Christmas List 2008

Making a list... Checking it twice...

On Christmas Day I'll find out if I've been naughty or nice...

I'm constantly looking for new books to read and the ever growing stack by the bed still contains some of last year's as yet unread gifted books - however that won't stop me from wanting more now, will it?

Dreams from my Father: A story of race and inheritance & The audacity of hope: thoughts on reclaiming the American Dream by Barack Obama - I was very excited about this election, more than I have been about any UK election since I was a student and Labour got into power (I was gutted at the time, but was confused about my own thoughts on politics and this was the first election that I was eligible to vote in). It was interesting to watch as an observer how Obama was able to turn a tide and become the first Black American President - I got up at 4AM to watch it happen and felt very proud to witness this moment in time. I really want to read these books because he is a man that you feel like you want to know.


Gary Rhodes 365 - I love a good cookbook and have quite a collection, I like the 365 days of the year concept of this one.





Blink: The power of thinking without thinking and Outliers: The story of success by Malcolm Gladwell - I liked the zeitgeistiness of The Tipping Point and so would like to see how Gladwell's thinking has developed since I first read some of his work.








One Fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell - I'm a big Sex & The City fan and got all of Bushnell's other books last Christmas from my very thoughtful other half - I didn't even ask for them either!






Alice in Wonderland Box Set by Lewis Carroll, with illustrations by Helen Oxenbury - I like the modern illustrations that Oxenbury has done to complement the original text. I'm collecting copies of books I loved as a child - you might say I'm nesting...


Tea with Mr Rochester by Frances Towers - the Persephone edition - After enjoying my last Persephone book, I'm looking forward to getting stuck in to another.






Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons - sometimes I can't believe the classics I haven't read yet, and other times it fills me with excitement to know that I still have so much to look forward to.





Any of the Manga Shakespeare series - (other than Hamlet & Romeo & Juliet, which I already own and love), the illustrations are so brilliantly executed and directed towards a modern audience and such an obvious combination of form - why didn't I think of it?

The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis - Another childhood favourite, I re-read these so many times, and may yet uncover them if I search in the cupboards at my parents house this Christmas. Still - it'd be nice to have the boxed set anyway.


The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton - I saw this recommended by another blogger and thought I would enjoy it. It does seem to be out of print, but I'd quite like an old copy to try it out.


The Writers Handbook 2009 - 2009 is going to be the year that I start writing again and I want to be quite disciplined about it. I always have the best intentions, but work tends to dominate alot of my time - the new year's resolution will be about dedicating some time to writing. I'll let you know what happens!

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

This wonderful romp of a novel was reprinted by Persephone Books having been lost to readers for many, many years. It has become Persephone's bestseller and consequently has morphed into a beautiful piece of cinema. I have taken the time to enjoy them both and I can conclude that it has been time well spent.




The Shop...
Persephone Books (www.persephonebooks.co.uk) are a publisher and bookshop with a clear mission and brand. I really admire what Nicola Beauman has done with this business - as a businesswoman she has found a distinct niche within the publishing market that promotes itself as a lifestyle choice along with what Beauman herself describes as a kind of 'soft' feminism. The 78 books that currently form the Persephone catalogue are written by mainly female writers whose books struggled to maintain long-term notoriety and which all without exception are regarded to be extremely well written. On visiting the original bookshop on Lambs Conduit Street, London and browsing for about 15 minutes in the front part (this is the shop and the rest is Persephone Headquarters) the member of staff working there was constantly answering the telephone and taking orders, business seemed to be booming... Especially in the wake of Miss Pettigrew's foray into cinema. It was an extremely pleasant retail experience - I love good service in a shop, not intrusive, yet knowledgeable and friendly - full marks were had here.




Onto the Novel itself...
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is a Cinderella story with a twist: Cinderella is not young and beautiful, but rather a middle aged, frumpy and down-at-heel governess who cons her way into the lovely Delysia LaFosse's apartment and her life. Miss Pettigrew is painted and polished to hob nob with the social elite, and meets Joe, an underwear magnate who sees through to her very soul. It's a lovely inoffensive novel which makes you laugh and tugs at the heartstrings. This version also has some lovely illustrations and an excellent preface, setting the book in context and offering with lightness of touch, some insight into the author's world.




The Film...
It is interesting how liberal the scriptwriters have been with the plot and characters of the novel, infact much of the film bears little resemblance to the original storyline. However it manages to escape criticism because of this, due to the beauty of the film. The settings and costumes are magnificent. The contrast between the stark streets of London, Delysia's decadent apartment ( I want to live there!) and the racy Scarlet Peacock is really nicely managed. The script focuses very much on the two lead female characters and rather less on the pursuit of the men in Delysia's life and the two lead actresses (Frances McDormand and Amy Adams) put in some good performances as you see their relationship developing.




Miss Pettigrew has managed to fill three rainy afternoons for me - a visit to the shop, reading the novel, and watching the film. A satisfying way to have spent my time.

Wicked by Gregory Maguire

I purchased this almost three years ago in a bookshop browsing session in Barnes & Noble on New York's Fifth Avenue. As I recall I spent about two hours browsing there, had a drink and a slice of cake and then wandered down to Central Park. It was a warm day at the end of October and I was spending a couple of days alone in New York following some time in Florida with a Disney employed friend. Wicked the musical had just opened on Broadway and had a tremendous buzz about it. Try as I might, I couldn't get a single return without paying touts prices and when I saw that familiar image on a book, I thought it was the next best thing. I also bought The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell and The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks. At that snapshot point in time, my possibly somewhat naive impression was that these three books seemed to sum up the mainstream cultural zeitgeist. I read The Notebook on the flight home, and The Tipping Point over the next couple of weeks. Wicked had stayed by my bed for the last three years gathering dust.

Following the successful transfer of the musical version to the West End, I booked tickets and aimed to read the novel before I got to see the performance. I was glad I had done so, as there are many differences between the two.



Wicked is a prequel and in the latter stages parallel novel to L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. I found the novel hard to get into, with the opening lacking some sense of pace and possibly due to the lack of a protagonist at the very beginning, indeed the novel takes us back to Elphaba's birth and the reader is not made to empathise with any of the other characters, so until we encounter adult Elphie, it leave us a little bereft. The premise is a good one and, like all good fairytales, it is dark and almost gothic in places. The character of Elphaba is particularly well conveyed and the intimacy in her adult relationship with Fiyero is very real. It is very definitely an adults book , a great read once the pace picks up, and it's intertextuality with the Wizard of Oz is endlessly satisfying.

The set prior to performance

The musical version strays somewhat from the plot lines set out by Maguire, although it is clear that in order to become family entertainment, it would have to be a little different - the scene in the club - need I continue? The focus of the story is on the development of the characters of Glinda, Elphaba and their friendship and less on the ethical struggle between good, bad and the grey areas in between.The staging of this production is no doubt incredibly expensive, but it is a triumph in theatrical design and spectacle. There is some stunning orchestration and the climax to the first Act 'Defying Gravity' is a perfect piece of theatre, which left me choked, and made the Act Two an anti-climax to an extent. Having read the novel I felt cheated by the 'Disney-fied' ending to the musical, but really that can be my only true complaint.

I'm not sure that I'll read more Maguire - I feel satisfied with this one, but it does come recommended.