George Tomkyns Chesney, The Battle of Dorking

A fabulous Victorian scaremonger over-reacting to the German victory in the Franco-Prussian War. It’s an alternative history in which Bismarck’s troops were not sated by occupying Paris, but annexed France, torpedoed our fleet in the channel and then the dreaded Hun invaded Sussex. Just like in War of the Worlds, if you capture the Surrey Hills and Putney, then apparently the whole British Empire crumbles. It’s incredible to think what an influence these armchair generals and their scare stories had on British public opinion and Foreign Policy, leading Britain to think of Germany as an enemy when there was so little geopolitical conflict between Britain and Germany; one a naval power, one a land power, one a global power, one a Central European power. Erskine Childers has a lot to answer for. There’s a moral in there somewhere. Don’t let idle young men pootle round Frisian sandbanks in a skiff without having a good book to occupy them, maybe. Apparently it leads to global conflict and the accelerated decline of the British Empire.

David Mattingly, An Imperial Possession: Britain in the Roman Empire 54BC – AD409 (The Penguin History of Britain)

As always, the Penguin History of Britain lets itself down by hardly mentioning penguins. I will never, ever tire of that joke. A history of Britain at the time of the Romans, rather than Britain, so great effort is made to write about those parts of the isles outside the empire, or the experiences of the colonised within the empire, but there’s just such a lack of sources. A very post-colonial 21^st century perspective on the empire, and makes an interesting point that those parts of Britain in which Christianity and relative order and stability remained after the Romans left were those parts that were not part of the empire or on the fringes: Ireland, the West of Scotland, and Gwynedd. Maybe the origin of the soft southerner sterotype.

Over the past few weeks I appear to have become alarmingly obsessed with Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway engines. Not the Hornby 00 ones, not the diecast ones, not the Take ‘n’ Play ones, just the Wooden Railway ones. Not the wooden railway tracks, not the buildings, just the engines. It’s like collecting Panini stickers, I just lose all self control. I’ve won 33 auctions on eBay, with another 8 winning bids at the moment. It’s just idiotic.

A few nights ago, Freddie wanted to read the story of Diesel, a whiny, sneery engine, not like the noble steamies. Diesel is one of the 33 engines in my stash, so it seemed a good idea for Diesel to come and listen to the story too, as a special guest star, as a treat for him and Fred. Fred seemed thrilled by the idea, and cuddled and looked after Diesel while I read the story. At the end of the story, Diesel, having seen the errors of his snide ways, returns to The Other Railway as a Really Useful Engine, despite the inherent disadvantage of being a dirty diesel engine. As the storybook was closed, I attempted to retrieve Diesel so he could go back to The Other Railway. Freddie wailed like a banshee. I couldn’t give in to the crying, so it took a few minutes to calm him down. When I came downstairs, Helen asked what all the crying was about. Because I’m a coward and didn’t want a confrontation, I told her Fred was just tired (which, to be fair, was true). But the next day, when Freddie woke up and Helen went into see him, his first question concerned the whereabouts of Diesel, who apparently was now Freddie’s best friend and most beloved of all engines. I had a text not long after enquiring into the mystery of Diesel and why Fred was so distraught at the loss of his beloved friend Diesel. So I had to call in at home to get Diesel out of my stash, and take him down to nursery when I went to pick Freddie up. Since then I’ve been checking with Freddie each evening as we read his choice of Thomas book; ‘Freddie, if Cranky/Daisy/Emily/Murdoch was to come over as a special guest from The Other Railway to listen to the story of Cranky/Daisy/Emily/Murdoch, and then went back to The Other Railway afterwards, how would you feel?’

‘Sad.’

‘Sad? Why sad, Fred?’

‘I want to cuddle Cranky/Daisy/Emily/Murdoch’

‘Hmm, ok. Probably best they don’t come then.’

In the meantime the stash is growing. Since I started writing this there’s been a few more eBay auctions won.

