June 2012
7 posts
9 tags
Julian Maclaren-Ross "Of Love And Hunger" →
I came to this book having read Paul Willetts’s biography of Soho legend, Julian Maclaren-Ross, “Fear and Loathing in Fitzrovia”. His was a hand to mouth existence, and - for anyone interested in the 1940s, and literary London - is well worth reading.
“Of Love and Hunger”, Maclaren-Ross’s first full length novel, draws on his own experiences of living in Bognor...
11 tags
Patrick Hamilton "Hangover Square" →
So the Hove Book Group has delivered its verdict on Hangover Square and other matters Hamilton.
This has been the year when I have discovered the genius of Patrick Hamilton as my burgeoning Hamilton collection attests.
My joy was complete when I discovered that one of the many places that Patrick Hamilton lived in Hove was a tiny cottage round the corner from where I live. He wrote...
6 tags
The Malarkey by Helen Dunmore →
I heard this poem earlier and it stopped me in my tracks. I’m not a great poetry lover, although as the years roll by I appreciate poems more.
This is wonderful, and a worthy winner of the National Poetry Competition….
Why did you tell them to be quiet and sit up straight until you came back? The malarkey would have led you to them.
You go from one parked car to another and peer...
8 tags
Go-Kart Mozart Are On the Hot Dog Streets →
Yes indeed. Entertaining review of the new GKM here and finally released on 25th June 2012.
The whole thing is up for preview on a few sites. Sounds to me like it might well be the best Go Kart Mozart album yet.
Love this by the way…
There is a playlist, which reveals that On the Hot Dog Streets was made under the influence of both Wiley’s Avalanche Music 1 and Thing, a flop 1972...
4 tags
"Teach Us to Sit Still: A Sceptic's Search for... →
A tale of extreme navel gazing and introspection which - due to Tim Parks’ engaging style - is, improbably, a page-turner. I’d previously read three Tim Parks non-fiction books… ”Italian Neighbours: An Englishman in Verona”, ”An Italian Education”, and ”A Season With Verona: Travels Around Italy in Search of Illusions, National Character and...
7 tags
"Post Everything: Outsider Rock and Roll" by Luke... →
Anther enjoyable romp through the murky mind and memories of Mr Luke Haines. If you’re reading this then you’re probably already aware of Mr Haines’ oeuvre. Suffice to say he’s one of those under-appreciated English mavericks who manage to carve out a career on the fringes of popular music. He is - in short - a national treasure. His books, like his music, offer black...
8 tags
Norman Collins 'London Belongs To Me' →
I’d just finished reading five novels by Patrick Hamilton (Hangover Square, The Slaves Of Solitude, and the Gorse Trilogy); a biography of Patrick Hamilton (Through a Glass Darkly: The Life of Patrick Hamilton); and a biography of Julian MacLaren-Ross (Fear and Loathing in Fitzrovia: The Bizarre Life of Julian Maclaren-Ross). Reading these books helped me to realise how much I enjoy books...
