JonRob's 2021 Reads

Forum75 Books Challenge for 2021

Melde dich bei LibraryThing an, um Nachrichten zu schreiben.

JonRob's 2021 Reads

1JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:05 am

I'm joining this rather late, but will try to catch up pretty quickly. Quick CV: retired teacher, living in South Shropshire, currently singing (yes!) in a mini-choir at the local parish church (just 1 or 2 to a part) and waiting for the choral society to return to meeting live (Zoom rehearsals are good, but not the real thing). First few posts will be books I've already read this year and some brief comments.

Presently, I'm reading:

Open Verdict by Richard Keverne - like most of this writer's work, more a thriller than a true detective story, with the narrator suspected of his uncle's murder (on rather unsatisfactory evidence, as far as I can see) and wondering who he can trust.

Dinosaur in a Haystack by Steven Jay Gould - entertaining essays on a mixture of topics; definitely not for creationists.

Talking of Dick Whittington by Hesketh Pearson and Hugh Kingsmill - although it's sort of about London, it's just as much about them and their musings about the post-war world. Pearson's views on Tolstoy make me feel better about the fact that I've never got more than a few pages into War and Peace!

We Could Have Been The Wombles by Tom Bromley - amusing (and sometimes annoying) account of some one-hit wonders in the UK. (For non-UK readers, the Wombles were a novelty act based on a children's TV series who had quite a few hits in the mid-70s.)

Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne - I've been reading this a few pages at a time and need to get back to it.

Principles of Programming Languages by R. D. Tennant - rather an academic work, which I may not finish and am trying to decide whether to keep it.

2FAMeulstee
Apr. 30, 2021, 12:25 pm

Welcome, JonRob.

3drneutron
Apr. 30, 2021, 4:45 pm

Welcome! Never too late to jump in.

4JonRob
Mai 2, 2021, 9:40 am

I'm going to backtrack slightly and include some books that I read recently:

Death at Breakfast by John Rhode - one of the modern reprints of his work which have been appearing recently, though I don't know how they've chosen which ones (there's certainly plenty of choice). One of his better titles, with several mysteries (one death and two disappearances) solved as usual by mathematician Dr. Lancelot Priestley.

Lament for a Maker by Michael Innes - his best book, IMHO. Apparently some people are put off it by the use of Scottish dialect in the early part of the book, but I never found it a problem. The Dunbar poem referred to in the title plays an important part in the plot, about the death of a sinister old man caused by falling from a high tower.

The Case of the Restless Redhead by Erle Stanley Gardner - apparently this was the basis of the very first episode of the famous TV series, although not surprisingly they had to simplify the plot a bit. Mason helps out a young lawyer with the defence of the eponymous redhead on a charge of stealing some jewellery, and subsequently takes on her case when she is accused of murder. You don't read Gardner for his writing style, but he managed to work variations on this theme over almost 100 books remarkably well.

5JonRob
Mai 3, 2021, 6:00 am

Just finished Dinosaur in a Haystack - I will probably read some more of Gould's work in future.
Also finished Open Verdict and remembered who the murderer was just before it was revealed!
Started Hotel Paradise by Martha Grimes - this book clearly divides opinion judging from the site's reviews. You need to think of it as a novel with a crime as an important part rather than a true detective story. I've already read it three or four times and will continue to re-read it.
Going a little off-topic, I'm also going to discuss the music I've been listening to (on CD - whatever the opinion-formers may say, clearly people still do use them as opposed to downloads, streaming or vinyl). I recently bought a job-lot of Naxos CDs on eBay and am working through them. I've just heard a disc of piano music by Wilhelm Peterson-Berger - pleasant, but not interesting enough to keep so it'll go to a charity shop. I've also listened to some compilations of 60s music but won't go into details!

6JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:08 am

Started Infants of the Spring by Anthony Powell - I first read this as a part of the Penguin abridged version of all four books, but starting collecting the separate books a few years back. Although some might find the author's genealogical speculations on his family's history a bit lengthy, I always enjoy his anecdotes about his friends and acquaintances.

I've given up on Principles of Programming Languages as it's too academic - I suspect even Oxfam will have trouble finding a buyer!

On the music side, I've listened to a disk of opera arias sung by the great Caruso - I'd pretty well already decided to give this away, as I find the crackle of old recordings off-putting (I might feel different about listening to the actual 78s). Also the tone-poem The Tale the Pine Trees Knew by Bax, a composer I'm not sure about - I enjoy his shorter works, such as Tintagel. Finally, re-listened to some early and other works by Vaughan Williams, whom I'm much more positive about.

7PaulCranswick
Mai 5, 2021, 1:16 pm

Welcome to the group JonRob.

Nice part of the world Shropshire although I haven't visited there for more than 20 years. I used to have a good friend who lived in Oswestry and it stuck in my mind that Wilfred Owen was from the town. Shropshire Blue is also my favourite cheese.

8JonRob
Mai 10, 2021, 5:39 am

An update - I've just finished Infants of the Spring and will now start on volume 2, Messengers of Day. Still reading Talking of Dick Whittington and Hotel Paradise.

As to music listening, I've now covered all the CDs from the batch I bought a few weeks ago, the last ones being piano concertos by Geirr Tveitt (attractive - it's a pity so much of his music was destroyed in a fire) and the 9th Symphony by Malcolm Arnold which I think I will need to hear again a few times before I can decide whether I like it. On the more popular side I've listened to a Stiff Records compilation (including artists such as Elvis Costello and Tracey Ullman) and another compilation of rock ballads - perhaps I need to get back to single-artist albums!

9JonRob
Mai 16, 2021, 11:43 am

I've finished Messengers of Day and will now start on Faces in my Time. Incidentally, my copy of MoD has some really ugly cover art (a book club edition)! I may one day replace it with one of the standard edition just because of that (?)

Meanwhile my music listening includes chamber music by Dvorak, symphonies by Havergal Brian (much shorter than his famous "Gothic") and Arnold Cooke, and another compilation of late 60s/early 70s music (categorised rather loosely as "Summer of Love").

