What’s on my bookshelf: January

Thistles and Kiwis


So it is time again for a review of the month’s reading, a post to contribute to the what’s on your bookshelf challenge is hosted by fellow bloggers  Deb, Sue, Donna and Jo. The idea is to share what you’re reading, what you’ve enjoyed lately share – why they resonated with you, how they made you feel, who are your favourite authors and what you recommend. This month’s post also covers a couple of books from December.

First up, the detective fiction corner, which I have to say is quite a full one. Hannah Rothschild’s High Time tells the tale of Ayesha Scott, married to a wealthy and unpleasant man, who lives at the start of the book in a Cornish mansion, surrounded by art. Anyway, after she realises her husband wants to divorce her to marry a crypto currency con artist (really…), she plots and schemes to keep the house and works of art within her mother’s family. It was quite fun to read, highly unbelievable, but the end was most unsatisfactory, partly as we don’t hear what happens to her best friend who was a key character for half of the book. Fine for a summer read.

Talking about summer reads, Murder on Mustique by Anne Glanconner, is definitely a summer and beach read. This is a fun book, with murder, descriptions of the island of Mustique and its wealthy inhabitants and numerous mention of Princess Margaret (Lady Glenconner was lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret from 1971 to 2002). Perfect for when you are by the sea and in the sun.

Now to possibly my favourite (new) read of the month, Richard Osman’s The Last Devil to Die. Those of you who are fans of this series will be familiar with the characters in the Thursday Murder Club will not be disappointed. It was probably my favourite in the series. I know some of you who want to read it haven’t done so, so I will refrain from giving too much away about the plot, but there are drugs, antiques and as usual, twists to the tale.

Also in the crime fiction genre I listened to Elly Griffiths Smoke and Mirrors, a fun book set in 1950s Brighton. This is actually the second in the series, and I have the first one on order at the library.

I also borrowed from the library (hence no picture) Jens Lapidus Stockholm Delete, a thriller set in Stockholm about the criminal underworld of the city. It was OK, but didn’t grab me from the first few pages, despite the intriguing plot.

Now to something completely different…..One of my favourite ‘comfort books to return to’ is E.M. Delafield’s The Diary of a Provincial Lady. There are four volumes, and the book I have has all four in it, starting with The Diary of a Provincial Lady first published in 1930. I had read the first book before our trip, intending to return to the rest at some point over the next couple of months, but I found a copy of volume 2, The Provincial Lady Goes Further in a book shop that had a second hand English section in Nouméa for about NZ$1. I could not resist and read it immediately. Once I finish the other two books, I’ll come back to this but you can read this in the meantime.

Sticking with re-reading, encouraged by Donna over at Retirement Reflections, I picked up my old copy of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. It is such a good book, with humour, tragedy and for me at least, it really sets you firmly in a place and time, foreign to me then and now. I was trying to remember what I thought when I first read it as a young teenager. There were lots of words that were new (chifforobe sticks in my mind), foods I had no idea about (cornbread for example), but I do remember just loving it at the time, even though it was compulsory reading. Thanks Donna for making me pick this up again.

The book I enjoyed the least this month was Another Person by Kang Hwagil. You can read the synopsis here, but I would say that this doesn’t really reflect the unpleasantness of the story, characters that I felt nothing for or cared about, and at the end of the day, an unsatisfactory read. I am prepared to be contradicted on my view, but suffice to say, this was not for me.

I’ve not read a whole of non-fiction recently, but highly enjoyed Haruki Murakami’s collection of essays on being an author Novelist as a Vocation. Beautifully written on writing and the creative process, it is a lovely little volume to pick up when you need something other than summer reading.

So to cook books, and first up the second book from ex Bon Appetit Test Kitchen chef Molly Baz. More is More continues her desire to get us into the kitchen and cooking with another book of full of easy to cook recipes. It is also full of her abbreviations and ‘fun names’ (for example, Mollz Ballz are her meatballs and ‘brocc’ for broccoli), which some might find a bit grating at times. I have so far tried two things, a salmon dish with a crunchy peanut topping and beef with tomatoes and salsa matcha. Neither were ‘must do again’ dishes, but quite acceptable. I have a lot of things bookmarked as you can see so am prepared to give it another go. Oh one really annoying thing – the measurements are all US.

A very different feel is Julius Roberts The Farm Table, with its gentle tales of the English countryside and dishes cooked with love and care. No doubt some of you follow him on Instagram, and will have seen his lifestyle and cooking there. I have only just got hold of this book, but did follow his way of making pasta with courgettes and lemon, a dish I have made many times but always worth re-learning. I can see me going back to this book for more ideas, and in any case, it is a lovely read. I’ll report on other things I have made from this book as and when.

So that is my most recent reading – what have you read recently? Here are my ratings using the scheme we use in the book club I am part of, items related to the book out of 5.

  • Hannah Rothschild High Time 4 paintings (but with reservations due to the end).
  • Kang Hwagil Another Person 2 text messages
  • Harper Lee To Kill a Mockingbird 5 courtrooms
  • Elly Griffiths Smoke and Mirrors 4 magicians
  • Jens Lapidus Stockholm Delete 3 gangsters
  • Anne Glenconner Murder on Mustique 4 coral reefs (because it was perfect holiday reading).
  • E.M. Delafield The Diary of a Provincial Lady 5 letters
  • E.M. Delefield The Provincial Lady Goes Further 5 flats in London
  • Richard Osman The Last Devil to Die 5 crime solvers
  • Molly Baz More is More 3 pickles
  • Julius Robers The Farm Table – to decide!

