tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18717054129538575302024-02-02T10:32:53.961-08:00Yet another blog for meNot photography or transport/planning - that's done elsewhere. Other stuffStephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.comBlogger481125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-60738434656570970072020-05-22T09:27:00.000-07:002020-05-22T11:28:50.024-07:00Book Review: Seven Lies by Elizabeth KayThis is my first post on this blog for 2020. I thought perhaps I would not need this blog again but it turns out that when <a href="https://www.netgalley.com/" target="_blank">NetGalley</a> offers a book that you really want to read, it seemed necessary to write the review here rather than on their web site - which of course is where it is going to be copied once I finish this. Probably without this paragraph.<br />
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This next paragraph is from the NetGalley page and is the reason why I requested the book. My review will not contain any spoilers but you should at least know as much as I did going in<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 14px;">Growing up, Jane and Marnie shared everything. They knew the other's deepest secrets. They wouldn't have had it any other way. But when Marnie falls in love, things begin to change. Because Jane has a secret: she loathes Marnie's wealthy, priggish husband. So when Marnie asks if she likes him, Jane tells her first lie. After all, even best friends keep some things to themselves. If she had been honest, then perhaps her best friend's husband might still be alive today... For, of course, it's not the last lie. In fact, it's only the beginning... </span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: Raleway-Regular, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; outline: none;">Seven Lies</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 14px;"> is Jane's confession of the truth--her truth. Compelling, sophisticated, chilling, it's a seductive, hypnotic pageturner about the tangled, toxic friendships between women, the dark underbelly of obsession and what we stand to lose in the name of love.</span></i></span><br />
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I hope that the formatting survives since it makes clear where I have copied.<br />
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The description certainly piqued my curiosity. It reminded me of Ruth Rendell, who wrote detective fiction of the whodunnit kind and also psychological "thrillers" as Barbara Vine which were written from the point of view of the killer. And on the whole I preferred the Vine books to the Rendells. And the publishers "blurb" above does give you the understanding that this book is written in the first person as though you were reading a confession.<br />
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The book is set in a familiar part the world. I used to commute to Waterloo Station from the suburbs, so that feels like familiar territory. Though it did seem a bit odd when on one page the narrator refers to "the sidewalk" and elsewhere "the pavement". But maybe that is just an error that slipped through in the galleys that will be picked up. Just like all the rather odd formatting that was in the ebook I read but will also be cleaned up before publication.<br />
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The book does catch hold early on - even when part of my brain was thinking that it was probably aimed at a female audience. But then when you are reading a book written from an unfamiliar point of view there is also the appeal of eavesdropping. And the narrator of the story keeps referring to the intended reader as "you", and I quickly caught on that this is intended to be one of the characters in the novel, not readers in general. No, I am not going to tell you who. Because the direction of the narrative is one of the attactractions. The plot is very satisfactorily twisted and not exactly chronological either. So throughout the eventual outcome does remain unknown and trying to second guess that is one of the hooks that keeps you reading. How is this going to be resolved - if it is resolved.<br />
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It is also something that is intriguing - that some people seem to be far better than I, and others, at maintaining contact with a friend - or friends - from the early part of life. It is also the case that just like everything else, this can also be labelled as a pathology "co-dependence". In fact at times the narrator does seem to be rather adept at labelling the behaviour of others - obsessive compulsive is one. But throughout she has to deal with other people who have anorexia or senile dementia. There are indeed stalkers. And people who ought to sued for libel who seem to get away scot free with their confabulations.<br />
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Yes, you really ought to read this book, and you probably will need to be a bit isolated when you do. Back in the days when we all took long plane trips, this would be good to have on your iPad. Now we are all working from home, there isn't the commute which is where I used to do much of my reading. But this book will be one where you want to find out what happens, and as one other reviewer has already pointed out, you won't be able to predict the ending.<br />
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"Seven Lies" will be published on 16 June 2020 Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-88118083332320724042019-11-22T03:27:00.000-08:002019-11-22T03:27:28.660-08:00Film Review: The IrishmanNow showing at the VanCity Theatre until November 28 and shortly to be available on Netflix.<br />
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It was suggested to us that it would be best to see this movie on the big screen. I cannot say I agree. It runs for three hours with no intermission, but I must say that everyone around us stayed in their seats. There was a long line up for both washrooms afterwards.<br />
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Martin Scorsese directs Robert de Niro, Joe Pesci and Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa. De Niro plays the title character who is a mob hitman. He is only Irish by heritage - he is an American, but not an Italian American. But like a similar character in The Godfather he is accepted because he is a catholic, speaks Italian which he picked up in the war, and respects the mafia system. During the war he became accustomed to shooting people in cold blood - even if they were already prisoners.<br />
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If you have seen mob movies this is one is not very different, except this one liberally interweaves fact and fiction. The banks would not finance casinos in Las Vegas because they were not legal federally, so their promoters turned to the Teamsters pension fund as a source of finance. The film's thesis is that union had already been infiltrated by the mob - as had the political process - in order to sway the electoral process. The mob is also apparently closely tied in to the Kennedy family. Apparently they financed and materially assisted in the Bay of Pigs fiasco because they wanted their Cuban casinos back.<br />
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The movie has plenty of graphic violence, of course. It could also be a brief training course for would be hitmen. But for what it is worth I would suggest that you wait for it on Netflix as nothing I saw required a big screen or surround sound for impact. And anyway these days don't people have both in their homes? That way you won't have to wait three hours for the bathroom break.Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-20265246628840315382019-11-12T12:54:00.000-08:002019-11-12T12:54:15.249-08:00The Great Canadian Cell Phone Rip-offI recently switched carriers - again. This blog has <a href="https://stephenrees.blogspot.com/2010/07/cell-phone-rant.html" target="_blank">covered the faults</a> our <a href="http://stephenrees.blogspot.com/2011/09/windmobile-im-leaving.html" target="_blank">available cell phone</a> <a href="https://stephenrees.blogspot.com/2011/09/mobilicity-teething-troubles.html" target="_blank">options</a> <a href="https://stephenrees.blogspot.com/2011/09/windmobile-saga-continues.html" target="_blank">more than once</a>. (Those links are in chronological order but you don't have to read them - there may be some duplication below.)<br />
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My carrier had been Chatr - which is owned by Rogers. I have been with them since 2011 (when they used be Mobilicity). They are a cheaper option than the big three brands (Rogers, Telus, Bell) but the service is more limited. It is only 3G and coverage is restricted to a "home zone" - roughly equivalent to Metro Vancouver. While usage is not limited in the home zone once you leave it you have to pay more for roaming. This can get very expensive very quickly for the unwary. It is a good idea to check the apps on your phone before you turn on roaming since you have to turn off all of those you positively won't need. You will be surprised about the amount of data that phones use without your knowledge if you skip that step. Chatr's terms of service require that you pay in advance for roaming. If you have not got a positive balance on your account nothing will work when roaming other than 911. The catch is that any money you put on the account is regarded by Rogers (who own Chatr) as theirs, not yours. There are no refunds.<br />
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On Thursday last week, we took a drive up the Sea to Sky highway to Squamish. I wanted to get some stout from Howe Sound Brewing which is not available through my local BC Liquor Store. Roaming charges on my cell phone kicked in around Lion's Bay. (At about the same point where the roadside signs say you have to have snow tires on your car after October 31st. ) When you are outside of the home zone and you have roaming turned on you get text messages from Chatr telling you that. If you leave roaming off on the phone, you don't get those messages because you aren't being charged. Since I had already taken the precaution of shutting down most but not all of my apps I had roaming on. When we got to the brewery it took me a little while to get their wifi password but I did make one post to Instagram. This cost me 3 cents.<br />
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So we had a nice lunch and a leisurely drive back - not bothering to stop at the viewpoints because no one bothers to clear the undergrowth any more and while you can stop, there is no longer a view. It seemed a bit odd that I continued getting texts from Chatr long after I got back to the home zone, but I simply ignored them. </div>
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Though I did send a tweet to @chatr mobile.<br /><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #38444d; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Ubuntu, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", Arial, "ヒラギノ角ゴ Pro W3", "Hiragino Kaku Gothic Pro", メイリオ, Meiryo, "MS Pゴシック", "MS PGothic"; font-size: 17.9999px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I am at home, well within the zone. But I keep getting automated text messages telling me I am roaming!
