The Madness of Cambyses by Herodotus (Review)

The Madness of Cambyses by Herodotus

About the author

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Herodotus c. 484-425 BCE was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus in the Persian Empire. He is known for having written the book The Histories.

Blurb

The story of the great and mad Cambyses, King of Persia, told by part-historian, part-mythmaker Herodotus of Halicarnassus.

Review

Just recently I dug out my collection of Little Black Classics and selected all the ancient Greek and Roman books to read because I thought they would be good background reading for my course and this is the first one I have read.

This little book is only 50 pages long and is a nice little snippet from the main book The Histories by Herodotus. I happily read it enjoying the sunshine we have been having and drinking a nice mug of tea.

The beginning was a bit hard to digest due to all the different names but once I got past that I really enjoyed the book. The translation is a little wooden for me but it still flowed nicely. I must admit this did make me giggle as King Cambyses is completely mental and just kills everyone for the slightest thing and in most cases this is like cutting off his own nose to spite his face, because all this death doesn’t do him any favours.

Herodotus does meander about a bit with his knowledge but I loved that because you learn extra little bits about what the ancients thought about different cultures. Some facts Herodotus tells you definitely come across more as myths but I liked that because that is what the ancients believed.

I really enjoyed this little book, it was a quick and knowledgeable read and it was fascinating to see one of the world’s earliest historians at work. I highly recommend this little book to people who are interested in the ancient world and to people who want a gentle introduction into some ancient texts. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase Links

Waterstones

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WWW Wednesday: 29/04/2020

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,

Another good week of reading, here we go…

 

What I am currently reading

I’m still going with The Iliad but I am almost finished now. The Song of Achilles arrived a couple of days a go and I love it so far. It is a very interesting modern interpretation of an ancient tale.

 

What I have recently finished reading

I loved both of these books, reading Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was just like been a child again. The Madness of Cambyses was hilarious and very interesting (review to follow shortly).

 

What I think I will read next

As usual I have random assortment that I might read next or might not, it really depends on what mood I am in. 

 

So that is another WWW Wednesday! Please drop me a link with your WWW Wednesday as I would love to see what you have been reading. Also feel free to drop me a comment if you have read any of the books I have mentioned.

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Top Five Tuesday: Series I Want to Start

This meme is hosted by Shanah @  Bionic Book Worm. For more details head over to her blog.

I really liked the look of this weeks theme as there are loads of series I would like to start but I’m a bit naughty with books in a series and I tend to give up or read the books in the wrong order. So here are my Top Five Series I Want to Start…

 

1. The 100 Series by Kass Morgan

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I own all the books in this series and they are currently sat on my TBR pile making me feel guilty for not starting them yet. I haven’t seen the TV series but my husband has watched them all.

 

2. The Expanse (Novel series) by James S. A. Corey

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I love the TV series of this and I own the first book in the series which I really want to start as I love a sci-fi book.

 

3. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

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This is another series that I own but have never attempted reading but really want to but the first book is rather thick and tends to put me off slightly.

 

4. Languedoc Series by Kate Moss

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I love the sound of this series and to be honest I’m not sure why I haven’t read them yet. Maybe something to start whilst in lockdown.

 

5. The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb

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I have read some of Robin Hobb’s books in the past and really enjoyed them so would love to read this series.

 

So that is my Top Five Tuesday this week. Please drop me a link with your Top Five and please give me your thoughts on the series I have mentioned if you have read them.

 

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Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming

About the author

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Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Second World War Navy Commander. He was a grandson of the Scottish financier Robert Fleming, who founded the Scottish American Investment Trust and the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co.

Fleming is best remembered for creating the character of James Bond and chronicling his adventures in twelve novels and nine short stories. Additionally, Fleming wrote the children’s story Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and two non-fiction books.

Blurb

“With the proceeds from his latest invention, Crackpot Whistling Sweets, Commander Caractacus Pott buys his family their first car. It looks like a wreck, but once restored it turns out to be no ordinary vehicle: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a magical car which can fly, swim and even think. Chitty and the eccentric, plucky Pott family set off on a succession of increasingly perilous adventures that take them across the English Channel and all the way to Paris.

