Toast: The Story of a Boy's Hunger by Nigel Slater

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was not sure about this book when I first picked it up. It's different from the books I usually read and not knowing Nigel Slater (and apparently, after talking to friends, I realise I'm in a minority here) it was just another memoir. However, after a couple of short chapters, I really started to enjoy it. At first I thought it would be impossible for the story of his childhood to be told through anecdotes about food; that it was a novelty that would get old quickly. I was wrong.

The chapters are short and often leave you wanting more detail, but not needing more. It is very cleverly written, so that at first it seems more about the food, but as he builds up the picture of what his life was like, we are drawn in, anxious to discover how things turned out.

He has an unusual style of writing some chapters in the present tense as if the events are unfolding as he writes, and other chapters in the past tense. It works well and is done so cleverly that it does not leave the reader confused about the order of events as I would have anticipated. He also has the ability to let the reader know what is happening, while he himself was unaware of what was happening, like the time he heard his parents talking and thought they were having another baby and wondered why they hadn't told him yet.

Although this story is not all about food, I'm sure any chef reading Nigel Slater's book would identify with many of the tales he tells later in the book about his experience in Hotel kitchens. This book made me cringe, sigh, laugh and cry. I recommend it to anyone who likes reading interesting memoirs, especially fans of the TV chef.

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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Just like the first three books in the Harry Potter series, after reading all of the books a few years ago, I have just re-read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire with my children (12 & 7). They are loving this series and have really enjoyed this book too.


What I loved most about this book though, was that there was so much going on. Apart from the Triwizard Tournament, there were so many other threads to follow and even right up to the very last pages of the book, there were questions we wanted answers to, such as who Fred and George were blackmailing and why, and how Rita Skeeter was getting her information.


They are all great books to read aloud, with interesting and well rounded characters, fantastic description and exciting storylines. I highly recommend them for parents to read to their children.

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Book Flame: 13 Day's of Halloween Madness: Interview and Givea...

Book Flame: 13 Day's of Halloween Madness: Interview and Givea...: Welcome to Book Flame's 13 days of Halloween Madness!

Click on the link above to take you to Book Flame's blog to find out what this is about.

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I went on a real journey with this book. I picked it up on recommendation from a friend and after reading the first few chapters, I began asking myself whether or not I should continue reading. It's not that it wasn't interesting; indeed the event around which the book revolves is controversial and, due to our natural tendency to be drawn towards other people's private lives and tragedy, is intriguing, but I believe the fact that it's written in the format of letters to Franklin makes it hard for the author to create suspense. In addition to this, the vocabulary which is diverse is sometimes too obscure making it hard on the reader, even a reader with a good vocabulary.

I took a break from the book, thinking that perhaps if I went back to it in a few weeks with a fresh pair of eyes and a different frame of mind, I might find it easier to read. But after returning to the book, I still found little to grab my attention, to make me gasp in surprise, to make me think, 'Ooh, I certainly wasn't expecting THAT to happen!' By half way through I was almost ready to give up, only spurred on by my own obsessive need not to leave a book half read.

Then about half way through, an event suddenly creates some suspense and the story builds around this making it instantly more interesting. So after struggling to keep going through the first half of the book, I could not now put it down. The storyline was gripping; I wanted to know how this would turn out. From that point onwards I knew I was not going to put this book down until I had finished. It was fantastic.

The author has written about things we don't want to think about. As a mother, reading this book is, of course, thought provoking, but it's also frustrating. I found myself wanting to shout at Franklin, not understanding why nobody could see what Eva could. I kept asking myself the same questions, long after I finished the book; was it her fault? What if...?

This is a book I will not forget for a long time. When the Daily Mail stated that it was 'Harrowing', they were not exaggerating. It's a book I would recommend to others with warnings: 

1. Keep reading, no matter how hard going it is. 

2. Don't make assumptions

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Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robison

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow! John Elder Robison is a fantastic story teller and what an amazing story he has to tell. I picked up this book because I am interested in reading about Asperger's from the point of view of someone who has lived with it, but I continued reading because it was so compelling.

