Book quandary.....

Two books just delivered from Amazon BUT how do I pick between them!? Both just published, both by favourite authors......

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

 The Quarry by Iain Banks

Having read the ocean at the end of the lane (a book & marriage review) by Neil's wife Amanda Palmer, I ordered the book immediately. But I think it is probably The Quarry by Iain Banks that I must read first.....

The Quarry

The novel is about someone dying of cancer, Banks had written 90% of the book by early March this year when pretty much out of the blue he himself was diagnosed with terminal cancer and was given only a few months to live, the words above (from the book) were typed while in hospital after being given his diagnosis on the 4th March 2013.

Having bought the publication date forward to today (20th June 2013) and asked his longtime partner Adele Hartley to "do me the honour of becoming my widow" he got on with life, marriage, honeymoon and finishing the book. He announced his illness to the world on 3rd April and I, along with so many others, hoped that those 'few months' would become many.

Messages flooded in to the 'Banksophilia: friends of Iain Banks' site that was set up to provide updates and a space to comment. On 9th June under the heading 'TOO SOON' Iains death was announced:

Dear Friends of Iain,

From Adele “Iain died in the early hours this morning. His death was calm and without pain.”

We will update this site shortly. Please leave messages here, he absolutely loved them.

For now, a fond farewell to our friend.

Martin

The first book I read by Iain Banks was The Wasp Factory (which was also Iain's first published book), The Quarry won't be the last - I will re-read them, as I have done in the past, over the years to come. In particular I want to read The Bridge again as Iain considered it to be his best book: The Wasp Factory and The Bridge are both waiting beside my bed.

An excellent last interview by Stuart Kelly was published in the Guradian at the weekend.

Style change

Suddenly found the whole black background utterly irritating, simple is now the order of the day. I may tweak a little (who knows I may tweak a lot) but I think I will remain simple for a while ;)

Simple, Seldom and Sad
by Mervyn Peake

Simple, seldom and sad
We are;
Alone on the Halibut Hills
Afar,
With sweet mad Expressions
Of old
Strangely beautiful
So we're told
By the Creatures that Move
In the sky
And Die
On the night when the Dead Trees
Prance and Cry.

Sensitive, seldom and sad -
Sensitive, seldom and sad -

Simple, seldom and sad
Are we
When we take our path
To the purple sea -
With mad, sweet Expressions
Of Yore,
Strangely beautiful,
Yea, and More
On the Night of all Nights
When the sky
Streams by
In rags, while the Dead Trees
Prance and Cry,

sensitive, seldom and sad -
sensitive, seldom and sad.

Love is... ;)

Russell Brand keeps doing things I like (this is worrying!)

Russell Brand on MSNBC absolutely brilliant, he is in control (well Russell Brand style control) and the interviewers are just at a loss :)

a toddlers brain....

(from National Association of School Psychologists Facebook page)