non-fiction

Weekly Wrap-Up (November 17)

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Miserable, miserable week. Cold and dark and wet and blah. Is it Spring yet?

Nothing much else to report. The other half is coming up to the busiest time of year at his job which means long, long hours and lots of alone time for me. And apparently the people in my life have simultaneously decided that three weeks is way more than enough time to spend grieving over the loss of your pet and it’s time to start socialising again. Double blah. So that’s what I’ll be doing this afternoon. With the in-laws. I feel like I’m being punished for something 😂

Reading-wise, you know, I didn’t have such a bad week. Buddy reading is such a great way to keep me motivated because I’m apparently incredibly competitive (who knew?!) and I get a kick out of reaching the checkpoints first. I even wrote a review but Netgalley screwed me over by saying the book I reviewed was published in October when it’s not actually coming until late December. 🙄

So, which books left the TBR pile this week?

| BOOKS I READ THIS WEEK |

Okay, four isn’t all THAT impressive but I’ll take it. I thought about reviewing The Outsider but to be honest, my buddy (reader) Janel did a much better job than I ever could so have a look at her thoughts right here. Furious Hours was unfortunately a huge disappointment and went right onto the charity pile. Non-fiction and I, let’s just say it’s not exactly a match made in heaven. 😂. Keep your eyes pealed for the new Jo Spain, coming early next year. It’s a goodie! As is The Guardians, which I may attempt to review next week.

| BOOKS I BOUGHT THIS WEEK |

I had pre-ordered this months ago. It’s so incredibly pretty! With the jacket on, with the jacket off … gorgeous 🥰

| THE BOOK I’M CURRENTLY READING |

This book …. I mean, I’ve only read about 100 pages but if things keep going as they are, it may just kill me.

| LISTENING TO |

Yep. Still the same audiobook. Granted, it’s really long (have I mentioned that? 🤣) and I since I was actually reading, I didn’t have much time to listen to this one but I’m still only at 43%! Good though, really really good!

Which leads me nicely into some things I’ve been thinking about lately regarding this here blog of mine. Saying “no” to blog tours has been a lot easier than I expected and this in turn is freeing up lots of time to spend on my own TBR. A TBR that holds quite a few classics. Some of which I’m sure I read some time in the dark ages but don’t remember anything about, some that have just been sitting pretty on my shelves since the day I bought them. I think the time has come to tackle them and I fully intend to read at least one of them each month, starting in January. Think The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wuthering Heights, Great Expectations, Tess of the D’Urbervilles and many more. I’m ridiculously excited about this. Plus, it’ll give me a chance to step away from the new and shiny books from time to time, which quite frankly, in my most humble opinion, are beginning to sound a lot alike lately. As if people have run out of inspiration. Or maybe I’m just reading the wrong books 🤔

Also coming up in the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing my favourite stand-alone books of the year and my favourite additions to series. As soon as I can make sense of my messy lists, that is. I may actually be able to get it down to a Top 10 this year. Maybe.

Right, that’s enough babble for this week. Time for some lunch and to mentally prepare myself for the arrival of the in-laws. Hope there’s wine. 😂

Wishing you all a fabulous week! Until next time! xx

Weekly Wrap-Up (September 1)

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HOW IS IT SEPTEMBER???????

The third heatwave of the year hit our shores this past week and while I absolutely love sunshine and heat, I reached a point where I’d just had enough. I assume that’s mostly due to the immense sleep deprivation that is haunting me because the dog will still not sleep where she’s been sleeping for the past 11 years. So I’ve been grabbing an hour here and thirty minutes there on the sofa while she’s snoring and dreaming up a storm right next to me. I had hoped the cooler temperatures would change that but sadly not and we are now left to think there is something else going on and unfortunately that can never be good news. We will see tomorrow what the vet says.

The other half’s annual vacation starts today so we have officially kicked off our Italy countdown. This time next week, …. erm, well, it looks like I might be stuck indoors with a book because the weather forecast is absolutely atrocious. My current holiday TBR pile stands at 8. I hope that’ll be enough. There are some chunky ones in there, like three books in the Shardlake series I still have to read.

