Sofa Spotlight - The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris

It was difficult to not compare this to other books about the Holocaust that I’ve read, well actually it was impossible, so there will be a little bit of comparison going on with this. I read it over the course of three or four day and overall I thought the book was good, and an important one to be written.




So other books that I was subconsciously comparing this to were, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, Schindler’s Ark, The Book Thief (not concentration camp themed but relevant) and parts of The Hiding Place where Corrie ten Boom talks about her experiences in Ravensbruck camp. But this is also a book in its own right and should be treated as such.

The story is about two Jews, Lale and Gita who meet while they are imprisoned at Auschwitz. The story follows their romance as Lale, the man who tattoos the prisoner numbers on new prisoners arriving at the camp, while trying to help as many of his fellow prisoners keep going and survive.




What I found refreshing was the way in which Lale’s perception is portrayed. I think that I forget how at the start people didn’t necessarily know that the camps existed or when they were taken away where they were being taken to and what their fate would be. Lale initially has a little optimism about what might happen, and through the book it is his optimism that gets not only himself but others through the experience.




Also different was that Lale has a very different experience to the average prisoner at Auschwitz. As the tattooist he has his own room and extra rations. His worry is that he will be seen as a collaborator and it’s interesting to see what it was like for people who did what they had to do to survive, even if what they did was questionable and distasteful to them.

Although well written it didn’t have the same impact on me as Schindler’s Ark. Nor did it make me cry like the Book Thief did. I’m still trying to work out why this is. The characters were well formed and I felt like I knew them but I didn’t feel Lale’s grief as much as was maybe intended.




However, the story intrigued me so much that when it was over I was reading all the postscripts and author’s notes at the end. When you read something like this you want to know how realistic it is. Morris provides the answers, not to every question I had, but enough to satisfy my curiosity. Morris tell us that Lale’s story is mostly true, with artistic license for the story. Hearing her comments on how she heard the story really brought home how hard and life changing these events were for all who experienced them.

Would I recommend it? Yes, because it is very readable and it’s so important that we don’t forget what happened. These events must never happen again.

Sofa Spotlight - The Professor, Charlotte Bronte

As it was Charlotte Bronte’s birthday yesterday I thought it would be nice to do a quick review of one of her books. In fairness The Professor is not my favourite and I can see why she had trouble publishing it.

That said it wasn’t all bad. The basic storyline is that a younger son of an industrialist, Mr Crimsworth, rejects the help of his wealthy relatives and endeavours to make his own way in life. First he attempts to work for his brother but that doesn’t work out so he ends up as an English professor in Belgium. There he meets one of his students who he later falls in love with.

And that is why I’m not a fan of this book. Both the Crimsworth brothers have a harsh streak in them. Granted the elder Crimsworth is the worst and I like him the least. But the younger Crimsworth, and hero of the book, is also questionable in how he treats people, particularly the student whom he supposedly likes so much.

The book does have its value though. And I don’t think there are many who would argue that it doesn’t provide an insight into Charlotte Bronte’s own world and experiences. Her letters show that she too fell in love with her professor and struggled to accept the coldness and often lack of response that she got from him. It’s been a long time since I read her letters but I remember them being full of passion. And I suspect that some of that passion finds its way into the character of Jane Eyre.

Sofa Spotlight - Ronaldo: The Phantom Carrot Snatcher, Maxine Sylvester

It’s not often that I read children’s books - well not without a child to read them to. So reading this was a little bit of an adventure in its own right. For me the sign of a good book is if you feel sad at the end that you have to say goodbye to the characters. Because in the time you’ve spent reading the book they become good friends and it’s always hard to say goodbye to friends. 

First of all, let me be really upfront. Maxine Sylvester kindly sent me a copy of this book to review here and in return I hope to give her a fair and honest review. 

So on with the show.

The main plot line is about a young reindeer called Ronaldo and his best friend Rudi. Ronaldo is a very talented flying reindeer and is all set to win the Golden Snowflake for best flyer at his school. But then he meets Ernie, a lost wolf cub, and he has to decide between winning the prize or sacrifice it and help Ernie find her family.

