Katherine

Fantastic set up, chilling description of the Nazi Reich cobbled from the memories and thoughts of those on the outside. let down by a slightly anticlimactic ending, but otherwise superb alternative reality fiction

A well-crafted history; nothing an academic would find hugely useful, but an eminently readable summary of one of the most turbulent periods in Earth's history. Gaddis has a fairly clear right-wing bias, but as long as you bear that in mind this is a useful and enjoyable book

Excellent overall, and with a broad approach both geographically and chronologically which avoids the usual trap of histories of this period; namely, over-focus on Alfred the Great and the generations either side of him in Wessex and southern England. My one criticism is that, in her attempt to avoid obsessing over high politics, Fleming perhaps glosses over political developments a little too readily. Still, a fascinating study and well-worth reading.

This book should be on the curriculum for every student of history, anthropology, geography or linguistics. While perhaps not every conclusion is correct in every particular, Diamond's broad thesis that environmental, rather than genetic or cultural, factors are the predominant cause of the broad sweep of human history seems incontrovertible. Moreover, the wide-ranging examples used to support the thesis are not only compelling but individually fascinating in their own right. The proposition that history can and should be considered from a scientific point of view is also one I thoroughly agree with. The book is engaging, eminently readable and Diamond is clearly a man of broad knowledge and interests and delights in relaying this to his readers. It's hard to praise Guns, Germs & Steel enough.

An excellent explanation of a theory we've all heard of but which few non-physicists, I fear, have much grasp of. Building up from the basics, through general relativity and quantum mechanics, Greene paints a phenomenally rich and compelling picture of superstring theory (and its derivatives) with analogies perfectly suited to make this ephemeral set of ideas intuitive. I'm convinced! A must-read.

Well-written, engaging and funny - though not as funny as Mitchell is on TV, it surprised me to learn. Still, Mitchell is one half of probably my favourite comedy duo, and it was very interesting to see where it all came from. Although he is WRONG about The Lord of the Rings. And capitalism, it transpires. We need more anarcho-communist TV comedians. But I digress. If you like David Mitchell, read this. And be prepared for the penultimate chapter to actually be some of the most thought-provoking non-fiction you've read in a while

Amusing, at times alarming, and above all very informative about the failings of well-meaning alternative medicine nuts, disingenuous charlatans, incompetent science journalists, malevolent pharmaceutical companies, and willfully close-minded politicians.

Anyone with a vague interest in how evidence can be manipulated or misinterpreted, or in the state of public understanding of science as a whole, should pick it up.

I picked this up for next to nothing in a charity shop, purely on the strength of the title: ‘The Perfect King' is a strong opening move for any biography, and I wanted to see if Ian Mortimer could prove it.

Highly detailed and clearly written - although Mortimer does have a weird habit of never referring to events by their relative distance in time from one another, so you constantly have to check when the hell you are. This is definitely a biography, not a work of history - you follow Edward through his life in sequence, with very little connection to things happening elsewhere which do not involve him directly (with the occasional exception of his three eldest sons), which can leave the narrative feeling a little isolated from events.

My biggest problem with the book is that it dips far too often into hagiography. The title is explained away early on as deriving from prophetic expectations of the young Edward, expectations he felt he had to live up to, but then Mortimer goes on to seemingly try to prove the thesis anyway. Edward's warmaking, even at its most brutal, is brushed aside as just ‘the way things went back then', despite occasional allusions to contemporary moral outrage, and this trend of making excuses is extended into the king's personal life as well. The final couple of chapters do depart from this, but I found it quite telling that this coincides with Edward's increasing physical infirmity and mental disability, as if the only thing Edward ever did wrong was get old and sick.

In Mortimer's favour, he did convince me that his argument that Edward II survived Berkley Castle in 1327 is plausible, something I had been VERY sceptical of previously. He also treats both Isabella of France and Edward III's mistress Alice Perrers with far more charity than most historians usually deign to give them, falling into the misogynistic stereotypes of the chroniclers they are drawing on. Also, he uses the phrase ‘avarice of capitalism' during one of his rare forays into broader economic history, which wins him points from me.

All in all, worth reading for a detailed, favourable overview of the man Edward III, but lacking in broader context and any sustained critique of the king and his society.

Describing this book as a sequel to American Gods is something of a misnomer. Precisely one character is common to both books, and whilst Compe Anansi is hugely important in the story of Anansi Boys - for obvious reasons - the actual word count dedicated to him is relatively little. Anansi Boys does, however, pick up on some of the same themes as American Gods - the idea of gods and other ancient myths still living in today's world in particular. Whilst this is hardly a USP, being a key trope of modern fantasy, Gaiman does it in a particularly realistic, gritty way which makes his gods so much more alive than many others. The book is amusing throughout, laugh-out-loud funny in places, but keeps enough of the dark, mysterious nature of American Gods that I would not consider it a comedy by any means. Overall, a fantastic read - I could hardly put it down.

Phenomenal. Having started and never finished this two years ago, I finally took the time to plough through it in essentially three sittings over the course of a week. So, so good. Both Sir Terry and Neil Gaiman are firm favourites of mine, so it was inevitable I would love it. Still - having not reached this point in my original, abortive attempt - the appearance of a certain, rather thin gentleman who speaks exclusively in capitals was a moment of pure glee.

Overall, this is a must-read for any Pratchett or Gaiman fan, though I would say it trends overall towards the Discworld feel.