Penguin have produced a list of 52 books to read in 2011, to make you 'healthy, wealthy and wise'. Not entirely sure many of them would be my pick...

Instead, since Christmas I have read:

- Surface Detail, Iain M Banks. Enjoyed this much more than Matter. The exploration of the Hells is excellent, and there's a brilliantly written warship, ( Read more... )

A website and a blog about children who were at a Welsh TB sanatorium in the 1920s to 1950s. Probably mostly for Chalet fans, but there are some good photographs.

Slightly disappointed to discover that although Wendy Cope has a new book coming out this year, it's an annotated selection mainly from the three previous Faber collections, rather than ( Read more... )

A while ago now oursin gave me my top five school stories to list. Of course I could fill up most of the slots with Antonia Forest, but have decided to limit myself to one per series. I've also been fairly strict about sticking to stories which are almost entirely set at school.

( Cut for spoilers, just in case )

All the fractiousness around lj recently has made me wonder if there's an award on offer for Most Irritating Person, and the nominations are taking place soon. Or perhaps it's just the spring. I'm reminded of Jo of the Chalet School, when the middles start falling out with each other. Perhaps some people could do with a dose of Madge Bettany's ( Read more... )

Attended a fascinating seminar on women and the law yesterday. Everything from the first women magistrates in the 1920s, early women police officers, the work they did and their attitudes to prostitution and rape, women in the judiciary (not many of them) and recent research into the current pay gaps and barriers to women becoming partners in ( Read more... )

From all over my flist.

( Read more... )

the sun is out, and an instant crop of students has sprouted all over the walls and steps around the Ministry of Truth. I tripped over several on Thursday on my way to a paper on local public health centres in London in the 1930s. Very good paper, and I particularly enjoyed Bermondsey's health propaganda posters ('Your Son and Heir/Needs Sun and ( Read more... )