10JonRob
Mai 22, 2021, 3:38 am

Further update: I have just started The Strangers All Are Gone and am continuing with the other two. (I find it slightly irritating that Powell always refers to WW1 and WW2 as "the first war" and "the second war", which they certainly weren't, even if you only include ones that happened in his lifetime.)

Music listened to includes the Renaissance compilation "Tales of 1001 Night Vol II" (one day I must get volume I!), a BBC Music Magazine disc including Arriaga's first string quartet and a Boccherini guitar quintet.

11JonRob
Mai 25, 2021, 4:53 pm

Just finished Talking of Dick Whittington. There's a really unpleasant section near the end where the authors meet Hilaire Belloc and we see him insisting that he's not antisemitic, but it soon becomes perfectly clear that he is. Started Outrageous Exposures by John Penn.

Listening includes a 70s compilation I picked up cheap on Ebay, and a Concerto Symphonique by Henry Litolff - older readers may remember Dinu Lipatti's recording of a Scherzo by this composer, which came from a different Concerto Symphonique (I think he wrote 5 in total).

12JonRob
Mai 27, 2021, 4:41 am

Finished Outrageous Exposures; it's a quick read, and quite exciting, but there are some extremely implausible plot elements. Started The Christmas Egg by Mary Kelly.

13JonRob
Mai 30, 2021, 11:31 am

Finished The Christmas Egg and didn't enjoy it that much - started well, but a bit too thrillerish towards the end. Also finished The Strangers All Are Gone, which was good but not quite the equal of the previous three books in the sequence. Started The Case of the Careless Kitten which will be a quick read, and also Shaw's Music Volume II which definitely won't! (Another gap in my collection is that I don't have Volume I - must fill this in soon.)

Listening includes Mendelssohn's Scottish Symphony on a BBC Music Magazine cover disk, and Lennox Berkeley's Horn Trio.

14JonRob
Jun. 3, 2021, 4:39 am

The Case of the Careless Kitten was a quick read as predicted - usual standard, with a plot variation in that, although Mason goes into court, it isn't the murder that's being tried, and the consequences could be very serious for him. Almost finished Hotel Paradise and starting The Fleet Hall Inheritance by Richard Keverne.

Listening includes some chamber music by Francis Poulenc, all of which I've heard several times before.

15JonRob
Jun. 8, 2021, 5:50 pm

Finished Hotel Paradise - although I still enjoy reading it, I increasingly feel that some of the writing is rather self-conscious. Also finished The Fleet Hall Inheritance which features a trademark of Richard Keverne in that some of the action is shown from the point of view of the malefactors, which works pretty well and still leaves room for excitement in the ending.

Started reading Amiscellany by John Amis and A Feast of Death by John Penn. Listening has included a disc of various works by Vaughan Williams, including the Oboe Concerto and the Tallis Fantasia.

16JonRob
Jun. 17, 2021, 3:15 am

Finished A Feast of Death, and felt less than positive about it - the central plot twist is pretty obvious. Also started, and finished, Trouble in the Town Hall by Jeanne M. Dams - similar response. Both these will go to Oxfam, when they start accepting donations again!

Listening has included "Wildflowers" by Judy Collins, and a BBC Music Magazine CD of a string quartet by the short-lived Spanish composer Arriaga (among other works).

17JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:11 am

In the last couple of days I've started, and completed, Invisible Weapons by John Rhode (the first crime is problematic both in terms of its motive and its method, which like a lot of others in Rhode's books would be quite unlikely to work).

18JonRob
Jun. 22, 2021, 3:41 am

Re-read The Eye of Osiris by R. Austin Freeman for the umpteenth time, and enjoyed it as much as ever, despite the rather old-fashioned language used by the lovers at times.

Listening: Some concertos for strings by Vivaldi (none of them at all well-known) and a disc of music by Copland (including the ballet Billy the Kid and the Organ Symphony).

19JonRob
Bearbeitet: Jun. 23, 2021, 5:53 pm

Currently reading I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason by Susan Kandel and enjoying it more than I expected, so far. (This was one of the last books I bought from the sadly-missed "Murder One" bookshop in Charing Cross Road.)

Listening includes another group of Vivaldi concertos (from the same 3-CD set as before) and a disc of music for piano and orchestra by Respighi. (This was an impulse buy from a charity shop, but when I got it home I realised I already had it! Oh well, just think of it as a donation.)

20JonRob
Bearbeitet: Apr. 8, 2022, 4:27 pm

Completed I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason - the stuff about Erle Stanley Gardner was quite interesting, but I don't think I'll be re-reading it. Starting A Silent Witness by R. Austin Freeman.

Listening has been several works by Michael Tippett - the first two piano sonatas, the piano concerto and the Ritual Dances from The Midsummer Marriage.

21JonRob
Jun. 28, 2021, 11:46 am

Finished A Silent Witness which I enjoyed, as I do pretty well all of Freeman's work, but I felt that it could profitably have been cut a little. Started Dead Man's Folly.

Listened to more Vivaldi, more Tippett, some Renaissance (the prog-rock group) and a CD of various horn concertos by people like Telemann and Leopold Mozart (the other one's dad).

22PaulCranswick
Jun. 28, 2021, 12:36 pm

I really like Renaissance. Been listening to some Camel and Pentangle myself at the weekend.

23JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:13 am

Started reading Take It From The Top by Humphrey Lyttleton which I've been lent by a neighbour. This is mostly about his life as a jazz musician and the people he's worked with.

24JonRob
Jul. 1, 2021, 6:03 pm

Finished Dead Man's Folly yesterday - I like it more than some Christie fans do, but it would be better if there was more of Mrs. Oliver in it. Also started and finished The Red Thumb Mark by R. Austin Freeman, and still enjoyed it despite it not being his best work.

Listened to some chamber music by Martinu, a Clannad compilation and In The Land of Grey and Pink by Caravan,

25JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:13 am

Started The Bloody Tower by John Rhode, a recent purchase, and having got about halfway I think I know the murderer and their motive - I'll see if I'm right before long. Some of the plot, about a cryptogram and its possible reference to some verses of the Bible, is rather reminiscent of The Cat's Eye by R. Austin Freeman.

