review by Malcolm
From the Back Cover
What does history really consists of? Centuries of people quietly going about their daily business – sleeping, eating, having sex, endeavouring to get comfortable.
And where did all these normal activities take place?
At home.
My Review.
I like Bill Bryson and his writing (e.g. Notes from a Small Island) and when I heard about his At Home I put it on my 2010 Christmas list. Bill Bryson is an American writer who spent many years in the UK working as a journalist before returning to America (see: Notes from a Big Country) and finally coming back to settle in the UK where he bought an old rectory in Norfolk. He is a fervent antilitter campaigner and also will be known to many on the Isles of Scilly from his celebrity appearances at the sadly defunct Tresco Marathon.
I have lived in several houses of a similar age to Bill Bryson's rectory in both rural and urban settings. I remember the delights of discovering working servants bells, concealed second staircases, coal holes, finding doodlings on plaster beneath the wallpaper possibly from the famous artist who previously occupied the house, working out how to mend sash windows, little grassy back walkways to the village church lovingly restored by Thomas Hardy, all that sort of stuff.
At Home was hopefully going to be along similar lines particularly from the interview I'd seen Bill Bryson give on BBC about sunken churches in English graveyards. Sadly no, At Home proved to be 1000 detailed facts of British and American history that I never really wanted to know in the first place. Facts tenuously applied to the layout of Bill Bryson's house. When he describes The Study he does not apply many of his thoughts to the sermons that may have been written there but more to the fact that they seem to catch a lot of mice in there, and this opens a whole thread of vermin control without which the globe would no doubt be covered in a 10 mile deep layer of mouse fur within a year! And the Attic, for instance, opens up a thread on the life of Charles Darwin and several famous archaeologists. In mitigation, I can identify with some parts, Mount Vernon for example, the beautiful country home of George Washington which I visited in the 1980’s – that was probably in the chapter on The Stairs – ah no it was the Plum Room – not a room for storing or eating fruit just a reference to its colour! The Stairs seems to be a lot about poisonous wallpaper, the formulae for calculating the dimensions of each step and the government statistics for stair deaths!
It isn't that the facts Bill Bryson delivers to us are all uninteresting they just don't seem to be very relevant to the concept of being at home and that gets a bit tedious. Mention the loo and he goes off into reams of delight over the Black Death, plague, cholera, cremation versus burial, London sewers and so on. Grand house designs and designers, canals, lightbulb inventors, landscape gardeners, the Industrial Revolution all feature, lovingly described in yawningly miniscule detail! Even the index and “Further Reading” is over 50 pages long!
In my opinion the young, incisive, witty author who brought us Notes from a Small Island in 1995 seems suddenly to have become the Party Bore!
Malcolm Martland, broadcast on RadioScilly 107.9 FM, 1 September 2011
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Bill Bryson. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Bill Bryson. Sort by date Show all posts
Saturday, 3 September 2011
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Bill Bryson - Shakespeare
By Showhost april 2009
This wasn’t what I thought it was going to be, not a funny book in the same way as his travel/autobiography books,such as ‘Notes from a Small Island’, and for a while I kept waiting for those really humorous observations to appear. But the book really is about William Shakespeare or about how little we really know about him!
Bill Bryson tells us how little is known of Will Shakespeare's life how a lot of what we read is what others have made up about it, and in his witty style, pours scorn on many of these theories.
For instance, there is conjecture that Shakespeares plays were written by someone else. Bryson points out in his dry, wit: can it be true that of the 5000 books written to prove Shakespeare's plays were written by someone other than Shakespeare, three were by Messers Looney, Silliman and Battey.
I learned things I didn't know, about Shakespeare's "missing periods", about his relationship with Anne, about the huge contribution Shakespeare made to the development of the English language, and the large number of words now in common usage that were originally coined by him.
It is not a very big book as there wasn’t a lot to say about WS as very little was known so
Bryson pads out the book with a depiction of life in Elizabethan England, describing for example food and drink, religion, the theatre, and the city of London and other literary types who surrounded Shakespeare . But, some of the historical stories, such as the Spanish Armada, the Essex rebellion and the gunpowder plot, will already be known to many readers.
So, at the end of the book what do we know – nothing really, we don't know what Will looked like, we don't know much about where he lived, or what he did with his time, apart from write and act.
I gotta say I don’t know why it got all the hype that it did.
