Reading List - March 2013

"Raising Girls" by Steve Biddulph.
"The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake" by Aimee Bender.
"Weekend Wodehouse" by P.G. Wodehouse.
"Winter Ghosts" by Kate Mosse.
"Simple Living" by Lorilee Lippincott.
"Miss Buncle's Book" by D. E. Stevenson.

"Miss Buncle's Book" was possibly my favourite read of the month. It was a delightfully cosy book, perfect for a long Bank Holiday weekend. The Wodehouse was wonderful too, of course, even if I did end up peppering my conversations with "What, ho!"s whilst reading it. These monthly book lists don't take into account the myriad magazines, newspapers and online articles I read, nor the books I read to the Beautiful Girl (currently "A Bear Called Paddington" by Michael Bond) or the books I read to my children at school (currently "The Twits" by Roald Dahl). I should, perhaps, start including the children's books I read as children's literature is a real passion of mine. In fact, at the beginning of the week we (Lovely Husband, Beautiful Girl, The Sousin and I) made a pilgrimage to the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden. Athough only small it was packed with things to see and do. In particular I loved the replica of his little writing hut, his "nest" as he described it, with its comfy writing chair and desk, thermos of coffee and supply of chocolate. The girls loved all the activities in the Story Centre. And we all loved the chocolate cake (a la Bruce Bogtrotter) in the cafe!

Reading List - February 2013

"Dotter of my Father's Eye" by Mary & Bryan Talbot.
"This is a Love Story" by Jessica Thompson (bought solely on the basis of it's beautiful cover. Sadly, it proves the adage to be true).
"Home Comforts" by Cheryl Mendelson (my pick, for this month).
"February" by Lisa Moore.
"Fresh Apples" by Rachel Trezise.

Thought I'd read more this month but I can't for the life of me, remember what!

Home Comforts

For someone who loves domesticity as much as I do, I am, I'll shamefacedly admit, a pretty shoddy housekeeper. I'd like to claim, in my defence that I am both a conscientious mother and teacher and between them these leave me little time to clean the oven or wash down the skirting boards. Honesty compels me to confess though, that I always seem to find time to arrange flowers in a pretty jug, bake shortbread or reorganise my vintage teacup collection. It's a question of priorities I suppose and I've always chosen to put the fripperies that I enjoy before the hard graft. Things are starting to change though and it's in large part to this lovely book. Although it is ridiculous in places (do I really need dozens of pages of closely typed text on stain removing or slightly bossy instructions on how best to remove books from a shelf?) it is also an enjoyable, cosy read. Women of my generation - the horribly named "Thatcher's kids" - were brought up to expect much of ourselves in terms of career and life outside the home and therefore running an well-ordered, clean and comfortable home was not valued or considered important. Hence, I have got to my mid-thirties and am only just getting into a proper housekeeping routine.Of course, the seasonal urge to sort, scrub and clean brought about by the signs of Spring helps too. Plus I've developed a little method of doing a horrid job - scrubbing out that manky under-the-kitchen-sink-cupboard - followed by a lovely one - lining drawers with scented liners or organising the photographs into albums - which is working for me. My home is still FAR from perfect but I'm getting there. Still not entirely sure my mother would agree...

Reading List - January 2013

I'm always fascinated by other people's reading habits. When I visit friends' houses I love little more than nosing around their bookshelves - usually, it has to be said, with a greedy eye on what I might borrow. So I thought it might be fun to keep a record of my own reading habits this year, month by month. I present to you, the inaugural list...

"Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm" by Stella Gibbons.
"Letter from Point Clear" by Dennis McFarland.
"Kitchen Diaries Vol.2" by Nigel Slater (yes, I really did read this like a novel).
"Pure" by Andrew Miller.
"The Betrayal" by Helen Dunmore (my absolute favourite this month - loved it almost as much as it's prequel, "The Siege").
"The Provincial Lady in America" by E.M.Delafield (wonderful, of course).
"Saints at the River" by Ron Rash.

Three beautiful things....

.... from a quiet Sunday in January.
1. A long, lazy start to the day - a pot of tea, Bon Iver on the stereo and the weekend supplements from yesterday's "Guardian".
2. The Lovely Husband makes his famous Shin of Beef stew. It simmers away for hours, filling the house with delicious smells. By the time I finally get to eat it the anticipation makes it extra yummy.
3. I am loving this month's Book Group book, "Pure" by Andrew Miller.

Welcome 2013

The Lovely Husband and I made a decision to celebrate the New Year in a different way this year. We were tucked up in bed by 10:30pm and asleep shortly after. Woken by the fireworks at midnight, we exchanged a sleepy "Happy New Year" kiss then nodded straight back off again. But on New Years Day the three of us were up with the lark and went for a walk, loaded with blankets and thermos flasks, to a wood, not far from us. We climbed to the top of the hill and hunkered down to watch the sunrise on 2013. There was not a soul around (unsurprisingly) and it was so quiet we could hear the beating of the birds' wings which were flying above us. It was calm, peaceful, beautiful. 

When the sun was fully up and the cold getting the better of us we came home and cooked a big brunch for friends. A long, lazy day followed, full of conversation, laughter, jigsaws, books, naps and crochet. If the rest of 2013 continues the way it started we are in for a very, very happy new year.

Half-term Images

A dewy cobweb....

A new bakery....

No fairies, unfortunately.....

A favourite bookshop, comes with a woodburner and homemade cakes...