Booksnob

LATEST ARTICLES ( 302 )

• How to Teach a Novel

  

  One of the hardest aspects of my job is getting students to feel as enthusiastic as I do about the texts I’m teaching. With my university degree and several mor... Read more

  Posted on 21 January 2014 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

  

  Image from hereThe Little Stranger is a rare book; one that is both genuinely terrifying and also deeply emotionally involving, that left me reluctant yet... Read more

  Posted on 15 January 2014 BOOKS, CULTURE

• All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

  

  I’ve read plenty of books about WWI, many by people who actually served in the conflict. However, my view has always been completely one sided. Read more

  Posted on 09 January 2014 BOOKS, CULTURE

• William in Walthamstow

  

  Just before Christmas, I finally made the trip to the William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow. I have been meaning to go ever since they reopened after their... Read more

  Posted on 08 January 2014 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Good Luck of Right Now by Matthew Quick

  

  This is such a wonderful, heartwarming novel. I can’t say enough how much I thoroughly enjoyed reading every word of it. The author, Matthew Quick, wrote the... Read more

  Posted on 03 January 2014 BOOKS, CULTURE

• My Books of 2013

  

  Well, it’s been an interesting reading year for me. I’ve read less than usual, but also more than usual in that what I have read has been far more wide ranging... Read more

  Posted on 28 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Christmas Sparkle

  

  I love London at Christmas. It’s not as flashy as Christmas in New York – nothing can beat a tour of their incredible department store windows – but the... Read more

  Posted on 23 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

  

  I started reading The Hunger Games in the summer; I was on a bus to Washington DC from New York and it seemed like a good choice to while away the hours of... Read more

  Posted on 15 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Christmas at Osterley Park

  

  On Saturday, I finally got around to visiting a place I’ve been meaning to get to for years; Osterley Park, the only stately home owned by the National Trust... Read more

  Posted on 11 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton

  

  Well, I finally finished. Seven weeks of my life was spent reading this book; I wish I could say it was worth it, but I don’t really think it was. I closed the... Read more

  Posted on 07 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Not Reading, but Drowning

  

  People who shared a late 80s/early 90s childhood with me will remember the amazing The Never Ending Story. I thought that no such thing as a never ending story... Read more

  Posted on 01 December 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Getting Cultured

  

  On Friday night, I had the great pleasure of watching the new film of Catching Fire, the second in the trilogy of Hunger Games books. Read more

  Posted on 24 November 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Soundbites

  

  In case you can’t tell from the dearth of posts, I’ve been busy over the past week or so. Busy doing what? I hear you cry. Well, let me tell you.1. I’ve been... Read more

  Posted on 18 November 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Revisiting the Reality of War Literature

  

  I read a fascinating article in the Times Educational Supplement this week about the version of WWI students get taught at school. Read more

  Posted on 10 November 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Squire by Enid Bagnold

  

  A book about the experience of pregnancy and childbirth is not something that would ordinarily be on the top of my reading pile, but Persephone’s latest... Read more

  Posted on 04 November 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Exploring the Peaks

  

  I have wanted to go to the Peak District for ages, and half term seemed like the perfect time to finally make the trip. As such, my university friend Emma and... Read more

  Posted on 31 October 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

  

  The fabulous thing about my shiny new Kindle is that books I’ve been meaning to read for years have suddenly become instantly available at just the moment I... Read more

  Posted on 24 October 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• Notes from the Classroom

  

  There have been completely justifiable nationwide teacher’s strikes over the past couple of weeks which I fully support. I love being in the classroom. I love... Read more

  Posted on 20 October 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Joy of Kindle

  

  I was surprised with the gift of a Kindle last week. I have long flirted with the idea of getting one; for travelling, mainly, as I always end up filling half o... Read more

  Posted on 14 October 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE

• The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

  

  Sometimes it’s good to be forced to do things you don’t want to do. You can surprise yourself with what you end up enjoying. I was finishing The Lowland today,... Read more

  Posted on 06 October 2013 BOOKS, CULTURE