Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

Normally I quite like my literature to be full of doom and gloom. Give me a novel filled with hardships, tragedy and war and I’m as happy as a clam. Does this make me weird? I promise I don’t have any “issues” and I don’t like misery memoirs at least.
This book is filled with none of those things. This book would instead be described as delightful, charming and feel good. There are even lovely picture drawings throughout the Persephone edition making it even more lovely.

But heck I loved it. I got caught up as Miss Pettigrew got swept away into the life for one day and night of the beautiful Miss La Fosse. It was lovely for once to read something that was pure escapism with a happy ending, but more than that it was actually a great page turner.

The below is a trailer for the film (useful if you want more of synopsis) and I wondered if anyone had seen it? It looks perfect for a cosy night in on my own with a box of chocolates.



Posted by Jess

The names Bond.....James Bond

OK first off spy thrillers are not my usual genre. I tend to find them far fetched and not all that thrilling, the only reason I read this is because I am making my way through the Penguin decades classics.

After saying that it is Bond, James Bond. I was curious to read a novel to see if the films are any different and to see how well James Bond has translated to the screen.

From Russia with Love has quite a simple straight-forward plot. The Russian secret service department S.M.E.R.S.H devise a scheme to increase their reputation and decide to assassinate Bond. The first third of the book is set in the USSR and follows the development of the plot and the various villains involved. All the characters introduced are given huge back stories which include their early life, motivations and how they came to be part of the service. This makes for some quite interesting reading and for me was the best part of the book.

Unfortunately (and I can’t believe I’m able to say this) the book takes a slight downturn when Bond is finally introduced in chapter 11. Yep Bond almost ruins his own story ;)

Let me elaborate. In the first few chapters the reader is introduced to 'Red' Grant, an Irish born psychopath and murderer who started out killing animals as a child before moving onto local girls then somehow winding up as the top executioner for S.M.E.R.S.H. Then there is the beautiful but naive MGB Corporal Tatiana Romanova (note the surname), who one day is hauled into the leader of S.M.E.R.S.H's office, questioned on her previous sexual experiences before being told that she is leaving Russia to seduce a man she has never met (although she did hit the jackpot seeing as that man is Bond)

These are interesting stories and characters so imagine what its like to then move from the USSR to London to find Bond living a somewhat boring life being looked after his elderly housekeeper while he broods about his latest lost love. I’m sorry but I would much rather read about the villains than how reliable Bond’s housekeeper is or how long he likes his eggs boiled for! (Three and a three quarter minutes in case you are interested) Bond’s contact in Istanbul has more of a sex life FGS.

Obviously From Russia with Love is part of a long series of books so perhaps something happened to Bond previously which made him into abit of a bore here but boring he was.

Despite that it was still a very entertaining book with the usual fights, far-fetched plot lines and the villain spending a good half an hour telling the entire plan to Bond before getting around to trying kill him. It was fun and at one point even a copy of War & Peace saved Bond's life (I did mention far-fetched already)

Verdict – fun but I prefer the films. Unsure if that's because of the Daniel Craig factor though.

Posted by Jess

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway

I visited Paris about four years ago, at the time I was not a fan of Hemingway so I missed all of the parts of the city which he was known to have visited and wrote about. This is something I regret and will most certainly remedy one day.

Hemingway clearly loved Paris, this is evident on almost every page. For the benefit of those who don't know anything about his life he spent years living in Paris in the early 1920s with other famous American ex-pats of the 'Lost Generation' such as F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein and others. A Moveable Feast was the last book he wrote before he died making it an emotional read for fans of his work.

Hemingway writes in his trademark style which is always stark and honest whilst injecting infectious passion and enthusiasm which can be easy to miss if you don't look for it. His escapades whilst in Paris make interesting, entertaining and funny reading but also sad and tragic. A Moveable Feast gives a better insight into who he was more than any of his other books which I found fascinating. He honestly reflects on his own faults which is very unusual for him and admits he sometimes had trouble controlling his temper.

