Playing to the Gallery, Grayson Perry

I am a huge fan of Grayson Perry. He tries to bring a new audience to contemporary art, not by talking down or dumbing down content but by cutting through a lot of pretension and speaking plainly.
This book is based on his Reith Lectures for the BBC, it is funny, engaging and brings in lots of ideas and quotes from elsewhere. One to re-read and re-read.

Moon Palace, Paul Auster

This is a great book, of fathers and sons, single mothers and stories within stories. It eventually tells the stories of a disparate, separate family of extraordinary individuals. 

It also seems to be self aware and self critiquing but manages to do this without interfering with the story. There are layers and layers in this novel and I think it's one of the very few that would benefit from a re-read when I have half-forgotten the story. Really gripping, interesting and feels literary in an accessible, readable way.

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.

The Sisters Brothers, Patrick DeWitt

Eli and Charlie Sisters make their living killing people for their boss; we follow them on a job and gradually find out about their lives, work and their relationship with each other.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Sisters Brothers, it is both an entertaining adventure story, and a musing on what it is to live a fulfilling life. It's funny, bloody sometimes poignant and is very entertaining.

Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom

Tuesdays with Morrie is a very beautiful, true story of Albom re-connecting with his university professor as the professor (Morrie) is dying. There are no great revelations in the book, but the story of what the men mean to each other and Morrie's desire to pass on his feelings about the most important things in life are very compelling. Morrie is a great man in alot of ways, though you feel there are many men and women like him, who live good lives with and for other people. It is well-told by Albom, the story is simple with little interludes. A meaningful and somehow tranquil, though sad, book.

Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell

This is the best book I have read in a long time, it is a magnificent story and an absolute pleasure to read. The scope of the novel is huge, it spans over 10 years before, during and after the American Civil War.
We follow Scarlet O'Hara as she wills her way through war, poverty and society's disapproval fuelled by a powerful selfishness. She is a difficult character, she is unlikeable and incomparably selfish, but it is difficult not to admire and root for someone so driven and strong. She is eminently practical and unsentimental. She is fascinating.
Scarlett is the daughter of a plantation owner and race-relations is a huge part of the novel. It's worth saying that the way the novel handles race is very difficult, the opinions held by the protagonists are not ok and make for uncomfortable reading.