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.

Sofa Spotlight - The Jane Austen BBC Radio Drama Collection

Audio books can take forever to listen to and can be hard to follow. These are great because there are different voices for different characters, rather than one person doing all the voices. So it’s a radio play rather than straight audio book.

I started to listen to them when I’ve had migraines. Horrible as they are, terrible as the pain is, and sick as you feel, I can handle all that, I just can’t stand the boredom. I wasn’t built for doing nothing, or using all my concentration to stop myself from throwing up.

I’ve lost count of the hours I’ve spent staring at the ceiling or wishing that if I could shut my eyes tighter so that I might feel a little less sick. And when it’s all over you can’t rush back into everything because you feel like you’ve had all the energy drained out of you. The one good thing is the shower at the end of it all that washes the whole thing off you. And if like me you’ve take medication you get the best sleep afterwards. Who knows if it is the medication or because the world has gone quiet now that the hammering in your head has stopped?

So when I’m lying there, too ill to move but well enough that my mind is working again, audio books are, at that moment, the best invention! 

But back to Jane Austen.

In the collection are:

•  Sense and Sensibility 

•  Pride and Prejudice

•  Emma

•  Persuasion

•  Northanger Abbey

•  Mansfield Park

Lady Susan is missing as is Love and Friendship. The thing with Austen is that you can spend all day discussing the merits of your fave or what you love most about your fave character. So if you have all day comment below and let me know your thoughts.

For me Sense and Sensibility is by far the best. Followed closely by Persuasion. What clinches it for me though is Willoughby. If you’ve not read Austen’s novels before or don’t know the stories then skip to the last paragraph. 

I love Willoughby. He is the most believable character in the collection. Even more so than Wickham. His speech to Eleanor when Marianne was ill had so much feeling in it. You could feel the tearing in Willoughby’s soul. Which is maybe why I like Sense and Sensibility so much, because the characters express so much. 

Northanger Abbey, although excellent, makes me cringe too much. It’s the kind of book that makes me want to shout at it because of the poor decisions made by the main character. Thus it doesn’t make it to the top of my list. Emma is also on the cringe part of the list because of all the interference in other people’s lives etc that goes on. Just glad it all ended well! 

Persuasion is high up there because of the brilliant portrayal of characters. I mean it cannot be denied that Austen nailed human nature in all her novels but I feel Persuasion gets overlooked and sort of lives in the shadow of Pride and Prejudice. I put forward the character of Captain Benwick as evidence for my case.

Speaking of P&P it’s about mid-way up the list for me. Yes it does have incredible lines from the Bennet’s and Darcy, but the character that stole the show for me was Mr Collins. What a guy. I remember writing an essay for my GCSEs about his marriage proposals and I, like I’m supposed to, felt so sorry for Charlotte Lucas. Sometimes I don’t think we know that we’re born. 

Mansfield Park is down the bottom of the list. Partly for cringe factors - not a fan of the Crawfords and then by association Edward. But I do find the backstory interesting, or rather the social context of the slave trade that I missed picking up on when I read these in my teens.

Anyway would definitely recommend listening to these. If you’ve read the books they are great just to enjoy the stories again. And if Austen has intimidated you and put you off reading them then let the tones of David Tennent and Benedict Cumberbatch bring them to life. 

Sofa Spotlight - Follow Me Back, Nicci Cloke

So this YA has been out for a while but I only just got around to reading it. I picked it up because it was one of the top YA picks for 2016 (yes it has taken me three years to get around to it, but better late than never).

And it’s good, fast paced and intriguing. It deserves to be one of those top picks. The background to the storyline is all about social media and the persona that you present to the world. Whether that’s the real you or not. And if you’ve ever seen the show Catfish there are elements from that that you will recognise.

So the premise is that Lizzie has gone missing after apparently meeting up with someone she met online. Her friend Aiden is the one telling most of the story and he is trying to figure out which version of Lizzie is real – the one he was friends with at school, or the one he now sees on social media. He also begins a campaign with his friend Scobie to try and work out what happened to Lizzie, but for a while that feels like a hopeless cause.

Aiden is an unreliable narrator, but he didn’t freak me out as much as most unreliable narrators do. The Girl on the Train was a bit much for me (yes I am a wimp). But maybe it’s because he’s fairly stable despite having some temper issues. For me the way the backstory of Aiden and Lizzie’s relationship is revealed was brilliant. There was just enough to keep you reading but when the reveal happens you have an “oh yeah that makes sense” moment.

