Category: Books

Cats in Medieval Manuscripts by Kathleen Walker-Meikle (Review #48)

Cats in Medieval Manuscripts by Kathleen Walker-Meikle

Blurb

Cats were illustrated in medieval manuscripts throughout the Middle Ages, often in exquisite detail and frequently accompanied by their natural prey, mice. Medieval cats were viewed as treasured pets, as fearsome mousers, as canny characters in fables, as associates of the Devil, and as magical creatures. Featuring an array of fascinating illustrations from the British Library’s rich medieval collection, Cats in Medieval Manuscripts includes anecdotes about cats—both real and imaginary—to provide a fascinating picture of the life of the cat and its relationship with humans during the Medieval period. A great gift for all cat-lovers.

Review

I have been after this book for so long ever since I read Dogs in Medieval Manuscripts a few years ago. However, I couldn’t seem to get a copy but my wonderful husband managed to find me a copy for my birthday. 

Just like the dog version of this book I was not disappointed. Each two page spread in the book contains beautiful examples and fascinating facts. I couldn’t believe some of the facts about cats living or trying to survive in medieval times. Cats in Medieval times were not safe and life was definitely not easy for them unless they found a loving home and were kept safe.

I loved the variety of images in this book and the fact that you can just dip in and out of this book and not have to read it from cover to cover. You aren’t bombarded with information and the information you do get is told simply and succinctly. 

This little book is a perfect gift for cat lovers and will also look fab on your coffee table. I give this book a big 5 out of 5 Dragons. 

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Foyles | Waterstones | WH Smith

About the author

Kathleen Walker-Meikle completed her PhD at University College, London on late-medieval pet keeping. She researches and writes on medieval and early modern animals and medicine.

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Goodreads Monday: 27/11/2023

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good start to the week. I’m on my last full week of teaching and I must admit I am looking forward to more free time to read once I have finished.

I’m still enjoying my Tudor history books and my TBR list is growing with Tudor related books. This one is currently at the top of the pile and I really hope to get reading it soon.

Henry VIII is best known in history for his tempestuous marriages and the fates of his six wives. However, as acclaimed historian Tracy Borman makes clear in her illuminating new chronicle of Henry’s life, his reign and reputation were hugely influenced by the men who surrounded and interacted with him as companions and confidants, servants and ministers, and occasionally as rivals–many of whom have been underplayed in previous biographies. These relationships offer a fresh, often surprising perspective on the legendary king, revealing the contradictions in his beliefs, behavior, and character in a nuanced light. They show him capable of fierce but seldom abiding loyalty, of raising men up only to destroy them later. He loved to be attended by boisterous young men, the likes of his intimate friend Charles Brandon, who shared his passion for sport, but could also be diverted by men of intellect, culture, and wit, as his longstanding interplay with Cardinal Wolsey and his reluctant abandonment of Thomas More attest. Eager to escape the shadow of his father, Henry VII, he was often trusting and easily led by male attendants and advisors early in his reign (his coronation was just shy of his 18th birthday in 1509); in time, though, he matured into a profoundly suspicious and paranoid king whose ruthlessness would be ever more apparent, as Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk and uncle to two of Henry’s wives, discovered to his great discomfort, and as Eustace Chapuys, the ambassador of Charles V of Spain, often reported.

Recounting the great Tudor’s life and signal moments through the lens of his male relationships, Tracy Borman’s new biography reveals Henry’s personality in all its multi-faceted, contradictory glory, and sheds fresh light on his reign for anyone fascinated by the Tudor era and its legacy.

Please drop me a link with your Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit. 

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

WWW Wednesday: 22/11/2023

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.

The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you will read next?

Hello!

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I must admit this week is getting a little bit on top of me work wise but I’m hoping I can get through it ok. Next week is my last full week at all my different schools so I am looking forward to having a little bit more free time from then on.

What I am Currently Reading

I’m still going with Mary Beard and I’m still really enjoying it but it is rather a detailed read which I really can’t read when tired. The Lost Bookshop is a kindle book I downloaded for my holidays but never got around to reading. However, finding myself on a train journey I got the kindle app on my phone and started reading it and I’ve been hooked ever since.

What I have Recently Finished Reading

I will be honest I was not impressed with this read but I will elaborate more when I review it.

What I Think I will Read Next

I really want to continue with my nonfiction reading but I’m not sure whether I will manage it as when I’m tired I always want easy reads.

Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodreads Monday: 20/11/2023

Goodreads Monday is now hosted by Budget Tales Book Club.  All you have to do is show off a book from your TBR that you’re looking forward to reading.