Jo Nesbo, The Snowman

Made a mistake reading this at the same time as watching episodes of The Killing, as it was difficult to distinguish between the two dark Scandinavian murder mysteries where everyone wears woolly jumpers. Maybe I should stick to Fred’s Thomas books until the baby brain stage is over. There’s less existential angst, laments over the death of social democracy and Faroese woollens to worry about

Barnaby Rogerson, The Last Crusaders: East, West and the Battle for the Centre of the World .

The Last Crusaders wasn’t the book I thought it was. I saw the words ‘Habsburg’ and ‘Ottoman’ and assumed it was about battles in the Balkans and the siege of Vienna in the 17^th Century, but it turned out to be based much earlier, and concerned rivalry in the Mediterranean between the Spanish Habsburgs and the Turk. Curiously, large parts of the book are dedicated to Portugal, who seem to be a pet nation of the author and his family. I pictured him wearing a Portugal shirt and tucking into Nando’s as he wrote the book, extolling the virtues of Henry the Navigator and his ravaging of the Berber coast.Most of the book was read on a business trip to Norwich, my first trip away since Libby was born. I missed the family, but it was lovely to have an uninterrupted night’s sleep.

Freddie’s bedtime ritual has become more and more elaborate. The ritual begins about twenty to seven, when Freddie is reminded it’s nearly bathtime. Fred then asks to play with trains for ‘a bit more’, which is granted. Then, when it’s time for bath at quarter to seven, Freddie shouts ‘I don’t want a bath’, and he is given the option of a wash instead. Fred then asks ‘What sort of wash?’ (Ungrammatical, but he is only three), and is given the options. Downstairs Wash. Upstairs Wash. Upside-down Wash. Spinning Wash. Dragon Wash (where the wash is nominally administered by his dragon-shaped toothbrush). Fred selects and then I go upstairs to collect two toothbrushes, a bucket, a towel, a flannel and a laundry-basket’s worth of pyjama tops and bottoms. Fred then protests at the wash while lifting up his top to show anyone in the room his belly button. Tickling and blowing raspberries is required at this stage to keep Fred from running off.

Fred is then offered a selection of pyjamas, none of which he likes. After some complaints, he finally settles on the ones he was originally offered. There is normally an additional quirk demanded, such as wearing a vest over his pyjama top, or a hat, or wellies. This may or may not be acceded to, depending on levels of tiredness in both the dresser and dressee, practicality, and humour value. After that we kiss Helen and Libby good night and head upstairs. The next stage is Freddie’s reward chart, where he is rewarded for good behaviour in a number of categories, including getting dressed nicely, eating his food nicely and sharing his toys. If he has done such nice things, he is rewarded with a magnetic star, which is added to his chart. Once seven stars are reached, Fred is rewarded with a trip to the Magic Box Keeper.

The Magic Box Keeper is me wearing Helen’s pink bobble hat; a pretence which Fred can obviously see through, but which he maintains as it means he gets a present. I (as me) wander off claiming to be looking for Magic Box Keeper (we don’t use the definite article, there is no clear reason why not). I (now wearing Helen’s pink bobble hat) quickly return, and announce myself as the Magic Box Keeper. Fred then hands me his seven stars, which I store in Helen’s hat, and Fred is allowed to pick something from the Magic Box (in reality a red FLÖRT box from Ikea), which contains stickers, sweets and small toys.

Treat selected, Fred then requests to be able to sleep with the treat. This is allowed. Next, it is time for Circle and Square show. Freddie runs into our bedroom and climbs onto the bed, while I locate a torch and the level crossing from his wooden railway. The torchbeam has a circular shadow in the middle when held approx 2m from a wall, and is the ‘Circle’. The Level crossing is held by me in front of the Torch, and its shadow provides the ‘Square’. Sometimes Fred will request that Square be replaced by a special guest star for the evening, such as a toy rabbit or teddy bear. Circle and Square (or substitute) are good friends, and each evening perform a short play for Fred’s delectation. The fourth wall is frequently broken and Circle and Square address their friend Freddie directly, sometimes receiving a kiss from him. Watching a toddler kiss the shadow of a level crossing is surprisingly sweet. Circle and Square do some dancing, jumping and running, and then claim to be tired and in need of a sleep. Freddie follows them without question (!) into his bedroom, and Circle and Square disappear under his bed to sleep. Freddie will then state whether he wishes to do stickers, do a puzzle or read a story. He is allowed to do two things. Those two things completed (usually stories, usually Thomas the Tank Engine), the lights go out and Freddie is tucked in. He will then request ‘Daddysleepwithmealittlebit’ while making the internationally recognised sign for ‘a little bit’ with his hand. I then lie down on the floor beside his bed. Fred will then say ‘wantacuddle’. I then place my hand on his shoulder. We then fall asleep exhausted. . .

Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall, The Good Granny Guide 25th January 2008

I am not, nor am I ever likely to be, a Granny, good or otherwise. I bought this for my mum and started to flick through and ended up reading the whole book. Lots of common sense and tips from a very posh granny. Woodland knowledge, literature, gardening and cookery. Finally finished off the loft today; although there have been some ominous sounds this evening implying pictures and mirrors have fallen down. . .

Ian Gilmour, Riots, Risings and Revolution: Governance and Violence in Eighteenth Century England

Gilmour is what Conservatism should be. Intelligent and pragmatic with a social conscience. Hopefully one day they'll discover that again. Most of the book is set out thematically; food riots, mutinies and so on. Such a good book. Freddie gave me a smile for the first time, just after I finished reading. Almost had a tear. . . .
(Horace Walpole on Wilkes) Does not there seem to be a fatality attending the Court whenever they meddle with that man? What instance is there of such a demagogue maintaining a war against a King, Ministries, Courts of Law, a whole legislature and all Scotland for nine years together? Wilkes in prison is chosen MP and then Alderman of London. His colleagues betray him, expose him and he becomes Sheriff of London. I believe, if he was to be hanged, he would be made King of England

12th January 2008

Barry Cunliffe, The extraordinary voyage of Pytheas the Greek
A really good history. Cunliffe reconstructs the voyage of Pytheas in c330BC to the British Isles and Iceland. In order to set it in context, he describes the Greek Mediterranean world, explains how traditional navigation worked, why anyone would want to leave the safe, familiar, warm Mediterranean for the cold, rainy, unknown North (Tin and amber) and why those substances were needed. A combination of story-telling and investigation - proper history!

10th January 2008

George MacDonald Fraser, The Steel Bonnets: The story of the Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers
Fraser passed away while I was reading this. He makes history so interesting and readable and, as always, his research appears impeccable. I'm desperate to tramp the mosses of the border country now.
(On Mary, Queen of Scots) One would sympathise with anyone born to rule Scotland

3rd January 2008

Lynsey Hanley, Estates: An Intimate History
A mix of personal recollection and social history charting the changes in social housing. Very important and very distressing reading. What a waste of lives and talent.

29th December 2007

Iain Pears, An Instance of the Fingerpost
We first read this a few years ago. It was as wonderful as I remember. Set in 17th Century Oxford and told from four viewpoints. The ending is startling. I gave it to charity the last time I read it, but this time I'm keeping it. Freddie is looking better every day; more alert, big eyes, less of a goblin! I'm halfway through my leave and settled into a very lazy routine. Lets me read though!

22nd December 2007

David Marquand, Ramsay MacDonald
Taken a while to read thanks to a drastic change in routine! Fred's put on a whole pound while I've been reading it, and has developed a very cute Frankie Howerd face when he wants feeding. The biography was sympathetic towards Ramsay Mac, particularly as it was written in the 'sixties, when the 1931 betrayal was fresh in memories. The parallels between Ramsay and Blair were frequent; Leaders semi-detached from their own parties, concentration on foreign policy, and determination to make the Labour Party acceptable to middle-of-the-road voters. Strange that 2 of the 3 most electorally successful Labour leaders both appear to have had such disdain for their own party.
The true moral is less palatable. It is that a radical party requires, not merely high ideals and skilful leadership, but intellectual confidence and a willingness to jettison cherished assumptions in the face of changing realities. It is an easy moral to formulate. Half a century of British history bears witness to the fact that it is not so easy to practise.

