Have just finished Gombrich’s A Little History of the World under the Barbadian sunshine. What a wonderful book, it puts what you already know in an order and explains, in literally child’s talk who, what and why. For lil history geeks like us it’s pretty much the perfect read. Interestingly, I did wish for more British references, as Gombrich predicts in the preface. Basically, it’s a German’s children’s book from the 1930s translated into English recently, and adapted for a British audience. I REALLY found the WWI interesting at the end, the Chivalry, too. Also loved that the chapters of this book are bus - journey sized, so no excuse not to read it (unless you get car sick like L.J!)

Onto Doris Lessing’s The Glden Notebook. About a female ex communist writer in 1950s London with writers block. Struggling with her place as a ‘free woman’ (single with children), the notion that an artist writes out of the incapacity to live, and that “the artist justifies everything, everything he does is justified” This is going to be a good one. Love a bit of tormented artist Girl Power. And what a setting to read it in! ahhh.

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