Book review – Wonderwall

My experience of reading Stephen King

I have limited experience of reading Stephen King. Up until 2017, I had not read any therefore sought to correct. I maybe should have researched more before I bought a book, but instead I bought the first they I came across in a charity shop; Insominia. This ended up putting me off for several more years as I found the paranormal aspect of the book too weird to engage with. At the time I also commented.

“I liked the first hundred pages or so and the epilogue, but not so keen on the middle and there was a lot of middle! The book was 760 pages.”

I did not read another Stephen King until 2021. Pet Semetary. I actually mildly enjoyed this one. Perhaps knowing there would be a paranormal element help. Rather than being bogged down by the paranormal I took the message from the that death is part of life.

My experience with Pet Semetary encouraged me to read a collection of Stephen King short stories to get more of a feel for him. I read his collection called Night Shift. I liked the story Strawberry Spring but was not that impressed with other stories.

Overall I think King’s older works set in the 70s are now starting to feel dated. I can not see myself seeking out further Stephen King but guess I would read more if another came up for a book club or in a situation away from home when limited choice of books!

All I know about love by Dolly Alderton

I read this book for a book club. I already new Dolly from reading her Sunday times column. This book is wildler than the column; I did not realise she had been such a party animal; drinking and taking drugs. In that sense her life has similarities with Caitlin Morin. For the same book club, we have previously read How to build a girl. Carlin Moran writes for Saturday tunes so I have not read her column. However her book How to build a girl were based upon her hedonistic days.

Although I have never taken drugs I could emphasise with various parts of the book; (I think) think been single more than I have been in a couple during my adult life. Certainly I have been in an out of relationships rather than having a long term relationship. Nothing will change chapter (p131) was poignantly about how friends moving on with their lives (getting boyfriend, engaged, married, having a baby) affects the life of a single girl.

Some parts had me literally laughing out loud

Her getting a taxi in the middle of night fri. London to Birmingham.

The exchange of texts from Dolly on her friend’s India’s friend to a colleague if India’s about bins.

Surprisingly there was not much actually about different men, it was more about life in general. Dolly is not yet 30, so still on a journey, it felt like she wanted to end her book with some kind of epiphany but, it was a bit weak and blah, apart from one quote near end I liked.

The quote was:

Break ups get harder with every year you get older. When you are younger you lose a boyfriend. As you get older you lose a life together.

Overall enjoyable read and should be an interesting one to discuss at book club!

Rosie Project Series

I have just read the latest book in the series; the third called the Rosie result. The books centre around Don who possibly has undiagnosed autism and Rosie. The first book is about him trying to find a partner as there is two more books in the series it is no spoiler to say he ends up with Rosie, I recommend reading how as it is funny and there are twists and turns. In the second book they have a son called Hudson. The third book jumps forward 10years or so to Hudson being 11.

Hudson has problems at school, school want him tested for autism. Don has never being tested for autism. Testing for autism was not done (or least not widely) 30 years ago. Therefore I think there is a generation of 30 / 40 / 50 year olds in the workplace; that today would have been diagnosed with autism. How would a diagnosis of autism have affected those diagnosed would they be doing better jobs, be happier … Or would their creativity have been quelled, their potential stifled by being labelled autistic and therefore expectations of them lowered? These are the dilemmas Rosie and Don face trying to decide whether to have Hudson tested. If autism is a spectrum to what extent is Hudson just a typical child?

The book is thought provoking, in terms of autism and also the expectations of Mother’s in work place verses Fathers.

I look forward to the next instalment in the Rosie series.

July Summary

Finished more books this month than any month so far in 2019. Because had more time to read as holiday, finished Three Wishes which been reading for months when at my parents and listened to One Day on audio book.

British Isle Cruise Summary

Books

What happened that night by Shalia Flanagon. Read whilst visiting Ireland.

What happened that Night book review

The Girl who came home, a fictional book about the Titanic which heard al ot about on holiday as cruised from Southampton to Cobh and Belfast.

Anyone read any fictional stories based upon the Titanic – Review of the Girl who came home

Three Wishes by Liane Moriarity.

This was a reread which still enjoyed second time round. It is about grown up triplets. It is a good story around interesting complex characters. I like the touch of the little chapters interspersed, through book where there is anecdotes from people with no real connection to the triplets that remember them being so noticeable as triplets.

Cuckoo by Sophie Drapper. A reasonable thriller.

My name is Emma Barton. Like Olive Kitteridge by same author, it is a book where not much happens, knowing this was author’s style, unlike with Olive then I could accept and enjoy as was not waiting for anything in particular to happen. Aesthetically my copy’s front cover consisted of two leaves with a cut out square on top cover to peek at second cover.

One day. Love this book. Would have loved a sequalae but in absence of a sequalae I have attempted to imagine what happened next and document by writing blog as Dexter’s daughter; Jasmine To help me write Jasmine’s blog I have been listening to it on audio book. I have also dipped into my battered copy. In the process of research I discovered this year was 10th anniversary of One Day being published and a anniversary addition has been published with a yellow cover and extract of Nicholas’s new book (not read it yet).

Listening to One Day I have found it more amusing than the two times I have read it.

Links to the blog posts so far that I have written for Jasmine’s blog are in the attached and there will be more during August.