7th December 2007

HW Brands, The Age of Gold
A history of the Gold Rush of 1848, but much more wide-ranging than that; the opening up of the West, antebellum politics. . . A really great history, telling the stories of individuals, explaining what it was like for miners and gamblers and carpetbaggers.
pro auro

2nd December 2007

Marina Lewycka, A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian
My reading was interrupted by the unexpected birth of Freddie! Mostly read very early in the morning while Helen was trying to sleep!

George MacDonald Fraser, The Candlemass Road 21st November 2007

Didn't give this enough attention. A Border romance set in Elizabethan times; a lawless time of cattle rustling and peel towers. A very appropriate ending, as the heroine allows the hero to be murdered to protect her family.
There was never so mekill myschefe, robbry, spoiling and vengeance in Scotland that there is nowe. . . which I praye our Lord God to continewe (Thomas 'The Old Red Bull' Dacre)

19th November 2007

Charles Mackay, Extraordinary Popular Delusions and The Madness of Crowds
A great book, particularly strong on the financial madness that occasionally grips societies as everyone seeks to get rich quick. Quite pertinent at the moment, when we're on the brink of a second dotcom-led market collapse. It's worth reading for the list of 'bubble' companies - For supplying Deal with fresh water, For improving the art of making soap, and the infamous For carrying on an undertaking of great advantage, but nobody to know what it is.
'Dissatisfaction with his lot seems to be the characteristic of man in all ages and climates

8th November 2007

Edward Said, Orientalism
Do people really understand this book? I learnt new words on every page - 'pluri-cultural', 'laicized', and 'dis-Oriental'. A sentence picked at random was To investigate Orientalism is also to propose intellectual ways for handling the methodological problems that history has brought forward, so to speak, in its subject matter, the Orient.' I've read and re-read that, and it doesn't seem to say anything over thean Orientalism includes studying the Orient.
'For a person who has never seen the Orient, Nerval once said to Gautier, a lotus is still a lotus; for me it is only a kind of onion.'

1st November 2007

Anthony Taylor, Down with the Crown: British Anti-monarchism and Debates about Royalty since 1790.
However much he wishes otherwise, this just shows the paucity of republicanism in Great Britain. I feel like a crank now. Finished this whilst waiting for a wasp destroyer, the day after Juande Ramos' first game in charge. Beat Blackpool 2 - 0, and sat in the away end at the Lane for the first time.
'The House of Lords has been taken everywhere for a second chamber or senate. It is nothing of the kind. It is one of the estates of the feudal realm, reduced by the decay of feudalism to comparative impotence, such influence as it retains being not that of legislative authority, but of hereditary wealth. It has never acted as. . . an Upper Chamber revising with maturer wisdom and in an impartial spirit, the hasty or ultra-democratic legislation of the more popular House. It has always acted as what it is, a privileged order in a state of decay and jeopardy, resisting as far as it dare each measure of change, not political only, but legal, social and of every kind.' 1910 Liberal election leaflet.
'Three-quarters of the members of the House of Lords inherited their position by birth; their ancestors were, by and large, cattle robbers, land thieves, and a few were court prostitutes.' (Jack Jones)

27th October 2007

Peter Rex, Hereward: The Last Englishman
Very dry non-academic history obsessed with finding 'the real' Hereward, who wasn't even a Wake, whatever a Wake is

25th October 2007

Anthony Powell, A Dance to the Music of Time: Summer
I'd be lost without Spurling. It really does have the feeling of a dance, as characters and plots weave in and out of Nick Jenkins' life. Widmerpool is turning into a monster as he greases up the ladder, and has already overtaken Jenkins, Stringham andTemplar, who thought so little of him at school. I really hope he doesn't turn out to be Labour, although it looks likely. . .
'Probability is the bane of the age . . . Every Tom, Dick, and Harry thinks he knows what is probable. The fact is most people have not the smallest idea what is going on around them. Their conclusions about life are based on utterly irrelevant - and usually inaccurate - premises.'

