Philip Spires Commonplace Book

Latest Blog Posts - Philip Spires Commonplace Book

• The Lost Girl by D H Lawrence
  on Dec 10, 2012
  In a very famous context, D. H. Lawrence is himself famous for using a word beginning with ‘f’, a word that is infamous rather than famous. Mentioning this word and then repeating it got the author into some serious trouble that was not resolved...
• A Change Of Climate by Hilary Mantel
  on Dec 10, 2012
  In A Change Of Climate Hilary Mantel presents what is essentially a family saga, but in settings that add extra dimensions to the expected dilemmas. The family in question is the Eldreds. Ralph and Anna have shared an unusual if not an altogether unc...
• A Text-Book on the History of Painting by John Charles Van Dyke
  on Nov 24, 2012
  A Text-Book on the History of Painting by John Charles Van Dyke was published a century ago. Today it offers the modern reader not only potted, period critiques of important artists, but also a remarkable insight into how aesthetics change from gener...
• The Dalkey Archive by Flann O'Brien
  on Nov 16, 2012
  Brian O’Nolan was an Irish civil servant who wrote fiction and journalism under pseudonyms. Flann O’Brien was the name O’Nolan used on his fiction and it is the name of the author of The Dalkey Archive, a metafictional novel that veers from the...
• The Sense Of An Ending by Julian Barnes
  on Nov 12, 2012
  In some ways The Sense Of An Ending by Julian Barnes is far too short. Tony Webster, the novel’s central character and first person narrator, lives most of his adult life in relative anonymity. He marries, works to earn his living, raises a daughte...
• Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
  on Nov 9, 2012
  Barbara Kingsolver’s novel Prodigal Summer is eventually both surprising and deceptive. It is surprising because of the twists and turns of the lives of its characters, all of whom become completely, sometimes endearingly, always engagingly real. T...
• Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris
  on Nov 5, 2012
  In Blackberry Wine Joanne Harris presents a novel about Jay, who is a writer. Some years ago Jay created a character in Three Summers With Jackapple Joe, the novel that made his name. But since then, Jay’s products have been mediocre and his career...
• The Stranger In My Life by Janet Holt and Helen Parker
  on Oct 31, 2012
  “Sorry, please look after the animals” was scribbled on a note that Fred pinned to a door. It was intended for the eyes of Janet Holt, who had helped out on Fred’s farm for years and had become his business partner. Presumably, Janet heeded the...
• England In The Late Middle Ages (1307-1536) by A. R. Myers
  on Oct 26, 2012
  England In The Late Middle Ages (1307-1536) by A. R. Myers forms the fourth volume of The Pelican History Of England. Now sixty years old, this particular text examines a period of transition, perhaps from the traditional towards the modern, at least...
• The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
  on Oct 22, 2012
  Edgar Drake is a piano tuner and is the principal character of Daniel Mason’s novel. Based in late nineteenth century London, he is also something of a specialist. No doubt he will tune any instrument, but Edgar Drake advertises himself as a specia...

Loading Comments...

Comments

• {ds_PageNumber}
• {ds_PageNumber}

{ds_PageTotalItemCount} commentcomments

{pvComments::user_name}

{pvComments::date}

Delete 

{pvComments::comment}

Post a Comment