This is a classic book about expressing love and appreciation, particularly to one’s husband or wife.

Gary Chapman’s theory is that there are five ‘languages’ of love, but that we are usually only ‘fluent’ in one or two of them. The languages are: words of appreciation, giving gifts, physical touch, acts of service, and quality time.

Thus, he claims, if – for example – a husband’s primary language is gifts, and his wife’s is quality time, then he might keep buying her presents but feel unloved because she rarely buys him anything. At the same time, she might long to spend more time with him, and feel unloved because he’s so busy… and then might feel that the gifts were manipulative, trying to buy her off.

He recounts many anecdotes of couples who have been helped by discovering their primary love languages, and who have then learned, slowly, to speak each other’s.

It wasn’t anything new to me, as I’d come across similar theories before, but I found the writing excellent, the stories inspiring, and the whole book very encouraging and thought-provoking.

There’s a questionnaire at the end to help people discover their love languages, but I found the text of the book more helpful.

All in all, highly recommended to anyone in any kind of romantic relationship, particularly if either partner is feeling somewhat empty or unloved.

This is the story of Little Tree, a five-year-old boy who is brought up by his Cherokee grandparents after his mother dies. Although the introduction claims it’s an autobiographical reminiscence, it is in fact fiction. Moreover, the author is not Cherokee; at one point he was apparently a member of extreme racist groups in the USA.

Nevertheless, it’s a very well-written book. I gather that some of the details of Little Tree’s life and Cherokee customs are not based on reality, but pure fiction; that would perhaps upset people from this background, but for me it was a delightful insight into a world I knew nothing about.

Moreoever, the book is very pro-Cherokee, and positive about Little Tree’s experiences, educational and otherwise. White men are shown to be bigoted and legalistic, and Little Tree’s brief foray into a boarding school is heart-breaking.

I can only assume that the author had repented of his former beliefs when he wrote it. Some critics consider the language offensive – it’s written in a distinctive style, almost as if in five-year-old language at times. But for me, it added to the realism of the story.

All in all, I thought it a lovely book.

A moving story set in the 1950s, intertwining the lives of two families in the USA. One suffers a devastating loss, while the other has a teenage daughter who makes a bad mistake, leading to her alienation from them.

I didn’t think I was going to like this book, which starts with a lot of description and back-story, much of which didn’t seem necessary. But as it got going, I found it quite emotional, and found it impossible to put down. It’s not a long book, and I read it straight through in two hours.

Some moral issues came up, which were dealt with pretty sensitively. The teenage girl, Maribeth, grows up and shows great strength of character as she has to make some difficult decisions.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed it.

A bit heavy – it’s taken me a year to read this, off and on! – but pretty sound as far as type and Jungian/Myers-Briggs personality theory go, with some cognitive function theory as well. The authors stress that all types are valuable and good, and also that type is a ‘subtext’ to the real individual.

Plenty of explanations about what people expect, trust and appreciate, and how easy it is to get caught up in our own preconceived ideas. Lots of charts summarising how each of the sixteen Myers-Briggs types is most likely to react or behave under certain circumstances.

Of course, people are far more than their type, and these are not hard-and-fast rules for communication. But when there are personality clashes, it could well be worth referring to this book.

A remarkable book. Potentially disturbing themes explored in a sensitive and realistic way.

Flora and Rory are twins; we follow their lives from their birth in 1942 up to Flora’s funeral in 2000. But not in a traditional way. The funeral opens the book, and is described by Flora herself. The next section, in 1942, is followed by another in 1987 when Flora is arguing ethical issues with her mother. And then there is more first person commentary from beyond the grave.

The timeframe flips forwards and backwards, gradually filling in the gaps in the story and expanding on the clues given in the prologue. The writing is excellent, the characters well-drawn and memorable. And the disturbing themes – promiscuity, incest, depression and more – are subsidiary to the human interest. Highly recommended – really four and a half stars.

