I’m a big fan of Sandi Toksvig on the TV, as was Mum. She is fast and funny, with a wicked sense of humour, and last year did a marvellous job becoming one of the […]
Author: themothershipabroad
Pulling up the anchor this year and setting off to see what's out there in this wonderful world of ours
18. ‘Sea Glass’ by Anita Shreve.
I’m going to start by saying that I have never read any of Anita Shreve’s books before. My personal taste tends to run on a different course, but that said, I did enjoy this novel, […]
17. A Fine Balance’ by Rohinton Mistry.
Unusually, I am proud to say that this is a book I recommended and gave to Mum. Particularly after she had retired from being a primary school teacher, it was more often the case that […]
17. ‘Testament of Youth’ by Vera Brittain.
What a remarkable experience this book this has been. I readily confess, I found it quite hard to read, but have been unable to stop thinking about it ever since. It is by no means […]
16. ‘The heart goes last’ by Margaret Atwood.
I can’t help it – I see a Margaret Atwood and I simply have to read it! And I think that since the TV adaptation of the Handmaids Tale, more and more people are realising […]
15. ‘A Girl in Winter’ by Philip Larkin.
This book has taken me a while to digest, despite not being an especially long book. Philip Larkin is primarily known for his poetry, but this is a most beautifully written, mysterious, puzzling, and evocative […]
14. ‘Heat Wave’ by Penelope Lively.
What an intriguing book this turned out to be – a slim volume packed full of punch. First published in 1996, Mum read it the following year, and kept it, which is an indication of […]
13. ‘One night in winter’ by Simon Sebag Montefiore.
I watched several of Mr Montefiore’s TV series with Mum; we both enjoyed them as we agreed that he, although mildly pompous, was undoubtedly erudite, and presented his topics with an infectious enthusiasm. We especially […]
12. ‘The Cement Garden’ by Ian McEwan.
Crikey. This was Mr McEwans first novel, written in the Seventies, and it’s bleak, macabre, and haunting in a deliberately flat and atonal way. I don’t think I have ever read a book quite like […]
11. ‘And did those feet’ by Charlie Connelly.
It’s unusual for a book to actually make me laugh out loud while I’m reading it, but I have to admit this one did…several times. A little treasure found amongst her books, like a lovely […]
Mum's Books 