Reading-wise, things are going fabulously! Reviewing however, is another matter. It seems to be in holiday mode already. I have one review left to write for my 20 Books of Summer Challenge, which is of course great. But I actually could have been finished last week because I’ve read more than 20. I just couldn’t be bothered to review them 🤣

So, which books made it off the shelves this week?

| BOOKS I READ THIS WEEK |

Still feeling rather accomplished about finishing a non-fiction book for the first time ever. It’s been a great reading week, for sure!

| BOOKS I BOUGHT THIS WEEK |

Oops. I think I might need to start applying reverse psychology on myself because the whole “I’m not buying anymore books” thing is obviously not working. 😳

| ON THE BLOG THIS PAST WEEK |

Monday : Joined the blog tour for Dead Inside by Noelle Holten

Tuesday : nothingnesses

Wednesday : Shared my review for The Trial of Lizzie Borden by Cara Robertson

Thursday : also nothing

Friday : nothing to see here either

Saturday : Reviewed Rewind by Catherine Ryan Howard

Sunday : Weekly Wrap-Up

The fruits of my conscious effort to slow down are most definitely starting to pay off 😂

| NEXT WEEK ON NOVEL DEELIGHTS |

Monday : Review | Little Darlings by Melanie Golding

Tuesday : Probably nothing

Wednesday : This Week in Books

Thursday : Nothing

Friday : Also nothing

Saturday : Most definitely nothing

Sunday : Nada, zilch

I don’t know about you but I’m awfully excited about next week’s posts 😂

My Weekly Wrap-Up will return at the end of the month, which shall then be called the Monthly Wrap-Up. Hopefully I’ll have something to say about books because that didn’t go so well last year. I read 2 books on holiday, the lowest amount ever. Still don’t get how that happened.

And that’s a wrap! I’ll still be around until Friday but after that, I’m considering a total social media break and my blog will most likely gather dust. I may even leave the laptop at home. Oooh, controversial decision! 🤣

Wishing you all a fabulous week and lots of happy reading! Until next time! xx

The Trial of Lizzie Borden by Cara Robertson | #20BooksOfSummer

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Author : Cara Robertson
Title : The Trial of Lizzie Borden
Pages : 375
Publisher : Simon & Schuster
Publication date : March 12, 2019

| ABOUT THE BOOK |

When Andrew and Abby Borden were brutally hacked to death in Fall River, Massachusetts, in August of 1892, the arrest of the couple’s daughter Lizzie turned the case into international news and her trial into a spectacle unparalleled in American history. Reporters flocked to the scene. Well-known columnists took up conspicuous seats in the courtroom. The defendant was relentlessly scrutinized for signs of guilt or innocence. Everyone—rich and poor, suffragists and social conservatives, legal scholars and laypeople—had an opinion about Lizzie Borden’s guilt or innocence.

The popular fascination with the Borden murders and its central, enigmatic character has endured for more than a hundred years, but the legend often outstrips the story. Based on transcripts of the Borden legal proceedings, contemporary newspaper articles, previously withheld lawyer’s journals, unpublished local reports, and recently unearthed letters from Lizzie herself, The Trial of Lizzie Borden is a definitive account of the Borden murder case and offers a window into America in the Gilded Age, showcasing its most deeply held convictions and its most troubling social anxieties. 

| MY THOUGHTS |

Lizzie Borden. A name that went down in history but for all the wrong reasons. I didn’t know anything about her, apart from why her name is so well known and I feel that served me really well when reading this account of her trial as I had no idea of the outcome.

August, 1892. Andrew Borden and his second wife, Abby, are found brutally murdered at their home. With only two people at the house around the time of the murders, suspicion quickly falls onto Andrew’s youngest daughter, Lizzie. With a well to-do family and two gruesome murders in a small town, it’s easy to see why this case was such a big deal in its day and also why it still appeals to people around the world today.

It’s obvious from the start that author Cara Robertson has done her research. Using transcripts and reporter’s notes throughout, I almost felt like I was right there, especially during the trial itself. It was like being a member of the jury, getting all the information and being allowed the opportunity to decide for myself which side of the fence I would land on. There are photos of the victims for instance, plans of the layout of the house and the street it was located in and I scrutinised them all like an amateur detective, ruling theories out left, right and centre and coming to my own conclusion.

Admittedly, it wasn’t all exciting. There is a part in the middle, dealing with the trial mostly from the prosecutor’s side, that dragged a little too much for me. However, I assumed the actual jury members probably felt the same way so that seemed rather apt to me. On top of that, there was a huge amount of rolling the eyes and facepalming, particularly about the way women and their actions were described. That “hysterical” label for instance, but also how all women apparently turn into some kind of demon when on their “monthlies”.