First of all I’d almost fallen in love with this book before I’d got to the story. At the front is a map of the world that Ronaldo and his friends live in. I love maps like these because they are almost a story in themselves. I think as a child I spent nearly as much time pouring over the maps of stories like The Chronicles of Narnia and imaging the characters I’d read about having their adventures and also creating new ones for them in my head. And this map had the same feel. And yes I spent a fair bit of time pouring over it and wondering what other adventures Ronaldo had got up to.

Underneath the storyline are some important life lessons being quietly taught. Friendship and loyalty are brought through in a very genuine way. Although Ronaldo clearly loves Rudi and also Ernie he has to battle his own selfishness to come through for his friends. Ronaldo’s feelings and internal battles are realistic to anyone not just children. My favourite lesson from this was what Ernie taught him - that “good friends make happier times brighter.” 

Humour is woven through the narrative beautifully as are the illustrations. Ronaldo, Rudi and Ernie are brought to life and are just as much fun to look at as to read about. And the tension is incredible! Right at the end I was on the edge of my seat wanting to find out what was going to happen. As I was reading it at this point someone tried to interrupt me and I had to tell them to wait because for me, right then, nothing was more important than getting to the end of that chapter to know for sure what was coming next!

One last thing that I thought was rather nice was that the vocabulary wasn’t limited. There were more complicated words that would stretch a child’s reading ability and in my mind that’s no bad thing.

So yes would definitely recommend this one. It’s a really fun book and I hope to meet up with Ronaldo in another of his adventures.

Sofa Spotlight - Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte

I’ve been wanting to revisit Jane Eyre for some time. I first read it when I was in my teens and so I wanted to read it again with adult eyes to see if I still felt the same about it.

When I first read it I fell in love with it and it was the book that started me on my Bronte adventure. It wasn’t so much the storyline, I remember thinking the characters were a little odd, but it was the way it was told that got me hooked. Until this point in my reading life I had struggled with the classics. Once I was through the first few chapters I was alright but they took a lot of reading and I found them hard work. Jane Eyre changed that. I was into it with the first chapter and found it an easy read all the way to the end.

So 14 years later I’ve read it again to see if it still has that same hold on me. And it sort of did but not in the same way. 

Reading it as an adult has given me a whole different take on those characters. Like I said, I thought some of them were a bit off but in my teens I couldn’t really tell you why. But now I could. 

The best example would be my feelings for Mr Rochester. I know that I wasn’t a huge fan of him the first time round, but this time I really didn’t like him. I could sympathise with his history - that was harsh and he was hard done by, but that never gives anyone the right to play games with someone else or lead them down a path that isn’t good. So by the end of this reading I wasn’t a fan of his. 

As for Jane I had more respect for her this time round. You could feel the turmoil in her and the cost of her decisions which she made for good reasons. Sometimes it’s not easy to do the right thing and you get a good feel for how hard it is for her to give up what she loves for what she believes to be right. 

Other characters - Mrs Reed - one of those you love to hate. Still felt the same way about her. Helen Burns, I kind of still felt the same way about her but I also found her a little bit hard to swallow - maybe I don’t buy that someone could be that patient. Could be wrong though.

And the gothic suspense that’s going through most of the story is just as good the second time round.

In conclusion I would say that this was a book I was glad that I did a second reading of and if you don’t know the story of Jane Eyre you should definitely have a read of this. It’s also an easy way into the classics if you’ve never really enjoyed them before. And I’d love to know your opinions on Mr Rochester and who you loved or hated in this book. 

Sofa Spotlight - Shoot Your Shot, Vernon Brundage Jr.

This was recommended to me over on twitter and I should say first of all that this isn’t normally what I would choose to read. But I do like opportunities to try new reading adventures so here goes.

The tag line is “A sport-inspired guide to living your best life.” Said sport being basketball and the book assured me that any knowledge of basketball was not required to get the full benefit of this book. And as I know nothing of basketball I think I’m in an excellent position to put that to the test.

So I did. And it turns out it’s true, you don’t need that knowledge because all the concepts are clearly explained. It’s clear that Brundage has a love for the sport and that passion comes across. Having said that, it probably would help if you had some interest in basketball. Illustrations are understandably weighted towards basketball. But there is a balance, for me it got interesting when he applied those illustrations to life to make his point.

