December Reads
I always get great satisfaction from a book that someone has recommended to me which I have gone on to really enjoy. It is almost more satisfying when someone tells me that they have really enjoyed a book that I have recommended. So I have been keeping note of the books that I enjoyed the most this year and they will be my gifts to you for Christmas. I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did and I am always happy to hear your opinion on the books that I’ve recommended or your own recommendations.
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
Fiction
This was a book recommended to me which I was very dubious of as it is set during the First World War which, if I’m honest I didn’t know much about and didn’t want to know about. Nevertheless I began to read and found myself engrossed in the story, shocked at the horrors of trench warfare and deeply moved by the truth in this work of fiction. There are not many novels that I would reread but this is one that I will keep on my shelf for another time.
The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet
Fiction
It was my cousin that told me about this book and although I had heard of the title it was again not a book I would have chosen from the shelf, but I am so glad I did. This may be off putting to some as it is over 1000 pages, but don’t let that stop you. The story is set in the turbulent times of twelfth-century England and woven around its central characters creating a rich tapestry of that era. When civil war, famine, religious strife and battles over royal succession tore lives and families apart, The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of the building of a magnificent cathedral. For that reason this book may appeal to the engineers among you as it is based around the quest to build a cathedral as tall and as bright as possible. You don’t have to be an engineer to enjoy this epic historical saga.
Blue Skies and Black Olives by John Humphrys
946.5076092
I don’t know if many people have a bucket list, but I do and thanks to this book that list has gotten a little longer – I’ve added another place I would love to visit. John Humphrys will be familiar to a lot of people as author, journalist and presenter of radio and television. In this book however he reports on his own trials and tribulations while building a Villa in Greece overlooking the Aegean with the help of his son Christopher. Sometimes comic, at other times exasperation, here father and son tell a story by turns hilarious and revealing about a country that intrigues and infuriates in equal measure.
As always these books will be on display on the shelf inside the door of the library but we only have one copy of each. So if you would like to borrow one of these books for over the Christmas break get down to the library as soon as possible.
Merry ChristMas and a Very happy new year froM all the library staff.