Near The Exit - Lori Erickson

I read this small book sitting in the library on a cold winter afternoon.  Lori Erickson talks about her experiences of losing her brother, and moving her mother to a local dementia care unit, while exploring her experiences with death and dying in different cultures and in her experiences as a pastor.  I was especially moved by the small chapter on dealing with a Maori spiritual leader on a trip to New Zealand.  3/5
 

Mudlarking - Lara Maiklem

 Lara Maiklem spends a lot of her spare time looking at the foreshore of the River Thames, looking for the debris and treasures washed up from years ago.  A book that made me smile as I read it, as it had that magic of intertwining the story of the author with history about London and the river it surrounds.  Having lived in London I could picture many of the sites she talked about, and can only imagine how smelly and filthy a hobby it must actually be, but I can imagine how compelling it is to search for pipes, toys, coins and treasure. 4/5

I Want You To Know We're Still Here - Esther Safran Foer

 The author of this non fiction book Esther grew up in a home where both parents were sole survivors of the Holocaust and it is not until she is older, that her mother mentions that her father had a wife and child before they were married.  So she travels to Europe with a photograph and map, hoping to find out what happened to her parents family.

I could not help but feel sad for the author and her family reading this book, that if only the search had happened 20-30 years earlier when more survivors were around who would have known her families.  Now the family connections have been lost over the years it is more difficult for her to trace names and places when homes and villages were destroyed and lost.  Still it is a compelling journey and I hope one that has given her some peace. 4/5

Naturally Tan - Tan France

This is a light and easily readible memoir from Queer Eye member Tan France.  Originally from the UK, and growing up in a Pakistani Muslim family, Tan has to deal with lots of prejudice growing up.  He has worked hard and become incredibly successful prior to auditioning for the popular TV show.  I came away from the book liking him more and understanding more about him. 4/5

Between the Stops - Sandi Toksvig

This is one of those books that surprised me in how much I enjoyed it.  It is a memoir written by Sandi Toksvig, a Danish/English Comedian and broadcaster/entertainer.  She does manage to successfully combine her own stories, with tales about London, mainly focused on her journeys on the number 12 bus.  I was so charmed about these snippets about a city I like so much. 5/5

My Name Is Why - Lemn Sissay

My only knowledge about poet Lemn Sissay was hearing him on BBC Desert Island Discs a year or so ago.  In this memoir, he writes about his life as a child.  Given up for adoption, he first lives in a home with a family and then in group homes.  It truly is heartbreaking, and his poetry at the beginning of each chapter is short but moving.  I thought about this book long after I read it, about the author and the generation of children who were given up for adoption, and the mothers who felt they had no choice but to give up their children.  5/5

Rifleman - Victor Gregg

Victor Gregg has written this autobiography about his extraordinary life.   Born in 1919 he enlisted to serve at the beginning of WWII.  It is these stories that are amazing without glorifying war or turning into a boys own adventure, it was for me the loss of friends and fellow soldiers that were memorable.  From African desserts to training as a paratrooper, from sailing to South Africa to escape from a POW camp it is one of those stories that you would not believe if it were a novel. 

I had heard Victor Gregg talk on History Hits about his experience in the Dresden Bombing in 1945.  It is harrowing stuff, and an experience that he spends time speaking about even at 100 years old.  The chapters talking about Dresden should be read by everyone. 4/5

Lady In Waiting - Anne Glenconner

This is one of those biographies that if it was written as a fiction novel, I would have to say that I would think it had an unbelievable plot.  Born as the eldest child of an Early from an early age, Anne Glenconner was a maid of honour at the Queens coronation, and a lady in waiting to Princess Margaret. 

I liked that even though there were some stories of royals, this is not a snobby name dropping book, but it mainly centers around her marriage to her difficult odd husband and their life, with children on the island of Mustique.  5/5

To Love and Let Go - Rachel Brathen

I had never heard of Yoga Girl, Rachel Brathen before I picked up this book.  It is a memoir from Rachel Brathen, who is an influencer and Yoga guru, popular around the world.  She tells us about her journey , and a lot about her friend Andrea and her relationship that turns to marriage with Dennis.  I did enjoy her exploration about friendship, love and grief, I am just not sure how much a fan I am of the dancing in the jungle, beads and mushrooms side of the story.  3/5.

Breaking & Mending - Joanna Cannon

I like a good medical memoir, and Joanna Cannon writes a compelling story.  I liked that she started medical school in her 30s and was a "wild card" pick for her position.  As always there are nice stories about patients but it is the power of the personal experience that draws you in.  How close she came to burning out completely, how doctors working long hours in stressful circumstances with little to no support are often themselves worn out and tired, when we need them to be in top form when they are looking after us or our loved ones.  4/5

Brother & Sister - Diane Keaton

This short book feels like an extended part of a memoir telling the story of Diane Keaton and her relationship with her younger brother Randy.  As soon as Diane started talking about how Randy was when he was younger of not being particularly social, being disturbed by planes it made me wonder if he was autistic?  Although they were two years apart in age, the only time they seemed close was when they were young and sharing a room together, and as they grew older they grew more and more apart with separate lives.

