What's the Story in Dalamory » reading

Sunday Priorities

freda — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 15:42:21 +0000

At church this morning we had a visitor from the Leprosy Mission Scotland. The speaker spoke movingly of the people – mainly in developing countries – who are afflicted with this disease today. There is a cure but because of ignorance and fear, sufferers delay going for help. It is a disease of poverty – spread rather like TB – and made worse by poor housing and hygiene. I’ve written about leprosy briefly here, and certainly have learned far more about the history of the illness worldwide than I had known.

Poor housing, poverty, fear, ignorance, lack of discipline…… all endemic in areas where leprosy flourishes. All equally present in our own society as instanced by the riots/looters and sheer violence and criminality over the past week. The Sunday Papers and pundits are voicing all sorts of theories, some of them every bit as violent in their vitriole, as the original participants themselves.

The theories include the following:

Greed
Lack of Education
Poverty
Gang culture
Laziness
Unemployment
Benefits “trap”
Drugs and alcohol
Single parenting
Lack of good role-model
No male influence in the household

You can probably add in many more ideas of your own. What strikes me today is the way that people are struggling to make sense of what happened. It is clear that many of the supposed reasons have their roots in the same culture as for leprosy. I suspect that the Leprosy Mission is supported like other charities, by both regular and one off contributions of money, and also through legacies. It’s not so easy to know what to do to make things better about our young people.

It is also much more difficult to try and fix people, as it were, especially when Human Rights can be so misused. What on earth are women thinking of when they march in scanty clothes declaring the right to be sluts? Or am I just getting past my sell-by date?

I long to see speakers visiting churches, politicians, local groups, with concrete ideas for ways to make things better amongst disaffected young people. This coming week thousands of children will be starting school for the first time, here in Scotland, the biggest thing we can do is to ensure that they leave school able to read, write and do standard arithmetic. That way everybody can engage in discussion and in working together to ensure a fairer society.

Enid Blyton

freda — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 22:11:30 +0000

Being in a reflective frame of mind has taken me down some by-ways into childhood. Like many a post-war child I couldn’t get enough of Enid Blyton.

Yesterday I finished looking at the DVD about her life – Enid. Perhaps I should say that it was loosely about her life, for I had the feeling that we were being given a caricature without any explanation or depth, other than what the imagination could conjure up.

It was hard to watch, especially when her books meant such a lot to me in childhood. My early years were not exactly straight-forward, so I was definitely one of the children Enid wrote for who wanted to escape from the humdrum of life. There wasn’t a lot of colour in my mind’s pictures of my memories of the 1950′s – The Famous Five and Mallory Towers gave me extra friends and family that were missing in my own life. The film was well portrayed, Helena Bonham Carter is indeed a genius at portraying biographical characters, she seems to be able to mold her looks and personality into the person portrayed.

The original biography by Barbara Stone, is probably worth adding to the book list as the write-ups suggest that it is a “warts and all” look at her life, showing her success as a writer and her seeming inability to be a close and loving mother to her two children, whilst she displays tremendous kinship with her young readers.

The other book that I found interesting is Looking for Enid by Duncan McLaren. It is more of a travelogue and journey through both places and writings…… interesting in its own way, but as is the case with such a personal perspective, it does rely heavily on the experiences of McLaren himself.

So there you have it. The reason for my love of reason is the love of a genre of fiction that rested my spirit. Blyton’s world of plenty and adventure was a comfortable and safe one. What do you think of her – author and person?

Life as it is

freda — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:36:42 +0000

Readers of long-standing may remember the saga of the porch being built. In the end it took a total of 4 years. However, it is now one of my favourite places to sit and meditate or to read and watch the birds at the feeders.

The pheasant this morning sent me scampering for the camera. You can see the dank, dreary weather; I know the photo isn’t all that great but it gives a true picture of life at Dalamory just now. In the summer the sun shines right into the windows and lights up everywhere; in the winter it’s lovely to be warm inside and yet to have the sense of the garden all around.

As a follow-on from the discussion about care of the elderly and palliative care, you may like to look at a moving story here, where a woman called Amy Berman describes her experiences on being diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. It helps to give a fuller understanding of the dichotomy between health carers and those seeking the chance to make the most of the limited time they have left.

Books you have read

freda — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:05:31 +0000

This list from BBC3 is going round the internet and facebook like a rash. I just can’t avoid it any longer, so here goes.

For Instructions:

• Copy this list.

• Bold those books you’ve read in their entirety.

• Italicize the ones you started but didn’t finish or read only an excerpt.

• Underline the ones you really want to read

1.The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. *Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen *
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman – (copy on the shelf to read)
4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Berniers
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D’Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones’s Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight’s Children, Salman Rushdie

Oh dear and I thought I read a lot. Back to the bookshelves.

Reading

freda — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 16:53:12 +0000

Have been enjoying a bit of a readathon these last few days. The book review comes shortly, but today I just wanted to revel in the sheer pleasure of reading. My memories of reading go back a very long way. In fact, I could read a fair bit before I started at primary school. And once school started it was a tremendous incentive to good behaviour to be amongst the few who finished their work in time to give them some space in the book corner.

I was fortunate growing up in a home where both my parents were readers. They belonged to the local libraries, both Local Authority and private. If I remember rightly it was Boots the Chemist who had a small library of books that were more modern than the public one. The fee was each time you changed a book so that produced its own limiting factor. Looking back, I remember my mother as liking slightly old fashioned novels, whilst my father had to read books on economics and commerce as part of his external degree. That was a time when returning soldiers were being encouraged to better themselves by gaining all sorts of qualifications. Dad was part of the occupying forces in Germany and became interested in transport infrastructure there. Mum kept me going by suggesting writers like Rider Haggard and Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tales in the style of Indiana Jones, what fun.

Throughout my life reading has been a constant and abiding solace. It is a tragedy when people leave school without the ability to enter into a marvellous world of education and entertainment. A recent study suggested that online communication and the internet is reducing the attention span of students. There is a tendency to fact-hop and scan chunks of information and surf from site to site. There is even a trend of thought that advises how to discuss famous books that you’ve never read. What a waste.

Happy reading.

Book recommendation

freda — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 06:36:10 +0000

The Nightingale’s Nest by Sarah Harrison. A most unusual but compelling read. It is in the form of a personal “memoir” of a woman in her 65th year – perhaps the reason I found it so interesting. She draws character and plot out of observation and tantalising glimpses of story. I shall definitely look out for more of her books.

Library van

freda — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:33:11 +0000

The library van did not appear today. Much missed as most of the books have been read. Either the van must have broken down or the regular driver is on holiday. Our track presents a considerable challenge for the unwary. Makes me realise how much I appreciate the service.

Reading

freda — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:46:07 +0000

Have just finished three books. One by Lesley Pearce – a bog-standard holiday read, but a good story nonetheless. A second book was worse than the worst of the Mills and Boon – not that I have ever read any M&B, therefore it is a prejudice and a presumption. One is allowed them in the elderyears. The third book was “What are old people for?” by WH Thomas. Now it was a worthy tome with a lot of interesting ideas. As an elder I liked his premis that old people will save the world. But I am still not quite sure how, even having read the book. I suspect I shall read it again, but need a rest first. Back to the library pile……

Oh yes – what I wanted to show was the eclectic selection that is always on the go.

Occupation for a rainy day

freda — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:18:34 +0000

The best occupation for a rainy day?

Getting into a book which has 1097 pages. And No – I haven’t read the last page.

Luxury

freda — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:07:55 +0000

My definition of luxury?
A whole shelf of books waiting to be read.
And six more have just arrived from Amazon, thanks to a recent birthday present.

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