book review – non-fiction

A Traveller’s Life – Eric Newby

May 16, 2017March 4, 2018by mugginshereLeave a Comment

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I am ridiculously fond of this book. It reads as if a very exciting and slightly eccentric uncle has come to stay and is sat in a battered leather armchair telling tales – each story as unexpected as the last. It is the best kind of travel writing; stuffed full of character, carting you off to places that may not even exist anymore, and never being quite sure what’s around the next bend.

Newby had a fantastic life and treats all of it as an adventure. The domestic details of growing up in London in the early 1900s are spun out with as much energy and colour as his travels abroad. It is nothing short of bizarre to find the man best known for ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’ spent a good few years of his life working in Ladies’ Fashion, and for John Lewis at that. As my own grandfather worked in a similar role in London in the 50s and 60s, it was rather touching to see this section of his life written with the same humour and energy as the more naturally exhilarating setting of crewing a tall ship across the ocean.

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book review - non-fiction

The Shepherd’s Life – James Rebanks

May 31, 2016March 4, 2018by mugginshereLeave a Comment

This book has a bit of everything for everyone. As well as conjuring up the traditions of generations against a backdrop of the beautiful Lake District, there is a strong human element, unexpected happenings and the perfect balance of detail and technical talk to keep both those with prior knowledge and those without a clue hooked throughout. It should be read by farmers, walkers, lovers of the British countryside and ancient traditions, anyone who has ever knitted or eaten lamb or even refused to eat lamb. Basically everyone, get you this book. There is also an illustrated version jam-packed with photographs that looks stunning or you can check out his instagram account full of sheepish goings on.

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book review - non-fiction

Strong Opinions – Vladamir Nabokov

February 23, 2016March 4, 2018by mugginshere2 Comments

Picked up on a whim, this turned out to be an unexpectedly fun read from the author of Lolita. A collection of interviews and articles, Nabokov comes across as someone who does indeed have ‘strong opinions’ and is a powerfully intelligent and uncompromising character who does not yeald to public demand or scrutiny. Yet his insistance on scripting all interviews, feeling his spontaneous English inadequate for expressing himself, is the act of a man who cares what the world thinks of him. His mastery of the written word is never in question and the book brims with fantastic quotes from the very first sentence:

‘I think like a genius, I write like a distinguished author and I speak like a child’.

Covering a wide range of personal and global topics, including his beloved butterflies, this was a good book to dip in and out of. I didn’t make it through all the articles but enjoyed the interviews and have picked out a few great lines.

On Russia

I will never go back, for the simple reason that all the Russia I need is always with me: literature, language and my own Russian childhood.

On his travelling and where he feels is home.

The writer’s art is his real passport

On an artist’s motivation

I don’t think an artist should bother about his audience.

In short, it was the bizarre mix of self deprecation and arrogance in the very first line that led me to read all that followed in the voice of an eccentric genius and become very fond of the man and his peculiar ways. Nabokov feels very much a person belonging to a different culture and time and it makes for a fascinating read, in small doses before bedtime.

From: the library

Read: before bed – and not all the way through (shock horror!)

Felt: pleasantly diverted and in the presence of mad genius

Liked: the frank, grumpy honesty presented in flowery elegance

Would recommend: to fans of Russian writing and the literary set

* the postcard/bookmark is my favourite painting by Finnish artist Askeli Gallen-Kallela of lake Keitele, hanging in the National Gallery.

book review - non-fiction

From the land of Green Ghosts – Pascal Khoo Thwe

February 15, 2016March 4, 2018by mugginshereLeave a Comment

This is a transporting and absorbing read, yet to call it magical or enchanting feels far too flippant for writing that covers so much real suffering and violence. Pascal Khoo Thwe’s life story, from growing up in a catholic tribe in Burma to fighting in the jungle as a rebel, feels an important one to share. His keen observations and favouring of explanations in place of simple descriptions bring his narrative alive. The clarity of his writing and matter of fact approach do justice to both the delightfully fantastical and the unjustifiable atrocities he repeatedly witnessed. From the Padaung to Mandalay and on into the jungle, this is a captivating, educating and eye opening tale. Hand drawn illustrations and photographs underline the reality of both the wonders and the horrors.

Looking for a few quotes, just one paragraph contained these two gems and every page is filled with meaningful and mesmerising passages.

On eating wasps

The meat of the baby wasp is tender, and the texture is somewhere between scrambled eggs and roast prawn….(many years later, I was to read Lewis Caroll. My descriptions sound quite like him but are literally true.) ….We regarded wasps as a delicacy, which is why we tried to be so precise in describing their taste – rather like wine-lovers in Europe.

On hanging honeycomb on doors to ward off spirits: Continue reading “From the land of Green Ghosts – Pascal Khoo Thwe” →