This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.
On Monday, my son flew out to L.A. to start rehearsals, as he has landed a part in a production of Loot written by Joe Orton at the Odyssey Theatre. I’m delighted for him!
This week my Creative Writing Monday group resumed – and it was a really special start to my last course. One student presented his children’s book that he’s been working for several years – it’s a delightful story with beautiful colour illustrations. Another student brought in a Wellbeing magazine that had published one of her poems; another student showed us a poem of hers that has been published in an anthology celebrating independent book shops; and yet another student brought along a quarterly poetry collection that had published one of her poems. What a wonderful way to start the term! It isn’t that unusual that one of my students is placed in writing competitions, or have stories and poems published – the standard of writing is high in all the groups, but that level of success is extraordinary. On a less happy note, my grandchildren have been smitten by a really virulent strain of chicken pox – one after the other…
I got a bit carried away at Pilates this week, picking the strongest black bands to use when performing a series of exercises – which left me hobbling around for the next couple of days, stiff as a board. As some stage this year, I need to get more serious about my fitness… I’m also exploring Mindfulness to help combat the stress I’m battling – watch this space.
Last week I read:
Children of Ruin – Book 2 of the Children of Tim series by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Thousands of years ago, Earth’s terraforming program took to the stars. On the world they called Nod,
scientists discovered alien life – but it was their mission to overwrite it with the memory of Earth. Then humanity’s great empire fell, and the program’s decisions were lost to time. Aeons later, humanity and its new spider allies detected fragmentary radio signals between the stars. They dispatched an exploration vessel, hoping to find cousins from old Earth. But those ancient terraformers woke something on Nod better left undisturbed.
And it’s been waiting for them.
This is a cracking read, although I struggled initially to get into this book, which I think is more down to me than the book. However once I became fully absorbed into the story, I loved it. Tchaikovsky’s ability to write other species is unsurpassed. Review to follow.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Audiobook by Douglas Adams, narrated by Stephen Fry
One Thursday lunchtime the Earth gets unexpectedly demolished to make way for a new hyperspace bypass. For Arthur Dent, who has only just had his house demolished that morning, this seems already to be more than he can cope with. Sadly, however, the weekend has only just begun, and the Galaxy is a very strange and startling place
I know and love the story – and this audiobook, with Fry’s superb narration, is great fun. Highly recommended for fans of quirky comedy and/or enjoyably humorous space opera adventure.
My posts last week:
Review of AUDIOBOOK The Screaming Staircase – Book 1 of the Lockwood & Co series by Jonathan Stroud
*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The Deathless – Book 1 of The Deathless series by Peter Newman
Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last few weeks, in no particular order:
6 Newbie Mistakes that Will KILL a Perfectly Good Story https://authorkristenlamb.com/2019/05/five-mistakes-kill-story/ Advice from this experienced author and social media maven is always worth reading…
The Literary Pig: HAG – debut poetry collection by Zoe Mitchell https://tracyfells.blogspot.com/2019/04/hag-debut-poetry-collection-by-zoe.html?spref=tw Tracy provides an excellent review and interesting interview with Zoe that I thoroughly enjoyed.
The Lexicographer of Misinformation https://interestingliterature.com/2019/05/03/the-lexicographer-of-misinformation-tom-burnam-dictionary-of-misinformation-review/ In these days of fake news, this fascinating article features a pre-digital debunker of ‘facts’ we generally believe are true…
Shiver Me Timers! the 2019 Hugo Finalists Part One https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/2019/04/10/shiver-me-timbers-the-2019-hugo-finalists-part-one/ In my effort to catch up, I encountered this really useful and enjoyable article on the 2019 Hugo Finalists from The Cap – one of my favourite review bloggers…
The Band, Martin Carthy, Anton Karas: The Third Man Theme https://theimmortaljukebox.com/2019/04/06/the-band-martin-carthy-anton-karas-the-third-man-theme/ I also had the pleasure of catching up with Thom’s recent articles he’s posted at The Immortal Jukebox – and encountered this gem… Do, do, DO play the video of the opening credits – it’s a joy.
Many thanks for taking the time to comment, like and visit my blog – I will catch up with you as soon as I can, so thank you also for your patience. In the meantime, have a wonderful week!