This wasn’t what I thought it was going to be, not a funny book in the same way as his travel/autobiography books,such as ‘Notes from a Small Island’, and for a while I kept waiting for those really humorous observations to appear. But the book really is about William Shakespeare or about how little we really know about him!
Bill Bryson tells us how little is known of Will Shakespeare's life how a lot of what we read is what others have made up about it, and in his witty style, pours scorn on many of these theories.
For instance, there is conjecture that Shakespeares plays were written by someone else. Bryson points out in his dry, wit: can it be true that of the 5000 books written to prove Shakespeare's plays were written by someone other than Shakespeare, three were by Messers Looney, Silliman and Battey.
I learned things I didn't know, about Shakespeare's "missing periods", about his relationship with Anne, about the huge contribution Shakespeare made to the development of the English language, and the large number of words now in common usage that were originally coined by him.
It is not a very big book as there wasn’t a lot to say about WS as very little was known so
Bryson pads out the book with a depiction of life in Elizabethan England, describing for example food and drink, religion, the theatre, and the city of London and other literary types who surrounded Shakespeare . But, some of the historical stories, such as the Spanish Armada, the Essex rebellion and the gunpowder plot, will already be known to many readers.
So, at the end of the book what do we know – nothing really, we don't know what Will looked like, we don't know much about where he lived, or what he did with his time, apart from write and act.
I gotta say I don’t know why it got all the hype that it did.
Wednesday, 1 April 2009
Bill Bryson - shakespeare
Review by showhost 2nd April 09
This wasn’t what I thought it was going to be, not a funny book in the same way as his travel/autobiography books,such as ‘Notes from a Small Island’, and for a while I kept waiting for those really humorous observations to appear. But the book really is about William Shakespeare or about how little we really know about him!
Bill Bryson tells us how little is known of Will Shakespeare's life how a lot of what we read is what others have made up about it, and in his witty style, pours scorn on many of these theories.
For instance, there is conjecture that Shakespeares plays were written by someone else. Bryson points out in his dry, wit: can it be true that of the 5000 books written to prove Shakespeare's plays were written by someone other than Shakespeare, three were by Messers Looney, Silliman and Battey.
I learned things I didn't know, about Shakespeare's "missing periods", about his relationship with Anne, about the huge contribution Shakespeare made to the development of the English language, and the large number of words now in common usage that were originally coined by him.
It is not a very big book as there wasn’t a lot to say about WS as very little was known so
Bryson pads out the book with a depiction of life in Elizabethan England, describing for example food and drink, religion, the theatre, and the city of London and other literary types who surrounded Shakespeare . But, some of the historical stories, such as the Spanish Armada, the Essex rebellion and the gunpowder plot, will already be known to many readers.
So, at the end of the book what do we know – nothing really, we don't know what Will looked like, we don't know much about where he lived, or what he did with his time, apart from write and act.
I gotta say I don’t know why it got all the hype that it did.
This wasn’t what I thought it was going to be, not a funny book in the same way as his travel/autobiography books,such as ‘Notes from a Small Island’, and for a while I kept waiting for those really humorous observations to appear. But the book really is about William Shakespeare or about how little we really know about him!
Bill Bryson tells us how little is known of Will Shakespeare's life how a lot of what we read is what others have made up about it, and in his witty style, pours scorn on many of these theories.
For instance, there is conjecture that Shakespeares plays were written by someone else. Bryson points out in his dry, wit: can it be true that of the 5000 books written to prove Shakespeare's plays were written by someone other than Shakespeare, three were by Messers Looney, Silliman and Battey.
I learned things I didn't know, about Shakespeare's "missing periods", about his relationship with Anne, about the huge contribution Shakespeare made to the development of the English language, and the large number of words now in common usage that were originally coined by him.
It is not a very big book as there wasn’t a lot to say about WS as very little was known so
Bryson pads out the book with a depiction of life in Elizabethan England, describing for example food and drink, religion, the theatre, and the city of London and other literary types who surrounded Shakespeare . But, some of the historical stories, such as the Spanish Armada, the Essex rebellion and the gunpowder plot, will already be known to many readers.
So, at the end of the book what do we know – nothing really, we don't know what Will looked like, we don't know much about where he lived, or what he did with his time, apart from write and act.
I gotta say I don’t know why it got all the hype that it did.
Saturday, 27 June 2009
Bill Bryson - Notes from a Small Island
Review by Lydia Birch june 09.
This i loved.
