Memories in Words and Pictures
Regular readers here will know how much I love all things Norwegian. Those paying closer attention might have picked up my relatively recent plunge into the world of Golden Age (and similar) crime. Scandi Noir being what it is, it is not often that these two interests collide, although Karin Fossum has caused them to... Continue Reading →
It's around now that publishers are gearing up to launch their Christmas titles on an eagerly awaiting public. Over the last month or so, I've received a lot of proof copies of Christmas romance novels and I've spent the the past couple of weeks reading them. I still have two or three to go and... Continue Reading →
My first foray into books that were published for adults takes me very close to home. I've known Peebles in the Scottish Borders since I was a very little girl living in Edinburgh. It's somewhere I have a great affection for and have made many day trips to. So I didn't discover the town because... Continue Reading →
Today I drove to Falkland. It's a forty-five minute journey from my house but it felt adventurous, daring, exciting. The downside to living in Edinburgh during lockdown was the necessity of staying in one's local authority area. The capital may be beautiful, inspiring and, in normal times, packed with things to do and places to... Continue Reading →
I collect young people's books. I have a general collection of books published from the mid nineteenth century onwards which includes everything from Louisa Alcott, through Julia Green, Joan Lingard, Philip Reeve and John Rowe Townsend to Paul Zindel. I don't necessarily have everything by all the authors in this collection; it's more of a... Continue Reading →
Over on my young people's book blog (www.picturesandconversations.co.uk) I've been writing about books that have made me (want to) travel to their settings and places that have made me seek out books set there. For as long as I can remember, books and places have been inextricably linked. I didn't always realise it, but it's... Continue Reading →
Today I saw my sister for the first time in almost four months. Outside and at a distance, but I saw her. We're almost each other's only family in Scotland so it was significant. Prior to the lockdown here I was in Australia and New Zealand visiting family and friends and had to return hastily.... Continue Reading →
'I'm pretty flexible about the New Zealand part of my trip,' I said to the long-suffering consultant at the other end of the line. A pause. 'There's just one non-negotiable, though. I have to spend some time in Dunedin. And I wouldn't mind going to Invercargill. A longer pause. The whisper of a sigh. 'Invercargill?'... Continue Reading →
I read a book today. It was about a woman who wrote a book. The book was about people the author knew. The book (the real one; not the one in the book) was a rewrite of another book. That book was also about a woman who wrote a book about people the author (the... Continue Reading →
Even before COVID-19 put an end to my trip of a lifetime, many things had gone wrong. Nothing affecting the entire planet, you understand, and nothing disastrous but, still, there had been some hitches. It all started off so well too. My journey from Edinburgh to Sydney was uneventful and I arrived safely and speedily... Continue Reading →
Jane's Picture Journal 