18 Monday Jun 2018
Posted in books, books & writing, food & drink
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My old Bristol pal Kate Hawkings has just published this wonderful new book – Aperitif. Very happy to be mentioned (thanks for the photo Lizzie). Can’t wait for my copy to arrive! You can get yours on Amazon. đ
23 Friday Mar 2018
This is the first novel I’ve bought in years! After giving away a few hundred books when I moved last summer, I honestly thought my book buying days were over (other than for cookbooks and books on sherry). But then on the recent anniversary of Terry Pratchett’s death I came across a conversation on Twitter about this, his final, book, and decided I had to have it. And who knows? I might even read it. It’s hard to believe that I used to read a book a week. Now I spend all my reading time on the iPhone…
What’s the last book you bought?
08 Thursday Dec 2016
Posted in retail therapy, sevilla
On my way home I stumbled across the opening party for Un Gato En Bicicleta. For years this alternative bookshop has been going strong in calle Regina, but they have now moved to larger premises (in my street!) and are going to also include a cafĂ©/bar. At least it won’t be – I hope – another late night bar…
07 Friday Aug 2015
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So this is what I’ll be doing this weekend. How about you?
15 Saturday Mar 2014
11 Tuesday Mar 2014
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In case there is actually anyone out there who has never read a Margaret Atwood novel, here is a handy quiz to help you know which one you should start with. My result was interesting because I think it’s actually my favourite Atwood novel…
You Should Read The Robber Bride
This is the wise, unsettling, drastic story of three women whose lives share a common wound: Zenia, a woman they first met as university students in the sixties. Zenia is smart and beautiful, by turns manipulative, vulnerable â and irresistible. She has entered into their separate lives to ensnare their sympathy, betray their trust, and exploit their weaknesses. Now Zenia, thought dead, has suddenly reappeared. In this richly layered narrative, Atwood skilfully evokes the decades of the past as she retraces three womenâs lives, until we are back in the present â where itâs yet to be discovered whether Zeniaâs âpure, free-wheeling malevolenceâ can still wreak havoc. The Robber Bride reports from the farthest reaches of the sex wars and is one of Margaret Atwoodâs most intricate and subversive novels yet.
01 Friday Nov 2013
Posted in books, friday foto finder, photos
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This week’s Friday Foto Finder challenge is “books”…
After searching and searching for a new apartment (after having been unceremoniously thrown out of my home of 17 years by unscrupulous landlord) I was beginning to despair. Then I saw this place and the “selling” point for me was that it had these fab built-in bookshelves in the upstairs room and another wall of shelves at the far end… so my books could also have a new home. Now I need to get back into the habit of reading BOOKS and not just my iPhone.
Check out what other Friday Foto Finders are posting over here!
15 Wednesday May 2013
Posted in books, food & drink
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… this was delivered yesterday!
It was recommended awhile ago by my friend Fiona (aka Scribbler in Seville) when I was trying to find the English name for a fish I only knew the Spanish word for. It’s a great illustrated catalogue of fish and shellfish that includes several translations, and it also includes over 200 recipes. I have to say that the recipes came as a bonus because I thought I was just buying a reference book. It’s also the first book I’ve bought in ages. What was the last book you bought?
06 Tuesday Nov 2012
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Shortly after Azar died there was a knock on the door and a delivery man handed me a package from Amazon. This isn’t a particularly unusual occurrence here at casa az, except that in this instance I hadn’t actually ordered anything from Amazon. Turned out it was a prezzy from the lovely Deb. She’d seen this book on my wish list and sent it along, saying how reading can sometimes be a good escape from life, and that she hoped the book would help.
And well, I only opened it today! I suddenly found myself with an hour to kill before a tapas tour and was good and tired of sitting in front of the computer. And then I remembered my book! I have to say the whole process was wonderful. Opening a fresh new book (when was the last time I did that?) and turning to Page One. And then laughing out loud before I even got halfway down the page – good ol’ Bill Bryson. I hope this means I am going to go back to reading Real Books again. I remember when I used to read a book a week…
Thanks again Deb. It was a lovely gesture and a perfect gift.
11 Wednesday Jan 2012
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Apparently this video has gone viral since I first saw it via Twitter yesterday morning. In case you’ve missed it, here it is. Wonderful stuff. Filmed at Type Books in Toronto.
Look at the lovely gifts I received after Friday’s GutiĂ©rrez Colosia sherry tasting.