Anon, The Secret Barrister: Stories of the Law and How It's Broken (2018)
A. Cherry-Gerrard, The worst journey in the world (1922)
T. Disch, On wings of Song (1979)
P. Fitzgerald, The Blue flower (1995)
J. Morrissey, Genius in the Design: Bernini, Borromini and the Rivalry that Transformed Rome (2005)
G. Simenon, Piotr the Latvian (1930)
A collection of curate's eggs. With everything uneven, I toyed with making BOTM the first Maigret book, as it was nicely done, and short, though the ending was weird. I also gave consideration to Cherry-Gerrard, but I felt it was too long and unbalanced. However, despite numerous flaws, I most appreciated Sandbrook's account of Macmillan's Britain. I've made a thicket of notes from it which I'll put up later, and it is a treasure chest of information and gobbets. I'm not really an expert in modern Britain, so much of it was news to me. I'm not sure I'd suggest everyone reads it, as it is also too long and can't quite decide what kind of book it wants to be. I think there are two books trying to be written here. One about the social change (or lack thereof) through the period and a more conventional political and economic history of the period. I think Sandbrook has a better eye for the former (I'm unconvinced by his economics), and in either case, the book would have benefited from being wider in range, including at least the period to the end of the sixties which he went on to write in a second volume. Nonetheless, in the good sections, and there are many, he uncovers currents and significance that can easily be lost in compressing perspective of the recent past, and I do think that we often get that wrong. In most cases he doesn't and that perspective is welcome.