"You are using services outside a chatr data zone: pay per use charges apply"
What? In the City of Vancouver? At postcode V6L? Really?</span></div>
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I got no reply.<div>
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What really annoyed me was the automated message telling me I was roaming - when I was at home, in bed, fast asleep at 3:45am - with the phone automatically set to silent by iOS.<br /><br />But I did get a reply the next day</div>
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So we went into DM mode and they asked me to fill in an online form. Unfortunately, the speed of the response I got from them was so slow, that I was doing something else by then. By the time I got to actually read the response the time limited form was missing from the link they sent me. And it took a long time before the next service representative (not Anthony) sent me another one.<br /></div>
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In the end it took most of Friday to get the message sent to them - which allowed them access to my account. But I did not get any explanation of why I was getting these bogus messages, merely the assurance that the only roaming charge I had incurred when the 3c in Squamish. I got no apology for the disturbance to my sleep either.<br /></div>
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At one time you could dial 611 and talk to someone. Now, on Chatr, you can't. It simply connects to a computer that tells you your account status. If you use the Chatr app it says that you can contact them any time on chat through Twitter or Facebook. The people who deal with these messages are expected to answer multiple streams of messages at the same time. Since there was an outburst of very old text messages to cell phones that day, they were busy. So the process of getting some response was lengthy. I wasted an entire day and got nowhere.</div>
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My partner uses Freedom Mobile for her cell phone. Freedom is now owned by Shaw: it used to be known as Wind (see above). On occasions when we were both using our phones to get some information I noticed that she got much better service than I did. Freedom offers LTE (4G). At a somewhat higher price, but still cheaper then the big telcos. They also have a store on 4th Avenue near Yew so it was not necessary to fight the chaos of parking at Oakridge Mall, and they are open until 7pm. So I got a new SIM, the same phone number and a much better cell phone service. By curious coincidence I got an offer from Chatr that was almost equivalent in cost and service on Monday - by which time it was too late. </div>
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I also decided to use the dispute mechanism set up by the companies to deal with complaints. This is not the CTRC - a government body - but the "Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS). The CCTS is an independent agency with a mandate to receive, facilitate the resolution of, and, if necessary, resolve eligible customer complaints relating to certain retail telecommunications and retail residential subscription television services."<br /><br /><br /><br />They replied<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; text-size-adjust: auto;">
The scope of the CCTS' mandate is set out on our website:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.ccts-cprst.ca/">http://www.ccts-cprst.ca</a>Unfortunately, this matter is not an eligible complaint within the meaning of our Procedural Code and is therefore not within the scope or mandate of the CCTS.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>We have reviewed your complaint about the refund for unused balance when closing an account with Chatr. It is our assessment that the subject-matter of your complaint relates to policy matters. Further to Section 4.3 of our Procedural Code, the CCTS is not able to issue Recommendations and Decisions that directs or requires a service provider to change their operating practices and policies.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Therefore, the CCTS cannot process your complaint. The Procedural Code can be found at:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/codes-stats-and-reports/procedural-code/">https://www.ccts-cprst.ca/codes-stats-and-reports/procedural-code/<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></a>You may wish to contact your service provider at 1-800-485-9745 as they may be able to assist you with this matter. We have forwarded your complaint to your PSP for their information.</blockquote>
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Since Monday was a holiday (except in ON and QC) it was not until this morning that I got a call from the Presidential office at Rogers wanting to know how much the "refund for unused balance" was. I didn't know the answer off the top of my head (it was actually $39.67) but I told the woman I was speaking to that the point of my complaint was NOT about the money but the principle. I was never offered any apology for the disturbance nor any explanation for the bogus texts. The idea that Rogers would actually notice $40 is laughable. <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/04/18/1806383/0/en/Rogers-Communications-Reports-First-Quarter-2019-Results.html" target="_blank">They made $400m in the first quarter of 2019</a>. I am not too fussed about forty bucks either. I am just angry that I had to put money into that account in order to have the ability to use roaming services at all. So far as I am concerned the odd post to instagram is not why I wanted the ability to make use of my phone outside the home zone. It is because when you are away from home is the time when you are most likely to need information or communication - at a level which does not include 911! It seems to me unconscionable that a company demands payment up front for a near essential service which it turns out I did not need to use, but would not refund it. The fact that Rogers as a corporation would only review that after a formal complaint to CCTS was indicative of their attitude to customer service - like using text messages and chat lines instead of person to person communication - which was why I went elsewhere. I declined to specify what the amount was - though I spoke in generalities about it. What I had wanted was an apology for disturbance and explanation about bogus text messages and I still had neither. And that is when I decided to end the call and she thanked me for my feedback.<br /><br />I would like to say that the opportunity to vent to an official made me feel better but it didn't. I am not sure this is helping much either. But then I seem to have got into the habit of blogging about this sort of thing.<br /><br />And the fact remains that Canada still has the most expensive cell phone service in the world and that is due to a total abdication of responsibility by the federal government and extensive collusion by the reigning three large providers who have managed to swallow up any competitor who enters the market and who have fixed prices to ensure that they all make larger than usual profits at the expense of dismal service levels.<br /><br />My sister, who lives in the UK, brought her cell phone with her when she came to my daughter's wedding in Chicago. She used the plan she had extended for her trip at a fixed price to cover her data roaming needs while in the US for a week. I did not even have to worry about my roaming charges that week - she took care of the travel directions and so forth - at a fraction of what I would have had to pay. And when, some years ago, we visited Italy I bought a SIM card at the airport that was also much cheaper than roaming for a month. Neither of those stratagems ought to be necessary. </div>
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I have signed more than one online petition about getting better cell phone services in Canada. I doubt anyone in Ottawa gives a flying flamingo. (Hat tip to Mr Bercow for that one.) <br /><br /><br /><br /> </div>
Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-62269335138367845192019-08-31T12:58:00.000-07:002019-08-31T12:58:03.063-07:00Book Review: The Economists' Hour by Binyamin Appelbaum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br /><br />Thanks to Netgalley I got offered a pre-publication copy: it comes out on September 3rd so I at least managed to finish reading it in time. I was abit worried I wouldn't since the ebook reader still thinks I'm about halfway through. That is because the second half is all the footnotes. This book is indeed well researched even if it is not academic. The author is not himself an economist but a New York Times editorial writer - and this is his first book. There is no doubt he can write. The text flows along nicely - just as long as you leave the footnotes till later.<br /><br />For me much of the content is very familiar because I lived through all of it. Perhaps not in the front lines but I was certainly impacted and I did follow economic policy very closely. For three years I was actually an Economic Adviser to the British Government, during the Thatcher era, which was the reason I left and came to Canada - where I was surprised to find that Thatcherism followed me here.<br />
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I started doing economics in grammar school and wanted to do it as a joint honours degree - but Nottingham would not agree. So I have a politics degree but spent at least a third of my time studying economics, and specialised in the economics of transport and public sector enterprises. I also went to the London School of Economics so my masters degree is an MSc Econ but in planning studies - which, of course, was a lot of economics too. So much so that that RTPI (the UK Planners Institute) doesn't recognise the qualification because it isn't all about design.<br />
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So it also needs to be understood that there is no Economists Institute - so lots of people can call themselves economists even though they have very little formal economic education but usually some very hard and fast political opinions.<br />
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I wasn't surprised by anything that I read in this book, although it did refresh my memory. And I was not at all as well informed about American economists - even though my Nottingham degree did include American Studies - and some of the names were unfamiliar to me. But the policies, of course, only too familiar.<br /><br />The book can be summarised as setting out the case against unregulated free markets. What we know for a certainty is that the predictions made by people like Milton Friedman have turned out to be wrong. And that should come as no surprise since the Great Crash of 1929 - and all the ones since which got more carefully nuanced titles - was caused by the unregulated market.<br /><br />The last crash was in 2008 - and since then policies have changed a bit, but not nearly enough, and no-one seems to have come up with a generally accepted formula for how markets ought to be regulated - and what should happen to those who break the rules. In the United States no-one of any significance served any kind of sentence - the only trials were of underlings and foot soldiers. The great fear was that of the banksters were punished effectively, the banks would close and a lot of people would lose their jobs, which is not what you want to happen in a depression. It makes matters worse.<br />
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What is missing in this book is the whole area that economics has done so poorly. "Externalities" are things that are very difficult to price, and even harder to police. So, far too often, they get ignored. The result is what we see today - a world which is heating up rapidly, due to human activities, driven by greed and willful ignorance, where not just human civilisation but all life on the planet is now at risk. The collapse of civilisations is nothing new, and we have studied them extensively but refused to heed of the lessons. And the current "winners" are all convinced of their own rightness.<br />
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So not only do we not have an economic prescription at the end of the book to show the way that we need to move, but the whole issue of "the environment" - which so many people still view as separate from and in some cases in opposition to - the economy is just ignored. Maybe there will be a second edition that tackles that, or perhaps another book that goes through the scientific consensus on anthropogenic climate change and comes up with some economic policy proposals that might help.<br /><br />Not that the current generation of politicians are likely to pay the slightest bit of attention. As Applebaum notes after every market collapse the fascists emerge from the woodwork and look around for some minorities to blame. The current occupants of the White House, 10 Downing Street and even 24 Sussex Drive are all unlikely to change their policies. And there may be even worse to come. I wish I could say I feel optimistic about that, and nothing I read in this book manages to raise my spirits. <br />
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I think this is a necessary book for younger people than me - and will be valuable for those who have not been paying attention to economic policy until it hits them hard. The people who most need to read it, won't. And there's no point in trying to argue with people who prefer ignorance. Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-26600921714453789592019-08-30T12:24:00.001-07:002019-08-30T12:24:58.513-07:00Theatre Review: Bard on the Beach "Coriolanus"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br /><br />The last of the four Bard plays we went to see this year. I am sorry to say that it was the worst - and not just of this four.<br /><br />
