I read banned books

I've just discovered that it's banned book week. The whole point of a dedicated week, is to explore ideas of censorship, politics and immorality.

There's a list on banned-books.org that lists a selection of book that have been banned historical or are still censored today. This wiki page also lists banned books.

I thought it might be fun to go through the list and pick out the banned books that I've read:-

Neil Gaiman, Neverwhere

I've been expanding my reading horizons recently, first with a Western  now with fantasy. Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere is all about an alternative London, LondonBelow a subterranean world full of monsters, personified tube stations and people who have fallen through the cracks.

Although this is the first of his book that I've read, Neil Gaiman is a publishing phenomenon who has won numerous awards. Neverwhere started life as a 90s tv show, but frustrated by the contrasts of this medium and the quality of the programme, Gaiman wrote the novel to expand the universe and retell the story.

 
The Plot: When Richard Mayhew comes to the aid of a young woman huddled and bleeding on a London street, he is thrust into a perilous situation. Through his charitable act of kindness Richard aligns his fate with Door, who is running for her own life as well as trying to avenge to deaths of her family. Together, Richard, Door, Hunter and the foppish Marquis de Carabas navigate through the fantastical LondonBelow. They seek help from an angel called Islington, by first they must evade the sinister Mr Coup and Mr Vandemar and the other threats of the underground cit
Rating: 3/5
full review under the cut:-

Samuel Selvon, The Lonely Londoners

The Lonely Londoners was written by Trinidad-born author Sam Selvon, and like most of his later work focusses of the experiences of West Indians emigrating to Britain in the 1950s and 60s. As I said in my monthly round-up for August, I was introduced to the book by my sister's boyfriend, which I'm really pleased about, as I really enjoyed it.

The Plot: Newly arrived in London, Henry 'Sir Galahad' Oliver is met at Waterloo Station by Moses, who has already lived in the city for years and is willing to share his hard won knowledge. London can be an unwelcoming place, with hostile locals, but 'the boys' (young men from the West Indies)  come together in dance halls and run-down rented flats to form a supportive community.

Rating: 3.5/5

Wimpole Estate & Farm- Grounds and Gardens

To make the most of the sunshine and a national holiday, today we visited Wimpole Estate and Farm. it is a National Trust property just outside Cambridge.

The back of the main house at Wimpole. 

 It seemed lots of other families had the same bright idea, as the grounds were full of people happily munching picnics and laying on the grass soaking up the sun.

 We took our own picnic with us, Though there is a team rooms,  a restaurant and an ice ream van at the property.  I  had a sandwich of feta, green pesto and sun-dried tomatoes on spelt bread. Spelt bread is a good alternative if you are wheat/gluten intolerant by the way.  I took along my current book, Tupac Shakur- The Rose that Grew from Concrete.  I should be putting up a review in the next couple of days. 

A very British Picnic- sandwiches, crisps and gangster rap

 If you forget to bring a book with you to Wimpole and fancy having a read whilst lounging on the grass, There is a well stocked second hand bookshop. It has a bit of everything, books on local history and contemporary classics such as Being Jordan by Katie Price.   

They're very trusting at the National Trust 

Outside I saw some very Game of Thrones-esque statues. My sister rolled her eyes when I mentioned this, I seem to be relating everything to the series at the moment.  

The stag of House Baratheon - Ours is the Fury 

Everyone at work now thinks I'm a massive geek, as I happened to mention that I like to loiter on Game of Thrones/ A Song of Ice and Fire forums and discuss conspiracy theories about Jon Snow's parentage (my bet's on Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen).   

The Lion of House Lannister- Hear us Roar!