Watership Down
‘I’ve just taken on a novel about rabbits, one of them with extra-sensory perception. Do you think I’m mad?’ [The […]
Walpole Old Chapel
Although a rule of ‘A Letter from England’ is direct personal experience, ‘Walpole Old Chapel’ is an exception. Never having […]
Fingersmith: Victorian England to Korea
If you haven’t read ‘Fingersmith’ yet by Sarah Waters, I envy you! You come fresh to the surprise of it, […]
Pooh Sticks Bridge
The rules of ‘Poohsticks’: Two or more competitors must drop their stick from the up-stream side of the bridge to […]
Big Love: Fleetwood Mac
I have a big love for Fleetwood Mac. It’s a band that seems quintessentially American, but was actually formed in […]
The Bayeux Tapestry: A Stitch in Time
The Bayeux Tapestry was not made in Bayeux, France and it is not a tapestry. It was made in Canterbury, […]
The Grass Arena: From Prison to Chess Genius
‘I used to make a move, and then I’d think about it. But now I think, and then I move.’ […]
The Man who Waved Goodbye
Come see me tonightIf loneliness allows, Point the headlights at me,Then come slowly,Wave goodbye to me, A jasmine handkerchief,An untouched […]
Breakfast with David Hockney
Painted from his little beach house home in Malibu, David Hockney names this wonderful painting simply ‘Breakfast at Malibu, Wednesday’. […]
Salman Rushdie’s: ‘Knife’
‘So my first thought when I saw this murderous shape rushing toward me was: So it’s you. Here you are.’ […]