Illusions by Richard Bach

This is another blast from the past. I remember when I first found the book in a bargain bin in a bookshop and liked the look of it. It said that it was by the author of Jonathan Livingstone Seagull - a book that I hadn't heard of. I felt like I'd discovered a gem that nobody else would have known about - obviously I was young, so I knew everything - if I hadn't heard of a book, then how could anyone else have?

I would have first read this in the late 70s, I am guessing and as a teenager, I would have soaked this up. And reading it again now, I can recognise lots of things that have stayed with me. I can also see why I would have loved this book and then read all of his others since.

There is a line in the book that takes me back to something I wrote soon after having read the book: "what the caterpillar calls the end of life, the master calls a butterfly". These were things that fired up my young mind - seeing things from the perspective of others - an important lesson that I still benefit from.

The story is not big and it is well told. It doesn't overplay anything - it just lays it out and allows the reader to ponder it. I enjoyed re-reading it - it brought back memories and gave me things to think on. I don't think I am hungry to re-read any of his other books - I am happy with this one.

A review from the internet:
"The story revolves around two barnstorming pilots who meet in a field in midwest America. These characters enter into a teacher-student relationship that explains the concept that the world that we inhabit is illusory, as well as the underlying reality behind it:
'What if somebody came along who could teach me how my world works and how to control it? ... What if a Siddhartha came to our time, with power over the illusions of the world because he knew the reality behind them? And what if I could meet him in person, if he was flying a biplane, for instance, and landed in the same meadow with me?'
Donald P. Shimoda is a messiah who quits his job after deciding that people value the showbiz-like performance of miracles and want to be entertained by those miracles more than to understand the message behind them. He meets Richard, a fellow barn-storming pilot and begins to pass on his knowledge to him, even teaching Richard to perform "miracles" of his own.
The novel features quotes from the "Messiah's Handbook", owned by Shimoda, which Richard later takes as his own. A most unusual aspect of this handbook is that it has no page numbers. The reason for this, as Shimoda explains to Richard, is that the book will open to the page on which the reader may find guidance or the answers to doubts and questions in his mind. It is not a magical book; Shimoda goes on to explain that one can do this with any sort of text."

Thank You Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse

There isn't really a need or purpose in going through the plot of a Jeeves and Wooster book - the magic is all in the reading. Wodehouse is the master - his characters are all beautifully described - he paints pictures and they come to life - he lets you know what you need to know and it all settles down for a fun ride. Bertie makes mistakes and Jeeves saves the day - it's that simple. But the characters are a delight - and everything works out for the best.

to know why Wodehouse is adored by so many - you just have to read one and then it happens. There are many smiles - even when re-reading. Simply ... I love reading Wodehouse and I particularly like Jeeves and Wooster. That is all.

A review from the internet:
"Bertram Wooster's interminable banjolele playing has driven Jeeves, his otherwise steadfast gentleman's gentleman, to give notice. The foppish aristocrat cannot survive long without his Shakespeare-quoting and problem-solving valet, however, and after a narrowly escaped forced marriage, a cottage fire, and a great butter theft, the celebrated literary odd couple are happy to return to the way things were."

Vile Bones by Evelyn Waugh

This book was recommended and as I'd never read any Waugh stuff before, maybe now was the time. All I knew was that he had written Brideshead Revisited. So I started with an open mind and was quite looking forward to it.

So I finished the first chapter and had no idea what the hell was going on. Maybe I had missed the essence of it, but probably not. So I went in for chapter 2. I could sort of follow it but I didn't enjoy reading it - far too frenetic. I am used to more orderly story telling - an easy way to pass my mind over to a plot and know that it will be treated well.

This story was done well and the style was constant - but it wasn't relaxing and it wasn't rewarding as a result. But I carried on.

Upon reaching page 50 I realised that I couldn't care less about the book. I know that it's well written and written by somebody who knows what they are doing, but it wasn't a book that I was interested in pursuing at this time - and so I put it down and I have moved on.

A review from the internet:
"Evelyn Waugh's acidly funny and formally daring satire, Vile Bodies reveals the darkness and vulnerability that lurks beneath the glittering surface of the high life.
In the years following the First World War a new generation emerges, wistful and vulnerable beneath the glitter. The Bright Young Things of twenties' Mayfair, with their paradoxical mix of innocence and sophistication, exercise their inventive minds and vile bodies in every kind of capricious escapade - whether promiscuity, dancing, cocktail parties or sports cars. In a quest for treasure, a favourite party occupation, a vivid assortment of characters, among them the struggling writer Adam Fenwick-Symes and the glamorous, aristocratic Nina Blount, hunt fast and furiously for ever greater sensations and the fulfilment of unconscious desires."

