
Recent acquisition for our personal library.

#whartonbuddyread - how committed are you? 🙂 Here‘s the plan for Wharton‘s notoriously unrevealing autobiography. We‘ll learn what she wants us to learn about her parents and Henry James, etc - I think.
Are you in?
Plan:
Nov 22 chapter I-V Friendship and Travels
Nov 29 chapter VI-VIII Henry James
Dec 6 chapter IX-XI Paris
Dec 13 chapter XII-XIV And After

This is a very enjoyable account of what sounds like an absolute mad time in the writer's life. She describes, with charm and good humour, her attempts to build a new life in Prague; working for a eccentric (to put it politely) hotel owner; making friends in the expat and synagogue communities; briefly being something of a literary star....

#artist
Barbara Blackman's memoirs and letters are fascinating and a favourite of mine. Her former husband was a great artist 🎨
#charactercharm
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
Paul O‘Grady was a comedian, actor, TV presenter, chat show host and British national treasure.The last of his autobiography quartet picks up shortly after the death of his mother and tracks his career transition from drag queen host of the Vauxhall Tavern to TV presenter and national treasure set against a back drop of personal tragedy as the AIDS crisis strikes close to home. Told with his wit and warmth, it‘s a bittersweet testimony to the man.

repost for @BarbaraJean
#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead So, I had talked about us reading the 400-ish-page-long novel-in-verse Aurora Leigh after we read Emily Climbs. Ultimately I decided I have enough on my plate and am not that ambitious right now. 😂 BUT, after seeing references to “The Alhambra“ in Emily of New Moon (+ LMM has talked about it in her journals), I thought that might be a fun one to add. Who's in?
#BuddyRead

Been away to a little town with hot springs and they were having a Winter Lights Festival!
Listened to the audiobook. I am a massive Billy Connolly fan and it was a joy listening to his voice. His wife Pamela wrote a biography of Billy which goes into more depth about his childhood abuse. This one stays out of the details - its more anecdotes and memories of a childhood in Scotland. Made me think as well as laugh out loud a number of times. ⬇️

The irony of sitting on my patio in beautiful weather, with access to all the snacks and drinks I want while I finish reading this book was not lost on me. It's honestly still incredible what Geldof managed in a very short time period and even more amazing tjat most of tje world has totà‘y forgotten about it in the time since. #33-2025