Coriolanus is about a Roman general. They didn't call them that - either in Roman times or in Shakespeare's. But that is what he was. He was an historical figure - he is written up in Plutarch's Lives which was published in translation in Shakespeare's time. As a soldier Coriolanus was very successful, and after his latest victory popular opinion is that he is just the guy to run the country. Popular opinion is not only fickle but pliable - and that is what the play is all about. While the ordinary people ("plebeians") might want him as a leader, there are others, ("patricians") who are concerned about his abilities in a different sphere to a battleground. They engineer his downfall, but this turns Coriolanus against Rome altogether. He is contemptuous of plebeians in general but his rage extends to the whole of Rome. He joins his former enemies and launches an assault against the city in revenge for the insult they have offered him by refusing him the position of consul.<br />
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There is a great deal of emphasis these days on making the theatre more inclusive. In Shakespeare's time acting was exclusively male: female roles were played by boys whose voice has not broken. (By the way, that's how I got started as an actor but that is not relevant here.) Not only that but England was a land of mongrels - but mostly white ones. That is why plays like Othello and Merchant get attention still. The emphasis in casting now is equality. So often plays are cast colour blind. Or in this case gender switching. Some of the top soldiers are females - notably Coriolanus and Aufidius - his/her adversary in the first battle.<br /><br />Everyone is supposed to be enthralled by this idea. I demur.<br />
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But there is more than that that goes wrong in this production. The time is is set is just in the future. OK but then where is it? - since Rome is not only specific in time but in place. And much of the text of the play has not been changed. So every so often Coriolanus is addressed as "Sir". Some of the most problematic parts are left alone - so the point where Coriolanus has to wear a revealing white robe and show the scars collected in battle (to prove he has fought for Rome) are left as is. Which has a whole different meaning when Coriolanus is female. And sheds a whole new light on the hero's reluctance to show them to the mob. I wonder if more could have been done to edit the working script to edit out some of the gender flubs and "chronoclasams" (a word I like better than anachronism). Would fighters in the next decade resort to swords? Well actually in London right now the biggest problem is knife crime - so I could see a way to deal with that. Here we have the same problem that beset a modernisation of Julius Caesar - he wore a red baseball cap - but he wasn't stabbed to death.<br />
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But the biggest problem I have with this production is the lack of variation in pace, volume and tone. It is all disaster all the time. All very noisy, so everyone is shouting all the time. Since it is theatre in the round at least the half the actors have their backs to much of the audience - so the shouting becomes an indistinct roar. Since the text is so important much gets lost.<br />
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I kept mentally comparing this Coriolanus with the Tom Hiddleston one saw on NT Live. Hiddleston made his character seem genuinely conflicted when the requirements of political success had to weighed against his personal convictions. Moya O'Connell actually got about the only audience wide laugh of the evening as she suddenly seemed to dither where she had throughout seemed so determined. Probably not what she was aiming for, either.<br />
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Actually I think if a commander of an army is going to be successful they have to be respected by the troops - and that doesn't happen if the respect is not returned. Surely Coriolanus would have realised that there is an obligation to be respectful to the plebeians - not openly contemptuous. <i>Noblesse oblige</i>. The story of Coriolanus has played out more than once in history - Ike was a real Commander in Chief as well as a titular one. This is a weakness in the play, not the performance. But I found very little to like about this Coriolanus.<br /><br />If you have not seen it yet - go read one of the many other online reviews available. Many in this audience thought it deserved a standing ovation - but just as many sat politely applauding, but with less enthusiasm. The show's run has been extended by a week so there might still be tickets. <br />
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-82784610256796690612019-07-25T10:14:00.000-07:002019-07-25T10:14:27.536-07:00Theatre Review: Bard on the Beach - "All's Well ..."<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The third play on our program this year - and the first I have felt a need to review. By all means, if you haven't already, get tickets to see "Shakespeare in Love" (excellent) and "Taming of the Shrew" (pretty darn good). But I suggest that even if there are tickets left for "All's Well That Ends Well" I really doubt if it is worth your time and discomfort.<br />
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This is one of the problem plays - because it starts with a discussion of virginity - and doesn't really go anywhere after that except into an exceedingly unlikely and complicated plot - mostly based on possession of rings. Yes, I know all Shakespeare's plays have highly contrived plots, but usually to better purpose than this one. I had not seen it performed anywhere before, so I was curious. Now I understand why it is isn't done.<br /><br />
Shifting the location to British India in 1947 might seem bold and noble to some. I am not sure it adds anything much than some good excuses for some engaging dance numbers, which do reduce the tedium. But the seats in small theatre are hard and small, and after two hours downright uncomfortable. The flashing lights and noise of the passing helicopters ferrying casualties to VHG don't help. The fact that one member of the cast only speaks in Punjabi (I think) with no translation is baffling. I think we are supposed to figure out what she must be saying by her gestures and tone, and sometimes by the responses of the leading lady - but she also lapses into Punjabi with increasing frequency.<br />
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Do you get annoyed when your online activity gets interrupted by messages in Chinese? Same thing.<br />
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The set is clever and works well. The actors are all doing their very best. The only question left is why? There are some plays that seem to add something to one's life experience. If I had a bucket list, I suppose I can check this one off but I felt that on the whole I would rather have done something else.<br />
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Coriolanus is up next and we are seeing that at the end of August. We did see the NT Live version - but sadly my memory of that is lost. </div>
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-74139868237020936812018-12-31T14:14:00.000-08:002018-12-31T14:14:04.375-08:00Book Review: "Love is Blind" by William Boyd<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Rapture of Brodie Moncur<br />
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Published by Knopf 2018<br />
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This is not the usual run of books that I have been sent to review, or asked for. I was simply looking at the shelf of new acquisitions at the library and the description on the dust jacket appealed to me.<br />
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"Brodie Moncur is a brilliant piano tuner, as brilliant in his own way as John Kilbarron - "the Irish Liszt" - the pianist Brodie accompanies on all of his tours from Paris to St Petersburg ..."<br />
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and that was enough to make me think I would enjoy reading it. And I was right. I did.<br />
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I have to confess that I have not read anything else by William Boyd even though he has published fifteen novels, won awards and been shortlisted for the Booker. I will be looking for more when I go the library.<br />
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"Boyd seems singularly blessed with both an innate love of storytelling and the talent to render those stories in swift confident prose."<br />
-- Michiko Kakutani, <i>The New York Times </i><br />
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So I could, I suppose tell you more about the story, but I won't. That way you will have the same ability to be surprised by the way the tale unfolds. Because the plot does have surprises, and you will like that more than scanning a quick resume from me. Though I will say that while he wears bifocals, and they do get mentioned every so often, it turns out that his poor vision isn't nearly so important as you might have thought from the title. But it is probably useful for you to know that it starts in Edinburgh in 1894 - which is quite different to today. I mean that there were a lot of pianos to tune back then, and a good piano tuner could easily find employment almost anywhere. And his travels are extensive, and part of - but only part - of the thing that kept me reading. Great story.<br />
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<br />Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-69143367918243304932018-11-08T21:32:00.000-08:002018-11-09T11:57:05.337-08:00TV Review: Samin Nosrat "Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat" Netflix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I will admit at the outset that I have cancelled my subscription to Netflix. But that means I still have the rest of the month to make the most of the already paid subscription. This evening my partner was at a Special General Meeting so I did something I have never done before: I binge watched an entire tv series. OK so there are only four episodes, and each one is 40 minutes. But even before she came home I knew that we would watch this again together. I have also ordered the book of the same title from the library. Not that you actually need to copy the recipes, it is much more about the principles of how to cook.<br />
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And one thing that I was skeptical about was that I have been warned about salt, fat and acid. We tend to treat those things as the enemy - but Ms Nosrat persuades that these are actually essentials to good food. And if you want food that tastes good then you are going to need to use these components properly.<br />
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And I was surprised about how much I had to learn about heat. After all I have been cooking for a long time now and I don't get too many complaints. But what I have really been proud of - those exact 90° grill marks - are actually a wasted opportunity. And all that faffing around with oven thermometers was a waste of time too, as it turns out that every oven thermostat lies and the heat in every oven is uneven. When you think about it, it seems obvious, but opening the oven door means the front of the oven is bound to be cooler than the back. And that means the chicken has to have its drums sticks pointing to the back of the oven while roasting.<br />
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I have also practised taking things out of the fridge before I start cooking. Essential with eggs, useful with most anything else if the cooking is actually going to work throughout the meat. This simple precaution will make a difference to your Christmas turkey. And anything you throw on the grill.<br />
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But the other thing I got from my binge was a huge sense of enjoyment. She travels a lot and I have actually been to Italy and the Yucatan peninsula. I have a distinct feeling that eating at an all inclusive resort means we probably missed out on the best that is on offer there. I was doing a lot of the cooking in Italy too but we did eat out with increasing frequency as the vacation progressed just because there did not seem to be anywhere where the food was going to be poor. OK I will correct that too: the food at the Best Western at Fiuminico was awful.<br />
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Since it is a Netflix original I doubt that the programs we just watched will be available in other media any time soon. And this one did get a good review too from the <a href="https://t.co/mOlqXrRG5s" target="_blank">New Yorker </a>Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-59832366528680584222018-10-31T14:46:00.000-07:002018-11-02T14:52:16.150-07:00Book Review: "Best of Enemies" by Eric Dezenhall; Gus Russo <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
This is as near to a "true story" that can come out of the spy business. It is unfortunate that because I was reading a pre-publication ebook there was no index, nor were the extensive endnotes properly co-ordinated. It was also a book I felt obliged to put down, more than once, when its unblinking narrative became quite literally sickening. You really do not want to know what happens inside Russian prisons or interrogation centres. You are probably familiar with press reports of what happens inside the equivalent western sponsored facilities. It does not make for good bedtime reading.<br />
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Keeping track of the large number of people mentioned in the book is also a bit problematic but much revolves around two or maybe three people. One who is called Cowboy - a CIA operative and one who behaves much like him from the former Soviet Union. While much of the action has its roots in the cold war, intelligence and counterintelligence continues to consume resources and bedevil relationships between the US and Russia. Both countries have notably declined in recent years, and revelations about illegal, immoral and often pointless snooping continue. While neither side can actually feel like they are winning, the US seems to be slipping badly simply because its current President has relied on the Russians both to finance his own companies and to undermine democracy.<br />