Review

I will be honest I have never read Chitty Chitty Bang Bang but I absolutely love the film and watched it again over Easter which made me think it was high time to read the book. Thankfully I had some Waterstones points to order the book.

I was so excited when I started reading this book and it was just perfect, I loved everything about it. The first thing that I did notice was that the book and film are completely different. Now I know that there are always differences between the book and film but this was major, it was like Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes who wrote the screenplay only read the first few chapters of the book and did not bother with the rest of the book.

Thankfully, I did love the book just as much as the film. I also loved the background information that you got in the introduction about the original Chitty Bang Bang built by Count Zborowski.

The Pott family are just adorable, the perfect eccentric family. Caractacus the father is an inventor and explorer but he is much more interested in his inventing. Mimsie is the mother who lets Caractacus get on with his inventing and supports whatever he suggests. The twins Jeremy and Jemima love their crazy family and also fully support their father. The twins also go to private school so their adventure with Chitty Chitty Bang Bang has to be during their school holidays.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a magical car that is part of the family and you can’t help but feel for the car when you read about her. She comes across as that wonderful favourite family pet.

The story is beautifully written and it does feel like a James Bond story but for children which I love. I adored this book and highly recommend it for children and adults. I give this book 5 out of 5 Dragons.

Purchase Links

Book Depository  •  Waterstones

 

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On Chapel Sands: My Mother and Other Missing Persons by Laura Cumming (Review)

On Chapel Sands: My Mother and Other Missing Persons by Laura Cumming

 

About the author

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Laura Cumming (born July 1961) the art critic for The Observer. In addition to her career in journalism, Cumming has written well-received books on self-portraits in art and the discovery of a lost portrait by Diego Velázquez in 1845.

Blurb

In the autumn of 1929, a small child was kidnapped from a Lincolnshire beach. Five agonising days went by before she was found in a nearby village. The child remembered nothing of these events and nobody ever spoke of them at home. It was another fifty years before she even learned of the kidnap.

The girl became an artist and had a daughter, art writer Laura Cumming. Cumming grew up enthralled by her mother’s strange tales of life in a seaside hamlet of the 1930s, and of the secrets and lies perpetuated by a whole community. So many puzzles remained to be solved. Cumming began with a few criss-crossing lives in this fraction of English coast – the postman, the grocer, the elusive baker – but soon her search spread right out across the globe as she discovered just how many lives were affected by what happened that day on the beach – including her own.

Review

I had such high hopes for this book and I was so excited when I bought it because I loved the sound of the book and thought it sounded like a fantastic read. Sadly, I was very disappointed, although I know that this is probably a controversial opinion looking at other reviews on Goodreads and on book blogs. I do however think the hype and advertising for this book has been very misleading in just how gripping the story is.

I enjoyed the beginning of this book but quickly guessed the outcome as it was just an age old story that has happened many times in history.

This to me was a book of meandering thoughts and it drove me mad, Cumming clearly knows her stuff about art and history but this book really needed to be more to the point. Cumming just kept going off course and it was infuriating, this also meant that there was far too much book for the main thread of the story. It really could have been half the length and for me would have been a lot more enjoyable if it had been shorter and more to the point. It was like Cumming was worried it was going to be too short so she padded it out with other random thoughts.

I can see that this story is written for the love of her mother and I can imagine that Cumming’s mother must be very touched by her daughter’s book but to the casual reader it is too much. It is also very repetitive at times. I was grinding my teeth in frustration. It really could have done with someone just gently removing the repetition from the book for Cumming.

Overall I’m amazed I stuck this book out because some days I could have quite easily chucked it through the window but I did finish it in the end just to see the outcome. I give this book 2 out of 5 Dragons because only books that I do not finish get 1 Dragon.

Purchase Links

 Book Depository  •  Waterstones

 

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WWW Wednesday: 22/04/2020

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

The rules are answer the questions below and a 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?

 

Another good week reading! Here we go…

 

What I am currently reading

 

Still plodding along with Homer but I am enjoying it. The Herodotus is part of some recommended summer reading for the next part of my course.

 

What I recently finished reading

Absolutely loved The Carpet People but On Chapel Sands drove me mad and to be honest I’m not entirely sure how I finished it.