Listening: some more Martinu chamber music and the album Taking The Long Way by the Chicks (previously the Dixie Chicks), as well as the Caravan classic In The Land Of Grey And Pink.

26JonRob
Jul. 5, 2021, 6:34 pm

Finished The Bloody Tower and was right about the killer and motive, though I didn't crack the cryptogram.

Started and finished Pontifex, Son and Thorndyke by R. Austin Freeman. This is a problematic book in some ways; the plotting is good, but many people will have problems with elements of anti-semitism (although it's quite mild compared with some books from a similar period).

Listening includes Tchaikovsky's Manfred symphony (on a BBC Music Magazine CD which I had not listened to before).

27drneutron
Jul. 5, 2021, 7:11 pm

Hadn’t heard of The Bloody Tower, but I see it’s number 29 in a series of 72!

28JonRob
Jul. 6, 2021, 7:19 am

Started The Cat's Eye, another R. Austin Freeman title (I'll have re-read everything by him before long). This is a pretty good one with a cryptogram which may have influenced The Bloody Tower (see last post), but it does have a worrying episode where Thorndyke behaves in an incredibly reckless manner, nearly getting him and Anstey killed (it was almost pure luck that this didn't happen).

Listening: Symphonies by Boccherini (H. Robbins Landon called him "the last unrecognised genius of his age", or something like that) and the album "Please Don't Touch" by Steve Hackett (I think he was still with Genesis at the time).

29JonRob
Bearbeitet: Jul. 8, 2021, 6:57 pm

Finished The Cat's Eye and found even more links to The Bloody Tower than I thought - the cryptic message using lines from the Bible is joined by an object (named in the title) which superstition links to the possession of some property. Surely Rhode must have read this before he wrote his book.

Started The D. A. Takes A Chance by Erle Stanley Gardner. I like the stories about Doug Selby, which view the law from the opposite side to the Perry Mason books.

Listening: the Mendelssohn Octet and a disc of miscellaneous works which is a tribute to John Manduell, sometime principal of the Royal Northern College of Music - composers include Matyas Seiber, Gordon Crosse and Manduell himself.

30JonRob
Jul. 10, 2021, 4:00 am

Finished The D. A. Takes A Chance - an enjoyable quick read, with the wily A. B. Carr up to his usual tricks, but eventually hoist by his own petard. Started Dr. Thorndyke Intervenes by R. Austin Freeman. (Incidentally, the House of Stratus reprint has a rather misleading blurb, as it implies that Thorndyke is in personal danger in this book, which he isn't.)

Listened to Joni Mitchell's Ladies of the Canyon and the B52s' Cosmic Thing.

31JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 27, 2021, 3:20 am

Finished Dr. Thorndyke Intervenes and was as usual impressed by the combination of three mysteries (a severed head appearing in a Left Luggage office, the disappearance of some stolen platinum and a court case involving the succession to a peerage). Started Penelope's Web by Paul Halter (just purchased). I've also started Man and Time by J. B. Priestley for the second time - I don't think I finished it the first time around, which was a good many years ago, so this time I'm going to make a real effort.

Listening: violin concertos by Britten and Brahms.

32JonRob
Jul. 15, 2021, 3:39 am

Finished Penelope's Web and was not wildly impressed - I had a rough idea of the solution to the impossibility, and there are some problems with it which Halter tries to deal with at the last minute, not very successfully IMHO. Started The Penguin Quiz Book by James Walton, and also Big Secrets by William Poundstone - this being a version adapted for the UK by Caroline Taylor.

Listening includes horn concertos by Joseph and Michael Haydn, together with the former's Hornsignal symphony, as well as the B52s' Cosmic Thing.

33JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 19, 2021, 4:40 pm

Diese Nachricht wurde vom Autor gelöscht.

34JonRob
Jul. 18, 2021, 2:44 pm

Having started The Mystery of Angelina Frood by R. Austin Freeman, finished it quickly with enjoyment as usual with pretty well all his work - the denouement is very satisfying, even if it is not entirely realistic in terms of people's reactions to something which I won't even hint at.
Started My Love Affair with England by Susan Allen Toth.

Listening has included a compilation by the Pentangle, the 1st Piano Concerto by Shostakovich and Vaughan Williams' complete score for the film Scott of the Antarctic (which he reworked into the Sinfonia Antartica, but it contains a lot of other material as well).

35JonRob
Bearbeitet: Jul. 20, 2021, 4:27 pm

Finished Big Secrets - some of it is of historical interest, such as the design of the old British currency notes, and some of it of dubious validity (e.g. some of the tricks allegedly played by American Freemasons, which sound made up to me). Started When Rogues Fall Out by R. Austin Freeman.

Listened to two works by Virgil Thomson, Pilgrims and Pioneers (the music for a short documentary film shown at the 1964 World's Fair), and the Symphony on a Hymn Tune.

36JonRob
Jul. 24, 2021, 5:28 am

Finished When Rogues Fall Out - it's arguably an inverted mystery, because we almost see the first murder committed, but then there's a second, apparently unrelated murder (you don't have to be a very experienced reader to know that it will be connected) and eventually the murderer turns out to have a double identity...

Started Mystery at Olympia by John Rhode.

Listening includes several concertos by English composers (Malcolm Arnold, Howard Blake, Kenneth Leighton...)

37JonRob
Jul. 25, 2021, 5:58 pm

Finished Mystery at Olympia - a rather unsatisfactory plot, with the author glossing over the fact that the method used to commit the murder would be very unlikely to work (among other doubtful elements, such as Dr. Priestley's use of something very close to guesswork in his deductions).

Started Agatha Christie's A Murder is Announced, which is currently being discussed by a group of bloggers.

Listened to Alan Rawsthorne's Concerto for Ten Instruments, and Kenneth Leighton's Concerto for Recorder, Harpsichord and Strings.

38JonRob
Jul. 28, 2021, 4:30 am

Finished A Murder Is Announced and started Felo De Se by R. Austin Freeman.

