Rory Clements writes so well that I always know it will be a good read.
This is the 8th book of his series about American Professor Tom Wilde, a Cambridge University History Lecturer who has been working with MI5 all through the World War II.
It is 1947 and Wilde hopes to return to just lecturing and university work when he gets called to help again. Freya Bentall, a senior MI5 officer no longer knows who to trust as it seems Soviet leader Joseph Stalin has decided to send in his master of 'Special Tasks' to create chaos in MI5 and to protect his communist super-spy who holds all the secrets of the Atomic bomb, which every country wants.
She calls up Wilde, whose loyalty is unquestionable, to ask him to get close to three people she has doubts about which means getting involved with criminal gangs and the world of the artistic elite. All the action takes place during the winter of 1947 when the temperature never rose above freezing for weeks, the snow fell and put paid to almost all transport movement and there were frequent power cuts.
Wilde's wife is in London studying to be a doctor - she has to pretend to be unmarried - and their 6 year old son is being looked after by a new nanny and soon his Cambridge home and university rooms are threatened.
The second book was non-fiction by Patrick Grant , best known for being a judge on The Great British Sewing Bee since 2013.
' This is a passionate and revealing book about loving clothes but hating the way they're made, about everything wrong with the fashion industry today, and how to set it right'
This was an interesting read by someone who knows the fashion industry so well after his years of working in clothing factories, tailors and then owning a clothing business.
He had some interesting facts
- The Average person has five times as many clothes as they did just 50 years ago
- 100 billion garments are produced worldwide each year
- 30% of garments made are never sold
- One bin lorry full of clothing is dumped in landfill or burned every second
- Despite having clothes that are never worn most people still buy more
Two good reviews. I must get back into Rory Clements books again. I was really horrified to read this week that out of every 200 donations donated to charity shops, only FOUR are saleable. And furthermore, the price of "rag" - the money they can get for selling textile waste - has fallen significantly.
ReplyDeleteThere is some real rubbish handed into charity shops, people think that it's better than throwing away
DeleteThe clothes industry is a perfect example of commercial practices at their worse, like you I don't enjoy shopping and bottom of my list would be clothes.
ReplyDeleteIf only I was two sizes smaller I'd find lots more in charity shops!
DeleteI hate clothes shopping these days, in fact I have for a while, so I just live in jeans and shirts or t-shirts in summer. My oldest son is getting married in a couple of years and I'm already dreading having to try and find a dress of some description.
ReplyDelete'LESS' is working it's way towards the top of my reading list, but there a couple of books before it.
Jeans that fit my bum are always too big on the waist for me, even jeggings fall down
DeleteBoth RC books sound well worth reading.
ReplyDeleteRory Clements writes very well
DeleteThe first book sounds most interesting.
ReplyDeleteHe is an excellent author
DeleteBoth of these sound very good but in very different ways.
ReplyDeleteI got a bit cross with 'Less' - he could have written less and said the same!
DeleteI enjoyed Less but like you
ReplyDeletePatrick was preaching to the converted. Catriona
DeleteThere are so few clothes shops left now - almost has to be online
DeleteThere is only one Rory Clement book at my library so I will check it out next time I go...
ReplyDeleteI buy a lot of my shirts and tops at resale shops. I wear my clothes for years and years and year now that I am retired. I just want to be comfy in my clothes now.
A shame there is only one Rory Clements for you - he is a good writer
DeleteI get most of my clothes from my Aunt, who's 93 now! We're roughly the same size. She and her late husband became rather wealthy and she enjoyed/enjoys buying good quality clothes. Whenever she cleans out her wardrobe I get the rejects by way of my Mum. Ideal! I hate clothes shopping; nothing ever fits! Or feels nice!
ReplyDeleteI cannot wear manmade fibers, they make me sweat terribly. This means that I can skip most shops, so that's speedy shopping.
Wow amazing to have a 93 year old to pass things to you - that must be interesting
DeleteA relative of mine worked in the clothing industry, and said although there are different widths (12, 14, 16, etc), most clothes are designed for a woman who is 5'4" high with a B cup bra. So at 5'7" with a D cup bra, most clothes are too high in the bust and waist for me, and too tight across the bust unless I buy a larger size, which means the waist and shoulders are then too big. Surely the answer is 'make on demand'. We could be measured by computer, and carry a computer card with these measurements embedded in it, we order the style we want, everything fits, so there are no unwanted clothes made, and no waste.
ReplyDeleteThat is a wonderful dream! would be perfect
DeleteI need to get into some new authors, I've read virtually all the books by my half dozen or so favourite authors.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that some publishers like British Library Crime Classics are reprinting old books - there is a big store of books that might appear again
DeleteAs I have been going through my wardrobe, I quite agree that now we have way more clothing than ever before.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Interesting. I don't really read a lot of non-fiction books. I do need to read more of them!
ReplyDeleteI have to say that the clothes situation is quite shocking to me. I mean, I know that it is a waste, and shopping with the intent of being stylish is a strange concept to me, being a person who dresses for comfort and neatness first and foremost. It just seems as if so many of our resources are simply wasted. Yes. I will stick to thrifting.
ReplyDeleteI, too, hate shopping for clothes. I am an embroiderer and a competent sewer, and the poor quality fabrics, badly fitting, and ridiculously expensive clothes in the fashion shops have me not even trying anything on most times I shop. My wardrobe is made up of Seasalt Cornwall dresses for winter and Karma East in summer - both 'ethically produced' brands - it's like a uniform! They fit me, they're lined, they're natural fabrics and they're not ridiculously expensive. Shoes are also a problem - the two brands which don't have me hobbling in pain by midday are both really expensive, but I can't get by with ill-fitting shoes. However, I do wear all my clothes 'til the death' and I try not to buy more than one new one each season. That's as close to sustainable as I can get.
ReplyDeleteI agree, "Less" could have been written with less (NO, FEWER!!) words and been a better book for it.