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These failings do get acknowledged at the end of the book. But most of it reads like a an account of two sides simply failing to understand each other because of the way that large bureaucracies function - and become self perpetuating - without actually delivering much of anything. The account of spies on both sides being revealed as assets of the other seemed interminable. The KGB had high level sources inside both the CIA and FBI. Equally, there were US paid intelligence sources - and enough double agents working both sides of the street that no-one actually knew who or what could be relied upon. But even the most successful operations produced little or no information that was useful. Nobody wins becomes the refrain.<br />
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Oddly, the most recent intelligence coups by Philip Snowden are treated with contempt. It was not so much that the intelligence services were spying on each other, but their surveillance extended far too far into prying into areas where they had little if any legitimate reason. The wholesale scooping up of telecommunications metadata did little to provide security, but seems to have failed completely to identify the perpetrators of the worst kind within American society. It was never reds under the beds that was the real threat. It was the KKK.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: , , , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">"This is the 300th day of the year. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: , , , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">There have been 294 mass shootings in 2018. There are 10 days until Election Day.Vote like your life depends on it.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: , , , ".sfnstext-regular" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Because it does.”</span> Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-85502159339701403442018-10-09T08:45:00.000-07:002018-10-09T08:45:01.626-07:00Book Review: Holiday SOS by Ben MacFarlane<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Thistle Publishing sent me a copy of this ebook a couple of days ago. It is indeed a fast read, but not one that you would want to be reading on a plane, where most of the action happens.<br /><br />
I must admit I was a bit surprised by author's note at the end. Not that it was ghost written (by Neil Simpson) or that the details and names had been changed and some of the event details had been changed. That is to be expected. But the date of the note is "Spring 2009" and the publisher thanked is Hodder & Stoughton.<br />
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BIO017000 BIOGRAPHY &</div>
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AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Medical</div>
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Pub date 8 November 2018</div>
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ISBN 9781786080639</div>
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Ebook £3.99</div>
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Paperback £8.99</div>
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274 pages</div>
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Territory: UK & Commonwealth</div>
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Translation rights: Andrew Lownie</div>
<br />The paragraph above is taken directly from the Press Release: the author admits that the book is "a mix of fact and fiction" and it reads like a novel.<br /><br />Recently I have been watching a streamed series from the <a href="https://www.knowledge.ca/program/emergency-room-life-and-death-vgh" target="_blank">Knowledge Network "Emergency Room"</a> <br />
which I missed when it was first broadcast. It is a documentary and has no fiction at all - but some of the faces get blurred to protect patient privacy. It does confirm that the medical details in this book are accurate. I trust that neither I nor anyone I know has to find out how real the events it describes are. It is also somewhat different to what I expected - but then I was brought up listening to a radio series called "Flying Doctor" based on the experiences of medical practices in Australia in the 1950s. Most of the repatriations described in this book are those of people who have been treated and found fit to fly home on commercial flights. One of the benefits to the doctor is the number of air miles he collects. The other is that he gets to visit some interesting places. Of course most of the transfers in real life are without incident: it is necessary for book sales that this one is full of the ones that get hairy, though usually with a good outcome.<br />
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I also have to say that I do not know if this book will be available in Canada or the US (again note that clip from the press release). But if it is then I am happy to recommend it.<br />
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WHO DO YOU CALL IF IT ALL GOES WRONG ON HOLIDAY?</blockquote>
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Meet Doctor Ben MacFarlane – a very modern flying<br />doctor. His job is get on a plane and bring patients home<br />after holiday disasters, gap year crises, embarrassing incidents<br />on business trips and all the other things that can go<br />wrong when we head overseas.<br />Holiday SOS is his extraordinary story. It’s a unique medical<br />memoir of the people he helps - and a year in the life of<br />one of the world’s most frequent flyers! <br /> </blockquote>
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-59768230933063293012018-09-30T11:49:00.001-07:002018-10-01T12:34:22.423-07:00Satanic Verses and other Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<br />
Thirty years ago "The Satanic Verses" was published. Kenan Malik has an opinion piece about that in yesterday's Guardian. "<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/sep/29/satanic-verses-sowed-seeds-of-rift-grown-ever-wider" target="_blank">The Satanic Verses sowed the seeds of rifts that have grown ever wider</a>" is probably worth your time. I am not sure that I agree entirely but I am not about to argue with it. What did strike me was the thought that most of the people who got so offended, and angry, and making all kinds of threats and trouble almost certainly had not actually read the book. And in the last thirty years have been so offended by it that they would not dream of actually doing so. They don't need to because they are certain that they know what the book contains - and that they are not only offended by that but that it is just cause for the author to be killed.<br />
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Not so long ago on this blog I reviewed "<a href="http://stephenrees.blogspot.com/2018/09/how-to-talk-about-books-you-havent-read.html" target="_blank">How to talk about books you haven't read</a>". If you haven't read that post go have a look now.<br />
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The problem with the "People of the Book" - and it doesn't matter which Book (bible, koran, torah, Das Kapital) - is that they not only have not read all of the book, but they read bits of it through the guidance of teachers, priests, gurus. This is actually worse than just reading the Coles Notes or Reader's Digest version. You are steered to those passages - usually lifted from context - and told what they mean. There will be long arguments among "scholars" who debate the precise placement of the punctuation or the translation, whose concern is solely to pick a passage that supports their preferred position. For a long time suicide was condemned by Islamic mullahs, until the Ayatollah realised how useful it would be to exploit young boys to go into the minefields ahead of the troops by telling them about how glorious it would be for them in Paradise afterwards. I forget now how many virgins he promised them - but that led to the current problem with people wearing suicide vests in crowded places. I frankly doubt that the Ayatollah was actually working under divine guidance then or when he decided to issue his fatwah against Rushdie. Nor was he speaking on behalf of the entire religion (there being no single human authority over all the various interpretations of Islam). But somehow he managed to capture the zeitgeist so many were seeking even if under other circumstances they would have nothing but contempt for him and his claims to authority. <br />
<br />
Someone we know just told us she was going to "visit The Lord". Well that's nice but isn't he supposed to omnipresent? I bet somewhere right now there is someone reading this who is getting ready to be offended. That's the problem with Faith. You are not supposed to question it. You are not supposed to test the tenets with logic or reason - despite the fact that Your Creator supposedly endowed you with critical faculties.<br />
<br />
Did we actually get the law against blasphemy repealed yet? <a href="https://www.canadianatheist.com/2018/09/international-blasphemy-day-2018/" target="_blank">Apparently we yet might get there soon.</a><br />
<br />
I have not read The Satanic Verses. I have read other books he wrote - including his most recent - which I gave up not far in as his style of writing is so opaque and grandiose. He isn't actually trying to be readable: he wants to be seen to be writing literature. He wanted to be an important writer.<br />
<br />
One thing is for sure. If you are being told by someone how appalling Salman Rushdie's book is, the last thing you should say is "Have you read it?" Because their reply would be "I don't need to!"Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-4037554736098657282018-09-27T19:41:00.000-07:002018-09-27T19:41:21.790-07:00Book Review: Stuck in Manistique by Dennis CuestaI think that this is the first time that NetGalley has sent me an email with the heading "NetGalley Recommends". Instead of the usual process of asking if I can see a free review copy, in this case I could just download it. So when I clicked on the download button this is what I knew<br />
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Near the midpoint of the Upper Peninsula, along a Lake Michigan bend of shore, is the town of Manistique, Michigan. Mark had never heard of Manistique before the death of his estranged aunt, but as sole beneficiary of Vivian’s estate, he travels there to settle her affairs. As Mark tours his aunt’s house for the first time, the doorbell rings.</div>
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Days after graduating medical school, Dr. Emily Davis drives north, struggling with her illicit rendezvous on Mackinac Island. She never makes it—on the highway near Manistique, her car collides with a deer, shattering the car’s windshield. Stranded for the night, Emily is directed to a nearby bed and breakfast.</div>
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Maybe it’s a heady reaction, the revelation that his aunt, an international aid doctor, ran a bed and breakfast in retirement. Or perhaps he plainly feels pity for the young, helpless doctor. Regardless, Mark decides to play host for one night, telling Emily that he’s merely stepping in temporarily while his aunt is away.</div>
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As a one-night stay turns into another and more guests arrive, the ersatz innkeeper steadily loses control of his story. And though Emily opens up to Mark, she has trouble explaining the middle-aged man who unexpectedly arrives at the doorstep looking for her. </div>
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Will these two strangers, holding on to unraveling secrets, remain in town long enough to discover the connection between them?</div>
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When you open the book, you get a map. Now as it happens at one time - well for 25 years actually - Green Bay Wisconsin figured large in my life. It was where my then wife came from, and we visited family there from time to time. And every so often we would talk about heading north from there to visit Door County, or maybe the Upper Peninsula. But somehow we never managed to get to either place. And to a large extent this book reads a bit like a travelogue. I would not be at all surprised to learn that it is sponsored by the local tourist board or whatever (I have no hard evidence that this is true) since I now want to add these places to my bucket list. Though I have to ask: do they really run coach tours for seniors to visit all the casinos in a remote region?<br /><br />As it happens my then wife also shared a trait with the main male character. A fear of crossing bridges. <div>
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"Gephyrophobia is the anxiety disorder or specific phobia characterized by the fear of bridges. As a result, sufferers of gephyrophobia may avoid routes that will take them over bridges."</blockquote>
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Though hers was not as severe as the guy in the book. He has to use a phone booth to call the staff at the bridge to drive his car over The Bridge. It is, of course, huge.<br />
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The Mackinac Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Straits of Mackinac to connect the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of the U.S. state of Michigan. Opened in 1957, the 26,372-foot-long bridge is the world's 20th-longest main span and the longest suspension bridge between anchorages in the Western Hemisphere. <a class="q ruhjFe NJLBac fl" data-ved="2ahUKEwj24-Kv0tzdAhXiOX0KHTeHCH8QmhMwJXoECAMQEg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mackinac_Bridge" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mackinac_Bridge&ved=2ahUKEwj24-Kv0tzdAhXiOX0KHTeHCH8QmhMwJXoECAMQEg" style="color: #1a0dab; cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none; white-space: nowrap;">Wikipedia</a></div>