Listening includes piano concertos by Rautavaara (best-known for the Cantus Arcticus).

39JonRob
Jul. 30, 2021, 6:42 pm

Finished Felo De Se? - perhaps not Freeman's best book, but still enjoyable. (There seems some confusion over whether the name should have a question mark; my copy doesn't, but then it also has a blurb in which the name of the central character is misspelled.)
Started The Telephone Call by John Rhode (another of his trademark dull titles). It's basically a fictionalised version of the famous Wallace case, so it will be interesting to see his solution.

40JonRob
Aug. 2, 2021, 4:51 am

Finished The Telephone Call, which is quite good, although the solution is arrived at (by Jimmy Waghorn, not Dr. Priestley, who doesn't play much of a part) largely by guesswork.

Started The Mystery of 31 New Inn by R. Austin Freeman.

Listening: When the Proms are on, if there is one I am not much interested in (such as last Saturday's collection of extracts from musicals) I create my own, which on that occasion consisted of Brahms' Tragic Overture, the Concert Champetre by Poulenc, Schnittke's Passacaglia and Haydn's Symphony no. 76.

41JonRob
Aug. 4, 2021, 3:23 am

Finished The Mystery of 31 New Inn which is always good value - I've lost track of the number of times I've read it. Started The Case of the Runaway Corpse by Erle Stanley Gardner.

Will be in London now for a couple of days, where my listening will include two Proms (hopefully!)

42PaulCranswick
Aug. 4, 2021, 6:19 am

>41 JonRob: Enjoy the proms, JR

You have me intrigued by The Mystery of 31 New Inn.

43JonRob
Aug. 8, 2021, 3:27 am

Thanks, Paul - I did enjoy the Proms (although the new symphony by Thomas Ades struck me as outstaying its welcome - maybe a second listen could change my mind).

Finished The Case of the Runaway Corpse - I suspect some readers might regard the solution as being unsatisfactory, and there is a "loose end" which Gardner never addresses. Started Bleak House (another book which I've read so many times I've lost count) and Anne Belinda by Patricia Wentworth, a new purchase.

44JonRob
Aug. 9, 2021, 8:42 am

Finished Anne Belinda which is not a Golden Age mystery in the usual sense - I'll be posting a review to clarify this.

Started The Shadow of the Wolf by R. Austin Freeman, one of his inverted mysteries.

45JonRob
Aug. 11, 2021, 2:56 pm

Finished The Shadow of the Wolf - it's an inverted mystery in which, unlike others from the same writer, we get to follow Thorndyke's thought-processes for most of the time. Oddly, the killer is always referred to by his surname, Varney - we never learn his forename (I can't help hoping it's Reg.)

Started The Case of the Demure Defendant by Erle Stanley Gardner.

Listening, apart from Proms, includes two works by Alexander Goehr (from a newly-purchased CD).

46JonRob
Aug. 12, 2021, 5:36 am

Finished The Case of the Demure Defendant, which involves some jiggery-pokery as usual, but with bottle of tablets rather than guns (and Mason isn't responsible). Started Epitaph for a Lobbyist by R. B. Dominic (an alternative pseudonym for the duo who usually wrote as Emma Lathen).

Listened to the Little Symphony by Alexander Goehr (I had this on vinyl many years ago, in a different performance).

47JonRob
Aug. 13, 2021, 9:30 am

Finished Epitaph for a Lobbyist - not the best of the duo's work, but quite entertaining. Started Mr Pottermack's Oversight - another inverted mystery by R., Austin Freeman.

48JonRob
Bearbeitet: Aug. 15, 2021, 10:28 am

Finished Mr Pottermack's Oversight - as enjoyable as ever, though I increasingly feel that the section where he goes to the races could have been omitted.

Started The Case of William Smith by Patricia Wentworth (new acquisition).

Listened to Ommadawn by Mike Oldfield - just the main work, not the CD bonuses yet.

49JonRob
Aug. 17, 2021, 5:39 am

Finished The Case of William Smith - the principal villain is not hard to spot, but the mystery of William Smith's identity is quite enjoyable (though I believe this type of amnesia is in reality almost unknown). Started re-reading The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L. Sayers.

Listening: the rest of the Ommadawn CD (singles etc) and disk 1 of a compilation called Drive Time which unfortunately seems to be suffering from the notorious "CD rot".

50JonRob
Aug. 19, 2021, 6:51 pm

Finished Five Red Herrings - I always enjoy this book, although clearly some others (including a number of bloggers) don't entirely agree. Still reading Man and Time and Bleak House. Listened to the other disc from the Drive Time compilation, which fortunately hasn't succumbed to CD rot (yet).

51JonRob
Aug. 20, 2021, 8:32 am

Started Erle Stanley Gardner's The Case of the Foot-loose Doll - fun, with folk switching identities and some sleight-of hand with icepicks.

52JonRob
Aug. 21, 2021, 6:00 pm

Finished The Case of the Foot-Loose Doll and started The Weight of the Evidence by Michael Innes - this may not be the first detective story set in a redbrick university, but it must be one of the first, at least.

Listened to a new CD of Rachmaninov's The Bells and Musorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition (not the famous Ravel orchestration but one by Sir Henry Wood, which at first hearing isn't as effective). Also a compilation by Split Enz (predecessors of Crowded House).

53JonRob
Aug. 24, 2021, 8:41 am

Finished The Weight of the Evidence. I can understand some people finding the conversation of the academics rather irritating, and I somewhat agree with them. The denouement is good, but you are left wondering what happened to the culprit - was his confession believed? Started The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz which I'm enjoying so far - it's about as meta as they come, but hopefully the ending will justify it.

54drneutron
Aug. 24, 2021, 12:23 pm

My wife just finished The Word is Murder and really enjoyed it. I've bumped it up on the list based on her recommendation.

55JonRob
Aug. 27, 2021, 3:36 am

Finished The Word is Murder - enjoyable, despite a rather blatant example of the Talking Killer Fallacy. Started Their Brilliant Careers by Ryan O'Neill which has a link with the previous book, as they are both fiction disguised as non-fiction.