There was nothing about this book I didn't like. It was funny, sometimes because he was intending to be funny and other times just because he was being so blunt and logical, I could see exactly where he was coming from. It was sad, particularly at times when he describes his awful childhood with parents who had many serious problems of their own. It is hard being a person with Asperger's even today, but back in the 70s when it was not a recognised condition, he was made to feel like he had a personality defect and would never come to any good. The exciting and unbelievable adventures he tells of in his book show that he did not simply accept and play the role he was given by people who didn't know any better. He took opportunities given to him and made new ones for himself.

Through reading this book, I have gained an insight into the world of someone with Asperger's, but have also been inspired to make the most of life (and to make up my own functional names for people!)

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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book and fear one of my usual 'thrown together' reviews will not do it justice, so I'll be short (if that is possible for me), sweet (erm...) and to the point (?). Let's see...

I was so surprised by some of the low ratings this book has received. I guess it's not for everyone. It is definitely for me. Since the moment I read the blurb, I wanted to read this book. I eagerly awaited its publication and was excited to be the first to read the library copy (not being able to afford it myself). From the moment I opened it, I wanted to keep reading and not put it down until I'd finished (and even then, not put it down as the book is so beautiful, with its black edged pages and creatively designed sleeve covering the red edged hardcover underneath.

The Night Circus was everything I hoped it would be and more. It is beautifully written and engaging to the end. My only disappointment? I want to go to the Night Circus, but it never comes here :(

I will definitely read this book again and look forward to more from this author. 

Have a look at Erin Morgenstern's Flax Golden Tales too. They give you a taste of the wonderfully descriptive writing you can expect in the book. 

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This made me laugh so much I thought it worth blogging rather than just sharing on 'facebook' (excuse my bad language!)

Twelve Years Today...

Twelve years today I sat waiting for the engineer to arrive to fix my microwave. One day past my due date, I could not imagine being without my microwave when the baby arrived. In fact, I could not imagine how anything might happen; I'd never had a baby before. Those were the beautiful days before the word miscarriage ever entered my mind let alone passed my lips. It was an exciting time of anticipation.

The microwave man arrived on time, fixed the problem and advised me that the door release was a little stiff and if I had a little oil, he'd gladly sort it out for me. So, twelve years today, I popped down to the garage, located the small tin of 3 in 1 and, not wanting to leave an unknown man in the house alone for too long, hastily jogged back up the steps towards the house.Unfortunately, the steps being uneven, I got a much closer look at the steps than I had intended, leaving me with cut knees and an unattractive large purple bruise on my leg. At those times, you just want your mum to rush over and pick you up, brush you down and generally give you some sympathy. I was 25 and that was not going to happen, so I pushed my rounded self up, retrieved the oil can which had been flung to the ground as I'd tumbled, and ambled up to the house. The man quickly fixed the microwave and after noticing that I was visibly shaken, ascertained that I was not seriously hurt and then left.

I did not make it to more than 2 days past my due date. The jolt on the steps had been enough to encourage the baby that it was time to leave and my beautiful daughter was born at 11.33 on 6th October 1999. It was the start of a journey. An interesting, educational, fun-filled, exciting, scary journey with twists and turns. I do not need to take you on now. It is a journey which always takes me places I never expect to go and which, no matter how difficult it gets at times, I value, appreciating more than many that some people do not have their tickets stamped and have to watch from the platform. I am lucky to have had the opportunity.

But how much I have learnt about those things people don't talk about, and nobody can explain why, but we just don't talk about them?...

You should not talk about miscarriage; it makes people uncomfortable, they don't know what to say. In any case, by the third time it happens, they are bored of hearing about it, albeit in hushed whispers, and are out of sympathy.

Oh yes, people have noticed that your child doesn't seem to like other children, but don't mention it because it's not appropriate.

If I tell you that my child has 'special needs' It takes me a long time to gather the courage to use the term. I must first pass the induction period of being stared at because my child behaves differently and does not conform, through making excuses when people (they obviously don't know the rules) ask awkward questions or compare their socially accepted 'amazing' child with mine, on to telling people I meet that my child has 'special needs', making excuses even before they meet my child, just in case they notice something and make judgements.

Sometimes I have felt like shouting STOP! I WANT TO GET OFF! But, of course, it won't stop. You can't get off. Now, we sit together on our journey, laughing (especially at other people's reactions), watching and noticing just how odd so-called 'normal' people are, contented to be travelling together and neither of us looking for the exit.

Twelve years later, when I think of the days before my microwave broke, do I sound old when I say, those were the days?