It Starts off with Bill in Dover, where hes arrived off the ferry in the middle of night, with nowhere to go.
so ends up sleeping for the night in the bus shelter on the seafront, but its a bitter cold night so he ends up emptying his bag of clothes and wearing nearly wearing every item including his boxers to keep is head warm.
but bill forgets all about his headgear when he goes for an early walk and gets some very strange looks.
this is just the beginning of his hilarious tour of britain, you are constantly laughing out loud, as he picks up on the things that make britain great!
bumping into grumpy landladys and little old men on the way.
this is bill bryson at his best, having met him when he was on tresco as you read the book you can imagine bill getting up to all sorts of capers!
diffinatly one not to be read in public for fear of admitting loud snorts of laughter!
This i loved.
It Starts off with Bill in Dover, where hes arrived off the ferry in the middle of night, with nowhere to go.
so ends up sleeping for the night in the bus shelter on the seafront, but its a bitter cold night so he ends up emptying his bag of clothes and wearing nearly wearing every item including his boxers to keep is head warm.
but bill forgets all about his headgear when he goes for an early walk and gets some very strange looks.
this is just the beginning of his hilarious tour of britain, you are constantly laughing out loud, as he picks up on the things that make britain great!
bumping into grumpy landladys and little old men on the way.
this is bill bryson at his best, having met him when he was on tresco as you read the book you can imagine bill getting up to all sorts of capers!
diffinatly one not to be read in public for fear of admitting loud snorts of laughter!
Monday, 8 June 2009
show 4th June 2009
Guests today were Lydia Birch & Malcolm Martland.
Lydia reviewed Bill Brysons 'Notes from a Small Island' and a book she did not like called : White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyami.
The Bill Bryson was the first one of his I had read & I found it laugh out loud amusing (like the incident in the typical 1970's guest house when he left the tomato on his breakfast plate and was admonished by the landlady).
Similar suggested author to Bryson: Stephen Clarke (Merde Happens)
Malcolm reviewed PD James The Lighthouse & a trivia book. The PD James book was obviously set on Tresco, with embellishments.
Pd james suggested similar authors: Ruth Rendell, Minette Walters, Nicci French, Guilermo Martinez (Oxford Murders)
I had to mention the trivia fact I discovered about the 'horror novel printed on toilet roll'. Quote: 'Acclaimed Japanese horror writer Koji Suzuki, has teamed up with Hayashi Paper Corp for his latest novel 'Drop' (this brought belly laughs from the guests). The nine-chapter horror tale, due to be printed on rolls of toilet paper is aptly set in a public restroom, and is about an evil spirit that inhabits a toilet bowl.
Koji Suzuki, is perhaps best known for his books Dark Water and The Ring (well!)
The story is repeated over about every yard of paper and each roll costs Y210 (£1.40)
Lydia reviewed Bill Brysons 'Notes from a Small Island' and a book she did not like called : White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyami.
The Bill Bryson was the first one of his I had read & I found it laugh out loud amusing (like the incident in the typical 1970's guest house when he left the tomato on his breakfast plate and was admonished by the landlady).
Similar suggested author to Bryson: Stephen Clarke (Merde Happens)
Malcolm reviewed PD James The Lighthouse & a trivia book. The PD James book was obviously set on Tresco, with embellishments.
Pd james suggested similar authors: Ruth Rendell, Minette Walters, Nicci French, Guilermo Martinez (Oxford Murders)
I had to mention the trivia fact I discovered about the 'horror novel printed on toilet roll'. Quote: 'Acclaimed Japanese horror writer Koji Suzuki, has teamed up with Hayashi Paper Corp for his latest novel 'Drop' (this brought belly laughs from the guests). The nine-chapter horror tale, due to be printed on rolls of toilet paper is aptly set in a public restroom, and is about an evil spirit that inhabits a toilet bowl.
Koji Suzuki, is perhaps best known for his books Dark Water and The Ring (well!)
The story is repeated over about every yard of paper and each roll costs Y210 (£1.40)
Thursday, 4 August 2011
Graham Swift - Wish You Were Here
review by Malcolm
From the Back Cover
Wish You Were Here is both a gripping account of things that touch and test our human core and a resonant novel about a changing England. Rich with a sense of the intimate and the local, it is also, inescapably, about a wider, afflicted world... etc.
(What a pretentious review!)