I’ve not had the best results with non-fiction in the past but The Trial of Lizzie Borden really held my attention, apart from that dip in the middle. Based on the information at hand, the jury members reached the right conclusion but the question remains. Was Lizzie guilty or not? I’ve made up my mind.

The Trial of Lizzie Borden is available to buy!

Affiliate link : Bookdepository
Other retailers : Amazon US | Amazon UK | Kobo

Book 18 from my 20 Books of Summer list.

Not Your Average Nurse by Maggie Groff @RosieMargesson @TransworldBooks #blogtour

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4*

aboutthebook

“Over time, I nursed victims of war, the posh, the poor, the famous and the infamous… Oh, the stories I can tell!”

To a young girl the life of a nurse sounds exciting, but with long hours and short shrift it’s never easy. So when Maggie Groff embarks on her training at London’s King’s College Hospital she must quickly get to grips with a demanding career. It’s sink or swim.

From the watchful gaze of stern sisters and the trials of nursing on a poor south-east London housing estate, to the explosive dramas of staff health checks at sophisticated Selfridges, Maggie shares warm and witty stories of mistakes and mayhem, tea and sympathy, and the life-affirming moments that make it all worthwhile.

Played out against the march of feminism and fashion, IRA bombings and the iconic music and movies of almost half a century ago, Not Your Average Nurse is a delightful romp through time.

mythoughts

When I was offered the chance to be on the blog tour for Maggie Groff’s Not Your Average Nurse, I was slightly hesitant. I don’t normally read memoirs, autobiographies, true stories, whatever they’re called. I tend to find them stuffy or some kind of promotional tool for those who think they’ve accomplished I-don’t-know-what when really, most of the time they are just lucky to have been born pretty.

However, in the spirit of this whole broadening my horizon journey I’ve embarked on, I quite happily agreed to read this true story of a student nurse in the 1970’s. And when the very first page already made me chuckle, I felt confident I had made the right decision.

Not Your Average Nurse is a realistic account of life in the 70’s. A time when a woman lost her job when she got married because having a husband and children was still supposed to be her only ambition in life. But Maggie wanted something else completely and set off to London to train to become a nurse. Of course things don’t always go exactly how she wants them to and it’s not all roses and sunshine. But her decision would take her to numerous places around the world and enable her to have a very fulfilling career.

This story has a little bit of everything. Great friendships, finding love and losing it, celebrity encounters, plenty of chuckles but it also highlights the plight of the poor, the elderly and even the Aboriginals. Maggie’s travels take her from England to Switzerland to Australia, constantly needing to adjust to new ways of doing things. Don’t be put off by the title if you’re of the squeamish sort, by the way. There’s really none of that here.

I thoroughly enjoyed Maggie’s recollections about her training days at King’s College Hospital and I found this true story to be a fascinating and entertaining read. Maggie is an excellent and witty storyteller and I would definitely recommend this book, if only to see how different things were back in the day, as a woman and a nurse.

Many thanks to Rosie Margesson and Transworld Books for inviting me on the tour and for my advanced copy!

Not Your Average Nurse will be published on May 18th.

Amazon US – Amazon UK – Goodreads

abouttheauthor

Maggie Groff is a multi-award-winning novelist, columnist and non-fiction writer living and working in Australia. She is the author of two non-fiction books: the best-selling Mothers Behaving Badly (1999) which showcased her hilarious experiences as a mother, and Hoax Cuisine (2001) which garnered a loyal following and led to a regular column in Fairfax weekend newspapers.

Her first novel Mad Men, Bad Girls (originally titled Mad Men, Bad Girls and the Guerilla Knitters Institute) was published in 2012 and received rave reviews. It was nominated for the Ned Kelly Award and went on to win both Australian Sisters in Crime 13th Davitt Awards for crime fiction – Best First Fiction and Best Adult Novel. Her second novel Good News, Bad News was also published to high acclaim and voted one of the top fifty books you can’t put down in the 2013 Australian Get Reading Campaign. Both novels have been published internationally.

Maggie’s latest book Not Your Average Nurse is a memoir of her richly-varied career working as a nurse at some of the world’s most iconic locations. Publication date is May 2017 in the UK and Australia.