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Goodbye Sugar: Hello Weight Loss, Great Skin, More Energy and Improved Mood
Book
We all know a diet too high in sugar wreaks havoc on our health and well-being, yet many of us feel...
How to Deal with OCD: A 5-Step, CBT-Based Plan for Overcoming Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Book
OCD, or obsessive compulsive disorder, is a common and difficult condition characterised by...
Meditate Your Weight: A 21-Day Retreat to Optimize Your Metabolism and Feel Great
Book
Hundreds of medical studies have shown the spectacular health benefits of meditation. Now, Tiffany...
The Five Tibetans: Five Dynamic Exercises for Health, Energy, and Personal Power
Book
"Inspired and clear, The Five Tibetansmakes a worthy contribution to body-mind wellness and...
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated A Kill for the Poet (Chaser on the Rocks #2) in Books
Nov 18, 2019
Burdening your detective characters with personal problems has a long tradition. Alcoholism, messy relationships and lack of respect for authority are common. But Maltman delivers a cut about all of these with Brian Caskey, a fiction author with mental health issues which mean he really shouldn't be getting out of his depth.
Yet that is what happens when a mysterious surveillance job turns into something far more sinister and despite himself Caskey can't help but try to unravel the mystery. Like picking at a scab this is something he feels compelled to do but it's really only going to make things worse. The main story is woven through with Caskey composing his latest novel featuring his 1940s detective Billy Chapman investigating a murder.
Despite the complexities Maltman creates for himself in both his main character and the book within a book, both plots work well together. The Billy Chapman sections serve to break up the main story, like sorbet between a twelve course meal. Caskey, despite his problems, is an engaging character and very believable even when the plot he gets caught up in veers towards being wilfully obscure. There is an obvious comparison to Bateman's Mystery Man, another Nothern Irish detective with mental issues. But where Mystery Man is often a tragic and self-defeating character, Caskey is nothing like that and embraces his flaws.
Above all this stands up as a good solid detective story (indeed two of them). Maltman has a flair for producing interesting and very readable books and this is no exception
Yet that is what happens when a mysterious surveillance job turns into something far more sinister and despite himself Caskey can't help but try to unravel the mystery. Like picking at a scab this is something he feels compelled to do but it's really only going to make things worse. The main story is woven through with Caskey composing his latest novel featuring his 1940s detective Billy Chapman investigating a murder.
Despite the complexities Maltman creates for himself in both his main character and the book within a book, both plots work well together. The Billy Chapman sections serve to break up the main story, like sorbet between a twelve course meal. Caskey, despite his problems, is an engaging character and very believable even when the plot he gets caught up in veers towards being wilfully obscure. There is an obvious comparison to Bateman's Mystery Man, another Nothern Irish detective with mental issues. But where Mystery Man is often a tragic and self-defeating character, Caskey is nothing like that and embraces his flaws.
Above all this stands up as a good solid detective story (indeed two of them). Maltman has a flair for producing interesting and very readable books and this is no exception
ClareR (5674 KP) rated Bird Therapy in Books
Apr 17, 2020
Bird Therapy tells us how important nature is for our mental wellbeing. Joe Harkness has struggled with his own mental health for many years, and after reaching crisis point, he decided to get out into his own local natural environment. He began birdwatching, and soon realised that the combination of getting out in to the countryside and having a purpose to do so (birdwatching), helped him to find calm in an otherwise anxious and depressed mind.
This book not only looks at the medical evidence, proving the worth of getting out into our green spaces, but also looks at how birdwatching could work for the reader too. There are loads of helpful tips at the end of each chapter as well. For me though, the real beauty of this book is in the writing itself. The descriptions of the places where Joe goes to find birds, the times of year and the birds themselves are really inspirational. They make me want to go to these places and find these birds myself (I’m now obsessed with the idea of seeing a Shrike, after I googled it and found a picture of one sat on a fence, with what looks like a toad hanging out of its mouth!). I will enjoy my garden for now, in this time of Covid 19 isolation, but when we’re allowed back out, I’ll certainly be getting out into the countryside near where I live.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this book, and to Joe Harkness for so actively participating in the process.