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com or lofgren@thistlesandkiwis.com

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Published by Thistles and Kiwis

Loves summer, sunshine and cats. Beginner gardener, likes eating, cooking and reading about food

45 Comments

  2. I love books and can’t imagine a world without them, but I’m not good at reviews. I did use to faithfully record my thoughts in Goodreads but then I got out of the habit, and thought ‘who cares what I think, anyway?’ Trouble is, it does help you to remember the books because once I’ve read them they seem to disappear down a chute in the back of my mind, even the best of them!. I read the Guardian review and I do like the sound of the Provincial lady series. I don’t read cook books but Jamie Oliver is a guilty pleasure on video. I would enjoy the Murakami, but have never actually read To Kill a Mockingbird, to my shame. I started to watch the film once and grew bored. If I were to recommend a book it would be The First Toast is to Peace, by Stephen Powell. I came upon this in a strange way. He is a former Reuter’s journalist, currently living in Tavira in the Algarve, and I met him at my t’ai chi class. How bizarre is that? The book is all about his love affair with Georgia in the South Caucasus, and the struggles to unite this area with Russia looking on and meddling. I’m not at all a political creature, but I found this book and the gentle style of writing to be thoroughly charming.

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    1. I actually write the books I have read in the back of my diary ie on paper. I gave up on Good Reads as it is full of false reviews/spam/people saying nice things about their friends or bad about their foes. Your recent read sounds fascinating and how fun to have met the author.

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  4. This is an interesting pile of books you have got through reading! I usually enjoy detective novels, but have not come across the ones you mention, bar Richard Osman – now those novels are really worth reading! “To Kill a Mockingbird” was a school setwork which I taught over and again for a number of years – seeing something different in it every time. I loved the black and white version of the film too.

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  5. I have been hearing such great things about The Last Devil to Die and have decided I must read the series this year so I can see what all the fuss is about.

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  6. A very interesting set of books. I ordered Diary Of A Provincial Lady. I live close to the area where the courthouse from “to Kill A Mockingbird” is located. I would love to make some cornbread for you. I just finished What Comes Next And How To Like It, by Abigail Thomas. I just love her books. She has a way of telling her own life stories that is just so open and honest. I’m checking out some of your other reads as well. Thank you for sharing.

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    1. Hope you enjoy ‘Diary of a Provincial Lady’ – it is from 1930, so do keep that in mind, but it is funny and there is a lot one can identify with! How interesting that you live near the courthouse – I love these little connections. The book you recommended sounds really interesting – just looked it up. Will see if it is available here.

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  7. I recently read The Last Devil to Die and liked it as much as you did. What a wonderful series! And although the tone is light, there is quite a bit about grief and loss, as to be expected in a book about seniors. Parts of The Ladt Devil brought tears to my eyes.

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      1. Oh, my gosh! He writes so beautifully about grief and loss. And the response of “the gang” was touching, too. Love that series. I will wait for the next book but will read anything that he writes.

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  9. I do like Murakami. Might check out. His ‘library’ in Tokyo looks very cool – it was closed for exams the day we went, which was a bummer. You might be interested in thius review. I was trying to work out why I know the Provincial Lady when I’ve not read it nor recall the author. There’s something important about it but I can’t shake that loose in my brain….however, this is sweet. https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2020/may/11/i-wish-more-people-would-read-the-diary-of-a-provincial-lady-by-em-delafield

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  10. Somehow I have lost my love of reading books, except old ones that I have read many times before. Newspapers and magazines are acceptable but perhaps my head is packed too full of stuff already to be able to take more serious reading in.

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  11. HI, Barbara – Thank you so much for the shoutout. I am delighted that you reread and loved ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ (five courthouses is high praise indeed) To add to your experience you might want to try your (very skilled) hand at making cornbread. Cornbread has an endless variety of topping options and it pairs well with so many dishes ( soups, meatloaf, stews, beans, shepherd’s pie, roasted vegetables…. the sky’s the limit)! ❤

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  15. Your post has inspired me to reread Diary of a Provincial Lady – it’s been too long! Murder on Mustique sounds fun and, of course, Farm Table sounds right up my kitchen alley.

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    1. Diary of a Provincial Lady is fun, and Murder on Mustique too though very different of course (a definite summer read if you get my drift). I think you would enjoy ‘The Farm Table’ – well worth following Julius Roberts on Insta.

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  16. These all sound really interesting Barbara especially the Elly Griffiths series! I’ve read a few of the ones you mention and thoroughly enjoyed the Richard Osman one. Thanks for joining us for this month of what’s on your bookshelf, you always add something extra!

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  17. I’m excited to join the WOYB party. My making my way around to see what everyone else is reading. THose books sound interesting. I haven’t heard of any of them…wondering if we just don’t have the same books/authors. I guess I never really thought about it. Of course, how many millions of books are out there…haha.

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  20. Pingback: If we were having coffee…or even a cup of tea… – Thistles and Kiwis

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