16th October 2007

Anne Applebaum, Between East and West
Am training the nightshift today, so spent the morning reading this instead of preparing for Horatio's arrival. A really interesting guide to the swathe of Eastern Europe from the Baltic to the Black Sea and the people who live there. Poles in Lithuania where it used to be Poland, Lithuanians in Poland where it used to be Germany, Belarussians in Lithuania where it used to be Poland, and used to be Germany, and used to be Russia, Germans popping up everywhere, and Orthodox Christians who recognise the authority of the Pope. After that it moves on to Ruthenia and Bukovina and gets more complicated. . . I seem to have exhausted the english language guides to the Balkans, so I'm working my way north-easy. Smolensk by Christmas hopefully.
'Small nations must learn how to live with their conquerors, but large nations are condemned to fight back.'
'Patriotic Russian historians notwithstanding, when the Lord created mankind he did not place the Russians where they happen to be today.' (Richard Pipes)

11th October 2007

Philip Roth, The Plot Against America
Set in an alternative America where Charles Lindbergh won the 1940 election on an isolationist, anti-semitic platform. Alarmingly believable and concentrates on the effects on a Jewish family. The use of historical characters adds to the verisimilitude, and Roth prints a speech at the end that was made by Lindbergh in reality. This just reinforces that it could have happened in America too.

7th October 2007

Roy Porter, London: A Social History
Written in 1994, so a declining, dying London. Canary Wharf is a white elephant, the abolition of the GLC left London directionless, and everyone's leaving. It's incredible how much has changed in such a short time. All due to Labour, of course.
'A man is never happy in the present unless he is deunk' Samuel Johnson

30th September 2007

Susanna Clarke, The Ladies of Grace Adieu
A collection of short stories set in the world of Faerie/England established in Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Loved them all; a wonderful book of fairy stories; looking forward to reading them to Horatio!
'Did you ever look into an English novel? Well, do not trouble yourself. It is nothing but a lot of nonsense about girls with fanciful names getting married.'

29th September 2007

John Wardroper, Kings, Lords & Wicked Libellers
Ostensibly a history of satire and protest in the Georgia era, but loads of information about the awful, awful Hanoverians. How did Britian manage to become a superpower despite having the worst of all possible Royal families? Except the Stuarts. The Prince Regent costs almost as much to maintain as the entire Royal Navy, apparently.
'I am not well: pray get me a glass of brandy.' The Prince Regent, upon meeting Caroline

24th September 2007

Elizabeth Redfern, The Music of the Spheres
Borrowed this from Helen's Mum. Seemed a very formulaic historical novel with clunky dialogue; maybe I've just read to much Bernard Cornwell. Read in a converted bakery in Normandy whilst sipping calvados

19th September 2007

Carola Hicks, The Bayeux Tapestry
Bought this last week in Bangalore; seemed appropriate as I bought The Siege of Venice in B'lore just before we went to Venice in April, and we're off to Normandy on Saturday. Was surprised to find out there's a replica of the tapestry in Reading, created by the women of Leek last century but one.

15th September 2007

Patrick Leigh Fermor, Between the Woods and the Water
Read on the flight back from Bangalore. Didn't realise it was the second in a series. Not sure what it is about early 20th century travelogues by posh Britons in Eastern Europe, but they do it for me. Very interesting on Hungary and Romania while there were still pre-industrial societies, and just before those societies were shattered by war. He writes just as the anschluss is occurring, and so a few months before the Nazis take over Eastern Europe and destroy the communites he visited.