Listening includes part of Mahler's 1st Symphony, together with some klezmer music that inspired part of it.

56JonRob
Aug. 29, 2021, 3:13 pm

Finished Their Brilliant Careers which is an ingenious piece of fiction masquerading as non-fiction (even the index is worth reading in detail). Started The D'Arblay Mystery by R. Austin Freeman. Also started Sonia: Between Two Worlds by Stephen McKenna - a rare example of my reading a book in e-format.

Listened to some more of the Mahler Symphony No. 1.

57JonRob
Aug. 31, 2021, 7:49 am

Finished The D'Arblay Mystery - not quite my favourite RAF but very entertaining. Started The Case of the Caretaker's Cat by Erle Stanley Gardner.
Still working my way through Bleak House and Man and Time.

58JonRob
Sept. 1, 2021, 3:50 pm

Finished The Case of the Caretaker's Cat - it's quite hard to work out what Mason is up to towards the end, but a satisfying ending as usual. Started Murder to Go by Emma Lathen, this one based on the fast-food industry.

Listened to Rachmaninov's Isle of the Dead, Concierto de Cienfuegos by Lorenzo Palomo (more than a hint of Rodrigo) and Holst's Planets Suite, including the addendum for Pluto added by Colin Matthews (ironically, not long before it was unplaneted).

59JonRob
Sept. 3, 2021, 4:45 am

Finished Murder to Go and started Dead Man's Watch by G. D. H. Cole and M. Cole.

Listened to A Kick up the 80s volume 9 - probably my favourite of this series.

60JonRob
Sept. 4, 2021, 3:26 pm

Finished Dead Man's Watch - very enjoyable, in fact possibly the best of this married couple's work. Started Emma Lathen's Ashes to Ashes.

61JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 26, 2021, 6:42 pm

Finished Ashes to Ashes and started As A Thief in the Night by R. Austin Freeman.

Listened to a selection of late Renaissance dances from Hungary - this was one of the first CDs I ever bought (on the budget Hungaroton White Label, whose design could easily be mistaken for early Naxos), and I still enjoy hearing it.

62JonRob
Sept. 10, 2021, 5:01 am

Finished As A Thief In The Night - possibly the only one of Freeman's novels where the ending is entirely tragic. Started Not A Leg To Stand On by Miles Burton, a new purchase.

63JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 26, 2021, 6:41 pm

Finished Not A Leg To Stand On - one of the better of the post-war books by John Street under either alias. Started These Ruins Are Inhabited by Muriel Beadle, an entertaining and informative account of a year spent by her, her husband and son when he (the husband) was a visiting lecturer at Oxford.

Listened, via Youtube, to most of the album "Madrigals" by Swingle II. (I still have the original vinyl, but nothing to play it on. Although I agree with Stuart Maconie that the use of the term "guilty pleasure" is inappropriate when applied to music listening, this would come dangerously close, with its totally non-period arrangements.)

64JonRob
Sept. 12, 2021, 4:04 pm

Finished These Ruins are Inhabited and started The Hound of the Baskervilles (classic alert!)

Listened to two Schubert symphonies (1 and 5) - no 5 is familiar but I don't recall ever hearing no 1 before.

65JonRob
Sept. 16, 2021, 3:12 am

Finished The Hound of the Baskervilles. Also finished Man and Time, which I found heavy going - and I really don't understand Priestley's argument about time being 3-dimensional. Started Helen Vardon's Confession by R. Austin Freeman.

66JonRob
Sept. 19, 2021, 9:50 am

Finished Helen Vardon's Confession, which I think is rather too long and would be better with more of Thorndyke in it. Started Picture Miss Seeton by Heron Carvic (new purchase).

Listened to a CD of various works by Lou Harrison, including the ballet suite Solstice and Canticle #3.

67JonRob
Sept. 20, 2021, 12:44 pm

Finished Picture Miss Seeton - a good, quick read, but I'm not sure about whether I shall keep it, or try any of the later books. Started Dawkins' God by Alister McGrath.

Listened to Tales of 1001 Nights (Vol 2) by Renaissance - real comfort listening (one day I must locate volume 1!)

68JonRob
Bearbeitet: Sept. 21, 2021, 6:42 pm

Finished Dawkins' God, which I found thought-provoking, although possibly not always in the way the author might have intended.

Listened to the first half of Disk 1 of "Dust on the Nettles", a set of songs from the British underground folk scene in the late 60s and early 70s.

69JonRob
Sept. 24, 2021, 3:21 am

Started, and finished, The Stoneware Monkey by R. Austin Freeman. Entertaining, although you have to make allowances for his absolute hatred of "modern" art, and the main plot twist is fairly obvious. Started The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers.

70JonRob
Sept. 26, 2021, 2:55 pm

Finished The Unpleasantness ... and enjoyed it as usual, although I noticed an odd apparent loose end. Started The Twilight of Atheism by Alister McGrath.

Listened to a disc of Handel organ concertos (Simon Preston and the English Concert, from a 3-disc set).

72JonRob
Okt. 1, 2021, 8:58 am

Finished The Moth-Watch Murder - not bad, considering that post-1950 books from this writer tend to show a distinct deterioration, but the reader can't possibly work out the motive as it depends on facts which only emerge right at the end.

Started The Case of the Shapely Shadow by Erle Stanley Gardner - second time of reading, so it'll be interesting to such how much I remember of the plot.

73JonRob
Okt. 4, 2021, 2:46 pm

Temporarily abandoned The Case of the Shapely Shadow to read These Names Make Clues by E. C. R. Lorac, a new purchase.

74JonRob
Okt. 5, 2021, 6:18 pm

Finished These Names Make Clues which was a good read - I'd say see my review, but LT doesn't seem to want to accept it for some reason.
Resumed The Case of the Shapely Shadow but can't remember much of the plot, though I have a guess about the killer.
Listened to the second half of the first disk of Dust on the Nettles - The Garden of Jane Delawney by Trees was a stand-out track, together with rare tracks by Oberon and Bridget St John. Also three Slavonic Dances by Dvorak (version for two pianos).

