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Author Archives: vhk10
Sheila Mann, Hints of a Perfect Splendour
Disclaimer 1: I married into the family of the book’s subject, Aelfrida Tillyard (1883-1959). My parents-in-law get a fleeting mention towards the end. As I have this personal connexion, the following observations will focus on those aspects of Aelfrida’s life … Continue reading
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Whipplesnaith, The Night Climbers of Cambridge
Barbara Vine, Grasshopper
Don’t try this at home. Or rather, don’t try it in Cambridge. The Night Climbers of Cambridge circulated in samizdat form for a while, and a copy in the University Library could be consulted by special permission, but has now … Continue reading
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the Gun Street bookshop
I was near Gun Street in Reading today and recalled with fondness the bookshop which used to be there many years ago. It has imprinted on me as the bookshop all others ought to resemble. I can still recall the … Continue reading
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Hubert Pragnell, Architectural Britain
This chronological study of British architecture from Saxon times on is produced by the National Trust and its dimensions (it’s about 15 cm square) mean it can be slipped into a handbag or large coat pocket when visiting a notable … Continue reading
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Rob Temple, Very British Problems
This is the book of the Twitter hashtag – a selection of examples of behaviour which is perceived as characteristically British, with some more related discussion about matters such as British weather. I recognised a lot of it – especially … Continue reading
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Helena Attlee, The Land where Lemons Grow
This is a book about the author’s travels in Italy in search of citrus fruit and its growers. The text is a mixture of botany, history and travel writing, with a sprinkling of recipes both historical and present-day (the former … Continue reading
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Andrzej Stachurski, This is Poland
This large-format book was a present from a Polish student and is essentially a coffee-table guide to the country. The chapters are entitled: Geography; Cities; Churches; Palaces, Castles and Manor Houses; and Nature. It was probably wise not to include … Continue reading
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A A Pallis, Greek Miscellany
This book was self-published in 1964, and I was given a copy some twenty years later by (I think) the author’s son, when I was on a school trip to Greece. It is a collection of essays on mediæval and … Continue reading
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The History of English Poetry, Peter Whitfield (Naxos audiobook)
I bought this thinking this would be an anthology of verse read aloud, with at most brief introductions to each selection, but it’s an audiobook, dating from 2009, with extracts of poetry read to illustrate. What is it an audiobook … Continue reading
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Philip S. Harrington, Eclipse! The What, Where, When, Why & How Guide to Watching Solar & Lunar Eclipses
If you come across this book soon after I write this, it’s still useful for another couple of years as it covers all solar and lunar eclipses from 1998 to 2017. Each solar eclipse has a map of its path … Continue reading
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