Still Life with Woodpecker Novel (Tom Robbins)

Tom Robbins
Still Life with Woodpecker

I won't bother with the usual cover as this is just a note to remind myself not to read Tom's books. I know that many like this style but after a few pages I guessed that this would be a fantasy type story (including the usual male sexual fantasy) with unlikeable or unrealistic characters and misogynistic descriptions of women under the guise of sexual liberation. Don't often put books down but life is too short to wade through stories that you are not enjoying. Having said all that he is a well known respected author so I'll pass the book to Oxfam as someone may enjoy it. A pubescent teenager. Possibly.

Revolution: The Rise of Arteta's Arsenal (Charles Watts)

Charles Watts
Revolution: The Rise of Arteta's Arsenal

An in depth account of Arsenal since Arteta's appointment as manager coming into the role after the debacle of Emery in 2019. Shows his single mindedness to bring Arsenal back together as a club (team, owners, staff, fans) and how he has achieved that. This edition stops at the end of the 23/24 season and whilst The Arsenal have been much improved they are still yet to win the Premiership although Arteta (and the author) are certain that they will do so soon. And of course we did win it this season and lose out, just, on the Champions League. An interesting read I think whether you are a Gooner or not. It certainly brought back to me the darker times during and just after the corona suppression when even I was wavering as to whether Arteta was up to the job but I was not someone who wanted him out mainly because we are a club that stands by managers with long term potential. Up The Arsenal!

Walk the Blue Fields (Claire Keegan)

Claire Keegan
Walk the Blue Fields

I've loved Claire's previous books that I've read and I think both I finished in a day. This has taken a little longer as it's a series of short stories. They are brilliantly written with great characterisation. All are fairly dark or at the very least fairly strange. The last has a surreal ending. That's the point maybe... they are modern fairy tales bordering reality and another world. Well worth reading.