75JonRob
Okt. 6, 2021, 3:53 am

Finished The Case of the Shapely Shadow, which is notable mainly for a remarkably complicated piece of legal manoeuvring by Mason which leaves a lot of egg on Hamilton Burger's face. Started The Attending Physician by R. B. Dominic.

76JonRob
Okt. 7, 2021, 9:23 am

Finished The Attending Physician - the authors certainly did not have a high opinion of the US medical profession! Started The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers.

77JonRob
Okt. 11, 2021, 5:08 am

Finished The Nine Tailors - my opinion of it is much better than that of Edmund Wilson, who said that it was the dullest book he had ever read - and started Mr. Polton Explains by R. Austin Freeman.
Listened to more of "Dust on the Nettles" and "Follow the Star" (works for guitar duo by Stephen Dodgson).

78JonRob
Okt. 13, 2021, 6:45 pm

Finished Mr. Polton Explains - some people find the opening section boring, but I enjoy reading about Polton's back-story - and you can skip the first half with the story still making sense. (Incidentally, I think the story may have been inspired by one by Freeman Wills Crofts, where a similar situation arises, but uncharacteristically Crofts fudges the explanation of the device that would have been needed.) Started The Disappearance of Mr. Derwent by Thomas Cobb and Radio Comedy 1938 - 1968 by Andy Foster and Steve Furst.
Listened to songs by Mauro Giuliani (from a BBC Music Magazine cover disk) and works by Delius and Vaughan Williams (ditto, but different disk).

79JonRob
Okt. 15, 2021, 12:39 pm

Finished both The Disappearance of Mr. Derwent - quite good, but I'm not sure if I'll keep it in the long term - and also The Great Evolution Mystery. (As it's about 40 years since the latter was published, it'd be interesting to know how many of the queries he raises have now been answered.) Started Long Shadows by Carol Carnac.

Listened to various works including a Mozart piano quartet, a Boccherini symphony and two symphonies by Haydn.

80JonRob
Bearbeitet: Okt. 16, 2021, 11:47 am

Finished Long Shadows - it shows that the author was still writing well at the end of her career, as does the recently-published Two-Way Murder. (Incidentally, Long Shadows is shown as a different book from Affair at Helen's Court but they are the same book under different titles - I will investigate how to deal with this.) Started A Certain Dr. Thorndyke by R. Austin Freeman and will read the whole of it, although it would in fact be possible to skip the first half, as with Mr. Polton Explains.

81JonRob
Bearbeitet: Okt. 20, 2021, 2:33 am

Finished A Certain Dr Thorndyke - despite the first half of the story not relating very much to the second part, which contains all the detection, it is quite readable, although, as it is set in West Africa, it's not surprising that some modern readers will have issues with the treatment of Africans (and there certainly is some racially offensive language). Started Murder On A Monument by E. C. R. Lorac.
Listened to the rest of disk 2 of "Dust on the Nettles".

82JonRob
Okt. 20, 2021, 2:32 am

Finished Murder on a Monument - not her best work by any means, in my view (I might enjoy it more if I had ever visited Rome). Started Death of a Lady Killer by Carol Carnac - same author, different name.

83JonRob
Okt. 21, 2021, 5:57 pm

Finished Death of a Lady Killer, which is quite good despite some loose ends in the solution. Started The Case Of The Seven Whistlers by George Bellairs.

Listened to The Epic of Gilgamesh by Martinu.

84JonRob
Okt. 23, 2021, 9:31 am

Started Basil Maine on Music. Almost finished The Case Of The Seven Whistlers and remembering why it's so long since I last read it.

85JonRob
Okt. 23, 2021, 3:09 pm

Finished The Case of the Seven Whistlers. When I made my previous comment I'd forgotten that the book improves considerably at the end - although whether it involves the Talking Killer Fallacy I'm not sure. The early part has a bad example of minor characters being caricatures, like the man who is a Christian Scientist and keeps talking about "shpirichool error".

Listened to more of Dust On The Nettles (disk 3, tracks 1 - 10).

86JonRob
Okt. 24, 2021, 12:53 pm

Started The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie.

Listened to the third string quartet by Frank Bridge.

87JonRob
Okt. 27, 2021, 5:39 am

Finished Basil Maine on Music - I'll be posting a review so no further comment here.

Listened to the last half of disk 3 of Dust on The Nettles - overall a pretty good compilation, although not all the tracks are of the best quality technically.

88JonRob
Okt. 29, 2021, 4:06 am

Started This Modern Music by Gerald Abraham. Also looked through Cook Now, Dine Later by Catherine Althaus and Peter ffrench-Hodges - I bought this second-hand many years ago and have never used a single recipe, so I'm giving it to a book sale.

89JonRob
Okt. 29, 2021, 9:46 am

Finished The Secret Adversary - good fun, but with hindsight it's difficult to take seriously the threat posed by a General Strike - and also we here have a bad case of the Talking Killer Fallacy. (Also, the author appears to be unaware that marrying your first cousin is illegal in much of the US.)

Listened to a compilation disc of medieval music by the St George's Canzona.

90JonRob
Bearbeitet: Okt. 30, 2021, 10:05 am

Started The Jacob Street Mystery by R. Austin Freeman. Also looking through Cornish Recipes Old and New by Ann Pascoe before probably giving it away.

91JonRob
Nov. 1, 2021, 5:17 am

Finished This Modern Music - quite interesting, but the author is far too prone to make sweeping statements which on consideration are quite unjustifiable (eg "It is reserved for half-wits to dislike what they don't understand"). Also looking through Favourite Food from Ambrose Heath for the same reason as above.

92PaulCranswick
Nov. 1, 2021, 5:42 am

>90 JonRob: That looks a good one as I have always enjoyed my food when visiting Cornwall.

Nice to see you posting and reading so consistently, Jon.

93PaulCranswick
Nov. 1, 2021, 7:33 am

I make it by counting through what you reported that you have read 83 books since you started the thread so congrats on passing 75!

