EXTRACT: THE CABINET OF LINGUISTIC CURIOSITIES by Paul Anthony Jones

THE CABINET OF LINGUISTIC CURIOSITIES Paul Anthony Jones (www.paulanthonyjones.com) Elliott & Thompson (www.eandtbooks.com) £14.99 auripotent (n.) rich and powerful The Latin word for gold was aurum, which is not only responsible for the chemical symbol for gold, Au, but is today found at the root of a host of suitably golden words. Aurigraphy, for instance, […]

GUEST POST: Cosenza by THOMAS H. COOK

Name: THOMAS H. COOK Author of: TRAGIC SHORES (2017) On Twitter: @thomashcook Thomas H. Cook, an author best known for his crime novels, turns his pen to describing his many travels in his latest book, Tragic Shores, which examines some of the darkest places on the planet. It is available now from Quercus Books priced […]

THE MILLION DOLLAR BLOG TOUR by Natasha Courtenay-Smith

THE MILLION DOLLAR BLOG Natasha Courtenay-Smith (natashacourtenaysmith.com) Piatkus (www.littlebrown.co.uk) £13.99 This week sees the release of Natasha Courtenay-Smith’s The Million Dollar Blog, a book that looks at the current state of play in the blogging industry and offers advice on how to stand out from the crowd. To celebrate the launch of this essential read […]

UNDYING: A LOVE STORY by Michel Faber

UNDYING: A LOVE STORY Michel Faber (www.michelfaber.com) Canongate (canongate.tv) £12.99 Something of a mini-review today, in order to share a surprise book that I inhaled in a single sitting and feel the strong urge to share it with the world. On 7th July 2014 Michel Faber’s wife, Eva, died of multiple myelomas – cancer of […]

THE EXPEDITION: A LOVE STORY by Bea Uusma

THE EXPEDITION: A LOVE STORY Bea Uusma Translated by Agnes Broomé Head of Zeus (headofzeus.com) £16.99 On 11th July 1897, three men – Salomon August Andrée, Nils Strindberg and Knut Frænkel – set off from the northernmost point of civilisation in a hot air balloon. Their destination: the North Pole. Three days later they are […]

Hospital Reading Round-up, or: A Letter of Apology

Dear Reader, I hope you will forgive this break from the usual straightforward literary(?) criticism for this personal note to explain the relative quiet at Reader Dad of late, and to apologise to authors, publishers, publicists and potential readers for the lack of reviews written and published on the site since mid-February. Anyone who follows […]

BEAUTY AND THE INFERNO by Roberto Saviano

BEAUTY AND THE INFERNO Roberto Saviano (www.robertosaviano.it) Translated by Oonagh Stransky MacLehose Press (www.maclehosepress.com) £16.99 If, like me, you’ve gone all this time not knowing who Roberto Saviano is, here’s the nutshell version: in 2006 Roberto Saviano, an Italian journalist living and working in Naples, Italy, published Gomorrah. Part journalism, part literary novel, it details […]