My Review
I have read two previous novels by Graham Swift: Booker prize winning Last Orders which was hard going and also about a funeral and Waterland set in the Fens which I enjoyed. I bought this one on Kindle hoping for a good read with promises of Devon farming life during the BSE and Foot and Mouth outbreaks of the 80’s and 90’s. But as one Amazon Reviewer stated “The most boring book of 2011” – but that’s only because Bill Bryson hasn’t brought one out this year! Sorry Bill!
The novel starts almost the same point it ends – Jack lying on his bed with his father’s gun loaded at his side – and not much happens in between. Jack is the son of Devon dairy farmer Michael and his wife Vera and he has an 8 year younger brother Tom. Neighbouring farmer Jimmy has a daughter Elli and is Jack’s girlfriend and later wife. Tom is obviously the apple of his dad’s eye, and probably of Jack’s too. The novel jumps all over the place in the lives of the characters but essentially, Vera dies, Tom joins the army on his 18th birthday, Michael – maybe as a consequence of Tom leaving – Ellie’s dad dies soon after and Jack and Ellie decide to sell up their farms and buy a caravan park on the Isle of Wight. Some years later they receive news that Tom has been killed by an IED in Iraq and Jack goes alone to meet the repatriated body and see that he is buried next to his parents in the churchyard near their old home. The sensitively described repatriation scene was about the only part of the book I felt that had any merit. And that’s it!
The narrative takes us over and over again about what Tom did and then what Tom did and then what Tom did next. Mainly told from Jack’s perspective – Jack seems to have been very jealous of his younger brother. And then there was Tom and the old dog. And then Tom and …..zzzzzzzzzzzz. And Jack overanalyzes the whole thing endlessly – maybe Tom had slept with Ellie, maybe Tom this and maybe Tom that - and Jack starts imagining he sees the figure of a soldier everywhere – guess who - Tom!
No! I shall not intentionally buy another Graham Swift book. It was hard going and I would have given up long ago if I hadn’t promised to review it today. Oh! Is that Tom over there?!!!!!!!!!
Review by Malcolm Martland – broadcast on Radio Scilly 107.9 FM 14 July 2011
From the Back Cover
Wish You Were Here is both a gripping account of things that touch and test our human core and a resonant novel about a changing England. Rich with a sense of the intimate and the local, it is also, inescapably, about a wider, afflicted world... etc.
(What a pretentious review!)
My Review
I have read two previous novels by Graham Swift: Booker prize winning Last Orders which was hard going and also about a funeral and Waterland set in the Fens which I enjoyed. I bought this one on Kindle hoping for a good read with promises of Devon farming life during the BSE and Foot and Mouth outbreaks of the 80’s and 90’s. But as one Amazon Reviewer stated “The most boring book of 2011” – but that’s only because Bill Bryson hasn’t brought one out this year! Sorry Bill!
The novel starts almost the same point it ends – Jack lying on his bed with his father’s gun loaded at his side – and not much happens in between. Jack is the son of Devon dairy farmer Michael and his wife Vera and he has an 8 year younger brother Tom. Neighbouring farmer Jimmy has a daughter Elli and is Jack’s girlfriend and later wife. Tom is obviously the apple of his dad’s eye, and probably of Jack’s too. The novel jumps all over the place in the lives of the characters but essentially, Vera dies, Tom joins the army on his 18th birthday, Michael – maybe as a consequence of Tom leaving – Ellie’s dad dies soon after and Jack and Ellie decide to sell up their farms and buy a caravan park on the Isle of Wight. Some years later they receive news that Tom has been killed by an IED in Iraq and Jack goes alone to meet the repatriated body and see that he is buried next to his parents in the churchyard near their old home. The sensitively described repatriation scene was about the only part of the book I felt that had any merit. And that’s it!
The narrative takes us over and over again about what Tom did and then what Tom did and then what Tom did next. Mainly told from Jack’s perspective – Jack seems to have been very jealous of his younger brother. And then there was Tom and the old dog. And then Tom and …..zzzzzzzzzzzz. And Jack overanalyzes the whole thing endlessly – maybe Tom had slept with Ellie, maybe Tom this and maybe Tom that - and Jack starts imagining he sees the figure of a soldier everywhere – guess who - Tom!
No! I shall not intentionally buy another Graham Swift book. It was hard going and I would have given up long ago if I hadn’t promised to review it today. Oh! Is that Tom over there?!!!!!!!!!
