Reading From My Shelves

 With the library van missing a visit due to the Royal Bank Holiday I've resorted to reading my own books which is a Very Good Idea as there are rather a lot that I've not read.

First the book I picked up from a village coffee morning recently. This is the 2nd of Ronald Blythe's collection of short pieces originally written for the Church Times. It follows the calendars of the Church Year, the farming year and his own year of travels, his garden, the people he meets, preaching and talks to lots of groups on many literary subjects.

 

 

 London Pride by Phyllis Bottom (1884-1963). Published in 1941.I read about this on Scott's Furrowed Middlebrow blog where he has a WWII list. Now and again I go through that list and then see if anything is cheap on Abebooks or Amazon and this popped up for a couple of pounds.

Ben, a boy of the London dockyard slums is 7 years old and the main character of this book he spends his time during the days of the Blitz looking after his little sister Mabel. His mother is a char lady, his father and eldest brother work on the docks. An older sister works in a shop and the twins are sent off as evacuees to Cornwall. Ben's best friend is Emily next door a street-wise nine year old whose parents are not as caring as Ben's. Together they do a bit of looting, get buried for 48 hours in a bombed house and then get bombed out of the hospital too. An unusual story written through the eyes of a child but definitely not a book for children. The TLS at the time said "her knowledge and understanding of  the character of the London slum child in particular cannot be done justice to in an outline of the book". 

 

 Saw this in a charity shop recently and thought I'd probably read it as it dates from 2017 and was originally published in 1933.  I've read most of the British Library Crime Classics as they appear but the precis rang no bells at all. So I bought it and No, it wasn't listed in my "book of books read". When I started to read it soon discovered why. Too much description - I got to page 30 and still nothing had happened - and too many long odd names - Mr Kewdingham lives in Shufflecester and is very strange man. When the family had visitors called Chaddlewick  I gave up.

 

Below is a little book and a quick read about Mabel, an owl who decided to roost in full view of everyone in Christchurch Park in Ipswich for several years from 2008. She became quite famous and raised several young. Reg Snook is a local artist and previously involved in rescuing birds of prey and the book tells the story of Mabel in the park and other owls he has 'met'.

 

Dead March for Penelope Blow, originally published in 1951, was a Christmas present from my wish list. His 50+ crime books featuring Inspector Littlejohn of Scotland Yard and date from the 40's, 50s and 60s and are gradually being reprinted, some in the British Library Crime Classics livery but many by Agora Books

Miss Penelope Blow visits Scotland Yard and asks for Inspector Littlejohn, he isn't there so she goes back the next day and the next and finally leaves a card for him. Unfortunately by the time Littlejohn sees the card and tries to contact her she has died by falling out of her bedroom window in unusual circumstances.  The Blow family are Bankers and very important in the town but among them is a touch of madness. Inspector Littlejohn has to find out what has happened without any help from the family.

There's still more than 2 weeks before the Mobile Library is round again so plenty of time to read more off the shelves although tennis from Queens Club is on TV this week so I might be watching rather than reading. I really missed the French Open which wasn't on a free channel this year so was pleased to open my Radio Times and find that the BBC had hung onto this build up to Wimbledon event.

Back Tomorrow

Sue