The book is structured to follow the pattern of a basketball game, so it’s split into quarters. I actually really enjoyed this idea, somehow it made it easier to process the content of the chapters. And there’s a helpful review at half time too.

As for the content I agreed with most of what Brundage had to say. There were parts that I didn’t agree with but on the whole his thoughts and view point on life were refreshing and well worth reading. What I also found refreshing was that Brundage has no problem bringing God into the pages of this book, and sharing not only his wisdom with the reader but also wisdom from the Bible.

So yes, I would definitely recommend giving this book a shot! 

Sofa Spotlight - The Tenant of Wildfell Hall - Anne Bronte

Not long ago I wrote about Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte, and I said that you should read that first as an introduction to her writing. And the reason for that is when I read The Tenant of Wildfell Hall I was blown away by it. 

EG and I have discussed this book a lot because she’s not a huge fan of the Brontes but she has read this one. The narrator is male, who writes a series of letters telling the story, and EGs thoughts were that Anne Bronte wrote that voice in a very convincing way.

So the story. In essence it’s the story of Gilbert Markham who is a gentleman farmer I think. In his neighbourhood arrives a widow, Mrs Graham, and her young son, Arthur. Misunderstandings abound as Markham finds himself being drawn in and ultimately falling in love with Mrs Graham. Who actually does everything that she can to repel him, not because she doesn’t return his feelings but because she has a secret.

The other side of the story is about the life of Arthur Huntingdon, a wealthy land owner who is squandering his wealth on a dissolute lifestyle in London. What is interesting about Huntingdon is that he is not led astray by this lifestyle, rather he is the one who is leading others astray. There’s an excellent exchange between Huntingdon and his friend, Lord Lowborough, who wants to make a clean start and break free from the addictions and vices that he has. He tells Huntingdon that in order to do so he must break free from Huntingdon because he has such an influence on him that it would be impossible otherwise. 

Anne Bronte portrays with astonishing accuracy her characters that are so real you have no problem in believing in them. I would say that she certainly rivals if not surpasses Jane Austen in her perception of human character. 

Other characters breeze in and out, many of them are snake like, such as Annabella Wilmott and Walter Hargrave, and are exasperating in their scheming and lack of concern for others. But there are also characters such as Millicent, who you feel sorry for because she is caught up in the traditions and expectations of the times and gets married almost against her will. 

By the time you get to the last section of the book you’re glad of the calm that it seems to bring. You’re now out of the frenetic atmosphere of the out of control characters in the rest of the book. But misunderstandings still abound and there’s a low level tension right until the end. But the end, when you get there, feels like the morning after a terrible storm. Although not a dramatic ending it is pleasing and takes into account all that as happened. The simplicity of it works in great contrast with the rest of the book. 

If you never read any other classic in your life read this. It was way ahead of its time in the way it challenged the social norms of its day and I’m sure that not many would dispute that this is an important work of literature.

Sofa Spotlight - Agnes Grey, Anne Bronte

Again this is on that I listened to on Audible. And to my shame it is the first time I’ve read/listened to Anne Bronte. Up until this point Charlotte Bronte had always been my fave Bronte sister, and although she will always have a special place in my heart, she has now been surpassed by Anne. 

Now before you start saying “Hey what about Emily,” I should say that I’m intrigued by Emily but couldn’t get on board with Wuthering Heights. I must admit that I’ve not read any of her poetry but that is something that I intend to correct one day.

Anyway back to Agnes Grey.

It’s only short, but it packs a punch. The story line is fairly straightforward - young girl wants to help the financial situation of her struggling family so goes out to work as a governess.

The power of this book is not in the story line but in the raw emotion that can only be said to thunder through the text. If you knew nothing about Anne Bronte you would have to conclude that she knew something of teaching entitled, privileged children. I was left wondering where the line between fiction and reality was because the scenes are vividly real. 

Given how short this book is, it’s a perfect introduction to Anne Bronte’s work and like I say the story isn’t hard to follow but it needs to be read. I think this is the best example of what it would have been like to have been a governess in 19th century England. Anne’s work opens a door not only on that but also on the thoughts and feelings that she must have had in her experiences as a governess.