Bohumil Hrabal

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Review: Closely Observed Trains

November 09, 2020 in Bookshelf, Reviews

There is some very beautiful writing in this book, and plenty of humour.

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At a time when even Noddy books have been declared ‘problematic’ due to their use of archaic terms such as ‘swot’ (since changed to ‘bookworm’), some of us might may feel the temptation to unleash our inner ‘Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells’ in response.

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Spotting the BS

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“You’ve been speaking to that blasted Freedman, haven’t you?!”

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A book I'm reading

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I’m familiar with a few of the stories in this volume, which features some well-known names such as Raymond Carver, George Saunders, Grace Paley, Ursula Le Guin and Susan Sontag.

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Review: The Notebook *CORRECTED*

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Just William

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A few months ago I wrote about Barnabees Books, in Westleton, Suffolk. It’s a lovely warm place, not only heat-wise but atmospherically, not least because of its delightful owner, Ty.

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Quick looks: Jane Austen; Write, Cut, Rewrite; Handwritten; The Book At War; From Edtech to Pedtech

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Since I read Northanger Abbey when I was in my twenties, I have to say that in the interim it has much improved. Clearly, Jane must have taken a creative writing course or two because it is now much funnier, more cutting and more modern, what with her stepping outside the story to comment on her characters and the novel form itself.

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Review: Oulipo and Modern Thought (Update)

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If your interest in the Oulipo goes beyond simply trying out their techniques, and you wish to learn about the context in which it was conceived and the developments in went through, you will find this book very useful.

Bookshelf, Creative Writing, Oulipo, Reviews, Reference, Audio, Oulipo book