Monday 15 March 2021

New books! And real ones at that!

Several new books to talk about today. There was a meme on social media, Facebook I think, which said, 'There are two sorts of lockdown days, days when a package comes, and days when no package comes.' I think bookish people would add 'book' inbetween the 'a' and the 'package'! Anyway, these arrived for me last week, slightly unusual in that they're physical books because most of my book buying has been confined to Kindle purchases during lockdown. The reason for this being that I'm trying to decrease the number of books on my tbr shelves but also Kindle books are 'usually' slightly cheaper. 


The Moth and the Mountain by Ed Caeser was brought to my notice by one of those Amazon emails... 'Look at this lovely book! We know you like books about mountains and are a total sucker for lovely covers' ... well no, they didn't actually say that last bit but they might as well have. *Cough* Anyway, it's about a chap called Maurice Wilson who, in the 1930s, decided to fly a Gyspy Moth aeroplane from England to Mount Everest, crash-land it on the lower slopes and from there climb to the top of the mountain and be the first person to climb Everest alone. Had to be an Englishman didn't it? No other nationality is that insane. No wonder Noel Coward sang about Mad Dogs and Englishmen.

The Book Collectors of Daraya by Delphine Minoui is a book I spotted on Twitter. It was being publicised by a literary agent who was looking for bloggers to read and review. Now books about Syria are a bit outside my comfort zone, if I'm honest, but a book about an underground library stocked with books that were rescued from bombed out houses piqued my interest somewhat. Plus, I don't read outside my comfort zone enough so I decided to request a copy. I have a feeling I won't be sorry.

The End of the Road by Jack Cooke... hmmm... I'm not sure where I saw this. Possibly Goodreads. The subtitle is 'A journey around Britain in search of the dead'. It's about a chap who converts a clapped-out hearse into a campervan and undertakes (sorry) a trip around the UK looking at cemetaries, famous tombs and forgotten burials. My husband's face when I told him about this new book was an absolute picture. I was accused - somewhat arbitrarily in my opinion - of being as barmy as the people I like to read about. Hmph! A scurrilous lie!

So those are my precious new physical books, best not discuss the Kindle adds that sneak on there and look so pretty all lined up on my tablet...

Hope your March reading is going well? Mine certainly is and I have two good books to review so I must get to that soon. Happy reading.


12 comments:

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

Cath, the covers are beautiful and I'm hoping the stories are just as pleasing. Cath, my Kindle books are out of control. Between free books and all the $1.99 ones that I click on, it's a mess. I need to find a way create a list of what I have with a brief summery as I have no clue what most are about unless I look each one up and with over 2,000, I fear I won't live long enough to complete that project LOL

Vallypee said...

I loved this post, Cath. It really does go to prove the bonkersness of the Brits, doesn't it...of course that doesn't include you, I hasten to add.

Sam said...

Whoever said that about packages hit the nail on the head for sure. The highlight of my week is hearing the doorbell ring to alert me that a new package is waiting for me out there to retrieve. At this point, it doesn't even have to be a book package. :-)

I read "The Book Collectors" a while back and really enjoyed it. I can't imagine doing what those brave young men and women did under those circumstances. When you see what a lifeline those recovered books turned out to be for them, though, I can't imagine them surviving for so long without the books they salvaged. I think you'll like that one.

Can't wait to hear more about the guy who decided to risk a crash landing on a mountain so that he could climb up the rest of the way...hopefully, he was single at the time. A wife may have killed him before he left on the first leg.

DesLily said...

LOvely books! My March reading sucks! Eyes, bad depressions etc. and I would be reading that dang 700 page second book "European Treavel for the MOnstrous Gentlewoman"...I think it will be the ONLY book I read in March!
So on one of my many down moments I sent for a book that I read a long time ago because I want to read it again and I didn't save it! (naturally) Called Remarkable Creatures. I looked in my blog .. I read it in 2011. lol...

Lark said...

I love packages in the mail...especially when they contain new books to read! :D All my books this month have come from the library. (Which I also love.)

Cath said...

Diane: I'm so pleased that I'm not the only one whose Kindle is out of control. I just can't resist the 99p bargains, or the Prime reads, or the ancient free classics. Lost cause!

Val: Pleased you enjoyed the post. It does always seem to be these 1920s and 30s Brits who head off into the wide blue yonder to do mad things like fly a plane into Mt. Everest. I can't wait to find out whether he actually 'did' it.

Sam: No, it doesn't actually have to be a book package. One of the best days of the autumn lockdown was when I took delivery of six large bottles of sweet chili sauce!

I didn't realise that you read The Book Collectors. Did you do a review (you probably did and I may even have left a comment, such is my addled brain)?

I laughed very loudly at your comment about his wife killing him before he left. How true.

Pat: I hope you're enjoying the European Travel book. I loved that one. I haven't read Remarkable Creatures yet, despite living within travelling distance of where it's set. Not that I could go there at the moment as we're not allowed to travel even the 30 miles or so to the coast.

Lark: The good thing about library books is how wonderfully free they are. Can't wait for ours to reopen but it's not happening yet. Things are still pretty strict over here.

CLM said...

I can't believe your library isn't doing curbside pickup!

These all look intriguing and the cover of The End of the Road is particularly appealing.

I read a book last night - not sure I will have the energy to review it - that was such wish fulfillment it was absurd but was still entertaining about an American, disappointed in love, who *buys* several weeks of working at a bookstore in Northumberland where (naturally) a handsome farmer sweeps her off her feet. Although I knew I had to get up early I just went on reading until I finished, long after midnight. It was based on the shop in Wigtown, which I would like to visit: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/wigtown-bookshop-vacation/index.html

Anca said...

Well done for buying kindle books, usually I mean. I am still resisting and going for paper books when I'm buying. It's nice to hear that you are enjoying the books you are reading at the moment too.

TracyK said...

All of these books look good and The End of the Road has a particularly nice cover. I read your description to Glen and he is very interested in it. It is not available here yet, though.

I will wait and see what you think of the man flying a Gyspy Moth to Mount Everest. The flying part could be interesting, not so sure about the climbing.

I have bought many books for the Kindle but then I don't read them. Thus I have bought too many real books over the last year also. I am going to have to read the Gladys Mitchell book in April (Sunset Over Soho) on the Kindle because it is too expensive to buy in other formats.

Cath said...

Constance: To be honest my library may well be doing pick-ups for reservations but it isn't a service I really need at the moment as I have heaps of my own books, so I haven't bothered to check properly.

I've read a non-fiction book about a bookshop in Wigtown but that's in Scotland not Northumberland. Like you I plan a visit at some stage.

Anca: I'm not sure I should be congratulated for buying so many Kindle books! LOL! But there are worse things to spend your money on.

Tracy: It seems my reading tastes might be quite close to Glen's!

As to the Moth book I'm probably more interesed in the climbing than the flying, but really I just like reading about eccentrics.

Yes, I'm the same with buying books and then not reading them, at least not for ages... so then I forget I've got them. And Kindles are very good at burying books.

Susan said...

I hadn't heard of any of these books before, but they all sound fabulous! The Everest trip and the underground library both have my interest piqued. The guy driving around England in search of the dead just made me laugh. I'm an avid genealogist, so I can appreciate that kind of trip :)

Cath said...

Susan: I love a good mountaineering book (currently reading The Abominable by Dan Simmons) so the Everest book was a 'must buy'. I'm not really a graveyard freak but I do enjoy strolling around some of our village graveyards where there are very old churches. They're always an oasis of calm.