94JonRob
Nov. 2, 2021, 4:45 am

>93 PaulCranswick: Thanks! Sorry you won't be able to buy the Cornish Food booklet, unless you happen to be in Ludlow later in the month.

95JonRob
Nov. 2, 2021, 4:48 am

Finished The Jacob Street Mystery - a good read, although the main "twist" becomes easy to guess well before the end. PS Was Jacob Street a real place? It's not on modern maps (there is one in Bermondsey, but not one close to Hampstead Road) - maybe it was demolished in/after the Blitz.

Started Journey Towards Music by Victor Gollancz and She Shall Have Murder by Delano Ames.

96PaulCranswick
Nov. 2, 2021, 8:27 am

>94 JonRob: I might send my wife over there, Jon!

97JonRob
Nov. 6, 2021, 12:54 pm

>96 PaulCranswick: The sale in question is on 27th Nov at St Laurence's Church.

98JonRob
Nov. 6, 2021, 12:59 pm

Started and finished Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie - this was one of the first Christies I read, and fortunately I knew a lot of the sleuths that are parodied here from reading the Detection Mystery Horror anthologies by Dorothy L. Sayers. I read this during a very long rail journey (longer than it should have been, but let's not get into that).

Listened to the 4th and 12th Symphonies by Havergal Brian - neither as long as the famous Gothic, and in fact the 12th is typical of his later work in being really short.

99JonRob
Nov. 9, 2021, 6:43 pm

Finished She Shall Have Murder - one of the best examples of a husband-and-wife detective team (though they aren't actually married yet in this one). Also started, and finished, Maigret in Exile by Georges Simenon, and didn't enjoy it much.

100PaulCranswick
Nov. 9, 2021, 7:18 pm

>97 JonRob: I will see whether I can persuade her on the pleasures of visiting Ludlow at that time. :D

101JonRob
Nov. 10, 2021, 6:47 pm

Started A Double For Detection by Carol Carnac, her first book featuring Julian Rivers as the detective.

102JonRob
Nov. 12, 2021, 3:59 am

Finished A Double For Detection - entertaining, but the denouement is excessively melodramatic, with a notable case of the Talking Killer Fallacy (the criminal would probably have been unconvictable if not for this).
Started Dr. Thorndyke's Dilemma by John H. Dirckx, one of very few Thorndyke pastiches.

103JonRob
Nov. 14, 2021, 6:52 pm

Finished Dr. Thorndyke's Dilemma - quite good as pastiches go, although it's really only a novella by length. One point that occurred to me - the author is American, and the book was published in America, but the writer being pastiched is British - so should words like "color" and "aluminum" be given the UK or US spelling?
I'd forgotten the existence of Norman Donaldson's Goodbye Dr. Thorndyke, which I must seek out at some time.

104JonRob
Nov. 15, 2021, 1:55 pm

Started Coffin's Dark Number by Gwendoline Butler.

Listened to a disk of chamber music by Vaughan Williams and some Clannad.

105JonRob
Nov. 16, 2021, 10:02 am

Finished Coffin's Dark Number - despite having read it more than once, I'd forgotten a disturbing reference to violence used by the police (and that the supposedly good cop, John Coffin, condones it).

Listened to Bach's Partita number 1 (for keyboard),

106JonRob
Nov. 17, 2021, 10:40 am

Started There Came Both Mist And Snow by Michael Innes.

Listened to a disk of various works by Telemann, including what may be the first viola concerto ever written, and Britten's Les Illuminations and the early Four French Chansons.

107JonRob
Nov. 19, 2021, 4:30 pm

Finished Journey Towards Music - always interesting, particularly Gollancz's views on Wagner and the Nazis - a pity the section on non-operatic music is so short.
Also finished There Came Both Mist And Snow, which could be called a deconstruction of the detective story, with its extraordinary ending in which everybody accuses everybody else, and some unbelievable behaviour from the detective Appleby.
Starting The Weight of Evidence by Roger Ormerod, whom I'm giving a second chance after not much enjoying another of his books (The Seven Razors of Ockam).
Listened to several disks including one of chamber music by Shostakovich and Mendelssohn (odd combination!) and another of music by black women composers (Florence Price, Errolyn Wallen and Eleanor Alberga).
PS I forgot to mention that I finished reading Bleak House, which I reserved for bedtime reading.

108JonRob
Nov. 20, 2021, 3:39 pm

Finished The Weight of Evidence - although the solution is quite ingenious, I don't like it enough to keep it. (One very odd part is where a "hard man" criminal waits to take his revenge until he's heard the end of a Brahms symphony!) Started The New Music by Reginald Smith Brindle.
Listened to a disk of music by John Foulds, plus Janacek's Taras Bulba.

109JonRob
Nov. 21, 2021, 2:39 pm

Started The Book of the Dead by Elizabeth Daly, which I haven't read for many years and have forgotten most of the plot.

110JonRob
Nov. 23, 2021, 4:53 am

Finished The Book of the Dead which was excellent - can't think why I haven't read it for so long. Started Murder as a Fine art by Carol Carnac.

Listened to Veris Gratia by Kenneth Leighton, a late flowering of the English Pastoral school.

111JonRob
Bearbeitet: Nov. 26, 2021, 9:10 am

Finished Murder as a Fine Art. This time it occurred to me that the author had misunderstood the principles of a certain mechanical device. However, it's still interesting that she takes an open-minded approach to modern art, unlike Austin Freeman (perhaps the difference in their ages may account for this).
Started Mr. Campion's Falcon by Youngman Carter - not quite the first "continuation" book, as it was preceded by the two Sherlock Holmes books by John Dickson Carr and Adrian Conan Doyle.
Listened to a disk of music by Schoenberg, and decided to give it away as I don't much like his work.

112JonRob
Nov. 28, 2021, 9:30 am

Finished Mr. Campion's Falcon, which I didn't enjoy very much - it's a possibility for giving away. Started Windsor Red by Jennie Melville, a new purchase.
Listened to Schumann's Piano Quintet, a favourite of mine.

