Charles Dickens

Tuesday 7th February 2012 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens. This event has been well documented in the press and on television and on the day itself a wreath is being laid in Westminster Abbey, his final resting place.. There is a small display in the Library to mark this anniversary with books by and about Dickens available for loan. For more information about Dickens try the Dickens 2012 website or if you want to read a work by Dickens but don't have the time go to The Guardian's digested Dickens pages where you can read shortened versions of David Copperfield, Great Expectations and Bleak House.

You might also like (some of my own favourite nineteenth century books)

Books on screen

At the moment there are quite a few books which have been made into films or television programmes. Just released is 'The woman in black' starring Daniel Radcliffe ( aka Harry Potter). The book written by Susan Hil some 21 years ago,l is one of my favourites by her. It is set in the nineteenth century and is a wonderful gothic ghost story, where the  atmosphere builds slowly and eerily to its conclusion. Having seen a trailer for the movie version I am in two minds as to whether or not to go and see the film as Daniel R. seems too young to play the role of the lawyer - certainly as I inmagined the character. But I probably will - just so I can confirm that, as usual, the book is far better than the film!! If you want the real chill factor, read the book late at night when you are all alone!

New Year Resolutions

One of my first New Year resolutions was to get back to doing a blog for staff - so at last I have managed to get around to that (big tick on list).

At the top of my list it says 'Buy fewer books for self - borrow more from the Library.' Yes in these times of financial hardship I decided that it was crazy not to make use of the public library service. After all if there is a book Iwant to read available in West Lothian, then all I have to do is request it and as soon as it is available it is delivered here to school on a Tuesday. Ideal! Well, yes I have been doing that, indeed the latest Paul Torday arrived on Tuesday a nice, new hardback which I am the first to borrow. However I had 'forgotten' that I had pre-ordered a couple of books on Amazon, the first of which arrived on my doorstep on the third of January!

Ah well! It is still only January and I will try harder. If only my son would stop suggesting that we meet for coffee in Glasgow at a place that combines cakes with second hand books! OOPS!

Have only just started this book will review later.

My downfall! Had read the first book in this series by Peter May (The black house) attracted to it because it is set in the Ness area of Lewis and I have family connections there. Both books are really evocative of the Lewis landscape and way of life as well as being fairly decent murder mysteries.

Staff Summer Book Event

Please come along to the Library on Friday 24th June from 12.30pm onwards. As well as books galore there will be wine and nibbles.

If you have a book you would like to exchange please bring it with you.

There will also be a few books available to buy for a token amount.

It is an ideal opportunity to see all that the Library has to offer and maybe borrow a few books to read over the summer. You might be surprised by the selection of fiction books that the Library has.

So if good company, book talk and a glass of wine is your idea of heaven then please join us in the Library - 12.30 June 24th!

Case histories

One of my favourite books is 'Case histories' by Kate Atkinson, also known for her novel 'Behind the scenes at the museum'. Case histories has now been made into a BBC series and the first part starts on Sunday 5th June at 9pm starring Jason Isaacs as Jackson Brodie the lead character. It has been filmed in Edinburgh and I am looking forward to seeing if the TV series does the book justice. 'Case histories' is one of those books which has an absolutely absorbing first chaper and is unputdownable thereafter. It is basically a detective mystery novel but so much more. If you become hooked on this Jackson Brodie tale then you will be pleased to know that there are another three thereafter. The other three are: 'One good turn', 'When will there be good news', and 'Started early, took my dog' (great title that last one!)

For more information on Kate Atkinson's novels: http://www.kateatkinson.co.uk/

For details of the TV series: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b011whc9/

Dark matter:a ghost story by Michelle Paver

I really enjoyed Michelle Paver's children's series - Chronicles of ancient darkness - and having seen her talking about Dark matter on a television book show I had high hopes of this her first book for adults.

The book is set in 1937 and is about a group of young men who go to the Arctic on a scientific expedition. The five young men are left with their eight huskies to survive the dark Arctic winter alone. A series of events mean that eventually Jack, the main charcter, is left on his own with the huskies unable to leave because the sea freezes and there is no way to leave even if he wants to. But is Jack really alone, or is there a ghost walking the ice and wanting revenge?

The book is well written and very descriptive but I thought the ghostly presence was just a bit too obvious and far from original. I had expected something more of a scientific phenomenon to be the cause of Jack's unease given the 'dark matter' of the title. Not as terrifying as all the reviews would have you believe and ghost notwithstanding Jack is never entirely alone. But worth a read if only for the interesting insight into preparing for an Arctic expedition in the late 1930s.

One of our Thursdays is missing by Jasper Fforde

Stopped reading all the books I had started as soon as this dropped through the door. I LOVE everything written by Jasper Fforde and especially his Thursday Next series. If you have not read any of these books it is best to start at the beginning with The Eyre affair. Thursday Next is a literary detective who has to investigate why characters are going missing from Jane Eyre by entering the world of books in an effort to retrieve them. Thursday's world is 1980s Swindon, the Crimean War is still raging, mammoths go on annual migrations and cloned dodos are popular pets!

If you love reading and books, you will love reading these books!! Full of literary references, silly names and bizarre happenings the books are easier to read than describe. Well worth trying and once you are hooked there is more at Jasper's very addictive website : http://www.jasperfforde.com/

Jasper Fforde is also appearing at Aye Write at the Michell Library in Glasgow on Friday 4th March: http://www.ayewrite.com/