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I did not share her fear, and frankly this image is one of the reasons why I want to go see it for real.<br /><br />The story rolls out quite nicely. This is not an effortful read. You care about the characters and you want to know about what happens to them. I got a bit irritated by all the references to Fawlty Towers, which was not a B&B but an actual hotel with a full restaurant. But I was entrapped by the fascination with pies. I once got my son - bored on a long cross America road trip - fascinated by the question of what kind of pies we might see at the next stop. And how they compared to the pies we had already eaten. There is also a frustratingly incomplete recipe for French Toast that I am tempted to try.<br />
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I really enjoyed reading this book and wished it was longer. Very entertaining. Recommended<br />
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<pre class="display" style="background-color: #f1f1f1; border-radius: 4px; border: none; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: Raleway-Regular, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.5em; outline: none; overflow-wrap: normal; overflow: auto; padding: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: normal;">ISBN: 978-1-7324-1090-9 </pre>
<span style="background-color: #f1f1f1; color: #666666; font-family: Raleway-Regular, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">to be published in November 2018 by </span><span style="background-color: #f1f1f1; color: #666666; font-family: Raleway-Regular, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Celestial Eyes Press </span>Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-79708931767115135822018-09-22T14:18:00.001-07:002018-09-23T19:09:07.276-07:00Book Review: Blood Brothers by Nick Pope<div class="separator tr_bq" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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SPOILER ALERT<br />
<br />
There are some things in this book that this review is going to take exception to: that means I am going to reveal parts of the plot. Therefore I am going to insert here the unedited publisher's blurb. If that makes you want to read the book, and you want to keep the element of surprise then stop there.<br />
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<blockquote>
AS THE COMBINED FORCES OF MI5 AND THE SAS CONFRONT RUTHLESS ISLAMIC FANATICS BRINGING JIHAD TO THE UK, TWO FORMER ENEMIES ARE RELUCTANTLY PAIRED TOGETHER TO COMBAT THE THREAT.<br />
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Two deadly but very different terror attacks bring carnage to London on the same day: a suicide bombing in the heart of Soho, and the shooting down of a military aircraft taking part in a ceremonial flypast. Simultaneously, a previously-unknown Islamic radical calling himself Saladin declares a caliphate in the UK and decrees that all British Muslims should rise up against the infidel state.<br />
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The initial terror attacks are followed by sickening atrocities at Jewish schools, and in response to Saladin’s message, disaffected Muslim youths heed the call to arms, establishing Sharia patrols that bring terror to the streets. Others undertake lone-wolf marauding terror attacks. The resultant backlash plays into the hands of a charismatic right-wing politician and threatens to ignite a race war.<br />
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The Prime Minister authorises the creation of a multi-agency team, codenamed Artemis, led by an experienced MI5 analyst. This elite new unit brings together top experts from MI5, MI6, GCHQ and the SAS, in a desperate race against time to hunt down the terrorists before they can complete their murderous plan. They’re joined by a former enemy whose knowledge and skills might just be the key to unlocking the entire plot – if he can be trusted.</blockquote>
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Nick Pope worked for the Ministry of Defence for 21 years, undertaking a wide range of jobs, mainly in the MoD’s headquarters building in Whitehall. His final posting was as an acting deputy director in the Directorate of Defence Security.</blockquote>
So that does actually give away most of the content. Clearly Nick Pope has some background in what he is writing about. But even though I read the whole book, I did not find it at all to my taste. I am not going to talk about areas of which I have no knowledge, but there is one incident where the writer really should have done more research. One of the "lone wolf attacks" is by a tube train driver, who decides to run his train at full speed into the train in front of him. While the signalling system on the Piccadilly Line is indeed overdue for replacement, the way this collision is described simply could not happen. When a train occupies a block of track, the signals behind that train are changed to red. And at the same time a lever on the side of the track is raised. Any subsequent train that runs through a red signal would hit that lever with its "trip cock" - which applies the brakes and stops the train. That also alerts the central control system. The driver has to get down onto the track to reset the trip cock before the brakes can be released to allow it to proceed. There was an event analogous to this one. In 1975 a tube train driver drive into the end of the tunnel at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moorgate_tube_crash" target="_blank">Moorgate</a>. Since that event, the tracks at dead end stations and the imposed speed restrictions at end stops prevent any recurrence.<br />
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There are a number of "dog whistles" in the story. For instance there has been a long running controversy over the treatment of translators in Afghanistan formerly employed by the British who have been denied the ability to relocate to the UK for their own safety. A key plot device is that Saladin has been using such people to infiltrate Britain who then become sleepers awaiting activation. Similarly "political correctness" is blamed for the inadequate security screening of lorry drivers moving nuclear weapons for the MoD. There is also an odd incident when an innocent member of the public is shot dead because he looks like a suicide bomber. Partly due to racial profiling and his puffy jacket: mostly because the wires to his headphones are mistaken as wires to a suicide bomb vest. Except that they are described as "bluetooth headphones" - which do not have wires. <br />
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While the fictional British PM is male, the US President is left unidentified - but is clearly intended to be Trump. He is presented as capable of meeting with the (fictional) new leader of UKIP (which is plausible) and giving him an extensive verbal briefing, backed up by documentary evidence, of possibly illegal activities by the UK government. This stretches credulity as Trump can certainly be unpredictable and careless of diplomatic restraints, but he is clearly incapable of deliver any coherent analysis or effective instructions on policy issues or legal strategies. Equally readers are expected to swallow that the old IRA leadership never really accepted the peace agreement, failed to disable its weapons but would be willing to sell them to an Islamic extremist for "the enemy of my enemy is my friend".<br />
<br />
I think I can see someone working out a few of his old prejudices here. I knew people like Nick Pope, and I was surprised that they continued to occupy fairly important positions in the UK civil service, but I also learned how that happened and what the mandarins were able to do to keep such people away from important decisions. Nick Pope, on the other hand makes heroes out of people who disobey orders, run around operational constraints and provide cover for others of like mind. Makes for a lively novel, but does not win my approval. He is, of course, following a fine fictional tradition. <br />
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Thrillers / Terrorism</div>
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Pub date 15 November 2018</div>
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ISBN 9781786080752</div>
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Ebook £3.99</div>
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Paperback £9.99</div>
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294 pages</div>
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12px;">Territory: UK & Commonwealth</span> Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-52514502422358546992018-09-08T19:42:00.001-07:002018-09-08T19:42:49.263-07:00How to talk about books you haven't read<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This is a book I picked up from the "back to school" display at our local library.<br />
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It is translated from the french as the author, Pierre Bayard, is a professor of French literature at the University of Paris. It was, apparently, a best seller in France. The jacket blurbs of the english translation are laudatory.<br />
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At first I wondered if I had stumbled upon a clever joke of a book, but in all seriousness I think you should probably read this one if you ever find yourself in a conversation about a book that you know about but have not actually read.<br /><br />This book is full of references and quotations. Though the author claims he has not actually read many of the books cited they do exist and I have been on line and found a few of them. Although, as you might expect, some of the urls are out of date - but Google finds the actual volumes. In fact as I write there is a tab on this browser to "Theophano, the crusade of the tenth century; a romantic monograph" published in 1904.<br />
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<br />
I did read every word of the book cited in the title of this post. I did not read much of the one I just referenced. In fact I have no intention of ever reading it, nor do I expect to be asked about by the next person I meet in the elevator.<br />
<br />
I began to have my doubts about this book when a great chunk of it was about a movie: "Groundhog Day". This professor may not have read a lot of books he talks about but he seems to know the movie off by heart.<br />
<br />
But this book does have resonance. I realised in the course of my undergraduate degree that no-one has actually read "Das Kapital" - even though there was at least one study group that met regularly to do just that. (Someone I knew who went to one of these events likened it to bible class.) Most people who wanted to pass the final exam read the critics of the book, not the book itself. Not even the Coles Notes. I have actually read all of the James Joyce novel "Ulysses" but gave up on "Finnegan's Wake": I recall a lot of "Ulysses" because I saw the film starring Milo O'Shea. In fact I can even recall where I saw it because it was banned by the Nottingham Watch Committee as indecent and the Student Union hired buses (from Barton's of Chilwell) to take us to see it in Newark. I could probably write a blog post about either - based on either the book I did not read or the one I did but recall from the movie. And I know I have talked about both.<br /><br />You have read a lot of books. You probably cannot remember most of them. That doesn't stop you from having an opinion about them. Equally there are books of which you are aware but which you have never even held in your hands let alone opened them. But your opinion of them is equally solid. Especially those you have no intention of reading them ever. I bet one of them is Marcel Proust "Remembrance of Things Past". Of which you could probably provide a neat summary.<br />
<br />
Maybe you don't actually need to read Bayard's book either. <br />
Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-17060307020386361712018-08-27T16:20:00.000-07:002018-08-28T10:24:52.972-07:00Book Review: "A Divided Life" by Robert Cecil<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<br />
A biography of Donald Maclean<br />
<br />
You probably saw the BBC tv series "Cambridge Spies" which came out in 2003 but has been more recently repeated. I found that very engaging, so when I was offered a pre-publication review copy of this book to be published by Thistle Publishing on October 4, I was quite pleased. But I had not really got very far into it before I realised that it was quite out of date in some ways. So I did a bit of research - which initially was a bit frustrating since Google assumed I wanted to know about another Robert Cecil the 1st Earl of Salisbury, "an English statesman noted for his skillful direction of the government during the Union of the Crowns, as Tudor England gave way to Stuart rule." <br />
<br />
Having got that out of the way I established that this book was written by a contemporary of Maclean's who died in 1994. I found his <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-robert-cecil-1426497.html" target="_blank">obit in the Independent</a> written by Michael Cullis.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
IN 1948, after three years as First Secretary at the British Embassy in Washington, Robert Cecil returned to London as No 2 in the American Department of the Foreign Office. The head of the department was none other than Donald Maclean, on whom Cecil later wrote a definitive biography, A Divided Life (1988), in which, incidentally, he claims that as a mole Maclean did more actual harm to British interests even than Philby. I recall his telling me of his surprise at the way, typical perhaps of the disconcerting impact on officialdom of Maclean's defection, that he himself was never once interrogated on the subject. He was, however, promoted into Maclean's place in 1951.</blockquote>