The book is advertised as fiction which mystifies me as it is clearly autobiographical. Hemingway uses everyone's real names, including his own. When relating stories he will occasionally state he can't remember exactly which café something happened in or which person he was with at the time. And he is known to have frequented the places he talks about and socialised with the people he writes about. How can this be fiction? Who knows.

This is truly a book worth reading and is my favourite Hemingway work to date, I thoroughly recommend it

Final verdict 5/5


By Chris

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

I think most people know the plot for this by now, the narrator Cal is a hermaphrodite. Cal is genetically a male hermaphrodite who is raised a girl and doesn't realise his gender until he hits puberty.

However the first half of the book is basically your standard family saga novel which covers three generations of the Stephanides family. All kinds of historical events are thrown in along the journey of Cal's grandparents incestuous love, the emigration from their homeland in Greece to America, to the family making their home in Detroit.

There is nothing wrong with the first half of the book but I have in my time read my fair share of family saga novels and unfortunately this one didn't stand out to me. The scenes and the situations throughout were vivid and although the writing demands your full attention the events which unfurl hold your interest. There was nothing wrong with it but I wanted to start reading about Cal's present not all the family stuff that read like a lot of other family saga book.

Once the story shifts to Cal and it suddenly becomes quite gripping and I began to care much more about the characters. Cal struggles to come to terms with her identity at times of radical changes. It's not only about being genetically different, but also about Cal's journey to fit in while carving his own individual path and finding Cal's true-self.

While in many way this is an entertaining read and there were large parts I enjoyed, I was left wanting to read more of Cal's life than the novel ultimately gave me. Overall I ended up feeling slightly disappointed.

Verdict 3/5

Posted by Jess

Deadwood by Pete Dexter

I know there has been a hugely successful TV programme based on this book but it was one that passed me by, so I read Deadwood with no pre-conceptions and without any TV screen characters to compare I with.

Set in Deadwood, the novel reads more like a collection of interlinking short stories rather than a novel with a fast paced over-arching plot. Each chapter focuses on a particular character and contains its own mini story which often jumps rapidly forward in time. The dialogue and the study of the different characters personalities are given centre stage here rather than any huge gun battles or romances.

One of the main draws of Deadwood is the use of real life characters and events such as Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hicks which adds an historical feel and lifts it from being a solely 'western' novel. The town and the landscapes are well drawn as is the dialogue and the rapidly ageing characters. The friendships between the male characters are particularly touching and believable and the novel (as seems to be common in the Western genre) contains some good humour.

However overall this is a novel which I feel very indifferent to. It was worth reading and there were parts I enjoyed very much but the lack of plot direction and some of the relationships between the male and female characters stopped me ever really fully immersing myself into the whole atmosphere of the book. For quite a short book it contained quite a lot of sex which doesn't bother me but why put loads of it in when other plot elements seemed to go nowhere?

One for people who are interested in this period of history and want to read it for the historical details or are looking for a more literary western.

Posted by Jess

Gone to Texas by Forrest Carter

I went looking for this book after seeing the Clint Eastwood movie version named 'The Outlaw Josey Wales'

Josey Wales is an ex-Confederate guerilla turned fugitive. He joined the Confederacy after his family were murdered in cold blood by Union troops. When the war ended Josey refused to surrender and goes on the run in an attempt to escape to Texas, a haven for outlaws. A trail of carnage follows in his wake as desperate men confront him to gain reward money.

The book doesn't seek to challenge stereotypes or change the genre, it's just a good old fashioned western story with plenty of duels, wonderfully detailed landscapes and cutting remarks made around a mouth full of chewing tobacco. When Josey isn't plugging holes in bad guys or spitting tobacco juice he forms bonds of friendship with a group of fellow wanderers he unwillingly picks up along the way. The book is entertaining and satisfying in an honest way, it doesn't pretend to be something it's not.

I don't often read Western novels but after finishing this and having recently read the excellent 'True Grit' by Charles Portis I will definitely be reading more.

This copy includes 'The Vengeance Trail of Josey Wales' the sequel to 'Gone to Texas'

Final verdict 4/5

By Chris