Happy Monday!

I hope you have all had a good start to the week. I’ve had rather a busy day with teaching but I managed to get some reading done today.

My chosen book today is by an author who is fast becoming one of my favourites. I have added every single book of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s that I haven’t read to my Goodreads TBR.

The Mayan god of death sends a young woman on a harrowing, life-changing journey in this one-of-a-kind fairy tale inspired by Mexican folklore.

The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own. 

Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.

In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.

Please drop me a link with your Goodreads Monday and I will head over for a visit. 

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

The Weekly Brief

Hello!

I hope everyone has had a good weekend so far. This week has gone well for me reading and blogging wise. I’m finally catching up with my book reviews!

Blog Posts

Currently Reading

Finding this really interesting so far. I also love the amount of images used.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Exit Strategy by Martha Wells (Review #47)

Exit Strategy by Martha Wells

Blurb

Murderbot wasn’t programmed to care. So, its decision to help the only human who ever showed it respect must be a system glitch, right?

Having traveled the width of the galaxy to unearth details of its own murderous transgressions, as well as those of the GrayCris Corporation, Murderbot is heading home to help Dr. Mensah—its former owner (protector? friend?)—submit evidence that could prevent GrayCris from destroying more colonists in its never-ending quest for profit.

But who’s going to believe a SecUnit gone rogue?

And what will become of it when it’s caught?

Review

I love the Murderbot series and with every book I find Murderbot more and more adorable. This book really shows that Murderbot cares even though Murderbot wasn’t programmed to care. In fact Murderbot wasn’t programmed to have feelings at all. 

Murderbot has risked it all travelling across the galaxy to get the knowledge it needs to find out about its previous life but then Murderbot finds out that Dr Mensah is in trouble. Dr Mensah is the only human to ever show respect to Murderbot and in a way she is a friend and protector of Murderbot. 

I love that even though Murderbot has no idea what to do with the situation it uses its vast amount of media knowledge to find a way to rescue Dr Mensah. Even if the shows it decided to get help from are unrealistic and extremely risky. It also uses its menacing presence to full advantage. 

With each novella Murderbot has developed more as a character. Its sense of humour gets more dry and snarky and its language gets considerably more filthy. However, what Murderbot really starts to develop is an unfailing loyalty to those who have been good to it, those who have cared for it but with this also comes an ever increasing hate to those who have treated it as a tool and something to be discarded. 

I love the Murderbot series but I always find myself wanting longer books. I can’t wait to continue with this series and give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons. 

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Foyles | Waterstones | WH Smith

(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)

About the author

Martha Wells has been a science fiction and fantasy author since her first fantasy novel was published in 1993. Her New York Times Bestselling series The Murderbot Diaries has won Nebula Awards, Hugo Awards, Locus Awards, and an American Library Association/YALSA Alex Award. Her work also includes The Books of the Raksura series, the Ile-Rien series, and several other fantasy novels, most recently Witch King (Tordotcom, 2023), as well as short fiction, non-fiction, and media tie-ins for Star Wars, Stargate: Atlantis, and Magic: The Gathering. Her work has also appeared on the Philip K. Dick Award ballot, the British Science Fiction Association Award ballot, the USA Today Bestseller List, and has been translated into twenty-four languages.

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If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Review #46)

The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Blurb

They are the Beautiful Ones, Loisail’s most notable socialites, and this spring is Nina’s chance to join their ranks, courtesy of her well-connected cousin and his calculating wife. But the Grand Season has just begun, and already Nina’s debut has gone disastrously awry. She has always struggled to control her telekinesis—neighbours call her the Witch of Oldhouse—and the haphazard manifestations of her powers make her the subject of malicious gossip.

When entertainer Hector Auvray arrives to town, Nina is dazzled. A telekinetic like her, he has traveled the world performing his talents for admiring audiences. He sees Nina not as a witch, but ripe with potential to master her power under his tutelage. With Hector’s help, Nina’s talent blossoms, as does her love for him.

But great romances are for fairytales, and Hector is hiding a truth from Nina—and himself—that threatens to end their courtship before it truly begins. The Beautiful Ones is a charming tale of love and betrayal, and the struggle between conformity and passion, set in a world where scandal is a razor-sharp weapon.

Review

This book is easily my favourite read of the year so far. I could not put it down and loved every page. It just made me so happy!

This is my second Silvia Moreno-Garcia novel and it won’t be my last. The book is so beautifully written. This character driven historical romantic drama also has a telekinetic twist. It really had quite a Jane Austen feel for me which is probably another reason for my love of the book. 

