Category: Literature

The Honoured Society

I had to wait a few minutes on the ground floor of Waterstones flagship branch on Piccadilly while Robert went upstairs to buy the new John Niven (not to be confused with David N).

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Categorised as Literature

Floating Voters

Countries in the Former Soviet Union have a broader franchise than many western countries, including the UK.

Zuleika

You may remember a post about Max Beerbohm some eighteen months ago.

Oliver Goldsmith

It was a good Grand National for Ireland. The winner, Tiger Roll, is trained at Summerhill in Co Meath on my sister’s doorstep. Another Irish horse came second at 66/1, Magic of Light, trained by Jessica Harrington, my brother-in-law’s sister. Ireland has always punched above its weight and not just on the turf.

Knockfane

A Homan Potterton is as reliable as the eponymous boiler so I have no hesitation in recommending Knockfane, Homan’s first novel, although I’ve not read it yet. Hitherto he has published two acclaimed Memoirs.

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Categorised as Literature

Blog Lite

There is not going to be much here for the next week or so as today I go to Kyev or as you might prefer Kiev. Presidential election on Sunday.

A Murder of Quality

John le Carré wrote A Murder of Quality in 1962, the year before he wrote The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. The former introduces George Smiley being a detective after a murder at a famous English public school.

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Categorised as Literature

Walkers

Gladwyn Jebb was a distinguished civil servant, diplomat and politician. References to him abound in Kenneth Rose’s Journals and, to a lesser extent, in Harold Nicolson’s Diaries. Curiously Chips Channon only mentions Gladwyn once in his Diaries.