I found it rather difficult to empathise with the protagonist, Philip Carey. This made getting to the end of a rather long novel somewhat tedious, but I persevered. I am not sure if it was worth the effort even though this book is considered to be Maugham's masterpiece. Carey is not the kind of person … Continue reading Of Human Bondage by Somerset Maugham
Returning to London
London is a city that we have come to love.
Autumn Book Fair
Tomorrow, I will be attending my first book fair as an author.
A Covid-19 Anecdote
Yesterday, my wife, who is a nurse, told me that one of her colleagues had tested positive for Covid-19. They had worked the same shift together but my wife's test came back negative. Now, the interesting part is that her colleague is fully vaccinated, but my wife is not. She was the 41st person in … Continue reading A Covid-19 Anecdote
A Message from America
It is always great to hear from a reader, but usually they make contact after they have read the book.
They built a ministry to deal with people like us, Thomas, a whole government ministry.
"They built a ministry to deal with people like us, Thomas, a whole government ministry. They don't like us, they don't want us, and they're telling the normal people to hate us. You heard what they are saying about us. They say we're cretins who can't do anything, feeble-minded idiots who just take and give nothing back. They're making killing us look like a kindness."
Us, Them, and Vaccine Passports
It seems that prejudice is latent in the human condition and any excuse will do to exercise it.
“I sought to commission you as my protector Lord Coenred, but I find in you a noble heart that I much admire.”
"I sought to commission you as my protector Lord Coenred, but I find in you a noble heart that I much admire."
How much freedom are we going to surrender?
I saw this post on a friend's timeline on Facebook: I had previously decided not to respond through social media, but rather through this blog, however, I had had a drink and my devil got the better of me. This is what I wrote: I have just seen this and cannot believe that anyone would … Continue reading How much freedom are we going to surrender?
Aldfrid was filled with a new certainty himself. When first he had seen Eawyn he had been stunned by her beauty. He had had his moment of doubt as to whether this young woman of such quality would even notice him, but she had. With confidence, he took her hands and pulled her a step … Continue reading