Review by Malcolm Martland – broadcast on Radio Scilly 107.9 FM 14 July 2011
Wednesday, 1 October 2014
Icons of England Edited by Bill Bryson.
review written by Maggie Perkovich & read live on the bookshow 2nd October 2014
This is an interesting book featuring contributions from some of our best loved writers and
broadcasters about what they consider English icons.You get pub signs, chimney spires,
bonfires nights, seasides, country churchyards, estuaries, ancient trees and hares.
Lots of other icons also feature including Alan Titchmarsh's choice wild flowers.
Prince Charles wrote the foreword, perhaps an English icon himself?? I loved it.
Very highly recommended. Maggie Perkovic.
This is an interesting book featuring contributions from some of our best loved writers and
broadcasters about what they consider English icons.You get pub signs, chimney spires,
bonfires nights, seasides, country churchyards, estuaries, ancient trees and hares.
Lots of other icons also feature including Alan Titchmarsh's choice wild flowers.
Prince Charles wrote the foreword, perhaps an English icon himself?? I loved it.
Very highly recommended. Maggie Perkovic.
Friday, 3 April 2009
show 2nd April 09
Guests on todays show were Barbara Simpson & Maggie Perkovich.
Books being reviewed were:
Just Henry by Michelle Magorian (author of Goodnight Mr Tom)
Dead Aid by Dambisa Moyo
Say You're one of them by Uwem Akpan
Shakespeare by Bill Bryson
Also we talked about the last of the Richard & Judy shortlisted 10, for the Galaxy Read of the Year Award (Brutal Art by Jesse Kellerman).
I had to talk about this book which is no.1, in the Lovereading top 10: The Golden Pig by the Penny Brothers. A funny detective novel written by 2 new authors, Penny brothers, who write each part alternately. Its about an inept private investigator called Hymie Goldman. Unlike his name, he wasn't jewish, the closest he'd ever come to Judaism was walking past a synogogue in Golders Green. He kept changing his name to repel old creditors but he never forsaw the cockney rhyming-slang potential of his last incarnation - Jackson Pollock!
The synopsis and first page of the book had us all laughing.
Also, I read the synopsis of a March 09 debut book which seemed an interesting read:
Sashenka by Simon Montefiore, a big, sweeping romantic adventure of half a century of turbulent Russian history. The authors ancestors escaped from the Tsarist Empire at the turn of the century and he spent the last ten years researching the Russian archives.
Finished off the show with some 'smart arse answers' 2008. 6th place was:
It was mealtime during a flight on a British Airways plane:
'Would you like dinner?' the flight attendant asked the man seated in the front row.
'What are my choices?' the man asked.
'Yes or no,' she replied.
4th Place
A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at a branch of Sainsbury's but she couldn't find one big enough for her family.
She asked a passing assistant, 'Do these turkeys get any bigger?'
The assistant replied, 'I'm afraid not, they're dead.'
3rd Place
The policeman got out of his car and approached the boy racer he stopped for speeding.
'I've been waiting for you all day,' the bobby said.
The kid replied, 'Yes, well I got here as fast as I could.'
When the policeman finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket
Books being reviewed were:
Just Henry by Michelle Magorian (author of Goodnight Mr Tom)
Dead Aid by Dambisa Moyo
Say You're one of them by Uwem Akpan
Shakespeare by Bill Bryson
Also we talked about the last of the Richard & Judy shortlisted 10, for the Galaxy Read of the Year Award (Brutal Art by Jesse Kellerman).
I had to talk about this book which is no.1, in the Lovereading top 10: The Golden Pig by the Penny Brothers. A funny detective novel written by 2 new authors, Penny brothers, who write each part alternately. Its about an inept private investigator called Hymie Goldman. Unlike his name, he wasn't jewish, the closest he'd ever come to Judaism was walking past a synogogue in Golders Green. He kept changing his name to repel old creditors but he never forsaw the cockney rhyming-slang potential of his last incarnation - Jackson Pollock!
The synopsis and first page of the book had us all laughing.
Also, I read the synopsis of a March 09 debut book which seemed an interesting read:
Sashenka by Simon Montefiore, a big, sweeping romantic adventure of half a century of turbulent Russian history. The authors ancestors escaped from the Tsarist Empire at the turn of the century and he spent the last ten years researching the Russian archives.
Finished off the show with some 'smart arse answers' 2008. 6th place was:
It was mealtime during a flight on a British Airways plane:
'Would you like dinner?' the flight attendant asked the man seated in the front row.
'What are my choices?' the man asked.
