Books Books Books!
Hello
Oh, joy of joys, one of our My Weekly topics this week is books! I absolutely love reading, and being the child of a time before 24-hour TV and smartphones I always had my nose in a book. Enid Blyton’s stories of Darrell Rivers at Malory Towers – every adventure the Secret Seven and Famous Five went on, so did I. Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan were read and re-read. Even my little sister was named Wendy because of my J M Barrie Neverland enthusiasm. Although to be honest I campaigned heavily for Tinkerbell, but Mum, quite rightly, overruled me! I still think Tinkerbell Turner has a ring to it though. So embedded is this era of books in my psyche that to this day, when asked for my favourite book of all time, outcomes C S Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
My lust for reading has continued over the years and I adore recommending and gifting books to friends. So here are a few of my favourites from me to you… Behind the Scenes at The Museum by Kate Atkinson. It won Whitbread Book of the year. The main character is Ruby Lennox who we are introduced to from her mother’s womb as she hears the arguments of her parents and knows she’s being born into the wrong life. The wrong life is a narrative knitted throughout the book as we meet Ruby’s female ancestors, many who put up, shut up and drifted into old.
My current book I’d like to recommend is by a friend of mine, Janet Ellis. Janet was the 13th presenter of Blue Peter and I was the 20th, so we’re like family. When she brought out her first book The Butcher’s Hook, to be honest, I bought it out of loyalty and took it on a trip with another in case I didn’t like it. The other one never got opened. This prize-winning book set in 18th Century London is the story of a girl shackled by her family but with her own ideas on how she wants to live her life. I currently have my nose in Janet’s second book, How It Was and I promise you it’s equally as compelling as her first. I can’t put it down!
Finally, before I run out of space, the other great use for books is to prop up your laptop at the right height for Facetime or Zoom! Mine takes three coffee table books to make me center of the screen and ready for my audience. Don’t forget to clean your camera, and face the best light in the room which is normally a window… or a ring light from Amazon does the trick. Oh, and make sure you have your best books on display on the bookshelf behind you of course!
Love Anthea x
Article originally from My Weekly!