Looking in on Tea with Tales

On a bleak cold morning we filled up on cheese scones and shared our favourite winter meal.

Our book reading was a bit different today; we listened to the author’s notes on the novel By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult. The book is a fictionalised account of Emilia Bassano’s live in Elizabethan England. The premise of the book is that Shakespeare did not write all or even any of the plays and sonnets. The author gives her reasons behind this theory which will no doubt cause controversary amongst followers of Shakespearean literature.

Our first two reviews were both recommended as lovely reads. The Bookshop Ladies by Faith Hogan is set on the west coast of Ireland and has a twist our reader did not see coming. Her other recommendation is Hidden Among the Stars by Melanie Dobson set in Austria in 1938. Challenging but worth reading.

The Vera series by Anne Cleeves are very well narrated and the accents are done well. Our reader is going to try the Shetland Island series next.

Scott Blade writes the Jack Widow series with a character similar to Jack Reacher in that he is a drifter and a former Navy SEAL. A good read but not quite as good as Lee Child.

When reading Dead Souls by Ian Rankin identifying who are the goodies and who are the baddies was a trial. However the book this reader is currently reading by Stuart MacBride sounds promising although the title eludes our reader this morning.

The following four books were all enjoyed and recommended: Exit Music by Ian Rankin, Going Home by Danielle Steel, A Song for the Dying by Stuart MacBride and No More Dying Then by Ruth Rendell.

Our follower of politics recommended Bob Woodward’s State of Denial: Bush at war - an interesting look at the Iraq War. There followed a lively discussion as we veered into what is happening within the Trump administration.

The Accidental Duchess: from farmer's daughter to Belvoir Castle by Emma Rutland was a previous recommendation by the group and our reader enjoyed reading how the Duchess overcame huge barriers to make the castle a profitable business.

Valerie Millington has written an excellent biography of her mother titled Ellen of Denniston. After suffering a life changing accident Ellen overcame her injuries to develop National Field Days at Mystery Creek. An inspiring read.

We finished on the heart-warming true story of Bob the cat and his owner James that has spurred a sequel, a movie and a children’s version. A Street Cat named Bob by James Bowen is a lovely read.

Tea with Tales is the library's monthly book group for the vision impaired. The group meets on the first Monday of the month at Hastings War Memorial Library.

Posted by Miss Moneypenny

Back to Blog Archive