 

What I might read next

Another selection of books, hopefully I read one of these next but I seem to be quite picky at the  moment change my mind a great deal on what to read next.

That is another WWW Wednesday is complete. Drop me a comment with your thoughts on the books I have listed and of course please drop your link to your WWW Wednesday.

 

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Top 10 Tuesday: Titles that would make good band names

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and now hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. For more info please check out Jana’s blog.

Hello!

I’m back again for another Top 10 Tuesday, I must admit I was very excited about this one as it appeals to my my musical background and my love of books. Some titles are linked to the reviews. So here goes…

 

Cat Out of Hell by Lynne Truss

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Dead Men by Richard Pierce

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Fear Itself by James Swallow

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Jaws by Peter Benchley

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The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

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Gooseberries by Anton Chekhov

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Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver

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Watermelon Snow by William A. Liggett

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Rotherweird by Andrew Caldecott

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Heroes and Villains by Angela Carter

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So that is my Top 10 Tuesday! Drop me a link with your thoughts and with your Top 10 and I will check them out!

Keep Reading!

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The Carpet People by Terry Pratchett (Review)

The Carpet People by Terry Pratchett

About the author

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Sir Terence David John Pratchett OBE (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humorist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his Discworld series of 41 novels.

Blurb

In the beginning, there was nothing but endless flatness. Then came the Carpet…

That’s the old story everyone knows and loves (even if they don’t really believe it). But now the Carpet is home to many different tribes and peoples and there’s a new story in the making. The story of Fray, sweeping a trail of destruction across the Carpet. The story of power-hungry mouls – and of two Munrung brothers, who set out on an adventure to end all adventures when their village is flattened.

It’s a story that will come to a terrible end – if someone doesn’t do something about it. If everyone doesn’t do something about it…

Review

It was so good to read a Pratchett book again as it has been way too long. During the lockdown to read a book by one of my favourite authors was like a warm comfort blanket wrapped around me. The Carpet People was written by a 17 year old Pratchett but this edition is the one that he republished after going through and making a few changes.

I really enjoyed reading this book as it was full of the typical humour of Pratchett and although it was not as refined as his Discworld novels it was still a joy to read. I loved how this book made my imagination run wild, it reminded me of the Borrowers, a race of people that live in the carpet.

The fascinating world of the carpet is brilliant with all the different tribes, kingdoms and an empire. I loved how the individuality of the people came through. I also loved how the women decided to do battle and fight for women’s rights at the end.

I have seen some pretty bad reviews about this book and it really surprises me as I know this book has a few flaws with characters randomly disappearing but since this was one of Pratchett’s first books it is bound to have some flaws as Pratchett was starting to find his feet as an author. Obviously if you compare it to the Discworld books it is lacking slightly but it is still a highly enjoyable story to read which will give you a good giggle.

I highly recommend this book to all fantasy and comedy lovers, it is a quick read that will make you laugh. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons. 

Purchase Links

Book Depository

Waterstones

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WWW Wednesday: 15/04/2020

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

The rules are answer the questions below and a 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’m back again for another WWW Wednesday, I don’t think I have ever done so many in a row before. It is great getting all this reading in.

So here we go…

 

What I am currently reading

The Carpet People I had for a Christmas present and I decided that I needed some Pratchett during Lockdown to distract me. The Iliad is a translation I haven’t read before by Barry Powell and I quoted this version in an essay a while back and liked what Powell had done with the text so I decided to have a read.

 

What did I recently finish

Did really well last week but I will be honest that I could not put down Half a World Away it was brilliant. Review links below

Star Trek Picard

Half A World Away

The Secret life Cows

 

What I think I will read next

I’m finding this tricky at the moment, I’m changing my mind what to read almost daily and it is depending very much on my mood. I’ve given myself quite a few options above but that could all change again so watch this space.

So there it is another WWW Wednesday in April. Please drop me a comment with your WWW Wednesday link because I love visiting your blogs to see what you are up to. Also please leave a comment if you have read any of the books above. Is anybody else finding it hard to pin down what to read next or is it just me?

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Reading.