‘Mr Pip’ is set in the island of Bougainville, part of Papua New Guinea, during the civil war of the 1980s. Mr Watts is the only white person in the district, an eccentric but likeable man married to Grace, one of the island’s previous top students whom he met in Australia. He takes on the role of teacher to the children of the district. The story is related by Matilda, a fourteen-year-old, who in her turn is one of Mr Watts’ top students.

Mr Watts uses ‘Great Expectations’ as an introduction to literature and language, and more; the whole book uses it as a theme, and Matilda becomes more and more involved with the person of Pip who stars in the story.

I certainly learned something about this island and its people, and some of the horrors of the war. But it was written in the kind of style that entirely failed to move me, even when it was shocking towards the end.

I suspect I don’t really get ‘literary fiction’: this book has been highly acclaimed and was on the Man Booker prize shortlist. Possibly because it is undoubtedly original. However the characterisation and descriptions were rather flat, and the ending tried to tie up a lot of ends in a somewhat implausible way.

I was lent the book, and am glad I read it; but it’s not really my kind of book.

A very helpful – if lightweight – book about writing short stories, with advice on characterisation, plot, ideas and a great deal more. No exercises, but some suggestions for getting started, and some useful chapters on finding a market, submitting, and keeping records.

Della Galton has a breezy, friendly style which makes the book very readable, with plenty to inspire and encourage. There are tips from other writers at the end of most chapters.

My only minor problem with this book was that the pages weren’t laid out very well – there were fairly frequent places where a heading of a new section within a chapter was at the bottom of the previous page. But even that didn’t distract from the excellence of the writing and advice.

I did enjoy this! It’s the story of Julianne, who has been ‘best friends’ with Michael for nine years, and suddenly realises she’s in love with him…. when she’s invited to his wedding. His fiancée is bright, enthusiastic, and also very much in love with Michael, but Julianne determines to do all she can to break them up.

It’s a bit surreal at times, with a table full of guests breaking into song at one point, Julianne’s gay boss flying to her rescue after a frantic phone call, and even a spoof Bond-style car chase. But it was exactly what I needed for an evening’s relaxation with my husband. Decidedly a ‘girly’ film, but he liked it too. Julia Roberts stars, and is believable, if a little over the top at times.

Fifth adventure in the ‘Lone Pine’ series for teenagers. I don’t suppose today’s teenagers would be very interested in this innocent adventure story of the mid twentieth century, even in this updated 1970s Armada edition. But I grew up on them, and love to re-read every so often.

Fairly exciting story involving six of the Lone Pine club, some likeable elderly people, and three distinctly unpleasant stranges. Rather brief, even for a light teenage novel, with one or two unexpectedly moving moments. Good light reading for an odd hour or two…

Recommended (and lent) by a friend, this isn’t the kind of book I would usually read. It’s written by a scientist, and categorised as ‘New Age’. However, it’s quite a fascinating read. The author attempts to look beyond the early materialism of science, through quantum physics, and into unexplored realms that unite the spiritual and the scientific.

His theory is, primarily, that our minds are not the local entities we perceive them as, but ‘non-local’, and in a sense ‘God’. He demonstrates this in the early part of the book using several documented experiments. The second part of the book explores (in a low-key way) some quantum physics and other scientific concepts, and the last section looks at religion as a whole, and God in particular.

It’s not written at all from a Christian perspective, yet several Christian mystics and scientists from the past are quoted. The author seems to see the Christian faith as rather narrow-minded; whereas I could see much of what he discussed as fitting in quite well with my belief in God and eternity, he seemed to think that his theories were not compatible with any particular belief system.

I’d perhaps rate this three and a half stars if I could – it was an interesting read, if a little heavy and long-winded in places. But it’s now twenty years out of date, and I have no idea if some of his science is now considered obsolete. Worth reading, anyway, for an attempt at setting religion alongside scientific thinking, although strongly denominational or structured Christians (or indeed those of other faiths) might find some of it disturbing. Could give some atheists a few points for debate, however!