Books, Books, Books

As a lot for friends and family know I am a total bookworm and have been a member of a public library since a child in my early teens. The first library I joined it was my Dad that put me forward to join. It was in Peterlee Co Durham.The beginning of a life long enjoyment of owning a library ticket.

I am just going to tell you about the books I loved as a child and books that I have read and enjoyed.

The first ones I remember are stories about girls who went to boarding schools where I enjoyed reading about midnight feasts, hockey matches, etc. Went on the devour the Secret 7 and the Famous Five by Enid Blyton….even re-reading as an adult.

Being old enough to cross the invisible line from the children’s section to adults was a thrill….akin to sneaking back into the children’s section as an adult…I do enjoy a bit of teenage fiction now and again.

I have a wide interest of all sorts but one author I really cannot bring myself to read in Barbara Cartland. I will read Agatha Christie and have to admit I find it very un PC especially Miss Marple.

I will try and read many different genres…In particular, I enjoy “end of the world scenarios”….disaster stuff and the trials and tribulation of how people cope. What started this off was the first one of this genre I read….”On The Beach” by Nevil Shute. It has also been a movie of the same name starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner. This is set in Australia in the early ’60s…..Nuclear bomb s had been dropped all over the civilized world and the Northern Hemisphere had been destroyed and Radiation was sweeping into the Southern Hemisphere and the story is about a group of people living the last 6 months of their lives. I remember getting very upset about this as the year it was set in was just a couple of years in the future. I guess it was one I may have sneaked out of the adult section before I should have.

I was in my 20’s when I did English Lit/lang. O level GCE at night school and was pleased with the B and C grades I got. I have never forgotten the 4 books I had to read. They were…

1. Ring of Bright Water by Gavin Maxwell….a delightful story about an author living in the wilds of Scotland with an otter has a friend/pet.

2.Twelfth Night by Shakespeare…..the only play by the Bard that I have ever read.

3. Lord of the Flies….a story and characters I have never forgotten…” Jack” and “Fatty”

4. Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austin…….who does not love Mr. Darcey. Recently I have a novel called “Mr. Darceys Journel” written from Mr. Darcey’s point of view and “Death Comes to Pemberley” by P D James….set 5/6 years into their marriage and involves a murder.

Other artists, I admire………………….

Barbara Erkstine…I love the idea of time travel and this is done well….the first one I read is “Lady of Hay”.

Maeve Binchley…Firefly Summer…the one I read first and my favourite.

Jean Auel wrote a 6 series called “Earth’s Children” set in prehistoric times at the point where the Homo Sapiens became modern man. The six books cover the life of “Ayla” and takes us through her life from a 5-year-old girl separated from her people due to an earthquake that separates her from her people and she is found by a clan of people…Neanderthals, and the differences between us. Takes us through her life until her twenties….the trials and tribulations she has to conquer. the people she loves… it’s one series I would recommend to anyone.

I will leave this now and I can always if you lovely people want to do the book ones.