Tea Rain And The Bewilderment – a book review of sorts.

Chapter One

In which I attempt to promote a night coming up, plan to read some more PG Wodehouse in connection with said night, realise I got rid of the Wooster ones in the clear out of 2019, share some thoughts, which might mean very little to anyone but me, display my Christmas gifts like a proud lion at a car boot sale and fail to end with a joke. 

Robin Not Josie’s Book Shambles – PG Wodehouse

I’m very excited to be joining Robin Ince in Bristol on January 26th (it’s a Sunday) but will miss not catching up with my excellent friend Josie. Here’s a nice first edition PG Wodehouse that my nan gave me.

it’s got all the usual greatness in it. Extraordinary plot twists, rooting for the underdog, sympathising with the tolerant sensible one, beautiful turns of phrase, just enough jeopardy to keep you gripped without ruining your appetite. I haven’t read it for years so I’m keeping this bit unspecific… will read again before the 26th, and more besides (I’ll have to scour the bookshops and buy back the ones I donated – reason for donating being that my bookshelves were two deep and I see them everywhere all the time. The ones I’ve kept are rarer or in my All Time Top Ten. But in the meantime…)

Here are some of the books I got for Christmas.

Jealous? I would be.

I’m currently ploughing through The Silence Of The Girls by Pat Barker. This and Lost Girls was a present from an excellent friend whose taste is excellent and who also recommended Rachel Polonsky’s Molotov’s Magic Lantern and The Lady And The Little Fox Fur by Violette Leduc (which looks superb, will look at that soon), So I asked my husband for those as well. I suggested he get me second hand copies, and the Molotov book really is a beautiful hardback. He threw in the Riot Days (ex-library) book which is also a beauty.  Possibly he got me more books than expected, because second hand books are so cheap.

The Silence Of The Girls is terrific.

I know I’m a bit late reading it. It has the same urgency and readability as my favourite thriller writer Daphne Du Maurier. The only thing that’s grated slightly is the splitting up of the word ‘well’ when spoken, to become ‘we-ll’ (written like that), as though there’s hesitation. To be honest, I’d rather hear the hesitation in the context of the conversation than see it spelt out like that, but there you go, I’m a nit picker.

I’m really looking forward to the others and will probably review them in the guise of Celia, the Repressed Houswife, as part of the podcast Wife On Earth for Cosmic Shambles Network. Can’t wait to see what she thinks of Lost Girls and David Lynch.

Chapter Two.

Rambles about drawing and not drawing, fights with technology means blog is taking four hours and writer has forgotten the purpose of it, loses the will to live, am reminded of small boy who smells of jam and has just discovered Herge’s TinTin books, counts blessings, regains will to live. 

Keeping my hand in, drawing the little things.

Sometimes I don’t know what to draw and other times just thinking that feels so ridiculous because there’s inspiration everywhere and I don’t know where to start.  I just got a new phone (with a working camera) so I can do more posts and that, and am hating being away from you know what (trying to avoid doing an advert for my favourite phone). I’ve had a you know what since 2009 and I’m too old for major changes. I’ve been swearing at home this morning. In a minute I’m going back to painting. Thank you for bearing with me on this odd post, but I’m easily bewildered these days. I’m approaching THE BEWILDERMENT.

This was an experiment in writing everything down first and then drawing it. Here’s an episode that delighted me, so I drew it down. It started on the morning of Boxing Boxing Boxing Day with me trying to get my son to sit in bed reading instead of watching a cartoon. Look out for a mime where a grown man is defined by the fruit he eats.

By the way, Spring Torrents by Turgenev was just about the best book I read that year. It was so tense and gripping, that when there’s a duel, I found myself worrying whether or not the young man would survive it, before remembering that he’s the old man narrating at the start of the book. His prose is just sublime, and it was a cracking plot. It’s made me want to look up a book mentioned in an essay, Turgenev and Schopenhauer. Apparently Spring Torrents is exploring themes from The World As Will And Representation but other sources seem to contest that. I just really liked it. (Bows).

So what’s next? Our regular sell out comedy night in Eastbourne, East Sussex is back this Friday. Tickets are on sale until Friday, any left over will be available on the door. We’ve got Cheekykita, Susan Murray and Jim Park, plus regulars Dyball & Kerr who always manage to come up with new material every single time. Love em.  And then I’m off to Belfast to do a show with Paul Currie and The Delightful Sausage and am very excited about that. Do come along, tickets are here. 

Happy New Year turtle doves. Reclaim the Tweed.