This book not only looks at the medical evidence, proving the worth of getting out into our green spaces, but also looks at how birdwatching could work for the reader too. There are loads of helpful tips at the end of each chapter as well. For me though, the real beauty of this book is in the writing itself. The descriptions of the places where Joe goes to find birds, the times of year and the birds themselves are really inspirational. They make me want to go to these places and find these birds myself (I’m now obsessed with the idea of seeing a Shrike, after I googled it and found a picture of one sat on a fence, with what looks like a toad hanging out of its mouth!). I will enjoy my garden for now, in this time of Covid 19 isolation, but when we’re allowed back out, I’ll certainly be getting out into the countryside near where I live.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this book, and to Joe Harkness for so actively participating in the process.
EL
Every Last Tie: The Story of the Unabomber and His Family
David Kaczynski and James Knoll
Book
In August 1995 David Kaczynski's wife Linda asked him a difficult question: "Do you think your...
Jason Vale’s 5-Day Juice Challenge (5lbs in 5 Days)
Food & Drink and Health & Fitness
App
Off the back of his hugely successful #1 best-selling book and app “7lbs in 7days Juice Master...
Hazel (1853 KP) rated All Fall Down (Embassy Row, #1) in Books
Dec 14, 2018
<i>I received this book for free through a Books With Bite giveaway.</i>
Ally Carter has become well known for her <i>Gallagher Girls</i> series, which was followed by <i>Heist Society</i>. Now she is back with a brand new young adult series: <i>Embassy Row</i>. After witnessing the death of her mother three years earlier, sixteen year old Grace is shipped off to Adria to live with her ambassador grandfather at the United States embassy. Well known for her dare devil, rebellious history, she is now expected to settle down, become more ladylike and attend international balls. Grace, however, has other plans.
Grace is convinced her mother was murdered and that she knows whom the murderer was. The only problem is no one believes her; not her grandfather, not the many psychiatrists; and even her friends have their doubts. So, Grace does what any “self-respecting mentally unbalanced teenager” would do and takes matters into her own hands.
It is exciting to read about Grace putting pieces of the puzzle together by investigating underground tunnels, tailing a scarred man around the city and, all in all, behaving rather like James Bond. As the plot begins to climax it is difficult not to rush through the novel to discover how it ends, where the reader is left with another mystery.
As well as the mystery storyline, Ally Carter also explores the theme of mental health. Naturally Grace has had issues since the death of her mother and finds herself, time and again, trying to convince people she is not crazy. Readers who have experienced mental health problems may relate to not being taken seriously and understand Grace’s frustration.
Overall, <i>All Fall Down</i> is a fantastic and exciting story to read. The air of mystery and feeling of suspense keeps the reader on their toes as they race through the book. It is also refreshing to read a young adult novel that does not focus on a teenage love story. The only problem is the wait for the second book to be published!
Ally Carter has become well known for her <i>Gallagher Girls</i> series, which was followed by <i>Heist Society</i>. Now she is back with a brand new young adult series: <i>Embassy Row</i>. After witnessing the death of her mother three years earlier, sixteen year old Grace is shipped off to Adria to live with her ambassador grandfather at the United States embassy. Well known for her dare devil, rebellious history, she is now expected to settle down, become more ladylike and attend international balls. Grace, however, has other plans.
Grace is convinced her mother was murdered and that she knows whom the murderer was. The only problem is no one believes her; not her grandfather, not the many psychiatrists; and even her friends have their doubts. So, Grace does what any “self-respecting mentally unbalanced teenager” would do and takes matters into her own hands.
It is exciting to read about Grace putting pieces of the puzzle together by investigating underground tunnels, tailing a scarred man around the city and, all in all, behaving rather like James Bond. As the plot begins to climax it is difficult not to rush through the novel to discover how it ends, where the reader is left with another mystery.
As well as the mystery storyline, Ally Carter also explores the theme of mental health. Naturally Grace has had issues since the death of her mother and finds herself, time and again, trying to convince people she is not crazy. Readers who have experienced mental health problems may relate to not being taken seriously and understand Grace’s frustration.
Overall, <i>All Fall Down</i> is a fantastic and exciting story to read. The air of mystery and feeling of suspense keeps the reader on their toes as they race through the book. It is also refreshing to read a young adult novel that does not focus on a teenage love story. The only problem is the wait for the second book to be published!
The Art of Narrative Psychiatry: Stories of Strength and Meaning
Book
Narrative psychiatry empowers patients to shape their lives through story. Rather than focusing only...