| Title |
Author |
Rating |
Comments |
| We don't know Ourselves |
Fintan O'Toole |
 |
Not an easy read. A personal account of recent Irish history with a lot of background as one would expect from one of the best journalists of his time. |
| Calling Major Tom |
Davis M Barnett |
|
I started slowly, but this is a very well-written book with, at times, delightful language. Interesting characters and switches in time. |
| Adele |
Sean Smith |
|
Some interesting stuff on her early years, but essentially weak. IMHO |
| Report Citizens' Assembly UK: Climate Change |
Climate Assembly UK |
|
Looks like education actually pays off. If only the majority of voters could be exposed to real data, maybe the Tories would be sent packing? |
| Serious Money |
Caryl Churchill |
|
Incomprehensible. Play covering the London Finance world post-Big Bang. Supposed to be a classic. |
| One August Night |
Victoria Hislop |
|
Sequal to The Island. |
| The Island |
Victoria Hislop |
|
The bestseller about a family connected to the leper colony in Spinalonga, Crete. reads like a film script and was made into a TV series. |
| Learning from the Germans: Confronting Race and the Memory of Evil |
Susan Neiman |
|
Simply an excellent book with so much history. A philosphical treatise around the issue of collective guit including the fact that the German state requires all children to see and understand the results of the Hollocaust.
Recommended! |
| One Cretan Evening and Other Stories |
Victoria Hislop |
|
Just read a sample, entertaining. |
| We Don't Know Ourselves: A Personal History of Ireland Since 1958 |
Fintan O'Toole |
|
A long read with a lot of background and personal anecdotes on how ireland has developed over the past two generations. Several really enlightening chapters, particularly the depressingly strong influence of the catholic church and the financial corruption of several governments. |
| Deer Hunting with Jesus: Dispatches from America.. |
Joe Bageant |
|
A riotous description of the cult of Jesus/right-wing politics in the US of A. Mind you, similarities with the UK, maybe it's an Anglo-Saxon thing?
Recommended. |
| Tangled Vines: Greed, Murder, Obsession, and an Arsonist in the Vineyards of California |
Frances Dinkelspiel |
|
An interesting yarn with masses of research into the Californian wine industry with much about the connections with the wine warehouse fire. |
| Supernova Era |
Cixin Liu and Joel Martinsen |
|
An interesting Sci-fi proposition. All the adults are set to die and a bunch of talented teenagers are schooled to take over all aspects of society. The initial proposition is flaky. |
| Doughnut Economics |
Kate Raworth |
|
This is an exceptional book. It covers so much that has gone entirely in the wrong direction these past 50 years and explains why it was so wrong and the movements which caused it. There are also any number of ideas to help change things. However, I'm not holding my breath, I think it's too late regarding climate change and the established winners of the current economic policies are too embedded for anything to remove them.
Recommended. |
| Mission Economics |
Mariane Mazzucato |
|
Another excellent book revealining what has gone wrong with capitalism and further propossing a new direction based on missions such as the one which drove the Apollo space approach. It works for me.
Recommended. |
| Post Growth - Life after Capitalism |
Tim Jackson |
|
An excellent discussion of the opportunities in this liminal phase of human eistence. 40 years of right-wing, propaganda-driven economic theory has destroyed so much. There are ways out of this
mess.
Recommended. |
| Die Liebe im Ernstfall (detebe) (German Edition) |
Daniela Krien |
|
Difficult to read because of the perspective. Didn't finish. |
| Take the Slow Road: Ireland: Inspirational Journeys Round Ireland by Camper Van and Motorhome |
Dorey, Martin |
|
I ordered this when I thought we might tour Ireland but then discovered the cost of the ferries. Will (hopefully) get to ues this later. |
| Girl, Woman, Other |
Bernadine Evaristo |
|
Very well written, though no punctuation it is easy to read.
Not familiar with the woman-only view of the world, but many
of the stories ring true.
|
| Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm |
Isabella Tree |
|
A very intensive book with so much information it makes my mind boggle.
|
| The Woman who wanted More |
Vicky Zimmermann |
|
An excellent book about an older lady at the end of her
life and how she influences in a very +ve way the tradjectory of a
younger woman. Inspiring. Recommended.
|
