Liars

I'd be lying if I gave the impression that I enjoyed every book I read. I quite often sample something just to get out of well worn literary tracks or genres. This can take me into the commercial mainstream and, in this case, to the young adult fiction of E. Lockhart's We Were Liars. So I admit freely I'm not in the target audience but I figure a good book is a good book. Isn't it?

The book hype would have you believe this is not only a good book but an extremely clever book. Shame that the target audience has the attention span of the proverbial gnat as most chapters are about two pages long and don't give any time to really give any narrative or get engaged with the 'rich kid' characters. Even the physical layout of where the action takes place and the family relationships have to be spelt out in pictures at the beginning of the book.

Whilst I'm in moan mode the other thing that bugs me about trying to do a book blog is having to select pictures that can be reproduced without copyright. The publishers are so protective of their property that this normally stops anyone giving them free advertising by showing the book graphics or even the author's mugshot. This can result in some creative lateral thinking to select an image. Not this time. E Lockhart is the pen name of Emily Jenkins.

Le Liseur propose à préposé

The blurb on Jean-Paul Didierlaurent's The Reader on the 6.27 suggests that it is similar in look and feel to the film Amélie. There is innocence and simplicity in the story but not quite the level of subversive personal charm that she possesses. The Reader is more of a narrator than a romantic agent provocateur and the sense of humour is often similarly black but rather more visceral and, on occasion, toilet based. Only the names (like the fact that the main character's name resembles 'ugly puppet') gets a little lost in translation as it has to be pointed out. A joke explained is killed but otherwise it is an amusing and refreshingly skewed view of fragmentary life experiences.

The book is, naturally enough, in praise of reading books but, more unusually, it is also about the potential social bonding that a shared experience of literature can bring. It challenges the normal behaviour on a train where people typically use books or electronic devices to separate themselves from each other and from reality. The book is quite slim - you could just about read it on a long journey - and if you want something to read on a train you could do worse than read this (aloud ideally).

Walking, thinking, writing, rhyming (sometimes)

Poets have a hard time making money. They can give readings, talks, teach, translate or write other stuff. Simon Armitage tried his hand at being a troubadour: a strolling player earning his passage from the generosity of his audience. It was an interesting experiment in striding through the ages as well as the Pennines. With Walking Away, his sequel to Walking Home, he chose the South West Coast Path. I'm not sure the financial jeopardy is sustained as he meets a lot of people who are prepared to tolerate and feed him. Unfortunately I don't think the landscape inspired him as much as it might during the tougher legs but I do know one thing. A poet writes prose beautifully and I can also recommend Armitage as a personable companion who has an eye for acerbic and amusing analysis of the people he meets. All travelogues should be written by poets.