THIS Icelandic journey into the dark side sparked something of a defining moment. Or, more precisely, a desire to have something defined. Better than that, a search for the definition of a definition; one that entailed going beyond the resources of the OED or Mr Google. The puzzle centres on the proliferation of genres, sub-genres…
TRACING one’s ancestors is akin to joining Poirot as he unravels the threads of an Agatha Christie mystery. Except that the little Belgian detective eventually provides acceptable answers. Not so with family history. So many detours and distractions. So many loose ends. So much that is left unexplained. Such was the case when on the…
Seems that stream of consciousness is still in use: THE following apologies for sentences are all complete and direct quotes from one who should know better. What happened to leading by example? “If there is an unfairness there is nothing that I will do in order to address that unfairness.” “[Ofqual, the exams watchdog] came…
OUR libraries and bookshops offer an intriguing double-whammy for devotees of crime fiction. They can either select a mystery by the enduring and much revered Josephine Tey, or they can delve into a tale of much more recent vintage in which the same Josephine Tey is the solver of the crime. To all intents…
AS far back as I can discover, the patriarchal side of my Celtic family has always had close links to the sea. It has brought them employment, skills and opportunities. But also uncertainty, hardship and sudden death, in peace as well as in war. They include shipwrights, blacksmiths, mariners, tidewaiters, missionaries, lighthouse keepers, fishermen, Customs…
DOCTORS must be loving this new world order. The one where they filter enquiries to such an extent that they are rarely bothered with having to deal with patients face to face. Those nuisances (once known as patients) are kept firmly at arm’s length; or an aggravating (Dial 1 for …) phone call away. Barriers…
LITTLE wonder it is called a freedom machine. One that becomes more and more so as the years (and miles) roll by. I refer, of course, to that two-wheeled wonder, the bicycle. Thanks to the recent addition of electrical power, it is now a pleasure that even ancient limbs can continue to enjoy. It has…
AND now for something completely different with a truly gripping thriller from a source not previously sampled. After years of immersion in the tide of Scandi Noir, I am stepping out into fresh fields with a switch to German Noir. Well, completely different and fresh for this reader, although no doubt it has been flourishing…
OKAY, so we know you cannot teach an old dog new tricks. For verification, just ask any woman who has tried to persuade a man to stop wearing the same old grey and switch to something brighter, cheerier. Anything to make a change. Further supporting evidence comes by way of that other cliche that a…
EDUCATION standards are definitely slipping. Casual observation of the dosy dawdlers slowly refilling out streets indicates that this is so. So many citizens are showing an inability to read. To them, the inscribed shapes appearing all around them are nothing more than heiroglyphics. And those who have passed the brain-straining next step of transforming these…