01 Mar 2020

Susannah Newsletter, Reading 6 Comments Permalink

The Young Visiters

Susannah 1 March 2020 6 Comments

Have you ever read The Young Visiters? It was written by Daisy Ashford in 1919 and its author was all of 9 years old (hence the spelling mistake in the title). Read more

01 Mar 2020

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 12 Comments Permalink

William Gladstone – Book Lover

Susannah 1 March 2020 12 Comments

Let me introduce you to a fascinating man. His name was William Gladstone and he was four times Prime Minister of Great Britain. Read more

01 Mar 2020

Susannah Jane Austen, Movies, Newsletter, Reading, Screen versions 78 Comments Permalink

‘Emma.’ 2020

Susannah 1 March 2020 78 Comments

How can two minutes in a movie contain both rapture and disgust? I have been to see the new Emma Read more

01 Feb 2020

Susannah Newsletter, Poem of the Month, Poems, Poets 25 Comments Permalink

Robert Graves & A Welsh Incident

Susannah 1 February 2020 25 Comments

The only way to experience the poem I’ve chosen for you this month is to listen to Richard Burton read it. Read more

01 Feb 2020

Susannah Books, Movies, Newsletter, Screen versions 54 Comments Permalink

The Rights of Film Makers

Susannah 1 February 2020 54 Comments

I have recently been pondering the rights of film makers when they turn a classic novel into a movie or TV series. Read more

01 Feb 2020

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 14 Comments Permalink

Sport in Novels

Susannah 1 February 2020 14 Comments

Reading Beartown this month, and spending time watching the Australian Open tennis, has made me think about great sporting moments in novels. Read more

01 Feb 2020

Susannah Authors, Books, Newsletter, Reading 12 Comments Permalink

Books I’ve read recently

Susannah 1 February 2020 12 Comments

I have read some lovely books recently which I’d like to recommend. I hope you’ll find some of these interesting and read them also. Read more

01 Jan 2020

Susannah Newsletter, Poem of the Month, Poems, Poets 16 Comments Permalink

Jenny Joseph & Warning

Susannah 1 January 2020 16 Comments

I have a significant birthday this year, so a poem about ageing disgracefully seems rather appropriate. This one is by Jenny Joseph (1932 – 2018). Read more

01 Jan 2020

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 8 Comments Permalink

George Eliot turns 200

Susannah 1 January 2020 8 Comments

George Eliot turned 200 on 22nd November 2019. Virginia Woolf once described Middlemarch as “one of the few English novels written for grown-up people”. Read more

01 Jan 2020

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 14 Comments Permalink

My 2019 Favourites

Susannah 1 January 2020 14 Comments

Each January I give you my list of Top Ten books of the year just ended. It’s always terribly hard deciding Read more

01 Jan 2020

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 2 Comments Permalink

Forbes ‘Fictional 15’

Susannah 1 January 2020 2 Comments

I am sure you must have heard of the Forbes List, an annual listing of the world’s wealthiest billionaires? Read more

01 Dec 2019

Susannah Newsletter, Poem of the Month, Poems, Poets 15 Comments Permalink

Hone Tuwhare & ‘Rain’

Susannah 1 December 2019 15 Comments

Today’s newspaper included a photo of some young children in rural Australia jumping in puddles of rain that had just fallen. In this terrible time of drought, a poem about rain has extra resonance. Read more

01 Dec 2019

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 19 Comments Permalink

BBC’s 100 Novels that Shaped our World

Susannah 1 December 2019 19 Comments

When I was about 15 my English teacher handed out lists of the books that we should have read if we were to consider ourselves a well-read person. Read more

01 Dec 2019

Susannah Books, Newsletter, Reading 6 Comments Permalink

A Good Obituary

Susannah 1 December 2019 6 Comments

I always enjoy reading a well-written obituary. My favourite one from 2019 was published in The Times in June, and concerned a legal professor named Sir Guenter Treitel, QC. Read more

01 Nov 2019

Susannah Newsletter, Reading 9 Comments Permalink

Living Where The Poets Lived

Susannah 1 November 2019 9 Comments

In April next year it will be poet William Wordsworth’s 250th birthday. Dove Cottage (pictured above), Read more