Nina is an unusual girl who loves beetles and insects and not the usual things that a high society girl of her age is considered. She also has something else which hampers her progress in the Grand Season and that is her telekinetic abilities. These abilities have led her to gain the nickname the Witch of Oldhouse by people in her local village and it is not a nice nickname. Nina is spending the season with her cousin and his wife and things are not going well. However, things begin to change when Nina meets Hector. Hector is like Nina and has powerful telekinetic abilities but he has spent his life showing them off whilst performing on stage whilst poor Nina has been trying to hide her abilities. 

This book is full of old world traditions and opinions and these are most prominent in Valerie. I really didn’t like Valerie, she is cold and calculating and loves nobody but herself. She lives to make people suffer and because she is from an old family of a good name she believes she has the right to get her own way no matter what the consequences. 

This book is atmospheric, entertaining and very engaging. It is packed full of glamour, love, expectations, hypocrisy of society and gender inequality. The book is beautifully written and has such fantastic characters that I really didn’t want to leave behind. I loved this book and give it 5 out of 5 Dragons. 

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Foyles | Waterstones | WH Smith

(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)

About the author

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of several novels, including Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow and The Daughter of Doctor Moreau. She has also edited a number of anthologies, including the World Fantasy Award-winning She Walks in Shadows (a.k.a. Cthulhu’s Daughters). Mexican by birth, Canadian by inclination.

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If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

WWW Wednesday: 15/11/2023

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.

The rules are answer the questions below and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

  • What are you currently reading?
  • What did you recently finish reading?
  • What do you think you will read next?

Hello!

I went back to school today which was a bit of a shock and sadly I was still coughing all the time but at least I actually had the energy to do a school day. I thoroughly enjoyed my hour lunch break of reading though.

What I am Currently Reading

I’ve started reading Hauntings by Neil Oliver again after taking a little break. I’m still finding it frustrating and interesting in equal measure. Twelve Caesars by Mary Beard so far is absolutely fascinating.

What I have Recently Finished Reading

Goodbye Mr Chips was a lovely quick read and I know it wasn’t a nonfiction book but as it was only a small book I thought I would sneak it in. The Private Lives of the Tudors was an excellent book that I really enjoyed.

What I Think I will Read Next

Still keeping to my nonfiction theme for November one of these books is highly likely.

Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Goodby Mr Chips by James Hilton (Review #45)

Goodbye Mr Chips by James Hilton

Blurb

Mr Chipping, known fondly to his students as Mr Chips, is the beloved Latin master at a quiet boy’s school. For forty-three years he acts as the heart and the soul of his institution, proving that dedication, love and good sense of humour can make all the difference to generations of children.

The classic story of a quiet, unassuming man and the many lives he touches, Goodbye Mr Chips has sold over two million copies and has never been out of print.

Review

Oh what a beautiful little book!

I picked up this book whilst in Cheltenham and thought this will be a nice quick read. My husband has seen the film but I’ve never seen it so had no idea what the story would be like. Thankfully, I was not disappointed. 

I could have easily read this book in one sitting but because of work and sleep I read it over two days. The story is focused on Mr Chipping, who is affectionately known as Mr Chips. Mr Chips is the Latin master at an all boys school but becomes so much more than just a teacher to everyone at the school. 

This little book is all about a very quiet man who doesn’t seem to make a big impression on the world but who in his own small way touches so many lives in a big way. Mr Chips is a man that so many people treasure and remember and so many still want to meet. 

This beautiful book made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me ponder and so much more. For such a small book it certainly packs a punch and I must admit I would have loved it to be longer and sometimes more detailed. I would have loved to have learned more about certain times in Mr Chips’ life but sadly it was not to be and I was left to imagine instead. 

I loved this book and will happily read it again and again. It gives you a perfect little snippet of England between the World Wars and the time before WWI. I happily give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons. 

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Purchase Links

Bookshop.org | Foyles | Waterstones | WH Smith

(All purchases made using one of the above affiliate links gives a small percentage of money to myself with no extra cost to yourself. All proceeds go towards the upkeep of this blog. Thank you ever so much, your support is gratefully received.)

About the author

James Hilton (1900–1954) was a bestselling English novelist and Academy Award–winning screenwriter. After attending Cambridge University, Hilton worked as a journalist until the success of his novels Lost Horizon (1933) and Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1934) launched his career as a celebrated author. Hilton’s writing is known for its depiction of English life between the two world wars, its celebration of English character, and its honest portrayal of life in the early twentieth century.

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If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you