The Wood, John Stewart Collis

This is an absolute delight of a book. It is another in the Penguin's English Journeys series and is an extract from Collis' most famous book The Worm Forgives the Plough.

The Wood tells of Collis' time in the Land Army during the second world war. He thinned and cleared an ash wood, by himself and using hand-tools. He found he loved the work and is eager to share his experiences and revelations with the reader. He tells of the pleasure of sitting in the sun, the satisfaction of a physical job outside and he talks of trees as 'tangible pieces of sunshine' in that they convert sunlight into growth. His musings still resonate all these years later.

The book is written beautifully, the words don't get in the way of what he is saying and he is constantly aware of a 'reader'. We feel as if Collis is chatting to us, as he would in a pub or over a meal. It is a quiet joy of a book.

Travels with Myself and Another, Martha Gellhorn

I hadn't heard of Martha Gellhorn until I found this book, though she was a renowned war correspondent, travel writer and novelist. She had an extraordinary life and I'm very interested to read more of her writing. This book follows her on five awful journeys; through China, the Caribbean, Africa, Russia and Israel.

The most striking thing in this book is Gellhorn's personality. I wonder how much of a different impression I would have got if I was reading about her thrilling experiences, rather than her hellish ones. She is searingly honest and doesn't try to be likeable, which is hugely freeing to read.

Gellhorn is extraordinary, she is very strong and whilst she complains a lot in this book it's not without reason. She never whines and isn't irritating, instead she is short tempered. She expects a lot from people and has no time for those she sees as incompetent or weak. She certainly has some prejudices too; sometimes her opinions and comments are difficult to take. She was fierce and I found the book refreshing.