From my opinion column written for the Egremont 2Day newspaper. Most of us were horrified by the killings in Paris last January. #JeSuisCharlie went viral around the world and perhaps you were one of those who tweeted or shared it? On the other hand, maybe you felt the cartoonists brought their deaths on themselves for… Read More Who does our thinking for us?
The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman My rating: 4 of 5 stars I’ll be honest, for most of this book – right until nearly the very end in fact – this was not going to get four stars from me. I was in a quandary because I felt that Rowan Coleman’s book deserved more than… Read More Book Review: The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman
This review was originally published on The Doughnut. Summer has arrived early. Yeah, really. I can’t help but feel it despite looking out of my window to see a cloudy sky and the hint of rain in the distance heading over this way. It’s chilly and only some of the time does the sun make… Read More Music Review: Robbie Boyd – So Called Man
Beginning a series of posts based on my opinion column written for the Egremont 2Day newspaper. Occasionally I’ll add in a theatre review which I also write for the same publication. This one was one of my first and was written for the anniversary of the shootings in our local town of Whitehaven. Diamonds are… Read More Finding Diamonds
Just William by Richmal Crompton My rating: 4 of 5 stars I haven’t read these stories since I was a young man, and before that a boy. I started this one as I wanted my children – aged 15 and 12 – to experience at least one collection of Just William stories before it was… Read More Book Review: Just William by Richmal Crompton
This review was originally published on The Doughnut. Damian Burke, back in 2012, referred to the EP from Arêtes as “undulating sleep-folk” and, for most of the full debut album, I agree. I found that to really enjoy this album as a sound to chill out/relax/sleep to you need to skip past the first track.… Read More Music Review: Arêtes – Mission Creep
My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is the second book in the Edisto Island Mysteries which features former detective Callie Morgan, the hero of the piece. This time, it turns out women keep dying on the island every August but all from seemingly unrelated accidents. Are these coincidences? Or is there a serial killer… Read More Book Review: Edisto Jinx by C. Hope Clark
I’m starting to republish my music reviews from The Doughnut here on my writing blog and so have gone back to the very first one. I hope you like them. D K. It’s hard to believe that “Turn the People” is merely the debut album for this four-piece Australian group. It’s a cracking good album.… Read More Music Review: Turn the People by Monks of Mellonwah
My rating: 5 of 5 stars I don’t normally read whodunnits and especially ones set in the deep south of the States. But I’ve known of C. Hope Clark’s reputation as a writer for a long time and agreed to take a copy and consider giving it a review. I was intrigued whether her reputation… Read More Palmetto Poison by C. Hope Clark
Write Out Loud 