Books

Cut down on the painting a little and picked up a few books instead to pass the time during the school holidays and to take my mind off the thought of not being in full time employment anymore.

Skullduggery by Kerry O'Keeffe is a collection of cricket based stories and to be honest took time to get into. I think it was reading Kerry's thoughts and opinions on games and series that had just been played. This was odd in that you know what happens a bit like reading the end of a novel to find out if the hero lives or dies then going back to the start. Still some great fun light reading, especially stories about players long retired and their antics in comparison to some of the activities of modern players.

36 Days by Hugh Dolan, when I picked this up in the library I thought OK another Gallipoli book, however this looks at the 36 days before the landing not after. He presents some interesting arguments on the role of aerial reconnaissance and photography as well as the role of intelligence officers during the landing. Dolan also has a look at the "wrong" beach myth suggesting that it is just that, a myth. Interesting read supported by good maps, photos, and diary quotes.

Britain AD by Francis Pryor still working through this on and it is a bit of a challenge not as easy to read as Britain BC but still highly thought provoking. He looks at the Arthur legend and revisits the whole idea of a post Roman, Anglo Saxon invasion. Pryor argues that there was no invasion at all or at least not in the way we have been taught, his evidence is well the lack of evidence especially archaeological evidence.

Heretic by Bernard Cornwall is a continuing part of my experiment in talking books. Typical Cornwall good guy, bad guys, girl and plenty of action. The problem I have with books on CD is after listening to one it puts me off reading others by the same author.