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Top Five Tuesday: Five Books That Made Me Laugh

Hello everyone!

So today I have decided to have a go at another book meme this one is hosted by Shanah @  Bionic Book Worm. This one I have seen many times on different peoples blogs and have always liked reading them but have never taken part and this weeks seemed to be right up my street. I love books that make me laugh.

I will be honest I could easily just pick 5 of my favourite Terry Pratchett books but I will try to branch out a little.

Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett

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Armed only with a frying pan and her common sense, Tiffany Aching, a young witch-to-be, is all that stands between the monsters of Fairyland and the warm, green Chalk country that is her home. Forced into Fairyland to seek her kidnapped brother, Tiffany allies herself with the Chalk’s local Nac Mac Feegle – aka the Wee Free Men – a clan of sheep-stealing, sword-wielding, six-inch-high blue men who are as fierce as they are funny. Together they battle through an eerie and ever-shifting landscape, fighting brutal flying fairies, dream-spinning dromes, and grimhounds – black dogs with eyes of fire and teeth of razors – before ultimately confronting the Queen of the Elves, absolute ruler of a world in which reality intertwines with nightmare. And in the final showdown, Tiffany must face her cruel power alone…

I have read this book more than once and it always leaves me laughing my head off. The Wee Free Men are such brilliant characters.

 

The Martian by Andy Weir

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Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.

Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.

Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first.

But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

I will be honest I saw the movie before I read the book but I loved the book and it made me laugh so much. Mark Watney is such a brilliant character.

 

A Scone to Die for by H. Y. Hanna

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When an American tourist is murdered with a scone in Gemma Rose’s quaint Oxfordshire tearoom, she suddenly finds herself apron-deep in a mystery involving long-buried secrets from Oxford’s past.

Armed with her insider knowledge of the University and with the help of four nosy old ladies from the village (not to mention a cheeky little tabby cat named Muesli), Gemma sets out to solve the mystery—all while dealing with her matchmaking mother and the return of her old college love, Devlin O’Connor, now a dashing CID detective.

But with the body count rising and her business going bust, can Gemma find the killer before things turn to custard?

I love the entire series of these books and they all make me laugh, I think the character that makes me laugh the most is Gemma’s mom especially in this book.

 

The True Meaning of Smek Day by Adam Rex

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It all starts with a school essay.

When twelve-year-old Gratuity (“Tip”) Tucci is assigned to write five pages on “The True Meaning of Smekday” for the National Time Capsule contest, she’s not sure where to begin. When her mom started telling everyone about the messages aliens were sending through a mole on the back of her neck? Maybe on Christmas Eve, when huge, bizarre spaceships descended on the Earth and the aliens – called Boov – abducted her mother? Or when the Boov declared Earth a colony, renamed it “Smekland” (in honor of glorious Captain Smek), and forced all Americans to relocate to Florida via rocketpod?

In any case, Gratuity’s story is much, much bigger than the assignment. It involves her unlikely friendship with a renegade Boov mechanic named J.Lo.; a futile journey south to find Gratuity’s mother at the Happy Mouse Kingdom; a cross-country road trip in a hovercar called Slushious; and an outrageous plan to save the Earth from yet another alien invasion.

I read this quite a while ago but it has left a lasting impression on me because of how funny I found it.

 

Carpe Jugulum by Terry Pratchett

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In a fit of enlightenment democracy and ebullient goodwill, King Verence invites Uberwald’s undead, the Magpyrs, into Lancre to celebrate the birth of his daughter. But once ensconced within the castle, these wine-drinking, garlic-eating, sun-loving modern vampires have no intention of leaving. Ever.

Only an uneasy alliance between a nervous young priest and the argumentative local witches can save the country from being taken over by people with a cultivated bloodlust and bad taste in silk waistcoats. For them, there’s only one way to fight.

Go for the throat, or as the vampyres themselves say…Carpe Jugulum

I decided to finish with my favourite Terry Pratchett Discworld novel and the first one I actually ever read. I’ve read this so many times but I still love it. It incorporates some of may absolute favourites The Witches and The Watch!

So that is my first attempt at a Top Five Tuesday. Please drop me a comment with a link to your list and I will pop over for a look. Thanks.

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