Lessons in Love from Jane Austen

Miss McLaughlin

TEN ways to get a girl by Mr Knightley, Mr Bingley and Mr Darcy

plus 

FIVE ways to lose one, by Mr Willoughby, Mr Wickham, Mr Crawford, Mr Collins and Mr Darcy

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Jane Austen is one of the greatest - and best loved - writers in the literary canon. In the year which marks the bicentenary of her death, this month sees the introduction of the new plastic £10 note with Jane Austen replacing Charles Darwin after 17 years on our legal tender. Collectors are on the look out for low serial numbered notes (the first three presented to the Queen, Prince Philip and Teresa May respectively) and other significant Austen dates. So, before you hand over your tenner, make sure you take a glance to check if you have Jane Austen’s birthday, 16 12 1775, or her death 18 07 1817.

The picture of Austen is accompanied by the line 'I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!' Although the sentiment on face value seems fitting, those amongst you who are familiar with the novel might question its suitability given that Miss Bingley, having just made this declaration, promptly ‘yawned’ and ‘threw aside her book’. Perhaps, you might suggest, her attraction is more to the wealth which would have been necessary to possess the desired ‘excellent library’ than for the wealth to be found within the books themselves. And didn’t Darcy have a very wonderful library…?

Book of the Week

Post Office by Charles Bukowski
Recommended by Rufus Law 

If you were to merely scratch the surface of this novel it would be hard to criticise you for thinking it was a shallow story of an even shallower man.

It’s a bitterly amusing tale of a particularly hedonistic character as he goes through the ups and downs of life, wealth and poverty and countless encounters with the fairer sex, meanwhile managing to maintain a varying state of intoxication. But underneath the meaningless sex and constant boozing is a depressing sadness and loneliness as the reader watches the antihero, Henry Chinaski, pass years of his life without making any meaningful relationships, while falling deeper and deeper into a destructive partnership with alcohol.

What I Read On My Holidays

Mr Kemp

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men by David Foster Wallace. 

Some sensational writing. Stories not entirely captivating: the relentless paranoid energy wears after a while. Not a beach read. Game playing gets dull.

Book of the Week

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Recommended by Louis Wilson

Thrown into prison on a remote island for a crime he did not commit, Edmond Dantes gives up all hope of ever returning to civilisation.  However, when he hears from an old man of a legendary treasure buried on the island of Monte Cristo, he can think of nothing but escaping, finding the nonpareil treasure and taking terrible revenge on those who put him in penitentiary.

The Booker Shortlist is out. Read them all as soon as you can.

The shortlist for the Man Booker Prize 2017 has been announced, and it is already causing controversy.  There were some high-profile casualties: Zadie Smith's Swing Time fell by the wayside, as did Jon McGregor's subtle take on the mystery genre, Reservoir 13; the bookmakers' favourite, the much-heralded Underground Railroad was also rejected, causing a chief bookseller at Waterstones to describe it as one of the "greatest shocks" that he had witnessed in his lifetime.

Last year the prize was won by an American: Paul Beatty for his daring novel The Sellout; now, there are three more Americans on the list.  Was the Booker right to open the prize up to worldwide writers and the seeming dominance of American fiction, which has plenty of its own prizes?  Why don't you read '4321' (Paul Auster), Lincoln in the Bardo (George Saunders) and History of Wolves (Emily Fridlund) to find out? They will offer you some playful narration, multiple selves, a period in a limbo state between this world and the next, an experience of growing up in a failing religious cult, and much more.

Or why not try the work of a debut British novelist, 29-year-old Fiona Mozley who wrote Elmet on her phone during her daily commute?  Moshin Hamid is back after the success of The Reluctant Fundamentalist with his new novel, Exit West, and the celebrated Ali Smith (in the running for the fourth time) completes the line-up with her post-Brexit novel, Autumn.


You'll find them in the library, so why not check one out today? If you're someone who likes to add hardbacks to your book collection at bargain prices, why not check out The Book People's annual Booker Shortlist offer where they give you all six books for about £40?

The winner will be announced on October 17, just in time for you to spend the October Remedy deciding whether the judges got it right.

Book of the Week

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Recommended by William Shackleton

And Then There Were None is another in a long line of murder mysteries by author Agatha Christie. Ten people receive letters from a U. N. Owen inviting them to stay a few days on Soldier Island, a small island several miles off the Devon coast. Throughout their stay, one by one the guest on the island start dying. It is soon realised that the murderer is one of the guests.

Five Books about Apes

Miss McLaren

Today’s post is one of our occasional ‘fist of five’ series, looking at five books on a related theme.

Today, to mark this summer’s conclusion (or not) of this author’s favourite movie franchise, it’s books about apes.  Curious George does not feature ... *

Book of the Week

Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
Recommended by Knut Wiwen-Nilsson

Shoe Dog, written by Phil Knight (CEO of Nike), documents his creation of the multi-billion dollar company, which has recently surpassed $30 billion in sales, and whose poignant 'swoosh' logo is universally recognised.

The book takes the reader through the hectic, perilous and distressing journey that Knight underwent, and refreshingly gives no indication of prognostic success. From the early days of Blue Ribbon (his initial company which consisted of selling individual pairs of shoes manually) to the global domination of Nike, Knight describes his journey honestly and exceptionally well, considering he is an obsessive businessman, not a writer.

Welcome Back!

For those of you new to the school, today's post is an introduction to the book blog - telling you a bit more about what it does, and how you can get involved.

We started the SPS Book Blog back in 2015, as a way of creating a space in the school where people could discuss writers, reading and all things book-related.  The blog publishes reviews, features, and articles, as well as creative writing - including the 8th form creative writing magazine, Areo (click on the magazine name to read the most recent issue).

If you're someone who's interested in writing, or is thinking about journalism, the blog is a place where you can start publishing material and building up a portfolio.