happens when we don’t check our beliefs
I read this book on my flight from Switzerland to Australia. Usually long haul flights tend to soften the sparkle of most reading experiences, in fact one could argue that they soften the sparkle of almost every experience. It is something about the snoring, the crying babies… not to mention the recycled stale air and … Continue reading
#10 December: a month by any other name
December is hard. Birthday, death, Christmas, funeral. A month by any other name would still smell of sorrow. I’m scared of going home, sleeping where you died. Blue walls, pineapple delight. Scared is not the right word… you were always a better poet than me, but I can’t show you what I write, anymore. … Continue reading
Bound2Books Reading Challenge
In the busy world that we live in, it can be difficult to make time and find the time to read. Some people might even question, why bother reading at all? There are countless articles about the benefits of reading: lowering stress levels, helping anxiety, improving concentration, increasing learning, building empathy… But that is not … Continue reading
What do you do?
This question fills me with fear. Not because I sit at home doing nothing, but because I feel like anything I say will somehow not meet the expectations of the person asking me this loaded question. “What do you do?” In many societies across the globe, “What do you do?” implies: “What is your profession?” … Continue reading
“The Age Of Magic”: a review of Ben Okri’s magic realist novel
There are two reasons why I bought this book: I had a gift voucher and the setting of the book was Switzerland (the country I call home). I wasn’t sure what to expect because I had not read anything by Ben Okri before and I must admit that I felt a bit apprehensive about magic … Continue reading
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