I have shed many tears this week. Some of joy. Mostly, however, they have been tears of utter despair. This has been a maddening, exhilarating, but ultimately, a frightening week to be a woman in the UK. Sarah Everard is the name on every woman’s lips, her story one that we internalise from the momentContinue reading “#IAmTheStorm”
Author Archives: Deborah Siddoway
Gerta: A Review
This is the first time in while writing my review, I downgraded my star rating. On reflection, there was much that was difficult with this book, which is a shame, because it opened with such promise. Gerta by Kateřina Tučková My rating: 3 of 5 stars This book had me really conflicted. There were timesContinue reading “Gerta: A Review”
Adrienne Rich’s Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution
I feel like I have come to feminism far too late in life. It is only now, with the reading I have done, my research into the proto-feminist movement of the nineteenth century for my studies, and my engagement with current feminist issues relating to the erasure of the language we use to define womenContinue reading “Adrienne Rich’s Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution”
Girl A and the Hype of a Debut Novel
Girl A by Abigail Dean My rating: 3 of 5 stars As I always try to give reasons when I give a book less than 4 stars, here is my thoughts on Girl A. I went into this book with high expectations, such was the hype that accompanied the debut. Unfortunately, this is one ofContinue reading “Girl A and the Hype of a Debut Novel”
Atonement by Ian McEwan, An Old Favourite Read Again
Shortlisted for the Booker in 2001, I will never understand how it did not win. In 2010, Time Magazine listed it as one of the top 100 English language novels since 1923. Atonement by Ian McEwan My rating: 5 of 5 stars It is always interesting coming back to a book you read many yearsContinue reading “Atonement by Ian McEwan, An Old Favourite Read Again”
The Last Homestead by Marina Wheeler
I have just posted my review on Goodreads, and I am somewhat stunned by the very mixed reviews on this book. I think my review – being somewhere in the middle, probably represents my view that there is some value in the book. It was just very difficult to engage with it. The Lost Homestead:Continue reading “The Last Homestead by Marina Wheeler”
Mordew: When a Dickensian reads Fantasy
Mordew by Alex Pheby My rating: 5 of 5 stars I readily confess that I am not a lover of the fantasy genre. Therefore, when I received my copy of the book, it languished in the old TBR pile for a considerable period of time. Even the fact that many of the reviewers used theContinue reading “Mordew: When a Dickensian reads Fantasy”
Lipstick, gender and a WWII novel: A book review
The Last Correspondent by Soraya M. Lane My rating: 3 of 5 stars The premise of this book was powerful, and had the potential to be an interesting and relevant story highlighting the role that women played as war correspondents during the second world war. However, there were far too many irritants in the bookContinue reading “Lipstick, gender and a WWII novel: A book review”
When you want to love a book, and you just don’t… The Death of Francis Bacon by Max Porter
The Death of Francis Bacon by Max Porter My rating: 3 of 5 stars You know when you that feeling when you are really, and I mean, REALLY, looking forward to reading a book. And then you pick it up, and start reading it. A few pages in, you start to shuffle in your seat,Continue reading “When you want to love a book, and you just don’t… The Death of Francis Bacon by Max Porter”
The Thursday Murder Club (Review)
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Now this was an interesting book for me. First and foremost, I loved the fact that it was set in a former convent, particularly as I used to live in one, albeit mine was a general residential development, rather than a retirementContinue reading “The Thursday Murder Club (Review)”
Deborah Siddoway 