Films

First Man

https://wonderwall360blog.wordpress.com/2019/07/22/first-man-on-the-moon-film-review/

Yesterday – loved it!

Yesterday Film Review

Christopher Robin

Watched this in background; I guess it was charming if cliched story of Christopher Robin as a stressed out adult rediscovering childhood joys through his old friend’s Winnie Poo and go.

The Martian: the second space book I have ever read!

When I was composing a list of top 5 books set in space for Bionic Bookworm Top 5 Tuesday, I realised I had only read one. Lots of other people had the Martian on the list, so that inspired me to read and it turned out I had a friend with a copy.

https://bionicbookwormblog.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/top-5-tuesday-april-2019-topics/comment-page-2/#comment-19713

https://wonderwall360blog.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/top-5-tuesday-april-2019-topics/

I got to the end! More than that towards the end I was eager to find out what would happen to the lead character, so I it had hooked me. There is a lot of technical detail, which did not really compute but, created an ambience and could still float through.

For several chapters there was just the lead character and I think other characters were introduced at just the right time or otherwise may have become bored.

I would not rule out reading something similar and would actually quite like a sequele…SPOILER ALERT 🚨…..

I want to know what happened when he was rescued by his crew and their journey back to Earth and beyond!

Memoirs of a ChildBookworm: My Naughty Little Sister

Like Lucy Managham I enjoyed My Naughty little sister books, by Dorothy Edward.

https://wonderwall360blog.wordpress.com/2019/04/27/memoirs-of-a-bookworm-by-lucy-mangan-review/

Being an older of two sisters, I felt I identified with the girl in this book. I also have a feeling that she later like myself got a baby brother.

The most vivid memory is of the naughty sister breaking a oven by stuffing bread she did not want to eat in it.

Memoirs of a childhood Bookworm by Lucy Mangan Review

This book is as the subheading on the front of the pretty cover, says is literally a memoir of the author’s childhood reading. It is nostalgic, remembering books, I have also read, the author is just a little older than me so only a small generation gap meant a lot of overlap in books read. Overlaps from early years: Hungry caterpillar by Eric Clarke, Shelia Hughes, Barber the Elephant (memoirs had no illustrations but, in my mind I can conjour up Barber in his green suit), Topsy and Tim. To Family from one end street, Roald Dahl and a whole chapter on Enid Blyton. Up to teenage years with Sweet valley high and Judy Blume. See Wonderwall360 instragram for book cover and full list of books featured in the memoirs.

This is a book have read for book club; I think it will provoke interesting discussion on what different people have read. Indeed having read other’s reviews of the book, it certainly brings up memories and perhaps It shows we all have a book in us; OUR memories of childhood reading (or at least blog posts!). In fact found this is not the only book of this name there is also one by Patricia Craig.

More than just listing books, it also delved into some history of book / author, which could be interesting. On the other hand, if not book / author interested in this could be tedious.

I found the footnotes irritating, it was difficult to know whether to jump from placeholder to footnote or wait for more convenient place, but was not formatted well in terms of where footnote was / end of pages. Some of the footnotes took up lots of space. For example, foot note took about a page and a half; split over two pages. Additionally I feel, if text of footnote, important should have been part main of text.

The book, provoked some thoughts about getting children to read but nothing earth shattering to me. Again however it may be an interesting tangent to discuss at book club or be interesting as the author said to help parent’s of bookworms understand them. Overall thinking about this book has been enjoyable and hopefully the forthcoming book club will be enjoyable.

Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates (book review)

Another of my boyfriend’s feminist collection. For bedtime reading; it has been a bit of a slog!

Each chapter of the book starts with some statistics. There is then tweets that have come under hashtag everyday sexism, other examples from people author spoke to and discussion by author. It is very much about media and social media so perhaps students of such disciplines would be interested in the book. It talks a lot about what may be a trigger object for some; rape.

One statistic in the book is: A woman with a child under 11 is 45% cent less likely to be employed than a man. UK equalities review 2007. Aside from fact this seems a rather old statistic for a book published in 2014, Bates does not in my mind disec, the statistic enough. In my mind it is not necessarily so simple. Some women may choose to work less to care for children; albeit this decision may influenced by preconceived ideas,that it is woman should stay at home; but is this necessarily blatant sexism? Being a biologist I think the book ignores the, difference in male and female biology which may affect differing role in society.

The book does not go into what i think would have been another interesting topic: the sexism of patriarchal society such as women being given away at weddings.

Overall, although the book discusses some interesting topics, the book was not revolutionary to me and I have read similar discussions in magazines and did not nesssecarily appreciate it all in one book. Maybe other’s who have read less on the topics would appreciate the book more.

The woman in the window book by AJ Finn Review (No spoilers)

The woman in the window – A thriller style book. Some of the usual techniques used; flashbacks, a strange incidence (death?) and an unreliable narrator. In this case the narrator is agoraphobic (she never leaves house) and alcoholic (she drinks wine constantly during waking hours).

I saw through one of the the plot devices that was later revealed, straight away. As to the rest rather, than constantly second guessing, I was too baffled as to what was going on to be constantly guessing. The big big reveal therefore made sense, even though not predicted it. There followed some climatic drama at the end. Overal although not an outstanding thriller; not the worse and very readable.