Tuesday 25th September: To Clapham Books, to hear Will Self read from and talk about his latest novel Umbrella. The bookshop was full to overflowing, and so too was my brain by the end of the evening. Will Self began by disparaging authors who give long, filling-in-the-background intros before reading from their work, and then, …
Category: reading
bottle that energy
Get 27 women writers, plus friends and supporters, in a downstairs bar on a balmy September evening, and you get lots of positive energy, strong readings, an appreciative and attentive audience, and a plethora of verbal surprises. The occasion was the launch of the second Loose Muse anthology, featuring poetry, stories and short plays by …
London latte
Friday morning. I'm in the city for a course, and I'm early. Summer's ending. It's a bright, fresh morning and I'm in fine spirits, for no particular reason other than the weather, and that's a good feeling. I have a quarter of an hour before I'm due in the world of work, and I'm going …
Saturday swim
Up at 6:30. Straight into swimming togs. Cycle shirt and shorts on top. Pannier packed the night before with towel, goggles etc. Kiss my sleepy, non-swimming beloved goodbye, and then I'm out, on my bike, into the fine, bright morning, cycling south along not quite empty streets, across Clapham Common where a slight haze shimmers …
a piquant selection
Another satisfying read clocked up: The Best British Short Stories 2012, edited by that indefatigable writers' champion Nicholas Royle and published by Salt Publishing, the indie publishing sensation du jour (and for plus des années encore, I hope). I read the collection over several weeks, on the occasional tube journey, or late evenings before bed, …
weeding and reading
Not long back from a week in the French countryside. Time to reflect, to read, to sit and drink in the landscape, the deep blue sky and fields of maize and sunflowers. Terracotta tiled roofs, delicate orange poppies, pots of carmine geraniums, beds of red sage, lavender and rosemary. Self seeded walnut trees and catalpa. …
not lit crit
I've written before about my anxieties around reading. So, this post is just to record some personal responses to two (quite different) books I have actually read. Firstly, I recently finished The House on Paradise Street by Sofka Zinovieff. I was attracted to the book by a short and largely favourable review in the Guardian. …
in a Wapping greenhouse
What a great way to end my working week. We ventured out to Wapping on Maundy Thursday evening to attend a reading in a greenhouse. A clear, cold evening, and after a couple of wrong turns we eventually arrived at our destination: The Wapping Project Bookshop - yes, a bookshop in a greenhouse, located in …
a fair fortnight
Two weeks since we returned from Melbourne, and here are a few things that have eased my adjustment back into London life: The weather. We've had a spell of glorious, almost summery weather. Clear blue skies, temperatures into the low twenties, hazy sunshine. Crisp mornings and balmy evenings. Warm enough to sit outside a pub …
melbourne calling
Ten days down and six to go of our short trip to Melbourne. Ignoring the vagaries of the weather, we have packed in quite a lot, in between catching up with family and friends. Highlights so far: Cafe culture. It would be easy to believe all Melbournians spend at least a third of their time …
Hilaire 