Books of the Week

Today's recommendations are linked to this week's celebration of LGBT+ History.  

A Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh by John Lahr
Recommended by Mr Harris

I don’t read much non-fiction (life is too short), and I confess to not having read all of this, but that which I have read is excellent. An enthralling, if not punishingly lengthy, biography of the great Tennessee Williams. I’d recommend downloading this as an ebook; the hard copy has caused irredeemable damage to my spine having been lugged around in my backpack. 

8th Form Book Club: The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Theo Frankel

This week marked the very first session of the English Department's new  Eighth Form Book Club. Having been postponed from the week before as everyone forgot to read the book over Christmas, the ten of us, joined by Mr Gardner, Dr Pryce and Miss Warner, met to discuss our opinions of Sylvia Plath's semi-autobiography (or perhaps work of fiction, as I'll get onto later) The Bell Jar.

Poems of the Week

In honour of yesterday - Blue Monday, allegedly the most depressing day of the year - our first post of 2024 celebrates (if that is the right word) the morose, misanthropic, melancholic and often downright downbeat Philip Larkin.  

Philip Larkin (photo: Rogers/RBO)

4C have been studying Larkin's poetry, and capturing his bleak vision and disenchanted voice beautifully in their own writing. Many thanks to Mr Harris for curating their contributions.