Books you are reading

[pablo jaye]

I’m reading Boleyn Boy at the moment - like Noble, it is very solid and dependable with nothing flash. You can tell he is one of us, as there is a definite fans perspective throughout it - some of the feelings that he write about are definitely ones that chime with me, the pain of Avram Grant season.

Also good to see how important harmony and a willingness and the ability to work as a team are to success. And how West Ham have been ‘’West Ham’ - signing players past their prime, taking huge gambles.

I am up to the Allardyce era now … in case you couldn’t tell!!

[WHU Independent]

Spycatcatcher by Peter Wright - ex head of MI5.

I've just written a 1000+ word review of thsi book and it vanished into the ether before I could post it. I'm not going to rewrite it.

So, basically, if you are interested in real life spying, what MI5 and MI6 were (and are up) to, how Spys work and operate, who Wright is convinced was the 5th spy in "the ring of 5" ( only Blunt, Maclain, Burgess and Philby were caught,) how the Postal services facilitate illegal phone tapping, letter opening plus the deployment of recording equipment, and how the relationship between the UK's intelligence Services and the USA's CIA, FBI and Secret Service nearly totally collapsed, then this is the book for you.

I somehow managed to obtain a 1st edition US printing of the book (from a second hand shop for 50p) as the book was banned from publication in the UK for some time. This explains the fact that Wright refers to the was the UK Intelligence Services and the USA Intelligence Services regularly in the book - this helped sell it to the US audience.

I loved it. It reads like a thriller - even the dry bits - and you will see how organisations like the Police now track down people and their movements by co-ordinating by splicing together various parts of people's lives - details of travel made, details of phonecalls made and geolocation etc.

A cracking read. I devoured it.

[Korea Hammer]

Amor Towles - A Gentleman In Moscow

An enjoyable 40-year story of a Russian aristocrat, under house arrest in the Hotel Metropol following the Russian revolution. There are some subtly magic realist touches that I really liked, and although the book is long and a bit uneven in terms of pace, it mixes humour and serious themes in an engaging way and builds to a clever and engrossing ending.

[Number9]

Amor Towles - A Gentleman In Moscow

An enjoyable 40-year story of a Russian aristocrat, under house arrest in the Hotel Metropol following the Russian revolution. There are some subtly magic realist touches that I really liked, and although the book is long and a bit uneven in terms of pace, it mixes humour and serious themes in an engaging way and builds to a clever and engrossing ending.

Best book I've read in ages

[Korea Hammer]

J.M.Coetzee - Youth

There's no doubt that he's a good writer but this is the second Coetzee book I've read, and the second time I've hated the main character and struggled with attitudes to women in particular.

[Korea Hammer]

Anton Chekhov – The Steppe and Other Stories 1887-1891

I've been reading these on and off for a few months, and just finished the final novella (The Duel) today. There are 3 volumes of these short stories and they have all been an absolute joy to read.

[Misko]

J.M.Coetzee - Youth

There's no doubt that he's a good writer but this is the second Coetzee book I've read, and the second time I've hated the main character and struggled with attitudes to women in particular.

I read Disgrace, and though the book is obviously a good one, I really had hard times with the main character and his system of thoughts. In a way, that's probably normal, but it is somehow hard going through a whole novel without feeling any empathy to the main protagonist.

[last.caress]

[westham,eggyandchips]

[Korea Hammer]

Jose Saramago ~ Blindness

A pandemic allegory written in the 80s. The style might put some off (lots of run on sentences and dialogue from different characters not separated by punctuation) and it's really grim and disturbing in places, but it is also a very well-rounded and rewarding book, with an interesting premise and some well-drawn characters.

[Status Kev]

Just finished Nobes' book. A great read.
Now on to something completely different. Pate Way's autobiography 'A Fast Ride Out Of Here'. Sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.

[Pete647580]

Still Life by Sarah Winman

Most of the first 100 pages are set in an East End pub. Reminds me of Kumb on its better days.

[ironsonthebrain]

https://www.artgalleryclothing.co.uk/pr ... -volume-1/

Mark Baxter - The Speakeasy

Basically a collection of short essays if you like, mostly related to matters mod ( albeit in the broadest sense) , short sharp little pieces about bands, singers, musicians, footballers, designers, actors etc.. so vol 1 features among others pieces about Paul Weller, Pele, David Bowie, Michael Caine, Nina Simone, George Best, Peter Blake and The Who. As I said nice short, sharp little pieces - and the illustrations are good too.

Baxter is Millwall but don't hold it against him. He's a working class bloke who knows his stuff and has a good writing style.


I'm actually now on the third volume of these

[westham,eggyandchips]

https://www.artgalleryclothing.co.uk/pr ... -volume-1/

Mark Baxter - The Speakeasy

Basically a collection of short essays if you like, mostly related to matters mod ( albeit in the broadest sense) , short sharp little pieces about bands, singers, musicians, footballers, designers, actors etc.. so vol 1 features among others pieces about Paul Weller, Pele, David Bowie, Michael Caine, Nina Simone, George Best, Peter Blake and The Who. As I said nice short, sharp little pieces - and the illustrations are good too.

Baxter is Millwall but don't hold it against him. He's a working class bloke who knows his stuff and has a good writing style.


I'm actually now on the third volume of these

I like the sound of this. Thanks for the heads up.

[WHU Independent]

Penitent - Dan Abnett -A Warhammer 40K book

Second book in the third trilogy regarding the Inquisitors Ravenor and Eisenhorn.

It is clear that Abnett is tired of writing formulaic WH 40K books and is trying his hand at gothic horror ala Poe and Lovecraft. His writing style has changed and I'm not sure it''s for the good. The book is still a good read and highly enjoyable in parts but the mathematical nonsense and the "horror" element don't work IMHO. Also the references to the Lovecraftian mythos (The King In Yellow from Chambers and Nodens etc) are sorta trying to posit the book in that kinda cannon, but it doesn't work.

There are a few reveals though - especially as to who the King in Yellow (in a WH40K) sense is. He's either the leader of the never talked about 19th or 20th chapter and his name is....

no spoliers here

[Korea Hammer]

Kathryn Scanlan - Kick The Latch

Scanlan's 'The Dominant Animal', with its 40 highly compressed and unusual short stories was one of my favourite books of 2021, and this short novel is just as impressive. Based on transcripts of interviews with a woman who spent her life in and around the cheap race tracks of the eastern US, this blurs the line between fiction and non-fiction but creates an intensive and vividly empathetic picture of the world it describes. Strong recommend

[Metal Hammer]

The Templars - Dan Jones

I always love a bit of history and the facts and myths surrounding the Knights Templar make for fascinating reading!

[SoulCircus]

Patricia Highsmith - Deep Water. I don't think there's ever been a better writer of psychological thrillers than Highsmith, and this is another superb example. The swimming pool scene is one of the best set-pieces I've read in ages. A superbly crafted novel, perfectly paced.

[Korea Hammer]

Valeria Liuselli - The Story Of My Teeth

A brilliant book by this Mexican writer. Innovative, experimental, high-concept but accessible and fun (and often funny) to read. I loved it.

[szola]

Jose Saramago ~ Blindness

Loved that book. Still my favourite from Jose.

Since last I've been through



Quite enjoyable book about how the centre of Europe, the german lands, have influenced the histories of all European nations and beyond.



Short and sobre tale of a man in rural Ireland and his belief in kindness



A story about herman melvill, and Manhattan and Herman Melville and much more. One long breath of a thought.