Good evening, fellow Bookworms!
It’s 31st May, so that means it’s time for the monthly review blog, and a look back at a month which saw me finish six books, buy twelve, head off to Norway for a short break, go and see a show, see my mum awarded for giving a hundred armfuls, and celebrate some silverware for my beloved Reds!
It’s also Fishy Friday, of course, which means that, on a scale of 0 to “Ipswich Town At Old Trafford In 1995”, Chief Bookworm is definitely at the United 9 Ipswich 0 end of the “totally stuffed” scale, lol!
Mum and I popped over to Norway on 9th May for a short break in Bergen, which also included a full day Fjords tour. We even managed to have Fishy Friday in Bergen, although it’s not too surprising as the city is famous for its fish market and I ate a lot of seafood on that break.
While we were in Norway, the Eurovision Song Contest took place “next door” in Sweden, and it was won by Switzerland, so the 2025 contest will take place somewhere in the country in which I spent six months back in 1978 due to my dad’s job!
On 21st May, Mum, Ellie and I were at the Lowry Theatre on Salford Quays to enjoy a performance of the musical “Jesus Christ, Superstar” one of the old classic Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd-Webber ones from the 1970s. I had seen it before, although many moons ago, lol, and have also sung “I Don’t Know How To Love Him” in a concert when I was sixteen, also reprising the song last year when I chose it for my choir audition piece.
The following day, Mum and I were at the Sheridan Hotel in Manchester as Mum was receiving her awards for having made over 100 blood donations, hence the photo above! She has actually given 101 donations thus far, and I have given 53 armfuls and hope to visit the Vampires again soon.
There’s been a slight increase in my thyroxine, though, my doctor put the dose up in early April so we have to ensure I am well on the new amount before I can give some more of my O positive and have an empty arm again. I’d been on the same dose for years, most of my adult life, but I am in my early 50s now and heading for menopause, so it makes sense that I might now need a bit more to help me through this stage of my life.
Saturday 25th May was Towel Day in honour of the late great Douglas Adams, author of The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, in which he said that a towel was one of the most useful items an intergalactic hitch hiker could have, and if he was “with it” enough to know where his towel was, he would be a “frood”!
25th May was also the FA Cup Final and like last year, it was a Manchester Derby at Wembley. However, this time, United won, beating City 2-1 with goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo, who are both only 19, first time both scorers on the winning side have been teenagers!
Once again, our youth policy helps us prove Alan Hansen wrong! You don’t win ‘owt with kids, eh?! Ha ha!
Actually, Kobbie’s hat and his arms folded pose on that photo made me think of “old skool” 1980s hip hop acts, like Run DMC, lol! OK, Kobbie wasn’t born until 2005, but if he grew up with that kinda music thanks to his parents, there’s a chance his pose was a deliberate emulation of artists from that genre when I was a kid.
Run DMC some time around 1986. The guy on the left… that hat, the folded arms… see what I mean about Kobbie’s FA Cup celebration?!
Anyway, time I got on to the books I have read, one was finished off before I went to Norway, but the others have been polished off in this last week.
First up was Before the Coffee Gets Cold, by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, the first book in his series about a cafe in Tokyo where customers can experience a form of time travel if they’re in the right seat and the coffee is still hot… I am now on for the second book, Tales From the Cafe, which is 10% read so it is one of the Ongoing Concerns, and I bought the 3rd and 4th books earlier this week when I went to the Trafford Centre and made my customary visit to Waterstone’s.
Actually, a fifth book is due out this autumn, in September.
From left to right, the reading order for the books. I now have all but the green one as that is not out until later this year.
On Sunday 26th May, as well as celebrating the 25th Anniversary of The Treble, St Ole’s Day, I was celebrating another book finish as I had polished off Unofficial Britain by Gareth E. Rees, the first of two books by this writer, and a very enjoyable and interesting read which led to me reading another by Mr Rees and also ordering a couple of books by another writer which actually go pretty well with Rees’s books as they kinda provide illustrations for those.
About Britain, by Tim Cole, was up next on the finished books front, giving me my third of the month, so at that point at least I was maintaining a consistent “three books a month” record for finishes. That one was on my Kindle and involved Mr Cole retracing the recommended routes from a series of guides meant for the Festival of Britain in 1951 but doing it seventy years on to see what had changed and if anything had stayed the same.