'Yes or no,' she replied.
4th Place
A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at a branch of Sainsbury's but she couldn't find one big enough for her family.
She asked a passing assistant, 'Do these turkeys get any bigger?'
The assistant replied, 'I'm afraid not, they're dead.'
3rd Place
The policeman got out of his car and approached the boy racer he stopped for speeding.
'I've been waiting for you all day,' the bobby said.
The kid replied, 'Yes, well I got here as fast as I could.'
When the policeman finally stopped laughing, he sent the kid on his way without a ticket
Thursday, 9 April 2009
9th April 2009
On the show today were Malcolm Martland and a new guest to the bookshow Lydia Birch.
Lydia reviewed Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. Lydia likes reading historical novels, as well as Bill Bryson but has found a fascination with the Twilight series 'which feature vampires, werewolves, teenage love and all the complications of relationships brilliantly told with action and romance equally balanced'. They are actually aimed at the teenage market but like Harry Potter, The Book Thief, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, they are as well read by adults.
Lydia has also read and enjoyed 'Buffy Vampire Slayer' and 'Angel'.
Malcolm reviewed Cold Granite by Stuart MacBride. This is a hard hitting book along the lines of 'Rebus'and based in Scotland. Stuart MacBride was likened to Ian Rankin, Graham Hurley and Peter James. Ian Rankin is one of Malcolms favourite authors.
Malcolm also reviewed White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, which was described by one reviewer as an 'unadorned portrait of India seen from the bottom of the heap'.
It won the Booker prize and Michael Portillo, the head judge commented:
"..White Tiger prevailed because the judges felt that it shocked and entertained in equal measure.....won overall because of its originality.......it presented a different aspect of India and had enormous literary merit".
Both Stephanie Meyer and Aravind Adiga were in the top ten of 'Amazon' general bestsellers, with Twilight series being 2nd/3rd/4th & 5th! Good choice guys! But what about number 1 in this list...'Grow Your Own Drugs:Easy Recipes for Natural Remedies and Beauty Treats' by James Wong..! I had to laugh when I saw that title I could imagine all the junkies rushing out to buy it.........think he had the 'wong' title
Lydia reviewed Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. Lydia likes reading historical novels, as well as Bill Bryson but has found a fascination with the Twilight series 'which feature vampires, werewolves, teenage love and all the complications of relationships brilliantly told with action and romance equally balanced'. They are actually aimed at the teenage market but like Harry Potter, The Book Thief, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, they are as well read by adults.
Lydia has also read and enjoyed 'Buffy Vampire Slayer' and 'Angel'.
Malcolm reviewed Cold Granite by Stuart MacBride. This is a hard hitting book along the lines of 'Rebus'and based in Scotland. Stuart MacBride was likened to Ian Rankin, Graham Hurley and Peter James. Ian Rankin is one of Malcolms favourite authors.
Malcolm also reviewed White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, which was described by one reviewer as an 'unadorned portrait of India seen from the bottom of the heap'.
It won the Booker prize and Michael Portillo, the head judge commented:
"..White Tiger prevailed because the judges felt that it shocked and entertained in equal measure.....won overall because of its originality.......it presented a different aspect of India and had enormous literary merit".
Both Stephanie Meyer and Aravind Adiga were in the top ten of 'Amazon' general bestsellers, with Twilight series being 2nd/3rd/4th & 5th! Good choice guys! But what about number 1 in this list...'Grow Your Own Drugs:Easy Recipes for Natural Remedies and Beauty Treats' by James Wong..! I had to laugh when I saw that title I could imagine all the junkies rushing out to buy it.........think he had the 'wong' title
Saturday, 27 February 2010
Richard Dawkins - The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution
Review by Malcolm Martland on show Feb 25th.
I know that in pubs, clubs and other places it is not good form to talk about politics or religion but this book invites discussion of both. I do realise I should have understood what to expect as Richard Dawkins is a famous atheist and author of” The God Delusion” – and of course he went to Oxford which explains a lot!
But this book is about science, science for the people, and it’s nothing that most graduates in Natural Sciences don’t know and couldn’t write – but most of them didn’t. There was very little new that I had not already learnt at school and university 40 years ago – and Watson and Crick’s DNA proposition was 1953 and Darwin’s Origin of Species 1859.
