Category Archives: Review

Book Review: Leslie Thomas ~ Virgin Soldiers (1966)

Posted on January 13, 2020 by

Spike Milligan wrote his brilliant war autobiographies1 to considerable acclaim but he was building on this autobiographical novel by Leslie Thomas. Unlike Milligan Thomas took part in one of a series of grim colonial wars, which are now forgotten. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Review, War | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Spotify quantifies the Top Beatles Album

Posted on January 9, 2020 by

What’s the best Beatles album?  This is a question any self-respecting fan wrestles with on a regular basis.  What criteria do we use to decide?  Level of experimentation and growth?  What we revisit the most?  The album with the most … Continue reading →

Posted in Review, statistics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Book review: Annie Duke ~ Thinking in Bets (2019)

Posted on January 6, 2020 by

Gambling fascinates me and I like stories associated with gamblers. Kerry Packer is an endless source of pleasure for me. He was famously irritated by a braggart in a Las Vegas casino who wanted everyone to know he had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Finance, Literature, Mathematics, Review, Sport, statistics | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: John le Carre ~ Agent Running in the Field (2019)

Posted on December 16, 2019 by

Do octogenarians write as well as they did in their pomp? On the evidence of this book they don’t they write differently. This novel is almost a satire. La Carre rails against western ‘values’, which he traduces as a mass … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Politics, Review | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Book Review: Paul Theroux ~ O-Zone (1986)

Posted on November 21, 2019 by

This book fizzes with ideas based around fear. The wealthy fear the poor and erect buildings which are fortresses inside sealed cities. Travel is by helicopter as ground level movement is hazardous as well as being slow from endless checkpoints. … Continue reading →

Posted in Health, Literature, Review, Technology, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Garrison Keillor ~ Lake Woebegon Days (1985)

Posted on October 14, 2019 by

Garrison is a radio star in the mid-West of the USA. His show is a slow conversational series of supposed memories. He speaks in a drawling and yet compelling voice and once hooked…. If you’ve heard his voice then the … Continue reading →

Posted in Humour, Literature, Religion, Review | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten Golden Oldie books for Christmas, 2019

Posted on September 26, 2019 by

Christmas is the book buying season with shelves full of celebrity cookbooks, autobiographies, star novelists and so on. They’re all sold at premium prices. Meanwhile there are millions of books which are superb and can be bought for a fraction … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature, Review | Tagged , , | Leave a comment