113JonRob
Nov. 30, 2021, 6:31 am

Just finished Windsor Red, which I enjoyed - the central character, Charmian Daniels, is sympathetic and there's a triple mystery with a reasonably plausible solution set. Just deciding what to try next.
Listened to some music by Aldo Finzi, a composer victimised by the Fascists who seems to be getting a higher profile than he had when I bought the disk. (No relation to Gerald Finzi, as far as I can see.)

114JonRob
Nov. 30, 2021, 6:14 pm

Started The Burning Question by Carol Carnac, a late one which doesn't feature either Inspector Ryvet or Julian Rivers.

115JonRob
Dez. 3, 2021, 8:35 am

Finished The Burning Question - see my review for comments. Started Any Shape or Form by Elizabeth Daly.
Listened to my first (vaguely) Christmas CD, Simon Mayor's Winter with Mandolins. I particularly like his version of "I Saw Three Ships". Also Vaughan Williams' Tuba Concerto.

116JonRob
Dez. 6, 2021, 6:30 pm

Finished Any Shape or Form and about to start The Iron Hand Of Mars by Lindsey Davis. I don't often read historical crime, but I hope to find this entertaining enough to keep.

Listening includes a new BBC Music Magazine disc of Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe, some Boccherini guitar quintets, and Poor Man's Heaven by Seth Lakeman.

117JonRob
Dez. 10, 2021, 9:01 am

Finished The New Music - it's interesting to note how the techniques such as graphic scores which he sees as mainstream have now almost totally vanished, together with the assumption that anyone not keeping up with these trends was insignificant.
Listened to a disk of Stravinsky (including the suite from his opera "The Nightingale") and the first disk of a late 60s sampler.

118JonRob
Dez. 13, 2021, 3:53 am

Finished The Iron Hand of Mars - not a keeper. Started Only A Matter of Time by V. C. Clinton-Baddeley.
Listened to the second 60s sampler disk, and another specifically of songs from 1967 and 68. Interesting how time changes some aspects of things - The Birds and the Bees, by Warm Sounds, now has a distinct flavour of sexual harassment.

119JonRob
Dez. 14, 2021, 4:53 pm

Finished Only A Matter Of Time. I first read it about the time it was first published, but had entirely forgotten the plot, which involves industrial espionage and a local arts festival. The latter has some entertaining descriptions, including one of a jazz and poetry event which I suspect may be based on one the author had attended.
Still reading Shaw's Music Vol. 2 which I hope to finish by the end of the year. Listening includes the first two parts of Berlioz's L'Enfance du Christ (new BBC Music Magazine disc) and Fumbling Towards Ecstacy by Sarah McLachlan.

120JonRob
Dez. 15, 2021, 8:40 am

Started Impact of Evidence by Carol Carnac. Listened to another Christmas disk, with works by Britten, Respighi and Honegger.

121JonRob
Bearbeitet: Dez. 31, 2021, 10:05 am

Completed Impact of evidence - it has in common with the same author's The Burning Question that it is set during extreme weather conditions in a remote rural area. This time we're in the Welsh borders during a very heavy flood, which causes great difficulty for Julian Rivers and his team. Starting Appleby's End by Michael Innes.

Listened to another disk of Christmas music, this time from Ravel, Suk and Prokofiev (although the last is represented by music from the opera "The Love For Three Oranges", whose connection with Christmas is dubious).

122JonRob
Dez. 20, 2021, 6:51 pm

Finished Appleby's End - I'm never sure how I feel about it, but one odd thing is that it was published in 1945, yet there is no mention of the war - it might be set in the pre-war period, but I have a feeling that would clash with what happens in Appleby on Ararat.

Listened to some string quartets by the Australian Peter Sculthorpe, another disk of Christmas music and "Prague", a symphonic poem by Josef Suk (Dvorak's son-in-law).

123JonRob
Dez. 21, 2021, 4:31 am

124JonRob
Dez. 22, 2021, 6:28 pm

Finished Banking on Death and almost finished Shaw's Music Vol. 2. Listened to music by the Argentinian Ginastera, and some songs in which Jim Causley has set poems by the blind Cornish poet Jack Clemo.

125JonRob
Dez. 23, 2021, 9:18 am

126PaulCranswick
Dez. 24, 2021, 8:23 pm



Have a lovely holiday.

127JonRob
Dez. 27, 2021, 1:14 pm

Finished both Shaw's Music Vol. 2 (a long read - it's the sort of book you can read in sections) and Dead on the Track - a hard book to read, as my copy has completely fallen apart.
Listened to another Christmas CD (by the York Waits) and more string quartets by Peter Sculthorpe.

128JonRob
Dez. 28, 2021, 4:49 am

Started reading Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book and Murder against the Grain by Emma Lathen - both of which I hope to finish by the end of the year.

129JonRob
Dez. 30, 2021, 6:59 pm

Finished both Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book - enjoyable as ever, even though I am a non-birder - and Murder Against The Grain - I suspect you'd go a long way before encountering another murder mystery featuring a troupe of performing otters!
Listened to two more Christmas CDs, one only partly (because it's succumbed to the notorious CD rot and will be recycled), and some Shostakovich, including the popular Second Piano Concerto and the very puzzling Symphony no. 15. (What are those references to the William Tell Overture about?)

130JonRob
Bearbeitet: Dez. 31, 2021, 10:16 am

Summing up the year (actually for about 2/3 of the year, as I started late):

Books read to completion: 112, of which 88 are crime fiction and 5 about music (all classical).

Books unfinished are: We Could Have Been The Wombles, Around The World in 80 Days, Principles of Programming Languages, Take It From The Top, My Love Affair With England and Sonia. I'll try to finish all of these next year, apart from the computing title which I've given away.

My only reaction to my listening is that perhaps I should look for the first part of the Renaissance compilation, the second part of which I listened to three times during the year!

See you all next year - let's hope for an improvement in general living conditions.

131PaulCranswick
Jan. 1, 2022, 3:02 am



Forget your stresses and strains
As the old year wanes;
All that now remains
Is to bring you good cheer
With wine, liquor or beer
And wish you a special new year.

Happy New Year.