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And, of course in 1988 there were other reviews of what was quite a successful book going into four editions and no doubt consulted by the writers of the tv series. So some of this is familiar territory. Cecil is actually fairly objective about Maclean, as someone he worked alongside and trusted. He also clearly feels betrayed, disapproves of Maclean's behaviour, especially his drinking and his homosexual exploits and rather shabby treatment of his wife - who late in life had an affair with Kim Philby in Moscow. But on the other hand Cecil rather approves of Maclean's commitment to his principles and his children. After his defection, Maclean continued to very carefully steer his own course remaining employed, and not getting at cross purposes with the soviet authorities but establishing quite a network of associations with dissidents. He had quite a comfortable life by soviet standards and his family was allowed to travel abroad. Maclean worked for a institute that promoted international relations, and managed to get a doctorate for his works, published in England by Hodder and Stoughton. Cecil is much more critical of Philby who continued to work for soviet intelligence (NKVD later KGB) and also published a book on his activities as a successful Russian spy - which sold a lot more copies than Maclean's did.<br />
<br />
Burgess was notorious even before he defected, but while is always coupled with Maclean in any mainstream media account, they had little contact once they left Cambridge - and not more than Maclean could help once in the USSR. Cecil strongly disapproves of Burgess. He also manages to providing a convincing case against the 1988 era press stories that portrayed the departure of the two spies as some kind of conspiracy. In reality it was largely luck and the usual British preference for proper procedures. Eleven years after their departure, Cecil was approached by Scotland Yard, as it seemed likely that two two might wish to return to England as Maclean's mother was dying and Burgess was both homesick and very unwell. Even then, there would have been quite a lot of difficulty in assembling an adequate dossier for the public prosecutors - which had been the case when they left. There were some, then still classified, decrypts that pointed to Maclean as a Mole in the British Embassy in wartime - when the US and UK were both allies of the USSR against Hitler - but it was not clear that these would be admissible in court even if they could be declassified - which was probably unlikely as the Americans were still very upset about the whole business.<br />
<br />
The mole who gets the least attention was actually the ringmaster - Anthony Blunt, who later became Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures and Director of the Courtauld. He stopped working for the NKVD after the war but remained "a sleeper". In 1964, after being offered immunity from prosecution, he confessed but was not publicly revealed until 1979. He also managed to have quite a comfortable life, leaving a Poussin in his will compared to Maclean's £5,000 estate - which he left to his estranged wife. Cecil does not devote a great deal of space to Blunt: I greatly enjoyed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Question_of_Attribution">A Question of Attribution</a>, a play written by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Bennett">Alan Bennett</a> about Blunt - and especially the performance of Prunella Scales as HMQ - who seems to have sussed out the old rascal.<br />
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Cecil does quite a good job explaining how Maclean's early life points towards his later success at acting on his own beliefs while appearing to be "one of us". It is also clear that the Foreign Office in the period in question was hopelessly out of date, and reliant on a set of assumptions that were probably very common in earlier times but increasingly anachronistic and ultimately unreliable. Cecil is quite revealing about how chummy a process of "positive vetting" could be among the right sort of people.<br />
<br />
My background is quite the opposite to the people portrayed in this book. And I must admit that at one time I felt some gratification when the system, that had treated people with my education and social status with something little better than contempt, was shown to be so incompetent. Little wonder that Great Britain should find its place in the world order steadily declining when who you knew and were related to was still so much more important than ability or knowledge. I cannot say I have any sympathy for any of the spies - or any of those who were supposed to be catching them.<br />
<br />
In 1988 I missed the original publication of this book. I had - a couple of years earlier - read Peter Wright's "Spycatcher" (who has a sort of "walk on" role in this book) which I bought in the US as Mrs Thatcher had banned its publication in the UK. I think she probably did him a favour as it was a very badly written work that would have sold few copies if it had been freely available, and he probably as a consequence made more than would have had she paid the pension he felt was his due.<br />
<br />
I am glad I caught up with this book now, and I think it is worthwhile as it is probably more reliable than some of the other more sensational treatments of the story. It is very readable, and well written, and backed up by a considerable bibliography. Cecil was a historian and his professionalism shines through. But if none of this is in any way familiar, perhaps you should watch the tv series first. <br />
<br />
I wonder what Cecil would have made of the current Russian sponsored occupant of the White House. <br />
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<br />Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-6006441116696463242018-08-21T22:42:00.000-07:002018-08-21T22:42:13.923-07:00Review: Timon of Athens (Bard on the Beach)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
There are only<a href="https://bardonthebeach.org/2018/timon-of-athens/" target="_blank"> nine more performances of this play</a> - and there may not be many seats available. But if you have not seen it - or like me, ever seen Timon performed at all - you should definitely try to get to see this one while you can.<br /><br />It is a nearly all female cast - just two blokes doing The Help and having very little to say. A real role reversal for the usual Shakespeare repertory. Of course, originally all the parts - male or female - were played by men or boys. And most of Shakespeare depends on the words, most of which are poetic. In this production, much of the play has been cut: all the subplots have been taken out, as has the intermission. So the whole thing is done in 90 minutes and they seem to fly by.<br />
<br />
The audience sits on three sides of the stage, so at least a third of the time some of the actors have their backs to you. And frankly a lot of the dialogue gets lost. Not that that seems to matter since you have a good understanding of the plot from the program. The drama is how it plays out, which is at once familiar, modern dress, set in Vancouver and with some familiar faces if you have been to the Bard at all in recent years, and at the same time, quite alarming. This is not like any other play I have ever seen - at the Bard or anywhere else. And without giving anything away, it is about friendship and trust and who you can rely on when times get tough. <br />
<br />
Colleen Wheeler as Timon gets the standing ovation, but she has terrific support from Jennifer Lines and Michelle Fisk. We went on a Tuesday night so we stayed for the talkback, which was well worthwhile. I rather wished Meg Roe, the Director, had been there for that for the cast gave her all the credit. I would have liked to ask her a question, but no matter. The Play's The Thing!<br /><br />*****Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0Vanier Park, 1000 Chestnut St, Vancouver, BC V6J 3J9, Canada49.277288000000013 -123.1435496000000327.935985000000013 -164.45214360000003 70.618591000000009 -81.834955600000029tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-79332626135428637602018-08-13T16:55:00.000-07:002018-09-23T19:09:49.368-07:00Blasphemy is still a crime in Canada [Text below comes from an email campaign organised by the BC Humanist Association]<br />
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<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; margin: 1em 0em; text-size-adjust: auto;">
To the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs:</div>
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<strong>Repeal Canada's Blasphemy Laws</strong></div>
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Blasphemy laws chill the free expression of atheists and religious minorities. However, maintaining the special protections for religious officiants and worship means religious dissidents will continue to risk prosecution if they speak against religious authority. In studying Bill C-51, we urge the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs to support the repeal of sections 296 and 176 of the Criminal Code.</div>
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Canada remains one of the last liberal democracies to maintain a blasphemy law in section 296. Even though no one has been prosecuted under the law in decades, the presence of such a law can bolster the arguments of regimes around the world seeking to introduce new blasphemy laws to censor atheists and religious minorities. It's well past time we repeal this antiquated attack on free speech.</div>
<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; margin: 1em 0em; text-size-adjust: auto;">
Section 176, which prohibits obstructing clergymen or disturbing a religious worship, acts as Canada's other blasphemy law. The law criminalizes religious dissent and gives protections to religious authorities that are not afforded to the nonreligious. We are disappointed that the House of Commons chose to keep this section and urge you to reconsider that decision.</div>
<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; margin: 1em 0em; text-size-adjust: auto;">
Please defend the right to speak against dogmatic authority: Support the repeal of sections 176 and 296 of the Criminal Code.</div>
<br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; text-size-adjust: auto;" />
<br style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; text-size-adjust: auto;" />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Sign here:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://www.bchumanist.ca/senate_blasphemy_law?recruiter_id=6574" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px; text-size-adjust: auto;">http://www.bchumanist.ca/senate_blasphemy_law?recruiter_id=6574</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"> </span><br />
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If God actually existed, and was truly omnipotent, he really would not care what human legislation said. It would not hamper him one iota. So why do the God enthusiasts continue to behave so irrationally?Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-6490191692928551332018-08-06T21:15:00.000-07:002018-08-07T07:54:49.615-07:00Book Review: The Clockmaker's Daughter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
by Kate Morton<br />
Publication Date: 09 Oct 2018<br />
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Simon & Schuster</div>
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I have just finished reading this book. It has not been one of those that you cannot put down - it is one that I felt I <b>had to</b> put down, every so often, to decide what was happening and why. It is indeed spell binding since it deals with the sort of things that get dismissed summarily. But it is great story telling and the first thing that requires, if it is to be successful, is the suspension of disbelief. A bit like the unspoken pact you make when you take your seat in the theatre, and the show begins, and you allow yourself to wrapped up in the presentation, and disregard the obvious fakery in the props and scenery. Just like going to the magic show: you know that it is an illusion, but you want it to be a good one. We delight in being taken in - even when we also know that if the secrets were revealed we would feel immensely let down. We want to believe.</div>
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This book has quite an accurate description in its blurb so I am going to cut and paste that to the end of this review. That way I do not have to worry about inadvertently providing spoilers. But I will say up front that I enjoyed every moment of reading it, and I feel I know about the times and places it describes. It actually covers quite an historic sweep but I have visited some of the places, and know a bit about some of the items discussed. Many I wanted to immediately go look up, just to make sure I was right. For others I was simply content to say to myself "it's a story. It doesn't matter." Well one thing I did look up, because I was certain it didn't exist but - at least according to wikipedia - it did. But is actually very rare, which is why I had never heard of a tuppenny coin. But that is real, and now I think I may go look up some of the other things that made me wonder. Yes, priest holes are a thing, I know that. And the Thames does have locks and weirs on its upper reaches, so it is very much a tamed stream that flows down to the sea. </div>
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There's a bit of history, there's quite a bit about art - painting and photography - as well as about story telling and sleight of hand. It is very satisfying. It is easy to recommend but if I tell you anything more I risk giving something more away and I don't want to spoil it. So trust me on this one. Read it and don't do too much jumping to conclusions in the first few chapters. And be aware that the voice of the story teller shifts around between characters as does the time. The dates are made clear on the chapter headings and will help you to keep your bearings, and you do need to keep names in your head. </div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">A rich, spellbinding new novel from the author of <i style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">The Lake House</i>—the story of a love affair </b></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">and a mysterious murder that cast their shadow across generations, set in England from the 1860s </b></div>
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<i style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">My real name, no one remembers.<br style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;" />The truth about that summer, no one else knows.</i><br />
