-
Continue reading →: Book Review: Equus by Peter Shaffer
I first came across this play in the final moments of my teens thanks to a girlfriend I was besotted with, from Eastbourne. She had studied it (if I recall correctly) for A level. The play turned out to be one of those key texts which transformed my understanding of…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
There are many books considered ‘classics’ which end up on almost all the well-known ‘Top 100’ or ‘Must read’ lists. Many of them, as I’ve been continuing my race against old age to work through my literary bucket list before I give the aforementioned utensil a good kick, have turned…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: The Quiet People of India by Norval Mitchell
“…you can both love something deeply and look down on it at the same time and this is all too easy for the foreigner in Asia.” I have a great deal of sympathy and understanding for Norval Mitchell despite the fact that this book made me cringe repeatedly and made…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC by Frederick Buechner
To call Buechner’s ABC of theological terms quirky would be an understatement. The guy is somewhere between one current short of a fruitcake and a deep well of the most profound thoughts and understanding. One thing is certain: you would be hard-pressed to find a more witty yet genuine lexicon…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz
I came to read Diaz’s novel simply from googling the best books to read from the 21st Century and up it came on the ‘Top Ten’ list rather like ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ which I’m also reading. Well, ‘Oscar Wao’ got a Pulitzer for the author so it’s hard…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: Look Back in Anger by John Osborne
There is absolutely no doubt that John Osborne changed the face of British theatre when he wrote ‘Look back in Anger’. The first of the new post-war wave of ‘Angry Young Men’, you can see from the very opening lines that the epithet is well deserved as the chief protagonist,…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
There are some books in this world which, I must surmise, have achieved a cult-like status among the older generation who remember the impact they created when first published but, in truth, have not been read afresh in many a decade. If they did, they might be unsettled by what…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
This, arguably the most famous book of Coelho’s, is the second I’ve read of this author (the first being ‘Eleven Minutes‘). The novel is truly beautiful, simple and imbued with peace as seems to be the trademark of Coelho’s style. It deserves the fame it has received and is certainly…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho
This is the first book I’ve read by Paulo Coelho and, I suspect, it won’t be my last. The whole novel is, in many ways, a contradiction in motion and, true to that spirit, much of what I think of it is contradiction too. It is certainly one of the…
-
Continue reading →: Book Review: Spies by Michael Frayn
I’m currently reading the set texts (and one or two recommended ones) from my daughter’s A level English Literature course to help her prepare for the exams (it’s always easier to discuss themes and arguments with someone who has actually read the books after all). I’m glad I did because…
Hello, I’m Ken.
Welcome to Write Out Loud, my blog dedicated to all sorts of things to do with writing.
This page will be updated constantly every week with book reviews and writing-related stuff.
The blog is the baby sister of my personal blog kenthinksaloud where I write ‘Monday Murmurings’—insights into life and philosophy. Get a clever take on politics with ‘Wednesday Banker,’ and ‘Future Friday’ for the latest in psychology, environment, and tech.
I will use this blog to give helpful advice, tips, tricks and resources as I come across them to other writers and to advertise my own writing especially as my books start to be published.
Sign up to support and keep informed of all that’s going in my writing life and (I hope) to get useful, free help in your own writing career.
Write Out Loud (Reviews and Writing) 