Wimpole

I've blogged about Wimpole estate and it's library before, but it's such a beautiful place one more post isn't going to do any harm.

Haruki Murakami, Colorless Tsukuri Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage

I haven't read all of Murkami's books, but he is one of my favourite authors, Norwegian Wood and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle are my top picks of his novels.

Colorless Tsukuri Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage is Murkarmi's latest offering, when it was published in Japan it sold a million copies in it's first week, and it has been similarly successful over here. There is always a lot of expectation when Murkarmi publishes a new book, and it can be difficult to life up to the hype.

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The Plot: At high school Tsukuru Tazaki was part of a close friendship group of 3 boys and 2 girls. Apart from Tazaki, the other friends, coincidently, all had colours in their names, Akamatsu 'red pine', Oumi 'blue sea', Shirane 'white root' and Kurono 'black field'. Together they formed a harmonious group, with each member having a special interest or talent that complemented and balanced the others. One day, without any explanation or prior warning, the four colourful friends annoudnced they no longer wanted to speak to Tazaki ever again. Since that time Tazaki has struggled to form meaningful connections with other people, until he meets Sara, who encourages him to contact his former friends and discover why they abruptly dumped him.

Rating: (3.5/5)
Full review under the cut:-

Hardwick Hall, gardens

As I said in my previous post- I went a bit photo crazy on my trip to Hardwick Hall. Here are my pictures from the gardens.

Scarthin Books

If you're in the area of Cromford or Matlock, you should take the time to go to Scathin Books. It is a bibliophiles heaven, thousands of new and second-hand book, plus a vegetarian cafe.

I did find the second-hand books a tad over priced, but there is a huge selection to choose from. Our itinerary was busy, so I couldn't spend as long as I wanted browsing, plan to spend a good couple of hours here.  

Rob Ryan

Rob Ryan is an artist who specialises in paper-cutting. His designs are intricate and whimsical, they appear on prints, ceramics, textiles and jewellery. In addition, he has published three illustrated books, two of which I own.

To have a peek at some of the pictures of This Is For You (which would make a great valentines gift btw) and A Sky Full Of Kindness, have a look after the jump:-

Autumn walk at Audley End

A couple of weeks ago I visited Audley End, a grand 17th Century house just outside Saffron Walden. The weather was perfectly autumnal and the grounds were full of colour.

Originally a Benedictine monastery, Audley End was entirely rebuilt by Thomas Howard between 1605 and 1614. The house is currently undergoing large restoration work, with most of the facade hidden by scaffolding. The gardens are still worth a visit, as they offer views of unspoilt Essex countryside as well as formal and kitchen gardens.

Plus its fun to play in the leaves!
   

We were lucky that some of the flowers were still in bloom. 

  more autumnal pictures after the cut: 

"Books are the windows through which the soul looks out"- Henry Ward Beecher

Margaret Atwood- Happy Publication day!

Margaret Atwood- what an absolute legend. She is one of my favourite authors, so I was  incredibly excited to find out that MaddAddam, the third book in her post-apocalyptic trilogy was out to day.

The Maddaddam Trilogy 

I pre-ordered my copy, and have just finished reading it. The review will be up in a couple of days, I just need to work out what I thought of it!

Some of my Atwood collection

I picked up The Blind Assassin second hand when I was backpacking around Cambodia. I spent the whole day sat in hammock, drinking cheap cocktails and reading this. Pure bliss.  

Handmaid Tale- probably the most famous of Margaret Atwood's books- they used to teach it at A Level, I'm not sure if they still do?  

I've read most of Atwood's novels. I particularly enjoy her dystopian fiction, her descriptions are so vivid, she can craft a very believable, scary world, it's like she's a prophet.
 

The worn out dancing shoes

Book: Angela Carter's Book of Fairy Tales
picture taken by me

Once upon a time there lived a girl who liked to write lists...

Following on from my previous post, I've got some suggestions of fairy-stories for adults, some are traditional and others are reworking of classics. So in no particular order:-

1. Brother's Grimm, Selected Tales

ISBAN: 9780140444018

Well no fairy-tale list would be complete with out the Brother's Grimm, so I thought I'd get it out the way first. There are several editions out there from child-friendly picture books to collector's editions to a free kindle version.  I have the penguin classic, which includes over 65 stories, notes and a through introduction.

2. Philip Pullman, Grimm Tales: For Young and Old

My second selection is obviously very connected to my first choice, as it Philip Pullman's retelling of the Grimm brothers classics. I haven't read this yet but I really really want to. I think Pullman is a fantastically talented author, his Dark Materials trilogy is amazingly inventive.

3. Moss Roberts, Chinese Fairy Tales & Fantasies 

ISBAN: 9780394739946

 A collection of Chinese fables, myths and fairy-tales. There are many similarities with European fairy tales, but are also uniquely influenced by Taoist and Confucian philosophy.

More pictures and recommendations are the cut:-

library haul

A new library has opened up round the corner from where I live, so I went to check it out this morning. If you've read this post you'll know I'm pretty passionate/opinionated about libraries, so I'm really pleased that my local council has opened a new one within walking distance.

 The library is fairly small, but as you can see from the pictures I managed to pick up quite a stack. The books are all new as well, which is awesome, there's nothing worse than turning a page of a borrowed book and getting an unpleasant waft or discovering a bogey smeared into the pages.

I may have been a little bit greedy, as the books are only on loan for 2 weeks, but I'm currently kindle-less as I lent it to my mum (such a good daughter).

 Have a look after the jump for a further look at my choices, and for photos of pretty covers on the world's wrinkliest bedsheets:-

Pretty Book Covers

I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover and all that jazz. However, one of the advantages of still buying paperbacks and hardbacks, apposed to ebooks, is that they look pretty and make you appear smarter.

Plus it is a lot easier to pass judgement on someones reading tastes if you can see their bookshelf- I'm looking at you, owners of proudly displayed 50 Shades. Hide your shame.  

After the cut is a picture heavy post of some of my favourite book covers.

If you like these, or if you're interested in wasting a couple of hours staring at books, you should check out the book cover archive. They have a huge selection of well organised book covers for you to appreciate.