Very grandiose writing – Dawkins seems determined to put as much information as he can on every page – repetitive too – self quoting in abundance. Yes I agree with him and did enjoy the book but he does bang on and on. But despite that it is a very informative and enjoyable book. I particularly enjoyed his clear description of radio-isotope decay and its use in archaeological and fossil dating. But all facets of evolution are fascinating – it is evolution that is one of the wonders and miracles of life.
But he does keep trying to prove himself against the Creationists. As a scientist I don’t give a damn what creationists think about evolution because they I think are not just fundamentally wrong but stupidly opinionated too? They might be very nice people but just are not worth talking to on the subject until they have accepted some proper science.
But I do worry about Dawkins’ viewpoint. He tells us things like Nature’s conscience is neither benevolent nor divine – I’m not sure if he is attributing a “being” to “Nature” or not. He sometimes seems to be creating his own god = Nature, and forming his own religion -Evolution – major prophet Charles Darwin, disciples Crick and Watson and of course Dawkins (aka Darwin’s rottweiler) and his followers Ben Goldacre and Markus Brigstock. They even had their own strange carol service for non-god believers recently. OK I’m fine with them not believing but please shove a parallel religion at us, makes me suspect they will all become zealous converts from agnosticism or atheism in later life like CS Lewis, Malcolm Muggeridge and many others.
What the book did for me however, is make me get out all those science books I’ve been meaning to read or reread – Bill Bryson’s, A Short History of Nearly Everything, some 1950’s Pelican paperback’s by Ralph Buchsbaum, Animals without backbones and more – so Richard Dawkins has rekindled my enthusiasm for science for which I am grateful.
My verdict: a very interesting and informative read covering a huge topic – but if you can dispense with the religious bigotry try reading Steve Jones’ “Darwin's Island: The Galapagos in the Garden of England” instead – I intend to.
The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins 2009 Bantan Press rrp £20 (paperback due out 29 April 2010 rrp £8.99)
Review by Malcolm F. Martland 25 February 2010
I know that in pubs, clubs and other places it is not good form to talk about politics or religion but this book invites discussion of both. I do realise I should have understood what to expect as Richard Dawkins is a famous atheist and author of” The God Delusion” – and of course he went to Oxford which explains a lot!
But this book is about science, science for the people, and it’s nothing that most graduates in Natural Sciences don’t know and couldn’t write – but most of them didn’t. There was very little new that I had not already learnt at school and university 40 years ago – and Watson and Crick’s DNA proposition was 1953 and Darwin’s Origin of Species 1859.
Very grandiose writing – Dawkins seems determined to put as much information as he can on every page – repetitive too – self quoting in abundance. Yes I agree with him and did enjoy the book but he does bang on and on. But despite that it is a very informative and enjoyable book. I particularly enjoyed his clear description of radio-isotope decay and its use in archaeological and fossil dating. But all facets of evolution are fascinating – it is evolution that is one of the wonders and miracles of life.
But he does keep trying to prove himself against the Creationists. As a scientist I don’t give a damn what creationists think about evolution because they I think are not just fundamentally wrong but stupidly opinionated too? They might be very nice people but just are not worth talking to on the subject until they have accepted some proper science.
But I do worry about Dawkins’ viewpoint. He tells us things like Nature’s conscience is neither benevolent nor divine – I’m not sure if he is attributing a “being” to “Nature” or not. He sometimes seems to be creating his own god = Nature, and forming his own religion -Evolution – major prophet Charles Darwin, disciples Crick and Watson and of course Dawkins (aka Darwin’s rottweiler) and his followers Ben Goldacre and Markus Brigstock. They even had their own strange carol service for non-god believers recently. OK I’m fine with them not believing but please shove a parallel religion at us, makes me suspect they will all become zealous converts from agnosticism or atheism in later life like CS Lewis, Malcolm Muggeridge and many others.
What the book did for me however, is make me get out all those science books I’ve been meaning to read or reread – Bill Bryson’s, A Short History of Nearly Everything, some 1950’s Pelican paperback’s by Ralph Buchsbaum, Animals without backbones and more – so Richard Dawkins has rekindled my enthusiasm for science for which I am grateful.
My verdict: a very interesting and informative read covering a huge topic – but if you can dispense with the religious bigotry try reading Steve Jones’ “Darwin's Island: The Galapagos in the Garden of England” instead – I intend to.
The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution by Richard Dawkins 2009 Bantan Press rrp £20 (paperback due out 29 April 2010 rrp £8.99)
Review by Malcolm F. Martland 25 February 2010
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