It was quite interesting, particularly in terms of motoring history such as drink-driving laws, driving tests, licenses and the invention of “cats’ eyes” to reflect light from headlights and keep motorists safer at nights.
Back to Gareth E. Rees again now and the second book down in this photo, Car Park Life, which was another really good read and got me thinking about all the car parks in my life. Even as a non-driver there has been a lot of significant time spent in car parks. I don’t think a monthly review is the time to expand on that, so maybe I will revisit the topic in one of my June blogs.
It also meant that I had improved on my previous months by having finished four books, but yesterday I polished off two more to take us to the dizzy heights of six books finished in May!
Book number five for the month was Abroad in Japan, by Chris Broad. I may have been reading all these items of travel writing about my own country, but still managed to polish off a book about a Brit living and working in Japan. He had had an uncertain start when he applied to a programme to become an English teaching assistant at a Japanese high school, but ended up establishing himself and getting to mix with Japanese celebs, lol! Definitely worth a read, and it is now available in paperback.
You know when I said that the Gareth E. Rees books caused me to order some other books along similar lines? Well, one came yesterday and the other arrived today, hence Roundabouts of Great Britain, by Kevin Beresford, became my sixth finish for May, and Parking Mad, by the same guy, arrived this morning.
The car parks book might be my first read for June. Had a little look but not really a serious read yet. However, I definitely enjoyed the roundabouts one last night and if he ever thinks about doing a sequel with more roundabouts, he should come to Monton. I would advise that he should come in December as then he would see the tree on the roundabout with its Christmas lights on!
We actually have two roundabouts, the other being a short distance away near the canal and medical centre, but I was focusing on the main one at the top of Monton Road near the green. There is also a mini roundabout, but you would have to go in the other direction, towards Eccles, as that’s on Half Edge Lane.
Also, he should do a second volume to feature some of the roundabouts in Macclesfield, Cheshire, because I am convinced the Cheshire town is full of them, lol! It certainly felt that way in early 2019 after Dad died and we were going to Macc a few times before and after the funeral as well as the day itself.
In terms of the remaining books, there are four that are still Ongoing Concerns after my epic reading sessions got quite a few books finished and off the list. Was reading a bit of Dark, Salt, Clear, by Lamorna Ash, earlier so that is currently 15% read. It’s about life in a Cornish fishing town.
The others are as you were, but with having got a fair few books read, I can have a look at progressing the remaining OCs and then starting a new one or two.
The journaling photo is from my general journal’s theme for June, but as I have said in my blogs this month, I am simplifying things and from July, book and general journals will be merged and my pink Oops a Daisy journal with the coffee cup motif will have both book and general stuff in it. The choir and travel journals will remain separate.
Still need to set up my choir journal for June and can do that at the weekend. Once I have chosen the song, there isn’t too much to do. Only need a few pages per month. There may not be a July theme, or there may be just a calendar, as there was talk of taking a break that month. We need a new conductor and some more members, we are a pretty small choir right now.
In the interests of balance, that is the title page from my June theme in my book journal. It is also to remind me to mention that I will be going to StationeryFest at the end of June! Yay! It’s at the GMex. Well, it’s Manchester Central, but many of us still know it as the GMex. Didn’t get to go last year as it was the same day as the Monton Village Festival and I was performing with the choir, so I’m chuffed that I can make it this year.
Well, that’s about it for now. I think I have brought you all the news and reviews for May, so until the next blog, take care and Happy Reading!
Joanne x x x
Books mentioned in this blog entry…
- The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
- Before the Coffee Gets Cold – Toshikazu Kawaguchi
- Tales From the Cafe – Toshikazu Kawaguchi
- Unofficial Britain – Gareth E. Rees
- About Britain – Tim Cole
- Car Park Life – Gareth E. Rees
- Abroad in Japan – Chris Broad
- Roundabouts of Great Britain – Kevin Beresford
- Parking Mad – Kevin Beresford
- Dark, Salt, Clear – Lamorna Ash
Joanne's Bookshelf 