There’s some great twists in this that I didn’t see coming and I didn’t guess the ending either. You know a twist is good when you look back at what you’ve been reading and the story so far and think “well that completely changes how I see that.”

Just to show how behind the times I am on this book last summer Cloke’s latest book Toxic came out, and I’m looking forward to reading that at some point – hopefully not in three years’ time. I liked this more than the other YA books I’ve read recently (13 Minutes and Bullet Catcher) and although it shared some stylistic elements with 13 Minutes like chapters made up of emails or text messages, I found Follow me Back to be the more believable of the two, if a little less creepy and disturbing. The only part that I didn’t feel completely convinced by was the ending, but given that it was completely unexpected I think that can be forgiven.

But enough from me. It’s one you need to read for yourself.

Sofa Spotlight - As Kingfishers Catch Fire, Eugene Peterson

Eugene Peterson is probably best known for his translation of The Message Bible. Which I know is inaccurate because it’s not a translation. Anyway because I was never a fan of The Message I didn’t really consider reading any of his other work. Until a few years ago, and I was pleasantly surprised.

Last year when he passed away I was a good way through As Kingfishers Catch Fire. So when I heard that he had died I sat down and made sure I finished reading it. It seemed fitting.

For me As Kingfishers Catch Fire is the best example of his work, because it does brilliantly what his other books did. Which is made me fall in love with reading the Bible again, and seeing the beauty and the challenge in its pages. It’s true I don’t agree with everything that Peterson says, but he inspires me enough to go to the pages of God’s Word and explore why I think differently.

Anyway back to this book.

The premise behind it, and what makes it different to his other books, is that it is taken from his sermons that he preached over a twenty-nine year period. The time frame is from the 1960s to the early 90s and the context is reflected in the illustrations and application of the sermons. Which is a point of interest in itself and a reminder that God’s Word is always relevant, no matter the time or culture.

Peterson splits the sermons into different sections that focus on a different Biblical person. Starting with Moses, before going onto David, Isaiah, Solomon, Peter, Paul and finally John. The journey looks at each ones role and purpose in God’s plan and their writings that became a part of the Bible. It’s not meant to be an in depth study of each of those but there is plenty to inspire for further study.

And although it is a long book (heavy enough to be a good door stop or defensive weapon) each chapter is a manageable size. They could be comfortably read in 15 minutes, although you would want to give yourself much more thinking time to process what you’ve read.

Like I say, the quality of this book is Peterson’s love of God, His Word and His people. It comes across in each chapter and he really has found the beauty of the Word of God and is very skilled at conveying that. If nothing else it is good for inspiring an exploration of God’s Word, making you realise that it is a living book and full of good things.

Sofa Spotlight - The Boy from the Snow, Maria Johnson

What better way to start the New Year than with the first post being about the first book of a brand new author. Well, she’s not quite brand new, her book has been around for about a year now, but I’ve only recently found it.

So what am I talking about? I’m talking about The Boy from the Snow by Maria Johnson. I first heard it described as a bit like A Game of Thrones but without all the violence and sex. Which appealed to me because A Game of Thrones was something I would have liked to have got into (I got as far as watching the first episode with my housemate. We watched the whole thing in silence, then switched it off and never spoke of it again.) Anyway it was enough for me to give it a try.

And I wasn’t disappointed.

I’m not going to tell you much about the storyline, because you need to go and read it for yourself. What do I want to tell you about is how Johnson handles certain aspects of the story, which I think is done very well and is important in our modern culture.

The story follows the fortunes of Daniel a soldier who lives and fights in the North West of Celtic England. Being a soldier naturally brings battles and it’s the description of these battles that really got me thinking. Quite often we watch or read stuff that contains a lot of killing, whether it’s Lord of the Rings, a war film, or a murder mystery, entertainment is full of it. What I thought made this book stand out is that, although Johnson does describe death, she also describes the cost of each lost life, both on the family of the dead and also on those who do the killing. It struck me as an interesting take when most of what I see or read leaves me desensitised to seeing death, this made me think about the human cost to those deaths.

Likewise there is no sex scene in this book. And there doesn’t need to be. The story wouldn’t have gained from having it in there and it was nice to read something that I didn’t want to put down because it contained scenes I didn’t want to read.

Needless to say, the storyline is good, I consumed it in less than a week and it possibly made me fall in love with reading again. My recommendation is that if, unlike me, you still have book vouchers left over from Christmas then use them to buy this. At the very least it should be on your reading list for 2019. It’s also fun to read if you know Cumbria and the Lakes at all.

It’s a good debut novel and I hope that there will be more from Johnson. I have coffee ready if there is a sequel.