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In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe</div>
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summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has </div>
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been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s </div>
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life is in ruins.<br />
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Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather </div>
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satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in </div>
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Victorian clothing, and an artist’s sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend </div>
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of a river.<br />
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Why does Birchwood Manor feel so familiar to Elodie? And who is the beautiful woman in the photograph? </div>
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Will she ever give up her secrets?<br />
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Told by multiple voices across time, <i style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">The Clockmaker’s Daughter</i> is a story of murder, mystery, and thievery, </div>
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of art, love, and loss. And flowing through its pages like a river, is the voice of a woman who stands outside </div>
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time, whose name has been forgotten by history, but who has watched it all unfold: Birdie Bell, </div>
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the clockmaker’s daughter<i style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none;">.</i></div>
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-57193180008097984192018-06-26T21:15:00.001-07:002018-06-26T21:15:11.833-07:00Book Review: Voices of the Foreign Legion<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">Adrian Gilbert's </span></span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Voices of the Foreign Legion: </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The French Foreign Legion in Its Own Words</span></i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="text-align: justify;">, will be published on <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">August 9. I was offered a preview on NetGalley.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9WNgm-phjuheQzCJXUhb-g0taCG29GiQguqfv8qc3vplRPPCHnfQs7opras4Un-lgt8vysXjk07tQ-dbBYFfMa8v4PC8GoxgCIze9RmoCOOs7-eWjGIvTa9LqUMKIidOHcwFt88peu8/s1600/ForeignLegion+thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="999" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9WNgm-phjuheQzCJXUhb-g0taCG29GiQguqfv8qc3vplRPPCHnfQs7opras4Un-lgt8vysXjk07tQ-dbBYFfMa8v4PC8GoxgCIze9RmoCOOs7-eWjGIvTa9LqUMKIidOHcwFt88peu8/s320/ForeignLegion+thumb.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><br /><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Military history is not really my thing, but this book grabbed me at the first chapter and I read the whole thing in the course of a day. It is mostly legionnaires talking about their experiences first hand. I was surprised by how much of it seemed familiar, but then there have been a lot of people who joined the legion for the experience and so they could write about it. And a lot of the letters and journals kept by legionnaires have been published. The book has copious endnotes and a long bibliography. But, infuriatingly, no index. And I suppose over the years some of this came my way: probably as extracts and articles. The Legion has always been controversial and often newsworthy. Its role, first as securing the French Empire, then as trying to keep it going and finally as a sort of all purpose rapid response team means that anyone who has kept their eye on international events will be familiar with many of events described, if not in quite the same intimacy as these guys. And, surprisingly, one woman. </span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">And because the legion has featured in many books, movies and tv shows there is a degree of familiarity with many of its traditions and most of its peccadilloes. There are also a number of unique circumstances: the legion has had many Germans in its ranks - and in both world wars there were German legionnaires fighting for France against German troops. In its modern role, the huge diversity of its membership means it has been much more effective in dealing with conflicts such as the UN missions in the former Yugoslavia than say the Canadian peacekeepers who were at best bilingual compared to the multilingual FFL. </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">There is no doubt at all that the sort of people who want to join are not always the best sort of people. These days apparently they can afford to turn away the majority of applicants. At other times, they have been glad to welcome many people who perhaps they would not have chosen as recruits. The FFL has always been a law unto itself. It is not supposed to be for French nationals, but there are ways around that - and always have been. The legion is noted for its brutality not just to its trainees but to almost anyone who gets in their way. The Legion looks after its own which means it defends - among others - sadists and psychopaths. And the people who survive their minimum five year contract or the longer 15 years which gets them French citizenship (if they want it) all seem to keen to defend it.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">I have never had any military experience and equally have had no wish to. And what I have learned about the FFL over the years means that I cannot say I admire them. But on the other hand if I were captured by some the nastier outfits that include hostage taking in their resumes, I would be very glad if the FFN did intervene. Soldiering is not my forte - but I have to recognize that there are times when professional soldiers - who often get labelled "mercenaries" are indeed necessary. So it is instructive to understand exactly why basic training - and in the case of the FFN much of the rest of their training too - looks a lot like torture. And why it works. There is a section on desertion - but is far more generalized than most of the book. There are plenty of interviews with those who stuck it out: not much from those who walked away, other than, a bit surprisingly, the acknowledgement that desertion can spring from the same need for excitement and adventure that prompted enlistment. And also the problem of "cafard" which seems closely linked to feelings of captivity or maybe boredom. </span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">I think if I had been asked to edit the book I would have suggested more critical coverage - but then to some extent the people quoted often condemn themselves. There are also several times when there is no direct quote from the soldier but rather a slab from the official history - which is, at the very least, somewhat suspect in its objectivity. </span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1179800345" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">I hope I have conveyed that I felt my time was usefully spent reading this book, and those of you who like this sort of thing will find it good of its kind. Not only did it ensnare me, but I found it raised a number of questions in my mind that I once remembered having. So my memory cells have been tickled and thats not bad thing either. </span></span></span></span></span></span>Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-79162608443363687922018-05-14T20:08:00.001-07:002018-08-28T10:26:42.420-07:00Restaurant Review: Bells and WhistlesOne of our favourite local eateries is Buffala. The same people have now opened up on Fraser at 17th <a href="https://www.bellsandwhistlesyvr.ca/" target="_blank">a restaurant</a> selling "classic Americana roadside fare" - basically burgers and fries with soft ice cream for dessert.<br />
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The website is very informative and everything is as described. We visited on a Monday evening at 6pm so there was no line-up and we were seated immediately. The list of beers on tap appears to show quite a few "off" but the majority of those on this occasion were ciders. The absence of one nitro stout I would have liked to try was offset by the Persephone that was "on" and very nice indeed. I chose the Fat Stevens - just because - and it was very good indeed, and paid the extra for garlic fries which come with that little paper cup of aioli which is entirely superfluous. Service was brisk and attentive and everything was delicious.<br />
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The ambience is diner - lots of hard surfaces. So noise levels are high, even before the sound system is turned up for the evening. At this point conversation across the table is next to impossible. Patrons on either side, of course, talk even louder. So you cannot understand what is being said to you by the people you came with but you hear far too much of conversations next to you. I know I am old and I know I come from a generation that enjoyed "a nice quiet pint". You cannot have that here. I like this place and I like their intentions, but I won't be coming back in the evening again.Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com03296 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC V5V 4B9, Canada49.2557137 -123.0897006000000127.9143882 -164.3982946 70.5970392 -81.781106600000015tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-57794024736714150752018-04-23T11:23:00.000-07:002018-04-23T11:27:39.350-07:00Book Review: "Dear Mrs Bird" by A J PearceI asked for the Net Galley preview based on their description. I did indeed greatly enjoy reading "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" but this is not really in the same league. By the way that has been released as a movie - and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/apr/22/guernsey-literary-and-potato-peel-pie-society-review-whimsy" target="_blank">the review came out in yesterday's Guardian</a>. And if that title does not mean anything to you, try this<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
[The] mouthful of a title is a useful flag. Some will find the chintzy fussiness of it insufferable. To those people I say, trust your instincts. This film is not for you. Others, evidently individuals blessed with a higher tolerance of whimsy than I could ever dream of, will forgive the unwieldy word soup. But even fans of the source novel, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, might struggle with this photogenic but laboured adaptation.</blockquote>
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So perhaps "Dear Mrs Bird" does have its whimsical side. Someone who stays in London during the blitz because she wants to become a war correspondent to an evening newspaper, ends up working for the agony auntie of a ladies magazine. She is clearly not where she wants to be or on track for anything, yet she sticks to it, even though there are some fairly obvious and more attractive opportunities. Though perhaps dispatch rider for the Auxiliary Fire Service would not be top of mind, except she volunteers as a telephone operator for the AFS overnight. There is surprisingly little about the daily deprivations - one mention of managing to find an onion is about the only reference to rationing, even though "forbidden sugar" does make a late appearance.</div>
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This is a first novel and Ms Pearce does a reasonable job, though I must admit I found the start a bit slow. Not quite enough to make me stop reading entirely but I do feel that she deserved some more pro-active editing. I stuck with it because I have recently simply abandoned two preview ebooks, each after a couple of chapters. So this one must have had something they didn't to make me keep going. Eventually it does get up to speed when we get away from the claustrophobic ladies mag and into the fire brigade's call centre (not that they called it that then) and some very good descriptive writing of the air raids, and their impact on London and its inhabitants. There are very few real villains - other than the Führer and his minions. Mrs Bird is the wrong person to be an agony aunt - and in fact hardly does that job at all. The heroine simply fills the space her boss leaves available. Nearly everybody else does their bit and keeps their upper lip as stiff as possible under trying circumstances - some revealing their anxieties in letters to someone who ought to help but very obviously doesn't. </div>
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I suspect that the book is aimed at female readers. Certainly it is written as a first person account, rather than the author as omniscient invisible observer. And it does see writing, persistently, despite all the odds, as the greatest virtue, which I suppose one must expect from someone trying to be a writer. I hope this one gets more guidance in her future efforts. <br />
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"Dear Mrs Bird" will be published on July 3, 2018 </div>
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-58250186748983598112018-03-23T12:28:00.001-07:002018-03-23T12:28:48.902-07:00"Julius Caesar" National Theatre Live: review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br /><br />There is a May 12 reprise, and I would recommend you go see it.<br />
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<a href="http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/ntlout26-julius-caesar" target="_blank">Details here</a>.<br />
