I'm waiting for...

This.

Couldn't resist making the first big purchase of my working life!

Was initially considering the Panasonic Lumix FX37 or FX500, but the difference of almost GBP 80 made my mind up!

Video editing, cool holiday snaps here I come!

Of Jaws, rats, London Below and self-discovery

This week was good; read a couple of good books - both from Waterstone's who are at the moment doing a sale of books which have won some random awards before. So I bought them, cos, they should be good right?

Was NOT disappointed!

First off, a book I'd been wanting to get for some time, after watching the movie Stardust, and briefly reading American Gods by the same author, Neil Gaiman.

Alternate realities, especially one based on London, where such weirdness as Rat-speakers, the Great Beast of London, and the Floating Market exist; whats not to like? When characters go to locations named for London Tube stops/boroughs but end up experiencing a totally different reality of them, when the main hero is about as clueless as I'd expect myself to be in his situation, when there is that delicious threat of seemingly unstoppable villains, I dunno, I guess I'm just a sucker for this kind of stuff.

Note: you can read American Gods for free at this website!

***

This next one, was something I was a bit dubious about getting, partly because its written in the first-person perspective, and I don't really like books that do that. When I read books like that, I feel I', getting told what to feel, what to do, what to experience, instead of engaging with it from my own point of view. But anyway, that didn't mess up this reading any...this book is (as the youth in my church would say, 'BOSS!)


The lovechild of Jaws, Matrix, the Bourne Identity and Alice in Wonderland (as it's widely quoted), it basically revolves around a guy, one Eric Sanderson, waking up in a house he doesn't recognise, to find he doesn't remember anything, not even his name. Going downstairs, he finds a letter propped up where he can see it, the first line reads 'First things first, stay calm.' How not to like? I finished the bulk of this book on a lazy Saturday afternoon with a bowl of crisps, pork crackling and a bottle of Foster's Twist, which is probably the best reading experience I've had for a long. long while.

When a book throws out concepts and illustrates them, when a book gives the reader just enough information to make the feeling of frustration just beyond bearable, and at the end, leaves enough room for conjecture, enough time for the plot to sink in and make sense, and all along, forcing interaction; emotional as well as figuring out puzzles and the like, its impossible not to like.It even has a pretty cool website to follow. Steven Hall, if you're writing more of this, I'm hooked.

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell

This is a book that I've been meaning to read for ages, but only just recently finished. Reason for the former being that it got good reviews, promised to deliver a good fantasy in an English setting, in a more serious and sombre vein than Harry Potter and was nice and thick, thereby promising to keep me occupied for a pretty long length of time.

The book has been on my shelf for a year now, and I've only got to the end now. Not because it's a dull read, in fact the story becomes more engaging as one progresses. I had difficulty persisting past the 1/4 mark, but once past the middle, it was easy going.

The story focuses on the practice of magic in England, but not in the wand-waving, incantation-casting fashion that we've all become familiar with over the past years. Instead, magicians, such as they are portrayed, read books, study obscure texts and brood on the theory as much as the practical. Making it slightly more believable is the premise that practical magic, for the most part, has long since disappeared from England, leaving many magicians content to practise in theory only.

Until the arrival to Mr Norrell, who proceeds to bring about a revival of English magic with a display of practical magic. None can match him, until the discovery of another gentleman, Jonathan Strange. Soon the two learn from one another, and their exploits and the implications of their experiments form the bulk of the story.

What I found enchanting was how historical facts, such as the battle of Waterloo, and figures such as the Duke of Wellington were woven into the story. There is a awful lot of backstory going along here. Along the chapters, footnotes abound; telling tales of magicians long past, referred to briefly in the text, sometimes a whole short story in itself.

I also liked the way the book describes little things, almost quaintly, then brushes its own descriptions away as if embarassed at inflicting them upon the reader in the first place. And although most of the writing doesn't bode action in a thriller-ish sort of way, I found myself turning the pages faster towards the end.

The writer responsible is Susanna Clarke, of which this is her debut novel. As there already seems to be mention of a movie adaptation of her book, I think she's a pretty satisfied lady at this point:-)