Bibliography, September 2016

BOTM: E.L.Carr, A month in the country

R. Adams, The coming of the Horseclans
R. Adams, Sword of the Horseclans
R. Adams, Revenge of the Horseclans
R. Adams, A cat of silvery hue
J. Smiley, A thousand acres
S. Pinker, the better angels of our nature

So, I read some classic (by which I just mean old) fantasy novels last month after I found them in Hay on Wye. They were splendid, especially given this intro:

However, it must be confessed everything else was actually better. I thought I was going to give this to Pinker which is well written and (for the first two thirds) and excellent history of the decline of violence, but a) the last section is about psychology and I lost a little bit of interest and b) having read it, I'm increasingly concerned about the robustness of some of the data. Instead, Carr's book, a sixth of the size, is BOTM. It's perfectly formed, charming and brimming with gentle mischief and melancholy. And it's got churches and religious art in it. I loved it.