Brainfluff 
Huge congratulations to your son, that sounds like a great honor! Have a wonderful week, Sarah:-)
Thank you, Tammy. It’s a wonderful part:)
Congratulations to your son, I hope your grandchildren don’t suffer from any of the frightening complications of Chicken Pox. My husband caught Shingles about 3 years ago and nearly lost the sight in one eye.
Have a great reading week
Thank you, Shelleyrae:). Yes… I’m crossing my fingers and holding my breath over the children and the chicken pox. The eldest is now finally back to school, and it looks as though the baby has escaped the worst of it – but the middle one is still suffering…
I hope you, too, have a wonderful reading week:))
Congratulations to your son! And wow- that’s amazing that so many of your students had their writing or poetry published. Exciting!
The Hitchhiker’s Guide is a book I’ve wanted to read for a long time, and I even started it once but got sidetracked. It sounds like it would be fabulous on audio as well. I really should give it another shot here soon!
Oh yes – and do consider listening to it… It makes the quirky humour really sparkle. I hope you have a great week, Greg:)
Wonderful news about your son! And I’m hobbling around right now too. LOL Mine is from the new job. A lot more walking then my old one.
Urg! My sister is in the same boat – she has recently started a new job and is on her feet all way, where the previous job was sitting down. I lent her my foot massager which she has found really, really helpful in easing down the pain once she gets home in the evening:)
Ugh- I need to read Children of Time! I started it last fall and then a reading slump hit, but I do really enjoy his writing. You’re right about his ability to write other species- really incredible.
Yes… though I’ll be honest, I really, really struggled to get into this one for the first third of the book – if I wasn’t such a firm fan, I might have given up. After that, it just took off and was brilliant, but I think that way the narrative time jumped about wasn’t all that helpful…
Oops, I always hate it when my eyes are bigger than my muscles at exercise class. Lol. I think I can do something at level 10 when really it’s more like 4 or 5. Hope you’re feeling better now! And the grandkids too!
Thank you, SJ. Right now, I’m feeling LOADS better, partly because I’m now able to walk upright, instead of stagger about like a drunken octogenarian! Have a great week!
It’s exciting your class is off to such a great start! I too need to get my health routines under control. It’s too bad about the chickenpox. I’ve had both chickenpox and measles as a child but I wonder if I need new immunizations as it is such a long time ago.
Have a lovely week!
Here is my Sunday Post
Yes – a flying start:)). Yes, it’s worth considering. Both children had already had chicken pox once already – this is a very nasty strain. I hope your week is a good one, Anne:)
Hitchhiker’s Guide is one of my absolute favorites. Douglas Adams’ sense of humor never fails to absolutely slay me. Your creative writing class sounds wonderful. I love the sound of the children’s book. It sounds so special. I hope you have a wonderful week!
Thank you, Katherine – yes, the children’s book is a total delight. Age appropriate, funny and poignant… the class all loved it and rightly so. I hope you, too, have a fabulous week, Katherine:)
Congrats to your son! I wish him well.
Thank you Kimberly:)
Congrats to your son! That sounds like such an incredible opportunity. Sorry to hear about the pilates mishap. I’m trying to get back on track with my fitness as well but am finding it hard to get back into a routine.
Thank you, Suzanne – and tell me about the fitness routine, I’m fast turning into a blob!
What a great week, your son must be so pleased and on top of that such lovely achievements from your writing students.
I imagine any book narrated by Fry would be great to listen to.
Lynn 😀
He is a marvellous narrator – if you get a chance to listen to his audiobooks, do so:)
Oh no! Chickenpox is awful! At least they’ve caught them while young! I was 14 when I first had chicken pox… Not so good. Hopefully, they won’t scratch too much and be back on the go in no time. Mindfulness is something I need to learn more about. I’m curious as to whether it actually helps with the stress.
That sounds like a wonderful start of your creative writing class! Sorry to hear your grand kids have been struggling with chicken pocks. I hope they feel better soon.
I am looking forward to hear more about your journey with mindfulness, I just started on that myself as well and some meditation. So it will be interesting to hear your experience with it.
I heard a lot of good things about The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, but haven’t read it myself yet. Have a great week!
Congratulations to your son, and what wonders from your students! How’s your own writing coming along? 🙂
I’ve been away for a long weekend – hence the sudden silence, but before I left, I suddenly hit my mojo, given I’m within touching distance of the end of the novel – over 14,000 words last week:)). I’d love to think it’s going to last…
Oh wow! That’s a writing accomplishment to be proud of xxxxxxxxx