This felt like a very brave book, as Diane describes her brothers struggles with alcohol and depression, especially as he is still alive, but living in a care home.  I found it quite confronting when her and her sisters were a bit pushy and  forced him to go ahead with a liver transplant, when the doctors were aware that he was unlikely to give up drinking or be compliant with his medication.  In the end I think the book is a story about loving someone when the loving isn't easy, when they aren't easy to love, but looking after them and loving them for all of their faults.  4/5

Dear Life - Rachel Clarke

There has been a flurry of medical memoirs recently, a genre I am always drawn too.  This one by Rachel Clarke, a Palliative Care Consultant is one of the better ones.  She weaves in stories about her practice, her medical training and her own personal stories in a way that carry the stories forward, and brought me to tears by the end. 

We have lots of shows and books that talk about birth and pregnancy, but there is little to help us prepare for the death of family and friends, and our own demise.   That is where books like this shine a light on a part of life that was familiar to our own grandparents and  ancestors, but has become a bit taboo in recent years.  I think my own experience with losing both of my parents would have been less scary and traumatic, had I had some information and preparation before the event. 5/5

Pale Rider - Laura Spinney

I guess in the time of virus it is the right time to read about the flu that wrecked havoc around the world in 1918.  Called the Spanish Flu, it spread around the world and killed approximately 50-100 million people, which is horrific.  It is horrid to read that this disease killed mainly young people and it killed them quick.  In a time before antibiotics and modern medicine people were often stricken down with the flu quickly and dead within days and some in hours after becoming sick.

I felt like I should have walked away from reading this book with great insights into the virus we are dealing with today, but I wasn't stunned, as many of the facts I knew before I started reading.  Still if there is a time to read this book it is now. 4/5

Motherwell - Deborah Orr

I think I will think about this book for some time as it resonates with me in all kinds of ways.  The author talks about her childhood, growing up in a small Scottish housing estate through to her mid twenties, with small tidbits about her marriage thrown in.   Being from a similar vintage as her, the cultural references made sense to me, and that feeling of wanting to get away from home at 18, heading off to University and trying to have a relationship with your parents as an adult.  Also the references to the Bureau - that piece of furniture that seemed to be in all our parents houses, holding all the important papers that you were never allowed to ferret around in or look at, yet once our parents have died you find yourself in all the bits of paper artifacts in its drawers and nooks and crannies.

I felt for her, that even when she was an adult living her own life, her mother still used every opportunity to disapprove of her choices and that you are left with the impression that she never felt particularly loved.   Sad too, that not long after the book was published she herself died of breast cancer, and never got to see the relationship from a greater distance of time, when she may have been more forgiving of her parents behavior. 5/5

Me - Elton John

I was a little surprised how much I liked this autobiography, as I wasn't expecting it to be so amusing and such an interesting read.  I guess over the years I have read bits about Elton Johns life, and knew that he didn't have a great relationship with his mother, but I didn't understand how hard and lonely a lot of his childhood was. 

You do have to admire his talent and success are a result of his hard work, but boy he seemed to have a wild ride along the way.  He doesn't hold back in this book in talking about his drug use,suicide attempts and sex life and I enjoyed his honesty.  It is so nice to know that after years of feeling unloved he has found love with his husband and sons. 

The best bit though of the book I think is that the tone of it sounds just like he is sitting on the couch next to you having a bit of a bitchy catch up, and I felt like I could have read on for longer. 5/5

Angels At My Fingertips - Lorna Byrne

I am not sure what to write here, as I have read this book with a lot of skepticism.  Since a young child Lorna Byrne has been able to see angels surrounding people, and her own guardian angel, as well as others that visit to guide us.  She tells us about our own guardian angel, that is with us everywhere helping and protecting us.

I like the thought of my own bodyguard,  and that as people die that their angels are there to wrap their wings around us and help guide us as we die.  More than that I am not sure I am enough of a believer to fully get everything she writes about.  3/5

The Sun and Her Flowers - Rupi Kaur

I wanted to be all millennial and be able to enjoy some new poetry as I do my yoga on a cliff, but its just not for me.  I've had a couple of periods in my life when I have read some poetry books, but it never sticks with me and I have figured out that I will never be able to quote some wistful words and am best to stick to my usual fiction and non fiction tomes. 2/5

Simple - Diana Henry

I got this one out from the library, and while the pictures make the food look tasty and I would not eating some of it, I did not feel like it was food I would cook.  Really, it wasn't simple for me.  I am unlikely to buy pomegranates and figs and found it mostly a bit  too fancy and expensive for my tastes and budget. 2/5

Wham! George & Me - Andrew Ridgeley

I was just a teenager myself when the short shorts of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley bounced onto our tv screens.  It was always a bit cheesy but I bopped along like the rest of my friends.  I may have ogled their pictures in the teen magazines, but I was unaware of their stories - of them meeting as young teenagers at school and becoming best friends.  I never quite realized how young they were when they found fame and were making us sing along to Club Tropicana and Wake Me Up Before You Gogo.

I liked this book, it was easy to read and not dragged down by lots of boring facts, but rather follows their stories in a light and breezy way.  I am sure the author is holding back lots of juicy stories, they must have had their fair share of parties and silliness, but I liked that it has some restraint.  4/5

Till the Cows Come Home - Sara Cox

Sara Cox is a UK radio/televison personality who has written this memoir about her childhood, spent mainly growing up as the youngest of five kids on her fathers farm, then later teenage years with her mother and stepfather  at the pubs they ran.   I enjoyed her stories, they brought back memories of the top of childhood I had, of being able to race round doing your own thing with no helicopter parenting.  4/5