14th September 2007

Dorothy Carrington, Granite Island: A Portrait of Corsica
I'd been trying to get hold of this book for months, and turned Hay upside down looking for it. Saw it by chance in Woking library whilst looking for books on Normandy. I'm never sure whether it's better to read first, imagine, then visit, or visit first, recognise and read at leisure later. I must visit Corsica now; the book also manages to confirm all the granite-faced, stern, courageous, vendetta-laced stereotypes of Asterix in Corsica, my previous primary source of information on the island

30th August 2007

EP Thompson, William Morris: Romantic to Revolutionary
Skipped a lot of this. Who would write a book about William Morris and dedicate 300 pages to obscure socialist sects and a couple of paragraphs to News from Nowhere? Very dated and accepts orthodox Marxist analysis and attempts to place Morris firmly in the Marxist camp, as if he gave a stuff about political or economic theory.
'Even supposing I did not understand that there is a definite reason in economics, and that the whole system can be changed, I for one would be a rebel against it.'
'Wherever the aspirations for life stirred among the workers - the clear-headed hatred of capitalism, the thirst for knowledge, beauty and fellowship - the Socialist converts might be won.'
'The idle singer of an empty day'
'Give me love and work - these two only.'
'No man is good enough to be another's master.'

17th August 2007

Paolo Coelho, The Alchemist
Sameer from CW India lent me this. It's massive in India, apparently, subtitled 'A magical fable about following your dream.' All seemed a bit soppy to cynical me, with lots about 'following your heart'. No, follow your conscience, hearts are selfish things!

16th August 2007

Kingsle Amis, Lucky Jim
'Had people ever been as nasty, as self-indulgent, as dull, as miserable, as cocksure, as bad at art, as dismally ludicrous, or as wrong as they'd been in the Middle Ages?'

7th August 2007

Victoria Mary Clark, A Drink with Shane Macgowan
Very disappointing. An extended interview with his missus. Not particularly interesting, not particularly insightful and Shane prone to embellishment. I remember how let down I felt when I found out (like John Peel) he'd gone to public school. Finding out he was born in Tunbridge Wells was another blow

4th August 2007

Ernle Bradford, The Shield & The Sword; A History of the Knights of St John
Read on the plane back from Bangalore. I get to see Helen for 24 hours before she floes to Tokyo. 'Horatio' is now the accepted name for her bump

4th August 2007

Jeremy Paxman, The English
Read this as it was recommended by Kate Fox in 'Watching the English', which was surprising. Meant to be 'A Portraint of A People', but it concentrates on a very specific subset of English; public school educated, southern, and a history of service in the forces and the empire. This may be 'English' for Paxman, but wasn't one millions of others would recognise. Written like a journalist with some very sweeping generalisations

31st July 2007

Anthony Powell, A Dance To The Music of Time - Spring
Had to use a crib sheet to work out who was who!
'If certain individuals fall in love from motives of convenience, they can be contrasted with plenty of others in whom passion seems principally aroused by the intensity of administrative difficulty in procuring its satisfaction.'

23rd July 2007

JK Rowling, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows

18th July 2007

Tom Nairn, The Enchanted Glass: Britain and its Monarchy

12th July 2007

Marcus Berkemann, Fatherhood
'If you desire to drain to the dregs the fullest cup of scorn and hatred that fellow human beings can pour out for you, let a young mother hear you call her dear baby 'it' ' Jerome K Jerome

11th July 2007

William Dalrymple, In Xanadu
'The exultation of having penetrated and escaped the Holy City without damage was followed by languor and disappointment. I had time upon my mule for musing upon how melancholy a thing is success. Whilst failure inspires a man, attainment reads the sad prosy lesson that all our glories are shadows not substantial things.' Sir Richard Burton

8th July 2007

Alan Palmer, Northern Shores, A History of the Baltic Sea and its peoples
'Alliances are all very well, but forces of one's own are better still.'

6th July 2007

Michael Crick, Jeffrey Archer
'Here Lies Jeffrey Archer'

2nd July 2007

Adrian Levy, The Amber Room
'As the Poles are fond of saying, when I sank to the very bottom, someone knocked from below.'

30th June 2007

John Julius Norwich, The Mediterranean
'Reward this young man and promote him; for if his services are not recognised, he will promote himself.' (On Napoleon)

George Rudé, Robespierre

George Rudé, Robespierre 'Citoyens, vouliez-vous une revolution sans une revolution?'