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Eleanor (1463 KP) rated Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus in Books

Nov 17, 2019  
Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus
Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus
Sandi Toksvig | 2019 | Biography, History & Politics
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A disjointed look into the life and mind of a modern-day icon.
Sandi does start this “memoir” off by stating it’s not going to be your run of the mill standard life story and that was undoubtedly true. Set along the route of the number 12 bus we get a mixture of Sandi’s life recollections, historical facts about London and observations about the people on the bus. An inventive idea to say the least and despite some truly interesting recollections, I didn’t find the format as a whole worked for me.

Each chapter roughly focuses on an area on the number 12 bus route but from there we jump almost in each paragraph between historical facts, recollections, and observations. It fails to develop any flow and where we do get some lovely passages of insight into Sandi’s fascinating life and experiences we are drawn all too quickly out of the experience to find out what used to be sold in this particular part of London in the dim and distant past, or what terrible bus habit another passenger may be exhibiting.

This book just was too all over the place as a sit down read, it would make a great addition to any toilet library though (and I truly mean that in the nicest way) as all the little titbits of facts and anecdotes are individually interesting they just don’t seem to flow together. I could easily read a more standard memoir from the ever amazing and inspiring Sandi based on the passages in this book that focused on her. Equally, I could read a book on the neglected women through history written by her or a general history of London but changing focus every paragraph or so was not for me.


Many thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.