Back Story by David Mitchell

I really like David Mitchell - when he rants and raves, he cracks me up - he has a good mind and a good turn of phase - and he picks out the ridiculous and always find a funny angle. Obviously this is his stage presence and tells me little of the man, so that is why I was happy to read his autobiography and see what I could learn about the man behind the one I see on TV.

My sister had given up on this book because she said she was put off as, while reading it, she was hearing his voice reading the words rather than her voice - I liked it because I could hear him reading it - it's because of him that I was reading it after all.

This was a great book to read - as always on these matters, when I feel connected to the main character in a book, it works. Though David is younger than me, it isn't by too much to mean that we don't share a lot of our pasts. I recognise much of what he says and share his views on lots of things - though I can't express myself as well as he can.

I liked the way he told his story - basically he went on a long walk (in the book) and each place he passed allowed him to relate another episode or adventure. It is a good way of moving things along and providing a structure.

I did like the way he relates his thoughts - he conveys things very clearly and uses the right words and the right number of words to do it - it is easy to read and has lots to relate. And it appears to be very honest and he doesn't seem to mind what you think of him - he just tells his story, sharing what he wants to share and doing it well

And for an autobiography to be successful, it needs to lead you to knowing more about a person and gain a better understanding of who they are. The fact that my impression of David changed as I read the book implies that it did that. I now have a different sense of who he is - and I probably like him even more now.

A review from the internet:
"David Mitchell, who you may know for his inappropriate anger on every TV panel show except Never Mind the Buzzcocks, his look of permanent discomfort on C4 sex comedy Peep Show, his online commenter-baiting in The Observer or just for wearing a stick-on moustache in That Mitchell and Webb Look, has written a book about his life. As well as giving a specific account of every single time he's scored some smack, this disgusting memoir also details: * the singular, pitbull-infested charm of the FRP ('Flat Roofed Pub') * the curious French habit of injecting everyone in the arse rather than the arm * why, by the time he got to Cambridge, he really, really needed a drink * the pain of being denied a childhood birthday party at McDonalds * the satisfaction of writing jokes about suicide * how doing quite a lot of walking around London helps with his sciatica * trying to pretend he isn't a total **** at Robert Webb's wedding * that he has fallen in love at LOT, but rarely done anything about it * why it would be worse to bump into Michael Palin than Hitler on holiday * that he's not David Mitchell the novelist. Despite what David Miliband might think"

Mr Penumbra's 24- Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

Hmmm - this is a tough one to write about. The title is good and reading what it was about was good. So I was looking forward to it.

Let me explain that ever since I was a small lad, I have loved adventures. I always wanted a mission or a puzzle to solve or some treasure to find - all that kind of thing.

This book is about just such an adventure - so that is a great start. But the book was disappointing in some ways as it was not believable. The characters didn't make sense - or rather they weren't brought to life properly - no energy was really invested in them. The plot was sort of clever - but lazily portrayed. There was the straight story line but weak supporting description. The twists and turns didn't really mean anything - it was sort of inevitable that things were working out and reaching a conclusion. It was sort of a plod through the story without any real intrigue - we were getting to the conclusion and it arrived and sort of 'ho hum' and then all the lose ends were wrapped up and everybody lived happily ever after. And that was it.

So to summarise - a nice idea for a book but badly executed - I just don't think that the author was a particularly good writer.

But as I say that, there is another thought and I don't know what that says about me - I think that I think to highly of myself, but I'll say it. I think that the writing style is probably how I used to write and how I would have written a book if I had had the patience to follow through with any attempts. And as I read this, I realise that I don't have the capability to write a novel - I think that I recognised my limitations - so maybe it is to the authors credit, that he saw it through and that he has made a success of it. But having said that, I wouldn't be happy if I had written it - well, I would be happy to have written a book, but I think that I wouldn't be happy with how it came out. Maybe.

A review from the internet:
"For those who fear that the Internet/e-readers/whatever-form-of-technological-upheaval-is-coming has killed or will kill paper and ink, Sloan’s debut novel will come as good news. A denizen of the tech world and self-described “media inventor” (formerly he was part of the media partnerships team at Twitter), Sloan envisions a San Francisco where piracy and paper are equally useful, and massive data-visualization–processing abilities coexist with so-called “old knowledge.” Really old: as in one of the first typefaces, as in alchemy and the search for immortality. Google has replaced the Medici family as the major patron of art and knowledge, and Clay Jannon, downsized graphic designer and once-and-future nerd now working the night shift for bookstore owner Mr. Penumbra, finds that mysteries and codes are everywhere, not just in the fantasy books and games he loved as a kid. With help from his friends, Clay learns the bookstore’s idiosyncrasies, earns his employer’s trust, and uses media new, old, and old-old to crack a variety of codes. Like all questing heroes, Clay takes on more than he bargained for and learns more than he expected, not least about himself. His story is an old-fashioned tale likably reconceived for the digital age, with the happy message that ingenuity and friendship translate across centuries and data platforms."