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The Bridge Theatre's production has the audience as part of the action. It starts before the advertised show time with footage shot in the audience of what seems like a mosh pit. A small rock/punk group is pounding out the music (I recognised "Eye of the Tiger" : "We're not gonna take it anymore" was the anthem!) that then becomes part of the action of the play Shakespeare wrote, that has so often been done in bedsheets. This is really modern. Not just dress but weapons. Caesar makes his first entrance wearing a red ballcap, but sends it off into the crowd early on, and that is really the only direct reference. Cassius is now female, but still lean and hungry - and dangerous. Mark Anthony wears a shirt with his name across the shoulders like a professional sportsman. David Morrisey reminded me of Liam Neeson. He, like the punks, spends a lot of effort getting the crowd psyched up. But the crowd stands quietly attentive during the other scenes. For over two hours without an interval.<br />
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Much of the dialogue has entered the language now and has become clichés, but one the great strengths of this production is that they are reinvested with potency and meaning. One of the strongest performances is mostly the understated studiousness of Brutus (Ben Whishsaw) who comes across as a bit of nerd. But much of the skill on display is how he and Anthony play on the crowd. This is what brings the play is resonance: how the emotions of the mob are so readily swayed by rhetoric. If you have Shakespeare as your speech writer you probably don't need Cambridge Analytica.<br />
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After Caesar's assassination the action turns from a street party and a congress to a civil war. This feels horribly familiar from the news footage we see so much of. Now its from Syria but it could be Basra or Belfast or almost anywhere. Lots of noise and flashing lights - smoke affects and a Land Rover apparently driven into the crowd. Gunfire that sounds only too authentic. And the ending is just that: Anthony and Octavius survive - but the politics doesn't seem to change one bit.<br /><br />The show we saw at The Park was unusually well attended. Normally there is no concern about getting a good seat as there is at the ScotiaBank Theatre downtown. We were able to move to a better view when a huge bloke plonked himself down in my sightline. There was also a total absence of preshow - which is very unusual at Cineplex, and I hope becomes standard. No adverts and no trailers and not really very much about upcoming NT Live shows either. Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-9029981027008769172018-03-15T18:55:00.000-07:002018-03-15T18:55:00.803-07:00Book Review: "Full Disclosure" by Beverley McLachlinTo be published on 1 May 2018<br /><br />When NetGalley offered me the opportunity to read a pre-release version of this book I jumped at the opportunity. There are some people in public life that you begin to feel you know - or at least admire. The 17th Chief Justice of Canada, the first woman to hold this position, and the longest serving Chief Justice of Canada in history is one such person. A bit like Sheila Fraser - the former Auditor General - whose reports I would read approvingly, and wish there were more like her.<br />
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It is probably unsurprising that a former judge would try her hand at a novel, and that it would be based on a murder mystery, and have all sorts of procedural and legal stuff in it. Moreover this story is set in Vancouver and the city plays a significant role in how the story plays out. There are real places and real events embedded into the tale. It is an easy read, and a real page turner. Some of the chapters are very short indeed, and the plot is properly divided into three acts. I would not be at all surprised to see this turned into a mini-series on Netflix. There are certainly good plot twists and an interesting cast of characters. I do like the legal novel - Scott Turow would be the standard by which I judge such things. I have to confess to getting a bit jaded with John Grisham. And this is Canadian Content, so I suppose that I started out with a favourable bias.<br />
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One thing I did like is the acknowledgement that there are miscarriages of justice, and that these arise due to the failings of human beings. Judges are not always as impartial as they ought to be. Police far too often follow tunnel vision and look for reasons to bolster their preconceptions rather than weigh all the possible options, let alone some of the more improbable things that are thrown into the mix by creative writers.<br /><br />
It also seems inevitable that if you decide to write a crime novel that the setting is with the extremely wealthy - the sort of people who might own a chunk of waterfront property in West Van, and would hire an architect to build them a house to meet the peculiar needs of their family. The suspect's alibi is that he was out on one of his boats all day - and that relies on someone at the Vancouver Yacht Club remembering that he saw him. Equally inevitably many of the characters are going to be attractive and have interesting sex lives. Chuck in some name dropping here and there and the thing starts to write itself. On the other hand it is entertainment - and this is indeed entertaining. I was not reading this out of some sense of obligation, and I did deliberately put it down, now and again, just to make it last longer. And I do have no objection at all to recommending it wholeheartedly, because it is well worth your time. I think if it wasn't time limited and unquotable (part of the deal you have to make to get it free from NetGalley) I might have spent more time checking out some of the references. Yes indeed, champagne is made from Chardonnay grapes - one of the few that I did bother to check.<br /><br />And one nice detail is that the female lawyer who is the central character has a portrait of the Chief Justice on her wall. Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-47634838643447907022018-02-06T13:26:00.000-08:002018-02-06T13:26:15.905-08:00Multigrain Bread<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP2wFT9cSJ6jpsEh4iDrxHkh5NQBsfIK613xDtZIz4pHh4FERIUgTsFmAR4Oq0qtKCBZF0QnZnjvI3pXP0P89Ofm-j92-UW_NgVDlSXX3W_NIykeW-2RyiMQ1SNFZezjNXCBQwiuym9-A/s1600/fullsizeoutput_25ca.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP2wFT9cSJ6jpsEh4iDrxHkh5NQBsfIK613xDtZIz4pHh4FERIUgTsFmAR4Oq0qtKCBZF0QnZnjvI3pXP0P89Ofm-j92-UW_NgVDlSXX3W_NIykeW-2RyiMQ1SNFZezjNXCBQwiuym9-A/s320/fullsizeoutput_25ca.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The recipe for this was downloaded from the internet many years ago. I have adapted it to use instant yeast, which greatly reduces time and effort. I have successfully made this with wholewheat flour but this particular loaf is multigrain, which produces a nice crunchy crust.<br />
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<b>Ingredients</b><br />
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3 1/2 cups Multigrain flour<br />
1/3 cup milk<br />
1/4 cup honey<br />
1 cup warm water<br />
1 1/4 teaspoons salt<br />
1/4 cup vegetable oil<br />
1 packet (2 1/4 tsps) instant yeast<br />
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<b>Method</b><br />
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In the mixer bowl combine the water (at 110℉ to 120℉) with the salt, honey, oil, yeast and milk. Use the dough hook and add the flour until the dough starts to pull away from the bowl.<br />
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In this case I did it the other way round, as there was more than enough milk left in the carton and the water was too hot. So I started with flour and added water until it looked OK. Despite the precision of the measurements and times in a recipe, reality is variable. Your place might be warmer or drier or be located halfway up a mountain, for all I know. Experience will be useful, so don't fret about variability of temperatures, times and humidity. <br />
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Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead for 6 to 10 minutes: you may need to add more flour if it starts sticking to the surface when you are kneading.<br />
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Let it rest for ten minutes, then shape it and put it into a lightly greased loaf pan and then put it in a <b>warm place</b> until it doubles in size. I used the oven at its lowest setting 170℉. I put a folded newspaper between the loaf pan and the oven grid and, having turned off the oven, held the oven door open with a folded tea towel. Once upon a time I had a fridge with enough headroom to put the loaf on top of the fridge. It will take between 30 and 60 minutes to double. Earlier loaves either mushroomed if left too long or got huge air bubbles under the crust.<br />
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Bake at 350℉ in the centre of the oven for 40 minutes.<br />
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When you tip the loaf out of the tin, tap the underside to see if it sounds hollow to ensure it is done.<br />
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Enjoy the experience of eating this while it is still warm.Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1871705412953857530.post-43248896050182365392017-12-20T12:18:00.004-08:002017-12-20T12:18:47.558-08:00Tracking the image thievesThere is a website called <a href="https://www.pixsy.com/" target="_blank">Pixsy</a> that will help you trace the use of your images on the internet.<br /><br />I post many of my pictures on flickr, and I have been quite surprised how often these turn up on other web pages, without any acknowledgement of who took the picture and where it was taken from. Occasionally I do get paid a fee for the use of one of my pictures. More often it is taken without anyone asking - but as long as they comply with the Creative Commons license I use (attribution, noncommercial, no derivatives) I don't worry too much. Of course, flickr's terms of service requires that anyone using a picture posted on their site has to been linked back to the photo page from any website that uses it. Some people even do that properly.<br />
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So if you find one of your images being used what happens? Well Pixsy will help you with a canned takedown notice which gets sent to the site operator. Mostly they go look at the URL and then talk to the people running that web page.<br />
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Recently one of these takedown requests got bounced by a hosting site that insisted that the URL was not good enough and I had to fill out one of their on line forms. And that required I provide an IP number. But as I am sure you know <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/dec/20/police-made-appalling-errors-in-using-internet-data-to-target-suspects">IP addresses are routinely reassigned by internet providers.</a><br />
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I also did not know that you can readily convert a URL to an IP by using your terminal and the command dig<br /><br />
So I was able to complete the form to meet the requirements that allowed the web form to be submitted. But I somehow doubt that we will actually catch the miscreants.<br /><br />And just for laughs here are a couple of examples for you, courtesy of Pixsy<br /><br />
This photo on flickr<br />
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/6838295579">https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/6838295579</a><br />
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appears at<br />
<a href="https://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/53544/norway-nocc-secures-new-time-charter-for-car-carrier-nocc-coral/">https://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/53544/norway-nocc-secures-new-time-charter-for-car-carrier-nocc-coral/</a><br />
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Scroll down to NOCC Sells Two headline<br /><br />and here<br /><br /><a href="https://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/135828/nocc-sells-two/" target="_blank">https://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/135828/nocc-sells-two/</a><br />
<br />This was in 2014 but that picture is still there. There is no credit and no link and I am pretty sure that World Maritime News is not published by some nonprofit. It carries advertising and wants subscriptions and claims copyright over images that it holds no right to.<br />
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This one<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/6413564115">https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/6413564115</a><br />
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appears here<br />
<br /><a href="http://dallowaytimeline.weebly.com/works-cited.html">http://dallowaytimeline.weebly.com/works-cited.html</a><br /><br />but only as a link, not an image. Did Mrs Dalloway actually visit Akumal on the Mayan Riviera?<br /><br />This one isn't commercial so I am not seeking money as in the first case - and they are linking back to flickr, and it doesn't look like anyone makes a bean. So no real case for a takedown.<br /><br />By the way the reason you can't see the pictures themselves in the blog post is that Google refuses to show Flickr images from their URL - which I think is a Good Thing.<br /><br />And my personal favourite<br /><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/3715319108" target="_blank">https://www.flickr.com/photos/60142746@N00/3715319108</a><br /><br />and<br />
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<a href="https://tootoou.com/%D8%A2%D8%B4%D9%BE%D8%B2%DB%8C/%DA%86%DB%8C%DA%A9%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7-%D8%8C-%D8%BA%D8%B0%D8%A7%DB%8C-%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%B4-%D8%B1%D9%86%DA%AF-%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF%DB%8C-2">https://tootoou.com/%D8%A2%D8%B4%D9%BE%D8%B2%DB%8C/%DA%86%DB%8C%DA%A9%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7-%D8%8C-%D8%BA%D8%B0%D8%A7%DB%8C-%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%B4-%D8%B1%D9%86%DA%AF-%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF%DB%8C-2</a><br />
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Stephen Reeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14557925284157387548noreply@blogger.com1